Category: News

Fire Chief John Donahue said his team responded to a fire alarm at 20 Williams Drive, Delta Tau Delta, at 11:11 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 9. “We arrived on scene at 11:15 p.m., and when we saw we had smoke coming out of the house, we upgraded it to a working fire assignment,” Donahue said. “The fire was contained quickly to the single room, and everyone was accounted for at 11:38 p.m.” The next morning, Cole Hatcher, Director of Media and Community Relations, sent out a campus wide e-mail, saying no one was harmed and the residents of Delta have been relocated until repairs can be made. It was determined the fire was started in a student’s room on the second floor due to a cigarette that was not properly extinguished. Residents will be displaced until November 30.

By Katie Wiskofske
Transcript Correspondent

A local fair trade store, Global Village Collection, gives Ohio Wesleyan students a small taste of the world.

The idea behind the store started in 1982 at Asbury United Methodist Church with a few families who wanted to buy nativity scenes that would help others. Since then, a year-round store, Global Village Collection, has opened up and now cells clothing, accessories, chocolates and many other products from all over the world.

Global Village volunteers are important to the store. They work in the store and off-site by processing orders, setting up displays, selling and speaking off-site and more.

“We work hard to maintain a successful retail so that we can contribute to provide impoverished farmers and artisans from around the world with a fair income and safe working environments,” the Global Village website said.

“Secondly, we provide educational programming to increase understanding regarding unfair trading practices, reasons fueling this injustice and different ways informed consumers can make a difference in the lives of people around the world.”

Some people are not quite sure what fair trade is exactly. Dianne Kreeger, a Global Village employee, describes fair trades as providing countries with labor laws to be treated fairly.

She says that fair trade helps men and women get the wages that they deserve for the products they are making and there is no child labor. Whenever someone visits Global Village Collection, an employee makes sure that the customer understands fair trade.

Kreeger believes that Ohio Wesleyan students have much to gain from Global Village Collections.

She explained that store has caused students to gain an interest in other countries and where the products they buy are from. Kreeger explained that the products are affordable for the high quality and “they make great gifts.”

Freshman Abby Hanson expressed her interest of the store in an email interview.

“I really like a lot of the stuff they sell,” she said. “They have cute clothes and accessories and I think the elephant poop paper is awesome.”

Kreeger shares her love of the products.

“I love getting new shipments,” Kreeger says. “I just opened a new box of birthday and Christmas cards today. It’s so exciting to see the new materials. It’s like Christmas.”

OWU has partnered up with Global Village for several projects and events since 1982. Global Village Collection’s second location was in R.W. Corns Building.

Global Village has brought speakers to OWU including a former child factory worker. There are also OWU students that volunteer and work for Global Village.

Global Village Collection stands for a cause that reaches worldwide and they are interested in getting OWU students involved in the cause as well.

By Sarah Love
Transcript Correspondent

Campus Programming Board’s annual event SpringFest is cancelled this year because of last year’s low attendance.

In an effort to save money on the event last spring, the Wesleyan Council on Student Affairs asked CPB and the Student Union on Black Awareness to combine SpringFest and Step Fest into one event called “Crossroads.”

The band Hellogoodbye and the rapper Lloyd performed at last year’s event.

Only 200 students attended “Crossroads,” and CPB and SUBA only made a profit of $1,000. Now, WCSA has refused to give CPB the $50,000 this year to put on the event.

Junior Kelsey Brewer, president of CPB, said she supports WCSA’s decision.

“The time, effort, and money we devoted to the event did not match the student response to it,” she said.

Members of CPB and SUBA encouraged students to attend “Crossroads” by dorm storming, selling tickets in Hamilton Williams Campus Center, posting flyers and inviting students via Facebook.

Sophomore Chelcie Miller said the performers contributed to the lack of attendance.

“I’m not happy it isn’t happening because I would want to see artists, but if they’re not up-to-date performers, then people aren’t going to go,” Miller said.

Sophomore Kara Dawson said the reason for low turnout was based on lack of publicity, not the status of the performers.

“I’m kind of upset they aren’t doing it this year. I didn’t get to go last year but I did want to go,” Dawson said. “I just wish they would have advertised more. I think they would have had a better turnout.”

Brewer said a lot of time and effort went into advertising.

“I hate when people say there’s not enough advertising,” she said. “If someone could give me more advertising ideas I would be happy to hear them.”

CPB may put on a smaller, less costly music event this spring, but for now sophomore Alex Johnson, treasurer of CPB, said he is enjoying the fact that he’ll have more time to relax.

