On March 2, 2001 the Regional Chamber hosted Education Summit 2001 at the Avalon Inn. With financial support from Ohio Edison the Summit was designed to focus attention on K - 12 education, and its impact on economic competitiveness.

Over 300 business, education, labor and government leaders saw the Regional Chamber present the 2001 Champions In Education Awards, recognizing Herman Maass, former plant manager at GM Lordstown Assembly, and Jim Graham, president of United Auto Workers Local 1112, for their work promoting education in the region. The two have appeared at numerous schools, both individually and together, urging students to further their education. They have also used their positions to promote and assist school districts throughout the region.

Dr. Theodore Hershberg, a professor of public policy and History and the Director of the Center for Greater Philadelphia at the University of Pennsylvania was the keynote speaker. Dr. Hershberg is a nationally renowned lecturer on standards based educational reform. Dr. Hershberg compared looking at the current educational system, to being in the crow's nest of the Titanic, heading towards an iceberg on the horizon. Because it takes a generation to train a labor-force, "We must turn the wheel now."

If Ohio is to become a leader in the 21st century, its citizens must understand and be committed to the importance of higher education. That is the message that Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Roderick G.W. Chu presented at the Education Summit II, sponsored by the Mahoning County Career & Technical Center and the Trumbull Career & Technical Center, on December 7, 2001.

Chu is responsible for challenging and guiding Ohio's higher education system toward new levels of performance and achievement in serving students, Ohioans and the nation. He also has partnerships with Governor Bob Taft, the Ohio General Assembly, and higher education, business and community leaders.

At the Summit, Chu recalled remarks Taft made in his inaugural speech three years ago. “He said, ‘Today we stand on the doorstep of the next frontier – not with an agricultural or industrial edge, as in the past. This time, our frontier is knowledge and technology, a place where Ohio must be a leader among states and nations.’”

We are planning a series of educational seminars that will help us develop a background about education and education opportunity in our Valley. These seminars will include work sessions to develop a vision and strategic plan for addressing education in our Valley. The first meeting in this seminar series was February 7, 2002, and featured Williard Dagget, President of the International Center for Leadership in Education. For details on upcoming seminars, call Harry Christman at (330) 392-6140, ext. 18.