Central Ohio employers launch on-site health clinics.
PAGE 48
Columbus bans questions on applicants’ salary history.
PAGE 44
Public and private sectors unite for economic growth.
PAGE 27
Four executives discuss the challenges and triumphs that led them to their dream job
PAGE 13
$4.99 Summer 2024
The Columbus Foundation makes
performing arts affordable housing hunger relief community partnerships scholarships workforce training youth programs animal care community gardens kindness
For 80 years, thanks to the generosity of passionate donors, The Columbus Foundation has helped make more possible.
44 New Rules on Salary History
Central Ohio’s Housing Crisis
Economist Bill LaFayette explains how the problem unfolded.
Columbus employers can no longer ask job applicants how much they make.
48
As employers grapple with health care costs, some are piloting on-site wellness clinics.
Public and private-sector leaders are tackling key challenges to move the region forward.
Developments like the new airport terminal, Intel and Downtown revitalization will shape Columbus for decades to come.
The Columbus Partnership includes 81 organizations across Central Ohio.
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Columbus CEO (ISSN 1085-911X) is published quarterly by Gannett. All contents of this magazine are copyrighted © Gannett Co., Inc. 2024, all rights reserved. Reproduction or use, without written permission, of editorial or graphic content in any manner is prohibited. Publisher assumes no responsibility for return of unsolicited materials. Known address of publication is 605 S. Front St., Suite 300, Columbus, Ohio 43215. Periodicals postage paid at Columbus, Ohio, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Columbus CEO, P.O. Box 460160, Escondido, CA 92046
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Congratulations to Muirfield Wealth Partners for being Ranked #1 in Ohio, by Forbes, as a Best-In-State Wealth Management Team for 2024. The Forbes rating is compiled by SHOOK Research and awarded annually in January, based on information from a 12-month period ending March of the prior year.
They were also named as one of Forbes America’s Top Wealth Management Teams High Net Worth for 2024. The Forbes rating is compiled by SHOOK Research and awarded annually in November based on information from a 12-month period ending in March of the award year. Eligibility is based on quantitative factors and is not necessarily related to the quality of the investment advice.
We invite you to explore what this level of leadership, dedication, excellence and trust could mean for you and your family with Muirfield Wealth Partners.
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UBS Financial Services Inc. 5007 Horizons Drive Columbus, OH 43220
614-442-6240
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For more information on third-party rating methodologies, please visit ubs.com/us/en/ designation-disclosures. As a firm providing wealth management services to clients, UBS Financial Services Inc. offers investment advisory services in its capacity as an SEC-registered investment adviser and brokerage services in its capacity as an SEC-registered broker-dealer. Investment advisory services and brokerage services are separate and distinct, differ in material ways and are governed by different laws and separate arrangements. It is important that you understand the ways in which we conduct business, and that you carefully read the agreements and disclosures that we provide to you about the products or services we offer. For more information, please review the client relationship summary provided at ubs.com/relationshipsummary, or ask your UBS Financial Advisor for a copy. © UBS 2024. All rights reserved. UBS Financial Services Inc. is a subsidiary of UBS Group AG. Member FINRA/SIPC. ACC_04242024-6_v2 IS2400091 Exp.: 04/30/2025
Occupying a leadership role can be challenging at times, and no one ever does it perfectly. Even the best multitasker can feel helpless trying to balance organizational priorities with multiple demands on time and resources, staffing, budgets, customers and numerous other concerns.
Being a woman leader adds another layer of complexity to a job already fraught with obstacles. Stereotypes, the pull of family obligations and funding challenges are among the issues cited by executives in our new Women in Business feature.
Freelance writer Katy Smith talked to local women about the challenges they’ve faced and goals they’ve conquered as they’ve launched their own businesses and led other organizations. Their stories are inspiring and carry a universal thread: Don’t fear failure if you want to realize your dreams.
A gem I love from Tanny Crane: “The more that we can share our fear, share our goals and learn from each other, that’s how we succeed.”
Read more about Crane and other trailblazers in “Acting Audaciously,” starting on Page 13.
This issue also features our annual spotlight on The Columbus Partnership, the well-known civic organization that focuses on economic development, policy issues and other regional priorities. Its members come from 81 Central Ohio businesses, nonprofits, and educational and governmental organizations. (Check out the current roster on Page 40.)
One of the Partnership’s main priorities right now is a focus on four big-picture issues that impact the region in wide-ranging ways: infrastructure, workforce education, affordability, and creating a safe, healthy community. Local CEOs weigh in on why they believe these issues are critical to Central Ohio’s long-term economic success.
The second story in this editorial package explores five transformative developments, including Intel, a new airport terminal and mass transit that could change the region’s future. “If
we can do these things, the conversation that we’re going to have in 2029 about what’s possible from 2030 to 2040 is going to be extraordinary,” says Kenny McDonald, the Partnership’s president and CEO. Finally, be sure to watch ColumbusCEO.com and our social media pages for the launch of our 17th Best of Business reader poll. Our annual survey honors Central Ohio professionals’ favorite places, spaces and organizations to do business with. The ballot will include last year’s top vote-getters, but you’ll also have a chance to write in your favorites. Results will appear in our Fall issue.
Thanks for reading.
Julanne Hohbach Managing Editor
IC3D has grown its core printing business to include research and development for the federal government.
BY CYNTHIA BENT FINDLAY
IC3D Inc.’s name implies its mission: working in three dimensions. But running IC3D means CEO Michael Cao has to see in another dimension, too—time.
Cao’s company started as a hobby in his basement and has jumped into future markets since it launched in 2013. Every new initiative has been advancing on-demand additive manufacturing, which he says was the impetus for the company. Now IC3D is assisting the U.S. government with research and development for 3D printing.
Cao started IC3D in his Dublin home when he saw large manufacturers like his previous employer, Honda, printing 3D prototypes of
car parts in the early 2000s. Making your own parts or having them printed locally versus injection molding them in large volume overseas, he says, strengthens local supply chains by lowering manufacturing costs, shipping time and cost, and also allows on-demand supply. “The thought was, ‘What if you can just manufacture what you need when you need it on the spot,’ ” Cao says. “Maybe this isn’t like 100 percent of parts or products but if you can do that with a handful, that’s still beneficial to society.”
When IC3D started, the market consisted of small, hobby-size printers and large, expensive machines for advanced manufacturing. IC3D
hit a sweet spot by offering a midsize printer that could withstand the challenge of 24/7 production with flexible and abrasive materials at high temperatures.
Quickly, Cao saw a need for better raw materials because the nascent industry was literally using lawn trimmer string, which caused quality control problems. “So me being an engineer, I dug in,” he says. IC3D began to turn out filaments designed for 3D printers by 2014. Cao took it a step further by creating filaments made of recycled materials, starting with one environmentally focused customer, Trek Bicycle Corp.
By 2018, IC3D was offering inhouse printing services such as prototypes for local manufacturers. It now has two sites: a printing operation in Hilliard and a filament-making facility in Dublin.
Beyond working with its own customers, IC3D leads a regional network of 3D print shops on projects, including printing masks during the height of the pandemic and a Toys for Tots initiative in which more than 300
Michael Cao, CEO of IC3D Inc.
ic3dprinters.com
4621 Lyman Drive, Hilliard
CEO: Michael Cao
BUSINESS: 3D printers, high-tech printer materials, on-demand manufacturing, research and development
EMPLOYEES: 15
ANNUAL REVENUE: Would not disclose
“printer elves” made 160,000 toys nationwide for the holidays.
In 2022 the National Institute for Standards and Technology awarded IC3D $800,000 to a pilot a regional quality-control testing facility for mobilizing rapid manufacture of supplies in a pandemic.
Today, the company participates in a variety of government research and development projects. IC3D has worked with the Army, the Department of Energy and the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining to develop polymers for 3D printed materials.
Its latest effort is a large-scale
industrial printer that can use a wider variety of recycled materials and can create larger items such as furnishings. The company also has its own product line. Polly Planters are used by commercial interior decorators, made on demand from 100 percent recycled materials.
“It’s going back to that thought of having a large catalog in a niche where you have a lot of offerings but not any inventory,” Cao says, adding that the company used AI-assisted software to build its large database of designs.
Cynthia Bent Findlay is a freelance writer.
Columbus CEO celebrated our 2024 Top Workplaces winners with an awards celebration held March 27, 2024, at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium Africa Event Center. The 12th annual awards recognized 85 Central Ohio winners.
Thank you to our longtime research partner, Energage, as well as event sponsor Jobcase and table sponsors BTTS Holdings and Slalom.
1 Scott Stender, Geoff Kunkler, Vanessa Botts 2 Lisa Sordilla and Morgan Brownhill of Energage, keynote speaker Lisa Demmi 3 Alex Curavo, Steve Wells, Kaylie McDonald, Chris Moran 4 Beth Branstiter, Karen Murphy, Sean Morse, Justi Morse 5 Tomeka Harris, Krysten White, Diane Trotta, Jen Harris 6 Felicia Wilson, Jeff Miller, Trent Jepson, Samantha Zid, Travis Highley, Jordan Worth, Katrina Roby 7 Jessica Foster, Lonnie Morgan Jr. 8 Bill Mohberger, Jacob Krum, Steve Hunt 9 Employees of Lake Shore Cryotronics Inc. 10 Nick Fields, Gianna Fields, John A. Brooks 11 Kendall Glasser, Katie Ferrell 12 Izzi Criado, Cody Howes 13 Gabe Martineau, John Reedy 14 Employees of Daugherty Business Solutions 15 Joelle Brock of Leading EDJE 16 Guests enjoy the photo booth. 17 Keynote speaker Lisa Demmi gets guests to do “The Carlton” dance. 18 Madeline Smith, Rosalyn Ransaw, Janelle Maur, Lorna Whyte 19 Event attendees
The beauty world is a multi-billion dollar industry with trends that constantly change and evolve. Staying current with the trends is crucial, which requires extensive research on the deluge of information available to select the best services for clients. Boss Gal Beauty Bar excels in staying on top of industry trends, consistently maintaining a keen awareness of what’s in vogue in beauty care and med spas. It offers cutting-edge services, including cosmetic injectables, microneedling, microblading and more—all within a chic and inviting space. The establishment represents a sleek and contemporary interpretation of the traditional medi-clinical environment on a mission to deliver results-driven beauty treatments.
The med spa enhances skin health and achieves facial balance using evidence-backed practices. Through a combination of lasers, advanced skincare, neurotoxins, dermal fillers and bio stimulators, it ensures these elements work synergistically to help individuals not just look their best but feel strong, beautiful and confident. “We are a onestop shop where we focus on all beauty aspects from the neck up, employing a wide range of multimodalities to achieve optimal anti-aging and skin health,” Kathy Keeney, owner of Boss Gal Beauty Bar.
After spending a decade as a registered nurse in a demanding, fast-paced acute care environment, Keeney merged her extensive medical knowledge with a passion for the beauty industry. Today, she is one of the most sought-after injectors in Columbus, known for her expertise and a welcoming persona that clients deeply appreciate.
Keeney’s mission is to promote natural and balanced beauty, with an emphasis on enhancing her clients’ inherent features and facilitating graceful aging while preserving their authentic selves. Boss Gal Beauty Bar’s client engagement begins with an inquiry into the individual’s concerns regarding their skin.
The spa’s team conducts a comprehensive evaluation of the client’s facial anatomy, including bone structure, fat pads, skin quality and elasticity. Tailored recommendations are then offered to address the overall anti-aging process. Clients are also encouraged to participate in creating a personalized treatment plan, choosing from suggested options.
Recognizing the importance of maintaining results beyond the clinic, the spa integrates in-house treatments with effective at-home skincare regimens. Clients are provided with high-quality skincare products to support and prolong the benefits of their treatments. A prime example of the results of combined spa treatments and at-home skincare is best showcased through a client who recently shared their transformative journey on social media. The client posted a before-and-after photo over a 10-month period, highlighting remarkable improvements in her melasma, a skin condition that causes grey-brown patches, typically on the face. Having significant hyperpigmentation initially, she underwent Boss Gal Beauty Bar’s in-spa treatments with aestheticians while diligently following an at-home skincare regimen with recommended products. The result was a nearly complete elimination of melasma, showcasing the effectiveness of the blended approach.
