Surgery to repair one of the most common causes of lower back pain will be shorter, have less risk of complications, and result in faster patient recovery times, thanks to a novel device developed at The University of Toledo.

UT researchers have created a minimally invasive intervertebral device that eliminates the need for a large surgical opening because of its new design, allowing surgeons to remove a much smaller portion of bone when performing surgical spinal implants.

One of the most common causes of lower back pain in people age 45 to 65 is the compression of an intervertebral disc that creates pressure on nerves extending from the spinal cord. While current spinal fusion procedures — expanding the spacing between vertebrae by surgically removing an improperly functioning disc and replacing it with an implanted device called a cage — often succeed in the decompression of nerves and relief from debilitating pain, the operation is invasive and has a high risk of injury.

Dr. Vijay Goel held the intervertebral device that he and Dr. Mohammad Elahinia designed to make spine surgery less invasive and recovery time for patients much shorter.

Dr. Mohammad Elahinia, lead researcher and UT associate professor of mechanical, industrial and manufacturing engineering, said the new device will provide surgeons with an alternative to traditional spinal implant cages.

“Our cage is different because it is comprised of a chain of linked segments connected by hinges, and it is inserted vertically or horizontally into the inter-vertebral cavity one link at a time,” said Elahinia, who also serves as director of the Third Frontier Project Nitinol Commercialization Accelerator to advance the development of products made from the alloy of nickel and titanium. “This allows for an incision as small as 6 millimeters wide and 10 to 20 millimeters high.”

Dr. Vijay Goel, UT professor and chair of orthopedic bioengineering, said the unique design of the cage is a clear improvement over current devices because it allows for easier insertion and faster, safer recovery for patients.

“Because of the smaller, single incision, this device minimizes the risks of spinal fluid leak and penetration of the dura, the outer layer of the spinal cord,” said Goel, who in addition to working with Elahinia serves as co-director of the Engineering Center for Orthopedic Research Excellence (E-CORE) in UT’s colleges of Engineering and Medicine and Life Sciences. “It eliminates the need to remove all or most of the spinal and vertebral structures to operate and, therefore, it increases the overall structural stability and reduces risks.”

In the case of spinal implant surgery, the cage becomes the stabilizing element within the spine to support fusion.

Goel, Elahinia and Cory Chapman, a UT graduate research assistant in the Department of Mechanical, Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, constructed the cage out of a material with proven efficacy, biocompatibility, cost-effectiveness and strength that more closely resembles bone than stainless steel.

Further, Elahinia said, the material readily accepts applications of bioconductive material coatings to aid in bone growth and fusion. The cage is self-actuating, using shape memory alloys to take and hold any desired form.

Additionally, the open design of the device allows the surgeon to move and adjust the device to allow proper placement and insertion of various types of bone graft material.

Two spine surgeons, Dr. Ashok Biyani, associate professor of orthopedic surgery who recently joined ProMedica, and Dr. Anand Agarwal, a spine surgeon and research professor at E-CORE, have helped the team throughout the design and evaluation process.

Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority President and CEO Paul Toth announces findings of a new Port of Toledo economic Impact Study.

The Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority and The Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation today jointly released a new Port of Toledo Economic Impact Study which indicates that the Port of Toledo generates nearly 7,000 jobs, and vessel and cargo activity creates more than $1billion in economic impact.

The study, The Economic Impacts of the Port of Toledo, was undertaken by Martin Associates of Lancaster, Pennsylvania and looked at the effect of marine cargo activity at the Port of Toledo and throughout the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System. The authors conducted hundreds of interviews and used various economic models to reach their conclusions. The Port of Toledo study is based on another study released earlier this year regarding the economic impact of Great Lakes Ports.

“The results of the Economic Impact Study clearly show the positive impact of our seaport’s operations to the northwest Ohio region,” said Paul Toth, President and CEO of the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority. “Thousands of people are employed directly or indirectly as a result of Toledo’s robust cargo handling operations. This includes not only dock workers, but also jobs with railroad and trucking companies, steamship agents, freight forwarders and many others.”

