Author: TheTranscript

3 fraternities in 4 years: just a blip in the radar?

In 2015, 133 fraternities and sororities were suspended or closed nationally. But at small liberal arts school Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU), it was just the beginning of a four-year span that could change Greek life at the school forever.

In 2015, Sigma Chi was closed. In 2016, Phi Kappa Psi was suspended. Most recently, in 2018, Phi Delta Theta was suspended. That brings the total number of fraternities on campus to five.

Fraternities have left Ohio Wesleyan before, but not at this rate. The last time OWU Greek life saw events like this was 1983, when Beta Theta Pi was expelled, and Phi Delta Theta and Sigma Alpha Epsilon put on probation for 10 years. The result of that news? A demonstration by nearly 300 students that included four arrests, broken windows and extensive damage to the Beta house.

But is this stretch just a “bump in the road” for fraternities at OWU, or a trend that may continue?

While the reasoning for these decisions is different for each fraternity, the present statistic remains clear: three fraternities have been closed or suspended in the past four years.

Immediate reactions to this statistic have been mixed around Fraternity Hill and around campus. Some instinctively resort to blame, others understanding, but a sense of sadness is the one emotion that wraps around the hill. This includes senior and President of Sigma Phi Epsilon Austen Kimbro:

“It is extremely sad and concerning that three fraternities have been kicked off of campus over my four years here…and that is a very terrifying thing to try and conceptualize,” Kimbro said.

Three former Phi Kappa Psi members, who were granted anonymity, think this statistic is absurd, considering some of the “justifications” used in closing/suspending these fraternities:

“I think it’s completely outrageous, that something like that’s happened in such a short period of time, especially when some of them were unjustified,” one former member said. “Like Sigma Chi, when they got kicked off had no reason other than speculation. There have been circumstances with the other two fraternities, but I just think they should’ve been looked at from a different perspective.”

The relationship between the administration and fraternities has been sensitive considering these instances. The feeling that President Rock Jones and the rest of the administration don’t believe in Greek life has been circulating students, even though Jones has publicly stated the support of Greek life by the university.

“It is important for everyone to know that Ohio Wesleyan values the Greek community and the individuals who contribute to it,” Jones said in an email sent after the Phi Delta Theta announcement.

Some students, however, don’t believe it or haven’t seen enough to prove otherwise. Junior and Phi Gamma Delta President Eli Rajotte thinks the desire to believe it is there, but still needing evidence.

“I feel like I’m at the point where I’ll believe it when I see it,” Rajotte said.

Rajotte’s fraternity brother AJ Outcalt, a senior, thinks there is that belief and support from the administration.

“Without them or [Director of Clubs and Fraternity & Sorority Life Dana Behum] it would be in a lot worse situation,” Outcalt said.

Fraternities also feel that the university doesn’t focus enough on punishing the individual, rather than the organization. Senior and Delta Tau Delta member John Bonus thinks this is something the school could take a different approach with, although he understands the wholeness aspect of a Greek organization.

“I understand it’s a mutually selective program: we give bids out, those guys choose to accept those bids, and we all have the same values and go through the same processes, so in a way I understand the organization is whole and accepts some responsibility,” Bonus said. “But when only a few members get in trouble for something, it seems pretty unfair to punish the entire organization, especially when they’re building something so positive.”

“The sad part is that, the organizations that have been kicked off had some very good men, who do the right things, but it is unfortunate that some of their brothers made poor choices which ultimately led to the removal of the fraternities,” Kimbro said.

These instances have led fraternities to feel targeted, as if they’re “walking on eggshells.” The bigger picture is the increased presence of University Public Safety on Fraternity Hill that leads to students being upset, says Delta Tau Delta member Andrew Woods.

“It’s more of Public Safety taking the role of ‘almost police officers’ and investigating and actively searching out things, shining flashlights at our house during weekends just to try to see if people are inside, doing random walk throughs of our house and letting themselves in without telling anybody and doing ‘spot inspections’ whenever they feel like,” Woods said. “So those are all things that contribute to fraternity members being very targeted and worried that they’re going to get evicted from their house any day.”

