2018 – Page 5 – The Transcript

OWU busy buying and selling properties

By Tiffany Moore, Online Editor and John Bonus, Transcript Correspondent

The Ohio Wesleyan board of trustees bought two houses located near campus using part of the
$1.5 million gained from selling Austin Manor.

One of the properties is a home at 145 West William St., which currently separates the Smith
and Hayes Hall parking lots. The other is a residence at 46 Hayes St., which is next to Haycock
Hall and the Buildings and Grounds office.

Lauri Strimkovsky, vice president for finance and administration and treasurer, said in an email
to the Transcript that the property on West William Street will be used to expand student
parking.

Strimkovsky also said that a portion of the remaining funds from the Austin Manor sale will
potentially be used for repairs in Beeghly Library.

According to the Delaware County auditor’s website, Riverwest, a private investment firm in Columbus, bought Austin Manor Aug. 14, 2018. Strimkovsky said that RiverWest plans to make
improvements to the property so it can be used as a rental community.

“The property needed a substantial infusion of renovation dollars to modernize systems and bring the building up to current standards,” Strimkovsky said. “Rental revenues did not produce
adequate funds for this.”

Because of this and the fact that students no longer live in Austin Manor, the university senior leadership team recommended that the board of trustees sell the property.

The Transcript contacted Riverwest about the status and timeline of renovations but received no comment.

Austin Manor was built in 1923 as an all girls residency according to President Rock Jones. He said in an email interview that the building was converted into an intergenerational apartment
building in the 1980s.

This is not the first property that Ohio Wesleyan has sold in the past year. According to the Delaware County auditor website, the Hiram Perkins House was sold Nov. 13, 2017 to James
Manos for $170,000. It was previously used as a small living unit for the House of Peace and
Justice.

Strimkovsky said the university sold the house because it was no longer needed as a student residence and needed significant renovations.

In an email interview, Manos said he plans to use the property to build a 43 room hotel. This proposal was discussed at multiple Delaware city council meetings between June and August.

According to Manos, the council did not approve his initial plan because it included the construction of a parking lot in a residential area. In response, Manos proposed that parking
spaces be built into the ground floor of the hotel.

“Now that I’m keeping on the existing property which is zoned properly, all I need is a change of use, as a hotel is permitted on the Perkins property,” said Manos.

The council will be discussing this revised plan at a meeting in October. If the proposal is approved, Manos plans to start building the hotel in March 2019.

“Having a hotel close to campus is a great idea, especially for families who come to visit from long distances” said Paris Norman, a junior at OWU.

Nicholas Melvin, a senior at OWU, said having a hotel basically on campus would be awesome, but he would also like to see the historical aspects of the Perkins House remain intact.

According to Strimkovsky, the university currently does not plan to sell any more properties.

Bishops Claw Their Way to First Win

By Spencer Pauley, Managing Editor

Sometimes it never hurts to just kick the field goal, as is the case for the OWU Battling Bishops who pulled out a win against the Wooster Fighting Scots with a game-winning field goal.

The Battling Bishops held their first home game of the season on Sept. 15 and had it dedicated to Coach to Cure MD, a partnership dedicated to raising awareness of the muscle disorder called Duchenne. Despite the offense not scoring a touchdown the whole game, OWU won 9 – 7.

All of the Battling Bishops’ points came from Kicker Philhower. Philhower went 3-3 with the 27 yard game-winning field goal with only 18 seconds left. Kickers need ice in their veins for high-pressured kicks like that and it seemed like Philhower had it for the entire game.

“When you go out there, your legs get numb, a lot goes through your head, you just gotta kick it.” Phillhower said.

OWU Quarterback Jax Harville had a moderately successful game despite getting sacked nine times by the Wooster defense. He completed 63 percent of his passes for a total of 216 yards. However, the offense’s biggest plays came from receivers Deji Adebiyi and Aaron Fields II. Both receivers combined for 107 yards and some key plays of theirs lead to the game-winning field goal.

