New computers connect education students’ circuits

By Emily Temple

Transcript Correspondent

On Monday, Oct. 7, the Ohio Wesleyan Education Department celebrated the opening of the Short Family Multimedia Lab in Phillips Hall.

This donation was the first donation the department has received in the 14 years that Paula White, professor of education and the department’s chair, has been employed at the university.

“We anticipate this impact will have a ripple effect that results in increased PreK-12 student learning,” she said. “I plan to use the lab with students in my methods courses who are learning and developing their range of instructional techniques.”

This donation from Mary Carol and Jack Short will give education majors the opportunity to further their learning through technology.

This new lab will provide opportunities for students to develop their pedagogical technology skills. It will especially be helpful to seniors in the program who are student teaching by allowing them to use iMovie video editing software to make their videos for the edTPA, a new program that is implemented across many universities in the state of Ohio.

The lab includes ten iMacs, a printer and an Apple TV. The Apple TV allows students and professors to connect wirelessly via airplay eliminating the need for expensive projectors.

The iMacs are fully loaded with word processing software, iMovie software and much more. White said if there is something else the department wanted to add, there is always “an app for that.”

A large part of the lab is the iMovie software allowing student teachers to edit their required video for their edTPA submissions in their final semester.

Senior Bethany Mann, an early childhood education major said the resources will help her greatly in getting ready for her graduation and future career and in completing the edTPA project.

“I am extremely excited to use the lab to further my education experience and prepare for my future as an educator,” she said.

The Short family has a long legacy of producing OWU graduates that totals to 92 years, with the most recent graduate in the class of 2010.

Shutdown ends but healthcare battle goes on

By Sam Simon

Transcript Reporter

The latest government shutdown has ended.  But other crises loom in the future, so an examination of what happened while OWU had its fall break is interesting both in review and in a likely preview of things to come.

The current situation with partisan politicians testing the limits of their power is not unique.  Beginning in the 1980s with Ronald Reagan’s presidency, the government was shut down 18 times in 19 years with the debt limits and budgets at the center of these disputes.

The most recent shutdown debate was centered on the Affordable Care Act, signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010. Republican legislators would not pass a federal budget agreement without restriction or repeal of the healthcare law.

“Elections have consequences,” said Joan McLean, professor of politics and government. “Laws have consequences. Putting the United State’s full faith and credit in play in order to pursue an agenda is not what the authors of the Constitution would consider proper use of power.”

Federal government employees were primarily affected by the government shutdown.

Senior Zoey Kramer’s uncle works in the Department of Justice’s office of attorney recruitment and is president of DOJ Pride, an organization for LGBT employees. During the shutdown he did not work and was not paid.

In the last shutdown in 1995 he was similarly furloughed.

Senior Jordan Alexander’s parents both work for the Department of Defense in a military installation in San Antonio, Texas. While neither was paid, both continued to work during the shutdown.

Students in general are affected by the cessation of various services. Ohio Wesleyan librarian Joy Gao said government websites and online government document resources OWU students and faculty use for research were shut down. Researchers could still access Beeghly Library’s print collection of government documents.

Gao said during the shutdown, there was no shipment of printed government documents from the Government Printing Office (GPO) to depository libraries like Beeghly.

She also said some government websites were completely shut down. Others were still accessible, but the contents had not been updated. The Census Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), Department of Agriculture (USDA), National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) sites were all non-functional.

Gao found that some students were unable to complete their school assignments in a timely manner because of the shutdown. Some students were asked to find imports and exports data on the Census Bureau website for a class assignment.

“Of course, with the shutdown, they were not able to do it,” she said. “However, we were able to help them find the data in Statistical Abstract of the United States, which is a database we subscribe to.”

The shutdown ended Oct. 16, as McLean predicted just before the date economists said the federal government would run out of cash to pay its debts, necessitating a raising of the debt ceiling in order to borrow more money.

The vote in the House was 285-144 and 81-18 in the Senate. The government shutdown immediately ended and government employees returned to work on Thursday, Oct. 17.