But this article brings you back the question, again with mixed answers is this stretch just a “bump in the road” for fraternities at OWU, or a trend that may continue?

“Although three Greek life organizations have been kicked off, I do believe that this is just a bump in the road.” Kimbro said. “It is very clear that the way Greek life is operating is changing, and to survive we must adapt. After the suspensions are up, I fully believe that Greek life will expand and flourish again.”

“I hope it is just a bump in the road but honestly it’s hard to not look at it and see a trend,” Bonus said. “Obviously, we have some great people in the administration looking out for us but I also think there are many who see Greek life as a liability.”

“I absolutely think it’s a bump in the road.” Rajotte said. “It’s really common, prior to getting kicked off, that it’s a group of people that hold their name, their Greek organization’s name, but aren’t fully inline with the values they instill, and that can draw more downsides toward you. I really truly hope with the most recent suspension that that’s the end of it.”

Ohio Wesleyan’s “invisible problem”

Ohio Wesleyan University’s (OWU) associate professor of history, Michael Flamm, voiced his uncertainty in the November faculty meeting about OWU lasting the next five years as a nationally-recognized liberal-arts college.

Not all faculty members attend each meeting so Flamm took it upon himself to send out a statement making everyone aware of his concerns.

In the statement he explains how he had hopes that OWU would continue to be an example of a superior liberal-arts college. But after multiple transitions in senior administration, most notably the departure of former Vice President for University Advancement Colleen Garland, his opinion on the matter has changed.

“When I arrived at OWU in 1998, 20 years ago, we aspired to become Kenyon and saw ourselves as a reasonable rival to Denison,” Flamm said. “Wooster was clearly a peer institution – in many respects we were superior. Now I doubt whether we can still see Wooster’s tail lights as it pulls away and leaves us in the dust.”

His concern stems from, in his words, the “invisible crisis” that is low faculty morale. In order to assess morale, Flamm suggested in the April faculty meeting that a survey be administered to identify if there is in fact an invisible crisis.

OWU administration opted to conduct a Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education (COACHE) survey next spring to measure faculty morale. COACHE is a research-practice partnership, through the Harvard Graduate School of Education, between institutions dedicated to improving faculty recruitment, development and retention (https://coache.gse.harvard.edu/).

Dale Swartzentruber, associate provost for institutional research and academic budget management, allowed Flamm to put forward questions to include, as the COACHE survey allows for the addition of questions from the institution that will be administering it. Flamm added four additional questions on top of the already pre-existing questions.

The four questions are as follows –

1) During my time at Ohio Wesleyan, the university has become a stronger institution with better students.

2) In the past five years, I have lowered expectations, diluted standards, or inflated grades in my classes at Ohio Wesleyan.

3) Five years from now, Ohio Wesleyan will have more and better students.

4) President Jones has Ohio Wesleyan on the right track and is the right leader to guide the university for the next five years.

Faculty will be able to indicate whether they strongly agree, somewhat agree, neither agree nor disagree, somewhat disagree, strongly disagree, I don’t know or decline to answer to each question on the survey.

Associate Professor of Modern Foreign Language Tom Wolber was present at the November faculty meeting, and when asked for his reaction to what Flamm said, pointed out that, “Dr. Flamm has the right to ask whether President Jones has OWU on the right track and whether he is the right leader to guide the university for the next five years. We do value and practice free speech on campus. However, I would point out that while the faculty has the primary responsibility for the academic curriculum and faculty employment (incl. tenure and promotion), the president serves at the pleasure of the Board of Trustees.”

The danger faced when faculty morale is low is faculty starting to become disengaged to the point where the overall health of the university suffers.

Among other things, the success of an institution is dependent on its faculty and students. An indication of low faculty morale can be attributed to the size of OWU’s student body and the concern for the its decreasing size.

A university relies on the collective commitment of its faculty to go above and beyond what they are contractually obligated to do. Although teachers are only required to teach three or four classes, for the university to do well, faculty need to provide more than those few classes.

Without this commitment, faculty won’t put in extra hours when it comes to providing individual help to their students, cultivating lesson plans that relay information in an interesting way or being enthusiastic about the material being taught.

