October 15, 2020

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2020

Former LGBT Center Director sues OU PG 5 Lack of broadband internet poses issues with virtual schooling PG 8 Ohio football captains prepare for a shortened season PG 17

Lacing Up: Looking at the resurgence of skating during COVID-19

FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK

Burnout is real, even with virtual classes

W MOLLY SCHRAMM EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

e’ve just passed the midpoint of Fall Semester at Ohio University. Unlike any semester before, this fall has been filled with adjustments, disappointments and necessary precautions to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Students have had to adapt to virtual classes, but despite the change in atmosphere, burnout is still a real thing among many students.

For the average student, burnout usually hits right in the middle of the semester when everything starts to build toward finals. Midterms are scheduled for every class, homework assignments are still mounting and motivation levels are running thin. It’s a tough time in the semester, and arguably, the virtual setting has amplified the effects of burnout.

I think I speak for most college students dealing with virtual course loads when I say that their motivation levels were never super high this fall. Going into the semester knowing you’d never actually meet your professor or classmates was a letdown in itself. Now, it’s sort of hard to fathom what the point of classes is when things start to get tough. Material seems to go in one ear and out the other,

assignments seem more like busywork than actual learning tools and, ultimately, it seems like Fall Semester is a big waste of your tuition dollars. This is a fair feeling. But I’m also here to tell you that you need to push through it.

Mid-semester slumps aren’t anything new, and if you have years of college ahead of you, then I’m afraid to say it probably isn’t going to be your last bout of lack of motivation. Nonetheless, you’re underestimating yourself if you think you can’t get through it.

By now, if you’ve paid the least amount of attention needed, you should know your class schedule — I hope. Along with your schedule, you should have a rough idea of when your weekly class assignments are due. If you don’t already have one, buy a planner, write those dates down and stick to that agenda like it’s your lifeline. Following along to this should be the first step in making it through the latter half of the Fall Semester.

Furthermore, if you truly are struggling, reach out to your professors. Most professors at OU are more than caring and willing to help you, but you have to take that initiative and ask for help. If you didn’t already know, there’s no shame in asking for help or assistance.

In terms of motivation levels and overall mental health, it’s important — more important than grades, dare I say — that you put yourself first and take care of yourself.

Whether it be by taking a social media hiatus, meeting up with friends for a socially distanced activity or simply bingeing your favorite TV show for the nth time (my current favorite is Criminal Minds), finding a way to destress and enjoy yourself is crucial in the world’s current chaos.

While it currently doesn’t feel like it, the mid-semester slump will fade, and we’ll all get on with our lives. The COVID-19 pandemic has amplified any hardships we’ve been faced with, but it’s important to not let that deter you from enjoying Fall Semester and hopefully keeping your grades afloat. Hang in there, Bobcats. Winter break is only roughly seven weeks away.

Molly Schramm is a senior studying journalism at Ohio University and the editor-in-chief of The Post. Have questions? Email Molly at ms660416@ohio.edu or tweet her @_molly_731.

COVER PHOTO BY KELSEY BOEING

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Molly Schramm MANAGING EDITOR Baylee DeMuth DIGITAL MANAGING EDITOR Matthew Geiger EDITORIAL NEWS EDITORS Abby Miller, Nolan Simmons ASST. NEWS EDITOR Ian McKenzie LONG-FORM EDITOR Shelby Campbell SPORTS EDITORS Jack Gleckler, J.L. Kirven CULTURE EDITOR Riley Runnells ASST. CULTURE EDITOR Keri Johnson OPINION EDITOR Noah Wright ASST. OPINION EDITOR Mikayla Rochelle THE BEAT EDITOR Madyson Lewellyn ASST. THE BEAT EDITOR Emma Dollenmayer COPY CHIEF Bre Offenberger SLOT EDITORS Eli Feazell, Anna Garnai, Katey Kruback, Molly Powers ART ART DIRECTOR Mary Berger ASST. ART DIRECTOR Olivia Juenger DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Kelsey Boeing PHOTO EDITOR Nate Swanson DIGITAL WEB DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Brianna Lender SOCIAL MEDIA DIRECTOR Taylor Burnette DIRECTOR OF MULTIMEDIA Ethan Sands BUSINESS STUDENT MEDIA SALES INTERNSHIP MANAGER Andrea Lewis