“Given the fact that there was such a low turnout last year and that it takes four months to prepare for this event I’m not going to miss it,” he said.

By Ellin Youse
Transcript Reporter

When students gathered around City Park Gazebo to hear artist will.i.am speak on the importance of early voting, they were not anticipating they would instead be traveling to will.i.am and President Barack Obama’s rally at The Ohio State University (OSU).

Will.i.am was expected to arrive at the gazebo at 1 p.m. on Oct. 9 and talk to students about registering to vote before the early voting deadline ended later that evening at 9 p.m.

After his speech about President Obama and the importance of early voting, will.i.am planned to travel with students to the polls to cast their votes.

Will.i.am’s stop at OWU was initially part of a two-day Ohio tour that was to end at OSU later Tuesday afternoon, but permit complications addressed by the Delaware Police Department (DPD) made it impossible for the seven-time Grammy winner to come to Delaware.

Michael Deininger-Bell is a recent graduate from University of North-Carolina Wilmington and the Campus Organizer for Ohio Wesleyan for Obama.

Deininger-Bell was the head organizer for will.i.am’s stop in Delaware, but it wasn’t long until he realized the rally was not going to go smoothly.

Shortly after he began setting up for the rally, Deininger-Bell said he realized the gazebo’s power had been shut off.

After searching for the problem for about 30 minutes, several DPD officers and two Public Safety officers arrived at the park to inform Deininger-Bell he was without a permit and could not legally hold the rally on Delaware City property.

Interim Chief Bruce Pijanowski of DPD said the event was “unpermitted and uninsured.”

“They had information about the permit process prior to today, but some rules were waived for them,” Pijanowski said.
“There was some miscommunication from their end about what they needed to do for the rally.”

Deininger-Bell said he apologized to Pijanowski for the over-looked regulations, saying he only had 24 hours to plan the event.

Pijanowski said he understood and apologized for the inconvenience, but the rally needed to be moved off public property.

Pijanowski said he asked Deininger-Bell to tell the crowd at the gazebo that the location change was not mandated by the police department.

Sophomore Madeline Leader, an OWU for Obama volunteer, said forcing the rally to move locations was an infringement of the group’s right to assembly.

“I called my father, a lawyer, to see if this was even legal,” Leader said.

“The event was at a park, on a public forum. They can’t do that.”

Deininger-Bell addressed the crowd amassed around the gazebo, informing them that the event’s location had been changed and would take place at the Delaware campaign headquarters for President Obama at 177 Sandusky Street.

Deininger-Bell along with other OWU for Obama student volunteers led the crowd to the new location.

After waiting around a half an hour for will.i.am to arrive, a charter bus entered the parking lot outside of the headquarters.
The crowd began growing in excitement, but will.i.am was not in fact on the bus.

Rumors circulated through the crowd that will.i.am was no longer coming, and that the crowd was to be transported to the rally at OSU.
Those wanting to attend the rally immediately flocked to the bus, while other members of the crowd decided to leave.

Once the bus had been filled with students, Deininger-Bell climbed on the bus to make an announcement.

After apologizing to the crowd for so much confusion and turbulence, Deininger-Bell told the crowd will.i.am was no longer coming to Delaware. He had received word of there being difficulty with DPD and decided against coming.

To make it up to the students of OWU, the organizers of the rally issued each person at the OWU rally a VIP ticket to see will.i.am at President Obama’s rally, which was to be held at Ohio State University.

“I’m not making any promises, but you should be able to shake will.i.am’s hand at the very least,” Deininger-Bell said to the crowd.
Deininger-Bell continued to say he was sorry for the complications with DPD.

“The police told me not to say bad things about them, but like, you turn off my power and cancel my event saying I couldn’t hold it on a public forum,” he said, laughing. “Are you kidding me?”

The bus stopped at a Delaware precinct to allow students to vote early, then continued on to the OSU campus.

The crowd from OWU entered the event through the VIP entrance and was ushered to a spot at the front of the stage where will.i.am was about to perform.

While waiting for will.i.am to come on stage, sophomore Banita Giri said she felt the sudden transitions made the event seem “pretty unorganized.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m really glad I came, but it just seems like it totally fell through,” Giri said.

Will.i.am’s performance lasted about 30 minutes. The artist played crowd-pleasers with popular of the Black Eyed Peas like “Boom Boom Pow” and “Imma Be,” but made sure to incorporate his political opinions into each track he sang.