“There’s what I’m required to do and then there’s what I should do in order to make Ohio Wesleyan the great place that it should be. That’s the question, and morale directly effects that commitment,” Flamm said.

With the lack of students, Flamm says “more and more faculty members are demoralized and disengaged and that therefore any efforts made to improve the university or to improve programs in the curriculum are destined to fail because you do not have an optimistic committed faculty to implement those changes.”

Evidence suggests that the Wenzlau era was the beginning of the decline in student enrollment.

Former President Dr. Thomas E. Wenzlau served from 1969-1984 as OWU’s 12th President. In 1981, he conceived the Reach for Quality program with the goal of making more selective choices with the type of students OWU accepted. The concern for gradual “slippage” in standards was what prompted the reduction in enrollment.

The program was projected to cut enrollment to 1,800 by the fall of 1985. Enrollment had peaked in 1970 at 2,500. The plan worked a little too well, with OWU seeing a 32 percent drop in enrollment. Only 448 new students showed up in the fall of 1985, down from 662 the previous year.

Fast forward to today and the mindset is the complete opposite.

Wasn’t it in the fall of 2017 that Rock announced OWU’s newest initiative to increase enrollment to 2,020 by the year 2020, a projected 20 percent growth in the student body? What happened to that? Was it assumed that the “Connect Today, Create Tomorrow” campaign would overshadow the effort to increase enrollment?

Just looking at the last five years, Ohio Wesleyan fall semester full-time enrollment has decreased from 1,828 in 2013-14 to 1,558 in 2017-18 (https://www.owu.edu/ex/factBook/enrollmentDemographics.php).

“No one likes to have their judgments, decisions, and leadership questioned, but it is a necessary part of being a leader and of being open to listening and collaborating to do what is right. That open and collaborative environment is part of the power of higher education, and I respect and value it,” Jones said when asked how he felt about his leadership being called into question.

While retention rates are a serious topic amongst colleges and universities, the retention of faculty and staff at a university/college can be overlooked. Ohio Wesleyan, more so in the last year, is one of these school that are seeing decreases. Jones, however, is sure that OWU is prepared for such occurrences.

“Ohio Wesleyan has established practices for providing support for departments when faculty leave unexpectedly, and for allocating tenure-track faculty lines,” Jones said. “As the size of the student body has decreased in recent years, the number of allocated faculty positions has decreased proportionally. We are quite focused on increasing the size of the student body and, concurrently, increasing the size of the faculty.”

Last year, multiple OWU departments requested a total of 19 faculty positions be filled not including the five departures and one retiree.  Most of the positions were left over from previous retirements and departures. The administration, in consultation with the OWU Board of Trustees, agreed to fund four of the 20 empty positions for the 2019-2020 academic year.

Former Professor of Sociology and Anthropology Jim Peoples retired last year, and when asked if low faculty morale prompted his decision, he responded that, “Low faculty morale is not a factor in my decision. But I would say that faculty morale is the lowest since I came 30 years ago. Some evidence is lower attendance at faculty meetings –a quorum is far more difficult to achieve and a number of younger faculty leaving for other institutions with their faculty lines not being replaced.”

Trump and his new transgender policy

By Maddie Matos, Arts & Entertainment Editor

The Trump administration announced to the world that it is considering defining gender by genitalia at birth, threatening the rights of transgender people across the nation.

The news comes at a time where people of all minorities feel threatened daily by an administration that seems to be against them at all costs. The announcement created a social media storm, with people tweeting and posting that they stand with transgender people and the policy, if it proceeds, threatens the human rights of over one million people in the United States.

By identifying gender at birth, many people will be confined to whatever gender they are born. This can lead people who have had their gender markers changed on legal documents have to revert back to their birth gender.

Donald Trump’s policies differ drastically from President Barack Obama’s policies. Obama allowed for looser restrictions on gender and sex, allowing people to define it when they want to, not at birth.

The Department of Health and Human Services is also attempting to alter transgender rights by establishing a legal definition of sex under Title IX, according to the New York Times on Oct. 21. The efforts leave transgendered and other marginalized people feeling uneasy.