Going forward, Boss Gal Beauty Bar is introducing a revolutionary scalp treatment named Keravive, a scalp facial by HydraFacial designed to promote a healthy scalp and stimulate hair growth. The med spa’s focus for 2024 includes prioritizing collagen stimulation through Sculptra, a collagen bio stimulator, as dermal fillers decrease in popularity and bio stimulators gain traction. The spa also extends specially crafted packages for brides tailored to their wedding timeline. By assessing their needs and timeframe, the team guides brides in developing a skincare regimen that addresses their beauty and skincare concerns in preparation for their big day. Transitioning from the conventional clinical experience to an open-concept facial bar, Boss Gal Beauty Bar stands at the forefront of the evolving beauty industry, committed to providing the best beauty care solutions to clients. As Columbus’s premier destination for aesthetic care, it is a true ally for women who wish to unleash their inner ‘boss gal’.
Local leaders say achieving lofty ambitions is a matter of learning to fail and leaning into your network.
BY KATY SMITH
Audacious goals can take many forms. Riding a bicycle across the United States. Beating overwhelming odds to launch a woman-owned bank. Leaving a stable corporate career for a life dedicated to organic farming. Pursuing a dream of entrepreneurship even when it means juggling family life and struggling against societal expectations of what a woman can or should do.
These challenges are being conquered by Central Ohio women business leaders, and they have some advice for those who aspire to follow them: It is not easy. There will be failures. And building a support network is critical.
Tanny Crane has decades of executive leadership experience at the helm of her family’s investment company, Crane Group. The president and CEO transformed the organization from one focused on plastics to one that backs enterprises ranging from manufacturing to roofing to equities, a calculated risk that paid off. Entrepreneurship runs in her family, and so does philanthropy. She carries deep conviction that giving back is the responsibility of a leader, and she’s well-known in the community for using her platform for good.
This year marks what is possibly
Women must be willing to have multiple failures in order to have that one big—or one tiny— success.”
Barb Smoot, president and CEO of Women for Economic Leadership and Development
her most audacious charitable endeavor to date: a 3,400-mile bike ride to raise funds in the fight against cancer. Crane set out May 5 from
Manhattan Beach in the Los Angeles area with a group of 25 riders who planned to make it to Revere Beach, north of Boston, by June 21.
The original fundraising goal was as ambitious as the long ride—raise $100,000 for Pelotonia, the Columbus nonprofit that organizes community bicycle rides to fund cancer research at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center –Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute. Crane had raised nearly $147,000 by June 6, bringing her fundraising total for the organization over 16 years to $576,000.
Crane trained intensely for 10 weeks leading up to her departure, riding on a bike in her basement and, when the weather got nicer, on the
roads that run northeast of New Albany into the Ohio countryside. The trek called for 90-plus-mile days through 15 states, starting at 7:30 each morning with support stops at 30 and 60 miles to have snacks, energy drinks and water. The stops also had a bike mechanic to take care of all-too-frequent flat tires.
“This has been a long dream of mine—I have been thinking about this ride since 2011,” Crane said on a morning call early in her adventure. Like so many big dreams in business
Everyone fails. But learn from that and move forward.”
Judith Horvath, founder of Fair Hill Farm Regenerative Agriculture & Permaculture Design
and in life, she says the key is breaking them down into a series of smaller achievements and then methodically following through, knowing obstacles will pop up along the way.
“Confront those obstacles and then conquer them,” she says. “I’ve had failures along the way [during this ride]. There have been issues with all parts of my body—and it reminds me of business. There have been obstacles as we’ve looked at acquiring a new business or looked for new team members.”
Like so many of its supporters, the motivation behind Crane’s engagement with Pelotonia is personal. Her father died of lung cancer when he was 70, and she has a friend battling the disease this year. “Everyone knows someone who’s been affected by cancer,” she says. “And with our technology today, we need to end cancer—and we can.”
Another audacious goal to pursue despite the inevitable setbacks.
Going after ridiculously big goals that have the power to create meaningful change takes an element of fearlessness, says Barb Smoot, who leads Women for Economic and Leadership Development, or WELD, a nonprofit that brings women together for networking and professional growth.
Smoot took risks herself, leaving a successful corporate career to take the helm at WELD and grow it into a national organization. Though they may be risk-averse, “Women must be willing to have multiple failures in order to have that one big—or one tiny—success,” Smoot says. “When you’re setting big goals, you have to be able to see far away and up close at the same time, keeping your eye on a big, hairy, audacious goal out into the future while knowing there are a bunch of little steps you have to do in order to achieve that goal.”
I feel as though for me, personally, relationships have been my strength.”
Ilaria
Rawlins, CEO of Fortuna Bank
Judith Horvath didn’t have a clear picture of her ultimate goal when she decided to move her family to a house on 19 acres in Lancaster in 2013 so they could grow organic produce and tend livestock, embracing life a world away from industrial food and long commutes. But she knew something had to change. A demanding career overseeing call center operations was no longer fulfilling, and it also meant she had less time to spend with her children than she wanted.
Suburban life became unpalatable when her homeowners association insisted that she get rid of the backyard chickens she raised as part of her effort to combat her children’s food allergies. The family left Pickerington to cultivate a new life in Lancaster, but Horvath spent years after that between two worlds, driving an hour to work during the week while being a “weekend warrior and crunchy mom” on the weekends. She was able to leave her job in 2022 for full-time farm life and a consulting business, Fair Hill Farm Regenerative Agriculture & Permaculture Design.
These days, Horvath is a speaker and podcast host focused on chemical-free agriculture and is helping design a planned community with a farm at its center in the southern U.S. (The location cannot yet be shared.) She’s also involved in a project to create autonomous grocery stores stocked with local produce. The consulting, plus her business selling personal care products she makes with goat’s milk, has made up for the loss of her corporate income.
Other women considering the leap into entrepreneurship should find mentors and create a plan, Horvath says. And they should expect to encounter failure. “In the world of farming, it’s very easy to make a $20,000 error, something that could set you
Creating impactful experiences that leave a lasting impact on individuals.
After
https://moodynolan.com/
back three or four years in your plans,” she says. “Everyone fails. But learn from that and move forward.”
A refrain that echoes among WELD’s membership, especially small business owners, is the struggle to find funding, Smoot says. Women founders captured 2 percent or less of venture capital funding in Europe and the United States in 2023, according to Pitchbook. And women receive just 4 percent of all commercial loan dollars, says Ilaria Rawlins, CEO of Fortuna Bank, which is in organization and hopes to open in 2024. It would become one of just 14 women-owned banks in the U.S, out of more than 4,500. Shareholders as of early June were 78 percent women, above the 51 percent threshold needed to qualify as women owned.
Rawlins says Fortuna will be the third U.S. bank intentionally founded as women owned, with a mission not only to be a community bank for everyone, but also to empower women with tools they can use to reach their financial goals.
“We see it as an opportunity to create a foundation that provides women with the opportunity for success, whether it’s through educational opportunities, access to capital, mentorships or networking,” Rawlins says.
Fortuna, which has received conditional state and federal approval, is building out office space in Grandview Heights and has a leadership team waiting in the wings as it wraps up a $20 million fundraise on June 30. “We know because we’ve walked in women’s shoes and seen some of the financial gaps [they face], so we felt like this was a great space to step into,” Rawlins says.
When Bhakti Bania started her architecture firm, BBCO, with her husband, Bharat Baste, it was 2009. The 2008 financial crisis had ground virtually all building to a halt, and clients were few and far between. “It was a struggle getting every project” during the first three years, Bania says. “We had to constantly tell people who we were and what we did and prove ourselves.”
On top of that, Bania, the firm’s CEO, battled societal perceptions about motherhood and the dearth of women who’d ascended to leadership positions in the industry. There was just one other woman-owned architecture firm in Columbus, “and they were definitely mentors for us,” Bania says. BBCO is now the largest such firm in the region, she says.
Growing her business with two young children at home meant there were times when she was paying more attention to work, and times when family came first. Bania came to realize she hated the phrase “work-life balance” and the guilt she felt making sacrifices on both sides. “I feel very strongly now that you just have to be present in whatever it is that you’re doing at the time,” she says. “Give
We had to constantly tell people who we were and what we did and prove ourselves.”
Bhakti Bania, CEO of BBCO
Tanny Crane, president and CEO of Crane Group
that thing [home or work] your 100 percent. Don’t worry about the thing that you’re not doing.”
Anytime someone achieves success, a well-fed network played a role, Smoot says. Women (and everyone) should start early in their careers building contacts who can open doors for them. “That’s how you get promotions, and then that first big nod to the C-suite, and from there, election to for-profit company boards,” she says.
After decades proving herself in retail banking operations, Rawlins was asked to lead Fortuna Bank by a former boss and a former client, people she’d nurtured relationships with years earlier. “I feel as though for me, personally, relationships have been my strength [in banking],” she says.
The internal Crane community was a critical enabler for its CEO’s cross-country bike ride. “As with business, you never do it alone. You have to rely on other people,” Crane says. “I’m taking seven weeks as a sabbatical and an amazing team back in Columbus is helping propel me forward.”
Friendship and goodwill can go a long way in crushing giant goals in business and in life, Crane says. Though she says sharing stories and creating networks of support are commonalities for all leaders, “I do believe women have an uncanny ability to be more open to sharing and to going through struggles together,” Crane says. “And the more that we can share our fear, share our goals and learn from each other, that’s how we succeed.”
Katy
Smith
is a freelance writer.
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After taking a leap of faith, she now runs the region’s largest woman-owned architecture firm.
BY KATY SMITH
When Bhakti Bania founded architecture firm BBCO with her husband in 2009, it was pretty much the worst time possible to launch a company in the business of building. The housing crisis and ensuing recession had paused nearly all development activity. But Bania saw it as an opportunity to get the company’s foundation solidified while their children were young (they were ages 5 and 2), and before too many projects crushed their calendar.
The company’s name takes its inspiration from the “BB” initials she and her husband, Bharat Baste, share, and it’s very much a joint project and a family affair. But Bania was intentional about filling the role of CEO, while her husband acts as COO. “When I went to school, it was 50-50, men and women,” says Bania,
a native of Mumbai, India. “But as soon as I got out into the profession, I saw the stark contrast. Many women either leave the profession or don’t really make it very far in terms of leadership.”
Describing herself as “kind of stubborn,” Bania says she’s the type of person who doesn’t respond with defeat when people say she can’t or shouldn’t do something—like start a company. “Because that just makes me feel like, why not?” she says. “There are too few women in architecture, and that needs to change. I can only complain about it so much. I have to do something about it,” Bania says. “So, I started the company.”
Over 15 years, BBCO has grown to 15 employees and one intern. With partners, the firm bought the historic Schlee-Kemmler Building at 326 S.
Co-founder and CEO, BBCO 326 S. High St., Columbus 43215
BUSINESS: Architecture firm
EDUCATION: Bachelor’s degree in architecture, University of Mumbai; master’s degree in architecture, Ohio State University
COMMUNITY: Co-chair, board of directors, Women’s Small Business Accelerator; past president, Columbus Commercial Real Estate Women; member, Buckeye Engineering Women in Executive Leadership, a group for OSU alumni
High St. in Downtown Columbus and is renovating it. The top two floors serve as BBCO’s offices.
The couple’s children are now a rising junior at Ohio State University and a rising senior at Upper Arlington High School. As for BBCO, it is now Central Ohio’s largest architecture firm owned by a woman.
Katy Smith is a freelance writer.
The third-generation CEO of Crane Group leads by example in the boardroom and the community.
BY KATY SMITH
The list of Tanny Crane’s business accomplishments is long. She has served more than 21 years as president and CEO of Crane Group, leading its transformation from a plastics business to an organization with diverse investments across manufacturing, building trades, real estate and equities. Before that, she led sales, marketing and human resources for the familyowned company. And those roles came only after she spent time away from Columbus building a solid business foundation on her own, earning an MBA from Northwestern University and managing accounts at AT&T and Quaker Oats in Chicago. Crane also has been the chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and served on corporate boards including Wendy’s International and Huntington Bancshares.
A powerful corporate profile, to be sure. But Crane’s community profile shines even brighter. She is one of the region’s foremost civic leaders, contributing her voice to causes including early childhood education, diversity, equity and inclusion, and South Side revitalization, among others. In May, Crane set out on a 3,400-mile, cross-country bike ride to raise $100,000 for Pelotonia, the Columbus nonprofit that funds cancer research at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute. She blew past that goal in just a few weeks.
Such work is the continuation of decades of charitable support and community leadership by the Crane family, where the tradition of philanthropy is deeply ingrained. “My dad
President and CEO, Crane Group
BUSINESS: Family-owned, diversified investment company
EDUCATION: Bachelor of Science, Ohio State University Fisher College of Business; MBA, Northwestern University
COMMUNITY: Board member, The Columbus Partnership, the Reeb Center, Future Ready Five, I Know I Can, Ohio State University Foundation; executive committee, Ohio Business Roundtable; 16-year rider, Pelotonia
All throughout my childhood, I was raised—our whole family was raised—with a strong sense of responsibility to give back to the community that has supported us.”
