InterActivist Winter 2016 by InterActivist

THE

INTER ACTIVIST

WRITING FOR PROGRESS

Fighting for the Arts | pg. 24

Issue 58 | Winter 2016

IA Writing for Progress

The InterActivist Magazine – Winter 2016 Greetings! Like most student publications on campus, The InterActivist is constantly evolving while still remaining true to our original mission: to deliver an eye into Athens’ rich counterculture. We will continue to bring you the latest long-form peeks into environmental and food initiatives, the context behind protest and the often unrecognized community that surrounds our individual routines. Photographer Amanda Damelio and writer Alexis Eichelberger curated our cover story, “Fighting for the Arts” (page 24). Damelio and Eichelberger profile a mother who balances her interests, her work and her children all while providing an outlet –which was not always there– for creativity in the Nelsonville School District.

“The Exploitation of OUr Graduate Students” by Maddie Pinney (page 30) was originally a plunge into the Ohio University budget. Rhetoric surrounding Dr. Roderick McDavis’ raise, his “McMansion” and tuition hikes inspired this story. Students are –rightfully– anxious about where their tuition money floods and how it is divided. We wanted to provide a breakdown of the budget, letting the reader decide who may be receiving the short-end of the stick. Dining halls serve up copious amounts of meals for Ohio University’s underclassmen, but who is filling the stomachs that make up Athens County’s 31.7 percent poverty rate? Tess Hickey writes an in-depth feature of the groups that are working to bring nutrition to residents in need with “State of Nutrition in Appalachian Ohio” (page 16). I want to thank our writers, photographers and designers for all of the hard work and dedication put into this issue and our overall mission as an organization. And I want to thank you for reading. –Marlena Scott, Editor-in-Chief

FOR OVER 10 YEARS, THE INTERACTIVIST HAS COVERED, REPORTED AND ENDORSED SOCIAL JUSTICE AND PROGRESSIVISM IN SOUTHEAST OHIO.

It is the second-oldest student publication in the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University in Athens. It is produced with funding from the OU Student Senate’s Student Activities Commission (SAC), the Generation Progress arm of the Center for American Progress in Washington, D.C., reader donations, advertising revenue and fundraising. The InterActivist is a socially progressive counterculture magazine published once a semester by students covering issues from, or related to, the Southeast Ohio area, specifically Ohio University, the city of Athens and the surrounding Appalachia. A belief in humanistic equality regardless of race, gender, ethnicity or orientation is core to The InterActivist as is a fierce desire to challenge the norms. Since its inception, The InterActivist has evolved to encompass conversation in facets of the innovative Athens culture – from politics, to art, to music, to science, to religion – and how it relates to its residents and the world at large. The InterActivist’s mission is to speak loudly for the voices that would otherwise not be heard. Although the InterActivist staff reserves the right to reject submissions, the views expressed in The InterActivist belong to individual authors and do not necessarily coincide with the positions of its publications or co-sponsors, the members of these organizations, the magazine’s staff, or its contributors. For information about joining our staff or work, please email theinteractivist@gmail.com.

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THE STAFF Editor-in-Chief Marlena Scott

Managing Editor Sophie Kruse

Creative Director Kelly Bondra

Photo Editor Eli Hiller

Copy Editor Natalie Esson

Treasurer Sean King

Public Relations Director Kaylee Powers

Writers

Alexis Eichelberger Tess Hickey Jessica Hill Maddie Pinney Maddi Rotunda

Designers

Jaci Mullally Lauren Settlemyre Rachel Rogala Maddi Rotunda

In this issue... 4

Living More, Choosing Less

14 Editorial: Planned Parenthood 16 The State of Nutrition 20 Cuban Limbo in Costa Rica

Photographers

22 Activist Feature: Heather Cantino Against Fracking

ON THE COVER:

30 The Exploitation of OUr Graduate Students

Dani Bartley Amanda Damelio Lucas Reilly Carolyn Rogers

26 Fighting for the Arts

Olivia Handa stamps her name into a slab of clay at the Nelsonville Emporium.

COVER PHOTO: Amanda Damelio COVER DESIGN: Kelly Bondra

Living More, Choosing Less One familyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s decision to rediscovering a simple life Story and Photographs by Eli Hiller

From left, Coral, 9, and Rosemary Stephens, 11, play in a creek that runs along the perimeter of their family's land. In the summer, the children will frequently go on adventures to different parts of their land.

undles of drying garlic are tied to the banister of the staircase just inside the door of the Stephens’ family home. At least one of their two dogs is guaranteed to make his (or her) best attempt at smooching your face as you make your way around the accumulation of mismatched furniture and decorations that reflect the evolution of style since the 1950s. Every room has wallto-wall carpets and a different peeling 1980’s-era floral wallpaper. The savory smell of a home-cooked meal wafts through the first floor of the house from the kitchen, where visitors can oftentimes find Ronda Clark simmering fresh vegetables from her garden as one of her three daughters sets the table. Once the meal is prepared, a hand bell is rung to alert the other family members, and soon the five are clasping one another’s hands in prayer before beginning to eat. Eight years ago, the family was living 25 feet from Ohio State Route 13, which runs through Jacksonville, Ohio. They moved there because the 1,100-square-foot house was affordable, but the family had to keep their windows shut to avoid the noise of the nearby bars and exhaust from the large coal trucks that passed their home. All of their belongings were tied down or stored inside because theft was common in the area. They tried to grow as much food on their quarter-plot of land as possible, but were dissatisfied. In 2006, Clark and her husband Tim Stephens began looking for a new home.

“God made us like pebbles, all different shades and colors.” Clark grew up with her four siblings on a farm in Grand Haven, a small city in western Michigan. She fondly remembers her mother canning food every harvest, running around barefoot and the general self-sufficiency of their lifestyle. Stephens and Clark had always talked

Ronda Clark and her daughters give thanks to the Creator before a home-cooked meal. Clark was raised evangelical Christian, but she later identified with the spirituality of her Native American descendants. "We’re supposed to be stewards of the land and be part of the cycle of nature instead of separating from it or being above it," explained Ronda. 6 | THE INTERACTIVIST | WINTER 2016

Ronda Clark and her daughter, Coral, pause to decide what path they should take as they hike through the forest.

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Lilly Stephens, 13, embraces one of the seven family cats, Bronze, who is 17 years old. Coral Stephens, 9, tilts her head to catch raindrops in the front yard of her house. Rosemary Stephens, 11, climbs up a large tree covered in grapevines.

