NEWARK, Ohio, February 27, 2020 – Students at Central Ohio Technical College (COTC) will have greater access to state-of-the-art medical training equipment thanks to funding approved by the state Controlling Board. Gov. Mike DeWine announced that COTC has been awarded a $161,266 grant from the Ohio Department of Education to purchase two Anatomage Tables, highly technically advanced virtual dissection systems that have revolutionized anatomy education. The award is part of a Regionally Aligned Priorities in Delivering Skills (RAPIDS) initiative. Gov. DeWine made the announcement on Wednesday, February 26, at Ariel Hall, COTC’s Knox campus in Mount Vernon.
“The RAPIDS program awards offer a unique opportunity for Ohio’s postsecondary educational institutions and employers to help address local workforce needs,” said Gov. DeWine. “Students are able to gain access to top-notch equipment that helps better prepare them for available jobs.”
Lt. Gov. Jon Husted and Ohio Department of Higher Education Chancellor Randy Gardner joined DeWine at the announcement. The event was also attended by close to 100 area government, educational and community leaders, including Ohio Representative Rick Carfagna, chair of the Ohio House Finance Committee on Higher Education. After the announcement, Gov. DeWine and others toured the COTC Knox campus and met with nursing faculty and students.
“I will always remember my visit last year to COTC and President Berry when we announced there would be a new round of RAPIDS grants, so it’s only fitting that we are back at COTC today to announce the awarding of new RAPIDS funding across the state,” Chancellor Randy Gardner said. “These new dollars will help COTC prepare the next generation of healthcare workers while strengthening Ohio’s workforce.”
One Anatomage Table will be placed at the COTC Knox campus and the second at the forthcoming John and Mary Alford Center for Science and Technology, which is scheduled to open in spring 2021 at the COTC Newark campus. COTC was previously awarded $288,000 in RAPIDS funding in 2017 to purchase state-of-the-art medical equipment, including its first Anatomage Table.
“Overall, the healthcare sector is critical to the economic sustainability of both Knox and Licking counties,” said COTC President John M. Berry, PhD. “Occupational projections for Knox County show a need for approximately 2,400 new healthcare workers by 2026. In Licking County, Licking Memorial Health Systems (LMHS) has remained a top employer for over a decade, with its workforce growing from 1,121 in 2008 to more than 2,000 employees in 2019. Approximately 20% of the workforce within LMHS are graduates of COTC.”
COTC is a fully accredited, public college dedicated to providing high-quality, accessible programs of technical education in response to current and emerging employment needs. COTC is the only technical college in Ohio operating four full-service campus locations: Newark, Coshocton, Knox and Pataskala.
