Ohio Initiative Adds to STEM Momentum

$12 million Gates grant funds public-private partnership on high-tech careers.

In the latest state-level effort to promote science and technology education, Ohio has launched a new public-private partnership intended to connect 100,000 students over the next 10 years to high-tech careers aimed at helping to fuel the economy.

The The Ohio STEM Learning Network , announced by Gov. Ted Strickland and legislative leaders Jan. 30—and funded through a $12 million grant from the Seattle- based Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation—will begin with five regionally located schools focused on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, or STEM, skills .

The schools will serve middle and high school students from low-income and minority communities. The Battelle Memorial Institute, an international research-and-development firm with headquarters in Columbus, Ohio,...