Governor tours local business

GARRETTSVILLE - It doesn't look like much on the outside, tucked away on Gotham Road amid the countryside.

But Catacel, which helps develop fuel cells and reactors for commercial hydrogen production, grabbed the eye of Gov. Ted Strickland, who paid a visit to the facility Friday to tout his education plan.

Strickland said the company is a perfect example of investing in the future of education and also brings to mind a truism by his wife, Frances.

''My wife has been telling me for a long time: The best ideas come from someone's garage,'' Strickland said.

He said the company proves to him how much innovation and creativity are important in education and how those traits have to be recognized in Columbus.

''There's a lot of intelligence and brain power here,'' Strickland said.

Strickland said his education plan has the right formula to keep those smarts in the state for years to come. Under his plan, he wants to modernize classrooms and curriculum, expand learning opportunities for students, keep tuition affordable at the state's colleges, increase accountability and transparency in school districts and establish a funding system to reduce the load on local taxpayers.

''This company and what's happening here didn't just happen by accident,'' Strickland said. ''It happened as the result of innovative thinking.''

State Rep. Steve Dyer, D-Green, who accompanied Strickland, said the governor's plan calls for the establishment of a commission to examine the state's funding system and recommend changes when there are funding problems.

State Sen. Tom Sawyer, D-Akron, said Strickland's plan also ensures that school funding in the state will be ''thorough'' and ''efficient,'' two words used to describe school funding in the state constitution.

Strickland also said he is going ahead with his plan to plug an $831 million shortfall in funding by postponing an income tax reduction. He stressed that his actions do not raise taxes and that his action is necessary after the state Supreme Court ruled he could not fund his education budget with money from video lottery terminals.

The governor also urged Republicans in the Legislature to come up with a better plan to fend off cuts - if they have one.

''It is hugely important that education is protected,'' Strickland said. ''This is a fight for education. It's a fight for the future of our state.''

jgorman@tribtoday.com