[Robert S. Crane] used to say, ‘The community has been so good to us as a business.’ All throughout my childhood, I was raised—our whole family was raised—with a strong sense of responsibility to give back to the community that has supported us,” Crane says.
The company’s Crane on Board program exemplifies the family’s dedication to service. Team members are encouraged to serve on charitable boards and committees, giving back to the community while also bringing new skills, experiences and relationships back to their roles at Crane Group. “They bring back so much empathy, and it makes them better leaders,” Crane says.
Katy Smith is a freelance writer.
A ban on backyard chickens led this corporate executive to seek a more fulfilling career in farming.
BY KATY SMITH
Judith Horvath knew the chickens would have to go, eventually. The homeowners’ association in her Pickerington neighborhood had been challenging her about keeping the egg-laying backyard pets for years, and one day in 2013, the situation finally came to a head. She could not, per the bylaws, keep the chickens. So, she changed her entire life.
Since her children were young, Horvath had watched them suffer from allergies related to added ingredients in some of the processed food that pervades modern life. As she
researched how to read food labels and consulted medical professionals, her concern grew. She decided to grow the food they ate in the backyard, creating an organic garden with fruit trees and, of course, the chickens. These projects were carried out mostly on weekends, while Horvath worked as a corporate executive in the customer service realm. She’d built a successful career.
“I found myself with this rising feeling of unfulfillment,” Horvath says. “I felt like something was missing. I would come home at the end
Founder, Fair Hill Farm Regenerative Agriculture & Permaculture Design and CapriDerma LLC
BUSINESS: Farm and agricultural consulting; personal care products made from goat’s milk
EDUCATION: Bachelor of Arts, St. Joseph’s University; MBA, University of Phoenix
HOMESTEAD AND FARM: Lancaster
PODCAST: Fair Hill Farmstead Life
of the day tired and with nothing to show for it.”
Horvath and her family decided organic farming “was not going to be just a phase in our lives.” They bought a 19-acre farm in Lancaster that was badly in need of renovation, both the house and the fields, but full of beauty and potential.
Fair Hill Farm now feeds the family, since Horvath exited her corporate career and started a consulting business. She’s a podcast host and has built a national network of like-minded agricultural entrepreneurs who share a vision of living close to the earth and the ways of the distant past. Horvath is working with a group to design a community around an organic farm in the southern U.S., and she’s part of a project to create locally sourced grocery stores. Meanwhile, her homestead has grown in complexity with goats, turkeys, sheep and a llama, and Fair Hill currently sells flowers, produce, eggs, meat and more to its customers.
“It’s so fulfilling to bring this type of joy and lifestyle and nutrient-dense food to people,” she says.
The longtime financial services executive is helping launch a women-owned bank that aims to empower customers.
BY KATY SMITH
For Ilaria Rawlins, success in her career comes down to relationships—and the same goes for the banking business.
After spending more than two decades in financial services, most of that in retail banking, Rawlins was tapped by a former client and a former boss to help found a bank with a mission to empower women. “They reached out to me because of the relationships that we had before,” Rawlins says.
Two and a half years later, the upstart Fortuna Bank has received conditional approval from the Ohio Department of Financial Institutions and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. It’s raised $17 million of its $20 million goal—85 percent—and has a management team waiting in the wings. The bank, which
has leased office space across from Grandview Yard on Goodale Boulevard, aims to offer a different banking experience from a traditional institution—one based on relationships, more than transactions.
“Hopefully it feels a little bit more warm and welcoming,” Rawlins says. “We won’t have a teller line—we’ll have private offices instead, so people can feel like their conversations are being kept confidential. And then we’ll have an open central area that can be utilized for programming like education and events.”
The vision is that by connecting the community to the bank, women will have the chance to meet financial services professionals who can counsel them on business funding, retirement and investing. Fortuna’s founders want to fill a
CEO, Fortuna Bank 871 Goodale Blvd., Grandview Heights 43212
BUSINESS: Women-owned bank in organization
EDUCATION: Bachelor of Arts, Denison University
PREVIOUS: Retail bank leadership roles with First Financial Bank and First Bexley Bank, vice president with Ohio Savings Bank
The Southern Station development in Grandview Heights where Fortuna Bank is building out its office.
niche for women bank customers, who typically borrow less and seek less funding than their male counterparts. They want to listen to their clients’ stories and make decisions based on relationships, not algorithms.
“We know because we’ve walked in their shoes. We’ve seen some of the discrepancies and the financial literacy gaps that can take place for women. We felt like that was a great place we could step into,” Rawlins says.
But no one, including men, should feel out of place walking into Fortuna, she says. “At the end of the day, we’d love to be a great community bank for everybody.”
Katy Smith is a freelance writer.
“I’m thrilled to partner with our incredible colleagues, physicians and staff to advance our Mission and honored to serve the Central Ohio community.”
– Tauana McDonald, President & CEO
Tauana McDonald is the embodiment of our Mission. When she became the first African American woman to be named president and CEO of Mount Carmel and the first to lead a health system in Central Ohio, she helped us take yet another step in transforming health care in our community, which we’ve been doing here for nearly 140 years.
Our dedicated team of more than 9,000 colleagues, 2,300 physicians, and 550 volunteers provides compassionate, people-centered care at five hospitals (soon six!) and numerous surgery centers, emergency and ambulatory care centers, women’s health centers, and hospice and home care sites across the region. Our hospitals have been recognized as Regional Best Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report, been ranked among the nation’s 100 Top Hospitals by Watson Health, received the American Heart Association Gold Award for diabetes and stroke care, been certified by the Joint Commission, and received the Guardian of Excellence Award for sustained excellence in patient care.
It’s the transformative care Central Ohio deserves—and the only kind Mount Carmel provides—for all of you. Learn more at mountcarmelhealth.com.
Public and private-sector leaders are uniting to tackle the challenges of infrastructure, workforce education, affordability and health and safety to move the region’s economy forward.
BY TC BROWN
As the height of the COVID-19 pandemic fades into the past, leaders in Central Ohio recognize they must grapple with some severe, ongoing community issues left in its wake, which could impact the overall well-being of the region.
So, with the guidance of The Columbus Partnership, leaders from all sectors of the community are coming together to tackle these difficult issues in a thoughtful, collaborative manner.
That’s the Columbus Way, says Kenny McDonald, president and CEO of the Partnership, a nonprofit, member-based coalition representing a diverse group of Central Ohio industries and organizations. “We want to form public-private partnerships to advance the ball and move the region forward,” McDonald says. “Our ultimate goal is
to make the region the most prosperous place in the country.”
After in-depth research and wide-ranging discussions with stakeholders in the business, academic, nonprofit and public arenas, the Partnership identified four consequential, big-picture issues requiring attention if the region is to remain successful. For the foreseeable future, the high-priority focus will center on infrastructure, workforce education, affordability, and creating safe and healthy communities.
“It’s really critical to solve or mitigate these challenges and to get to the end of the decade and get set up for the next couple generations of leadership,” McDonald says. “None of the issues we are tackling can be solved overnight or with some silver bullet.”
But leaders are determined,
confident and counting on the power of collaboration across numerous sectors to meet the moment. “The challenges are not small ones or short term, and it requires staying power and some endurance,” McDonald says. “We plan to stay at the table well into the future.”
The definition of infrastructure can be far-reaching, but it can also be boiled down to this: It includes the things humans need to grow and live comfortably.
“People need infrastructure to live and sustain themselves,” says Lloyd Yates, president and CEO of NiSource Inc., a gas and electricity utility serving more than 4 million customers in six states. “Infrastructure allows the economy to maintain or grow in a way
that’s responsible.”
Infrastructure can be thought of as the bones of a community and includes things such as roads, bridges and all utilities. Broadband connections are also part of infrastructure, as is public transit. In November, voters will decide whether to pay more sales tax to fund LinkUS, an initiative that would allow COTA to create five rapid transit corridors around the metropolitan area. A half-percent sales tax increase will be on the ballot in Franklin County and parts of Delaware, Fairfield, Union and Licking counties, along with a quarter-percent replacement tax expiring in 2026.
With the region’s predicted growth and expectations of how people want to live, infrastructure is critical, says Sandy Doyle-Ahern, president of EMH&T, a civil engineering and surveying firm. “I think we have a really good foundation,” she says. “Infrastructure takes so long to get it built and functional, you have to think out much further than what’s in front of you in the next couple of years.”
The good news is, the issue is more prominent now than it has been in the past, in large part due to the amount of economic development and opportunities coming our way, she says. Yet none of it is easy or cheap. “It’s a two-way street. You have to have adequate infrastructure to attract the growth, and on the flip side, the growth that comes leads to the infrastructure, and that is more to take care of,” Doyle-Ahern says. “It’s all coming from tax dollars.”
Some help should come from the $1 trillion, federal bipartisan infrastructure bill President Joe Biden signed into law in 2021, but significant funding also will be needed at the state and local levels.
Energy needs will also be in high demand with the continuing growth of the local data center sector, Yates says. “It’s something we need to get ready for,” he says. “You’ve got to plan for it. We don’t want to bog down and prevent the region from continuing to grow, because when the region grows, we all benefit.”
Economic opportunities have germinated throughout the region lately
File photo
While the area has grown economically strong, the growth hasn’t been equitable, and some communities have been left behind. Harrison is hopeful, however, that with new opportunities and vision, that can change. Many companies, new and old, are committed to developing a more inclusive workforce. “It’s a regional commitment. I really believe this is a chance for radical, inclusive economic mobility,” he says. “There’s a better chance than we ever had to connect families from communities that haven’t had those opportunities before.”
Many future jobs will require technical skills, a fact not lost on Columbus State. It is one of 23 community colleges in the Ohio Semiconductor Collaboration Network, dedicated to building a strong technician pipeline.
With the pace of change happening more quickly than in previous decades, local business leaders say properly trained workers will be imperative.
We want to form public-private partnerships to advance the ball and move the region forward.”
Kenny McDonald, president and CEO of The Columbus Partnership
thanks to considerable negotiations and effort from different sectors. But to reach fruition, an important engine of long-range prosperity relies heavily on workforce expertise.
Teaching employees critical work skills ultimately determines a company’s success, which stimulates the success of a region, says David Harrison, president of Columbus State Community College. “Long after tax incentives have taken place, the ability for us to put a decades-long successful workforce in place is really the most important factor in keeping our region competitive,” Harrison says. “Workforce education is really a continuous process, more so now than ever.”
Employers will need people with the right education and skills to take advantage of the many available job opportunities, says Corrine Burger, managing director and Columbus market leader for JPMorgan Chase & Co.
“Workforce education is basic to fueling economic growth,” she says. “And in order to succeed, we need to make sure that everyone is participating.”
To ensure that happens, the bank has committed millions of dollars and joined other organizations in a variety of programs to help people prepare for future jobs and answer the demand for skilled employees. “Businesses like us have a key role to play in this process to make sure we continue to develop these needed programs,” Burger says.
Going forward, planning and collaboration are key. “A strong economy depends on the business and labor market working together,” she says. “That collaboration will help engage private-public partnerships, and that will help lead to smarter polices.”
When it comes to the affordability of our region, there’s good and bad news: The cost of living is among the lowest in the country, but the availability of affordable housing for
We don’t want to bog down and prevent the region from continuing to grow, because when the region grows, we all benefit.”
Lloyd Yates, president and CEO of NiSource Inc.
working families falls short of meeting demand.
As the population and economy grow, challenges will arise, creating pressure on affordability, says Stephen D. Steinour, president and CEO of Huntington Bancshares Inc. “It’s not a simple, ‘one answer solves everything,’ ” he says. “We’ll be experiencing something in the future we’ve never seen before, like ever in the history of Central Ohio.”
When inflation is higher, it is cheaper to live in the Midwest. In the most recent consumer price index report, prices here rose 2.8 percent versus the Northeast at 3.6 percent, 3.7 percent in the West and 3.3 percent in the South, Steinour says.
Housing is definitely a crucial need, but it’s not the only necessity. Things like food security, public transportation, adequate medical care and availability of child care are also critical. Regional leaders recognize this and are acting, Steinour says. “It’s not just keeping the economic development going and ignoring other things; it has to all come together in a way that makes it better and hopeful for all,” he says. “We are on the right track, but because of the potential growth we’ve just got to do more, and we’ve got to do it better.”