The report indicates nearly 7,000 jobs in Ohio are supported by cargo moving via the marine terminals located at the Port of Toledo. Personal income from those jobs measures at more than $558 million. Business revenue directly related to the cargo activity at the Port of Toledo adds up to more than $381 million and local purchases by individuals and businesses directly dependent on the seaport are close to $173 million.

“The Port of Toledo plays an important role in the maritime commerce in Ohio and in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System,” said Collister Johnson, Administrator of The Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (SLSDC). The Port of Toledo has specialized handling equipment and facilities, which further enhances the value of this unique shipping connection. Toledo’s port expansion, along with their recent investments in infrastructure and equipment are indicators of the Port Authority’s commitment to utilizing the Seaway to move North American products to customers around the world.”

Also unveiled today were two new locomotives purchased by Midwest Terminals of Toledo for the purpose of internal switching. The locomotives compliment other significant equipment acquired to modernize operations at the Port of Toledo. Over the past two years the Port Authority has acquired two new Liebherr LHM 280 mobile harbor cranes, a new Mantsinen 200 material handler and a new dry bulk conveyor. The new Liebherr cranes are the only twin cranes of this type in operation at any U.S. Great Lakes Port and are also more fuel- efficient, using only 25% of the fuel expended by the previous cranes. The new Mantsinen 200 material handler is the largest material handler of its type in North America and the new dry bulk conveyor is capable of loading 1000-1500 tons per hour depending on commodity. The new equipment has been acquired to assist port operations in the handling of bulk, break bulk, project cargo and containers.

The economic impact results of the Port of Toledo further support recent legislation introduced by Senators Rob Portman of Ohio and Debbie Stabenow of Michigan – called the Great Lakes Short Sea Shipping Enhancement Act of 2011. Passage of the bill would create a narrow exemption to the Harbor Maintenance Tax – a federal tax imposed on shippers – for cargo transported through the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System. Because the tax is only assessed on waterborne cargo, it serves as a disincentive to move freight by ship, indirectly placing greater demand on the region’s already congested highways. Removing this disincentive will help to spur economic growth through the expansion of regional shipping services between ports on the Great Lakes.

Short Sea Shipping legislation (H.R. 1533) has also been introduced in the House of Representatives by Congressman Pat Tiberi of Ohio. That bill now enjoys the support of 31 cosponsors, including Ohio Representatives Marcia Fudge, Marcy Kaptur, Dennis Kucinich, Steve LaTourette and Betty Sutton.
Earlier this year the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority was awarded its 11th Robert J. Lewis Pacesetter Award from the SLSDC for growth in international cargo during a single season in 2010. The Port of Toledo registered nearly 4.8 million metric tons of overseas cargo through the St. Lawrence Seaway during the 2010 navigation season, over 16 percent more than in the 2009 season. In total, the Port of Toledo registered more than 9.8 million metric tons for the entire season via 576 vessel calls.

The Port of Toledo is well positioned as an inland distribution point for North American commerce and is home to 15 terminals including the Toledo Shipyard – one of the only U.S. full service shipyards with graving docks on the lower lakes. Recent property acquisitions have more than doubled the size of the seaport – making it the largest land mass seaport on the Great Lakes.

Roy Schneider, medical illustrator in the Center for Creative Instruction, demonstrated the education and research capabilities of I-Space, a four-walled room that projects 3-D images of parts of the human anatomy. The technology will be an important component of a UT and ProMedica joint venture to build a three-story Interprofessional Immersive Simulation Center.

ProMedica and The University of Toledo will commit to the development of a new $36 million Interprofessional Immersive Simulation Center that will enable students and clinicians to use cutting-edge technology to allow teams to learn, enhance outcomes, and improve patient safety in a simulated, low-risk environment.

Working with the University’s economic development arm, Innovation Enterprises, UT and ProMedica have signed a memorandum of understanding to establish the facility. The Interprofessional Immersive Simulation Center will be housed in a new three-story facility slated to open in 2012 next to UT’s Center for Creative Education Building on Health Science Campus.

The center will be among the first health-science campuses in the nation to incorporate I-Space — a four-sided virtual immersive room with 3-D computer-aided design walls. This technology can create unlimited number of virtual images that allow learners to travel through the heart of a human body or experience being inside a human blood cell.