Rosemary and Coral Stephens bike past their father, Tim Stephens, after he tilled a garden plot. Tim helps out in the garden every weekday after finishing his day job as a carpenter.

about pursuing something similar. “I didn’t want (my kids) to be afraid of nature so it was adamant they live on a farm,” said Clark. After a year of searching, the family found a farmhouse for auction in the Athens Messenger. It fit the bill perfectly; the house was on the outskirts of Amesville, Ohio, and it came with about 60 acres of land with forests, fields and a creek. It had been in the same family for 170 years. The elderly couple that owned it wanted the house and land to go to a family that would care for it the way they had. Clark and Stephens would be out of town during the auction date, but they insisted they were extremely interested in buying. No other bidders showed up that day, so in 2007, they took out a loan and bought the house and land. Within the first year, they planted dozens of apple and peach trees, as well as a small garden. Every year, they would add a new plot of heirloom vegetables from seeds that they had saved from their garden in Jacksonville. By 2011, the family sold produce at the

Athens Farmers Market as Blackberry Sage Farm, named after a young niece, Sage, and Clark’s childhood love for all things berry. She and her four siblings would pick berries for eight hours per week so the family could afford school supplies and uniforms for the children. “If there were berries within a mile of my house, I knew where they were,” said Clark. The move into the country set the Stephens family up for a lifestyle they had always sought out. Clark wanted to make every meal from scratch and originate the ingredients from the garden or the farmers market. They also agreed to homeschool their three girls because of their mutual dislike of the public school system. “My sister always said, ‘God made us like pebbles, all different shades and colors. But the public school turns us into bricks,’” said Clark. “I think that public school focuses too much on academics and that children lose time to focus on their natural skills.” As you walk past the brightly colored bedrooms of the three girls, you won’t find them texting, surfing the web or mindlessly watching cartoons. The only form of communication to the

“It came down to my career or my family life.”

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Lilly Stephens, 13, picks marigolds that she will use to make garlands for Saturday's market. Lilly wakes up at 5:30 a.m. every Wednesday and Saturday to go with her mother to the Athens Farmers Market. Tim Stephens takes a break from work to eat raspberries from their garden.

outside world is a wired telephone, a radio in every room and a 10-year-old Dell laptop that regularly freezes. However, the family manages to keep themselves entertained and educated without the comfort of electronics. “(My friends) have lost a sense of creativity because they are glued to their technology,” said Lilly, as she holds her newest adventure novel. “They don’t go outside and [get] inspired by things around them.” Lilly, 13 and eldest of the three, has numerous awards pinned on her wall from cake-decorating competitions and a pile of more than 15 fiction books under her bed that she’ll read by the end of the week. On a summer day, you’ll likely find Rosemary, 11, and Coral, 9, outside splashing in a nearby creek or making imaginary forts out of fallen branches. “We’d always be outside playing, even in the winter,” said Rosemary. “We’d be bundled up and be out there for hours.” Despite the move, the family continued to struggle with balancing their alternative lifestyle and chaotic work schedules. Stephens worked the standard nine-to-five schedule as a carpenter for Erwin Wolfe Construction while Clark worked many nights until 2 a.m. as the executive director for Community Food Initiatives. “From five to six, it was like handing off a baton,” said Clark. “He’d have to clean the house, do the dishes and do the homeschool before the girls went to bed at nine. It just put so

Coral Stephens, 9, pulls a cart of gourds that she grew in one of her mother's gardens. Ronda Clark encourages her children to sell their own produce at the Athens Farmers Market so they realize the value of working in the garden.

much stress on us, it was crazy.” Clark yelled more frequently when things were out of control. Stephens had a car accident about every few months because he was always rushing home. It reached a point that Coral was regularly breaking out with hives from stress. “It came down to my career or my family life,” said Clark. One evening in early November 2010, Ronda recalls being exhausted at work and dragging herself around the building. She passed Linda Bozeman, a massage therapist who had a nearby work office. One of Bozeman’s clients hadn’t shown up for a session and she offered Clark a free massage. After the hour-long massage, Clark recalls Bozeman telling her that she was in terrible shape because of all of the stress in her life. For one year, Clark and Stephens weighed their options to solve the imbalance in their life. If Stephens quit his job, he would still work odd jobs to bring in revenue while also taking care of the home. If Clark quit, she would homeschool the girls and produce more food in the garden to sell at the market. “It’s because of those massages that I changed my priorities,” Clark said. “I’m bummed I wasted so much time working when the girls were younger.” They chose the latter solution. Clark would be less stressed and could concentrate on raising the girls. In April 2012, Ronda left her job as Community Food Initiative’s executive director. 11

“I want my kids to know there is an alternative to this fastpaced lifestyle and that they can opt out,” said Clark. Things slowly began to fall into place. Clark slept at night, the kids received plenty of attention and Stephens was less rushed to make it home after work. Their life wasn’t entirely stress-free, but an overall calmness developed. For the first several months, the family was unsure if they could financially maintain their alternative lifestyle. Ronda’s job soon became about how to save money and to sell more products at the market. “It’s a struggle at times,” said Tim. “We are barely making ends meet. But you learn to live with less than commercial society says you need. I’m around my family and that’s the main thing.” v

Ronda rests after many hours of harvesting and canning produce for the winter. Tim Stephens reads Adventures of Huckleberry Finn to Coral in the living room. Tim dedicates an hour every night to spend with his daughters. Lilly Stephens, 13, spends hours in her room reading fiction books. Lilly reads over 15 books each week.

Republicans aim to cut all federal

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funding for Planned Parenthood editorial by SOPHIE KRUSE

Photo by DANI BARTLEY

ecently, Republicans have been making a strong effort to cut federal funding to Planned Parenthood following the release of a series of videos depicting Planned Parenthood executives discussing a mishandling of fetal tissue following abortions. While Democrats have been doing their best to block this effort by their opposing party, funding has continuously been threatened—most recently by the Ohio Senate, which voted to defund the public resource on October 21. One of the leaders in the battle against Planned Parenthood is Ted Cruz, who claims the funds could be better directed to support community health centers that are federally supported. In fact, spokesman Phil Novack wrote an email to Huffington Post saying if we divert the $528 million of taxpayer funds currently supporting Planned Parenthood’s “barbaric actions” to community health centers and other entities providing health services without abortions, it would go a long way towards helping additional patients receive non-abortion services. This argument refuses to acknowledge that the bulk of Planned Parenthood’s services aren’t abortions, which make up only 3 percent of the health services provided. It also suggests that funds will be directed toward clinics that don’t service rural or low-income areas, don’t accept lowincome patients or don’t offer the spectrum of services offered by Planned Parenthood: STI tests, treatment and contraception making up 76 percent of care. Remaining services include pap smears, cervical cancer screenings and mammograms. Planned Parenthood also serves as a safe space for care for generally underserved groups. “As queer and trans people, we already don’t have places that offer competent health care for us. We need Planned Parenthood to be able to have somewhere to go that is safe for us,” Cazembe Jackson said in a recent mic.com article covering the transgender and queer population that will be affected by these cuts. Each year, Planned Parenthood provides 5,180,000 individuals with sexual and reproductive education, healthcare and outreach. Of these individuals, the PP affiliate health centers serve 2,680,000 in the U.S., educational programs serve 1,500,000 and PPFA-supported partners serve more than one million in 13 developing countries. In total, one in five women have visited a Planned Parenthood health clinic in the United States.

