YSU Awarded $2M for Innovation Center
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The Appalachian Regional Commission has awarded $1 million to Youngstown State University to support the school’s Excellence Training Center project, U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan announced this morning. The grant will be matched by the state of Ohio, bringing the total investment to $2.1 million.
The funds will be used to renovate the former Mahoning County Misdemeanor Jail on the corner of Commerce Street and Fifth Avenue. The building will house the Mahoning Valley Innovation and Commercialization Center, a space where students in all disciplines can design and build products, develop business concepts and use advanced manufacturing technologies. Overall, the project is expected to train 200 workers and create or retain 188 jobs. The Excellence Training Center is a component of the Mahoning Valley Innovation and Commercialization Center.
The YSU Board of Trustees approved the purchase of the building at their meeting Wednesday night.
“I am thrilled to see this crucial investment being made here at Youngstown State,” said Ryan, D-13, in a release. “This important injection of capital will have a lasting impact not only in the Valley and the 14-county region that is served, but nationally as this center of excellence is used as a tool to chart a path forward for students in the new American economy. The skills that will be cultivated in this Excellence Training Center will have immediate impact in students’ lives.”
Among the regional partners in the project are YSU, Eastern Gateway Community College, the Mahoning Valley Manufacturers Coalition, the Youngstown Business Incubator, the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission and several workforce development groups.
“Youngstown State University’s Excellence Training Center will bring a broad spectrum of advanced manufacturing career development resources to the Mahoning Valley,” said YSU President Jim Tressel. “Along with our partners … we look forward to providing advanced manufacturing education, training, and workforce development for the region.”
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