The new facility will be unique in that it will be comprised of three integrated simulation centers: a progressive anatomy and surgical skills center, an advanced simulation center, and the virtual immersive reality center. Typically, academic health centers offer only one type of simulation center.

“The Interprofessional Immersive Simulation Center is a giant leap forward in our effort to set the national bar for clinical education and research,” said Dr. Jeffrey P. Gold, UT chancellor and executive vice president for biosciences and health affairs.

“Looking forward, health care will increasingly rely on teams of clinicians from different disciplines working together to achieve the best patient outcomes. This center will enable learners to use the most advanced technology available to practice working in teams at the same time they are advancing their clinical skills,” said Gold, who also serves as dean of the UT College of Medicine and Life Sciences.

Randy Oostra, president and CEO for ProMedica, said the partnership would help ensure better patient outcomes as doctors, nurses, therapists and all health-care providers will be better prepared as they enter the work force.

“These advanced simulation technologies make it possible to create virtual clinical environments for health professionals to practice individually and in teams, using realistic human patient simulation models and immersive virtual three-dimensional environments,” Oostra said. “The result will be reduced errors, increased safety, improved outcomes, enhanced efficiencies and an overall reduction of health-care costs.”

Additionally, Gold and Oostra said the center will serve as a venue where health-care professionals will establish collaborative relationships to foster innovation in research, and develop new and existing products and services that help improve the human condition, prevent diseases and enhance healing.

Dr. Pamela Boyers, senior adviser to the chancellor for the advancement of interprofessional education and executive director for simulation, has spent the last 18 months at UT building the University’s simulation technology and now has a fully operational pilot version of the center, where learners, technicians and faculty will train in preparation for the grand opening of the UT/ProMedica joint venture in 2012.

“This virtual immersive reality technology enables students, practitioners and researchers to gain a better understanding of organs, diseases and treatment processes, including the potential of seeing real patient information such as MRIs and CAT scans in 3-D space,” Boyers said. “It will more effectively tie an understanding of human anatomy and physiology to patient care and offer unprecedented opportunities for innovation in learning, teaching, research and clinical practice.”

Toledo Mayor Mike Bell, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, BX Solutions President and CEO Christopher Marshall and Port President and CEO Paul Toth celebrate the new agreement between the Port Authority and BX solutions.

The Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority Board of Directors approved a resolution in preparation for a new cargo operator, BX Solutions, at Toledo Express Airport. The resolution authorizes BX Solutions to manage and maintain the cargo facility, manage the delivery of all services at, to and from the facility and market the facility for intermodal transportation services cooperatively with the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority. BX Solutions is a locally owned and managed transportation and distribution company specializing in commercial and industrial freight. BX Solutions has made a significant commitment to create 500 new benefit eligible full and part-time positions at Toledo Express Airport within the first year.

“This new opportunity accomplishes a major priority for the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority by creating hundreds of much needed, quality jobs in our community,” says Paul Toth, President and CEO of the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority. “Many parties have been diligently working on making this a reality and we are certainly pleased to welcome BX Solutions as the new cargo facilitator for Toledo Express – just a few short months after cargo operations ceased at the facility. The support of the State of Ohio through grant funding has been critical to moving this project forward and we are appreciative of their confidence in us.”

“BX Solutions is pleased and eager to carry on the rich history of cargo operations at Toledo Express,” said Christopher Marshall, President and CEO of BX Solutions. “This is the first of a multiple step process for restoring jobs to northwest Ohio.”

BX Solutions is currently accepting applications for full and part-time package handlers. Interested candidates should apply via the website at www.bxsolutions.com. The operations are scheduled to start later this year with a single day shift that operates seven days a week. Employees must be available to work a rotating schedule that will include weekends.

“We have always believed that the combination of the experienced existing workforce and the logistical advantages of the Toledo region and Toledo Express provide a strong framework for cargo activities here,” said G. Opie Rollison, Chairman of the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority Board of Directors. “The commitment of significant new cargo business here surely solidifies this belief.”

