New Patton College courses aim to promote diversity in classrooms

Patton College of Education implements courses increasing inclusivity and diversity

LAUREN SERGE STAFF WRITER

Ohio University’s Patton College of Education is making an effort to change the structure of current and future classrooms. The college is aiming to bring Black men into education fi elds and increase diverse learning through two new initiatives: HipHop OHIO Patton Education, or HOPE, and Brothers Rallying to Inspire and Shape Education, or Brothers RISE.

The goal of these programs is to alter the culture of modern classrooms through educating future teachers on culturally relevant teaching techniques and integrating more Black men into the fi eld.

Jason Rawls is the coordinator for both of these programs, which offi cially began this fall. Rawls is an associate professor of instruction who focuses specifi cally on the intersection of education and music.

Rawls said the inspiration for the Brothers RISE program was the statistically low presence of Black men in teaching positions.

“African American male teachers: there’s less than 1% of them in Ohio schools,” Rawls said. “So, it was initially thought of as a plan to try to attack some of that, to try to rectify that. Brothers RISE is a program developed for African American males in the College of Education. The idea is to recruit, retain and hopefully graduate them. It’s basically just making sure that they get through so that we have more African American male educators.”

Thus far, the Brothers RISE program has accounted for a 600% increase in Black males in Patton College. Robert Murphy, a member of the Patton College of Education dean’s circle of Engagement, said these efforts to increase Black male teachers in the classrooms have a signifi cant impact on the Black male students they reach.

“There’s a lot of research out there, national research, about the impact of having an African American male teacher, especially for African American students,” Murphy said. “There’s a lot of data out there on the positive impacts of having an instructor who looks like you — makes you feel a little bit more comfortable, feels like maybe they can relate to you a little bit more.”

While the Brothers RISE initiative focuses primarily on Black male students, the HOPE initiative is open to anyone. Murphy said this transition to implement hip-hop into a classroom setting will help future teachers build stronger relationships with their students and ultimately connect with them more.

“(It’s a) national movement because the hip-hop culture is so dominant,” Murphy said. “So, using that pedagogy to help educate students and then to also incorporate that into those who are going through the process of becoming teachers, they can use that pedagogy in their teaching once they start teaching.”

The HOPE program currently consists of six courses, the fi rst of which was offered this Fall Semester and the second of which will be offered in the spring. Rawls is the professor for these courses, which each utilize constructs from Hip-Hop Based Education, or HHBE, to educate teachers on the value of hip-hop within the classroom and how its aesthetics can increase student engagement.

Jaina Stanley, a freshman studying early childhood education, is currently enrolled in the introductory course “Introduction to Hip-Hop Based Education.” Stanley said the course has shown her how to connect with students in a unique and diversifi ed way.

“The class is essentially, as a whole, about being able to relate to your students at a level other than just education and teaching them in a classroom — to be able to relate to their different demographics, their different cultures and their different backgrounds,” Stanley said. “And, so far, we’ve gotten into where hip-hop started from, and how (Rawls has) used that.”

Throughout her time in the class thus far, Stanley said she has noticed how the integration of non-traditional education courses can be greatly advantageous for students. “I think it’s really benefi cial,” Stanley said. “I think it would be really benefi cial, personally, for every student who wants to be an educator or even people who are educators now to take a course like this. It really does help open your eyes to how important it is to be able to teach kids differently because they all learn different ways.”

While each of the programs has a focus on increasing the number of Black men in education positions, Rawls said the efforts made within these programs extend far beyond that specifi c demographic and can be benefi cial to all educators and students.

“The purpose of (these programs is) to defi nitely reach as many students as possible,” Rawls said. “The main thing I want people to understand is this is not just something for people that do hip-hop or not just for Black people. This is for everyone to help education and educators everywhere.”

@LAURENESERGE LS351117@OHIO.EDU

Dyslexia Awareness Month recognizes students’ need for accommodations

LAUREN SERGE STAFF WRITER

October is Dyslexia Awareness Month, which is devoted to gaining knowledge on dyslexia and recognizing those who are diagnosed with dyslexia.

Dyslexia is a learning disorder that causes diffculty with interpreting language — often through letters and symbols. This can manifest in diffculty reading, writing, sounding out and spelling words, but the disorder does not impact general intelligence.

