Each year, the State of Ohio hosts the Choose Ohio First Scholars event. The day showcases STEM-related projects by local students, honors scholarship recipients, and, this year, recognized the work done in Ohio by the Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellows.

WW President Arthur Levine, via video (above), thanked all of the players who have made the Ohio program such a success. Brian Hayes, WW Teaching Fellowship program officer, gave remarks on the tremendous impact the WW program has had on preparing STEM educators in the state:

“The Fellowships helped Ohio retain and bring back talented, accomplished people. From 2011 to 2014, we awarded just over 300 Fellowships to high-achieving STEM students to become science, technology, engineering and math teachers in the Ohio schools and districts that need them most. These numbers are enough to fill nearly all of the STEM vacancies in the state’s highest need school districts. Among the Fellows who have earned their teaching certification, 91.5 percent were placed, and 89 percent remain employed in high-need schools throughout the state, far surpassing national trends which show 40 percent to 60 percent of new teachers leaving the profession in their first three years.”

The event was hosted by Columbus State Community College and included remarks from the Chancellor of Higher Education John Carey and the Ohio Secretary of State Jon A. Husted, who created the Choose Ohio First scholarship. Mr. Hayes’ full remarks can be read here.

---