The Port Authority Board of Directors also approved a resolution to amend a previously awarded State of Ohio Logistics and Distribution Stimulus Award that allows more general improvements to be made to the cargo facilities to diversify the types of activities that can ultimately be housed there. The State of Ohio is currently considering the amendment request.

The Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission approved $6,075,000 at its quarterly meeting for the National Great Lakes Maritime Museum in Lucas County.

The Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission approved $6,075,000 at its quarterly today to allow the city of Toledo and the Great Lakes Historical Society, currently located in Vermillion, to develop the National Great Lakes Maritime Museum. The city of Toledo plans to use the approved funds to create a maritime park with outdoor exhibits, a berth for the James M. Schoonmaker historic lake freighter and interior renovation of the existing Skyway Marina building to house exhibits for the National Great Lakes Maritime Museum.

The Commission approval, coupled with the signing of legal agreements, allows city of Toledo to be reimbursed with funds appropriated in H.B. 675 of the 124th General Assembly, H.B. 16, H.B. 530 and Am. Sub. H.B. 699 of the 126th General Assembly, and H.B. 562 in the 127th General Assembly. Lucas County General Assembly members who voted in favor of the bill include Representatives Randy Gardner and Teresa Fedor; Senators Edna Brown and Mark Wagoner, and former Representatives Peter Ujvagi, and Jeanine Brown.

The Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission is a state agency that supports economic development, expands educational opportunities, and enhances the quality of life for Ohioans by improving the state’s cultural facilities. Since 1988, the Commission has disbursed more than $480 million in capital funds appropriated by the Legislature and Governor for facility improvement projects at nonprofit theaters, museums, historical sites and publicly owned professional sports venues. The Commission partners with nonprofit groups and local governments on more than 300 projects in 72 of Ohio’s 88 counties. For more information on the Commission, visit www.culture.ohio.gov.

UT President Lloyd Jacobs, left, read from a joint services agreement he signed Aug. 18 along with, from left, Rick Stansley, chair of the board for Innovation Enterprises, UT's economic development arm; David Waterman, chair of the board of the Regional Growth Partnership; and Dean Monske, president and CEO of the Regional Growth Partnership.

University of Toledo Innovation Enterprises and the Regional Growth Partnership (RGP) have formed a new joint venture designed to help entrepreneurs more quickly turn their ideas into jobs. Innovation Enterprises is the University’s not-for-profit economic development arm.

The new entity, Rocket Ventures LLC, will help companies commercialize their technology, support new technology-based firms, and provide seed funding to attract external investment in companies served by the 18-county northwest Ohio footprint.

“The goal is to create jobs. We’re trying to create a single front door for entrepreneurs that allows them to move seamlessly between the expertise and resources offered by both the RGP and UT, through Innovation Enterprises,” said Rick Stansley, who is chair of the new five-member Rocket Ventures LLC board. Stansley also chairs the Innovation Enterprises board.

The joint venture, an equal partnership between the RGP and UT Innovation Enterprises, brings together the talent, assets and resources from both organizations. The RGP previously housed Rocket Ventures, a $22.5 million pre-seed, early-stage venture capital firm. Funding for Rocket Ventures comes from private investment and grant dollars through the Ohio Department of Development’s Third Frontier Program, which is a $2.3 billion initiative to create new technology-based products, companies, industries and jobs.

Business development personnel and Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EIR) from Rocket Ventures join the new organization and UT Innovation Enterprises is providing access to physical incubation space, the University’s successful tech transfer division and the UT Innovation Enterprises investment fund.

Stansley said the business model will focus on an EIR hands-on approach, providing more effective and efficient business services to tech-based clients. The two most important issues for early-stage companies, according to Stansley, are management expertise and money. Through this joint venture, the opportunity for both increases dramatically, he said.

Officials said combining all business development services into a single entity will provide a better front door for entrepreneurs. The new partnership will help accelerate the process to make new companies self-sustainable as Rocket Ventures LLC Entrepreneurs-in-Residence work with firms to establish goals and set benchmarks, such as the amount of venture capital needed or a date by which a CEO needs to be hired.