In his performance of “Tonight’s Gonna Be A Goodnight,” will.i.am invited the crowd to chant “four more years” and “let’s do it, four more again,” along to the beat as he sang.

He also played the Sesame Street theme song, referencing presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s comment from the first presidential debate about cutting government funded television, like PBS.

“I want education in the USA, don’t you?” will.i.am asked the crowd before playing the Sesame Street theme song.

“Seriously, we need education to begin as early as possible. This song is the anthem to my childhood and I want to play it for y’all.”
Will.i.am said he was glad to see OWU students having a good time at the event even though he was not able to come perform closer to OWU’s campus.

“The crowd was wonderful, I was glad to see they got here,” will.i.am said. “These are people who really want to change the U.S., who want to change their communities. Energetic, powerful.”

“This is what America looks like when it comes together.”

By Jenna Rodcay
Transcript Reporter

Ohio Wesleyan’s Colleges Against Cancer (CAC) club has been working hard to remind the OWU campus that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, and the pink bras around campus are only one of their many tactics to “paint the campus pink” and promote breast cancer awareness.

According to the College Relay For Life website, CAC “is a nationwide collaboration of college students, faculty and staff dedicated to eliminating cancer by working to implement the programs and mission of the American Cancer Society.”

“We try to do little things to keep people aware of what’s going on,” said junior Lauren Foote, a member of OWU’s CAC.

Foote said the club does something around campus during each cancer awareness month, such as putting children’s socks on trees across campus during Children’s Cancer Month.

Meggie Feran, the staff partner for the American Cancer Society (ACS), said she hopes the club’s efforts this month raise awareness on campus.

“I would love to see (the club) use (Breast Cancer Awareness Month) as an opportunity to lead and empower campus members and build up (excitement) for Relay For Life,” Feran said. “Even if (breast cancer) doesn’t directly affect college students, they can tell their older friends and family to work at detection and prevention.”

Some club members shared their reasons for joining the club and how they raise awareness themselves.

“I joined because of my mom,” said junior Jija Dutt. “I lost her to leukemia my freshman year.”

Dutt said she will be attending an ACS student leadership conference in November to show her support.

Sophomore Arielle Davis said she joined the club in honor of her grandmother, who passed away two months ago from colon cancer.

Foote said she joined because “(Delta Zeta’s) (DZ) housemother’s best friend was recently diagnosed with leukemia.”

Though she is currently in remission, DZ is teaming up with the CAC to do a walk during Relay For Life to raise money for her.

Foote and Davis are attending a breast cancer walk in Columbus on Sunday.

The club will be tabling in the Hamilton Williams Campus Center atrium the last week of October.

There will be a banner for people to sign in remembrance of their loved ones affected by breast cancer.

The club will also be selling pink crewneck T-shirts that say “support second base, save the boobies,” and pinwheels as well as having sign-ups for this year’s Relay For Life.

Anyone who buys a pinwheel will be able to decorate it and place it in the lawn in front of the Mowry Alumni Center with a sign that says “Blow Away Cancer!”

On Nov. 2, from noon to 1:30 p.m., CAC will celebrate its Relay For Life Kick Off in the HamWill atrium.

People will be able to register for Relay For Life at the Kick Off and will also be able to sign a Relay For Life banner.

This year’s Relay For Life will be in the Gordon Field House on Mar. 22 at 6 p.m. and has a holidays theme.

The CAC meets Mondays at noon in Crider Lounge. The club’s president, junior Jessica Martin, said the club is always accepting new members and looking for volunteers for Relay For Life.

For more information, contact Martin at jemartin@owu.edu.

By Jacob Beach
Transcript Correspondent

When it comes to the 2012 election, college students may be a deciding factor.

Junior Tim Alford, president of College Republicans, emphasized that point. “Student voters are extremely important,” Alford said.

“For many students, this is the first presidential election they are able vote in. Accordingly, they can be a huge base for candidates to attract new supporters.”

Student voters make up nearly a quarter of the electorate, according to RockTheVote Initiative, which means they can make a difference in the outcomes of the election.

According to President of College Democrats senior Pablo Villa, however, student voters do not always participate enough in politics to actually make this crucial difference.

“Students voters are part of a group of voters that are not considered part of the normal voting population,” Villa said. “Thus, when they come out and vote in large numbers, they can swing an entire election.”

Students at OWU have various reasons for voting, but both Alford and Villa agree students tend to vote mainly because of social issues.
Alford said students prioritize social issues over economic ones, which he said he believes is wrong.