2 / OCT. 15, 2020

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NEWS BRIEFS

Three university dorms vacated due to COVID-19 outbreaks; city of Athens to support ABBY MILLER NEWS EDITOR CITY DISCUSSES PLANS FOR HELPING ARTS/WEST DURING COVID-19 City Council discussed its plans for helping the local business ARTS/West with its operations amid the COVID-19 pandemic during its Monday meeting.

Currently, ARTS/West is closed because of the financial struggles it has taken on due to the pandemic. Athens Mayor Steve Patterson suggested providing streaming services to the business so it could safely reopen during a previous meeting, and after the city received funds through the CARES Act, the plan may come to fruition.

Patterson said broadcasting equipment purchased through the funds could allow for ARTS/West to reopen.

Councilwoman Beth Clodfelter, D-At Large, also favored the idea. She said the purchase would be a good use of CARES Act money and could help ARTS/West with its operations even after the pandemic subsides.

The auditor’s office received the second round of CARES Act relief funding, which totals $884,211.16.

THREE OU RESIDENCE HALLS VACATED DUE TO COVID-19 OUTBREAKS, CONCERNS Boyd, Tiffin and Jefferson halls had all of their residents move into quarantine and isolation rooms under instruction from the Athens City-County Health Department after multi-

ple COVID-19 outbreaks.

Boyd Hall was the first university hall to relocate residents. On Oct. 9, 19 of Boyd’s 94 residents tested positive for COVID-19. Those students were immediately relocated into isolation dorms.

The other 75 Boyd residents were considered “close contacts” who share living spaces and activities with the students who tested positive. Therefore, under university COVID-19 guidelines, those students were moved into quarantine rooms on campus.

All the students will be in quarantine or isolation until Oct. 21, according to a media release.

Tiffin and Jefferson halls went through similar procedures Tuesday. In Jefferson, 16 of the 69 residents tested positive for COVID-19. Twenty-two of Tiffin’s 78 residents also tested positive.

Students from those halls will be in quarantine until Oct. 25.

Students from all of these halls will be provided with meals and other university services during their quarantine periods.

The university is also working with instructors on how students will do their coursework remotely.

OU President Duane Nellis said in a media release the increasing COVID-19 cases in residence halls should serve as a reminder to students to take public health guidelines seriously.

As of Oct. 12, 39 university quarantine spaces are in use, and 98 isolation spaces are in use, according to the COVID-19 dashboard.

OU LAUNCHES PUBLIC WEBPAGE OUTLINING EXECUTIVE SALARIES, BONUSES Ohio University released a webpage Oct. 9 listing the salaries and bonuses given to high-level administrators in the midst of public outcry over the senior vice president for finance and administration’s large upcoming bonus.

The webpage contains salaries for members of the President’s Council and academic deans, information on why bonuses are awarded and market comparisons, according to the page.

Market comparisons are provided for members of the President’s Council. Some institutions used for market comparisons include Bowling Green State University, Ohio State University and the University of Akron, according to the web page. National institutions from the university’s “official peer set” are also used.

Pay base is most commonly aligned to the market median, according to the page.

Deb Shaffer will receive a bonus of $100,000 on June 30, 2023, according to the page. She does not receive any annual bonuses or additional allowances at this time.

@ABBLAWRENCE AM166317@OHIO.EDU

POLICE BLOTTER

Man’s car found in river; maple syrup found in gas tank GRANT RITCHEY FOR THE POST

any outstanding warrants from the Athens Municipal Court and Adult Parole Authority. An investigation for further charges is possible.