The single most important issue facing the region today is the availability and affordability of housing for the workforce, says Robert H. Schottenstein, chairman, president and CEO of M/I Homes Inc. “It’s a high priority because in the greater Columbus area there is a very significant shortage of housing supply,” he says. “We’re producing only one-third of the housing we did 30 years ago.
Left: Infrastructure is cited by local business leaders as a key component to economic development. Pictured is the Interstate 70-71 and state Route 315 interchange.
Below: A rendering of a rapid transit bus corridor proposed in LinkUs
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Compared to similar cities and regions, Central Ohio is an underperformer in new construction. As the area has continued to grow in the past decade, new builds have averaged 3,000 to 3,500 homes a year, Schottenstein says. That could lead to serious problems if demand continues to outpace supply. A big hinderance to new construction are
dozens of community zoning authorities opposed to single-family housing, or that will only allow low-density housing, he says.
“These new companies, or the ones already here, know it’s hard for their people to find affordable, quality single-family housing. That is driving the price up,” Schottenstein says. “Companies are not going to locate in an area where workers can’t find housing.”
Left: Columbus State Community College is part of the Ohio Semiconductor Collaboration Network, aimed at building a strong technical workforce.
A healthy and safe community is a priority for any region, and it encompasses a wide swath of disciplines, including public health, mental health, law enforcement and the legal system, says The Columbus Partnership’s McDonald.
“Health is critical for a bunch of different reasons,” he says. “How do we literally have a healthy workforce mentally and physically, and how do we address the issues of crime and youth crime in our communities?”
Thoughtful investment, along with improving health outcomes and availability of care, can help reduce disparities. “We still have vastly different life expectancy from one ZIP code to another,” McDonald says.
The private sector is working with
A strong economy depends on the business and labor market working together.”
Corrine Burger, managing director and Columbus market leader for JPMorgan Chase & Co.
law enforcement to help reduce youth crime, focused on prevention “to get people on the right course for opportunities,” including adults, he says.
Echoing other leaders, Tim Robinson, CEO of Nationwide Children’s Hospital, says a healthy community is a vibrant and thriving community. “We’re only as good as our workforce,” he says. “Our region is blessed to have a good combination of both competition and collaboration.”
The Central Ohio Hospital Council is a prime example. Its membership includes Nationwide Children’s and the Mount Carmel, OhioHealth and Ohio State University health systems. All work together with stakeholders to improve the quality, value, equity and accessibility of health care.
The council is working with Central Ohio health departments to assess regional needs and create a 2025 health map. “We’re reaching out to a whole host of agencies and organizations, trying to understand what the challenges are and then put in interventions to try to address those,” Robinson says.
Mental health is a big part of it. “For kids, mental health has been a national crisis where the number of children that are impacted has grown dramatically,” he says. “There is a real shortage of access to services.”
The new Franklin County Crisis center could help, Robinson says, and though it won’t solve the issue, the region is headed in the right direction.
“We start at a very good place. We have very good health systems that are working together and trying to make sure that adequate care is available,” he says.
TC Brown is a freelance writer.
Significant developments happening now, such as a new airport terminal, Intel and a revitalization of Downtown, will help shape Columbus for decades to come.
BY PETER TONGUETTE
What will the Columbus region look like in five or 10 years? To get a better idea of what changes are possible, one only need examine some of the initiatives being undertaken right now.
The region is in the midst of a number of ambitious, large-scale projects, including two Intel semiconductor manufacturing plants under construction in Licking County and a new terminal at John Glenn Columbus International Airport set to break ground next year. Meanwhile, plans are afoot for reshaping Downtown, developing new mass transit options and expanding Ohio State University’s Carmenton Innovation District.
“It’s time to finally cross over that threshold from being a region of great potential to being one that really has the assets that are matching our trajectory,” says Kenny McDonald, president and CEO of The Columbus Partnership.
Each of these five major developments is notable in its own right, but economic and business development leaders says it is their confluence that affords the region the chance to grow in almost unimaginable ways. “All these things are going on at the same time, [so] they don’t all get the attention that they would individually,” McDonald says. “If we can do these things, the conversation that we’re going to have in 2029 about what’s possible from 2030 to 2040 is going to be extraordinary.”
The Columbus airport will soon undergo its biggest overhaul since opening during the Eisenhower administration. In the first quarter of 2025, ground will be broken on a $2 billion terminal that will replace the current facility, which has operated, with various additions and modifications, since 1958.
The existing terminal will remain in service until the new one opens, tentatively in early 2029. “On midnight on one day, we will close this existing terminal and open the new one. In a period of 24 hours, you could leave from one terminal and arrive at another,” says Joseph R. Nardone, president and CEO of the Columbus Regional Airport Authority.
The three concourses in the present terminal will be supplanted by a single concourse; rather than restaurants and amenities being split up—and available only to passengers going through that particular concourse—a new central marketplace will make high-level amenities available to all travelers. “We pulled everything close together,” Nardone says. “The new terminal, the new parking deck and the new consolidated rental car facility [will be] all connected by a bridge. There will be no pedestrian traffic at the road level.”
The airport will grow from 29 to 36 gates, boosting capacity from 8 million to 13 million passengers annually.
This transformation of what Nardone calls “the front door” to Central Ohio will help make the region more attractive—and more accessible—to the type of travel needed for a vibrant economy. “Air travel is an important part of the economic structure,” Nardone says. “We today have more nonstop destinations than we’ve ever had at the Columbus airport. … The more people that we can put on airplanes, the more growth that we have, and we are on an upward trajectory right now.”
Columbus is the 14th largest city in the United States, but it stands alone among its peers in one key area: “We’re the largest major city without rapid mass transit,” McDonald says.
Among the highest-profile transportation initiatives that have been put forth is LinkUS, a joint endeavor of COTA, the city of Columbus, the Franklin County Board of Commissioners and the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission. “It is a workforce initiative,” McDonald says. “It is an infrastructure initiative. We think that it could be an equity initiative to help us close gaps around the community.”
LinkUS calls for improvements to pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly sidewalks, lanes and trails, but the centerpiece of the plan is a rapid transit program in which high-capacity COTA buses would run in dedicated lanes across “corridors” that connect places where people live to places where they work, go to school or receive health care services.
“If you miss one bus, then there will be another one right behind,” says Stephanie Hightower, president and CEO of the Columbus Urban League, who co-chairs the LinkUS community stakeholder group.
“Bus rapid transit is an excellent choice because of its nimbleness and the use of technology,” McDonald says.
The corridors themselves—in areas including Northwest Columbus and along West Broad and East Main streets—are seen as spots where businesses, housing and retail will flourish. Just as important, proponents say, LinkUS will help make
Most people don’t think of Columbus as a tourist destination, but tourism is vital to a community because it’s one of our most significant exports.”
Jimmy Merkel, co-founder and CEO, Rockbridge
employment opportunities available to workers who depend on public transportation but lack access to it.
“We know that if there is a more dignified transit opportunity for people who are in poverty, that helps to get them to those higher-paying jobs and those other opportunities,” Hightower says.
“We know that [if] underrepresented communities of people of color and people that are underemployed want to get to these new job opportunities and … want to seize the jobs of the future, they have to have reliable, predictable transportation.”
COTA is seeking a half-percent sales tax increase on the November ballot in Franklin County, as well as parts of Delaware, Fairfield, Union and Licking counties, to help fund the LinkUS initiative.
Downtown Columbus needs to be more than just the physical center of the city for a revitalization effort to work. It also has to function as the region’s heartbeat.
“Any kind of healthy metro area has an exciting, vibrant, dynamic core city,” the Partnership’s McDonald says. “It is where most of the visitors are going to come and maybe form their first impression.”
The Downtown area has gone through multiple permutations over the years, and business leaders say it’s time for another renewal. “It will have to be reimagined wholly,” McDonald says. “[Downtown] used to be our industrial center, and then it became an office and government center, and now it’s transforming
into a fully fledged neighborhood or mini-city within a city. … It could be stronger, it could be more diverse, and it could actually be better than it’s ever been.”
Leaders note that Downtown is already shifting from a “work-only” area to a residential neighborhood. Key to making Downtown livable for its approximately 12,000 residents, though, is uniting its various parts. “I think we’re definitely on the right track, but it’s still a big Downtown,” says developer Jeff Edwards of the Edwards Cos.
One tactic for bringing Downtown together is the Capital Line, a planned 2-mile pathway that will better enable those who travel on foot or by bike to navigate the core of the city. Beyond improving connectivity, another goal is to spur development along the pathway. “What happens is, it’s like a subway stop in New York: You put in a new subway line, and all of a sudden, ground that nobody wanted to be around is super-hot,” Edwards says. “You’re going to see intense pressure, in a good way, to develop within two blocks, one way to the other, of that trail. … If we do that, we’re going to
have a pretty intense little core with a whole bunch of people living on it with a good quality of life.”
Leaders say that adding luxury hotels, unique restaurants and other lifestyle attractions can be a powerful economic engine for Downtown.
“Most people don’t think of Columbus as a tourist destination, but tourism is vital to a community because it’s one of our most significant exports,” says Jimmy Merkel, co-founder and CEO of Rockbridge, who partnered with Edwards on the newly opened Hank’s Low Country Seafood & Raw Bar on West Gay Street.
“When people come and they have a good experience, that’s marketing for ‘I could live here,’ ” Merkel says. “[Then], when the talent gets the call from a company that’s headquartered here, they’re open to [moving to Columbus].”
Integral to creating new amenities is further investing in infrastructure, including parking. An innovative “communal valet” system already is in use Downtown: Diners at Hank’s or nearby Speck Italian Eatery can leave their cars at a single valet drop. “We’ve got to make parking not be a mystery and not be expensive Downtown,” Edwards says.
A significant hub for new discovery in Central Ohio is the Carmenton Innovation District at Ohio State University.
The district, a collaborative initiative between the university, the city of Columbus and JobsOhio, consists of about 300 acres bounded by Kenny Road on the east, North Star Road on the west, Lane Avenue on the north
and Kinnear Road to the south. “The whole goal of the Innovation District is to almost have a sandbox to be able to create a lot of impact,” says Peter Mohler, executive vice president of enterprise for research, innovation and knowledge at Ohio State University.
As it continues to develop, the site will house private companies, research laboratories and other organizations dedicated to pursuing cutting-edge technology in their fields. “We’re focusing in a few areas,” Mohler says. “One of them is the life sciences, or therapeutics. … We’re thinking a lot about software and AI, which are massively growing areas in pretty much all sectors. We’re thinking engineering and advanced materials and battery and mobility. And then the last one that we’re spending a lot of time on is energy.”
At present, the district boasts three main buildings: the Pelotonia Research Center, a laboratory devoted to cross-disciplinary research in health care; the Outpatient Cancer Center, a segment of the Wexner Medical Center focused on cancer therapeutics and clinical trials; and the just-opened Energy Advancement and Innovation Center, which concentrates on energy research and startups.
The district will help ensure that innovations made in-state turn into businesses that stay here. “New companies will be sprouting out of what we’re doing … and they’ll have homes in this building,” Mohler says, referring to the Energy Advancement and Innovation Center.
room on the site for growth—a necessity, given the rapidity of change in the sciences. “It’s 300 acres, and we want to make sure that, while it’s important that we put our ideas in from 2024, that there’s still an opportunity for the leaders a decade from now when the economy might be changing and they need to create some solutions for some different problems,” Mohler says.
When a tech giant like Intel comes to Ohio, lots of change comes with it. In July 2022, Intel began construction on a 1,000-acre site in Licking County that will house two (or more) semiconductor plants—facilities the company calls “fabs.”
A yet-to-be-developed building will invite software innovators to house their startups there, and in time, the district will encompass residential housing and amenities. “We imagine that having a place [to live] near a university, near your company that you’re working at, to have access to child care, to have access to green space … is going to be a very attractive place to live,” Mohler says. There is plenty of
“ ‘Fab’ stands for fabrication,” says Intel’s Ohio public affairs director, Emily Smith. “When you hear the word ‘factory’ in Ohio, we have a very different image in our mind of what that is. This is advanced manufacturing, very different from what our dads and uncles and grandpas did.”
It is very different on an economic scale, too: The $28 billion investment will bring about 7,000 construction jobs, and, when the facilities open, should result in full-time employment for 3,000 people. At present, Intel employs 69 workers in Ohio; about 1,400 construction workers are currently building the facilities.