Adebiyi would end up going to the hospital after the game due to dehydration. What will he do to improve for the next game?

“Drink a little more water, avoid cramps for sure,” Adebiyi said.

The OWU defense was able to limit Wooster to only seven points for the whole game. Sophomore Cody Streit lead the Battling Bishops with 11 total tackles.

Head Coach Tom Watts was satisfied with how the game went, especially his players’ effort.

“A win’s a win. It’s awesome. I’m proud of the guys, they played their hearts out,” Watts said. “They played four quarters, you couldn’t ask for much more.”

When it comes to the yearly matchups with Wooster, Watts sees a consistently competitive game every time.

“It’s always a good game between us. It’s always back and forth,” Watts said. “It’s the fun part about playing in the NCAC.”

The Battling Bishops (1-2) will travel to Meadville, Pennsylvania on Sept. 22 to play the Allegheny Gators (1-2).

Rafiki hosts first ever Caribbean Carnival

By Tiffany Moore, Online Editor

tpmoore@owu.edu

Funnel cakes, a steel pan musician, and Samba dancers were some of the many attractions that got over 150 students and staff to come to Ohio Wesleyan’s (OWU) first ever Caribbean Carnival.

Rafiki Wa Africa collaborated with Black Student Union (BSU), and Black Men of the Future (BMF), to host their first Caribbean Carnival on the JAYwalk on Sept. 14.

During an interview, Oshane Tackore, vice president of BMF said, “The food was amazing, the dancers are really good, the music was really good too, I don’t set high expectations but I think it turned out great.”

Steel pan musician Ken Greene, from Cleveland, Ohio, started off the carnival with some Caribbean beats. Daniela Black, who is originally from Trinidad and current president of Rafiki, shared how the steel pan is the national instrument of Trinidad and Tobago and is used in many of the songs during carnival.

Two Samba dancers from Chicago taught attendees a few Samba dances for the remainder of the Carnival. Samba is a Brazilian dance with origins in Africa. Students and faculty were able to follow along with step by step instructions given by the Samba dancers. At the end of the Carnival, students participated in the Trinidadian tradition of J’ouvert by throwing powder paint on one another.

Freshman Grace McDonald won $46.50 from the 50/50 Raffle.

“We definitely drew a crowd of different cultures. I don’t think OWU has ever had an event like this with this type of food. People really enjoyed it,” BSU president Jenelle Collier said.

Students and faculty had a chance to watch and learn about the musical culture in the Caribbean in addition to tasting food and drinks from Trinidad and Jamaica. The menu included curry chicken, jerk chicken, chicken stew with white rice and peas (rice and beans), plantains, mac’n’cheese, beef patties, funnel cakes, ginger beer, and Jarritos.

Freshman Miah Katalenas said that she heard about the Carnival through a friend and was really pleased with the food.

Black says that the purpose of having the Carnival was to expose the OWU community to a slice of Caribbean culture and cuisine.

“Caribbean people on this campus are underrepresented and this is something that has never been done on this campus and it was great to share it with a place many of us call home for four years,” Black said.

Looking at Objects from Our World Through the Eyes of Alum Stephen Donaldson

By Hailey de la Vara, Transcript Reporter

The Mowry Alumni Center is now featuring “Blue Light,” an exhibit commemorating Ohio Wesleyan alumnus Stephen Donaldson.

The installation features photography of landmarks, landscapes and objects, with one common element: a blue light source.

According to Donaldson, the purpose of the exhibit is to provide the audience with a striking visual experience. The photographs displayed were taken over a 17-year span, in places such as New York, Massachusetts and Italy.

“For this project, five of the twelve images were created using artificial sources of light, and all but one of the rests were created long after sunset, or before sunset, in situations when there was no direct sunlight available,” Donaldson wrote.

