State Rep. Steve Demetriou (R-Bainbridge Twp.) toured ÐÔ¸£ÎåÔÂÌì University's Twinsburg Academic Center, stopping by classrooms and one of the center's nursing simulation labs to see firsthand how the campus serves students in the Twinsburg area.
Demetriou, who represents Ohio's 35th House District — encompassing Twinsburg and surrounding communities in Summit, Portage and Geauga counties — was joined on the tour by Angela Spalsbury, dean and chief administrative officer of ÐÔ¸£ÎåÔÂÌì Geauga and the Twinsburg Academic Center; Assistant Dean Tiffany Kiphart; Becki Gierman, associate director of external relations; Valier Gonzalez-Trenn, outreach and community engagement manager; and Lance Williams, director of operations and special projects.
The Twinsburg Academic Center traces its roots to 1990, when ÐÔ¸£ÎåÔÂÌì Geauga began offering workforce development courses to what was then the Chrysler plant in Twinsburg. As demand grew through the 1990s, the university opened a second location in the city, and in 2012 built the current facility on Creekside Drive to offer two- and four-year degrees.
The center was renamed from the Regional Academic Center to the Twinsburg Academic Center in 2020 to better reflect the community it serves. Together, ÐÔ¸£ÎåÔÂÌì Geauga and the Twinsburg Academic Center offer more than 20 associate and bachelor's degree programs, including the Twinsburg-based Associate of Applied Science in Nursing program, at a fraction of the cost of a four-year public institution.
The tour offered ÐÔ¸£ÎåÔÂÌì an opportunity to showcase the Twinsburg Academic Center's role in expanding access to higher education and workforce development for the communities Demetriou represents in the Ohio Statehouse.