The driver was uninjured and seemed to back his car into the pond while he was trying to turn around. A tow truck was called, and the driver was given a ride home.

ELEVATOR SHUTDOWN The Athens Fire Department was alerted about a resident of Heritage Commons being stuck in an elevator between the second and third floors.

AFD used a hydraulic bypass valve to lower the elevator to the ground floor. The resident was let out of the elevator, and the elevator system was turned off for further inspection.

GARAGE BAND The Athens County Sheriff’s Office responded to a suspicious activity complaint in Jacksonville. The complaint was directed toward suspicious people making noise in a garage. Deputies patrolled the area but found no such activity.

MAPLE SYRUP MISHAP The Athens County Sheriff’s Office responded to Amesville in regards to a criminal mischief complaint.

The caller said his ex-girlfriend poured maple syrup in his mother’s car’s gas tank. The vehicle was disabled until more gasoline was added to the vehicle.

TRAFFIC STOP SHOWDOWN As officers from the Athens Police Department were conducting a traffic stop, the driver of the stopped car fled the vehicle on foot toward the Laurels of Athens on Columbus Circle.

While officers were searching for the driver, they heard supposed gunshots in the area behind the Laurels of Athens. The Ohio State Highway Air Unit was called in and located the driver in the field behind the Laurels. The suspect was taken into custody without 4 / OCT. 15, 2020

SUSPICIOUS STROLLER The Athens County Sheriff’s Office responded to a suspicious person call in The Plains.

The call was directed toward a man wearing a camouflage jacket walking with a knife and pushing a baby stroller. Deputies located the man, but he wasn’t carrying a knife nor pushing a baby stroller. The man voluntarily provided identification and was released.

HOMEMADE SUBMARINE The Athens County Sheriff’s Office responded to State Route 691 for a report of a crashed car in a pond.

@RITCHEY_GRANT GR619615@OHIO.EDU

Former LGBT Center director sues OU for discrimination ABBY MILLER NEWS EDITOR Former director of Ohio University’s LGBT Center delfin bautista filed two lawsuits against Ohio University, alleging the university discriminated against them based on gender identity and sexual orientation and unfairly required them to pay back work expenses. bautista uses they/them pronouns and does not capitalize their name.

The first lawsuit was filed Sunday in the Southern District Court of Ohio by Athens-based lawyer Michael Fradin. The lawsuit alleges the university and its vice president for Diversity and Inclusion, Gigi Secuban, violated Title IX through creating a hostile work environment.

The suit also alleges bautista’s claims of discrimination, based on their gender identity and sexual orientation, were not taken seriously by the university.

The suit alleges Secuban, who was hired in 2018, treated bautista unfairly in comparison to other offices within the division of Diversity and Inclusion.

Within a two-month span, Secuban only visited the center three times, according to the suit. She would often not stay long and rejected being introduced to other staff members and students in the center.

“Secuban ignored Plaintiff bautista and the LGBT Center except when there was an opportunity to chastise, castigate, intimidate, or discipline Plaintiff bautista,” according to the suit.

When Secuban did visit the center, it was often “surprise” visits that other centers were not subject to, the suit alleges. There was always an HR representative present at bautista’s meetings with Secuban. No other centers had HR representatives present at their meetings, according to the suit. bautista was also the only Diversity and Inclusion director to be audited by the university. They were never given a copy of the audit until The Post published it, and discrepancies in the audit were allegedly found.

“Books, furniture, and other miscellaneous items were included in Plaintiff bautista’s audit, while such items were not included in other Directors’ audits,” according to the suit.

Secuban often mis-gendered, mis-pronounced and dead-named bautista and others who worked at and frequented the LGBT Center.

The suit also claims the university was indifferent to Secuban’s discrimination. bautista, who was removed from their position Jan. 10, 2019, first filed a discrimination complaint against Secuban on or about Sept. 25, 2018. The suit was submitted to OU’s Office of Equity and Civil Rights Compliance, or ECRC, and compared Secuban’s treatment of bautista to other center directors. bautista submitted a second complaint to the ECRC around Oct. 3, 2018. In that complaint, they alleged Secuban’s treatment had “become more intense,” according to the suit.

