BGSU's first Center of Excellence okayed

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Bowling Green State University’s Center for Sustainability and the Environment was named Wednesday as one of Ohio’s Centers of Excellence in advanced energy.

Gov. Ted Strickland and Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Eric D. Fingerhut, made the announcement, which was attended by Dr. Deanne Snavely, dean of BGSU’s Graduate College.

Snavely said BGSU already has established work in several areas that will help it compete for funding through competitive grants from Ohio’s Third Frontier program.

BGSU’s center is one of nine named at eight Ohio universities.

Snavely said BGSU has been conducting work on “solar energy conversion, interior lighting, wind energy, removing barriers to wind generation on Lake Erie and using algae to generate fuel.”

Just last week BGSU and University of Toledo researchers were recognized for taking a fresh approach to determining promising sites in Ohio for the production of giant windmills.

Snavely said the Center of Excellence proposal was written by a number of faculty, especially those in the sciences.

“Meeting our advanced energy standard depends on making sure we continue to develop new technologies,” Strickland said. “These Centers of Excellence will play a key role in meeting that goal as well as strengthening Ohio’s position as a market leader in supplying the world’s advanced energy economies. That is important for a simple reason – when we grow these industries, we create jobs.”

The others energy centers announced Wednesday are located at: Case Western Reserve University: Great Lakes Energy Institute; Central State University: Emerging Technologies; University of Cincinnati: Sustaining the Urban Environment; University of Dayton: Von Ohain Fuels & Combustion; and Strategic Energy and Environmental Informatics; Ohio State University: Climate, Energy, and the Environment; Ohio University: Energy and the Environment; University of Toledo: Advanced Renewable Energy and the Environment.

The Centers of Excellence, as outlined in Ohio’s 10-year Strategic Plan for Higher Education, is intended to position the University System of Ohio to be a magnet for talent and a leader in innovation and entrepreneurial activity by developing distinct missions for each institution that are recognized by students, faculty and business leaders, while eliminating unnecessary competition for resources, students and faculty within the state.

BGSU has also submitted Developing Effective Businesses and Organizations, 21st Century Educator Preparation, Health and Wellness Across the Lifespan and The Arts as center of excellence proposals.

(The Sentinel-Tribune newspaper is a FOX Toledo News media partner)