According to the Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity, dyslexia affects 20% of the population and is the most common neurocognitive disorder. Individuals with dyslexia are often diagnosed in early childhood, and there are resources throughout their education that can provide accommodations for their learning.

These accommodations are also present within colleges and universities. At Ohio University, students with certain learning disabilities can apply for accommodations through Student Accessibility Services.

“What they do is they will list a few of the impacts that they experience,” Nina Henderson, one of OU’s accessibility coordinators, said. “So, they might say, ‘I have trouble taking notes’ or ‘I might have diffculty with exams’ or ‘I run out of time on exams’ or ‘I don’t understand what someone says.’ So, once we have the documentation about the disability … we spend a good deal of our time talking about what exactly the student experiences in their academics, and then that tends to formulate what kind of accommodations these will result in.”

Christy Perez, director of student accessibility at OU, said the accommodations for students often vary, as the situations are evaluated case by case. Perez said this focus on individualization allows for a student’s needs to be met accordingly.

“Some of the more common ones that we see for students with dyslexia or learning disabilities with reading and writing would be things like extended test time so that they have more time to read through tests,” Perez said. “Some students use readers for exams, so that might be a human reader or technology that can read the exam aloud to them. We also have a way to provide materials in an alternate format, which is a means to produce the textbook in a way that would be compatible with technology that could read books

ILLUSTRATION BY MARY BERGER

aloud to them.”

Charnel Burton, a freshman studying criminology and sociology, was diagnosed with dyslexia in frst grade. Burton said that while these accommodations do exist for students at OU and other universities, the process is rather extensive.

“They should make it way easier to apply for,” Burton said. “It’s like a sixstep process for you to even get a learning evaluation for your degree. I feel like it should be way easier; they should tell you in advance. It should be easier to get to that person … for the evaluation instead of having to call somebody or email somebody, and you go back and forth with emails.”

Through making these accommodations easier for students, Burton said it will allow them to feel less isolated in their learning differences.

“It’s the fact that dyslexia is going without being noticed,” Burton said. “If you feel like you’re struggling to learn basic things that people aren’t struggling with, don’t hesitate to go get tested.”

In diagnosing individuals earlier on, Burton said having that answer empowers individuals to know there are options available to assist in their learning.

“Once you know that you are diagnosed with dyslexia or you’re diagnosed with anything, you’re going to feel so much better because you’re going to know that you’re not alone,” Burton said. “And you’re going to know that there’s going to be ways to help you get through life.”

Despite the fact that dyslexia is a learning disorder, it does not affect the intelligence of the person with the disorder. Henderson said the assumption that dyslexia impacts intelligence causes students to feel insecure, something Henderson tries to combat when working with students.

“What I often tell students (is that) it’s not just having a learning disability. There are often self-esteem issues tied into this,” Henderson said. “I do really emphasize with students that you learn differently. This does not mean you have a low intelligence (or) you’re not capable of learning (or) you’re not capable of being successful. And we tend to teach in general in a very visually oriented method, and if that’s not someone’s strength, that can really put them at a disadvantage. So, we look at ways to capitalize on those things.”

Through learning more about dyslexia and recognizing it throughout the month of October, Perez said it helps to broaden the understanding of diverse learning experiences.

“I think it’s always important to bring awareness to different perspectives and experiences,” Perez said. “I think it’s easy to get caught up in what our own experience is and have a very narrow or limited mindset of what a typical experience is like, and so I think any time that there’s an opportunity to raise awareness or just expand our own knowledge and perspective is always really helpful in creating a more accepting and inclusive environment.”

@LAURENESERGE LS351117@OHIO.EDU

A Hidden History

KAYLA BENNETT

ASST. CULTURE EDITOR

Black history and culture in Athens County survives because of people like David Butcher, the curator of the People of Color Museum located in Stewart, just 20 minutes outside of Athens.

Butcher walks through the dimly lit museum he has curated in a pole barn just beside his house. The items, like a large collection of photos, have come from people in the community, and Butcher keeps a hold on the stories he was told by older people when he was young. He looks upon the collection with reverence, a deep respect for the past of Southeast Ohio and his ancestors who contributed to the history.