“This is going to be a catalyst of tens of thousands of support jobs, from electricians and engineers to the supply-chain jobs, as well as restaurants, health care, housing and entertainment,” Smith says.
The effect in the Intel supply chain
Intel construction in April 2024
is already being felt in the Buckeye State, she adds. “Before Intel announced plans to build here, there were about 150 Ohio suppliers [of Intel] in the state,” Smith says. “There are now over 360 Ohio suppliers in 47 Ohio counties. It’s not just people that are commuting into work on the Intel site, but it’s also businesses that are participating in the Intel supply chain.”
Intel has long recruited talent from
Ohio to work in other states, and when the new site opens—typically three to five years from the start of construction, Smith says—residents from here and the broader Midwest region will be sought for jobs.
“One of the reasons why Ohio was so competitive and ultimately won this project is because of the access to current and future talent,” says Smith, adding that Intel has made
investments with education partners to ensure that Ohioans will be ready for the coming tech revolution.
“If Ohioans, and people enrolled in those schools, want to work in the semiconductor industry,” Smith says, “all of the education is put in place for them to be prepared to come and work in the industry.”
Peter Tonguette is a freelance writer.
MAI Companies have the technology to serve customers around the world.
The Columbus Partnership had 81 members in its ranks as of early June, representing many of the region’s most notable businesses and organizations. Stonehenge Partners Inc. also holds a post, but it is currently vacant.
A look at its origins sheds light on possible solutions.
BY BILL LAFAYETTE
There is at last widespread recognition that Central Ohio is facing a housing crisis. This is manifested in rapidly rising home prices and rents, a sharp increase in evictions, and the struggle of wouldbe homebuyers to find and afford a home.
Much has been written on potential solutions. The revision of the Columbus zoning code is an effort to address the crisis. But in order to find possible solutions, it is useful to understand the source and development of the crisis.
The problem arose nearly 20 years ago when the housing market started to soften before the recession. The sharp price increases of the early 2000s peaked in the Columbus metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in mid-2006. This cooled homebuilding. It has never returned to its previous level.
Meanwhile, Central Ohio’s population growth continued apace, increasing by more than 389,000 people (22 percent) between 2005 and 2023. But more relevant is the number of households, because by definition every household must occupy a housing unit.
The number of MSA households increased by 162,400 (23 percent) over that period. Meanwhile, the number of dwelling units—houses and individual apartments—increased around 149,000. This estimate is obtained from MSA building permits less an estimate derived from
Census data of the number of units lost annually—about 250 units.
Figure 1 compares the increase in households to the net increase in housing units since 2001. Housing unit increases far exceeded household increases until 2006, but then lagged household growth for the next 13 years.
The shortfall in housing unit growth was made up by occupying previously vacant units. The total owner and renter vacancy rate in Franklin County fell from an above-average 12.8 percent in 2005 to a below-average 7.5 percent in 2022. This includes unoccupied units not on the market.
That low vacancy rate has resulted in the current tight market. It fails to provide the broad range of options that households need, makes it
difficult for people to relocate to our region and leads to rapid price and rent increases.
Prior to the recession, MSA house price increases ranked among the lowest in the nation, but this shielded Central Ohio from the worst impacts of the housing bust. It also likely encouraged homebuilders to focus their efforts elsewhere.
Below-average price increases continued during the first years of the recovery, but then began exceeding the U.S. average as the effects of the restricted supply began to be felt.
Columbus MSA house prices have surged 47 percent after inflation over the past five years, compared with 30 percent nationwide.
The ultimate solution is to build more housing, but how much more?
The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission recently issued new population, household and housing projections that incorporate the impact of Intel and its suppliers.
Work with these projections suggests that MSA house and apartment unit construction over the next decade needs to average around 15,500 units per year—versus the 11,400 permitted last year—to accommodate the increase in households, improve housing availability, replace lost units and ultimately restore owner and renter affordability.
Bill LaFayette, Ph.D., is the owner of economic consulting firm
A new Columbus ordinance aimed at boosting pay equity makes it illegal for employers to ask job applicants how much they make. Not everyone supports the move.
BY TIM FERAN
Some problems refuse to go away, even if they’re against the law.
Lourdes Barroso de Padilla knows that all too well. The Columbus City Council member last year sponsored legislation that prohibits employers from asking for a job applicant’s salary history. The ordinance, which went into effect March 1, covers all employers located within the city that have 15 or more employees, plus remote workers employed by firms based in Columbus. The ban applies to both the employer and its agents, such as job placement or referral agencies.
“I’m first-generation American,” Barroso de Padilla says, “and I’ve been impacted by pay equity.” She has worked at organizations in which she knew she was paid less than her peers. “It doesn’t matter how much education, how much experience you have. It’s written into the DNA of many organizations.
“I knew this was an issue, and I knew the solution had to be
systemic. It wasn’t just teaching people how to negotiate. So when I came into council, I had a platform to elevate this issue.”
While many companies instituted equal pay provisions after President John F. Kennedy signed into law the Equal Pay Act of 1963, wage disparities based on gender have remained stubbornly in existence over the ensuing 60 years. According to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, in 2023 the median weekly earnings of full-time women workers were just 83.6 cents on the dollar paid to full-time working men. By race, the numbers are even more startling. Compared with white men, white women earned 81.7 cents on the dollar, while Black women’s median weekly earnings were just 65.8 cents. Asian women did better, getting 96.1 cents on the dollar paid to white men; Latina women faced the largest wage gap at just 59.2 cents.
Since the legislation passed, some Columbus employers remain
reluctant to discuss their policies on pay history questions, but others are eager to tout that they follow “best practices” in pay equity.
Victoria’s Secret & Co. is among the latter. A 2023 internal review, as well as a third-party analysis by Seattle-based nonprofit Fair Pay Workplace, revealed that 99 percent of the lingerie retailer’s workforce was paid equitably, says company spokesperson Brooke Wilson. For the remaining 1 percent, “We have made adjustments to processes and compensation to address inconsistencies.”
The company reports that for the last three years, “For every $1 earned by men, women globally earned $1, and for every $1 earned by white associates in the U.S., racial and ethnic minority associates earned $1.”
“It’s something that we’re really, really proud of,” Wilson says.
But not all business leaders have been as enthusiastic as those at Victoria’s Secret. In March 2023, for
example, the Columbus Chamber of Commerce came out against the city’s legislation, saying it would harm business operations.
“The Columbus Chamber believes employers, not the government, are in the best position to make decisions regarding their respective hiring process,” said Desmond Bryant, vice president of governmental relations at the chamber, in a statement reported by The Columbus Dispatch. “Business owners should have the freedom to make sound decisions with regard to hiring their workforce and to adopt practices that meet the needs of their respective workplaces.”
Chamber officials declined to comment for this story.
Steve Stivers, president and CEO of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, says the ban is almost a moot point, since most employers and prospective employees can find salary information online. “You can go on Glassdoor, and I can tell you how much I’m paying my employees,” he says. “There’s nothing bad there, but there is salary right there. So it’s out there now.
“For us, it’s not even about the information. It’s about the uniformity issue,” Stivers says. “There are over 900 different municipalities and 1,400 townships in Ohio.” If all or some of them passed different variations of the salary history ban, he adds, “that’s quite a patchwork, which is problematic.”
“I know [Barroso de Padilla] wants to protect pay for minorities and women,” Stivers says. “But we think cities have very important laws to pass on safety, parks, trash and other issues. We just don’t think employment law should be something that’s done at the city level.
“Historically, compensation for men and women has been skewed. Also, when you make a practice of asking women what they were making in past jobs, it was and is still biased.”
Fred Gittes, civil rights attorney
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"We
will still have conversations with the business community. If anyone is negatively affected—which is not our intention—we will make the appropriate changes.”
Lourdes Barroso de Padilla, Columbus City Council member
“I’m not sure we’d even oppose it at the state level,” Stivers says.
The idea that Ohio legislators could pass an employment law similar to the one in Columbus is extremely unlikely, says Columbus employment law attorney John S. Marshall. “I would liquidate all my assets and bet that the current General Assembly would not pass that law,” Marshall says. “Council recognizes that this won’t magically fix it, but it’s a good step.”
Columbus civil rights lawyer Fred Gittes agrees. “I don’t criticize City Council for spending time on this issue,” he says. The law “makes a couple points. Historically, compensation for men and women has been skewed. Also, when you make a practice of asking women what they were making in past jobs, it was and is still biased. It shouldn’t be considered
Enforcement of the city’s ordinance falls to the Community Relations
Commission. Employers found to be in violation of the ban could face fines ranging from $1,000 to $5,000.
“That’s a modest enforcement mechanism,” Marshall says, especially for larger companies. Smaller, mom-and-pop-type businesses might find the fines more daunting.
“We didn’t mean it to be punitive,” Barroso de Padilla says. “My father was a small business owner—he had the first Latino food store in Columbus, in the ’80s—so I understand what it means for small business.”
To help employers and potential job seekers understand the motivation for the legislation, the city has a tool kit online at salaryhistoryban.com, Barroso de Padilla says. “We did that so they can say, ‘Hey, now I know that this is best practice.’ ”
Ensuring that companies entering the local market are aware of the rule, she says, is the real point of the legislation. “I felt we needed to put a stake in the ground to protect our people,” she says. “As we continue to grow and companies are coming into Columbus, we know that some already have best practices. But that doesn’t give us the assurance that they all would.”
The salary history ordinance “was low-hanging fruit,” Barroso de Padilla says, “which is why we decided to go in this direction. This is doable for us, and the right time.”
The legislation is far from the final word in the pursuit of pay equity and transparency, she says. “We will still have conversations with the business community. If anyone is negatively affected—which is not our intention— we will make the appropriate changes.
“We’re happy to have those conversations,” she says.
Time will tell if everything works as intended for all concerned, Stivers says. “I’ve not heard a lot of complaints, but I haven’t exactly been reaching out,” he says. “March and April are reasonable hiring months, but they’re not like June, July and August, which are giant hiring months.
“I doubt we’ll hear a lot of complaints. A lot of companies probably haven’t heard about it.”
Tim Feran is a freelance writer.
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As employers grapple with health care costs, some are piloting on-site wellness clinics. Chase and Bath & Body Works are among the local trendsetters.
BY TIM FERAN
Claire Esslinger had recently moved to Columbus to work at JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s regional headquarters when she encountered a problem.
“One day at work, I got sick,” she says. Esslinger had no idea where to go or what to do. But her co-workers in the Corporate Analyst Development Program told her, “Just go down to Vera and see what they have to offer.”
“Vera” is Vera Whole Health (part of apree health), which a year and a half ago joined with Central Ohio Primary Care to launch on-site advanced primary care centers in Chase’s Central Ohio offices, including the McCoy Center at Polaris.
“It was super easy,” Esslinger says. “I walked in and told them I wasn’t feeling well and would like to be seen, and they got me in immediately.”
Perhaps just as importantly, “You could tell they really cared and
wanted to get to know you as an individual rather than just a patient. Sometimes when you go to doctors’ offices, they try to get you in, out and leave.
“I was talking with the doctor for a long time,” she says, “and he was truly getting to know me. Turns out his daughter went to the same college I did. So we had quite a bit to talk about.”
Esslinger’s experience is exactly what Dan Mendelson had in mind when he spearheaded the creation of the on-site clinics. Mendelson is CEO of Morgan Health, a Chase business unit focused on, in his words, “accelerating the delivery of new care models that improve the quality, equity and affordability of employer-sponsored health care.”
“We want an integrated approach to health care,” Mendelson says. “This isn’t just about a doctor. It’s fully integrated with things like wellness
coaching, behavioral health screenings, chronic disease management, pharmaceuticals and more—a whole health approach. We believe in prevention and helping employees and reducing downstream costs.”
To do that, Morgan Health helped launch five new advanced primary care centers for Chase in Columbus— three at company offices and two “near-site” clinics in Dublin and Westerville. Employees and their dependents enrolled in the medical plan can schedule an on-site visit at no cost; near-site clinics have a $15 co-pay. Since opening in August 2022, nearly 5,300 patients have visited, with 33 percent returning for additional care and consultation. “We wanted to take a step back and create an environment where [an integrated approach] is possible,” Mendelson says. “Standard health insurance plans just don’t offer that.”
Mendelson has long been focused on how health care cost and quality can be improved. He was previously founder and CEO of Avalere Health, an advisory company based in Washington, D.C., and associate director for health at the Office of Management and Budget in the Clinton White House. “Primary care is not a new thing, but as employees get super busy we can’t just sit back and expect it to happen,” he says. “People don’t go to the doctor. There are barriers. But if you walk past that clinic every day, you’re more likely to go in.”