Restriction of human rights is not new to the American political system. Throughout our history, Americans who are not the typical heterosexual white male have had to fight for basic rights. America has long ignored these problems until the civil rights movement in the late 1960s, which forced citizens of the United States to see for the first time the plight of others in the nation. The LGBT movement is experiencing the same issues.

Allying ourselves with marginalized peoples will not only strengthen their causes but bolster our causes as well. Unity in numbers as well as ideals is what the United States has valued for decades, leaving the opportunity for a new era of campaigning and protesting in our able hands.

Ohio Wesleyan senior makes history with theater production

By Maddie Matos, Arts & Entertainment Editor

The weekend of Oct. 4 brought colonization and modern times together at Ohio Wesleyan University’s production of Cloud 9.

The show was directed by senior Ares Harper, making it the first show to be directed by a student in over 45 years.

Cloud 9 is divided into two acts that correlate with one another. The first act focuses on a British family in colonial Africa circa 1880. The family dynamic plays a key role in the plot of the show. Various characters are forced to suppress their sexual desires and orientations due to the social structures of the times they live in. This allowed the audience to draw obvious parallels between sexual oppression and colonialism.

“The show brought up a lot of serious questions… and social commentary,” sophomore Hannah Carpenter said.

The cast of seven students were asked to play 18 different roles in the show. Each character in the first act had a correlating character in the second act. Some characters switched their gender in the show as well, adding a unique aspect to the show.

The second act was set in modern-day London. This act was more lighthearted, allowing the audience to laugh while still understanding the themes of the show

“It was a good way to interweave humor with an important subject matter without it being convoluted or overdone,” sophomore Claire Yetzer said.

The audience received the show well, with standing ovations at the end of the program. Some actors got high praise as well for their roles in the show.

“I liked Edward in both the first and second half… he seemed honest and genuine,” Yetzer said.

Edward was played by freshman Jasmine Lew in the first act and sophomore Logan Kovach in the second act. The character is a gay man who must suppress his sexuality in the first half, and then in the second half come to terms with what he identifies as.

“It was interesting to see him in both the Victorian era and the modern era,” Carpenter said.

Each character had to grapple with their needs and desires to better themselves. The connection to the show was strong among the audience, with both Yetzer and Carpenter feeling the show offered insight into the need for self-enlightenment.

 

Personalize your Protest encourages protesting safely

By Maddie Matos, Arts & Entertainment Editor

With protests happening daily in the nation, Ohio Wesleyan University students brushed up on their skills at the Personalize Your Protest event.

The event was held at the Sexuality and Gender Equality House (SAGE), one of the small living units (SLUs) at Ohio Wesleyan on Oct. 23. House member Maggie Welsh held the program as her house project for the semester.

Welsh taught 15 people how to safely protest for the first portion of the event. She emphasized the importance of safety in a protest, especially in the political climate the country is in.

“I care so much about my peers safety,” Welsh said.

The presentation was interactive, with students answering questions and sharing their own experiences with protesting. Some students discussed the March for Our Lives protest and how that compared to the smaller scale OWU protests, such as Slut Walk. Students were discussing their protest experiences, as the setting was informal, with students sitting on couches and the floor.

The project is an annual event, with former house members hosting the event as their own project. Welsh felt that continuing the program was important.

“I want to make sure people who are becoming activists are as passionate about change on this campus as I am,” Welsh said.

The second half of the program allowed students to create their own protest signs. The signs varied on topics, such as transgender rights and anti-gun policies.

The event was well received by the audience, with people cheering and applauding at the end of the presentation. More people came to make signs, leaving no seating in the house for newcomers.

“I think it’s a really great event to have, just to teach people about how to protest safely and also give people a space to say, ‘hey we care about improving the space around us,’” sophomore Sierra Mainard said.

The house members of SAGE came to the event to support Welsh and become well informed on the issues at hand.

“We obviously care about the issues and live here, so why not come anyways?” senior Margaret Michicich said.

The program encouraged students to feel more informed and empowered to protest, in a safer and more organized way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

New healthcare app allows constant access to help; on students’ schedules

By Hailey De La Vara, Transcript Reporter

Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) is now offering students a free primary healthcare app, that delivers diagnosis and treatment from board-certified physicians via private and secure in-app messaging.