Planned Parenthood Global operates in developing countries through partnerships with local advocates, medical service providers and young leaders. In Latin America and Africa, the program provides increased access to treatment for complications resulting from unsafe abortions, as well as sexual health education. Back in the United States, 78 percent of women who have visited Planned Parenthood for care are at or below the 150 percent federal poverty level, which is equivalent to $36,375 a year for a family of four. A majority of the sexual health services offered are contraceptives, which prevent abortions or unwanted pregnancies. According to a Planned Parenthood press kit, Planned Parenthood contraceptive services avert an estimated number of 217,000 abortions and about 516,000 unintended pregnancies. According to the Guttmacher Institute, around 1.06 million abortions were performed in 2011, which is down 13 percent from 1.21 million from 2008. 34 percent of their services are contraception services—while they provide a small amount of abortions, they’re focused on preventing them. According to the Planned Parenthood website, minors seeking health care services at a Planned Parenthood health center in Wisconsin were asked what they would do if they had to tell their parents they were using contraceptives. Nearly half said they would stop going to the clinic. Many others said they would stop using any sexual health care services. But only one percent said they would stop having sexual intercourse. For Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio, Ohioans under the age of 18 don’t need parental consent for access to contraceptives and sexual health care. While this stands true for non-Planned Parenthood clinics, it indicates that teens will be responsible for the cost of contraceptives. While there isn’t a specific cost for the same service at Planned Parenthood, many make it more affordable and relative to the individual’s income. Others just have specific qualifications to be approved. Women, men and those who do not identify with the gender binary rely heavily on the services provided by Planned Parenthood to keep them happy and healthy. To cut services is to remove an opportunity for low-income individuals to access the care to which they are entitled. v 15

State of Nutrition in

Appalachian

Ohio story by TESS HICKEY

photo by LUCAS REILLY

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he lush, green, rolling hills of Appalachia are some of the first reasons prospective students decide to become Bobcats. If not the scenery, then almost definitely the culture of this artsy, proactive college town persuades visitors to make Athens their home. “I believe that many students are attracted to Athens, I think they come here, and they see this beautiful town – Athens is a beautiful place to live,” says Babz Jewell, COMCorps service member and Live Healthy Kids coordinator of Live Healthy Appalachia. “There are wonderful shops, excellent local food here ... uptown is a beautiful little sphere, and the university has wonderful dining facilities and great food just sitting there, and I think it’s easy to be short-sighted and not realize that that ends when you exit the city.” According to the 2009-13 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, Athens ranks as the poorest county in the entire state of Ohio, with a poverty rate of 31.7 percent. The second highest-ranking county is Meigs, with a rate of 21.9 percent. The overall poverty rate of the state of Ohio is 15.8 percent. Jewell says when people think of minorities, they often first think of impoverished sections in urban cities. “You go there, people are in poverty, people

suffer from addiction, mental illness – but you come to Appalachia, and you just see the beautiful hills, the landscape; you don’t realize there are people who are equally as neglected.” The USDA defines food deserts as “urban neighborhoods and rural towns without ready access to fresh, healthy and affordable food.” According to the USDA’s Food Environment Atlas, 14.22 percent of Athens County qualifies as both a low-income and low-access community. Athens County’s rate of food deserts is second only to Marion County, with a rate of 17.21%. In order to be identified as a food desert, an area must qualify as both a low-income community and a low-access community. An area is considered a low-income community if it has a poverty rate of 20 percent or higher. An area qualifies as a low-access community if at least 33 percent of its population lives more than a mile (10 miles for non-metropolitan areas) from a supermarket or large grocery store. “It’s easy for a lot of students to come here from wherever they live elsewhere in the state, spend their four years, or five years, or however long they’re here, and not really get outside of Athens on campus and out into the county and not really have an idea of what Appalachia really is,” says Rev. Evan Young,

Many organizations in the area are working towards a solution to this complex issue. Among these includes Live Healthy Appalachia, a nonprofit organization aiming to promote healthy eating and wellbeing in the Appalachian area. “Our goal as an organization is to educate people and empower people to be able to make choices that can improve their health,” Sherri Oliver, executive director of LHA, said in an interview. Live Healthy Appalachia promotes health and wellness through a variety of different educational programs. Live Healthy Kids is a program implemented in every second grade classroom in the county. The Complete Health and Improvement Program is offered to adults in Athens County and administers professional development programs, including the Appalachian Health Summit and various volunteer-driven programs designed to promote community health. “We do not give people food,” says Jewell. “Rather, we offer them a chance to grow and to become more educated on how to use food.” Live Healthy Kids, the program coordinated by Jewell, provides children with the opportunity to learn about healthy eating habits through a hands-on approach. Jewell hopes that by teaching kids how to prepare and cook whole foods at a young age, they will develop an interest in cooking and will gain the knowledge and skills necessary to maintain healthy eating habits as they grow into young adults. “Our hope is that it becomes a family practice,” Jewell says. LHA also offers free community cooking classes throughout Athens County. These classes are taught by a team of nine volunteer cooking coaches who have received training from Chef Katie McGushin of Hocking College. The classes last one month and include four sessions. “We really want them to be open to anyone in the community who is interested in coming out,” says Oliver. “Some people are attending for health reasons, they want to learn how to make healthy food; we have some people who are coming for social reasons, they want to cook with other people and find community in that way.” Oliver explains that LHA’s main purpose is to promote healthy living through education and to empower those in need with the knowledge necessary to prepare and cook fresh food from scratch. “If you’ve never cooked squash before and someone gives you a squash, it might