Convenient, affordable, quality health care in a caring environment is a proposition that other Central Ohio employers also find compelling. Count Bath & Body Works among them. In September 2023, the company opened its own wellness center and pharmacy at the home office in Columbus.
“We’re committed to creating a space where our associates feel supported and valued,” Chief Human Resources Officer Deon Riley says. “We believe that when our associates feel genuinely cared for, they are empowered to use those tools to care for one another, our customers and our communities in a way that has meaningful and lasting impacts.”
The Bath & Body Works Wellness Center is open to all employees and contractors, whether or not they are enrolled in the company’s health
insurance plan. That includes home office, store and distribution center workers. “We offer a low, flat fee for visits such as preventive care, urgent care, well-women exams, physical therapy and more,” Riley says. “When we make it easier and more cost-effective for our associates to receive the care they need, they are more likely to prioritize their health.”
While some workers may worry about employers’ prying eyes, executives say on-site clinics are regulated by strict HIPAA privacy rules, just like traditional providers. Disclosure of protected health information can bring significant federal penalties, including steep fines.
How the financing model for on-site wellness works long term remains to
Dan Mendelson, CEO of Morgan Health
be seen. Mendelson acknowledges “we’re paying more for primary care” on-site, but he expects that clinics such as those at Chase and Bath & Body Works will ultimately reduce downstream costs. “We really set this up as a model for Central Ohio,” he says. “It’s too early to say if we’re seeing cost savings. But initially we are seeing lower ER usage.”
One of the big differences between the advanced primary care model and traditional primary care is how the former treats specialty referrals and clinical follow-ups, such as
making sure patients are taking their prescriptions. That difference was evident to Holly Futach, a global security manager for Chase. “I was having issues with my back and my head—actually head pain and facial pain and arm going numb and stuff like that,” she says. Her primary care doctor “was quick to get me in and out of the office. They weren’t listening to me. I was asking to see a specialist, and they still weren’t listening to me, and I had been asking for a while.”
In frustration, she went to Vera. “I saw one of the doctors, and she listened to me. She cared,” Futach says. “She said she understood my concerns. She referred me to the specialist, and now I’m on the right path—finally—to figuring out what is wrong with me. It’s an ongoing process. They continue to care even when you leave the office, which matters.”
Proponents say on-site
clinics can foster that attitude because they follow a different business model. Rather than the traditional fee-for-service payment arrangement that rewards the number of office visits, the advanced primary care system aims to improve health outcomes. For patients, that translates into longer visits if needed, wellness screenings, virtual and in-person follow-ups, referrals and more.
“There’s so much fragmentation in health care,” Mendelson says. “It seems like we’re spending more money, but not seeing improved outcomes. This is intended to tackle both issues.” The on-site clinics are “testing a model that will ultimately improve health care for everyone.”
Tim Feran is a freelance writer. This story also appears in the July issue of Columbus Monthly
Bath & Body Works provides medical and wellness services including:
• Primary care and preventive services
• Physical therapy
• Lab work and biometric screenings
• Allergy shots and vaccinations (including flu, shingles and COVID)
• Occupational health care (injury/illness management and rehabilitation)
• Discounted over-the-counter medications from a full-service pharmacy
At Chase’s three on-site care centers, services include:
• Comprehensive wellness exams and immunizations
• Behavioral health screenings
• Health coaching
• Gynecologic visits and family planning
• Virtual primary care consultation and support services
• Chronic disease management for conditions such as asthma, migraines, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, osteoarthritis and eczema, as well as mental health support
JULY 13TH 2024 1-4PM
Learn about nine Central Ohio charitable and nonprofit organizations that serve a variety of needs and populations.
By Douglas F.
Iattended a meeting recently that included a panel of experts about data centers, their role in the future of information access, and their requirements in terms of access to power. It was a fascinating discussion that lifted up many opportunities and challenges. One such challenge is that data centers of old required just five megawatts to operate; in today’s world, in order to power AI, data centers each can require 500 megawatts to operate.
That’s a significant challenge that will take significant investments and planning to meet, but advanced technology is also a great opportunity for our region. Intel’s CEO was quoted recently saying that Central Ohio will become “the most advanced AI-driven technology community on the planet.” What a great resource for our community.
This is part of what contributes to the optimism many feel about our community going forward—that perhaps, if we do right by our responsibilities that come with these opportunities so clearly positioned to fuel the future, our best days as a community are ahead. Belief in place and in each other also
have something to do with making it so. As culture writer par excellence—and a Columbus Foundation Columbus' True Originals honoree—Hanif Abdurraqib shared in a Columbus Monthly article earlier this year, “An achievement for me is making this a city that everyone is at least capable of loving the way I do.”
How do we do that? Given the nature of Columbus CEO as a business and leadership publication, it is worth considering where the interests of business and civic progress come together. A glimpse of those shared interests is touched on in a new book, “The Problem with Change: And the Essential Nature of Human Performance,” in which author and former Cisco executive Ashley Goodall writes that in business, “…more of us should learn how to understand and create the conditions for human flourishing—and then … step back and let the humans do the flourishing.” True for business, true for community.
Simply stated, we cannot realize all the potential of economic development without a commensurate or greater commitment to human development. Which brings me to this section of this
issue. From health care and education to workforce training, food and housing—not to mention economic development—the nonprofit sector is laserfocused on achieving improvements in human flourishing.
So, let’s remember that while tax breaks and incentives and investments in power grids and water supplies are often necessary to help attract businesses to build a stronger economy, so, too, are investments in our nonprofit infrastructure necessary to ensure our community is ready with the skills, housing, transportation solutions and healthy lives to make the most of the opportunities being earned for our region. To offer one without further investing in the other means that too many people won’t have the chance to flourish, and our region won’t reach its potential. Nonprofits are an indispensable part of building a strong economy and region that everyone can love and in which everyone has a chance to thrive. Please consider how you can make sure these vital organizations have what they need to maximize the effectiveness of their work—so they can help us ensure that the best days truly are ahead.
Plan and execute a personalized strategy to meet your philanthropic and financial goals by taking full advantage of charitable giving techniques and vehicles.
Prepare to make a lasting, future gift to support the causes and organizations that are important to you.
The Columbus Foundation supports your charitable efforts with insights about community needs and organizations.
Tailored to help new and established businesses develop and implement a custom corporate giving program that reflects the company’s mission and values.
Philanthropic planning is an important element of managing your overall legal and financial goals. As you work through tax, legal, and financial strategies, know that The Columbus Foundation—now 80 years strong—serves as a world-class, trusted resource. Whether you’re interested in increasing your impact, decreasing your tax liability, or leaving a lasting legacy, we’re here to help.
columbusfoundation.org
ALL THAT - TEENS HOPEFUL ABOUT TOMORROW
P.O. Box 27113
4117 E. Livingston Ave. Columbus, OH 43227
614-745-0007
all-that.org
ABOUT
Annual revenue: $1,175,000
Number of employees: 20
Established: 2009
Number of locations: One
SOURCES OF FUNDING
Grants: 95%
Corporate gifts: 5%
EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP
Danella Hicks
Executive Director
BOARD MEMBERSHIP
Erika Little, Board President
James Hollingshed, Board Secretary
Ted Bruning, Board Treasurer
Danella Hicks
Founder & Executive Director
danellahicks@all-that.org
All THAT—Teens Hopeful About Tomorrow (All THAT) is a premier mentoring and enrichment program for underserved teens. We mentor youth in academic achievement, life skill develoment and career planning. We establish caring relationships with teens and enhance their ability to make good choices, obtain jobs that pay a living wage and realize their hopes, dreams and goals.
We envision our teens graduating from high school, obtaining successful careers, living healthy, productive lives and being hopeful about their future.
YOUR DONATION HELPS PROVIDE
• Academic assistance to struggling teens
• Virtual reality career exploration
• Social/Emotional Workshops
• Substance abuse and violence prevention
• Transportation into the community
• Daily meals and snacks
• Cooking classes and grocery store tours to help alleviate chronic and acute illnesses
• Access to shower, washer and dryer, and hygiene products
• Access to technology
• Free enrichment activities and clubs
• Daily access to caring adults
In 2020, we purchased the Shady Lane Presbyterian Church and established The ALL THAT Center of Excellence to create a welcoming, safe environment where teens can have access to academic assistance, exposure to careers that pay a living wage, develop the skills needed to succeed in the workforce and have exposure to enrichment opportunities that boost their life skills.
We offer stipends based on consistent attendance, participation and engagement to help teens become aware of the connection between engagement and earning a living wage.
671 S. High St., Eighth Floor, Columbus, OH 43206
614-294-5181
goodwillcolumbus.org
ABOUT
Annual revenue: $65.9 million
Number of employees: 1,100
Established: 1939
Number of locations: 30+
goodwillcolumbus
goodwillcolumbus
GoodwillCols
SOURCES OF FUNDING
Social Enterprise: 77% Grants: 17%
Corporate Gifts: 5%
Individual Gifts: 1%
Ryan Burgess
Chief Executive Officer and President
Mark Koenig
Chief Financial Officer and Chief Compliance
Officer
OUR MISSION
Transforming the lives of individuals through pathways to independence and the power of work.
OUR VISION
All individuals are embraced as valued and dignified members of our community.
OUR GOAL
We are committed to equipping 100,000 individuals with the tools to advance economic mobility through the power of work.
Jennifer Marshall Senior VP of Mission Impact and Strategy
Marlene Armstrong VP of Marketing and Communications
Jennifer Jedinak VP of Donated Goods Retail
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Jen Yaross, Chair, Quility
Ted Adams, Barnes & Thornburg LLP
Erin Bender, Stonehenge Partners
Andrea Darby, OhioHealth
Kirk Dickerson, Columbus State
Community College
Jeff Girard, Designer Brands Inc.
Chris Graham, Nationwide Mutual
Funds
John Hall, CBRE
Steve Ifeduba
Megan Kilgore, city of Columbus
Clara Kridler, Hologram
George Leugers, Fifth Third Bank
Tasha Lewis, The Ohio State University
Jen Martin
Erik McDowell, Westfield Insurance
Kari Palmer, KPMG
Marissa Peirsol, BakerHostetler
Marc Reitter, AEP Ohio
Linda Roubinek, Grange Insurance
Goodwill Columbus is a proud member of Goodwill Industries International, a network of over 150 community-based, nonprofit organizations throughout the United States and Canada that sell donated goods to create job opportunities and training in local communities.
Goodwill Industries was founded in 1902 by Reverend Edgar J. Helms, a minister and early social innovator. Helms started
Goodwill with the idea that people could earn a living repairing and selling donated goods. His business model was rooted in the philosophy we all deserve opportunity. “Not charity, but a chance,” he often said.
Today, with over 1,100 employees, Goodwill Columbus is proud to be a top 100 employer in Central Ohio and a trusted source for putting people to work.
Goodwill Columbus believes the power of work can transform lives. We have confidence that our commitment to career navigation and skills development can lead to long-term economic stability for individuals, their families and the greater Columbus community.
Whether you are looking for your first job, your next job or to grow your skills, Goodwill is here to help.
Learn more about our mission and how your organization can get involved at goodwillcolumbus.org/mission.
THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY COMPREHENSIVE CANCER CENTER – ARTHUR G. JAMES CANCER HOSPITAL AND RICHARD J. SOLOVE RESEARCH INSTITUTE (OSUCCC –JAMES)
460 W. 10th Ave. Columbus, OH 43210
800-293-5066 cancer.osu.edu
ABOUT
Number of employees: 6,550 full-time equivalents, with more than 300 researchers and 200 specialized oncologists
Established: 1976
Number of locations: 19
OSUCCCJames OSUCCC_James OSUCCC_James Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center-James Cancer Hospital & Solove Research Institute
LEADERSHIP
Raphael E. Pollock, M.D., Ph.D., F.A.C.S. Director, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center
David E. Cohn, M.D., M.B.A. Interim CEO, James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute Chief Medical Officer
EMERITUS MEMBERS
William B. Farrar, M.D.
Cheryl Krueger
Jane T. McCoy
James V. Pickett
David E. Schuller, M.D.
At the OSUCCC – James, we strive to create a cancer-free world, one person, one discovery at a time, by blending scientific research with excellence in education and patient-centered care—a strategy that leads to better methods of prevention, detection and treatment.
The OSUCCC – James is one of only 57 comprehensive cancer centers as designated by the National Cancer Institute, a designation we have maintained through competitive renewal since 1976.