The 98point6 app is revolutionizing the medical industry.  It has the potential to be valuable to students by granting access to care at any time: no appointment, no waiting, and no insurance required.

OWU faculty are striving to market this new service to students. Leading the efforts to implement the 98point6 partnership on campus is Douglas Koyle, associate dean for student success.

Koyle enthusiastically announced the service over email to students and intends to help students understand what it is and how to use it. A team from 98point6 will be on campus on Wednesday, Nov. 28 to help promote the app, he said.

Furthermore, the process to receive the personal health care plan is rapid, with only three brief steps.

First, a user would explain their symptoms or ask questions to the app’s automated assistant.  One of the doctors would then assess the symptoms and diagnose health issues.  Finally, a user would then receive a thorough explanation of the diagnosis. The care plan will be available in the app, and any prescribed medications or labs will be sent to the preferred pharmacy or lab center.

If follow up care is needed, the service will then refer a student to OWU’s campus-based services to ensure the student is receiving the proper guidance for their medical needs.

Dwayne Todd, vice president for student engagement and success, acknowledged the nationwide success of the service and is hopeful for the future.

“98point6 is an established health care service provider that has had much success providing such services to employees of partner companies,” Todd said. “They are branching out into the higher education market and we are one of three campuses in the country to be invited to partner with them in this expansion.”

OWU President Rock Jones also applauded the addition of the service.

“I am pleased to see the addition of this new resource for student health care on campus.  I am grateful to Doug Koyle and to others who provided leadership in bringing this attractive service to OWU,” Jones said.

 

Growing Global

By Erin Ross, Transcript Correspondent

Global studies and international perspectives will continue to flourish at Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) as a result of the Global Scholars Program’s growth in presence, experience and participation since its inaugural year last fall.

Created for students who have an interest in global issues and are pursuing a major with an international focus, the Global Scholars Program admits a small number of students each year. Jeremy Baskes, director of the Global Scholars Program, created the program through the Global Studies Institute.

Baskes envisioned the program to bring together students with shared global interests and present them with unique learning and travel opportunities.

“We see it as a recruiting tool, Baskes said. “It is an opportunity for students who have those interests to come to Ohio Wesleyan and work closely with other students who have similar global interests or international interests.”

The program proved its recruiting power as the number of first-year global scholars increased from 11 in its inaugural year to 16 this fall.

“We made really good progress in increasing the number of students this year and I am hopeful that we will do the same for next year,” Baskes said.

Nathan Amador Rowley, assistant director of the Global Studies Program and assistant professor of geology and geography , said that an increase in the program’s presence allowed them to attract more students.

“When I talk to faculty members, they seem to understand what the Global Studies Institute is and that we have global scholars … I would say the presence is probably the big difference,” Rowley said.

The students admitted into the program must complete certain requirements in order to graduate as a global scholar. Such requirements include a first-year seminar, coursework in a major of international focus, competency in a foreign language, studying a semester abroad and the completion of a senior thesis, according to OWU’s website.

The evolvement of the required first-year seminar played a major role in the growth of the program’s dynamic. This year’s seminar, “Climate, Capital and Culture,” is co-taught by Rowley and Mary Anne Lewis Cusato, assistant professor of French.

In contrast to last year’s instructors, Rowley and Cusato are both members of the Global Scholars Institute. This led to growth in student-faculty relationships. The Institute faculty now see the global scholars for four hours a week rather than just in organized social circumstances.

“That develops a different relationship that allows us to advise students in a non-formal way,” Rowley said. “We didn’t make those kinds of deep connections with last year’s students as much.”

The first-year seminar is also a UC 160 course this year. This addition lessened the workload for first-year global scholars who, last year, would have been required to take a separate UC 160 course in addition to their first-year seminar.

Additionally, the freshman global scholars will be required to complete theory-to-practice grants by the end of their first-year seminar.

“Whether they actually submit it or not … leaving this class, they will know how to think through a problem, write it down, and propose some sort of travel,” Rowley said.

