The Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges                      
250 E. Broad St., Suite 1700
Columbus, Ohio 43215-3722

For more information contact Lynne Briggs or Cheryl Kight at
614-469-1950 or briggs@ofic.org, kight@ofic.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TWENTY-FOUR AREA STUDENTS RECEIVING SCHOLARSHIPS THROUGH THE OHIO FOUNDATION OF INDEPENDENT COLLEGES OHIO SCHOLARS PROGRAM

March 18, 2010 - The Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges (OFIC), through its Ohio Scholars Program® is providing scholarships to twenty-four students in Logan, Auglaize, Champaign, Shelby and Union Counties who are enrolled in its 34 member colleges for the 2009-2010 academic year. 

In its nineteenth year, The Ohio Scholars Program is funded by 128 corporations and foundations whose contributions provide scholarships to academically qualified students who might otherwise find the cost of higher education prohibitive.  “As we face today’s extraordinary economic challenges, scholarships are the most effective way to help students attend college and graduate within four years.  OFIC need-based scholarships provide financial support and personal encouragement that make a vital difference to students who otherwise might not even consider college an option”, says Jeffrey S. Wolf, President, OFIC.

The following students are enrolled in OFIC member colleges and universities and are receiving scholarship assistance through OFIC:

Auglaize County	College/University	Scholarship Donor
Jessica Hanover	Wittenberg University	Parker Hannifin Corporation
Kurt Heitkamp	Ohio Northern University	Parker Hannifin Corporation
Gretchen Sherman	University of Dayton	Owens-Illinois, Inc.
Ross Stienecker	Ohio Northern University	The Lincoln Electric Foundation
Champaign County	College/University	Scholarship Donor
Emily Arnold	Defiance College	Robbins & Myers Foundation
Katelyn Deans	Urbana University	Philip S. Willis Endowed
Cortney Ertel	Urbana University	Schwab Retirement Plan Services
Garth Weithman	Otterbein College	The UPS Foundation, Inc.
Logan County	College/University	Scholarship Donor
Tiffany Christensen	Urbana University	Robbins & Myers Foundation
Aaron Fogle	Ohio Northern University	Owens-Illinois, Inc.
Gregory Mellum	Cedarville University	William C. and Naoma W. Denison Fund
Shelby County	College/University	Scholarship Donor
Danielle Deiters	Urbana University	Emerson Climate Technologies, Inc.
Craig Hoying	The University of Findlay	Emerson Climate Technologies, Inc.
Jessica Luthman	Ohio Dominican University	Emerson Climate Technologies, Inc.
Lisa Moore	Franciscan University of Steubenville	Emerson Climate Technologies, Inc.
Amy Murray	Ohio Northern University	Crown Equipment Corporation
Paul Schulze	University of Dayton	Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield
Nathan Strome	Ohio Wesleyan University	Emerson Climate Technologies, Inc.
David Witt	Otterbein College	The UPS Foundation, Inc.
Union County	College/University	Scholarship Donor
Nicholas Del Grosso	Wittenberg University	Robbins & Myers Foundation
Marcus Geer	Denison University	Parker Hannifin Corporation
Laila Ibrahim	Lourdes College	American Electric Power Foundation
Sarah Jacob	Mount Vernon Nazarene University	Battelle
Ericka Mobley	Capital University	The UPS Foundation, Inc.

The Ohio Scholars Program donors are recognized at various levels of giving, starting at $25,000 to $100,000 and above.  All scholarship recipients are selected based on recommendations from their colleges and meet criteria established by the donors.  These criteria may include area of study, academic standing, geographic region or ethnicity, to name just a few. 

OFIC is the primary corporate and foundation solicitation organization for 34 independent Ohio colleges and universities and operates one of the largest, most comprehensive and diverse scholarship management services in the state.  OFIC member colleges collectively enroll 98,000 students and award one-third of all bachelor’s degrees in the state. For 60 years OFIC has worked to highlight the leadership, value and excellence of independent higher education and has provided unrestricted operating funds and scholarship commitments through funds raised in annual solicitations of businesses and foundations, thereby assuring continuation of excellence in private higher education. OFIC is governed by a Board of Trustees comprised of Ohio’s corporate leaders, as well as presidents of the 34 member colleges.

The member colleges are:  Ashland University, Baldwin-Wallace College, Bluffton University, Capital University, Cedarville University, University of Dayton, Defiance College, Denison University, The University of Findlay, Franciscan University of Steubenville, Franklin University, Heidelberg University, Hiram College, John Carroll University, Kenyon College, Lake Erie College, Lourdes College, Malone University, Marietta College, Mount Union College, Mount Vernon Nazarene University, Muskingum University, Notre Dame College, Oberlin College, Ohio Dominican University, Ohio Northern University, Ohio Wesleyan University, Otterbein College, Urbana University, Ursuline College, Walsh University, Wilmington College, Wittenberg University and The College of Wooster.
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