“They should understand that the state of the economy is the most important issue in this election,” he said.

“This includes the budget, government spending, Social Security, medical care and jobs.”

Many students voting in this year’s election were too young to vote in the last presidential election.

Senior David Mertz said this will be his first time voting.

“I have not voted before because I was only 17 in the last election,” Mertz said. “I do not think that a single vote makes a difference, but that line of thinking becomes very dangerous. If that thought is too widespread, it can severely shift the outcome of the election because so many people have opted to not vote.”

Mertz says he is voting because of several social and economic issues he feels very strongly about, and about which there are large differences in opinion by the two candidates.

Junior Matt Wasserman said he thinks his vote counts. “My vote will decide the election, just as everyone’s vote decides an election,” Wasserman said.

Sophomore Thomas DeHaas said he will be a first time voter and agrees that his vote will make a difference.

“I do feel my vote will count,” DeHaas said. “Some people make the argument that their vote can have little affect when it is surrounded by a million other votes.

“Everyone does in fact only have one vote to cast; therefore, yes, everyone’s single vote is only one among millions, but it is that one among millions that makes up the million after all, (so) everyone’s vote is important,” he said.

Project Vote released a report in late 2009 tracking the numbers of student voters and how they have increased over the years.

“Compared to 2000, turnout among voters under the age of 30 increased in each of the past two presidential cycles.

“This increase in turnout, coupled with population growth, resulted in 6.5 million more votes from the under 30 age group in 2008 than in 2000,” the report stated.

Many students at OWU are registering in Ohio due to the fact that it is a swing state.

Senior AJ Alonzo, a Massachusetts resident, said he will be voting in Ohio.

“Previously, voting in my home state meant nothing due to its long tenured past on voting democratically,” Alonzo, said.

“Now my vote actually counts due to the diversity of voters Ohio has to offer.”

Senior Olivia Gillison said she thinks those who do not vote forfeit their right to complain.

“If you don’t vote, then you have no voice and, in my opinion, no right to complain about issues going on with our government,” Gillison said.

Alonzo said he has a similar view.

“I’m given that privilege (to vote) and to not do so would be an insult to the majority of people in the world who cannot vote,” Alonzo said.

“Also, because I feel as if I don’t, I can’t take any glory, or blame for that matter, in the aftermath of the inevitable policies that are passed.”

The university has made an effort to help accommodate student voters.

It offered free shuttle rides to students who wished to take advantage of early voting, which was sponsored by the Arneson Institute for Practical Politics.

Students have also taken action to help in the election. Both Villa and Alford said their organizations have gotten many students involved.

Villa and Alford said they do not care how people vote, as long as they are educated.

“Regardless of party affiliation, the vote needs to be an educated vote,” Alford said.

“Students need to educate themselves about the candidates and the issues, and then go out and have their voice be heard at the voting booths once they are properly informed.”

By Rachel Vinciguerra
Transcript Correspondent

Two mothers of soldiers active in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan spoke to OWU students about the need for peace in America on Oct. 16.

Mary Hladky, vice chair of “Military Families Speak Out,” and Rosemary Palmer, cofounder of “Families of the Fallen for Change,” shared their experiences in regards to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars.

Hladky said “Military Families Speak Out” was formed in 2002 to oppose the planned US invasion of Iraq. Since then, the group has become an outlet for military families to protest American wars they do not support. Hladky said that by opposing the Afghanistan war, the group is supporting the troops.

“We believe supporting our troops means that they are never sent into battle without the facts, without the truth and without it being absolutely necessary,” she said.

Hladky’s son Ryan is currently an Army Infantry Officer fighting in the Afghanistan war, but he began his service in the ROTC. Hladky said she told her son he did not need to sign up for the ROTC in order to pay for college, but he signed up and told her about his decision after.

“This was the beginning of my journey–being very uncomfortable about war, especially when the vast majority of Americans were so certain it was the right thing to do,” Hladky said.

She said one particular deployment to Afghanistan was unforgettable.

“They spent 13 months patrolling in 130 degree temperatures–uniforms covered them head to toe–wearing heavy bullet proof vests and carrying 80 pound packs on their backs,” she said.

Hladky said the army did not inform the parents of the over 400 injuries in her son’s battalion from this deployment. She said 26 men lost their lives in those 13 months.

Hladky said it is important for citizens to be informed about America’s longest war: the 12 year and growing war in Afghanistan. She said there are many aspects of this war that separate it from others that have come before. Particularly, Hladky said the percentage of suicides and wounded soldiers has dramatically increased.