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not solve your food insecurity issue if you don’t know what to do with it,” Oliver said. “That’s where we see ourselves fitting into the equation. We just want people to have the information, and be able to use that information and to make choices that work for themselves and for their families.” United Campus Ministry (UCM) is another Athens-based nonprofit organization working to serve the community through various programming. UCM offers two free meals a week in their basement on North College Street. Thursday Supper, started in 1993, is offered every Thursday at 5:30 p.m.; Saturday Supper, started in 2006, is offered every Saturday at 1 p.m. Young says volunteers are encouraged to interact with the guests and take part in sharing the meal. “That’s one of the other amazing things

ensure that the Athens community has access to healthy, local food. CFI does a combination of programs that address immediate relief and programs that work to help people support themselves nutritionally in the long-term. CFI programs include: community gardens, which build connections within the community and increase overall fresh food access; garden and culinary workshops, where participants gain gardening and food preservation skills through a hands-on approach; and seed sovereignty, where CFI works to preserve local seeds and promote their use. In addition, CFI organizes school gardens, where children are taught how to grow their own food; the Donation Station, where local produce is collected and distributed to over 40 food pantries; and Discovery Kitchen, healthy cooking classes to teach food pantry patrons how to cook meals with fresh, local produce. “In my experience as someone who’s from Our goal as an Appalachian Ohio, is that yes, we have a long history of economic poverty; however, we’re organization is to very rich in other ways,” Mary Nally, Executive educate people and Director of CFI, said. “And those are the ways empower people to be that we, at Community Food Initiatives, want to focus and emphasize, and work on retelling able to make choices the story of what it means to be from here; that can improve their to not only work on a lot of the negative health.” stereotypes people have about Appalachian people and about poverty, but also to bolster - SHERRI OLIVER, ourselves, and to invigorate a sense of pride executive director of Live Healthy in ourselves and in our community.” Appalachia Nally says the Appalachian area has many about the meals, it’s not just a meal that students assets, including a rural location close to the come and prepare and give out to people — it’s forest, good soil, high levels of biodiversity and a community,” Young said. “There’s not really a a temperate climate. Nally says that by focusing strict dividing line with people who come to on these assets, we can redefine wealth and eat and people who come to volunteer. You what it means to be from Appalachia. CFI’s work focuses largely on supporting show up, probably we’re going to ask you to do the local food economy as a long-term solution something. Probably, we’re going to sit down toward the area’s food security issues. and eat with you.” Andrea Reany, Donation Station Manager Young hopes to incorporate more food and nutrition education into the programs at CFI, explained how the recent local food in the future. He explains that UCM tries movements across the country focus mainly to expand the palate of the visitors by on bringing that access to middle and upperincorporating as much fresh produce in as middle class people. “I think we do need to think outside the great of variety as they can. “Once we had an intern who was working box in order to get fresh, locally grown food to with us a couple of years ago who loved people who need it and who want to have it,” eggplant,” Young recalls. “[He] was crazy about said Reany. “It’s not an easy task. But I think CFI eggplant, and cooked phenomenal eggplant. is doing a lot of cool things to address that.” The Donation Station is one program of It was a little outside the box of Appalachian cuisine, so people who look at it go, ‘really?’ CFI’s that supports the local food economy …at the end of the season, they were looking while also addressing the immediate need of food for people in Athens County. forward to it: ‘oh, that, make that stuff again!’” The Donation Station is located at both the Community Food Initiatives (CFI) is another nonprofit organization working to Athens Farmers Market and the Chesterhill

“

Produce Auction. Both fresh produce donations and monetary donations are accepted from customers, vendors, and local community gardeners. Monetary donations are used to purchase fresh produce from vendors at the market or the auction. The fresh produce is then donated to over 40 local food pantries and social service agencies. Reany says that in addition to supporting food pantries and addressing the immediate need of fresh food in the community, the Donation Station helps to support the local food economy and local farmers. “It’s a vision over the long term,” says Reany. “That we’re supporting farmers, and they can support their workers and they can support themselves because we’re purchasing from them.” Nally also says CFI works to promote seed saving through its Southeast Ohio Seed Savers (SOSS) network. “We see that as something that’s really critical in the conversation of food security,” says Nally. According to CFI’s website, SOSS works to preserve seed diversity and secure agricultural heritage at the local level. Their efforts include maintaining an annual inventory of regional open pollinated heirloom seeds and hosting annual seed exchanges and seed saving workshops. SOSS is also working to start a micro-regional seed company in order to make the seeds more widely available to the public. Nally states the importance of knowing not just where your food comes from, but also where the seeds used to grow from. She says that as we prepare to live in a world with climate change, it is crucial to have hearty, regional seeds that are acclimatized to our area in order to ensure food security at the local level. UCM is also working to support the local food economy through its Thursday Supper and Saturday Lunch programs. “A few years ago, as the local food movement economy here in Athens started to grow, we starting thinking, are we just feeding people, or are we feeding people the way we would like to be fed?” says Young. Young explains how UCM started out serving “basic food bank fare,” but then began to look for ways to incorporate more local, fresh produce into the community meals. “Early on, it was not easy,” says Young. “But, also early on, we found some partners that could help us.” One of the organizations UCM partnered with was CFI, through their Donation Station. “Folks from UCM are able to go there once or twice a week, and basically shop for free to get local produce that we bring back here and

incorporate into the meals,” says Young. When asked about his hopes for the future of the community meals at UCM, Young said that he wants to continue pushing towards locally sourced food, and to incorporate more education about food and nutrition into the programs. Young also hopes to raise awareness of the community meals and the volunteer opportunities at UCM to students on campus. When talking about the disconnect between OU students and the Athens community, Young says “that’s an important role in the meal programs because they’re such a diverse, open space; we’re one of the rooms in town where the campus and wider community intersect.” Rachel Komich, Ohio University student and member of the Food Matters Club at OU, says, “it’s easy to be in a bubble here on campus and uptown.” The club works to create a dialogue on campus for issues regarding food within the community. Food Matters runs a garden on West State Street, where they grow a wide range of crops, ranging from tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers to squash, pumpkins, and sweet potatoes. They have weekly produce sales on Thursdays where they sell everything for $1 per pound. Komich says mostly students shop at the produce sales, but local Athens community members and families visit as well. Food Matters has also recently initiated to participate in the Real Food Challenge — a national organization working to promote sustainably and locally sourced foods in universities. According to the Real Food Challenge website, their primary campaign is “to shift $1 billion of existing university food budgets away from industrial farms and junk food and towards local/community-based, fair, ecologically sound and humane food sources—what we call “real food”—by 2020.” “We need more of the community involved, otherwise the university doesn’t listen to us,” says Komich. Komich believes that many of the students on campus are unaware of the food insecurities within the surrounding community. “A lot of students are involved, but also a lot of students aren’t, so I see how it is easy to be in a bubble,” she says. “I think staying within the Athens bubble can be a pretty big problem,” says Reany of CFI. “I would encourage any student to find something that they’re passionate about, and reach outside of the university bubble and the Athens bubble and see what else is going on in the community. And not just what problems there are, but what