The deal makes no substantive changes to the Affordable Care Act, and provides a rise in the debt ceiling that economists believe should provide adequate funding until Feb. 7, 2014.

One measure that has been discussed in the media and amongst political pundits is secion four of the 14th Amendment, adopted to reassure foreign countries that despite U.S. involvement in war, the country would continue to honor its debt.

This has raised the question if the President can sidestep Congress and raise the debt ceiling with the executive branch.

McLean said she thinks this would never occur under present circumstances, as the President must “weigh his decisions on such matters for both the long and short term.”

She said a Supreme Court case would be needed to interpret the current circumstances as necessary to employ such measures, but Obama would most likely understand that such executive overreach on his part might be destructive to the country in the long term.

Car share program hasn’t reached full speed yet

Program Car at the Service Fair Photo by Jane Suttmeier
Program Car at the Service Fair
Photo by Jane Suttmeier

By Sarah Thomas

Transcript Correspondent

After the first half-semester of its implementation, the Ohio Wesleyan car share program has not made a large dent in its goal of reducing parking congestion.

Starting this year, the university partnered with Enterprise Rent-A-Car to provide rental car service for students.

By reducing the need for cars on campus, the program aimed to decrease demand for parking spaces and bring down the number of cars in order to aid OWU’s sustainability efforts.

Junior Marissa Witkovsky said the program has not made any progress on the parking lot crowding issue that she can see. She is not a member of the program and brought her own car to campus.

Director of Public Safety Robert Wood said it will take several years for the cars to make a significant impact.

The program is based on paid membership, with an initial $35 annual fee. As an incentive to sign up, members will also receive $25 in driving credits. These credits can be used toward the costs of a rental car for a specific time.

The hourly rate for weekdays is $9.50 and $10.50 for weekends. Students can also rent a car for the whole day for $60 or overnight for $40. Gas is included for the first 200 miles.

Witkovsky said she would consider joining the program if it were cheaper.

“If the costs for an hour were half the price, then I would have been much less likely to ever bring a car to campus and just use this service,” she said.

Senior Jennifer Eltringham also had an issue with the cost. Eltringham is a member of the service and has rented a car for a trip.

“I was shocked by the late return fee,” she said. “I was only five or so minutes late and they charged me $50.”

Students can reserve a car online for a specific time online. Members gain access to the car by scanning a membership card over a reader on the car. Once the vehicle is unlocked, the keys are located inside.

As part of the standard rate, there is a pre-paid fuel card located in the car. In addition, there is a 24-hour roadside assistance and member service that can be called when needed.

The car locks when the driver holds the membership card over the card reader. Once this is done, the rental has ended. When returning the vehicle, the keys stay locked in the car.

FIJI holds pumpkin run

By Jija Dutt

Transcript Reporter

Early morning on Sat., Oct. 5, brothers of Phi Gamma Delta (Fiji), along with other students and members of the Delaware community participated in a 5k to raise money for charity.

Approximately 60 people participated and $450 was raised for Andrews House, a community services center in Delaware.

The run, (and walk) started from the Selby Field on South Henry Street, located on the east side of campus.

“This was a one mile walk and a 5k run”, said senior Saar Rajpuria, vice president and treasurer of Fiji. “It was our first (one), we are looking forward to making it a regular thing or maybe organizing our own marathon in the future.”

Junior Katherine Campbell said did not deter her from participating.

“I chose to participate because I hadn’t run a 5k in a long time and wanted to see how well I could still do it,” she said.  “My favorite part of events such as these is the running and the feeling I get when I have finished (and) done well.”

Senior John Bieniek, president of Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity said being a part of a close knit community like Delaware is one of the best parts of going to a small school like OWU.

“Philanthropy is most effective when it is done for local organizations that have an exact idea of the needs, ideas and opportunities for positive change in the community,” said Bieniek. “Additionally Greek organizations holding events for local groups (helps) strengthen the ties between the university and rest of the community which makes living here an even more pleasant experience.”

Rajpuria said that the main reason for choosing a local organization as philanthropy is “down right support.”