“Military suicides have reached epidemic proportions,” she said. “More troops die at their own hand than on the battlefield. And for every service person who dies, 10 are wounded.”

Hladky also said she thinks the cost of the war is too great and funds are ending up in the wrong hands.

“Four hundred million dollars per year of US security funding ends up in the hands of the Taliban as a bribe for local war lords. Our dollars are funding the enemy,” Hladky said.

She said the cost of the war on soldiers is no better.

“By our own military standards, every person returning from combat is entitled to 3 years at home,” Hladky said. “This has never happened since we started fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. Many troops serve three, four, five or more tours of duty.”

Hladky said she remembers the terror she experienced during one of her son’s deployments.

“The awful gut wrenching fear that your child might be next,” she said. “Being grateful that it wasn’t your child who died, and feeling intense pain knowing that some other family has just suffered the most horrendous loss: what all military families fear most.”

Palmer said she would stay at work late during her son’s deployment during the Iraq War to avoid going home.

“I’d stay at work because if I didn’t come home, the call wouldn’t be there to tell me my son had been killed,” she said.

Palmer suffered what Hladky called “the most horrendous loss,” in August 2005 when her son was killed in Hidetha, Iraq, along with 19 other soldiers.

Palmer and her husband immediately began to speak with the media, telling them they had never agreed with the war in Iraq.

“We were sharing our grief quite openly,” she said. “We told them that our son was there and said the war was not working. We needed to fight it right or get out.”

After speaking with the US media and foreign press, Palmer said she realized they needed an organization to get their ideas out.

“So my husband and I founded ‘Families of the Fallen for Change’ for the Iraq War and started lobbying Congress,” she said.

When she did not see the action she hoped for to end the Iraq War, Palmer ran for Congress herself. Although she did not win (as one of five candidates), she said she hopes she and her husband made a small difference.

“We started from grief and moved on to try to make a difference,” she said. “We threw out pebbles into the pool, alongside the others, and we were a piece of ending the war in Iraq.”

The war in Afghanistan, however, has not ended, Hladky said.

“The war is not almost over,” she said. “We are there until the end of 2014. That’s another 27 months, and even then the war is still not over. The Strategic Partnership Agreement between the US and Afghanistan would have military personnel in Afghanistan for another 10 years beyond 2014.”

Hladky said there will not be change in the way the war is run and the way future wars are funded, unless Americans begin to pay attention.

“No one pays attention. If you paid attention to where your money was going, you’d be screaming. People would be screaming, ‘No; we’re not going to war.’”

Hladky said that, by not holding members of Congress responsible for their actions, citizens are not upholding their responsibilities.
“The Congress votes for war, and they cannot tell you why,” Hladky said. “That’s shameful. We let that happen, but we all have a responsibility.”

Palmer said while she also opposes the war, she does not consider herself a pacifist.

“I believe the strongest military is one that’s prepared and is not used,” she said.

Both women said they would support a draft because it would encourage citizens to pay more attention to what was happening in the war.
“I would support a draft,” Palmer said. “The reason these wars go on is that people don’t pay attention.”

Hladky agreed, saying a draft would make people stay informed.

“If you have a draft, you’d have known everything I told you already. And guess what? After this war there is going to be no one left to fight the next one,” she said. “It’s you. So you better start asking questions.”

Junior Ashley Brown attended the talk as part of her feminist philosophy class. She said she thought both women got their ideas across effectively.

“Hladky was very intense,” Brown said. “She was up in your face and accusing. I don’t know if this is her general method to get people to listen, or if she is just always that angry, but it worked. Palmer took a very different approach and had different experiences and reasoning, and I found her to be a lot more relatable and engaging as a person.”

Senior Alex Crump also attended the talk for the same philosophy class.

She said that, although she found the talk interesting, she did not learn much that she did not already know.

“Hladky really rubbed me the wrong way,” Crump said. “She was very accusatory and at times, I felt, hysterical. Palmer was very well spoken and I was able to follow her much better. Both women had a lot of emotion, but Palmer was better at channeling it.”

Brown said she will take away from the lecture the statement Hladky made about being passionate about something, not necessarily the military, and working for change.

“I am quite active and strongly believe in women’s rights, and have been for some time,” Brown said.” But having her say that was influential reinforced how I think about activism.”

