Three decades of children have gotten a jumpstart on their college careers long before they are ever old enough to grace the halls of academia.

Ohio University Southern is in the midst of celebrating its 30th anniversary for the Academy of Excellence, a program that brings students in first through eighth grades to the campus during summer to learn about a variety of educational topics.

This is a tremendous program that has had an impact on countless lives. These students gain so much from the camaraderie, classroom experience and just the life lessons.

This is a program that has grown over the years but is still relatively unknown to many across the Tri-State.

We hope educators and parents alike start to stand up and take notice of the tremendous asset that this program is for the entire community.

We applaud Ohio University Southern for continuing the efforts to offer this and also salute all the teachers who work to supply education during the summer months.

Many people often overlook the educational opportunities that may not fall into a text book or a typical classroom environment.

The Academy of Excellence exemplifies this.

Most students of all ages work hard throughout the school year but it is important to keep them active mentally and physically all summer long.

Students need to be challenged but also have time to have fun, too.

With a celebration set for early next month, the university and all those partners who have made this happen for the past 30 years will celebrate this milestone achievement.

Hopefully community members, students who participated in the program over the years and leaders of Lawrence County will come out to support this tremendous opportunity. This program would not be possible without them.

This is something of which we can all be proud and we can all celebrate because it is truly an Academy of Excellence, just as the name so aptly proclaims.