The preservation of the culture and the history of Black people in Athens County is something many residents of the region, whether permanent or here for a short time with Ohio University, have never heard of. However, there are many people working to preserve the past and the future of the community.

Butcher has spent his life educating those from around the region on the signifcance of Tabler Town, also known as Kilvert to many today. In its early days, Tabler Town was a safe town in Ohio for self-emancipated and formerly enslaved people to migrate to.

The People of Color Museum is full of historical items from people who have lived in the region. With these pieces, Butcher tells a story about the arrival of the Tabler family to the U.S. as well as the history of the town named after them.

Michael Tabler founded Tabler Town circa the 1830s because of his affection for Hannah Tabler, a formerly enslaved woman, and her children. He purchased and emancipated them from slavery, and they lived together in Tabler Town until their deaths.

For Butcher, the town has ties to his family, as Hannah was his eighth great-grandmother, strengthening his connection to the history.

However, Tabler Town has been overlooked for years, and people in the region have forgotten the importance of why the name must stay today, Butcher said. The name is tied back to Tabler Town’s roots as a safe place for formerly enslaved people and others who were discriminated against.

Butcher works toward spreading the word of Tabler Town with the People of Color Museum, for the history is much bigger than what is scratched on the surface.

He feels his ancestors bestowed the history to him, and he is dedicated to preserving it, along with their memory. It has laid the foundational, metaphorical land Athens

David Butcher stands at a grave in one of two cemeteries just outside of one of the sites he has curated into a museum to tell the stories of Black history in the region on Tuesday, Oct. 12, 2021. Butcher gives tours of the museum, which includes multiple sites within a few square miles, showing artifacts ranging from an artificial leg to art pieces depicting multiple portraits of his ancestors done by multiple artists. He hopes to keep the youth of the area involved by providing an outlet for them to create as well as learn about neglected history prevalent in the Athens region. (JESSE JARROLD-GRAPES | PHOTO EDITOR)

County sits upon today, he said.

“It is not something I studied for. It’s not something that was put in a book,” Butcher said. “There’s something that your ancestors see in you when you’re growing up that makes you the person that you are. So, I was always listening to old people, always listening to their stories. People giving me items (like) ‘Here, keep this;’ ‘Here, I want you to have this.’ I’ve done very well, but I’m getting older. And it’s up to me, not just me, but other family members as well, to see that this history is passed on to the next generation.”

All of these experiences growing up inspired him to create the People of Color Museum to honor and preserve the memory of people of color in the region.

“The long term goal of People of Color Museum is to establish a new museum in Tabler Town that will be there to help continue this story and help the community,” Butcher said. “It will be self-sustaining.”

Butcher believes the memory of his ancestors has been passed on to younger generations, like his nephews, Kitton Butcher and Christopher Butcher; niece Joanna Flowers; and Brianna Walker, a young woman residing in Tabler Town, and he hopes others fnd the willingness to learn and preserve the history as well.

The People of Color Museum is only one example of a resource on Black history in Athens County. The area has a number of other historical places to learn more about a relatively unknown history.

On North Congress Street stands Mount Zion, once a Baptist church in Athens. Now, it has turned into a landmark of preservation as a soon-to-be cultural center and economic hub for the Black community in Athens.

The group working to turn it into these things is The Mount Zion Baptist Church Preservation Society. It was launched as a non-proft in 2013, and it formed a board to help direct the mission and vision of renovating and restoring the historical monument.

After falling apart for many years due to disrepair, Mount Zion is not in facilitative use, but work toward its renovation is underway. Mount Zion was a staple gathering place for many Black families in and around the Athens area.

“Because the Black population has dwindled to a very low number, we didn’t think restoring it to the original church is (what Athens County needed),” Ada Woodson-Adams, president of The Mount Zion Baptist Church Preservation Society, said. “We thought what Athens and Athens County in the Appalachian area needed was a Black cultural space to showcase the history of the people who came to this area and who thrived for a long time in this area. This is what we’re trying to do at this point.”

The people involved in The Mount Zion Baptist Church Preservation Society have been working for years to preserve the church’s legacy. The group has worked intently on a number of projects to restore

the church to its full potential as a gathering place and historical center.

Woodson-Adams was born and raised in Nelsonville, and she was baptized and married in Mount Zion, solidifying her everlasting connection to the church.