organizations and what individuals are working on the issues.” Jewell of LHA also encourages students to reach outside of Athens city and into the surrounding community. “If you’re in college, chances are you’re excited about education. And you’re excited about helping people,” says Jewell. “You’re here because you care about something. And it’s important to share that with other people. You can make a serious impact on other people’s lives by sharing your passion and volunteering.” CFI and LHA both offer many opportunities for students to volunteer. Oliver of LHA believes that awareness of food issues on campus is greater now than it ever has been. “The conversation is happening. Five years ago, I don’t know if I would have been able to say the same thing,” says Oliver. When discussing the future, Oliver says she hopes to pull the university into LHA’s work as much as possible. “OU is such a huge asset to the Athens county community, just the level of experience, even the level of intelligence located within the institution, I think that that’s something we could really use as a force for good out in the community,” says Oliver. “When you’re talking about students, there are a lot of people who want to be able to give their time to organizations, it’s just a matter of making them aware of the work that needs to be done, and making them aware of the need that exists.” Nally of CFI also says she has come across many students who are very passionate and aware of these issues. “(The Food Matters Club) has been incredibly helpful, and it’s been very wonderful to see a group of students who are passionate about these issues, but also know that they don’t know everything, and they’ll work to bring in speakers and educate themselves and are not just doing work on campus, but are volunteering and interning with organizations like ours to get a broader grasp of the situation,” Nally says. When asked about her hopes for the future of the state of nutrition in the county, Nally is an optimist: “No one’s gonna come and save us. We have to be the solution that we’re looking for.” v

Cuban Limbo in

Costa Rica story and photographs by ELI HILLER

In December of 2015, my curiosity brought me to the western region of Costa Rica where thousands of Cuban migrants were residing in temporary shelters in the small border town of La Cruz. These migrants are attempting to reach the United States where they can become legal residents. However, on Nov. 13, 2015 the Nicaraguan government shut its border to all illegal immigration. Within several weeks, there was a growing humanitarian crisis in Costa Rica as

thousands of Cuban migrants began to flood the small country. I was coincidentally on a family vacation in the country and I felt the need to experience the situation firsthand. On the morning of Christmas Eve, I bid my family farewell, packed a small suitcase and set out to La Cruz to photograph the everyday life of the Cuban refugees for nine days. Here are several photographs from my time spent with the Cubans in the government shelters.

From right, Vladimir Infante Hurtado, Dariel Pérez Pacheco, José García Pérez, top, and Laízaro Quintero Alvarez shave and wash themselves in one of the Costa Rican shelters on Dec. 29, 2015. Many migrants have grown accustom to the lack of privacy since they started their journey north from Ecudaor. 20 | THE INTERACTIVIST | WINTER 2016

Bottom, Alejandro Estebán Galvez, 23, sleeps on bleachers of a high school gymnasium among other Cuban migrants on the morning of Dec. 29, 2015 in La Cruz, Costa Rica. The public schools, churches and community buildings in La Cruz were converted into temporary shelters to house the several thousand migrants.

Eduardo Suarez Peña, 31, and Dianelis Rodriguez Mola, 23, rest in a shelter in La Cruz, Costa Rica on Dec. 27, 2015. Like many of Cuban migrants, they sold all their belongings to pay for their journey to reach the United States. They recall the hardest part of their journey was when they had to travel by boat to reach the Panama border from Colombia. “If he didn’t hold on to me I would have fallen off that boat,” said Mola. “When one is willing to give everything to that person and that’s how you know you’re in love.” Hands of Cuban migrants Yasiel Valero, Elier Becker, Arnnier Dranguet, and Raymel Escobar reach for domino pieces to start a game in a shelter in La Cruz, Costa Rica on Dec. 27, 2015.

Heather Cantino, a local fracking activist, poses for a portrait outside of Alden Library in Athens, Ohio on Oct. 7, 2015.

Photo by Carolyn Rogers

Fighting Against Fracking

eather Cantino, an environmental organizer, rides her bike to the Village Bakery and Cafe to discuss her passionate aversion to fracking. Cantino is the Steering Committee Chair (although the members hardly use their official titles) for a local organization that protests a controversial issue. The Athens County Fracking Action Network (ACFAN) has had several successful protests fighting fracking and injection wells in Athens, Ohio. Cantino said they first protested the fracking threat from lease sales, when the Cunningham Energy company wanted to lease local land for fracking initiatives. Cantino and other ACFAN members protested by visiting a Cunningham Energy leasing event at the 22 | THE INTERACTIVIST | WINTER 2016

story by JESSICA HILL

Dairy Barn in Athens. They rented a floor below the company, and when homeowners came to the barn, ACFAN members made their case before Cunningham Energy could. “We heard later from the director that we really cut into their sales of leases,” Cantino said. In 2001 ACFAN also fought the leasing of land in Wayne National Forest for fracking and succeeded in stopping the leasing. Cantino said many people believe fracking is acceptable because they believe fallacies advertised by businesses. “There’s a lot of acceptance of myths that it will create jobs and energy, and that fracking is leading to energy dependence and all these lies that the industry uses,” Cantino said. ACFAN currently has a lawsuit against two K & H wells, claiming the wells were illegally

granted. Cantino said the lawsuit is now stuck in Franklin County Common Pleas Court. “It first had to go to the Oil and Gas Commission. ... and it’s totally stacked against citizens,”Cantino said. “It’s totally industry biased. They threw out our case and we appealed that.”The aforementioned steering committee, which Cantino is chair of, meets on a regular basis and discusses local issues faced in relation to fracking. “We organize public comments and public meetings,” Cantino said. “And we go to the county commissioners and get with them to host a public meeting and get the word out.”Currently, ACFAN is involved in passing a statewide moratorium, which will halt any new injection well permits. Cantino said she is also supporting an emerging

What is

Fracking? THE FRACKING PROCESS Fracking fluid is a mix of water, sand and chemicals. This fluid is pumped into the well. The pressure causes the rock surrounding the pipe to crack. The proppants hold open these cracks to allow the trapped natural gas to escape. Gas flows up the well to be collected.

