=  <span style="font-size:large;  ">'''<span style="font-size:xx-large; ">Overview </span> '''<br/span> =
= '''Overview [[File:ONU image 1.JPG|frame|right|ONU image 1.JPG]]''' =
<span style="font-size:medium;">Ohio Northern University is an independent university located in Ada, Ohio. The school has 3, 695 students representing 34 states and 25 countries. A trait unique to ONU is the “one to one” relationship between students and professors. The reputation for ONU’s strong bond between the student body and the professors is attributed to the 12:1 student/faculty ratio. Ohio Northern University strives to provide students with the best faculty which is why 83% of ONU’s full time faculty have Ph.D. or terminal degrees. ONU is nationally ranked for the sciences, arts, and professional programs in the following colleges: Arts & Sciences, Business Administration, Engineering, Pharmacy and Law.</span>
= <span style="font-size:xx-large;">'''Mission, Vision, and Core Values'''</span><br/> =
<span style="font-size:xx-large;"</span><span style="font-size: medium;">Ohio Northern University’s core values include: collaboration, community, diversity, excellence, faith, integrity, and service. ONU strives to be a unique educational institution that cultivates academic excellence at the undergraduate level. Each of Northern’s colleges promote undergraduate research and experiential learning. The T.J. Smull College of Engineering implements experiential, hands-on learning through the small class sizes. Their mission statement is “to engage students through personal relationships and high-impact educational experiences to maximize their success”.</span>
<span style="font-size:medium;">ONU 2021 is Northern’s strategic plan approved by the Board of Trustees to further Northern’s momentum of success. The plan demonstrates ONU’s strategic direction and focus on goals to be improved upon or accomplished by 2021. The strategic goals and priorities seek to advance ONU at all levels and are as follows:</span>
* <span style="font-size:medium;"> Enhance excellence and distinctiveness of the university’s academic programs</span>
*<span style="font-size:medium;"> Strengthen the campus learning environment</span>
= <span style="font-size:xx-large;">'''Promoting Student Innovation & Opportunity'''</span><br/> =
<span style="font-size:xx-largemedium;"></span>'''http[[File://universityinnovation.org/images/Dicke College of Business Administration 2/24/Dicke_College_of_Business_Administration_2.jpg'''|frame|left]]
<span style="font-size: medium;">ONU seeks to implement opportunities for both new and existing academic program growth. The most recent academic program growth is the recently added entrepreneurship program. The James F. Dicke College of Business Administration offers numerous courses that encourage the learning and application of innovation and entrepreneurship, opening the opportunity for the program to offer an entrepreneurship minor for any major, as well as, an engineering entrepreneurship for engineering majors. </span>
<span style="font-size: medium;">[[File:Epics-ONU.jpg|thumb|right|Epics-ONU.jpg]]</span>
<span style="font-size:medium;">Additionally, the T.J. Smull College of Engineering has and is currently working to modify numerous courses, in order to encourage students to develop and demonstrate the entrepreneurial mindset. An example being the Introduction to Engineering classes which incorporate aspects of the different branches of engineering, and teaching students to utilize the knowledge in the poverty alleviation projects. Furthermore, the engineering projects in community service (EPICS) program enables students to apply and gain engineering knowledge at the local or international level.</span>
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<span style="font-size:medium;"> ONU is a member of the Kern Entrepreneurship Education Network (KEEN). Northern’s new entrepreneurship program offers a plethora of opportunities for students of all majors to study, as well as, participate in spurring innovation and creativity beginning on-campus and continuing through to the professional level.</span>
<span style="font-size:medium;">Two on campus events that encourage innovation and entrepreneurship are the Polar Elevator Pitch Competition and the KEEN Innovation Challenge, both of which require the formation and collaboration of student teams of different majors.</span>
<span style="font-size:medium;">[[File:Polar Pitch Elevator Competition.jpg|frame|left|Polar Pitch Elevator Competition.jpg]]</span>
<span style="font-size:medium;">The Polar Pitch Competition prompt for students is to: captivate them with your creativity, engage them with your entrepreneurial mindset, and ignite your innovative side. Students from all majors are invited to participate and courses such as Principles of Entrepreneurship and Intro to Engineering 2 require participation within this competition as part of an in class project. The Pitch competition has the following competition categories: ideas that improve society, high-tech commercialized product ideas, as-seen-on TV product ideas, and new business that creates jobs. First place participants win the grand prize and gain the opportunity to receive advice and instruction to take the winning idea from an idea to an actual product to the market. </span>
<span style="font-size:medium;">[[File:KEEN Innovation Challenge.jpg|frame|right|KEEN Innovation Challenge.jpg]]</span>
<span style="font-size:medium;">The second innovative event is the KEEN Innovation Challenge sponsored by the Kern Entrepreneurship Education Network and ONU. The challenge is held on a semester basis, with no two challenges being the same. Teams of three require at least one engineering student. The premise of the challenge is that each team exercise innovation and creativity in the impromptu challenges with a given set of materials.</span>