On Thursday, speaking at the Akron Roundtable, Eric Fingerhut unveiled much about the 10-year plan for higher education that he will present to the governor and legislature at the end of the month. The chancellor of the Ohio Board of Regents noted the ''resistance to change'' already encountered. He also made plain that a struggling Ohio must demand that its universities reorganize into ''centers of excellence,'' pursuing distinct missions designed to advance the state economy.

Fingerhut has shelved talk about the University of Akron and Cleveland State University operating more as one. He won't propose moving the Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine to downtown Cleveland. Still, he rightly stressed that the four public universities in Northeast Ohio must end their squabbling and unproductive competition. They must differentiate and cooperate — or risk continuing a ''zero-sum'' game in which the ultimate losers are the people living here.

The chancellor argued persuasively that without such an approach, Ohio will fail to increase substantially its puny percentage of adults with at least an associate's degree. It will fail to become sufficiently competitive in the global, knowledge economy.

For the state's one free-standing medical school, Fingerhut proposed important changes. He rightly took aim at a NEOUCOM board structure that equally represents the consortium schools, the University of Akron, Kent State University and Youngstown State. Too often, the temptation is for the universities to put their own interests ahead of the medical school and the region. Fingerhut called for an independent, nine-member board appointed by the governor, similar to regimes at the other public universities.

More, Cleveland State would join the universities feeding students to the medical school. NEOUCOM would gain a presence in Cleveland dedicated to training primary-care doctors. The medical school would come to Akron, too. Fingerhut gave his support to a proposal by the University of Akron, the city's hospitals and the medical school to develop an orthopedic research institute.

All of that does not involve a merger or a move. It does set in motion a closer relationship. It defines clear missions for the medical school's expansions into Akron and Cleveland, positioning NEOUCOM to help drive the region forward.

Worth emphasis is the warning Fingerhut issued, firmly and fairly. He noted the ''formidable'' challenge facing the development of an orthopedic center. He cited the need for constant focus, the ''intense'' competition for research talent and dollars. He underscored that developing an institute worthy of ''world class'' will not be easy. The challenge is the same one facing the university system as a whole. Efforts must be serious, sustained and committed, and frankly, the state must play a larger role in routing additional resources to universities.

The chancellor promised public, annual reviews of how universities in this region are meeting the ambitious goals. He didn't pull the punch: If there isn't progress, he will think again about what the universities must do to serve the larger interest of Ohio.