After working 13 years in the finance and electronic industries, Donaldson decided to “throw it all away” and pursue his dream to photograph the beauty of the world. His photographic journey became a vital component of his life and led him to write three books about his newfound passion.

Donaldson currently resides in Great Barrington, Mass., where he photographs weddings and conducts lectures at schools, universities, and professional organizations.

With the exhibit showing until November 15, students are encouraged to come visit the Mowry Alumni Center to view these stunning photographs and have a unique visual experience. Four photos are located on the first floor of the alumni center, and the remaining eight photos cover the walls of the second floor.

To view more of Donaldson’s photography, go to http://www.sgdphoto.com

OhWoo Game of Games Begins With A Bang

By Maddie Matos

Arts and Entertainment Editor

mrmatos@owu.edu

A classic Ohio Wesleyan University event was revamped on Sept. 14 as a new way to build community on campus.

Hosted by the Campus Programming Board (CPB) and Residential Life, the first ever OhWoo Game of Games event was a combination of games and an improv show. This event used to be called Stuyin’ Up but has been renamed and moved to the Hamilton-Williams Campus Center Benes Rooms for the night.

Over 30 students and staff members came to the event. Students were provided food and drinks from AVI Foodsystems.

“We [had] a good turnout, with people participating and playing the games, and winning prizes so I think it [went] pretty okay,” junior HannahJo Grimes said.

For the first hour of the event, students were able to win different prizes if they won the game. The Residential Assistant’s (RA) on campus decided on the games and prizes, such as laundry detergent and movies.

The games were in a minute to win it style, giving competitors one minute to complete a challenge. The speed and constant revolving of games was a huge hit.

“Minute to win it games are super fun and people tend to get really into them,” junior Madison Haggerty said.

Both Grimes and Haggerty are on the Resident Life staff. They were accompanied by a small group of other RAs’ on campus as well as members of CPB.

Preparation for the event was slim, with both programs having to work quickly to make it happen.

“This event was thrown together with pretty short notice, we have a new staff that is throwing this event together in just the last couple weeks,” Grimes said. “They usually have a lot more time to plan it, so I think that they have done an amazing job for the short amount of time they had. But everyone wishes they had more time to put it together.”

Both programs collaborated on the event to create more buzz and allow the event to be improved from previous years.

“We joined forces to have more brain power and ideas for the event,” Haggerty said. “Each area tackled several elements, so the work load wasn’t overwhelming for one group.”

The second half of the night focused on the improv performance. Campus Programming Board brought the group MISSION improvABLE to campus. The group uses popular show styles and techniques to engage with the audience.

The event was well received by students, despite small challenges that Residential Life and Campus Programming Board had.

“Even without that extra time, we are still putting on a really great event,” Grimes said.

Social Advocacy Met Sewing At OWU

By Maddie Matos

Arts and Entertainment Editor

mrmatos@owu.edu

Advocacy and art combined and took new form at the most recent installation on campus.

The Social Justice Sewing Academy debuted its gallery inside Beeghly Library at Ohio Wesleyan University on Saturday, Sept. 8.

Open to the Ohio Wesleyan and Delaware communities, the gallery consisted of a presentation and workshop for participants.

The exhibit is part of the university’s 2018-2019 Sagan National Colloquium (SNC). The focus for this year’s SNC programing is how art can impact the world.

The Social Justice Sewing Academy was founded in 2017 by Sara Trail. Trail wanted a creative way for students to portray their ideas about social justice and what it means to them.

The academy teaches children to sew and use those skills to create a block of fabric that will later be incorporated into a quilt. The blocks can be about any issue that the artist cares about.

“It gives youth the forefront in issues,” Trail said in a video message to the audience. Due to a cancelation in her flight, Trail could not make it to the program, which had an audience of over 15 people.

The program started as a post collegiate endeavor, but the idea for it has always been in Trails’ mind.

“My dream is to open a non-profit to teach people to sew,” Trail said.

