Ohio State University President Gordon Gee made a stop in Springfield on Tuesday to look at how local institutions could collaborate with the school.

Gee first stopped at Wittenberg University as part of his annual summer tour of Ohio to welcome Wittenberg’s new president Laurie Joyner.

“Over time I’ve really come to realize the importance of partnerships with private schools and public schools,” he said.

Ohio State and the 12 other state public schools could not fill all the gaps in education, Gee said.

Joyner agreed, and said she’d like to see some collaboration in terms of technology.

“Collaboration is the way of the future, I’m not so sure why it took so long to get here,” she said.

Gee said he sees possible collaboration in three areas — medicine, engineering and agriculture.

Gee repeatedly stressed the importance of food production. He followed his Wittenberg visit with a tour of Woeber Mustard Manufacturing Co., which is celebrating it’s 107th anniversary this year.

“Food processing and agricultural programs are an important part of this country and it sets Ohio apart,” Gee said. He said OSU is exploring opportunities to collaborate with companies such as Woeber, and that the company could be involved with a proposed STEM Academy here.

“We’re just in the beginning stages, the plans are in infancy,” said Dick Woeber, co-owner of Woeber Mustard. “We’re discussing how we’ll be involved, but we need more information about what our role might be.”

Woeber and his family took Gee and several groups of OSU students traveling with him throughout the plant on Commerce Boulevard and explained the production of about 500 different food products. Woeber now employs between 150 and 180 employees in two locations.

Students asked questions as they watched dried mustard seeds pressed into a more liquid form and the machinery required to bottle and cap all of Woeber’s condiments.

“I love this,” said Jessica Shanahan, a junior at OSU studying agricultural communication. She graduated from Mechanicsburg High School. Her family owns Shanahan Structures in Mechanicsburg.

“One of my favorite things is to see others touring who don’t know food and agriculture,” she said.