Muskingum News

Muskingum University received $866,006 in Choose Ohio First program funding from the Ohio Department of Higher Education. The University’s COF initiative, Broadening STEMM Career Pathways in Appalachian Ohio, builds on the current COF scholar program and has been designed as part of the institution’s Impact 2025 Strategic Action Plan. Over the last two years, Muskingum has received $1,854,886 in COF grant award funding.

ODHE provides funding to Ohio’s colleges and universities to support students in innovative academic programs. Participating universities and colleges award scholarships to students desiring a certificate, associate degree, baccalaureate degree, or graduate degree in eligible STEM and STEM education fields.

“We greatly appreciate this continued support from the Ohio Department of Higher Education’s Choose Ohio First program. This new award recognizes the successes we have had supporting and developing our STEM scholars since our first COF grant in 2008,” said Paul S. Szalay, Ph.D., Chair, Division of Natural, Applied, and Health Sciences. “We are thankful for the opportunity to be able to continue serving the educational and career development needs of our COF students as we prepare them to impact the future of science and technology in Ohio.”

Muskingum will utilize its COF funding to support traditional undergraduate students, adult degree completion students, and graduate students in areas of critical workforce demand. For traditional undergraduates, the eligible majors will include computer science, general engineering, mathematics, nursing, and math and science education.

For students in the Muskingum Adult Program (MAP), nursing degrees will be available to registered nurses looking for career advancement through the RN-to-BSN program and to those looking into enter the nursing profession from another field through the accelerated Bachelor of Science in nursing (ABSN) program. At the graduate level, eligible degrees include the Master of Business Information Systems (MBIS), Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT) as well as Master of Arts in Education (MAE) and Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) for those pursuing math or science teacher licensure.

According to ODHE, Choose Ohio First funds higher education and business collaborations that will have the most impact on Ohio’s position in world markets such as aerospace, medicine, and information technology. Choose Ohio First is part of a strategic effort to encourage Ohio’s economic strength by ensuring a ready workforce for STEM-related industries. 

Undergraduate students who are interested in learning more about Muskingum’s Choose Ohio First scholarship program can visit https://www.muskingum.edu/financial-aid/science-scholarships. Graduate and Muskingum Adult Program students interested in the Choose Ohio First scholarship program can contact the Office of Graduate and Continuing Studies.