Social advocacy was a huge factor for Trail when creating the program. She has hosted workshops in underprivileged areas across the United States, such as Chicago and Berkeley. These areas allow Trail to reach out to students to educate them.

“I want to give young people the tools…to understand,” Trail said.

The work the academy has done has been featured across social media and news outlets. Trail herself was already well known in the sewing community for her previous collaborations with Simplicity, a well-known fabric and sewing company. Throughout her career, Trail felt that sewing could do more for people than they realize.

“Sewing is more than a hobby,” Trail said.

The presentation was well received, with over half of the audience staying for the workshop. The experience allowed people to learn new skills and see what an impact their art and voice has in the community.

“Workshops like this make it look possible and doable,” junior, Miah Gruber, said.

Greer stays hot as Field Hockey defeats Earlham in impressive shootout win

By Hailey De La Vara, Transcript Reporter

Senior defender Maggie Greer scored her second game winning goal in as many contests to lift Ohio Wesleyan over Earlham College on Wednesday at Selby Stadium.

With the final attempt in a shootout, Greer’s shot bounced off the goalkeeper’s shoulder and found the back of the goal.

“Shootouts are always nerve-wracking, so I was hoping we would be able to clinch it before it got to my turn.” Greer said. “Once I stepped up and the referee blew the whistle, my whole body went numb. I saw the keeper was low and I felt I could lift the shot over, and luckily it worked.”

Earlham and Ohio Wesleyan both competed through the first 70 minutes of regulation play and two overtime periods, scoring a goal apiece.

Earlham took the lead 11 minutes into the game when Sofia Salvatore followed her own shot and scored on a rebound. Quickly after, OWU answered when freshman midfielder Barbara Welling set up Greer for a goal to turn the deficit into a tie.

Sophomore goalkeeper Paige Ross had two of her 8 saves within the last five minutes of regulation to keep the score knotted at one.

With the scored tied after both overtime periods, the game went to a shootout to dictate the winner.

In shootout play, Earlham’s Denise Bergholt and Ohio Wesleyan senior Alexis Roberts each missed their attempts to begin the shootout. Both teams got on the board when Salvatore converted for the Quakers and Welling countered for Ohio Wesleyan. Bishop freshman defender Astrid Koek converted her attempt to put OWU up 2-1.

On Earlham’s final attempt of the shootout, Maite Turling converted her shot and kept the Quakers alive, but Greer connected with hers to give the Bishops the 3-2 shootout advantage and the victory.

Ohio Wesleyan outshot Earlham 24-19.

“Through the two overtime periods and the shootout, I was left speechless with the way we played,” Ross said. “We demonstrated strength not only physically, but mentally. The team this year is going to do big things, and we are going to prove our initial rank wrong.”

Cafe Space Plans Have Been Set

By Spencer Pauley, Managing Editor

Due to the Stewart Annex being repurposed, the cafe space in Beeghly Library will now be the temporary meeting space for the Honors Program of Ohio Wesleyan.

Planning for the space will be done throughout the fall semester and the renovation will be done during the mid-semester break to minimize disruption. At some point during the spring semester, the space will finally be ready for the Honors Program to use.

The Beeghly Library was chosen for the new Honors Program location mainly because of its 24/7 access for students. Amy McClure, a member of the Honors Board and professor of education, is looking forward to a designated space for the program members.

“We are looking forward to having the space walled off so that it is truly a designated space,” McClure said. “The space will be used for quiet studying, honor society initiations, meetings, small group discussion with speakers who come to campus and other honors-related events and activities.”

Various locations on campus were being considered, but the Beeghly Cafe was chosen in the end. Brian Rellinger, associate provost for academic support, says that with all the changes of services going on at OWU, the staff members of the libraries, Honors Program and others deserve credit for making the transitions seamless.

As for the cafe itself, Rellinger says that there are solutions in place:

“The Bashford Lounge, which is attached to the cafe, will still remain accessible 24/7 to all students and all equipment and services available in the cafe have been shifted to the lounge,” Rellinger said. “New vending machines have also been added to the space for all to use.”