By Heather Kuch
Sports Editor

Sometimes considered one of the most haunted colleges in America, Ohio Wesleyan has a wide variety of spirits worth investigating, and this is exactly what the OWU Paranormal Research Society aims to do.

Many of the buildings at OWU are rumored to have their own personal ghosts.

These include Sanborn Hall, Hayes, Welch, Stuyvesant, University Hall, Edwards Gymnasium, Beeghly Library and Hamilton Williams Campus Center.

Two of the most notable stories include the sealed room in Stuyvesant and the mysterious girl in Beeghly Library.

The sealed room dates back to the 1950’s when it was rumored a female student living in a ground floor room stopped attending classes and wasn’t heard from for nearly a week.

Then one night other residents of the hall heard screams and found the woman rocking back and forth on the floor of her room and talking incoherently, except to say that someone or something was out to get her.

Since the incident, students have continuously reported unusual occurrences and dark shadows moving around the walls in the building.

In Beeghly Library, a student worker has reported seeing a girl on multiple occasions who appeared to be a student and who disappeared when approached. Upon further research he believed she was a former student who died in 2005.

John Ciochetty, an OWU Public Safety officer and advisor to the society, is known on campus for his interest in the paranormal and for his books, “The Ghosts of Stuyvesant Hall and Beyond,” volumes 1 and 2.

His interest has also motivated him to investigate the rumored hauntings on campus, which eventually lead to the formation of the OWU Paranormal Research Society.

Ciochetty said the group is the not the first at OWU, that there was originally a society which formed due to sightings of a woman near Monnett Hall.

“This group is the second of its kind at OWU,” Ciochetty said.

“The first one was started at Monnett Hall in the 1850’s. The group was referred to as The Monnett Hall Paranormal Research Society for Women.

“The Society was formed due to incidents where the apparition of a woman was seen several times at the top/head of the main staircase, outdoors at the main entrance leading into Monnett Hall and in other areas of the building.”

Ciochetty said the society’s interest in the paranormal was furthered by “The Banshee Scare of 1896” which also occurred in Monnett Hall.

“According to the university archives, The Banshee Scare of 1896 caused much alarm and concern to the college administration,” Ciochetty said.

“The Banshee could be heard screaming from the basement level near the main elevator. The ladies and faculty never walked that area alone.”

Monnett Hall was torn down in the mid 1970’s, but Ciochetty said its location is still believed to be haunted and has been the site of recent investigations.

“The area where (Monnett) once stood is quite haunted,” Ciochetty said. “On May 2, 1979, The Transcript sponsored a visit to the Monnett site by the Psychic Science Institute, a group which investigates such phenomena.

“They have been featured on various television programs and in newspapers throughout the state. The haunting incidents have been verified as fact.”

The new OWU Paranormal Research Society gained its official status on Oct. 5.

Junior Quinn Rader-Morse, a member of the Student Board of Directors for the organization, said forming the society was a multi-year process.

“Several friends and I were interested in forming this organization since our freshman year in the fall of 2010,” Rader-Morse said.
“We finally approached the Student Involvement Office and decided to apply to become a recognized organization this year, and none of us expected there to be as many students interested in joining as showed up to our first meeting.”

Rader-Morse said the club consists of over 20 members who meet to talk about their personal accounts of the paranormal.

“So far, our meetings have consisted in sharing stories of paranormal activity experienced personally by members, as well as other tales of spiritual happenings,” Rader-Morse said.

Ciochetty said the society aims to investigate and explore areas on and around OWU’s campus and to try to find explanations for unusual happenings.

He said each investigation requires the society to do prior research and to remain objective about the site of an investigation.

“It is essential to take others’ at their word and assume that some form of paranormal activity is occurring,” Ciochetty said. “During the investigation, it’s is essential to keep an open mind, but at the same time remain skeptical.”

Ciochetty said their investigations rely heavily on evidence to determine if the cause of unusual activity is due to the paranormal or not.

“It is the goal of the group to collect as much evidence as possible and identify other possible explanations (environment and human) as to the cause for the phenomena to occur,” Ciochetty said.

“This way, we could see if the presumed haunting could be explained away or debunked. If we find that no other explanations which could explain away the phenomena, then it is very possible that a haunting is happening.

Rader-Morse said the club plans to investigate as many of the rumored haunted sites on campus as possible, as well as other sites surrounding campus.

“Nearly every major building on campus has been reported to have some kind of spirit activity with the exception of the science center and Hamilton-Williams,” Rader-Morse said.

Ciochetty said the club collects their evidence through the use of digital and analog recorders, video cameras, night vision digital cameras and other electronic devices.