RISKS

Groundwater contamination and air quality degradation

20% - 40% of the fracking fluid, slightly irradiated, flows back to the surface polluted with dissolved solids and toxic chemicals 3 million to 5 million gallons of water are needed to operate over its lifetime

Graphic by Jaci Mullally

Information found on ewt.org

group in Torch, Ohio that opposes three K & H injection wells in the area. “Air contamination is one thing that people don’t realize is a problem,” Cantino said. “The K & H facility where the three injection wells has ten huge storage tanks where the waste is stored until it’s pumped into the ground and those have to be vented or they could explode, so there’s toxic radioactive material being just emitted straight into the neighborhood 24-hours a day.”Cantino said she gained much of her information about the dangers of fracking and injection wells through scientific research, reports and personal accounts that are released. She also gains information from guest speakers that speak at ACFAN meetings. “We had Calvin Tillman, who was the mayor of Dish,

Texas and has actually resigned as mayor and moved his family off the Barnett Shale because his kids were having nose bleeds,” Cantino said. “They were just surrounded by fracking operations and he couldn’t get it to stop, so the family moved,” Cantino said ACFAN hosted two dairy farmers from Pennsylvania, one of which had rashes on their arms from fracking poisoning. The organization also hosted individuals from Wetzel, West Virginia to discuss their experiences living in an area that was heavily fracked. “Right now the subsidies and the hidden subsidies that are poured into oil and gas mean there’s that much less money to go into renewables,” Cantino said. “Getting rid of fracking would allow this business and all businesses in Athens to thrive without the

threat of contamination. Already an injection well in Athens county has driven one of our prime organic farms to shut down because they were too close to an injection well to feel comfortable selling their produce and their grains and their meat as organic because they didn’t know if they were getting contaminated through air and water.”ACFAN continues protesting fracking and injection wells in Ohio and has had many successes. “We work well together,” Cantino said. “We know how to engage the public through many different channels. We just use a wide variety of strategies and support direct action. We’re comfortable talking to public officials.” v

24窶ポ窶サHE INTERACTIVIST窶ポ窶ジINTER 2016

Fighting for the ARTS story by ALEXIS EICHELBERGER photos by AMANDA DAMELIO

ennifer L’Heureux is a woman of many talents. She balances her roles as a mother, artist and small business owner, all while finding time to give back to her community. L’Heureux owns the Nelsonville Emporium in Nelsonville, Ohio. The store houses the artwork and products of over ninety local artists and food producers. The emporium “specializes in local” and “food as a gift,” as she explained in an interview. The store doubles as a studio where she creates artwork to be sold, along with made-to-order pottery pieces used for

local parties and weddings. The store grew from the original idea of making and selling her own pieces on-site to include the aforementioned features and products. L’Heureux has transformed the inner-passion for art and her love for her children to giving back to the Nelsonville community. Her children attend Nelsonville York Elementary School, which lacks a curriculumbased arts program. L’Heureux decided to change this, while also bringing to fruition her life-long dream of being an art teacher. >>

Jennifer L’Heureux (left) is a local potter and owner of Nelsonville Emporium in Nelsonville, Ohio. “It has grown from an idea where I would make pottery and sell finished items on site in addition to bringing ceramic supplies to our area to a retail shop for over 80 local artists and food producers,” she said. 25

Jennifer L’Heureux helps kindergarten student Bella Blue with one of her art lessons in Nelsonville, Ohio. Nelsonville York Elementary School has been struggling to attain proper funding for their arts programs since 2009. Jennifer takes frequent visits to her children’s classrooms to teach art. “I like to bring art into the classroom as a way of sharing my abilities and passion with others,” she said.

She now spends a day, every two weeks, teaching art classes to the students of Nelsonville York. “I have always enjoyed the arts and truly believe in sharing the experience and growth that occurs through the arts with others,” L’Heureux said when asked about her art classes. “I like to bring art into the classroom as a way of sharing my abilities and passion with others.” L’Heureux generously donates all supplies used to teach these classes. She cites gardening as one of her favorite hobbies, and from

26 | THE INTERACTIVIST | WINTER 2016

this comes many creative uses of her home grown vegetables. For example, in one of her art classes, L’Heureux helped students cut peppers into the shapes of flowers to be used as stamps. “I believe Athens County promotes local and when we can use the materials around us, it reminds us that creativity is everywhere,” L’Heureux said. “I guess organic/home-grown materials are a part of our lifestyle.” While L’Heureux is an artist-by-trade, she is a mother who

Olivia Handa, kindergarten student, stamps her name into a slab of clay at the Nelsonville Emporium.

enjoys spending plenty of time with her children. Her volunteer work, accompanied by her flexible work schedule, has made this easy and enjoyable. “My children have come to work with me since the time that they were born. It makes me sad when they go off to school, so I often volunteer to bring arts and crafts into their classrooms,” she explained. “I often ask them to help when I am working with their classes.”

L’Heureux exhibits a clear love for Nelsonville York and for the work she does there. She speaks fondly of the positive attitudes of the students, the staff and the teachers. “Nelsonville York Schools have an energy that is contagious,” she said. She described the pleasure of collaborating with the students in the classroom, even if it is unconventional compared to typical arithmetic. “It is awesome to be able to participate in the learning process and to share projects and ideas that might not be a part of the >>

L’Heureux (right) helps her son Morris (left) finish his daily doodles in their Nelsonville, Ohio home. Morris frequently draws with her son after picking him up from school. 28 | THE INTERACTIVIST | WINTER 2016

regular classroom curriculum,” she said. While it is clear that teaching these classes has had an impact on L’Heureux, she hopes that the same can be said for the students. She says her goal when teaching is to bring new experiences to others. “We all learn in different ways,” she said. “I believe art and extracurricular activities allow students to grow in different ways while still applying what is learned in the classroom.” Although L’Heureux does not teach professionally, she acknowledges that teaching can itself be a lifelong process. When asked how long she would continue teaching she answered, “We all continually learn and if we share what we learn, we teach.” While it is easy to imagine how impossibly busy she must be, L’Heureux has found a way to turn her passion into something that helps others. While she continues to find time to do the things she loves, she is also making her community a little more beautiful through art. v

The Exploitation of OUr Graduate Students

$ $

story by MADDIE PINNEY graphics by MADDI ROTUNDA

Guaranteed tuition is a guaranteed tuition hike!

ordes of student activists bellowed this sentiment when the Ohio University Board of Trustees implemented the Ohio Guarantee. It was passed last spring and began implementation this fall with a 5.1 percent increase (2 percent compounded over four years) in tuition for the first incoming freshman cohort. Ohio Guarantee ensures that each class will pay a fixed rate of tuition for their four years of college. In 2014, tuition increased 1.5 percent. The cost of tuition alongside perpetual increases hits like a gun-shot to the head, especially with a crippling student debt epidemic. But, the question is, where is the money from these tuition hikes going? The money is not funneling into President Roderick McDavis’ bank account. Dividing McDavis’ annual salary of $480,000 by the 17,000 undergraduate students - only $28.25 is going from individual undergraduate tuition into his pocket. The university’s three main sources of revenue are tuition (43 percent), state appropriations (23 percent) and private philanthropy (7 percent). In the 2016 Fiscal Year budget, the revenue was a product of the 2015 tuition increase and a 4.7 percent increase in state funding. This in turn is going to be

