According to a new report by the Ledger-Enquirer 's Jordyn-Paul Slater, StartUP Columbus is now accepting applications for its LaunchCon Pitch Competition happening on November 13, 2026. The competition is a live business pitch event designed to give emerging entrepreneurs access to capital, exposure, and support as they work to grow their businesses. In conjunction with report, Executive Director Ben MacMinn stated that StartUP Columbus will again be partnering with the Turner College in hosting the event, during which the top-placed competitor will be awarded $40,000. MacMinn added that an added benefit of the competition is that the contestants will be pitching to a crowd of investors and peer entrepreneurs. Links to the LaunchCon application is available via StartUP Columbus' website.
With the Turner College opting to delay the search to replace former Dean Deborah Kidder , Acting Dean Tesa Leonce and Acting Associate Dean John Finley begin the 2026-2027 academic year with the titles "Interim Dean" and "Interim Associate Dean," respectively. CSU currently has a number of high-level position searches going, and the search for the new Turner College dean should join the group next month. Kidder, who was removed as Turner College dean late in fall semester 2025, is now the business school dean at Kutztown University. Last week CSU President Stuart Rayfield reported to the CSU community that the administration continues to closely monitor enrollment and retention efforts, and that she is cautiously optimistic about the fall based on all the early indicators the central administration monitors daily. "As the new fiscal year begins, our budgets serve as an important reminder of how these efforts are tied to our bottom line," Rayfield explai...