“Mount Zion, historically speaking, has been the center of the Black cultural experiences of people who lived in this area,” Woodson-Adams said.

Athens was a safe place for people to live and thrive in the early 1800s, Woodson-Adams said, and it was a place for opportunities. But as time went on and the population began to grow, job opportunities began to diminish for Black people in the region, and many families moved away with no intention of coming back.

“My late husband and I are a rarity, that we wanted to come back and live in an area that had rejected us,” Woodson-Adams said. “Not only did we come back, but we wanted to come back and give back to the community. That’s what we did, and that’s what I’m still doing.”

Oftentimes, people are drawn to interact and engage socially with people that look like themselves, Woodson-Adams said. This was and still is diffcult for Black people in Athens today.

Woodson-Adams said in the past OU did not encourage the retention of Black professionals, leading to a lack of them in the Athens area. She said many people who have worked with Mount Zion in the past have now moved away for other opportunities, and if retention was the way it should be, this would not be a problem.

Elizabeth Williams, board member of the Mount Zion Baptist Church Preservation Society, like Woodson-Adams, said Mount Zion was a close and committed space for Black people in and around Athens. She believes OU has provided greater support for it in recent years than in years past.

“Now, I believe they are very active in preserving,” Williams said. “They live and learn.”

Butcher said he’s had not only students but also professors visit his museum and leave with a wealth of new knowledge under their belt.

“There were professors that would come here and spent their whole careers not knowing,” Butcher said. “The academia world, let’s just say, can be very complicated and diffcult, but I’m glad to see that changing. Now, I’m affliated with all kinds of professors who want to bring students down, send students down ... We’ve gotten a lot of help. That helps us preserve our story.”

Trevellya Ford-Ahmed, the communications and media director for the Mount Zion Baptist Church Preservation Society, believes the support from OU has increased tremendously but still believes there are lessons that need to be remembered and taught.

Ford-Ahmed believes there are many topics of historical importance, one being the destruction of the nationally renowned Berry Hotel in 1974. The Berry Hotel was owned and run by Edward and Martha “Mattie” Berry, who ran it during a time when Athens was hostile toward Black people. It became a renowned place in Athens and beyond for its top-notch services and memorable architecture. It was innovative for its time, Ford-Ahmed said.

Today, there is a need to educate about history of this sort, which FordAhmed, along with the other members of the preservation society, plans to make happen through projects like Mount Zion’s renovation.

With a grant from the Central Appalachian Network Fund, Ford-Ahmed was able to pitch an idea for a flm, with a working title of “Black Wall Street Athens County.” This flm is now a reality and will take an in-depth look at Black-owned businesses, schools and more that have been destroyed in Athens County over the years. The Berry Hotel is only one of these examples.

Ford-Ahmed has high hopes for the project.

Currently employed at OU, Lisa Flowers-Clements, assistant director for academic support and advising in the Offce of Multicultural Success and Retention, grew up in Washington County. She has thought a lot about Appalachia and how it is viewed today by those in the region and those coming into the region for education.

Flowers-Clements feels that today, the historical and current connection to Black people in Appalachia is not acknowledged by many in the Athens area. However, she thinks there are intentional actions behind the exclusion of people of color in this dialogue.

“I’m not sure that it’s forgotten accidentally. I think it was intentionally not included in a lot of ways,” Flowers-Clements said. “Even if we look at when someone says ‘Appalachian’ – what automatically comes to mind? It’s typically not someone of color.”

Alongside the underrepresentation of Black people in Appalachia, Flowers-Clements believes there are aspects of OU history that students are not taught that are necessary for understanding where they go to school.

“I would say it’s all of our responsibility to make sure that the history remains alive and well,” Flowers-Clements said. “And that includes me, so now I’m thinking, ‘OK, am I doing enough to make sure that this history is preserved?’ And then not just preserved but told … We also need to tell that history and speak about it and make sure that it is acknowledged when we talk about the rich history of Appalachia — that we’re including all of that rich history and not just a subsection of the history.”

As for university connections, Mount Zion has been able to collaborate with many students, feeling a sense of support from those who are eager to help whenever it’s needed.