OU’s three main sources of revenue:

TUITION

43%

STATE APPROPRIATIONS

23%

PRIVATE PHILANTHROPY

30 | THE INTERACTIVIST | WINTER 2016

spent on investing in the second year of a 10-year deferred maintenance plan, which means putting money into the upkeep of deteriorating buildings and equipment that has been postponed from the operating budget in past years. Other expenses are put towards the interest of debt from infrastructure investments and funding energy infrastructure. More importantly, a large chunk of university revenue is going to faculty. The Faculty Compensation Task Force (COMP 2014) was established in February 2014 by Executive Vice President and Provost Pat Benoit to “maximize our investment in faculty compensation to attract and retain talented faculty.” The goal was to raise Group I Faculty (tenure-track) salary from the No. 8 rank to the No. 3 rank among four-year public universities in Ohio, as well as to invest a proportional percentage of money into Group II (non-tenure track) compensation. COMP 2014 was implemented in the operating budget in FY15 spending $1.3 million on tenured faculty benefits and salary increases as well as an estimated investment of 740K in additional earnings for Group II faculty on the Athens campus. Following that dry summary of why tuition is increasing, let’s explore the meat of the matter:This compensation is implemented so Ohio University can compete against other institutions with proficient teaching faculty. McDavis, even with that almost $1.2 million mansion and endless bonuses, operates within the median salary of other top administrators across the country. “As far as health care is concerned, the university knows– and we all know– that it is a rip-off,” said Lassane Ouedraogo, an international student and a teaching assistant for the French program in the Department of Modern Languages. According to Ouedraogo, international students have to pitch in an extra $1,500 of their stipend toward health care. The median teaching assistant salary is $8,000 without taking health insurance and general fees into account. “Not only has OU failed to provide good insurance coverage to its student employees, but it also overcharges us with a

McDavis’ annual salary

$480,000 =$28.25 17,000 number of undergraduate students

Graduate assistants perform basic teaching, research or administrative support work in exchange for tuition remission, a living stipend and benefits. Before running into the details of the issue, here are four overarching examples of exploitation:

low median stipend

median stipend for graduate workers

=$12,000

This means a large population of graduate assistants are below the poverty line according to the federal poverty guideline.

general fee If the low stipend isn’t enough, graduate workers have to pay the general fee which goes to services outside of the classroom that according to the Ohio University Bursar’s website “promote students’ emotional and physical well-being.” Many of them do not have time to make use of those services. This $1,000 fee is taken from their stipend.

$1000

taken from graduate workers’ stipend

health insurance costs In addition to paying the general fee, graduate assistants have to pay for health insurance.

no leave policy Not only are these workers left without insurance, there is a lack of leave policy. This means that if a student worker gets sick to the point of hospitalization there is no university policy on how long a student can leave their program, if they will be paid and who will bear the cost.

Our graduate assistants’ health insurance subsidies are far below the median of eight other peer institutions. The schools (West Virginia University, Colorado State University, Oklahoma State University, University of Missouri, University of Rhode Island, University of Utah and Iowa State) have similar enrollment rates, tuition and top administrative pay. The median health insurance subsidy of these universities is $1,519 while OU offers a subsidy of $40. Median health insurance subsidies of eight peer institutions Median health insurance subsidy of OU

$1,519 $40 31

there is another element of exploitation breathing down their neck: a useless and expensive insurance,” said Ouedraogo. While lack of leave policy. pursuing two master’s degrees in French and African studies “Imagine being hospitalized for several weeks, and coming out on Ouedraogo spends time preparing his French course, teaching, assigning homework, holding office hours and grading. the other side of it only to find that you’ve lost your tuition waiver and your stipend. How shitty is that?” asked Ahmed. According to The “It may seem initially odd that we’re complaining about Post last November, graduate assistant Elizabeth Volpe contracted health care since we’re students and that’s just a thing that mononucleosis spring of 2014. She was absent for weeks, losing her students do (apparently),” said Shehzad Ahmed, a graduate job at the university and almost her tuition waiver. teaching assistant at OU. “It’s less strange when the fact that we also function as employees is taken into account.” The “We need to have a sense of security in the event that a graduate student is incapacitated. It is absolutely not okay for someone to lose Graduate Student Senate recently appointed Ahmed Graduate their stipend and tuition waiver after being in the hospital for a few Equity Awareness Campaign director. Ahmed is the chair of weeks. It’s pretty damn ridiculous that this can even happen,” said the Graduate Worker’s Party, an organization directed towards Ahmed. raising awareness of inequity issues that plague graduate Ahmed explained that under Ohio University’s current budgeting workers. model, the university pays each college some The 2016 Fiscal Year operating As far as health care amount of money based on a number of factors. budget has allocated a five percent This includes things like how much that college increase in university funded healthcare is concerned, the brought in through research grants and how many (university per employee.) It does not university knows– and courses that college is teaching. From there, each clarify if any of that will go to graduate assistants and teaching assistants so we all know– that it is a college gives money to the departments under it, including tuition waivers and stipends for graduate Ouedraogo could be left behind, simply rip-off.” students. After that, the department then decides hoping for a less expensive and better - Lassane Ouedraogo, how they want to use the money. insurance plan. He continued, “The university needs to allocate Ahmed is the instructor of record, graduate student more money to colleges so they can allocate more meaning he teaches one course under a money towards graduate students. Additionally, there needs to be a professor each semester. minimum wage for graduate students; one that’s above the poverty According to Ahmed, the life of a teaching assistant wage even after paying for health care and the general fee.” and graduate assistant involves studying for a stress-filled And yet, tuition increases. The president’s pay is exorbitant, but and sleepless finals week, while simultaneously teaching or it is within the market value of other top administrators across the researching for pity-wages and tuition remission. country. His salary is adjusted, OU is indebted, and COMPENSATION “That probably doesn’t sound like a lot, but it turns out that 2014 was implemented to compete in the market. Student debt is teaching a class is quite a bit of work,” said Ahmed. One might nuanced and complicated, and it is attributed to a haystack of reasons. adopt the I-could-do-that attitude, similar to how people think Ohio University is a pawn in a system that subsidizes loans, defunds their children could make abstract-expressionist art. But Ahmed schools and expects institutions to be held to industry standards. is also studying for a comprehensive exam coming in January, The pawns, the figureheads, and the Board of Trustees are limited taking a class and two independent studies and meeting with in what they can actually do to change the climate of debt. Tuition his dissertation advisor on a weekly basis. A kid could not come is high across the country and the market standard for executive up with the concept for a radically new art form, and this job– pay is outlandish, but our university is a singular outlier among or rather, lifestyle– takes more than effort and ability. It takes peer institutions for exploiting graduate assistants. Pulling effort perseverance. from students, faculty and administration to unionize the graduate As graduate assistants grapple with a Sisyphean workload, assistants would attain basic workers’ rights and lend its hand to visible change.

