Category: Uncategorized

By Kienan O’Doherty, A&E Editor 

Kicked out of Russia, thrown on a train to China are just two of the many events in the life of George Sokolsky Sr..

As part of Ohio Wesleyan University’s Commemoration of the 100 year anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution, Anne Sokolsky,  chair of the department of comparative literature, discussed her grandfather and his travels through China as well as his experience in print journalism. She also discussed how each chapter of his life was by force, and not by choice.

George wrote a column titled “These Days,” which was syndicated in more than 300 U.S. newspapers. But he wasn’t the most popular man among NYC intellectuals who tended to be socialists. He supported controversial politician Joe McCarthy, and was the only journalist who did at the time. His friends called him a genius, but his enemies preferred to call him the “Jewish Rasputin of China” because his relentless foe of communism.

Anne Sokolsky said she understood why he supported such a controversial politician.

“My grandfather, who worked as a journalist witnessed first hand the Bolshevik take over of Russia and then the rise of Communism in China, by the time my grandfather returned to the U.S. (He had to return. Someone tried to kill him),  he was convinced of two things. 1) Communism was awful. 2) Americans were too naïve about it,” Sokolsky said. “My grandfather felt that the Americans in the U.S. who believed in Communism were “armchair” Communists who had no understanding of Stalin’s real motives.”

George Sr. started his career as a journalism student at Columbia University in New York, in which later he got thrown out. He also was a ghostwriter for Herbert Hoover (who also spoke at OWU).

His granddaughter, Anne, is now writing a book about him and his exploits.

“The working title of the manuscript is “They Called Him Sok: A Granddaughter’s Search for Her Grandfather Journalist George E. Sokolsky Through Archives, Memorabilia, and Family Lore.” At this point, I envision the book to be a biography of my grandfather told through the third person,” Sokolosky said. “The introduction and epilogue will be told through my voice (first person) and I will begin each chapter with a vignette in which I write in my voice in a semi poetic-creative style about an object of my grandfather’s that ties in with the point of each chapter.”

Additionally, George was also involved in Sino-Japanese relations from the late 1910s to 1931, Sokolsky said. He worked for Sun Yat-sen and knew Chiang Kai-shek.

“As a child, my dad remembers playing chess with Madame Chiang,” Sokolsky said. “The big question seems to be whose side was my grandfather working for? Was he a Chinese sympathizer, Japanese sympathizer, or both? Different scholars have different opinions on this matter. I am trying to figure this out a bit more.”

By Hallie Sinko, Transcript Correspondent 

There are more than 16,000 residents in Delaware County who are food insecure.

Ohio Wesleyan has united with Cooking Matters to facilitate health-related programming for those in the community lacking reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food.

Cooking Matters is a national program that addresses “one of the biggest health-related challenges in the U.S. today—that of food insecurity and the related chronic disease burden for those with lower economic resources,” Chris Fink, health and human kinetics professor and program director, said.

Students in the HHK department have the opportunity to transition classroom content to real world experience. As coordinators, they promote the program and recruit participants. As instructors, they work to address personal barriers that prevent the participants from changing health behaviors.

In sync with OWU’s mission, this program is an opportunity for students to impart knowledge and gain the expertise to operate a successful program, Fink said.

The six-week program gathers at Vineyard Church, across from Grady Hospital, on Tuesday evenings.

For two hours, the class explores health topics, recipes, meal preparation, budget and planning strategies.

Group discussions address topics such as the importance of breakfast and physical activity. Instructors also engage participants through activities that address health topics.

“To allow the class to recognize the quantity of sugar in some of their daily beverages, clear cups are filled with one teaspoon of sugar per four grams of sugar in the drink. Participants then try to match up the sugar cups with the correct beverage,” senior Sarah Kohn said.

Each week, recipes are introduced that are created with inexpensive, healthy ingredients.

Next week, the class will be making tacos with lean turkey meat and lettuce wraps. Both inexpensive, lean turkey meat provides a low-fat option and lettuce wraps a low-carb option.

Instructors lead the class through the meal preparation. Along the way, they  educate on kitchen safety. The class has made vegetable soup, stir-fry and stovetop mac and cheese.

Participants are educated on how to get the most for their dollar through the power of planning. They are advised to make a list before heading to the store, which allows for effective shopping on a budget.

At the end of each class, participants get to take home groceries. Allowing them to try new things at home for their family, even on a tight budget.

The community has responded positively to OWU’s Cooking Matters program. The high interest prompted a waitlist to be created. Community partners have informed Fink that they are impressed with the work being done. In particular, the pop-up programs at local Farmers’ Markets, food pantries and free meal sites.

In an effort to reach the younger population, there is a new addition coming in spring 2018. The OWU students involved with Cooking Matters will be leading a series of classes for a local school, Woodward Elementary, to educate children on health and nutrition topics.

Not only are OWU students giving through this opportunity but they are also receiving. Both Kohn and senior Patrick Puracchio said they value gaining experience with diverse populations, which they know will help them in their future careers. 

By Kienan O’Doherty, A&E Editor 

The Ohio Wesleyan modern foreign languages department, as well as Viva Latinx, held a two-day poetry festival on Oct. 9 and Oct. 10 that celebrated Latin American literature.

The festival, held in celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month, welcomed poets from a variety of countries, including Argentina, Colombia and Spain.

