Bridging the gap between women who need to support themselves and the employers who need a skilled work force is an Ohio program called Orientation to Nontraditional Occupations for Women (ONOW). The ONOW program is a 208-hour vocational program that introduces women to occupations in such industries as the following: manufacturing/production; residential, industrial, and highway construction; law enforcement; engineering technologies; transportation; and high tech areas. Piloted in 1987, it has grown to 12 sites statewide in 1996. Local program coordinators--all women with nontraditional career backgrounds--provide instruction in hands-on career exploration activities, technical math, blueprint reading, physical fitness, mechanical reasoning skills, employability skills, job survival skills, and transition skills. Placement statistics have consistently shown that at least 80 percent of program completers have been placed in nontraditional job training or employment, with wages over $8/hour. A 2-year research study was conducted to determine the employment and training status of 280 program completers. Key findings are as follows: over 71 percent were working, 66 percent full time; average earnings were $10.14/hour; 56 percent went on to some type of additional job training; on a four-point scale with four being the highest, participants rated the program 3.63; and they rated hands-on career exploration, the academics, and the self-esteem they gained as the most helpful parts of the program. (YLB)