“There’s been an awakening of information,” Williams said. “We have so much collaboration and support from the students and administration of OU at this period of time. We can always use more, but they’re very generous with their efforts … Every time we put a call out for student involvement or something, there seems to be someone that pops up and helps us out.”

Within OU, Black students from the region are able to fnd support among different student organizations and more. Winsome Chunnu-Brayda, director of OU’s Multicultural Center, said OU has worked hard to make sure there are spaces for Black students, including around 30 student organizations.

“I think it’s crucial to keep this history alive for all the groups that are at OU,” Chunnu-Brayda said. “It’s a part of the university’s history. It shows those students from those communities can learn as well as every other Bobcat can.”

Within Athens, there are businesses who contribute to Mount Zion in hopes of helping the preservation of the history crucial to understanding the region.

Riley Kinnard, the general manager at Kindred Market, said donating to places such as Mount Zion is important in cultivating relationships and connections with places making an impact on Athens. Kinnard said it was important to the business to pick organizations supporting racial equality.

Support from small businesses and other organizations in the region are an important aspect of the preservation of Black history; however, Ford-Ahmed believes the same amount of support needs to be given to Black businesses as well.

“Black entrepreneurship, buildings, business, etc., has not been given, I think, the credit or the recognition, just as so much Black history has not,” FordAhmed said.

Ford-Ahmed believes it’s important for there to not only be support for the remembrance of this history but also to support and lift up Black people in the region today.

OU is a new territory for many students, especially those don’t know the history behind their new home. With the help of the Mount Zion Baptist Church Preservation Society, Butcher, student organizations, local businesses and more, people are able to not only learn about but also help with the preservation of Black Appalachian culture and history in Athens.

“Building our future by preserving our past — that’s why we do what we do,” FordAhmed said.

The previously named Mount Zion Baptist Church stands on North Congress Street on Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021. The historic building, which is within earshot of Broneys Alumni Grill, is currently being renovated into a space that will provide a cultural and economic hub for the Black community in Athens. (JESSE JARROLD-GRAPES | PHOTO EDITOR)

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American Sign Language club provides educational opportunities for all

ILLUSTRATION BY KATIE BANECK

LINDSAY WIELONSKI

FOR THE POST

Every other Tuesday, students with varied levels of American Sign Language, or ASL, experience come together in a welcoming environment, aiming to strengthen members’ knowledge about sign language and deaf culture.

The ASL Club at Ohio University works to include all who are interested in learning about sign language in its meetings and events. The club hosts numerous events and educational opportunities, such as silent dinners, “The Amazing Race” scavenger hunt, fundraising and more.

At silent dinners, members go out to dinner together to practice conversational sign language in a low-stake environment. Participating in a silent dinner can be an eye-opening experience for all ASL students, as they observe and practice primarily signed conversation. Participants are encouraged to communicate without speaking throughout the event regardless of their levels of experience.

“Typically, at our silent dinners, if you can’t sign a word, it’s not a big deal if you say it, but the goal is to make it through the whole dinner being silent,” Mia Caine, a senior studying psychology and co-president of the ASL club, said. “Those are some of my favorite events.”

Another major event that the ASL club hosts is its annual trip to Gallaudet University, a federally chartered private and premier university for the deaf and hard of hearing in Washington, D.C.

Jake Wendling, a graduate student studying integrated health and co-president of the ASL club, said his favorite event with the ASL club was his experience on the trip to Gallaudet University the year before COVID-19 struck.

“We got to take a tour of Gallaudet,” Wendling said. “We met a bunch of deaf students. Our advisers on the trip were ... a deaf couple. They really got to show us around and everything like that. We defi nitely got a lot of culturally enriching experiences.”

ASL club members are also able to improve their skills by learning from their club’s faculty adviser, Kim Sutton, a deaf professor at OU. Sutton is an integral part of the ASL club and often attends the club’s meetings. It’s important for ASL students to interact with members of the deaf community.

“I think it’s important for people who are just starting to learn ASL to actually interact with a deaf person, not just someone who’s speaking and then signing as they speak,” Vince Dragos, a senior studying fi nance and treasurer of the ASL club, said. “It really makes you hone in on exactly what they’re signing. Even if you don’t know what they’re saying, it’s still very educational to just watch and learn between two people who are purely signing and not speaking at all.”