Helena Anderson
Jeri Block
Kenton R. Bowen
Michael H. Carpenter
William H. Carter
David E. Cohn, M.D., MBA
Jeg Coughlin Jr.
Dale Darnell
Tammy Dosch
Ron Ford
Steven G. Gabbe, M.D.
Libby Germain
Sarah Benson Hatcher
As the cancer program’s 356-bed, adult patient-care component, the James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute is ranked among America’s Best Hospitals for cancer care by U.S. News & World Report.
Working together and utilizing state-ofthe-art facilities and technology, clinicians and researchers at the OSUCCC – James are speeding the development and delivery of targeted treatments for each patient’s unique cancer.
Cindy Hilsheimer
Lisa A. Hinson
Peter Z. Horvath
Irene J. Levine
Scott McComb
Jimmy Merkel
Cameron Mitchell
Diane Nye
Marnette Perry
Raphael E. Pollock, M.D., Ph.D.,
FACS
Rich Porter
Mark Puskarich
Luciana Ramsey
Charles Ruma
Mark Ryan
Amy Shepherd
Julie Sloat
Judith E. Tuckerman
Doug Ulman
Robert C. White Jr.
Alec Wightman
Jay Worly
Michelle Yeager-Thornton
1000 Cleveland Ave. Columbus, OH 43201
614-221-8830
bgccentralohio.org
For 75 years, Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Ohio has enabled young people to reach their full potential. Our vision is for all kids—regardless of circumstances—to have the opportunity to achieve a great future. We offer comprehensive, affordable after-school and summer programming for youth (K-12) in 11 Clubhouses and 3 counties across Central Ohio. Our Clubs provide kids a safe, engaging space to learn, grow, and prepare for their futures.
Education Foundation for Freedom (EFF) serves BIPOC women, girls and gender-expansive individuals predominantly based in the Near East Side Columbus community to interrupt historical barriers and systemic challenges such communities have faced in accessing culturally sustaining extracurricular opportunities for enrichment via the arts, culture, education, entrepreneurship, and community well-being. Our signature programs are the Columbus Women & Girls’ Fest and Empowering Young Voices Arts Mentoring.
814-441-3171
484 Stone Shadow Drive Blacklick, OH 43004
edforfreedom.org
727 E. Main St. Columbus, OH 43205
614-461-9247
Home for Families (HFF) is dedicated to eradicating family homelessness in Greater Columbus. Originating from a profound belief that no child should endure homelessness, HFF, established nearly four decades ago, has evolved to meet societal challenges yet remains faithful to its founding principles. We fiercely advocate for families’ rights to housing stability, financial autonomy, and equitable education, while promoting transformative change, one family at a time.
homeforfamilies.org
PAST, a nonprofit organization, is a leader in designing innovative educational opportunities across the nation and around the world, bringing problem-based learning to educators and experiential programs to students. For nearly 25 years, we have impacted hundreds of thousands of students and educators while engaging hundreds of businesses and industry leaders. Building a community of learners that helps students prepare to solve the world’s problems is our core mission.
1003 Kinnear Road Columbus, OH 43212
614-340-1208 pastfoundation.org
As Central Ohio’s only 24/7/365 drop-in center dedicated to youth ages 14-24 experiencing homelessness, Star House offers immediate access to safe respite and also provides access to food, clothing, hygiene items, laundry facilities and showers, plus essential health care, employment and education assistance, housing solutions, transportation, addiction services and more. Star House, in collaboration with the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority and Finance Fund, operates Carol Stewart Village, a supportive neighborhood for young adults ages 18-24.
1220 Corrugated Way, Columbus, OH 43201 614-826-5868 starhouse.us
At Stowe Mission, we’re guided by the Gospel to serve our neighbors in need. We inspire hope and offer resources in three essential areas: Hunger, Health Care and Education. We feed the hungry with hot meals and a food pantry, provide free vision and dental care, and support families through afterschool programs and a pregnancy resource center.
888 Parsons Ave. Columbus, OH 43206
614-445-8400
stowemission.org
Whether it be a corporate ladder or a literal ladder you’re climbing every day, being a full-time working mom comes with its challenges. So, what insight can the working mothers of PDS offer? Whether you’re a new mom or a mom in the workforce for over a decade, we’ve learned advice is not one size fits all. Here are some insights that have helped us through our own transitions, while ceremoniously tipping our hats to all the great working mothers who paved the way before us.
The Comeback
• Embrace the change. This one is hard to swallow, however being open to change can help shift your mindset to focus on what you can control to accept the uneasiness of change.
• Celebrate the wins! Celebrate one win every day. You left the house on time, the kids ate today, or you met an important deadline. These are all wins!
• Give yourself grace. Working moms are their own worst critics, and we are often harsher on ourselves than those around us. None of us are perfect and that’s OK!
The Great Balancing Act
• Find your balance. It often feels like you are walking a tightrope between work life and personal life, but the reality is no exact balance exists. Although it takes time, ultimately you will determine what suits your life and what doesn’t.
• Seek support. Find other moms inside and outside the workplace to share and discuss the struggle of juggling both worlds. Accept their words of encouragement and offer it to them, as well. All moms deserve to hear “you’re doing great” more often!
• Prioritize your mental health. Mentally check in with yourself to run a self-assessment. When you’re in a good mental space,
acknowledge it and keep doing what got you there!
• Set boundaries. Don’t be afraid to speak up and advocate for yourself. Setting professional boundaries can create a functional space allowing for peak productivity and balance.
• Note accomplishments and ask for help. Make note of everything you have accomplished, big or small. Let those accomplishments motivate you and accept the reality you can’t do it all on your own. Asking for help can lead to a winwin situation both at work and home.
• Surround yourself with positive people. Being a part of a team is more rewarding than trying to go alone. Be a leading example in building others up and allow others to build you up, as well.
Working moms are comprised of equal parts resilience and determination. Juggling it all can be a struggle, but hopefully our insights provide you comfort in knowing there are many others on a similar journey. The working mothers of PDS salute you!
At PDS, our working mothers are integral in helping our clients plan for financial security with the patience and empathy of a caring mother. Most of our clients also find themselves juggling complex lives and look to PDS for financial advice that meets their needs, for a fair fee. That’s why at PDS we help clients for flat fee stated in dollars, not based on the value of your portfolio.
PDS Planning Inc.
475 Metro Place S., Suite 460 Dublin, OH 43017 614-481-8449 pdsplanning.com
BBB® Accredited Businesses are committed to operating with integrity, honoring promises, and telling the truth. Always look for the BBB Accredited Business Seal, it’s The Sign of a Better BusinessSM .
By Eric Madden President and Partner, Astute Technology Management
As cloud computing, mobile technology, and artificial intelligence (AI) continue to drive new levels of business efficiency, many companies are looking to put IT at the forefront of their business strategy.
With a lack of senior IT staff internally, most companies look to an external partner to fill that gap. But how do you find an IT partner that you can trust to help you navigate that landscape, invest in the
right technologies, and keep your staff productive as you adopt these new tools?
With many IT services firms making similar claims, it can be extremely difficult to know which one is going to be a true partner you can truly rely on, and which is going to overpromise and underdeliver.
The easiest place to start is with the numbers. There are well-defined metrics, standards, and certificates that any reputable IT firm will possess. Evaluating their help desk is a good place to start.
How many IT support issues do they solve on the initial support first call?
This is known as “first contact resolution” (FCR) in the IT world, and it’s a good way to judge if a company’s help desk team is knowledgeable and efficient. You can also ask about their “mean time to resolution” (MTTR), which measures the average time they need to resolve an IT support
A mature IT partner also understands that they’re not really in the IT support business, they’re in the employee productivity business. They should be able to articulate a medium and long-term strategy for your business that addresses current problems and lays out a roadmap for maintaining and enhancing the stability of technology before problems occur.
Switching IT companies is difficult and disruptive to a business. With the right due diligence, you can find a long-term partner who provides the strategic support you need.
ticket, or their customer satisfaction score (CSAT).
Building a strong partnership is about more than technical ability, however, which means evaluating a firm’s soft skills and abilities just as rigorously as their hard skills and certifications.
The right IT partner is honest, communicative, and understands your business. Client experience has moved to the forefront of the professional services fields, and IT companies should be no different. While that’s hard to measure, the company’s leadership should demonstrate early in the sales process that they have a mature service management process and the willingness to integrate your questions, priorities, and feedback into that process.
Transparency, trust, and teachability are critical elements of a successful IT services partnership; so are proactivity and vigilance.
• Does the IT company have deep client relationships? Good references and strong word of mouth are two powerful indicators that the company has a mature service offering.
• Industry exper tise is crucial. An IT company that can point to successes in your field is more likely to uncover issues other providers might miss. It also means they’ll need less coaching from your team to provide value.
• Beware of fly-by-night providers. The booming IT services field has attracted many inexperienced and disreputable providers. Hidden fees, oddly low fee structures, and operational opacity should be red flags.
For more information, contact Astute Technology Management at 614-3894102 or astutetm.com.
By Jameel Turner Member, Bailey Cavalieri
inders Keepers, Losers Weepers” may be the law of the playground, but for businesses that hold unclaimed property, adopting such an attitude is fraught with legal and financial peril. A company holding funds that belong to a customer, client, or another business or individual cannot simply pocket those funds because the owner may have forgotten about them, is unaware of their existence or has lost contact with the company holding the property.
The unclaimed property laws in Ohio and all other
states impose specific and multifaceted annual obligations on the holders of unclaimed property. Failure to comply with unclaimed property laws can expose a business to significant and ongoing financial penalties and other legal risks.
All businesses, including financial institutions and consumer-facing companies, often hold various types of unclaimed property. Uncashed checks, bank accounts, security deposits, unredeemed gift card balances or unused rebates, and customer credits are some of the most common sources of unclaimed property. If a business holding such property loses contact with the owner for a certain period set by law (referred to as the “dormancy period”), the property must be remitted to the state of the owner’s last known address or the business’ state of domicile via an unclaimed property report. When unclaimed property is reported to a state, the state becomes the trustee of that
businesses retain experienced counsel to help them navigate this significant and oft-neglected aspect of their finances and operations.
Bailey Cavalieri is a national leader in all aspects of unclaimed property law. For more than 30 years, we have successfully assisted clients across a broad spectrum of industries with unclaimed property law risk analysis and planning, policy and procedure development, annual compliance, voluntary disclosure agreement participation, and audit defense.
If your company is looking for an experienced partner in its unclaimed property compliance journey, look no further than Bailey Cavalieri.
property, holding it for the benefit of the owner until the owner makes a claim for its return.
That claim may come after the owner searches a state unclaimed property database, like the one maintained by the Ohio Department of Commerce. The state tracks owner information through the business’ annual detailed reports about the unclaimed property it reports and remits. This means conducting regular internal audits to identify potentially unclaimed property and establishing policies and procedures to meet all statutory reporting obligations. It isn’t unusual for authorities to conduct unclaimed property compliance investigations and examinations and pursue litigation involving a company’s handling of unclaimed property. Large or publicly traded companies are often targeted for enforcement.
Because of the legal complexities and risks involved for companies holding unclaimed property, many
• Businesses that hold unclaimed property belonging to others, such as uncashed checks, unused gift cards, or security deposits, can’t keep it for themselves.
• Like most other states, Ohio law imposes complex and multifaceted obligations on companies that hold unclaimed property, including filing annual reports with states that require such reports.
• Failure to comply with unclaimed property laws can expose companies to significant financial consequences and other legal risks, which is why so many businesses retain experienced unclaimed property counsel to help them satisfy their obligations.
For more information, contact Bailey Cavalieri at 614-221-3155 or baileycav.com.
By Larry English CEO, Centric Consulting
The modern workplace is more complex than ever. Executives must navigate ever-evolving ways of working, rapid transformation, and constant change management. As a result, executive burnout rates are higher than ever.
If you feel overwhelmed, you’re not alone. Whether you’re a startup, a midsized enterprise, or a Fortune 1000 company, we all have digital, technical, and operational needs that can’t be met in-house. Finding a consulting company
that can meet you where you are, help guide you through complex challenges, and custom-tailor innovative solutions that meet your needs doesn’t have to be a burden.
Centric Consulting is an international management consulting firm dedicated to creating unmatched experiences and tailored solutions for your unique business needs. For 25 years, we’ve solved our clients’ toughest problems—from AI strategy and cyber risk management to cloud solutions and more.
Here are some recent examples of how we’ve helped our clients through a variety of complex business and technology challenges:
1. Recognizing the importance of AI literacy, a Fortune 10 company that pioneered e-commerce and logistics engaged us for AI literacy training. The goal: to ensure their business partners understood how an AI initiative would benefit them and ensure appropri-
ate use to maximize the value AI could bring.