In addition to growth within the first-year seminar, the Global Scholars Program also expanded its staff by utilizing the experience of its, now sophomore, scholars. This year the program hired Paige Hunter, member of the Global Scholars inaugural class, as an intern.

“We really wanted to pick one of our global scholars. We want to start utilizing them more as mentors to the earlier classes,” Baskes said.

Within her position, Hunter worked on creating a variety of social media websites for the program and better advertised the many campus events that were global in nature. She will continue this work while also adding videos of the global scholars and other material to the program’s website.

“Even though my position is new, I think it adds to the program by increasing the level of communication and connection,” Hunter said.

The program has thus far met the expectations of the staff and displays potential for future improvement.

“As we are learning how to do things, little by little, we do new things. It is growing and evolving, and I think we are feeling really good about the Global Scholars Program as a whole.” Baskes said,

Although the program is new and is continuing to grow, the faculty expresses the need for future funding. At the start of the program The Global Scholars Institute received $200,000 from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation that was meant to last them four years. As the end of those four years approaches, the Institute must find more funds for the program to continue to grow.

“If we had more money … I could imagine bringing speakers, taking students on more local trips … Money would just help so much,” Rowley said.

 

Men’s basketball looking to make noise this season

By Nick Braydich, Transcript Correspondent

Despite graduating the 2018 Division III Player of the Year, the Ohio Wesleyan men’s basketball team has high hopes for the upcoming season.

“Our goals stay the same. We want to compete for an NCAC title and make it to the NCAA tournament,” junior captain Jaret Gerber said.

The Bishops graduated a total of eight seniors last season, including Nate Axelrod (2018 NCAA Division III Player of the Year) and Seth Clark (first-team All-NCAC).

Junior Grant Gossard said playing well together is essential to replace the senior class.

“We plan to replace Nate and Seth by good team play and ball sharing,” Gossard said. “Our success will depend on old and new players stepping up and taking on larger roles.”

The team has added eight players to their roster this season. These players include six freshmen: Colin Kimbrough, Curtis White, Ethan Stanislawski, Gabe Johnson, Lucas Nathanson and Nick Carlson. The other two players are transfers: sophomore Grant Smith and junior Tristan Tillman.

Assistant coach Nate Conley mentioned the team has prepared differently than previous seasons.

“We have 17 members on our basketball team this year, and eight of them are new to the program,” Conley said. “As a coaching staff, we felt the need to talk and instruct more in practice while focusing on teaching some of the basics.”

Other than practice, the team played in a recent scrimmage. On Oct. 28, the Bishops played against Marietta College, who competed in the Division III NCAA Tournament last year, according to Conley.

The scrimmage was beneficial for the inexperienced team, Gerber said.

“Our first scrimmage could have been a lot better but it was a good wake up call for us,” Gerber said. “Most players don’t have much experience; that’s why you scrimmage.”

Men’s basketball wrapped up the preseason with another scrimmage against Ohio Dominican University (ODU) on Nov. 2. ODU were conference champions in the Great Midwest Conference last season.

Gossard said playing against elite competition in the preseason will provide confidence moving forward.

“Playing the top competition is the best way to get better and if we can compete with the best, then we can compete with anyone,” Gossard said.

Head coach Mike DeWitt usually challenges his team during the preseason stretch, according to Conley.

“He [DeWitt] has always scheduled the toughest non-conference schedule possible to prepare his teams for the rigorous schedule in the NCAC,” Conley said.

The Bishops will begin their season playing in the Midway Classic in Chicago, Illinois on Nov. 17 and 18. They will play Springfield College in their first game, who is ranked No. 3 in the Division III national preseason poll

Seasons ruined, endless rehab; ACL tears are affecting OWU student athletes more than ever

By Ashley Barno, Transcript Correspondent

Ohio Wesleyan student athletes are recovering after tearing their anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) this year, preventing them from playing for their full seasons.

Senior basketball player, Brady Roesch, recently tore his ACL during a preseason practice, “I was making a jump stop and came down on someone’s foot and my knee went inward and then popped,” he said. Roesch started playing for the men’s basketball team his junior year and has never had an injury this detrimental before, he said.