“(This way) we can help (our) community and make a difference around us,” he said.

The Fijis will also host a soccer tournament in December as another philanthropy event.

No disbanding for nameless student rock group

By Adelle Brodbeck

Transcript Reporter

After a last minute change of location, Ohio Wesleyan’s best known student band with no name played a successful show for fellow students in the basement of the Chi Phi fraternity house.

The band is comprised of OWU seniors Erika Nininger, Michael Cormier and Sam Sonnega and junior Connor Stout. The quartet has been playing together since Stout’s freshman year.

The band had originally scheduled to play in the largely unused “amphitheater” located near the Benes room. But when they realized that the weather reports called for thunderstorms, they were forced to change their venue.

“You can’t be mad at the weather,” said Cormier, the band’s drummer.

Despite the last minute rearrangement, attendance was still relatively high. The band had scheduled to begin performing at 8:30 p.m., but in true rock star fashion, did not actually begin playing until 9 as Cormier warned on the event’s Facebook page.

Most students trickled in and out of the concert as the night progressed, however there was a solid line of enthusiastic audience members dancing in the front throughout the show.

“We’ve played in Chi Phi before,” said pianist/vocalist Erika Nininger. “And the last show we did here had a great turnout.”

The band said they had not planned a back-up location, but bassist/vocalist Stout volunteered Chi Phi as the new venue, and his fellow brothers were willing to open up the house to the band and their fans.

The venue allowed for the band to have a more complex setup then they are usually accustomed to. Chris Hinshaw, a technician for OWU’s Building and Grounds Department, helped set up a more professional and fully equipped sound system.

In addition to the more elaborate sound setup, there was a light show that colored the whole room in blue, red and yellow hues. The room exuded a tranquil and hip aura, right down to the candle carefully placed on Nininger’s keyboard and Sonnega’s t-shirt that said “I came to get down.”

Throughout the three years they have been together, the band has played in many venues, including J. Gumbo’s and Tree House, but they have yet to settle on a name despite a mutual desire for one.

According to the band, it has been very difficult to choose because they have come up with so many different names. Cormier said they keep a list of all of the ones they have thought up in the past.

Currently they refer to themselves as Vladimir Tootin’s Theory of Everything, but Sonnega said it’s a bit of a mouthful. After some debate among the members they said that the name they were using previously was Twitch, but they weren’t satisfied with that either.

“I mean, would you go to a Twitch show?” Nininger said.

Their flexibility with the name also transfers into their song choices. According to Cormier, the band always changes up its set list based on their moods or the environment or the attitude of the audience. The band said they tend to play a lot of covers in addition to their own original pieces.

The band said they hope to continue to play at OWU throughout this year, as well as after they graduate.

“It’s all we’ve got going for us,” Cormier said between laughs.

New faculty-written play gives artists freedom, challenges

By Nicole Barhorst

Transcript Correspondent

Students, faculty and Delaware residents witnessed the world premiere of “The Secret War of Emma Edmonds” last weekend.

According to the production’s flyer, the play is “based on the true story of a woman who disguised herself as a man to serve in the Civil War, also known as Franklin Thompson of the 2nd Michigan Infantry.”

The play is an original work by Ohio Wesleyan theatre professor Bonnie Milne Gardner. According to the theatre and dance department’s website, more than 20 of Gardner’s plays have been produced in professional, community and academic theaters.

“The best part was the emotional moments on stage, but I wasn’t a huge fan of the ending of the play,” sophomore Sam Borchart said. “It felt abrupt and didn’t work very well in my opinion.

Borchart said he attended the play because he “loves to support the arts” and wanted to see several of his friends act in the production.

“Seeing how well the actors recomposed themselves after a line slip-up was good to see,” said Borchart, who participated in theater while in high school.

Costume designer Jacqueline Shelley said the biggest challenge for her has been getting the play’s star, sophomore Margot Reed, in and out of her many costumes smoothly.

“She has nine costume changes and they are all quick changes,” she said. “We rehearsed the changes two nights in a row and timed them accordingly.”

