Day: February 8, 2012

Rafiki wa Africa will be auctioning off dates to the highest bidder on Feb. 10. All proceeds will go to raise funds for Rafiki wa Afrika’s philanthropy.
Rafiki wa is an African and Caribbean based club that focuses on political and social issues. Yelena Coulibaly, president of Rafiki wa, said the purpose of the club is to share African and Caribbean cultures through performances, shows and parties.
Jonel Richardson, originally from Brooklyn NY, is one of the three social and cultural chairs of Rafiki wa. Richardson said she joined the club to connect with students who are similar to herself as well as for the philanthropy that the organization promotes.
“I joined Rafiki because my family is from the Caribbean and I figured it will be a nice way to meet people with the same background,” Richardson said. “Since I have been in Rafiki, I have learned so much about the different African and Caribbean cultures that are represented within the club. It has helped me to bond and make great relationships with everyone in Rafiki. Together we have put on several great events.”
The next event Rafiki plans to bring to campus is a Date Auction. This will be the first auction that the organization has presented.
Coulibaly said the goal of the auction is to raise funds for the Global Outreach Show, which is a talent show focused on raising money for the Ghana Student Education Fund (GSEF).
GSEF is an OWU student initiative organization that started in Dec. of 2006 to provide better education for bright, but needy students in Ghana, West Africa.
Coulibaly said, with Valentine’s Day right around the corner, it was an incentive to do the auction.
“Valentine’s Day is coming up and we think the auction will be a good way for people to bid on their perfect mate while at the same time benefiting a good cause,” she said.
Richardson said although the ultimate purpose of the event is to raise money, just having fun is also a goal.
“We figured it would be a great way of helping people enjoy it by being able to go on a date with our awesome volunteers,” she said. “Besides raising money, we hope that OWU would simply have fun with this event.”
According to Richardson, to prepare for the event the club searched for volunteers who would be interested in participating. They had volunteers send their pictures and a personal profile of themselves so they could be marketed.
Rafiki Wa also had to find a restaurant that would give a good deal on food for the dates.
Both Richardson and Coulibaly said there were some common difficulties in putting on the event; including finding a venue that would accommodate all of the dates at the same time.
They said the hardest part was finding people to do the auction. “Not everyone is comfortable standing in front of people to be auctioned,” Coulibaly said. “We had a difficult time finding consistent volunteers because of (their) fear of not getting selected.”
Junior, Tonisha Lee said she wasn’t afraid to participate and wanted to do the auction because she thought it would be fun and it was for a good cause.
“Yelena and Indira asked me to participate in the date auction one day as I was walking out of Hayes,” she said. “I decided to do it once they explained to me [what] the proceeds were for. It’s important to have events like this because it allows for students of all different nationalities, ethnicities and backgrounds to come together and participate in something for a wonderful and meaningful cause.”
The Date Auction will be held on Friday, Feb. 10, from noon to 1:30 p.m. in the Ham-Will Atrium.

The absence of the Bishop Bikes program in the fall of 2011 raised many questions and affected those students who utilized the bikes as a form of transportation.
The Bishop Bikes program began in the fall of 2009 as a bike-share program created by senior Christina Fesz. Students paid five dollars each semester for a universal key which would unlock any of the program bikes on campus.
While the same bike a student rode to class could be taken by someone else, it was believed that the bikes would circulate so the bikes would be available all around campus at any time.
Fesz said she simply enjoys the experience of biking.
“I just love biking, and how it is not only useful in getting from one place to another, but how a simple ride can instantly improve your day and brings you closer to your body and the environment.”
The program began to experience problems when three of the bikes went missing in the 2009-2010 school year. In the 2010-2011 school year, many of the bikes were mistreated and others would not be locked up, which resulted in people from outside the program taking the bikes.
“People from outside the school were gaining access to the bikes, and in fact, one man spray-painted a bike white, and tried to sell it back to Breakaway Cycling,” Fesz said. “I was also told that some students were stashing the bikes in their rooms, or hiding the bikes to make sure that they were the only ones using that bike.”
Fesz issued a survey to the student body in the spring of 2011 about the program and found that most students didn’t like the uncertainty of having a bike available at any given time or location. Other concerns included the mistreatment and hoarding of the bikes and the lack of advertising of the program.
“Although I liked the premise of the first-generation program, with its purely community-based foundation and its reliance and focus on sharing and trust between students, the people in the program have to buy into the system 100 percent, and this was not happening.” Fesz said.
Following the survey, Fesz created a revised plan for the bike program which will include only one checkout location at the Hobson Science library. Students who sign up for the program can check-out a bike at the library desk during its normal hours. They will then be issued a key, which unlocks a specific bike that will be stored in a rack outside of the library. The student then has the bike for 24-48 hours and returns it to the library. A small fee will be issued for returning the bike late.
Fesz plans to add more bikes to the program, and members of the program are helping to fix up some of the current bikes. The program will be launched in early March and anyone who is interested in helping with the program, or has any questions or suggestions, can contact Christina Fesz at ccfesz@owu.edu.
“It’s so easy to get enthralled in a ride, and I would love all students to have the resources to experience the convenience and enjoyment of riding a bike,” Fesz said. “Get ready to ride, OWU!”

The OWU ID is a student’s life condensed into plastic: it is used for food, library books, and building access all over campus. But if broke, it can be the bane of a student’s very existence.
The cheap, 50-cent cards have design flaws, however. Director of Public Safety, Robert Wood, said that the school has postponed replacing the system for years, using the funds for other projects.
“I think it’s a top priority…by this point, we’re already two generations behind in technology,” Wood said.
According to Wood, Ohio Wesleyan has had the swipe-card system for the last 20 years. However, technology has evolved rapidly since the equipment was installed–the IDenticard parts are no longer manufactured.
“We’ve been considering changing systems for the last few years, but what really pushed us was the fact that the parts stopped being manufactured over the summer,” Wood said.
To deal with the wear-and-tear, Ohio Wesleyan has considered phasing in smart-cards. Smart-cards would be a substantial upgrade from the current system as they hold their own information.
“The current swipe cards need to talk to the computer system: if it’s down, students can’t get food,” Wood said. “Smart cards contain their own data, so each purchase is tracked inside of the card. The total system upkeep would be lower.”
The school has not yet switched systems because of high transitional costs. Wood said that it would cost the school between 75,000 – 200,000 dollars to replace all of the current mechanisms.
In addition, the new cards would cost up to 2.50 dollars more than the current ID cards. Wood said the school plans to create smart-swipe hybrids so the transition process moves smoother. Hybrid cards would allow the school to slowly switch systems and mitigate costs.
Wood estimated the hybrid cards would be introduced within the next few years to incoming freshmen because the lagging technology has affected current students.
Junior Alison Evans said that she has had to replace three cards so far. “They always break in the same spot, right down the middle,” Evans said.
However, students have proven to be resourceful, finding ways to fix their cards.
Sophomore Madeline Lank said she has seen a variety of ways to keep cards working in her two years as a student.
“I’ve seen people using tape over the magnetic strips so they can scan,” Lank said. “Or holding it together so they don’t have to throw down cash for another one.”