READ THE SCRIPT:
[Pat] Welcome to September's Buckeye Beat. I'm Pat Miller, and each month I'll give you a roundup of some of our state's biggest stories.
For September, we start in the state's capital, Columbus, where hundreds of students skipped school to call for action on climate change. Check out this huge crowd. The students gathered outside the state house on September 20th, the same day that protest took place all around the globe.
They called for politicians to reduce carbon pollution and encourage green energy solutions. All to help slow the earth's recent warming that scientists have tied to burning fossil fuels.
Some students gave speeches. They called for officials to prioritize the environment and learning about climate change in school.
Students held signs with phrases like "there is no planet B" and "our future is on fire." The Ohio state highway patrol estimates that between 500 and 600 students attended the Columbus protest.
We asked you last week if you would participate in a school walkout for climate change. Well, 88% of you said you would because you think it's a good way to stand up for what you think is right.
Our poll for this week is all about the next bit of news. As officials continue to warn about the potentially harmful effects of e-cigarettes, some Ohio schools are installing vape detectors to try and curb student use.
They work like a smoke detector, but instead of going off when there is a fire, a message is sent to designated school officials when the chemicals in vape smoke are detected.
With 2.1 million high school and middle school students admitting they have used the devices, the hope is the detectors' presence will deter future use.
16 detectors purchased with a state grant were installed in the Revere Local School District near Akron. Any students caught vaping, runs the chance of a suspension.
Schools are trying to be proactive as there have been 450 cases of mysterious lung illnesses and several deaths attributed to vaping.
Now for the poll, we wanna know do you think all schools should install vaping detectors? Head over to our website to vote. You can choose from, yes, I think it will help stop vaping, or, no, I don't think it's necessary. Rick will share the results in episode five.
Let's stick with school news for a minute. Several Ohio schools, including Colerain High School near Cincinnati and John Marshall School of Information Technology in Cleveland, were both featured in a recent documentary.
On September 5th, "The Career Path Less Taken" premiered across the entire state. It features all students attending career and technical education programs. The film shows young people learning skills for jobs of tomorrow. Think jobs like cybersecurity, advanced mechanics, and robotics.
By 2020, 65% of Ohio's high paying jobs will require highly skilled workers, but right now, only 45% of Ohioans have the right skillset. That's why the featured schools are hoping to help train the workers of the future.
The documentary was produced by us at ideastream in Cleveland with our public media friends, CET in Cincinnati and WOSU Public Media in Columbus. Check out the film on our website.
Speaking of jobs, president Donald Trump visited a recycled paper and packaging factory in the Western city of Wapakoneta, a company by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, the two top officials toward the plant and touted its ability to bring new jobs to the area.
Pratt Industries is being opened by Australian businessman, Anthony Pratt. He promises to create thousands of manufacturing jobs in the United States by investing billions of dollars. This particular facility will create 300 of them. With that, the commander in chief declared.
[Donald Trump] This great, great state of Ohio is open for business.
[Pat] Crowds cheered when he spoke of products made in America. This was Trump's third visit to Ohio in two months, visiting both Cincinnati and Dayton in August, and that's it for the Buckeye Beat. I'll see you next month for more Ohio happenings.