by Lauren McGuire, Student Public Relations Writer
The state of Ohio and the Department of Higher Education (ODHE) have awarded Cedarville University a five-year, $411,600 grant to provide student scholarships. This award will support student recruitment and continuation for the first two academic years. Awards in subsequent years are subject to budget appropriations by the Ohio General Assembly.
This round of Choose Ohio First (COF) scholarships can be used for incoming students starting in the fall of 2020 who are either computer science or computer engineering majors. “This provides an incredible incentive to attend Cedarville versus another Ohio university that does not have access to this program,” said Dr. Robert Chasnov, dean of the School of Engineering and Computer Science.
— Seth Hamman
According to Dr. Seth Hamman, associate professor of computer science, for a relatively small investment of taxpayer money, the program helps keep top high school students in Ohio for their college education and will provide a boost to Ohio’s economy since they are likely to stay in state for their careers in the tech industry after they graduate.
“We are privileged to steward these state funds and to help advance the goals of the Choose Ohio First Scholarship program,” Hamman said. “Overall, being entrusted with these funds is an affirmation from the state of Ohio of the quality of our school of engineering and computer science programs, and it is a huge blessing for Cedarville.”
Because of this scholarship, Cedarville can compete with other highly ranked computer science and computer engineering programs around the state of Ohio.
“Cedarville University as a whole benefits greatly from the national recognition given to our computer science program by the National Security Agency and our Center for the Advancement for Cybersecurity,” Chasnov said. “It also benefits our computer engineering program through our highly acclaimed competition teams.”
Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 4,380 undergraduate, graduate and online students in more than 150 areas of study. Founded in 1887, Cedarville is recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, including the Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering programs strong graduation and retention rates, accredited professional and health science offerings and high student engagement ranking. For more information about the University, visit www.cedarville.edu.