Both Rocket Ventures LLC and UT Innovation Enterprises will retain the independence of their separately operated venture funds. They will collaborate to offer new technology businesses with innovation and business development services spanning from lab to launch.

“Universities are called on today to play an active role in the economic development of their communities,” said UT President Lloyd Jacobs. “We do that primarily by producing a well-educated class of men and women each year to enter and provide leadership in the work force. But at The University of Toledo, we’ve also embraced a much more direct strategy of economic development during the past five years, and this closer partnership with the Regional Growth Partnership only enhances these efforts.”

Jacobs said the creative assistance of Lisa Delp from the Ohio Department of Development was key to the joint venture’s success. Delp serves as entrepreneurial services and incubation program manager for the department.

Dean Monske, president and CEO of the Regional Growth Partnership, anticipates Rocket Ventures LLC serving as the primary resource for tech-based companies and service providers across the entire region, from Auglaize to Sandusky counties. “This truly is a valuable resource that all counties should utilize to best spur technology commercialization and create a knowledge-based economy.”

Additions to the site include a vigorous travel search engine aggregator, a loyalty program for frequent parkers, the ability to opt in to receive advance notice on Toledo Express news, sales and specials and real time flight arrival and departure information.

The travel search engine aggregator allows travelers to search many of the popular travel booking sites at once including Priceline, Orbitz, Bing, Expedia, Hotwire and Travelocity to ensure the best deal is found not only on airfare, but also hotels, car rentals and travel package deals. The multi-language, easy-to-use travel tool is a partnership between Toledo Express, QuickTrip.com and Booking Buddy.

Toledo Express is also launching a parking loyalty program in conjunction with the new www.toledoexpress.com which allows travelers to register any credit or debit card to earn airline miles or points automatically when the registered card is used to pay for parking at Toledo Express.

The Thanks Again Parking Rewards Program is a partnership with Republic Parking and Toledo Express.  Local businesses and restaurants are also participants in Thanks Again, which allows travelers additional opportunities o earn more airline miles with everyday purchases.

Toledo Express will also issue alerts on news, sales and specials to interested customers via an electronic newsletter. The newsletter will not only provide timely updates on travel offers at Toledo Express but also provide advance notice on sales and specials from time to time.

Nonstop service from Toledo Express is available to Chicago (ORD), Orlando/Sanford (SFB), St. Pete/Clearwater (PIE) and Ft. Myers/Punta Gorda (PGD). American Eagle, Allegiant Air and Direct Air operate air passenger service out of Toledo Express.

Toledo Express provides a quick and easy alternative to larger, less convenient and more expensive airports. Parking is available within 50 feet of the Toledo Express terminal and daily parking rates at Toledo Express are just $8 per day.

Toledo Express Airport, owned by the city of Toledo and operated by the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority, is a publicly operated airport located in Swanton, Ohio.

Major facilities at the airport include a 10,600-foot primary runway (Runway 07/25) with full parallel taxiways and a 5,599-foot long crosswind runway (Runway 16/34). Other facilities include fixed base operators, air traffic control tower, precision instrument approach and fuel. Toledo Express Airport supports commercial airline activity, air cargo operations, corporate and general aviation activity.

Toledo Express Airport, which is home to approximately 30 on-airport businesses, is a major component of the area’s public transportation network. The airport is frequently used to support business-related activities and is home to numerous flight departments, including such major corporations as Owens Illinois, Owens Corning and ProMedica Air. Toledo Express Airport also serves as the base for the 180th Fighter Wing of the Ohio Air National Guard.

It is the mission of the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority to continuously leverage our strategic geographic position, resources and economic development proficiency to provide increased business opportunities—built upon and around our innovative transportation and logistics expertise—while promoting our community and region within the global marketplace. We will accomplish this through unmatched speed and efficiency of service, collaborative and strategic partnerships, community stewardship and the continued generation and execution of new ideas and innovations.

The financing package revitalizes the former Ford Stamping Plant in Maumee and positions it to take on additional automotive supplier work – and additional employees – in the near future.

With the assistance of the Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Small Business Development Center Program, working in partnership with the Regional Growth Partnership, the manufacturer and bank have now entered into an agreement that will allow the plant to create up to 200 new jobs in our area.