In those complaints, bautista said they wondered whether the discrimination was because they are Latinx or because Secuban perceived them as male, according to a previous Post report.

An investigator from the ECRC found that bautista’s complaint did not meet OU’s definition of discrimination or harassment, according to that same Post report. bautista demands a trial by jury and compensation for unpaid wages, among other items, according to the suit.

The second suit was filed by Fradin on Monday in the Ohio Court of Claims. It alleges the university broke U.S. labor laws and other Ohio laws.

This is a class action suit expected to represent 40 or more university employees, according to the suit. bautista, and similarly ranked employees who would be eligible to join the suit, were “frequently forced” to pay back sales taxes, business meal expenses and travel insurance expenses made using OU purchasing cards, according to the suit. bautista was also mandated to pay back money spent on tips for business meals, office snacks and business travel insurance. The purchases were all work-related,

which made pay-backs “an illegal reduction of Plaintiff bautista’s salary,” according to the suit.

The suit also alleges that bautista was not paid overtime despite working over maximum weekly hours due to their position being classified as “overtime exempt.”

National labor laws state “an employee must be paid a predetermined and fixed salary that is not subject to reduction because of variations in the quality or quantity of work performed,” according to the suit.

Because bautista was ordered to pay back some work-related expenses, they are being subjected to a salary reduction and, therefore, were “incorrectly classified as an … overtime exempt employee.”

The suit seeks compensation for those lost overtime wages for bautista and other members of the class action, according to the suit.

@ABBLAWRENCE AM166317@OHIO.EDU

delfin bautista poses for a portrait in Ohio University’s LGBT Center on Monday, Sept. 24, 2018.

(MIDGE MAZUR | FOR THE POST)

THEPOSTATHENS.COM / 5

‘Red Zone’ sees dip in sexual assault reports Fewer students on campus due to COVID-19 pandemic likely causing decrease in reported sexual assaults during red zone ANNA MILLAR FOR THE POST There have been fewer reports of sexual assault in Athens during the “red zone” this year than in past years, likely due to the reduced number of students on campus during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The first five to eight weeks of the college semester are known as the “red zone,” when around 50% of on-campus sexual assaults occur, according to the Psychology Today website. There have been fewer cases of sexual assault reported to both the Ohio University Police Department and the Athens Police Department during that period this semester than in past fall semesters.

Between Aug. 1 and Sept. 16, OUPD received one rape report, zero gross sexual imposition reports, zero sexual imposition reports and zero sexual battery reports.

APD received zero rape reports, zero sexual imposition reports and zero sexual battery reports during the same period this semester.

During the same period last Fall Semester, OUPD received two rape reports, zero gross sexual imposition reports, one sexual imposition and zero sexual battery reports. APD received four rape reports, one sexual battery report and zero sexual imposition reports during the same period.

These decreases are in large part due to the reduced number of students on campus because of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Athens County Prosecutor’s office. Normally, the prosecutor’s office sees the most sexual assault cases during the red zone period, a pattern that repeats year after year.

The prosecutor’s office has requested to take part in OU’s orientation to help bring about awareness of sexual assault on campus and when it is most preva-

lent. However, that goal has yet to be achieved.

The prosecutor’s office created the Sexual Assault Resource Collaborative in 2014, a collaborative group of many different sexual assault resources within Athens, including OUPD, APD, the Survivor Advocacy Program, the prosecutor’s office and others.

Though the pandemic has in part helped to decrease the number of reported sexual assaults on campus during the red zone, that does not mean they do not occur. Victims of sexual assault can contact OUPD, APD, SAP and other nearby organizations for help and support.