Juan Armando Rojas Joo, professor of modern foreign languages and associate dean of diversity and inclusion, expressed that poetry is an essential part of Latin American culture

“In Latin America, poetry festivals are organized to build a sense of community, where creative freedom, equity and multiculturalism can be celebrated,” Rojas said.

The festival began on Oct. 9, with a poetry reading from all of the guest poets, as well as translator Jennifer Rathburn, a professor of Latin American literature at Ashland University.

Each poet read around two to three poems.

Among some of the guests were Mauricio Espinoza from Costa Rica, as well as Guillermo Arango from Cuba.

Espinoza’s latest poetry book, respiración de piedras, won the 2015 National Award from the University of Costa Rica, and Arango has received several literary awards.

Later that same day in the final event of the festival, all of the poets returned to participate in Poetry Book presentations.

The poets’ diction and tone of voice was supposed to present a powerful and moving message. Junior Serena George, who attended the event, said she believed that to be the case.

“It was a privilege to be able to listen to and meet the poets that came to the festival,” George said. “The emotion they put into their work showed the power words have to inspire, heal and unite people.

By Aleksei Pavloff, Sports Editor 

The new school year always brings new faces to campus.

Ohio Wesleyan University recently appointed Stephanie Rowland as the new disability services coordinator.

“Stephanie Rowland brings outstanding experience and expertise to this position and is a tremendous addition to the OWU community,” President Rock Jones said.

Rowland is originally from the Central Ohio area and previously worked with Adrienne Luke, the former coordinator at OWU. They worked together on projects over the past years. Luke contacted Rowland and told her about the available position.

Rowland came to OWU with a master’s degree in College Student Personnel from Bowling Green State University.

“What I like about OWU is the small school and personal one-on-one interactions I get to have with students,” Rowland said.

Her job at the university is not just to serve as the disability services coordinator, but also the testing center coordinator, which is located in University Hall.

Students who have documentation of a certain disability go to Rowland. Her main focus is to provide testing accommodations.

She also said she helps process school material and with scheduling exams while still working with students in and outside of the classroom so they can have support. She deals with students on a confidential basis so they feel comfortable and get the assistance they need. 

Students who have ADHD, learning disabilities, hearing disabilities, or who are on the spectrum can go to her with documentation for assistance.

Some of the accommodations include a testing area where students can go and take exams given by the professor. Other services are also designed to help students with assignments, note-taking and books. This department deals with around 200 students, according to Rowland.

“All student accommodations differ based on need,” Rowland said. “If students have a disability that impacts their college experience, they can register with the office.”

President Jones spoke about the Disability Services Center and how it is a very important part of OWU.

“OWU is committed to the success of every student on our campus and to ensuring that each student has the resources necessary to achieve that success,” Jones said.  “We are particularly concerned that students with disabilities receive support that allows them to thrive in our educational environment and that prepares them for success at OWU and beyond.”

The school year brings different types of challenges to different types of people. Jones said he is confident in the center’s efforts to help students deal with the stress of school, work and much more.

“The Disability Services Center plays a key role in assisting the entire campus in meeting these objectives as well as working directly with individual students with various diagnosed disabilities,” Jones said.

Students can call 740-368-3857 or email slrowland@owu.edu with any questions or inquiries.

By Gopika Nair, Editor-in-Chief

Ohio Wesleyan students could eliminate textbook costs in the future.

The Wesleyan Council on Student Affairs (WCSA) proposed a resolution to provide more affordable textbooks at its full senate meeting held April 24. Senior Ryan Bishop and sophomore Nick Melvin presented the resolution to the Senate.

Bishop, chair of the Student Inclusion Advocacy Committee, and previous WCSA Vice President Sam Schurer discussed the possibility of introducing open source textbooks for more than a year, Bishop said.

The resolution suggested allocating up to $20,000 to fund a WCSA Library of Textbooks, which will allow students to rent textbooks for up to four hours from the library.

“The reason why we’re not certain on the sum is because not all faculty have actually submitted their requests for textbooks for fall 2017, but they will over the summer,” Bishop said.

But the proposed sum was based on cost estimates of textbooks and supplementary materials from fall 2016, which amounted to $57,000, according to Bishop. The current resolution proposes providing textbooks for most 100- and 200-level courses.

Melvin, class of ‘19 representative, said he and Bishop discussed that one of the drawbacks of their proposed resolution is that textbooks are constantly updated.

Macalester College and Miami University both provide textbook reserves.

Bishop added, “For sure, there are books that will need to be updated and we will communicate with faculty to get new versions of those textbooks on reserve. This is not something we’re proposing, but Macalester’s Academic Affairs Committee allocates $10,000 every semester to expanding and updating its library.”

Freshman Greg Margevicius, class of ‘20 representative, said though the overall idea of putting textbooks on reserve in the library is a good one, he questions how often library reserves are used.

Sen. Gretchen Weaver, freshman, said the bill is a good use of the student activity fee.

“If we can spend so much money on President’s Ball and other events throughout the school year, we can surely put some books in the library … [so students] don’t have to spend so much money on books,” Weaver said. “And it is accessible to everyone since they can’t take them home and it’s only four hours.”

President Chris Dobeck, junior, said the plan is to vote on the textbook resolution at WCSA’s last full senate meeting, which will be held at noon on May 1 in the Crider Lounge in Ham-Will.