Although Caine, Wendling and Dragos had different introductions to ASL, they have formed a lasting relationship through the club and have fostered a deep passion for the language. They enjoy seeing students from freshmen to seniors and from ASL class levels one to six come together and connect through a shared interest.

“What I like about ASL club meetings is getting to meet people that are also passionate about ASL,” Wendling said. “It’s good to see because it’s a language that defi nitely needs (to be) advocated for in this world and in our society.”

ASL club is open to all, and no prior ASL experience is necessary. Those who are interested in joining the ASL club can contact Wendling at jw703816@ohio.edu.

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Evaluating the Mid-American Conference’s standout Week 6 performances

ELI FEAZELL

ASST. SPORTS EDITOR

The 2021 season is halfway over, and both Mid-American Conference divisions are still up for grabs after many teams have experienced unpredictable and inconsistent performances through six weeks.

Week 6 saw a handful of programs pick up their fi rst MAC wins of the season, like Akron and Eastern Michigan. Others, such as Miami and Toledo, lost a conference game for the fi rst time this year. All but four MAC teams have started conference play 1-1, evening things out for everyone except 2-0 Northern Illinois and Kent State as well as 0-2 Buffalo and Bowling Green.

Here are the top performances from around the MAC in Week 6 and what they mean for Ohio:

Standout team performance: Ball State defeats Western Michigan 4520

Ball State didn’t just have the largest margin of victory in the MAC in Week 6. It also did so over Western Michigan, one of the conference’s most threatening teams heading into Saturday. The Broncos were 4-1 overall heading into last week and made a name for themselves after taking down Pitt 44-41 in September. In Week 6, the Cardinals proved themselves to be capable of standing up to dangerous conference opposition.

Quarterback Drew Plitt led Ball State’s offense, going 15-for-25 on passing with 310 yards and four touchdowns. His top re-

ceivers were Yo’Heinz Tyler, Jalen McGaughy, Jayshon Jackson and Justin Hall. Tyler led the Cardinals with 93 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

While allowing 376 yards from Western Michigan isn’t great, Ball State’s defense made good plays throughout the afternoon. The Cardinals sacked Broncos quarterback Kaleb Eleby four times and intercepted him twice. Safeties Bryce Cosby and J.T. Wahee led Ball State in tackles with 10 and nine, respectively, and both had a tackle for a loss. Cosby also recorded a sack and forced a fumble.

Standout individual performance: Dustin Crum, quarterback, Kent State

After passing for 300 yards or more only once this season prior to Saturday, Crum had a standout night against Buffalo. The quarterback threw for a career-high 407 yards against the Bulls with three touchdowns on 22-of-36 attempts. He also found the end zone twice while on the run to add to his touchdown total.

Crum’s 407 passing yards against Buffalo makes up 31% of his season total of 1,303 yards through six games. He’s third in the MAC this

Armani Rogers #18 takes control of the fi eld against Central Michigan at Peden Stadium on Oct. 9th, 2021. (CLAY STARK | FOR THE POST) season for passing yardage and has led Kent State to a 2-0 start in conference play.

What this means for Ohio

Even if it has the worst overall record in the MAC, Ohio is still 1-1 in its conference schedule. It’s had a steady conference schedule thus far, defeating Akron after a dominant second half from its run game and staying on the heels of a profi cient Central Michigan team the week after. Only one MAC East team, Kent State, remains undefeated in the MAC.

Buffalo, which allowed over 400 passing yards in Week 6, is set to host Ohio on Saturday. The Bulls are currently ranked 10th in the MAC for passing yards allowed per game and are sixth for rushing yards allowed per game. Ohio coach Tim Albin said in his Monday press conference that Ohio needs to keep Buffalo’s defense off balance through an effective passing game, so quarterbacks Armani Rogers and Kurtis Rourke could both see big days in the air Saturday.

As for Crum, Kent State comes to Athens on Oct. 23, one week after Ohio plays Buffalo. The Bobcats pass defense has been durable this season, ranking third in the MAC for passing yards allowed per game. They did blunder against the Chippewas, however, when they allowed 257 yards and a game-winning touchdown pass from Daniel Richardson, even after picking up two interceptions. Against Crum and the Golden Flashes, the Bobcats’ secondary will have to hold strong for four quarters.

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