WILBERFORCE, Ohio

Central State University (CSU), which only seven months ago faced a very real threat of extinction from Ohio legislators, has emerged from a financial and political crisis and is showing strong signs of renewal.

Although obstacles to CSU's long-term health remain, state higher education officials, students, and university administrators agree that the current trends are reason for optimism. And it also appears that a rebuilding program, spearheaded by Central State's new president, John Garland, is starting to bear fruit.

Located in southwestern Ohio, Central State is just twenty miles east of Dayton. It is across a state highway from, but not directly connected with, the private Wilberforce University.

"We're going in an upward direction," said Tiiara Patton, president of CSU's student government and a student member of CSU's board of trustees. "I think we have an administration that is student-oriented, that makes an extra effort to address our concerns. I am very optimistic.

"I know Central State University will be here a long while -- long enough for my kids to come here," she added.

That wasn't the case in early 1997, when Republican legislators in the Ohio General Assembly considered yanking all state funding from the school, which was in the midst of a financial crisis. By the end of June, the combined efforts of Ohio Gov. George Voinovich, CSU's board of trustees, a group of African American legislators, and an executive management team that ran the university on an interim basis secured CSU's $28 million state funding for the next two years.

However, there were strings attached. CSU was forced to give up its prized football program and turn most financial control over to state officials. Also, it must meet nearly two dozen provisions during the next two years in order to continue to receive state funding. The provisions include: maintaining a balanced budget, reducing student-loan default rates, raising admissions standards for entering freshmen gaining institutional reaccreditation, streamlining academic programs, improving student retention, boosting alumni giving, and rebuilding its endowment fund.