“It is exciting to see this local bank step to the forefront and work with this local business on something that will ultimately create much-needed jobs for our area,” said Bill Wersell, Director of the Small Business Development Center at the Chamber.

“Huntington is committed to Northwest Ohio,” said Sharon Speyer, Regional President of Huntington. “One of the ways we demonstrate this commitment is by helping to create jobs in our community.”

The plant, located at 920 Illinois Avenue, operated as a Ford stamping facility until it was idled by the company in late 2007. Today, the 800,000 square foot, privately-owned facility produces stamped, blanked and spin form components.

Regional economic and elected leaders at the Ironville rail dedication

Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority President and CEO Paul Toth and Midwest Terminals of Toledo were last month dedicated the Port Authority-owned rail line currently under construction at Ironville Terminal.

This phase of construction was made possible by $5 million in Jobs Ready Sites Grant Funding. Commemorative rail spikes were pounded into the rail line by the officials in honor of the dedication. The total public/private investment into Ironville Terminal will be more than $18 million when the infrastructure projects are complete in 2014.

The Port Authority and Midwest Terminals also shared their joint future plans for Ironville which include three phases of development focused on using the 71 acres of waterfront property for material delivery and handling to support a new manufacturing base located on the 110 acre balance of the property. The flexible waterfront property at Ironville will also have the ability to receive bulk materials and will support and receive goods for other manufacturing operations throughout the region.

Since 2008, the Port Authority has sought funding for the redevelopment of Ironville. In addition to the $5 million Jobs Ready Sites Grant (JRS) Funding, Ironville Terminal also benefits from $7.4 million in grant funding via a State of Ohio Logistics and Distribution Stimulus (LDS) grant and a $3.1 million award from the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration (EDA) is currently pending. The awards are unique as several local entities partnered on each application to ensure our region had the best chance in receiving each award.

“The development of Ironville Terminal has received a tremendous amount of support – due mostly to the incredible potential this property has for commerce and job development,” Toth said. “This public/private partnership is possible not only due to the vast amounts of grant funding, but specifically to our private partners, Midwest Terminals of Toledo, who will invest nearly $5 million into the development of this property when complete. Without this strong partnership, we would not be able to create these future jobs for our community or this new development opportunity for our region.”

Phase One utilizes the JRS funding for the rail installation. Phase Two will involve improvements to the dock face, dredging and associated site work and is funded through both the EDA and LDS sources. The final phase, Phase Three, is focused on the installation of bulk material handling and conveyor infrastructure and will utilize the remaining LDS funds. It is anticipated that the implementation of all three grants will be complete by 2014.

Ironville Terminal is currently in Phase One – Rail Installation. The JRS grant funding reduced the planned development window by seven years and this was the first time that Lucas County received a JRS award. Approximately 7,200 linear feet of rail and eight switches will be installed when Phase One is complete later this year or early 2012. The Port Authority owned rail line connects with the nearby Norfolk Southern rail line.

Phase Two includes improvements of the river channel and shoreline to prepare a deep water marine dock to accommodate barges and lake trading and ocean vessels. Underwater structures, thought to be wood and concrete piers will be removed to provide riverfront access. These structures are located along the dock face just off the existing shoreline.

Approximately 65,000 cubic yards of sediment will be dredged to provide access the dock face and 520 feet of the existing dock face will be improved. Nineteen acres of the site will be paved for lay down areas associated with dock and rail.

Phase Three plans include the installation of a multi-modal delivery system. The conveyor and material transfer systems creates efficiencies through rapid freight loading and unloading and is capable of handling any dry bulk material. The material handling by conveyor system includes the components required to load and off load vessels. Self unloading ships will discharge into a 500 cubic yard hopper which will feed the conveying system. The hopper discharge will also be capable of loading rail cars on the outer loop track.

The 2008 $5 million JRS grant application was a partnership with Lucas County, the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority, the Lucas County Improvement Corporation (LCIC), the City of Toledo and Midwest Terminals of Toledo, Inc. with the county being the official applicant and recipient of the funds.

