Price gift supports new institute, professorship

Ohio State has announced a recent gift of $130,000 from Baltimore native Corbett A. Price, chair and CEO of Kurron Shares of America of New York, N.Y.

Price's contribution augments University resources allocated to support the Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in the Americas, an interdisciplinary research center to be established at Ohio State. Plans for the institute originated in the colleges of Humanities, Social and Behavioral Sciences, and Law.

His donation also is a lead gift supporting the creation of a Health Services Management and Policy (HSMP) Professorship in the College of Medicine and Public Health's School of Public Health.

Under the leadership of College of Humanities Dean Michael Hogan and colleagues from the College of Law and the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, plans for establishing the Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in the Americas -- as well as a search for its director -- are well under way. The institute is envisioned as a center for interdisciplinary research, learning and dissemination of knowledge on the history, current conditions, and future prospects for racial and ethnic minorities. Designed to establish Ohio State as an international research leader in the field, the institute will consolidate individual scholarly efforts already taking place; function as a public resource through outreach and community involvement programs; and contribute significantly to local, state, national and international discourse on crucial issues of race and ethnicity.

"The Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in the Americas will help us establish the University as a leader in an emerging interdisciplinary field with significant opportunities for both academic recognition and external funding," said President Brit Kirwan. "In addition, it will encourage scholarship in a field of overwhelming social, political and cultural importance, advancing outreach on local, national and global scales. And it will enable us to build a more diverse faculty by playing a role in the recruitment and retention of top minority scholars."

With more than 600 alumni nationwide and in several other countries, the graduate program in HSMP prepares its students for management and policy positions in health service and related organizations, as well as for research and academic careers. The professorship supported by the Price gift will enable the program to recruit and retain a nationally renowned faculty member with a distinguished record in teaching, research and publication.

"We're very appreciative of Mr. Price's gift to support this professorship. His generosity will help us to continue to recruit top-notch faculty members to our Health Services Management and Policy program," said Fred Sanfilippo, senior vice president and dean of the College of Medicine and Public Health. "Health care is such a critical issue in today's society, and it's imperative that we have strong faculty members and programs in health policy and management to train tomorrow's leaders."

Added Price, "I hope that my support of this professorship will inspire others to make gifts to complete funding for this important faculty position. I applaud the work being done by [Professor and Program Chair] Steve Loebs and his colleagues -- not only in preparing others for management positions in the field, but also for their valuable contributions to research aimed at improving health services."

Price earned an M.S. degree in health administration from Ohio State in 1975. In 1990, he founded Kurron Shares of America, a New York-based consulting company specializing in the acquisition and/or restructuring of hospitals and health care systems.

Lisa Wente is proposals manager for the Office of Development Communications.

Notables

Researchers earn V Foundation grant

A team of researchers at Ohio State's Comprehensive Cancer Center has received a $300,000 grant from The V Foundation for Cancer Research to study how breast cancer cells interact with healthy cells around them in the earliest stages of the disease.

Twenty-five cancer centers submitted proposals for the award, and only three were funded. Ohio State will provide a matching grant for the award.

The V Foundation for Cancer Research was founded in 1993 by ESPN and the late Jim Valvano, North Carolina State basketball coach and ESPN broadcaster. The foundation awards millions of dollars in grants to promising young researchers across the country who are working on innovative approaches to fighting cancer.

Hart joins national advisory council

Tally K. Hart, director of student financial aid, is serving on the Lumina Foundation for Education's new Academic Advisory Council. The council, composed of 12 leaders in higher education policy, practice and research from across the country, will advise the foundation on relevant issues in higher education access and degree attainment, and recommend research, program and policy initiatives.

The Lumina Foundation is a private, independent foundation that strives to help people achieve their potential by expanding access to an education beyond high school. Through research, grants for innovative programs and communications initiatives, the foundation addresses issues surrounding financial access, educational retention and degree or certificate attainment, and opportunities for nontraditional learners.