Shelley said this was her first time working with military attire and creating historically accurate costumes has been a major task. A re-enactment historian was enlisted for help.

“We’ve tried to get things as near to true as possible, but sometimes the budget plays a big [role] in what we can achieve and what we can only come close to,” she said.

Director Kerry Shanklin said the biggest challenge has been “creating a smooth flow with so many different locales and with the title character’s many changes.” Throughout the play, Reed appears as both a man and a woman, as well as at various ages.

Sophomore Lauren Kiebler said she enjoyed seeing Edmonds’ life across a few different decades.

“I didn’t even know women served in the Civil War,” Kiebler said.

Although junior Colin Moore said he “did not care much for the ending,” he still thinks the OWU theatre department is “top notch” and will continue to attend its plays.

Moore said his favorite scene occurred when Edmonds was speaking with a wounded confederate soldier because it was “harrowing.”

Sophomore Nathan LaFrombois said he too favored that scene and found the overall play to be “touching.”

“I will absolutely attend more plays at OWU,” he said. “I have always enjoyed events put on by the theater department. They have quality shows and great actors.”

Kiebler also said she enjoyed the “women’s empowerment” aspect of the production and said she looks up to people like Emma.

Junior Ryan Haddad said producing the play for the first time didn’t add extra pressure on him as the show’s co-assistant dramaturg, or researcher.

“As this is a premiere, the actors and design team really get a chance to create unique performances and visuals,” he said. “There is no precedent for how the play should be done or has been done before, so they get to start fresh, which is very exciting.”

Gardner served as lead dramaturg, while Haddad and senior Matthew Jamison were both assistant dramaturgs.

As dramaturg, Haddad said he was one of the people in charge of researching information about the Civil War time period and giving it to “the cast, director, and technical staff, usually upon their request.” He said he spent 10 to 15 hours doing research during the rehearsal process.

Haddad said he and Jamison also helped with outreach for the show. He was in charge of contacting local schools and historical organizations that might be interested in attending the production.

“The Secret War of Emma Edmonds” will close its run in the Chappelear Drama Center this weekend. Performances are on Oct. 11 and 12 at 8 p.m. and Oct. 13 at 2 p.m.

Students bid farewell to illegal downloading

By Sadie Slager

Transcript Reporter

To prevent copyright infringement and potential lawsuits against students and the university, Information Services has blocked file sharing applications like BitTorrent from being run on campus.

These peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing and systems are used to share legal content among millions of computers. They are also used to illegally distribute copyrighted content, which leads to copyright violations. Copyright violations consist of unauthorized copying and distribution.

Chief Information Officer Brian Rellinger said Information Services receives 15 to 20 copyright violation notifications per semester, but some violations go unnoticed.

“Certainly more students are using these applications but do not get caught,” he said.

Rellinger said other universities have similar policies in regards to file sharing.

“More and more are blocking the applications just as we are to reduce the exposure,” he said.

When the university receives notices of copyright infringement, Rellinger said, Information Services is required to stop the student who has done it.

“Failure to do so could lead to lawsuits against the student and university,” he said.

Recent copyright infringements on campus include illegal viewing, copying and distribution of popular television shows, such as the fifth season of “Breaking Bad.” In this case, the student was committing an infringement on Sony Pictures Television, Inc., who owns the show’s copyright.

Rellinger said Information Services does not seek out P2P activity, but rather copyright owners are the ones who track it.

“Copyright owners monitor traffic and report violations to the university,” he said. “Once we are notified, we trace the IP address back to the specific student so that we can address the issue….This typically involves shutting off that student’s network connection, finding the illegal content, and deleting the files along with the program used to download it.”

According to Rellinger, blocking P2P applications serves a number of purposes, including freeing up bandwidth for all students.

“P2P applications can consume the network’s capacity if unregulated on a college campus,” he said.

Rellinger said blocking the applications also greatly reduces legal warnings of copyright infringement on campus.

“We believe that this is the correct course of action to provide a better level of service to all students, as well as reduce the amount of illegal content being shared on the OWU campus,” he said.