“

Lassane Ouedraogo (right) is an international student and teaching assistant for the Department of Modern Languages at Ohio University. 32 | THE INTERACTIVIST | WINTER 2016

Meet Our Activists! Sophie Kruse

Marlena Scott

I’m Sophie Kruse, a senior studying journalism and minoring in business and marketing. I’m the managing editor for InterActivist. I’m dog obsessed and love Harry Potter. I can probably quote the entire series of The Office to you.

I am a senior studying journalism and world religions. I am interested in just about everything– social analysis and justice, crime, international affairs, women’s rights, technology and beyond. I love to read, write and think. I am not above tweeting mindlessly and surrendering hours on hours to video games. I have a great passion for humankind in all of its complexities and wish to continue to capture it in writing.

Kelly Bondra

I’m Kelly Bondra, a sophomore publication and infographic design major and retail merchandising & fashion product development minor with a focus in commercial photography. I’m the creative director; I hope you think the magazine looks spiffy! I’m obsessed with pugs, and Steve Harvey shows up in my nightmares a lot, can anyone tell me why?

Eli Hiller

Heyyo! I’m a senior studying photojournalism and environmental geography at OU. Yes, not a single one of my classes overlap. I grew up in the Athens area and I fully embrace the identity of a townie. I enjoy humming Frank Sinatra tunes, dancing salsa at Fiesta Latina and taking long bike rides on the Hocking Adena bikeway. I fell in love with photography during a family trip to Yellowstone, but now I’m interested in pursuing stories of people and their interactions with the environment, whether those are harmful, beneficial or somewhere in between. Pura Vida.

Rachel Rogala

I’m Rachel Rogala, a sophomore studying interactive design with a certificate in global studies - war and peace. I like to tell people’s stories in a visual way. I am currently struggling with the passion for experiencing new cultures while having a fear of flying.

Lucas Reilly

I’m Lucas Reilly, a junior studying photojournalism and Spanish. I’m from Athens, but I’d like to think I’m more than just a townie. I enjoy mountain biking and playing the guitar. I have a mustache and am fearful to make the move back to life without one.

Alexis Eichelberger

Jaci Mullally

I’m Jaci Mullally, a junior studying publication design and marketing. I’m from Youngstown, Ohio, I enjoy all things design, binge watching any and all shows on Netflix, hiking around Athens and late night trips to Dairy Queen.

34 | THE INTERACTIVIST | WINTER 2016

I’m Alexis Eichelberger, a freshman studying journalism. I like playing the piano, reading Harry Potter, petting cats and spending every extra cent I have on coffee and Wendy’s frosties. Someday I hope to work for an online publication so I can make money by spending too much time online.

Natalie Esson

Natalie Esson is a junior linguistics and English major. She is from Brunswick, Ohio and watches too many TV shows. She plays the clarinet and really enjoys nachos.

Lauren Settlemyre

Hey there! I’m a sophomore studying publication design from Wilmington, Ohio. I enjoy alternative music, cats, drawing, patterned shirts, photography, playing the piano, traveling and volleyball. My all-time favorite show is Lost, and the farthest I’ve been from home is Hawaii. Thanks for reading!

Tess Hickey

Tess is a freshman studying environmental geography, but sometimes she likes to write things. Her free-time activities include visiting spooky places, conversing in German, listening to 80’s music and making all of the breakfast foods.

Amanda Damelio

I’m Amanda Damelio, a sophomore studying photojournalism and español. No matter how bad my day is, I know that chocolate, Will Ferrell and burritos will always have my back. Being a Cali native, I am proof that California girls are unforgettable, daisy dukes, bikinis on top. I firmly believe that minions are better than people and statement necklaces can be worn with any outfit. Now as my aforementioned spirit animal would say… stay classy San Diego.

Dani Bartley

I’m Dani Bartley, a sophomore from Pittsburgh studying commercial photography with an integrated media minor. My favorite things are running, hiking, the color yellow and the Arctic Monkeys. I love long walks on the beach, I’m a Scorpio, my spirit animal is a baby deer and I am also quite terrible at writing blurbs.

Carolyn Rogers

Carolyn Rogers is a freshman studying photojournalism and a New Yorker who found her way to Ohio. She is also a feminist and pizza lover who binge watches Netflix.

Jessica Hill Maddi Rotunda

Maddi Rotunda is a freshman in the College of Business, though her passions for the arts and social activism suggest otherwise. She spends too much free time playing Neko Atsume and Photoshopping Dr. Phil’s face onto other celebrity bodies.

Jessica Hill is a freshman double majoring in journalism and global studies. She has a passion for traveling, Netflix and Mexican food.

Maddie Pinney

Maddie Pinney is a second year student in the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism. She is the founder and managing editor of Jettison Magazine. She likes writing notes to her buddies, having existential crises and putting M&M’s in popcorn. 35

ACTIVIST

agenda Winter 2016

February 19, 2016

Food Fusion Fundraising Dinner United Campus Ministry

Volunteer with United Campus Ministry

February 20, 2016

Athens is rich with opportunities to get involved. Give back to your community:

14th Annual Good Works Walk 8:30 AM - 1:00 PM First United Methodist Church 2 South College St., Athens, OH

March 7, 2016 - March 12, 2016 Pride Week 2016 Ohio University

Email Melissa Wales at melissa@ucmathens.org See UCM’s schedule at www.ucmathens.org

Rural Action http://ruralaction.org/get-involved/ Live Healthy Appalachia www.livehealthyappalachia.org/

March 13, 2016

International Women’s Day Festival 2:00 PM - 6:00 PM Baker Ballroom

March 24, 2016 - March 25, 2016

2016 Baker Peace Conference “History, War, and the Shaping of the Modern Middle East” Panels Baker Ballroom A

PICTURED ABOVE: Tim Stephens bends down to weed a garden plot as the sun sets on Sunday Oct. 4, 2015. On weekends, Tim will work long days and evenings to make up for time lost when he was working his day job. (From Living More, Choosing Less featured on page 4) | PHOTO BY ELI HILLER