2. We took a multidisciplinary approach to help a Fortune 500 insurer optimize four core new business workflow processes through extensive analysis, mapping, and prototyping. We incorporated automation after streamlining processes, resulting in an 87 percent reduction in manual steps and establishing a foundation for broader business transformation.
3. To meet changing consumer demands, a major consumer packaged goods company needed to provide retailers with real-time data on local product performance for better inventory ordering. We created a digital app offering an omnichannel platform for ordering, promotions, rewards, and product insights, enabling retailers to discover new products and stock based on localized demand.
Our team of experts is committed to delivering
transformative results.
With over 1,500 employees, 13 U.S. locations, and one offshore location, we can scale up or down quickly based on your needs, industry, and desired outcome.
• One in four Centric Consulting clients are Fortune 500 companies.
• Over the years, Centric has been honored with more than 100 awards for our commitment to employees, clients, and communities.
• 98 percent of our clients rate our value as great or good, and 90 percent of our clients return for a second project.
For more information, contact Centric Consulting at centricconsulting.com or linkedin.com/company/ centric-consulting.
By Naresh Induri CEO, Excel Management Systems Inc.
Excel Management Systems Inc. is an award-winning, minority-owned managed IT services firm headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Established in 1989 and helmed by CEO Naresh Induri, Excel provides innovative technology solutions to clients in the federal, state, commercial, and nonprofit sectors nationwide.
Excel takes a customer-centric approach, delivering practical and cost-effective IT solutions tailored
to each client’s most pressing business needs. The company prides itself on being a trusted adviser, not just a consultant. Excel aims to build long-term relationships by continually adapting solutions as clients’ requirements evolve over time. This focus on ongoing value has earned Excel an excellent reputation and high customer retention rate.
Since its founding, Excel has experienced steady growth, at one point having over 100 technical and support professionals on staff. The company has expanded from serving state and local governments to federal and commercial markets, as well. Recent moves into cloud-based and employer-of-record solutions position Excel for continued expansion.
Excel’s success is driven by its service-oriented culture emphasizing quality, responsiveness, and commitment to customer value.
itself as a premier MSP known for innovative yet pragmatic solutions that drive performance improvements and enable clients to adapt to changing market conditions. Through longterm partnerships built on trust, Excel remains committed to empowering its clients’ technology evolution.
• Customer-Centric Focus: Excel takes a true partnership approach, acting as a trusted adviser to understand and continually meet clients’ evolving needs. This customer-centric philosophy has resulted in high satisfaction and retention rates over Excel’s 35-year history.
This approach has earned Excel numerous accolades, including being named to the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing private companies in America and a top emerging company by Columbus Business First Other honors include reseller awards, entrepreneurship recognition, and business leadership accolades.
As a managed IT services provider (MSP), Excel offers a comprehensive suite to ensure clients’ systems operate smoothly around the clock. Core services include 24/7 network monitoring, help desk support, data backup/disaster recovery, and custom project deployment. Whether implementing new technology, optimizing existing infrastructure, or managing day-to-day operations, Excel provides expert IT management so clients can focus on driving their core business initiatives.
With 35 years of experience, Excel has established
• Comprehensive Managed Services: As a full-service MSP, Excel provides round-the-clock monitoring, help desk support, data protection, and custom project implementation. Clients get complete IT management and can offload technology operations.
• Award-Winning Performance: Excel’s commitment to delivering innovative, cost-effective solutions has earned the company numerous honors. These include being an Inc. 5000 fastest-growing company, along with reseller, entrepreneurship, and business leadership accolades. For more information, contact Excel Management Systems Inc. at 614-2244007 or emsi.com.
By Heidi Welch Chief Operating Officer, Health Impact Ohio
Health Impact Ohio (HIO) believes that all people in Ohio should have the best health care and social health experience possible. As a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization, HIO has demonstrated success bringing public and private entities together to learn and effect community change in support of our most vulnerable neighbors across Ohio, having done so since 1999. HIO’s last 5 years’ portfolio of program successes include:
• Our Central Ohio Pathways HUB Community Health Worker (CHW) program, which supports 39 CHWs working for 15
local health and human service agencies, has provided 36,172 connections to care and social services to our region's most at-risk, marginalized neighbors.
• CHWs in our program are tackling the infant mortality crisis in Central Ohio: 98 percent of children born to parents receiving CHW services were born at a healthy birth weight.
• CHWs have helped 241 individuals and families find secure housing.
• HIO's CHW Certification Training Program has graduated 236 individuals since July 2020, with students ranging from high school juniors and seniors to adults with doctoral degrees.
• Health Impact Ohio continues to lead efforts in quality improvement and transparency with our community partners, under the guidance of our quality improvement (QI) team. HIO-involved QI projects include: Funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the Heart
• Health Impact Ohio proudly serves as the fiscal sponsor and consultant for the Ohio Department of Health’s Center for Community Health Worker Excellence, the Ohio School-Based Health Alliance, and the Ohio Partnership of Families Impacted by Opioids.
• Health Impact Ohio is a Statewide Healthcare Improvement Collaborative headquartered in Columbus.
• We improve social drivers of health, health equity, access, and quality in all Ohio communities through: community engagement and partnership; multi-stakeholder training and coaching; data collection and integration; and strategy development and deployment.
• HIO is playing a pivotal role in increasing awareness and deploying life-affirming resources not only at the grass roots level with Community Health Workers, but through engagement with state and community decision-makers and other health professionals.
For more information, contact Health Impact Ohio at healthimpactohio.org.
Healthy Ohio Initiative is an extension of statewide activities conducted with the Ohio Department of Medicaid and Ohio medical schools as part of CardiOH. Heart Healthy Ohio brings together regional health improvement collaboratives to expand Cardi-OH’s aim to improve hypertension and diabetes management and smoking cessation in marginalized populations. HIO is proud to be working on a partnership with the Ohio Department of Medicaid (ODM), Colleges of Medicine (CoM), and other Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) to eliminate disparities in A1C control by integrating the lived experience and needs of patients and family members in quality improvement interventions. QI “hubs” across the state are required to engage patients and CBOs to establish linkages to social care for Medicaid beneficiaries. This hub project will work to identify areas of focus that have high potential to advance health equity in diabetes outcomes, working with practices and patients to understand and address barriers to care.
By Jeff Brock Co-Owner and CEO, Heartland Charging Services
The mission of Heartland Charging Services is to provide a positive owner and user experience with electric vehicle charging infrastructure. As a business owner, you are demonstrating a commitment to sustainability that will not only attract eco-conscious consumers, but also position your business as an industry leader in innovation.
It is evident that EV charging station availability
is one of the key factors when EV drivers develop their daily routines. The EV charging industry is expanding rapidly, and manufacturers are doing all they can to produce enough chargers to keep up with demand as drivers shift to electric vehicles.
Heartland Charging Services provides the experience to guide your business in creating an EV readiness program to meet your business objectives. We are currently partnering with the city of Columbus, Franklin County, and a variety of local businesses to support their EV infrastructure programs. We are also the largest channel partner for one of the biggest original equipment manufacturers in the industry. Our team ensures each charging station is the right fit for the project, installed properly, and maintained to provide maximum uptime for its users.
free consultation, you can customize an on-site plan tailored to your budget and specific needs.
The benefits of adding EV charging to your property are numerous. This investment will increase foot traffic to your business and generate extra income. Offering electric car charging options can also provide a competitive edge and help build customer loyalty.
By choosing our EV charging solutions, you’re not just investing in infrastructure; you’re investing in a sustainable, efficient, and future-ready business model. Contact us today to schedule your free consultation and start your journey toward EV readiness.
The initial costs and complexity of adding EV charging to your community or business can be challenging to estimate and understand. Having a trusted partner to walk you through the process provides the confidence needed to get your project through to completion.
The work does not stop there. It is important to have technical expertise and ongoing support to maximize positive user experience and uptime for the infrastructure. Managing an EV charging station requires specific technical know-how and consistent maintenance. Reliability is critical for a successful program to work.
Heartland Charging Services can simplify this process for your business. With demand on the rise for EV chargers, we want to provide a cost-effective solution for your project, and by leveraging our
• We provide our services throughout Ohio and the Midwest. With offices conveniently located in Dublin, Dayton, and Chicago, we can reach our clients quickly and efficiently.
• EV charging stations can be a new revenue source for your real estate that will increase property value over time.
• EV charging stations establish a new connection to the community and your business. We strive for a positive charging experience and can repair and maintain EV charging infrastructure already in place.
For more information, contact Heartland Charging Services at 800-409-2587 or heartlandcharging services.com.
By Jackie Murphy Founder and Owner, Queen Bee
Creative
In today's digital age, social media has become an indispensable tool for businesses looking to connect with their audience, build their brand, and drive growth. While there are many platforms to choose from, LinkedIn stands out as a powerhouse for B2B marketing. As a social media strategist and marketing consultant working with small businesses in Central Ohio, I’ve seen firsthand how effective LinkedIn can be as part of a business’ market-
ing strategy. Here’s how you can leverage its power.
A strong LinkedIn presence is essential for establishing your brand’s credibility and visibility. Start by optimizing your LinkedIn profile and company page. Ensure that your profile is complete and professional, showcasing your expertise and experience. Your company page should have a cohesive visual identity, consistent messaging, and regular updates that reflect your brand’s values and mission.
For personal profiles, use a professional headshot. For personal and company page banners, showcase projects, products, or partnerships. Use keywords in your headline and about sections to optimize searchability. Do not forget to personalize your URL, use the featured section, ask for endorsements, and invite connections to follow your page.
Engagement is key to a successful LinkedIn strategy. To increase engagement, create content that resonates with your audience. Share articles, posts, and updates that provide value, such as industry trends, tips, and success stories. Celebrate each other, show off collaborations and share your opinion. As a company page, give your employees content they are proud of sharing to their network.
Responding promptly and thoughtfully to comments and messages further builds trust and strengthens relationships with your audience. By showing that you value their input and are willing to engage in meaningful conversations, you can foster a sense of community and loyalty.
To ensure your LinkedIn efforts are effective, you
must know your social media goals and review your analytics. Monitor metrics such as engagement rates and reach. These insights can help you understand what’s working and what needs adjustment.
For example, if you notice that posts with certain types of content receive higher engagement, tailor your strategy to include more of that content. If certain posts underperform, analyze why and make changes. Being flexible and data-driven in your approach will enable you to continuously improve your LinkedIn strategy.
Learn more by connecting with me on LinkedIn or contacting me for a consultation.
• Showing up personally on social platforms builds the LIKE factor: When you appear personally in posts or videos as a thought leader and active participant, it creates a more relatable and likable presence.
• Showing up consistently builds the KNOW factor: Regularly posting content helps your audience become more familiar with your brand, leading to stronger recognition and connection.
• Showing your team builds the TRUST factor: Sharing behind-thescenes photos and team member highlights can humanize your brand and build trust with your audience.
For more information, contact Queen Bee Jackie Creative at 614-266-2439 or queenbeejackie.com.
Presented
BY BILL RABINOWITZ
In 2005, Ohio State University approached Gene Smith to interview for its athletic director job. Smith, a Cleveland native, turned OSU down. Twice. But eventually, Smith was persuaded to step away from his job as athletic director at Arizona State, and the rest, as they say, is history.
As he gets set to retire at the end of June, Smith, 68, can laugh about
his initial ambivalence. He had been a successful athletic director at Eastern Michigan, Iowa State and Arizona State. But it was his 19-year tenure at Ohio State that cemented his place in collegiate sports history.
This story is excerpted from a profile in The Columbus Dispatch, a sister publication of Columbus CEO.
Here’s a look at Smith’s tenure by the numbers:
36 varsity sports, with about 1,000 athletes participating
$279.5 million
OSU athletic department’s reported revenue in the last fiscal year
127 and 35
Buckeye individuals and teams, respectively, who have won national titles since 2005
5
facilities opened: the 3,700-seat Covelli Center, the Ty Tucker Tennis Center, new lacrosse and field hockey stadiums, and the Schumaker Complex, which houses locker rooms for all of Ohio State’s Olympic sports athletes and is attached to the Woody Hayes Athletic Center
17
national titles won by the football, men’s volleyball, women’s hockey, synchronized swimming and wrestling teams
811
student-athletes who achieved Scholar-Athlete status in the 202324 school year by having a 3.0 GPA. In 2005, Smith says, OSU had 324 Scholar-Athletes.
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