Ohio State Marion News: New Leadership, Major Grants, Community Impact & Global Research Highlights

Hello, Buckeyes! Welcome back to another episode of our campus news podcast. Let's dive into the latest happenings at Ohio State University at Marion. As of March 17, 2025, Jennifer Schlueter has taken the helm as the new dean and director of Ohio State Marion. With a strong background in academic leadership, Dean Schlueter is set to guide our campus into a promising future. Our faculty continue to excel in securing funding for innovative projects. Associate Professors Chris Orban and Scott Zimmerman have been awarded a $20,000 grant from the Ohio State Energy Partners Academic Collaboration Award. Their project, "The STEMcoding Data Science High School Curriculum Initiative," aims to modernize high school math education by integrating data science concepts. In the field of education, Assistant Professor Julia Hagge, along with her research team, has received a $59,000 grant from the Battelle Engineering, Technology and Human Affairs Endowment. Their research focuses on leveraging technology to accelerate the generation and translation of evidence-based practices in education. Our campus remains committed to community outreach. The recent Warren G. Harding Presidential Symposium, held on July 18-19, 2025, explored the theme "Politics at the Doorstep: Presidential Front Porch Campaigns." This event brought together scholars and experts to illuminate historical perspectives right here in Marion. Additionally, the "BeKind" initiative, in collaboration with Ohio State Extension, addressed food insecurity by distributing 430 boxes, equating to 87,720 shelf-stable meals, to local agencies. This effort underscores our university's dedication to serving the Marion community. Our students and faculty continue to make significant strides. Former student Nathan Baker, who began his academic journey at Ohio State Marion, is now an assistant professor of psychology at Wright State University. His story exemplifies the transformative power of education. In the realm of engineering, Associate Professor Golrokh Mirzaei has been awarded a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award to Austria for her research on predictive modeling of glioblastoma using machine learning and imaging-genomic associations. This recognition highlights the global impact of our faculty's research. Looking ahead, the campus is gearing up for the resumption of Buckeye Briefs on August 25, 2025. This weekly electronic news digest will keep students, faculty, and staff informed about campus events and updates. That's all for this episode. Stay tuned for more updates, and as always, Go Buckeyes!