On Monday, Dec. 13, 2022, Ashland University was awarded a massive grant from the Choose Ohio First (COF) program in hopes to help develop future generations and working members of society.

While the country, state and countless communities continue to recover from the impacts of COVID-19, this grant hopes to help grow the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. For AU, this gives the University the chance to create new scholarship opportunities for students.

The money given to the University will be provided to the students attending the College of Nursing and Health Sciences.

Senior and College of Nursing student Jeremy Ziemak is happy with the support that the future workforce is receiving from the state.

“I think it is vital to gain increased interest in the health care field, especially nursing,” said Ziemak. “Coming out of the pandemic, nursing has reached a critical point of staffing and safety for both nurses and patients.”

Although he is graduating in the 2023 Spring Semester, a grant like this can help bring more students into a field that has struggled with staffing issues in recent years.

“Being able to aid nursing students financially greatly increases the likelihood of students staying within the program and helping decrease staffing issues,” he said. “It is refreshing to see the state of Ohio investing in the future of healthcare now.”

The University plans to utilize this grant for the next five years for Nursing and Heath Sciences students.

“Ashland has always been an ‘Ohio First’ institution, as nearly all of our graduates stay in our state. So, this program is especially valuable to our student body,” said AU President Carlos Campo in the official press release.

A full picture of the press release from Ashland University, sent to students and faculty, can be found below: