Category: News

A new Delaware restaurant is partnering with an adult day program to bring Cajun food to the Delaware community and provide business training and opportunities to local individuals with disabilities.
J. Gumbo’s owner, Richard Upton, plans to start business at the former 12 South Deli venue on Sandusky Street with a grand opening celebration on May 4.
The restaurant is part of a franchise-operated chain that features menu items like gumbo, po’ boys and jambalaya. Upton said the most popular menu item is the Bumblebee Stew, because it can be paired with some of the spicy entrees to balance the heat.
He said the dishes are prepared with fresh ingredients at the central commissary in Louisville, Ky., before being distributed to individual restaurants.
“In the restaurant, we use a specially made machine to bring the food to the perfect serving temperature, while maintaining the freshness, texture and consistency that it had when prepared in the commissary,” Upton said. “We boil the rice fresh in the stores and use local vendors for our French breads.”
Upton said he chose Delaware for his new J. Gumbo’s because it is “prime for a new choice in eateries” and “a very forward thinking, sophisticated city and county.” He also said since people are accustomed to so many Mexican and Chinese/Japanese restaurants in the city they will also enjoy J. Gumbo’s.
Upton said, however, that there will be plenty more to this restaurant than great Cajun food. He said the lack of training and employment opportunities for the disabled population “has been an issue for decades,” and it has been his personal goal to change this reality.
“I am teaming up with Wilma Justice and Ann Kelly, owners of Life Builders, to administer a new training concept we have developed to provide real world, ongoing training for individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities,” he said.
Wilma Justice, co-owner of Life Builders day program for adults with disabilities, said she and her business partner Ann Kelly first got to know Richard at the central Ohio regional council of PATHS, which is “a statewide organization sanctioned by the state to provide training and a credentialing program to direct support professionals.”
Justice said Richard envisioned the concept of a new program, and then worked with her and Ann to fine-tune the details. They call it the Business Education Learning Liaison, or BELL, Training Program.
“Combined, all of our strengths fit together to create a group capable of designing this program,” Justice said.
According to Justice, the program will work by ensuring each individual is first proficient in basic job skills, and then personalizing each program to reflect the motivation and ability level of the participants.
Upton said the BELL program uses many proven educational methods, but with a few novel differences. The first of these is that the path to education, training, employment and even potential business ownership is truly decided by each individual in the program.
“They choose the path, we light the way,” he said.
“The participants will not be on any type of set schedule or deadline that expels them from the program before they have been given the opportunity to reach their full potential. It will not be uncommon for some participants to remain in for six months, and others for over three years,” Upton said.
“We do not have start and stop points,” he said. “Once (an individual is) a member of the BELL family, we are there whenever we are needed.”
After completing the “Boot Camp” portion of the program at a Life Builders campus, individuals will be proficient in areas like personal safety, job site communication and interviewing, according to Upton.
“Once a Boot Camp participant has ‘graduated,’ (he/she) is eligible to apply as a candidate to the BELL Training Program,” Upton said. “We anticipate a waiting list but participants may remain in Boot Camp to build on their skills until space is available.”
Upton said participants then go on to be interviewed and hired at a participating venue like J. Gumbo’s, where they will continue to work on job skills and job exploration tactics.
He said that by the time the program is fully operational, BELL program participants could easily make up over 50 percent of the J. Gumbo’s staff. He said the BELL program will also work to develop bonds with other business to “allow full immersion in the operation of the compan[ies].”
“The long term goal of the BELL Training Program is to offer supported employment for the participants who graduate the program to work in the community or open their own small business,” Upton said.
Upton said Ohio Wesleyan students are strongly encouraged to apply to work at J. Gumbo’s through www.jgumbos.com. The restaurant plans to be open Monday through Saturday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and that they would love to be part of OWU’s meal points program.
“The Public Image Network campaign theme for 2012 is ‘Our Community is Better Together’, Upton said. “This theme is something Ann, Wilma and I truly believe in. That is why we are committing to the BELL program.
“That is why I am bringing a J. Gumbo’s to Delaware. We will show that theme. We believe this is the place where the theme will take hold.
“We look forward to a longtime affiliation with OWU, area businesses and the community as a whole.”

Women’s week, which happened from Monday, March 19 through Friday, March 23, was organized by several students on campus as part of Women’s History Month. It consisted of programs ranging from slam poetry to sexual violence awareness.
Junior Anna Cooper, an intern at the Women’s Resource Center, played a supportive role in the week’s events.
“(Women’s week) is an opportunity for us to do programming focused on issues that primarily affect women and to raise awareness on various women’s issues. Women are still treated as a marginalized community, so this is a time to focus specifically on women’s history and women’s issues,” said Cooper.
Junior Paige Ruppel is the moderator of the Women’s House, where much of the women’s week programming stemmed from. She said she agreed with Cooper, saying that women’s issues are still relevant today and to our campus.
“The fact that people ask why we even need a women’s week shows that there isn’t enough conversation being generated around these issues,” Ruppel said.
The week began with a display of shirts from a Clothesline Project, which addresses issues of violence against women. Students were invited to join members of the Women’s House in decorating shirts with empowering messages before spring break. These shirts were then hung, lining the JAYwalk all week.
Take Back the Night, a sexual violence speak out and march, is the biggest event of the week, with each member of the Women’s House participating.
Freshman Mady Smith attended the event for the first time on Thursday, March 29.
“I expected it to be emotional, but not as emotional as it was,” Smith said. “I was really proud of everyone who spoke, and I admire them for being able to tell their story.”
Sexual violence can be a difficult subject to breech, which is why Ruppel and the Women’s House organize these events.
“It can be hard to talk about issues of sexual violence, but it needs to be addressed, especially on college campuses,” said Ruppel. “These events create spaces for those conversations to occur.”
Smith said that sexual violence awareness is important.
“I think it’s hard to understand that this can happen to anyone, and people need to know that it does happen.”
Other women’s week programs included a performance by slam poet Andrea Gibson, a documentary on hate speech amongst female peers of the Greek community entitled “Betches Love to Hate,” an open house at the Women’s House, and fundraising for Heifer International, which donates livestock to global communities living in poverty.

The members of the Women’s House opened their home to the campus community last Friday to cap off Women’s Week.
WoHo residents hosted students and professors with snacks, sodas and homemade black bean burgers.
House moderator Paige Ruppel, a junior, planned the event as her house project. She said its primary purpose was “building community.”
Junior WoHo resident Colleen Waickman said she hoped the gathering would help make her house and the rest of the SLUs seem more inviting.
“I think sometimes the SLU community seems intimidating to people, and I think this event is definitely centered around letting people know we’re not intimidating and we’re not scary,” she said.
Freshman Kyle Simon, who will be living in WoHo next year, agreed the event is a good opportunity to change the house’s sour reputation on campus outside of the context of formal programming.
“A lot of people kind of stereotype Women’s House as being super intense and really serious, but the open house gives people a specific event where people can just hang out and find out what it is without having to actually go to an event,” he said.
Professor of Botany David Johnson, Ruppel’s academic advisor, attended the open house at her invitation.
“I have supported the Small Living Units in general as a valuable living option on campus, and thus try to support their activities whenever I can,” he said.
The open house followed Thursday’s Take Back the Night, a combined sexual assault speakout and cross-campus march. According to Simon, all current and future WoHo members help to plan and execute the annual event.
Ruppel said another goal of the open house was to provide a more “uplifting and fun” atmosphere for students and faculty at the end of Women’s Week.
“It’s a good way to regroup after last night and start the weekend a little bit,” she said.
Waickman agreed the open house is a good juxtaposition to Take Back the Night’s somberness.
“(Take Back the Night)’s heavy,” she said. “It’s emotional. After a time like that, I think it’s good for our group and our campus to come together and process that a little bit, whether we talk about the event or just spend time together.”
Johnson said he didn’t attend Take Back the Night or any other Women’s Week programs, but he “fully support(s) the WoHo’s campus programming on important social issues.”
Simon said Women’s Week is meant to have a positive, uplifting message overall.
“Everyone thinks it’s supposed to be super serious, but you can be an activist and be laid back at the same time, so you can have fun with everything that you do,” he said.

Chelley Belly’s Soup and Sandwich, once located on Winter Street, has recently moved onto S. Sandusky.
Owner Michelle Runyon said the move was due to the new location being “(A) nicer space, bigger space, and more visible.”
Runyon said the restaurant’s business seems to have gotten better with the move.
“We’ve been seeing new faces,” she said. “I just hope that they keep coming back. We have noticed an increase, it’s just a matter of if it keeps going that way.”
Junior Liza Blakeslee has been working at Chelley Belly’s since last May and also agrees with Runyon’s idea of better business.
“(The move has) given us a lot more business, I think,” said Blakeslee. “She (Runyon) has to look at the final statistics to see if we actually have benefitted.”
Runyon also said that she does see a lot of OWU students, but the number has been going down this past year.
“I see a lot Ohio Wesleyan kids, especially when their parents are in town and they’ll bring them here,” said Runyon. “It could be part of the economy, but I have noticed a decline in the number of students. I don’t think it’s the location that’s done that though. We have been seeing more family business people, people who work in town than we have in previous years.”
Blakeslee said the move of the restaurant didn’t have much effect on her working there, except for a month or so where.“I didn’t end up working much because we were preparing for the move.”
She also said the best part of working at Chelley’s is the free food.
“Usually, if we work a longer shift or work half a day then we can get a meal there for free,” Blakeslee said.
Blakeslee said if a customer was unsure on what to get when ordering at Chelley’s, she would recommend ‘The Smokey.’
“That’s our most popular sandwich,” she said. “It’s a turkey, bacon and cheddar cheese sandwich. If you are a vegetarian, I would say the Roma Tomato Mozzarella.”
Sophomore Katalyn Kuivila, who visits the restaurant from time to time, said she has her own personal favorite.
“(I like) the ‘White Italian’ and I also really like their desserts. They have really good sugar cookies,” she said.
Runyon said there’s something special about the baked goods at Chelley Belly’s.
“We have a lot of baked goods,” Runyon said. “Everything is made here, in house, on the premises. We bake the breads fresh here, too.”
The soups at the establishment are also made on site, including their best seller, the tomato bisque.
Kuivila said she has been there since the move, and though there are some advantages, there are a few drawbacks.
“I’ve been (there) a couple times and it’s okay,” she said. “They have a bit more space but it’s also a little bit further away… I think in this new location they should put more seating in; they have the room for it.”
Kuivila also said, depending on the time of day a customer goes to Chelley Belly’s, the wait can be kind of long. Sandwiches are made to order, and this can sometimes cause a hold up in the line.
Chelley Belly’s prices tend to be below 10 dollars for a meal and they are open Monday-Friday 10:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and on Saturdays from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Visit them at Facebook.com/ChelleyMyBelly.

As with any good sports rivalry, fans are a big part of the action. Spirit and Homecoming Organization is chartering buses to Denison, giving away t-shirts and serving breakfast for fans to support the men’s lacrosse teams as it takes on the Denison Big Red.
Any OWU student can register for Denison Day. Sophomore Sarah Hartzheim, a SHO member working on Denison Day, said that even though the game is away, SHO wants OWU students to attend.
“We’re trying to keep up the tradition of making the lacrosse game between Denison and OWU a really fun event,” she said. “It’s an away game this year, but we have the resources to allow a lot of OWU students to attend.”
The cost of attending this event is $10.
“SHO has been very successful with its fundraising efforts throughout the past year,” said junior Clare Whitaker, the president of SHO, “and thanks to WCSA and the administration, we have the budget to cover the cost of this event beyond the $10.00 cover fee.”
Junior Colin Short, a member of the men’s lacrosse team, said he is pleased to know the team will have so many fans cheering them on at the game.
“Especially at Denison because it is such an intense rivalry,” he said. “I feel like the school knows how important this game is, and it’s good to know that they support us.”
As the lacrosse season progresses, especially during conference play, the team’s record will show how successful OWU is. The team is currently very optimistic, and Denison is one of the most important games of the season.
“The winner of (the Denison) game this year will undoubtedly take home the conference title,” said junior Pat Basset, one of the captains of the team.
SHO is working to make the event well-known on campus.
“SHO is providing sign ups both in HamWil and online, so that the event is easily accessible,” Hartzheim said. “This is one of the biggest spirit events at the school and we hope everyone will attend.”
SHO has only provided transportation to a sporting event for men’s lacrosse recently; however, many other varsity teams are supportive of this event, too.
Sophomore Jon Stegner, a member of the men’s soccer team, said he is “glad to see school spirit and students supporting the athletic department.”
In 2010, SHO was able to send more than 80 students to the game, which was over Easter weekend. They are hoping more students will attend this year since the game is not during the holiday weekend.
“I would love for as many students as possible to attend Denison Day,” Whitaker said. “This is a tremendous opportunity for the student body to enjoy the historic rivalry.”
“With a breakfast, a t-shirt, and transportation to one of the biggest sports rivalries of all time….who would say no? Grab your roommates, friends, sorority sisters, fraternity brothers and any one you find to come join us on the adventure. We hope to see you there.”
Denison Day is March 31 with buses leaving at 10 a.m. from HamWil. They are expected to return by 3 p.m.

Due to a lack of technical support and student involvement, WSLN 98.7 FM, Ohio Wesleyan’s student radio station has not been able to broadcast and will remain down until technical repairs can be made.
WSLN serves Delaware, providing an outlet for student expression in the media, while providing entertainment in the form of quality programming and contests to the campus and the community.
In the past, the station had around 30 students directly involved and had active followings on and off campus. The station also had several shows such as “Good Morning OWU,” “The Flipside,” “The Vowelsounds,” “Fizz Radio” and “Daywalker at Night,” in addition to offering a variety of music.
Sophomores Will Conway and Sam Sonnega have taken charge this year as the station’s manager and assistant manager respectively, and have been putting in a lot of time and effort with the help of David Soliday from the IT department.
Conway said that it has been difficult to get the station running again because of the absence of people who understand how to fix the technology necessary to run a radio station.
“It has really been a struggle for me to get the station up and running,” Conway said.
“When I finally had the time to fix the station, the technician wasn’t sure how to install the program onto the computer for web casting. I have only recently gotten in touch with David Soliday from the IT department who helped a bit, but he still wasn’t able to fix it. Last year I almost had a spot with Andrew WK (we were going to do an over the phone interview with him) but it fell through because the station broke down.”
“I think that the school needs to have people who know the system and format of the radio station inside and out,” Conway said. “I know how to use equipment that functions properly and how to instruct people in running a show but I am not a repairman. I’m not Tim Allen from ‘Home Improvement,’ I’m Will Conway, a 20-year-old man who studies classics.”
Soliday agreed that the lack of understanding about how the station runs is interfering in getting the station up and running.
“The biggest difficulty in getting the station back up is a lack of knowledge transfer,” Soliday said.

“The current station managers were given very minimal instructions on how to produce a show, none on how to run the station. So when the computer crashed they weren’t prepared to rebuild everything from the ground up.”
Soliday said while he wants to help set the station up, it will take time to learn how to use the software, called SHOUTCast, and that has been delayed by other, higher priority projects.
He also explained that it is a struggle to get the new technology to work with the old equipment.
“There’s the question of getting the ancient studio equipment to work with a newer computer with web streaming software,” Soliday said. “The cables aren’t even the same size. So our aim now is to get the server working so DJ’s can plug in their iPods or laptops and a laptop microphone.”
Soliday said that he was disappointed that the station was down last semester because he was hoping to have his own show on the station.
“It was only recently that I learned of the depth and details of the challenge.” Soliday said. “Now I can understand, sympathize, and help out.”
In terms of generating awareness and promoting the station, Conway said that much better measures need to be taken to promote the station than have been used in the past.
“What I need to do is to set up a team of people who would want to work on promoting the station and setting up different events that would make people want to listen,” Conway said. “I would love to have interviews with bands that are in the immediate area, which are touring and making their way through Columbus.”
Sonnega said that he wants to have the station on air as soon as possible and hopes to have a variety of shows running.
“I am going to work as hard as possible to get the station on air within the next month,” Sonnega said. “I would like to see a regular school news/sports show as well as a greater involvement with campus activities (especially music), but priority one is getting the place working and cleaned up.”

Junior Cate Bailey of Delta Gamma is this week’s Greek of the Week. She may love to wear lax pinnies and dance in music videos, but she also has a passion for her sorority’s philanthropy. Bailey recently organized DG’s Anchor Splash, a philanthropy event benefiting Service for Sight. This year the Greek community and other campus organizations participated in the week-long event to raise over $1600 for Service for Sight. Bailey can also be seen sporting her school pride for the Student Homecoming Organization, and dominating the field in OWU’s Women’s Lacrosse.

Former Ohio Wesleyan University Head Football Coach, Jack Fouts died Thursday, March 1, at the age of 86.
Fouts graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University in the class of 1948.
While attending OWU, he played football, basketball and baseball for the Bishops.
After OWU, he went on to earn his master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin.
He served from 1964-1983 as Ohio Wesleyan’s football coach and brought the team great success.
His teams were most successful from 1967-1971, during which the football team went 33-12-1.
The Bishops earned a pair of Ohio Athletic Conference crowns during the first and last of those aforementioned seasons. The team also finished second in 1968.
Fouts earned the title of Coach of the Year in 1967, NCAA College Division for District Two.
He led the Bishops to their third consecutive undefeated season.
In the fall of 1968, Fouts’ team record was 8-1, which later turned into 13 following wins.
In 1971, Fouts took the Bishops all the way to the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl in Phoenix City, Ala., the Western Regional championships game of the NCAA College Division.
During 1972 he coached the West squad in the first All-Ohio Shrine Bowl game.
In 1985 Fouts was inducted into the Ohio Wesleyan Athletics Hall of Fame.
Director of Athletics Roger Ingles said his career at OWU overlapped with Fouts for three months.
“In that time I got to know one of the greatest football coaches of all time,” he said.
“He was a hard driven, dedicated man, who loved Ohio Wesleyan and his players.”
Ingles said Fouts’ passion for the success of his players in all facets of their life was unmatched.
“His former players loved and admired him for making them become men of principles and good faith,” said Ingles.
Ingles said Fouts came back for a team reunion in the early 2000’s and even then, Fouts’ passion for Ohio Wesleyan and the love his players had for him was amazing.
Tom Mulligan, Hiram College’s athletic director, said that there have been a small handful of people who have truly impacted his life.
“Jack Fouts is one of them,” he said.
“He was the reason I chose to attend Ohio Wesleyan University.”
Mulligan said Fouts impressed him as a coach who cared about his players as people and a coach who truly knew the game of football.
“He was instrumental in helping me maintain a pursuit of a college diploma,” he said.
“I graduated from Ohio Wesleyan largely due to Jack Fouts.”
Mulligan said after graduating from OWU, he chose to pursue a career in college coaching and administration.
“To this day, I remember the life lessons that Jack taught me as a young man at OWU,” he said.
“For that I am ever grateful.”