Prospective student Web site wins award

Ohio State's Prospective Student Web site has been recognized with a Gold Medal in the Web site category by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) in its annual recognition program. The site was selected from among 145 entries from colleges and universities nationwide as the top winner. The site was developed by the New Media staff in the Office of University Relations and the Office of Undergraduate Admissions, and was launched last fall. See the site at www.osu.edu/undergraduate.

CASE's membership includes 2,900 colleges, universities and independent schools internationally.

Spielmans help fund novel cancer research

Researchers studying genetic changes in the earliest stages of breast cancer will benefit from the second round of awards from the Stefanie Spielman Fund for Breast Cancer Research at Ohio State's Comprehensive Cancer Center -- Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute.

The awards go to four outstanding young researchers within the Molecular Biology and Cancer Genetics Program who are studying genetic factors in the development of breast cancer -- Michael Weinstein, Gustavo Leone, Michael L. Robinson and Ralf Krahe.

The fund, established in 1998, was named in honor of Stefanie Spielman, a breast cancer survivor, who, along with her husband, former OSU and NFL standout linebacker Chris Spielman, has dedicated time and energy in raising community awareness about breast cancer.

Journal recognized for excellence

An article published in the autumn 2000 Theory Into Practice, published by the College of Education, was recently honored for excellence in educational publishing. The article, "Loss of Family Languages: Should Educators be Concerned?" written by Lily Wong Fillmore, was selected for a Distinguished Achievement Award in the Learned Article category in the 2000 competition of the Educational Press Association of America. The article was part of a theme issue on the topic "Children and Languages at School," guest edited by Lois M. Meyer.

The Educational Press Association, organized in 1895, is a professional association of education editors and publishers. The award-winning issue was developed by Merry Merryfield, a professor in the School of Teaching and Learning.

Urologist named to Longaberger chair

One of the country's most distinguished urologists has been named the first holder of the Dave Longa-berger Endowed Chair in Urology at Ohio State. Robert R. Bahnson, professor of surgery in the Department of Surgery, Division of Urology, will hold the chair for four years.

The Longaberger Chair was endowed as part of a $5 million gift to Ohio State in 1998 from The Longaberger Foundation of Newark. The goal of the endowment is to provide support for research in the field of urologic disease, particularly cancer. The chair was established in honor of Dave Longaberger, founder and CEO of The Longaberger Co., who died in 1999 of renal cell carcinoma.

Corrigan is leader in brain injury field

John D. Corrigan, director of the division of rehabilitation psychology at the OSU Medical Center, recently was honored for his leadership in the field of brain injury at the 20th annual national symposium of the Brain Injury Association of America.

Corrigan was presented with the 2001 William Fields Caveness Award, which is presented to an individual who, through research on both a national and international level, has made outstanding contributions by bettering the lives of people who have sustained traumatic brain injuries.

Corrigan helped establish Ohio State's brain injury unit, which opened in 1983 in Dodd Hall and was the first specialized unit of its type in central Ohio. He also is founder and director of the Ohio Valley Center for Brain Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation, which conducts research on the rehabilitation and long-term outcomes of people with traumatic brain injury.

Armada Group wins business competition

Armada Group Inc. rose to the top in the first Fisher College of Business/Arthur Andersen Business Plan Competition. As the first-place winner, the four-member team came away with $85,000 in cash and services. At the core of their business is a secured Web-based selection of software and services that will be available to law enforcement agencies on a subscription basis. The services will enable officers in the field to easily and quickly determine if apprehended suspects are wanted for other crimes.

Second place, with $15,000 in cash and services, went to OConnect, a company whose proposed all-optical switching equipment, in combination with its innovative software, will dramatically increase the speed and capacity for data traffic on the Internet.

A third-place plaque was awarded to Reward Bound, which provides proprietary Web re-direction technology for the business-to-consumer and business-to-business marketplace.

Eight teams presented plans at the competition finals. They were selected from a field of 17 business plans submitted for the final round of the competition. Fisher College and Arthur Andersen joined forces to offer teams of entrepreneurs with an Ohio State connection a chance to compete for start-up funds and services. Competing teams were required to have at least one OSU student member. The competition drew 150 students from across and beyond the Ohio State campus during its various stages.