Based in Athens, Ohio, Global Cooling Inc. manufactures the Stirling Ultracold high performance and environmentally-friendly ultra-low temperature freezers for use in hospitals and biomedical research. TechGROWTH Ohio, an Ohio Third Frontier Entrepreneurial Services Provider administered by the Voinovich School, provided initial support for market research and business planning and has helped the company earn numerous grants and loans. Thriving, the company currently employs nearly 100 employees, many of whom were born and raised in Athens County.

During the 2014-2015 academic year, University of Rio Grande faculty members implemented the Math and Science Partnership (MSP) in Appalachian Ohio school districts. The effort paired education coaches with public school teachers to enhance math and science instruction. The Voinovich School partnered with University of Rio Grande, the Gallia-Vinton Educational Service Center and the school districts to provide external evaluations.

South of Ohio University’s main campus lies The Ridges, a 740-acre tract of forests and farmland. The abandoned orchards on the grounds from The Ridges’ days as an asylum are known today as the Land Lab, a place where Ohio University students can do hands-on work tending crops, aging forests, and working the soil. They learn to be scientists in the quiet, natural beauty of the Ridges.