$11.5 Million i3 Grant Could Benefit Reynoldsburg Students

Columbus State Community College will receive an $11.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education as part of the department’s “Investing in Innovation (i3)” competition. The grant will fund a dramatic expansion of programs designed to enhance college and career readiness.

College and career readiness programs allow students to take college courses and earn college credits while in high school. Programs incorporate professional development and support services to help students succeed.

The i3-funded project, titled “Central Ohio Partnership for College and Career Readiness Expansion,” could eventually impact more than 10,000 students in seven school districts: Columbus, Groveport-Madison, Hamilton Local, Licking Heights, Reynoldsburg, South-Western and Whitehall.

More than 400 applications were submitted, 13 of which were chosen to share in the i3 program’s $113 million fund. Columbus State is the only community college and only Ohio entity selected for funding.

“Building on the work of the Central Ohio Compact, this funding will go a long way to prepare high school students for the rigors of college work and the workplace,” says Steve Dackin, Superintendent of School and Community Partnerships at Columbus State. “A more educated workforce is a win-win for all of Central Ohio.”

Grant recipients were required to secure matching private sector funding in order to receive grant funds. Columbus State’s corporate partners, whose commitment to readiness has already had a positive impact in Central Ohio, made identifying matching funds a simple formality.

“Central Ohio does public-private partnerships better than any region in the country,” says Columbus State president David Harrison. “Our partners at AEP and JPMorgan Chase have led by example in this regard.”

Other essential partners on the project will include Jobs for the Future, Educational Service Center of Central Ohio, Metro Early College High School and the SERVE Center at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Link to U.S. Department of Education announcement