Rader-Morse said the use of these electronic devices has allowed him to capture some potential paranormal evidence in various locations on campus.

“In the past, I have caught several EVPs (phenomena that include unexplained voices or sounds on audio devices) on campus, notably Stuyvesant Hall and Beeghly Library,” Rader-Morse said. “Unfortunately, they were recorded on my old phone and lost when it was taken in to be fixed.”

Rader-Morse said it is difficult to conclude whether or not the evidence he and other society members have found are truly paranormal.
“I’m not sure whether or not I or any of our members has necessarily proven or not proven anything yet in regards to the paranormal,” Rader-Morse said.

“This is a particularly tricky thing to do, as there is much skepticism in regards to the very existence of spirits and other paranormal entities. As such, it can be very difficult to prove the existence of something as elusive and immaterial as the paranormal.”

Despite the lack of absolute proof, several students have no doubt there is paranormal activity occurring on this campus.

Junior Cassie Fowler said she has personally experienced incidents she believes to be the result of paranormal activity.

“I really do believe that this campus is haunted especially because I have witnessed some really creepy things in Stuy,” Fowler said. “My freshman year I took a picture in my friend’s room in Stuy and there was a weird floating ball of light right next to me that didn’t show up in any other pictures. I also was in the basement of Stuy and there was no one else down there when I saw something dart across the room and then I heard a big bang from the wall. I would definitely be interested to go on one of the investigations because I think it would be neat to see what they find.”

Junior Katie Fain agreed with Fowler and said she would like to go on one of the investigations because she finds the paranormal interesting.

“I think it would be cool to investigate one of the buildings on campus because that kind of stuff interests me and I think having this organization on campus is a good idea,” Fain said. “It appeals to the interests of many students and because this campus is haunted.”
Freshman Lilly Gresh also agreed and said she believes that OWU is truly haunted, and she would like to learn more about the paranormal happenings on campus.

“I think it would be cool to go on the investigations of the haunted parts of campus especially since I like scary and mysterious stuff,” Gresh said. “I really think that this campus is haunted so I think having an organization dedicated to investigating these hauntings is a really good idea.”

Senior Ashley Haynes said she has never had anything happen to her and she doesn’t believe OWU’s campus is haunted.

“I’m a skeptic and I believe that there is always an alternative explanation,” Haynes said. “I’m not saying that weird things don’t happen here, I just don’t believe that there are ghosts causing them.”

“I think the society is an interesting concept and I would be curious to see what they find, but it would be difficult to convince me.”
Rader-Morse said the club is a place for people with interests in the paranormal to come and share their own viewpoints while hearing what others believe and learning about OWU’s history.

“I have been intrigued by the paranormal and its implications for a long time, and wanted to give other students with the same interests a place to express their opinions and beliefs, as well as a chance to investigate spiritual activity,” Rader-Morse.

“This organization can also give students a look at different aspects of Delaware’s history, as well as that of Ohio Wesleyan, that are often ignored or forgotten by many people.”

By Cecilia Smith
Transcript Reporter

Students snapped and clapped as peers and professors “came out” at PRIDE’s event to celebrate National Coming-Out Day.
The event took place on Thursday, Oct. 11.

A cardboard door set up in the Hamilton-Williams Campus Center atrium at noon was the place to be for anyone planning on coming out as a member or an ally of the LGBTIQ community.

Members of PRIDE reported that roughly 50 people walked through the door to demonstrate their support for gay rights, an increase over the previous years.

The door acted as a visual representation of the presence of LGBTIQ students and allies on campus.

Junior Anthony Peddle, president of PRIDE, said the event was about more than students declaring sexual orientation.

“It’s a celebration of who you are and how you identify,” Peddle said. “We want to show that we are more than ‘Alphabet Soup.’”

Junior Jenna Culina, vice president of PRIDE, said that most students who come out are already “out” in the community but want to show support.

Chaplain Jon Powers also announced his continuing encouragement as a “proud ally,” saying that supporting gay rights is within his faith.

PRIDE added to the agenda this year an open discussion co-hosted with Better Together.

Students were invited to share their coming-out stories in a safe environment.

Allies talked about an enhanced or new perspective.

Some students told of coming to Ohio Wesleyan and becoming more tolerant of differing sexual orientations.

Freshman Mili Green said hearing others’ stories made her see the gay rights movement in a different light.

“I’ve seen the movies,” Green said, “But hearing the stories made it real to me.”