In 2009, the Lucas County Improvement Corporation (LCIC) applied for and was awarded $7.5 million in the form of a Logistics and Distribution Stimulus (LDS) loan, which can be forgiven upon attainment of specific terms, from the Ohio Department of Development.

Finally, the Port Authority has applied for and completed the majority of the process to receive a $3.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration. All of these grants required significant matches, which came in the form of privately invested funds from Midwest Terminals of Toledo.

DGL & Associates is providing architectural and engineering services to implement the grant awards and the consultants and contractors for Phase One include AME Technologies, Bowser Morner, Deitering Landscaping, Hull & Associates, Mannik & Smith, MDA Engineering, Miller Brothers Construction, Inc., Northwest Consultants, Timiny Railroad Construction, Toledo Fence and Viking Trucking.

The Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority purchased the former Chevron property for $3.4 million in 2008. The Port Authority formed a private-public partnership with Midwest Terminals of Toledo through a long term lease for the property. That acquisition made the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority the largest land mass seaport on the Great Lakes.

The 181 acres of land was used as an oil refinery from 1890 to 1987 and successfully completed the State of Ohio’s Voluntary Action Program (VAP) when Gulf Oil Company spent $19 million on site remediation, approximately $13 million more than the VAP required.

It is the mission of the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority to continuously leverage our strategic geographic position, resources and economic development proficiency to provide increased business opportunities—built upon and around our innovative transportation and logistics expertise—while promoting our community and region within the global marketplace. We will accomplish this through unmatched speed and efficiency of service, collaborative and strategic partnerships, community stewardship and the continued generation and execution of new ideas and innovations.

President Lloyd Jacobs delivered his annual address last week in Doermann Theater.

A revolution is occurring in higher education today, leading to an uncertain future, but one that will include increases in technology, adaptation of some corporate strategies, and a focus on equipping students with critical-thinking skills and increased work experience.

University of Toledo President Lloyd Jacobs outlined the dramatic and revolutionary changes he sees for the future of the higher education enterprise in his Fifth Annual Address to the Community: “The Relevant University: The Next Five Years” last Thursday in Doermann Theater.

“Education has been the primary vehicle for the American dream. That dream of unlimited upward mobility, the dream that anyone in this great country can achieve anything by diligence and perseverance, has always acknowledged education as a necessary pillar. That belief is being challenged,” Jacobs said. “Education is at a turning point. The American dream itself is losing credence to some degree. We at The University of Toledo, aspiring as we do to be leaders with a global impact, must face and understand this crisis of confidence in education.”

During his address, the president quoted sobering statistics, including a recent survey in which 17 percent of respondents thought a college education is no longer a good investment.

Jacobs also noted a damning report in the book Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses by Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa that evaluated college students using the College Learning Assessment and found that after two years 45 percent of students showed no gains in learning and that 36 percent showed little change after four years.

“So at exactly the moment of great fiscal stress, the fundamental value of a college or university education is being questioned. Can we blame legislators and governors for being confused or for being less than enthusiastic about further funding of higher education?”

That’s why it is necessary, Jacobs said, for the 21st century university to commit to producing a work force that meets societal needs.

While not everything about the modern corporation is good or should be embraced, some strategies from the corporate model — performance appraisal, pay for performance and merit-based initiatives — can help, Jacobs said.

A combination of increased technology and the acceptance that knowledge is no longer place-bound, so education will no longer be place-bound, also will impact the future higher education establishment, he said.

Perhaps most important, Jacobs said, is the responsibility for colleges and universities to equip students with problem-solving, critical-thinking, communication and other skills that equip them for success throughout their careers. Internships, service learning, travel and work experience also must be fully embraced.

“The higher education enterprise will be dramatically changed in five years, but will survive because leaders like the people here in this room, the faculty of The University of Toledo, will develop and embrace a more sustainable model,” Jacobs said.

The president also reflected on the past five years since the merger of UT and The Medical University of Ohio. He noted successes in upgrading campus buildings, being a leader in holding tuition costs low, nine consecutive semesters of enrollment growth, and the new relationship with ProMedica Health System that is being recognized as an innovative game changer.