Ohio State collaborations extend far beyond campus

Faculty, staff and students from The Ohio State University hit the road this week for the annual Roads Scholars Tour, a two-day bus tour showcasing university partnerships across Ohio.

This year’s tour began at the Ohio State University Airport and included stops at Glen-Gery Brick Yard in Iberia, Buurma Farms in Willard, Flying Horse Farms in Mt. Gilead, Gorman-Rupp Pumps in Mansfield, and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

“We have a mix of faculty and students on the road here in Ohio,” said Executive Vice President and Provost Bruce A. McPheron. “We like to get folks out to actually see the impact that Ohio State has on the state of Ohio.”

The tour highlights Ohio State’s work with businesses and nonprofit organizations in communities large and small.

“Every stop on the tour has an education component,” said Janis Browning, the Office of Outreach and Engagement’s program coordinator for the trip.

Doctors from the Wexner Medical Center volunteer at Flying Horse Farms, a summer camp for children with serious illness. The camp also offers internship opportunities for Ohio State students studying nursing, human nutrition and other subjects.

Glen-Gery Brick Yard quarried and manufactured all the brick for the Ohio Union and North Residential District on the Columbus campus, and the new Science & Engineering Building on the Marion campus. The company donated $20,000 of the brick used in Marion.

In Willard, Ohio State has operated an agricultural research station near Buurma Farms since 1948. The Muck Crops Agricultural Research Station studies disease management, insect and weed control, food safety and more.

The tour is also about giving back. The buses stopped at the Greater Cleveland Foodbank, and students, faculty and staff spent a morning sorting donations and packing summer lunches for schoolchildren.