COLUMBUS — State Senator Shane Wilkin (R-Hillsboro) has announced that Southern State Community College will receive $2,575,000 from the state capital budget process to establish the Information Technology Center of Excellence.
Southern State is receiving $1 million in capital budget funds and an additional allocation of $1,575,000 from redirected older capital projects that cannot move forward, according to a news release. The funds will be utilized to renovate the space, labs, and classrooms that will make this new center a hub for students studying information technology and cybersecurity.
“Southern State provides an excellent education to students in Appalachia, and these funds will allow the college to expand its work to teach the next generation,” Wilkin said. “With the commitment of the Tech Industry to Ohio, this Center of Excellence is extremely important to our region and to our kids. The opportunity to prepare for jobs of the future in a state-of-the-art facility will be key to the success of our children’s future.”
“Senator Wilkin has consistently been an outspoken champion for Southern State, and his support for our most recent effort to accelerate presence in computer science technology and cybersecurity is unparalleled. Southern State is humbled by how Senator Wilkin shepherded this opportunity and ultimately secured Ohio’s investment in modernizing our labs to support our students’ project-based learning and promoting innovation and community engagements,” Southern State President Nicole Roades said. “He recognized our value in our story and helped us communicate it. We are thankful for Senator Wilkin’s genuine regard for ensuring that all learners in the region have access to programming and state-of-the-art facilities that inspire greatness and support a globally competitive workforce among southern Ohioans.”
“When I visited Southern State to take part in the Ohio Code Scholar Project, I was floored by the hundreds of students who were so enthusiastic about computer science and its related fields,” said Ohio Department of Higher Education Chancellor Mike Duffey. “The Information Technology Center of Excellence will allow Southern State to take the great work it’s already doing to the next level and further prepare these students for a successful future.”
The legislature generally approves a capital budget every two years, according to the release, funding needed improvements to public services and facilities across the state, including schools, infrastructure, and mental health and addiction facilities. House Bill 2 includes $600 million for new construction and facility upgrades at Ohio’s public schools and $575 million for local infrastructure projects such as roads and water and sewer projects.
In addition to the traditional process, $700 million was set aside through the One-Time Strategic Community Investment Fund to support projects throughout Ohio that normally would not qualify for capital budget dollars.
Governor DeWine signed House Bill 2 into law and is now effective.
