Ohio University will receive $2 million of federal money as part of a partnership program with the Muskingum County Business Incubator.
The Appalachian Regional Commission awarded the grant to help the OU Innovation Center form a partnership with the Muskingum County Business Incubator, a similar program in Zanesville, which offers office spaces, meeting rooms and business resources to startups. The grant is expected to help create 125 new businesses and 1,110 jobs, according to a university news release.
The Innovation Center offers support to new businesses and works with 11 businesses, according to the program’s website.
“Through this grant, we can provide direct services to the unemployed and underemployed in the region,” Jennifer Simon, director of the Innovation Center, said in an email. “We can help them create jobs rather than just find jobs. We can do more with people who have used their hands their entire lives to work in the mines, power plants and related industries. They have made products and solved problems their entire lives.”
The Muskingum County Business Incubator will move to a new office on Zane State College’s campus.
“The lab will greatly enhance the ability for entrepreneurs to create prototypes and bring their ideas to life,” Larry Triplett, interim executive director of the Muskingum County Business Incubator, said. “This elevates (the incubator's) capacity and capabilities to assist startup companies and create jobs.”
The program will also help five regional offices that will help unemployed Southern Ohioans find jobs at local businesses.
“As part of its mission, Ohio University is committed to fostering innovation and to working with community partners to better the lives of individuals throughout our region,” Joe Shields, vice president for Research and Creative Activity at OU, said in an email. “The POWER grant is significant in allowing us to expand our support for talented individuals in our Appalachian neighborhood, to enable them to succeed as innovators and entrepreneurs."
Shields said programs such as the Innovation Center and Muskingum County Business Incubator are vital in Appalachian areas due to the declined success of the coal industry.
“Throughout Ohio University’s 212-year history, we have witnessed the fallout from closures of coal operations, power production facilities and industrial suppliers across this great region,” OU President Roderick McDavis said in a release. “We recognize our responsibility to extend beyond our campuses to engage communities in economic development activities that create jobs and improve lives.”
