LIMA, Ohio — Plans for a dormitory at Ohio State University-Lima show the increased emphasis the state's largest educational institution is placing on its four regional campuses.

        The $9 million project will be the university's first branch campus dormitory. The university expects to see more students attending its branches as admission to the main campus in Columbus becomes more competitive.

        Eventually, the regional campuses at Lima, Mansfield, Marion and Newark all will have dormitories, said Eric Reasoner, administrative associate for undergraduate admissions at Ohio State.

        The university offers students who don't get into its main campus the option of attending a regional campus. All four branches will admit any Ohio high-school graduates and are less expensive than the main campus to attend.

        Regional campus students can set their sights on transferring to the main campus after building up credits and their grade point average, or they can choose to stay and complete a bachelor's degree. The regional campuses are adding more four-year programs, and the option of completing a degree on-site is becoming more common.

        “We have a lot of students here who don't want to come to Columbus,” said OSU-Lima spokeswoman Pamela Joseph.

        “There are a lot of people who don't want to leave the area. They have families, they have jobs. This is a nice opportunity for them to not have to uproot their families to be able to continue their education.”

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