About 25 students showed up for the discussion portion of Coming Out Day. Peddle said the events get better every year.

“We’ve definitely seen an increase in PRIDE membership and activism on campus,” Peddle said. “The storytelling event was really fun. It definitely opened the line of support around here.”

Several students said they appreciated the open environment and felt among friends.

Freshman Doug Gibson said he was nervous to walk through the door, but that he appreciated reassurance from peers.

“I did go through the door,” Gibson said. “I walked through and I said, ‘I don’t know what I am, but I love people, and I love love.’”

By Noah Manskar
Transcript Correspondent

In the past six months, new shops, such as Simply Vague and Button Up, have expanded downtown Delaware’s offering of locally made products.

Kathleen Miller, proprietor of Button Up, opened her shop April 2 of this year. She said she bought the vacant space at 29 N. Sandusky Street at an opportune time, since all three of her children have graduated from or are in college.

Miller said her shop carries and sells myriad pieces by “local, regional and national artists (who have pieces) as small as a note card with photography to things as large as handmade ceramics and furniture.”

“We have just about every medium you can think of—we have things made from wood, bronze, iron, fabric, all types of metals,” she said. “People love our candles.”

Miller said she tries to choose a “wide variety” of products to appeal to as many customers as possible.

According to Miller, being near Ohio Wesleyan brings a strong customer base from outside of Delaware.

“Things that bring the parents in really affect my business, as well as the students coming down to look around and buy some things too,” she said. “…A lot of the professors come down to shop and seem to appreciate the fact that there’s a spot to get some unique things.”

Miller said her location also attracts people from outside Delaware in general.

“Delaware is a great spot to open a new small business,” she said. “The local community, as well as all the people who come into Delaware from surrounding towns and from out of state—there’s a good amount of foot traffic in downtown Delaware.”

Miller said despite Button Up’s success, she wants to keep the shop small.

“While I would like to have another employee who would help out every now and then, it’s important to me to be the one that’s here working with the customers,” she said. “…Expanding would just mean carrying new and a variety of different art, but not necessarily getting bigger or having other satellites or anything like that.”

Andrea Archibald, co-owner of Simply Vague—which exclusively carries products made in Ohio—said Delaware made starting a business easier for her and Nate, her husband and business partner.

“They were really supportive of our concept and they were helpful with sign permitting and just every business startup thing that there is, so we really liked that about Delaware,” she said.

Andrea said she and Nate opened the Delaware Simply Vague location in July of this year. She said soon after opening, they realized they needed a larger space to support where they wanted to go with the business. They opened a location at Dublin’s Tuttle Mall in September.
Andrea said the expansion was unexpected.

“There’s so much talent that comes at us, and we didn’t realize that there’s going to be so many vendors with interest in being in the store, and we were turning people down, so we didn’t want to do that anymore,” she said.

Nate said getting Simply Vague started was initially difficult, but it grew quickly.

“Selling them on the idea and making sure that it was going to be successful for both us and them was a challenge, but after we got started, 25 grew into 75, and now 75’s grown into 120 different vendors,” he said.

Andrea said she and Nate originally planned to start Simply Vague in Marysville, but regulations on signage and advertising, as well as the general atmosphere, was less conducive to starting a business than Delaware’s.

“The actual business owners work together to try and better Delaware, not just their own business, where Marysville, the business owners aren’t friends,” she said. “It’s not as easy an environment to try and have a business.”

Nate said the store’s customer base in Delaware is different from the Dublin location.

“They’re very supportive, they love the store, but you’re selling to mainly Delaware,” he said.

Andrea said Simply Vague has started carrying products with a “lower price point” to cater to the students in Delaware. She also said the exclusively local selection appeals to them.

“[E]verything here’s one of a kind, and that’s kind of important for college students,” she said. “It’s all about being different and having something that not everybody else has. There’s no duplicates with some of our stuff. They’re all made with love, and you’re not going to see a thousand people with it because it’s not mass-produced.”

Junior Claire Hackett said she thinks locally produced products “tend to be better quality.”

“Local products are more unique and therefore more interesting to me, and I think it’s really interesting that you could potentially meet local artists,” she said.

Miller said she thinks local products are becoming what shoppers are looking for.

“I think people are ready to shop,” she said. “They’re tired of malls; they like buying from either local or at least people who’ve made things somewhere in the United States. It’s a good time for that.”

“They tend to be better quality. Local products are more unique and therefore more interesting to me. And I think it’s really interesting that you could potentially meet local artists.”