The change to the cafe space is not the only renovation Beeghly Library saw. During summer break, a meditation and reflection space was added to the third floor, the front steps and patio were repaired, a quad of Apple computers were added, and the restrooms received a fresh coat of paint. The library will also have its cooling towers replaced during mid-semester break.

Dividers for the cafe space will be put up in Beeghly Library later this semester.

Coaches Corner: A Q&A with Head Wrestling Coach Paul Reid

By Hailey De La Vara, Transcript Reporter

Paul Reid has been named head coach of the wrestling team at Ohio Wesleyan. Reid will oversee the return of the team, which hasn’t been a varsity sport since 1984. Reid has experience rebuilding programs: he transitioned Alfred State into a Division III program and completely revamped Iowa Western Community College into winning teams.

Q: Did OWU approach you about the job?

A: No, it was a really unique process. They announced the return of the sport last February and the hiring process took a little longer than expected because of the change of athletic directors. But they had always been on my radar.

Q: How do you plan on rebuilding the wrestling team after not having it as a varsity sport since 1984?

A: We are starting from the ground up. The key is recruiting, recruiting, recruiting, but also recruiting the right type of kids. This first class we have 15 kids that are all the right type of kids to build a program.

Q: What are the expectations heading into the season?

A: Make it a great experience. Obviously wrestlers are very competitive and the expectation is to grow as a team all while making it a great experience.

Q: How do you think OWU wrestling ranks against other opponents on the schedule?

A: The schools in Ohio are traditionally tough, but the good thing about our schedule is that there is a good cluster of teams that we are going see throughout the year so we are going to be able to measure our progress throughout the year.

Q: Was it just you who went out and recruited?

A: Yep, I went everywhere. My first day was Nov. 1 last year and by Nov. 2 I was already calling kids, compiling a list and going to tournaments every weekend.

OWU Hires New Vice President for Enrollment and Communications

By Tiffany Moore, Online Editor

tpmoore@owuStef.edu

Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) looks to continue to bring in more prospective students from diverse backgrounds with its latest hiring.

Stephanie Niles is OWU’s new vice president for enrollment and communication. In this role, Niles will help determine enrollment goals, monitor financial aid policies, and work with the University Communication Team to determine the most effective messages and the communication tools needed to interact with prospective students, parents, college counselors, current students, their parents, alumni and the public.

“Ultimately, my goal in this first year is to learn as much as possible about OWU’s enrollment efforts and work to ensure that we have the necessary people, tools, and strategies in place to achieve our desired enrollment outcomes.” Niles said.

Senior Will Ashburn is president of the Student Executive Admissions Board. Although he does work with Niles daily, he says, “she is really supportive of the student workers. She understands the importance current students have in recruiting prospective students and supports us all accordingly.”

At the end of September, Niles will be the president of the National Association of College Admissions Counseling (NACAC). This is an organization that currently holds around 16,000 in enrollment as well as counseling professional members around the world.

“My role as the NACAC president is a highly visible one, and hopefully will serve to bring more recognition of Ohio Wesleyan to college and independent counselors.” Niles said.

Originally, Niles wanted to be a Broadway star, and she majored in musical theatre at Wagner College in Staten Island, New York. After deciding that it wasn’t the right fit, she transferred to three different schools. At the University of Virginia (UVA), Niles found an interest in the admissions process. She received an internship in the admissions office at UVA, then later obtained her master’s degree in higher education/student affairs.

“I have a great job – I get to help students realize their college choice and introduce them to the pathways that will shape the rest of their lives.” Niles said.

Niles is passionate about her family and says that after her son finishes his senior year in Pennsylvania and goes off to college, her daughter, husband, two dogs, and cat will join her in Ohio.

“I love watching my kids discover their joys and passions and help them pursue their dreams.” Niles said.