Homecoming reunites faculty, students and alumni

By Jija Dutt

Transcript Reporter

Ohio Wesleyan students, faculty, family and alumni from around the country gathered to celebrate yet another homecoming weekend from Friday, October 4, to Sunday, October 6.

The Spirit and Homecoming Organization (SHO) planned events for students throughout the week leading up to homecoming weekend. Free cookies in the campus center, a tie-dye shirts day on Williams Drive, banner making competition among various organizations and a homecoming dance were among a host of other events.

A student-faculty soccer game scheduled fore Thursday, October 3, was later canceled due to lack of participation.

Senior Sarah Hartzheim, vice-president of SHO, said her favorite part of homecoming is involving people from across the community in a fun, stress free celebration of everyone’s time at OWU.

“Homecoming this year involved a lot more people as SHO has grown significantly this year.,” she said. “We’re really excited about all the underclass men getting involved and showing such leadership potential.”

Hartzheim also said every year SHO increases the amount of shirts, cups and food allotted for the week and weekend because the number of people attending increases each year.

The homecoming football game between Ohio Wesleyan and Allegheny was won by the bishops (50-7).

This year’s homecoming court winners were crowned at halftime during the football game. The new OWU royalty are seniors Tim O’Keefe  andMarilyn Baer as king and queen respectively along with juniors Morgan McBride as prince and Ayana Colwin as princess.

According to Brenda DeWitt, director of Alumni Relations, homecoming is an OWU tradition.

“Over the years, there have been many different types of activities associated with the weekend,” she said. “Currently our focus is engaging alumni through various affinity groups such as Greek, athletic, and activity.”

This year’s special events included Alpha Sigma Phi’s sesquicentennial celebration and 25th “Cluster Reunions” for the classes of 1987, 1988, and 1989. Former members of OWU’s now-defunct chapter Sigma Alpha Epsilon also had their reunion, and OWU held the 53rd annual Athletics Hall of Fame and the Alumni Association Board of Directors also met during the week.

DeWitt said “a student-focused event” was Munch and Mingle, a networking program held at noon on Friday, October 4. It was an opportunity for students to interact with alumni in their field of interest.

Emily Roudebush, assistant director of Alumni Relations and Event Planning, said planning for homecoming begins in the early spring of each year. She and her colleagues “get down to the nitty-gritty details” after Alumni Weekend in mid-May.

Much like family weekend, Roudebush said all of the University Advancement office pitches in to help plan Homecoming.

“Also, many student activities take place during the weekend, so I try to work with all of them to make sure their events are on the Homecoming Weekend schedule,” she said.

DeWitt said close to 500 alumni were scheduled to be on campus attending various events throughout the weekend. Roudebbush said the office sends a mailing to alumni in the 13 states closest to OWU: Connecticut, DC, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virgina, West Virginia and the District of Columbia. Multiple emails about the weekend are also sent out to all alumni.

Tricia DiFranco ’09 said it was a good to be back “catching up with old friends and seeing the improvements to campus.”

Freshman Becca Manning said her favorite part of her first homecoming weekend was seeing all the students of each class “dancing together and having fun.”

Roudebush said her favorite part of homecoming is usually the affinity reunion dinners.

“Those groups are usually so enthusiastic and excited to be back on campus with their respective groups,” she said. “It’s fun to get to see them all interact with current students as well.”

DeWitt said she enjoys “watching alumni reconnect with each other, with the campus and with students.”

“There are some alumni who haven’t been back to campus for years and it is fun to see them get excited about the changes on campus,” she said.

Table tennis club hits it off

By Sarah Schneider

Transcript Reporter

Ohio Wesleyan’s new table tennis club aims to foster friendly competition within the university and between OWU and other schools.

According to senior Anuk Yingrotetarakul, the club’s current president, the motivation to form the group was to gain access to “proper” equipment to enhance the playing experience.

“I came to OWU and got to play with some friends during my freshman year at Smith Hall,” Yingrotetarakul said “However, the tables were in poor condition and were soon removed. I never got to play again until my junior year….The idea of forming a club led to thoughts about competing as well,” he said.

