Ohio University Southern is focused on helping the community live smarter and safer.

The university has a series of free community awareness seminars planned that touch on a variety of topics meant to educate and inform the public about financial issues, funeral planning, crime prevention, self defense and prescription drug abuse.

Each session is free and taught by an expert in the particular field. These are all lessons that are important, but also ones that don’t always get proper attention until it is too late.

Two sessions are planned for today from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.:

Financial Planning 101 with guest speaker Malcolm Wain, registered financial consultant and founder of WAIN Financial Group. He will show ways you can protect and preserve your assets while still obtaining competitive returns.

Funeral Pre-Planning with David Phillips, owner of Phillips Funeral Home in Ironton. Pre-planning, when done properly, can give peace of mind because arrangements are ready and pre-funded.

Two sessions are slated for July 27 from 6 to 9 p.m.

Crime Prevention Education with Tim Sexton, commander of the Lawrence County Drug and Major Crime Task Force. The former sheriff will discuss financial exploitation, identity theft, home security and self defense.

Self Defense Education with John Malone, owner of Malone Karate. This includes instruction on self defense techniques for both women and children through martial arts and weapons defense.

On Aug. 3, from 6 to 9 p.m.

Illegal Prescription Drug Abuse Awareness with Dr. Dan Bentley, doctor of pharmacy. Bentley will educate the community on the types and severity of illegal prescription drug use. The community will learn how to handle and help with this increasing epidemic.

For more information contact Janet Wagner, coordinator, community education at Ohio University Southern, (740)-533-4544 or by e-mail wagnerj@ohio.edu.

We applaud OUS for offering these courses to arm citizens with knowledge. Now, they must take advantage of it.