“The toughest thing about tearing my ACL is the mental aspect of it all,” Roesch said. “Since I started playing so late into college, I’ve only gotten to play one full season.”

The full recovery time for Roesch’s injury is estimated to be 9-12 months, making it impossible to be able to play during his final season.

Sophomore member of the women’s soccer team, Caroline Elliot, tore her ACL during a spring play day this past April, “I had a breakaway and when I shot the ball, I slid, and my right leg got stuck in grass,” she said. “My knee bent inward instead of outward which is why my ACL tore.”

Elliot said it was frustrating to sit back and watch her team play this fall while she focused on her recovery. “It’s been really hard watching the team, knowing I am not able to play, run, or even pass a ball,” she said.” “I felt like I didn’t contribute to the team this season.”

Being on a timeline is what matters most when recovering from a torn ACL, Elliot mentioned. “I couldn’t jog until four months into my recovery, even though my body felt strong enough,” she said. “I feel ready to be back, but it’s extremely important to not push myself so I can recover properly.”

OWU Athletic Trainer, Niki Budd, says torn ACLs are the most common season terminating injuries for athletes and are even more common, specifically, for female athletes.

“Females are hamstring dominant, which means their quads are weaker and its pulls on the ACL, making it easier to tear,” Budd said.

Contact sports are the most dangerous when examining the large amounts of injuries that occur in them, but ACLs can tear with or without contact. “Majority of the torn ACLs I have seen in my career have been non-contact, especially when dealing with girls,” Budd said.

Budd mentioned “prehab,” or preventive rehab, is the most impactful way to prevent detrimental injuries, like tearing an ACL.

Leading Greek mythology professor speaks at Ohio Wesleyan

By Seth Roberts, Transcript Correspondent

Not many people would consider professor Ruth Scodel to be one of the star speakers to visit Ohio Wesleyan University. However
Scodel is considered by many to be one of the leading voices in the field of Greek mythology.

Scodel, currently a professor at the University of Michigan, was invited to speak by Ohio Wesleyan professor Michael McOsker. Many people were encouraged by McOsker and others to attend the lecture with a crowd of 40 students and faculty attending the lecture. Scodel’s speech mostly focused on the works of Greek poet Hesiod, specifically his piece call

“Works and Days.” When asked why she specifically chose the “Works and Days” Scodel said:

“I’m writing a commentary about it, I’ve been spending a lot of time with this poem,” Scodel said. “For a while I was calling myself the all Hesiod channel, I’m not quite that right now because I have other projects. It’s something I do and Michael McOsker had suggest that there would be students that had read “Works and Days” and therefore would be something that I could actually be helpful about.”

It was clear during the lecture that Scodel had
done her homework, as she was able to speak clearly about the Hesiod poem and then confidently answer questions about it afterwards providing helpful insight to the students and faculty that attended.

Although the crowd of 40 at the lecture was
small, they were able to fill all the seats in
the room. Scodel herself actually praised the
crowd, “I was actually really impressed, there’s
always this nervous moment when you ask for
questions and no hands go up, but once it got
started there were questions and I enjoyed them,
I thought it was great.”

The feeling was mutual between speaker and audience members as they too also had nice things to say about Scodel. Michel McOsker, a professor of mythology at Ohio Wesleyan University and the man who invited Scodel to speak, enjoyed Scodel’s speech.

“I thought it was very interesting, a very challenging take against the usual interpretation of the “Works and Days”, this kind of chaotic mess of a poem without any real structure, it gave an overarching view about what Hesiod was trying to communicate”.

Students also appreciated Scodel’s talk, Ohio Wesleyan freshman Regina Campbell said “I thought it was interesting at times, and other times I didn’t really know what was happening”.

After the speech ended both Scodel and
McOsker showed interest in having her come
back for another lecture. “If anybody wanted
me to, sure why not?” Scodel said after being
asked if she would consider coming back to
speak again. McOsker, who originally invited
Scodel the first time said “I would be happy to
have her back.”

Hopefully this first talk is the beginning of
a long fruitful relationship between professor
Scodel and Ohio Wesleyan University.