Yingrotetarakul said the club was approved late last spring and only took action in fall of 2013. He and sophomore Shashwat Rijal, the club’s treasurer, petitioned to start the group.

“We organize practice/meetings and provide better equipment,” he said. “We are also currently attempting to organize friendlies against other universities to get a feel for the competitive nature of the game.”

Rijal said he wants to participate in tournaments. The table tennis season spans the entire school year, beginning in the fall and ending in the spring.

Senior Daniel Khan, a member of the club said, “My buddies and I played ping pong in the senior housing for a while and thought it will be a good idea to make a formal club.”

The club meets every Thursday from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. in Branch Rickey Arena, where tables are set up and all equipment is provided.

After mid-semester break, depending on the athletic facilities available, the club is hoping to add Tuesdays to their meeting time, as well as their original Thursdays.

Board of trustees hold year’s first meeting

By Brian Cook

Transcript Reporter

The Board of Trustees set many different objectives for the year at its first meeting of the academic year last Friday.

One of the objectives set in the meeting, according to a statement to the faculty from university President Rock Jones is to increase retention rates and graduation rates, with a comprehensive report to be prepared for the Board meeting in May 2014.

In terms of facilities, the Board wants to start the restoration on Merrick Hall, as well as fundraise for the renovation of Edwards Gym and the Pfeiffer Building.

The Board officially passed a resolution to go forward with the restoration of Merrick Hall, with construction to begin in February.

Notably, no resolution was passed to fund the position of sustainability coordinator despite student protests.

However, Michael Long ’66, Chairperson of the Board of Trustees, said he was pleased with the students who showed their support for sustainability. He said he also appreciated their respectful demeanor and their useful information on the issue.

The students held signs supporting a sustainability coordinator outside the Benes rooms in a demonstration during the Board of Trustees and Faculty dinner the previous evening.

Another talking point of the meeting was the need to improve student housing. According to Jones, the Board directed the administration to bring a plan to the winter meeting about implementing what the Board calls the “Student Housing Master Plan.” Some Board members recommended the administration consider debt as a way to finance the plan as quickly as possible.

The Board also charged the administration to consider how it distributed need-based aid versus merit-based aid.

“In the coming year, we will… (c)onsider the relationship between need-based and merit-based financial aid and the impacts of each on the composition of the student body and net tuition revenue,” Jones said.

The Board said it wants to improve technology on campus, and to that end they encouraged the administration to start a campus-wide conversation about the role of technology on campus.

They commended Rebecca Eckstein for her work as Vice President for University Enrollment and Communication. According to the Board, Eckstein plans on leaving the university in November.

To that end, Jones formally announced the hiring of Dave Wottle, Eckstein’s interim replacement, to university employees.

Wottle previously worked at Rhodes College for 27 years as Dean of Admission and Financial Aid. He also won a gold medal in the 800-meter run at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, tying a then-world record. He is the most recent American to win the gold medal in the Olympics in the 800-meter run.

Jones said the Board and he both agreed that the future at Ohio Wesleyan is bright.

“Clearly, we have an ambitious year ahead, and the Board commended all of you for helping to create such a wonderful beginning,” said Jones to the employees. “The Trustees also expressed their continuing faith—as do I—that together we can achieve our strategic objectives and establish OWU as an exemplar of liberal arts teaching and learning for this century—and those to come. As always, thank you for all you do that makes us distinctively Ohio Wesleyan.”

The Board also welcomed six new trustees at the meeting: Doreen DeLaney Crawley ’91, Jason Downey ’02, Kamila Goldin ’13, Rob Kail ’71, Jack Luikart ’71, and Frank Quinn ’78. Goldin is the class of 2013 Representative to the Board.

Additionally, the Board passed a measure that formalized how the university stores critical and non-critical documents.

“The Record Retention Policy is effective immediately, and all OWU employees are responsible for following its guidelines,” Jones said in a statement to employees. “The policy reflects good practice and also allows us to answer in the affirmative an important question on IRS Form 990.”