Cleveland.com January 22, 2016 Central State University's land grant status leads to funding and new agriculture programs By Karen Farkas, cleveland.com <http://connect.cleveland.com/staff/kfarkas/posts.html> The Plain Dealer Central State University's<https://www.centralstate.edu/index.php> new land grant status has led to an influx of funding and support from the state and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will provide scholarships and expanded experiences to eligible students majoring in science, technology, engineering, agriculture and mathematics. The university was given "land grant" status<http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2013/12/rep_marcia_fudge_wants_central.html> in 2014 in a farm bill passed by Congress. It joined 18 other so-called 1890 Historically Black Land-Grant Universities. Land grant status qualifies a school for agriculture education money. Central State first sought land grant status 121 years ago, but was denied because of political wrangling, supporters said. Central State, Ohio's only public, historically black college, had rebounded from the brink of financial disaster<http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2011/04/central_state_university_deter.html> in the late 1990s and receives a special state financial supplement to offer scholarships and keep tuition low. The university, near Dayton, was placed on fiscal watch in April <http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2015/04/central_state_university_and_o.html> 2015 by the Ohio Department of Higher Education because of financial problems. Ohio Auditor Dave Yost issued a report last September <http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2015/09/central_state_university_must.html> outlining steps needed to regain financial footing. Central State has received a $2 million grant to support agriculture and engineering programs. In 2015, Central State received a $600,000 three-year grant <http://www.centralstate.edu/_mobile/m.News2.php?num=179> from the federal department to create an Ag-STEM Institute to recruit minorities to study for careers in agriculture. The university received $4.4 million <https://www.centralstate.edu/_NewsCentral.php#172> from Ohio for agriculture research and extension initiatives in the current two-year budget. The university said the funds will be matched by federal funds. The university has established a department of agriculture in its college of arts and sciences and plans to offer a bachelor's degree in sustainable agriculture beginning this fall. The new four-year $2 million grant will be used for scholarships, programs to encourage middle and high school students to attend Central State and to fund attendance at agricultural conferences. The university also is developing a summer program for students planning to enter the college. Officials are coordinating with Ohio State University, the only other land-grant university in the state. The U.S. Department of Agriculture will award four-year full-tuition scholarships to Central State if students study food, agriculture or natural resource sciences. The USDA/1890 National Scholars Program is available to high school seniors entering their freshman year of college and current college freshmen and sophomores. The deadline for application is April 11. Applications are available at CentralState.edu. For eligibility requirements and more information, go to outreach.usda.gov/education/1890/index.htm.<http://www.outreach.usda.gov/education/1890/index.htm> SANDRA M. PHOENIX Executive Director HBCU Library Alliance sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org> www.hbculibraries.org<http://www.hbculibraries.org/> 800-999-8558, ext. 4820 404-702-5854 Skype: sandra.phoenix1 1438 West Peachtree NW Suite 200 Atlanta,GA 30309 Toll Free: 1.800.999.8558 (LYRASIS) Fax: 404.892.7879 www.lyrasis.org<http://www.lyrasis.org/> Honor the ancestors, honor the children.