@ANNAMILLAR16 AM157219@OHIO.EDU

GRAPHIC BY MARY BERGER 6 / OCT. 15, 2020

GAMES

THEPOSTATHENS.COM / 7

Creating a Connection Southeast Ohio schools adjust for virtual learning JILLIAN CRAIG SENIOR WRITER

Instead of having a normal school year teaching kindergarteners in person, Christa Benson, a teacher at Belpre Elementary School, now logs onto Zoom to teach her class.

She used to lean over their shoulders to point out a problem. Now, however, Benson is making sure she can actually hear her students clearly when they’re unmuted in a meeting. She held her students’ hands to help train their muscles to hold pencils correctly, but she can’t even touch them now.

8 / OCT. 15, 2020

Those are challenges that occur even with good internet connection. Without it, their faces are blurry and their speech is interrupted, even “robotic,” Benson said. Students and teachers are finding poor internet access in Southeast Ohio brings an added challenge to trying to learn remotely.

“I don’t feel like I’m doing them justice,” Benson said. “I do not feel like I’m teaching at the level that I would be in class, especially because they are kindergarteners, and many of them have not had preschool experience, so they’re not getting the things that they would in class that are not necessarily academically related.”

Belpre City School District is trying to help families who do not have proper a internet connection and who chose to learn online this year by offering to use Wi-Fi available outside of district buildings and, in the future, broadcast the district’s network into homes within the district.

“At least in our district, some kids are in outlying areas where there really isn’t a physical supply (of internet access),” Jeffrey Greenley, superintendent of Belpre City School District, said.

“But then, we have Belpre itself, where we have some folks that are lower (income) and just don’t have the means to have internet in their home.”

Compounding on those initial connectivity problems, during one of Benson’s lessons, a construction crew hit a phone line while working in front of the elementary school.

Families that live near the school didn’t have internet for the majority of the school day. Instead of teaching the nine to 10 students she normally sees during live lessons, she was teaching two to three students. “(My students) were really frustrated because they prefer to be live and then they had to wait for the recording because of their internet outage,” Benson said.

Belpre City School District, as well as Athens City School District and Federal Hocking School District, received money from the BroadbandOhio Connectivity Grant, which provides state funding through the federal CARES Act to extend broadband services in Ohio. With this money, schools can “provide hotspots and internet-enabled devices to students for purchases made between July 1 and December 30, 2020,” according to the Ohio Department of Education.

That grant helped more people who attend schools within the Athens City School District, but it could not help out everyone. Tom Gibbs, superintendent of Athens City Schools, said there were about 30 families that were able to get help from this grant. There are still 15 to 20 families, however, that still can’t get internet in their homes, so they have to drive to a public Wi-Fi hotspot.

For the Federal Hocking School District, though, money can only do so much to help the problem. David Hanning, superintendent of Federal Hocking School District, was giv-

en $150,000 from the BroadbandOhio Connectivity Grant, but he said he cannot find ways to provide internet to students who need it.

“But the problem that I’ve had is even with $150,000 to help support that work, we still can’t do it because we don’t have the technology infrastructure to do it,” Hanning said.

“I reached out to Spectrum. I reached out to Frontier, and I reached out to a company called Windstream … And I gave them a list of addresses of our students that didn’t have internet to see if we could get them internet, and then the school could pay for it with that broadband grant. But what I’m finding is that they just don’t serve a lot of those areas.”

Economic factors for families in the Federal Hocking School District add to the challenge of not having proper internet access.

“You know, we’re just not equipped to have a remote learning situation,” Hanning said. “And then when you look at the fact that we’re also a high poverty school district. Economic factors make it an even bigger challenge for families to be in that mode because a lot of parents work. I think it’s become very, very stressful for students, for parents, for teachers. It makes the teaching obviously a lot more difficult, so we’re struggling to know how best to support our teachers, as they, as we asked them to do this very, very difficult work.”

Tamitha Thompson is the grandparent of a kindergarten student at Belpre Elementary School, and she finds that while learning online can be inconvenient, kindergarten for her grandson has gone well so far this year.

“You know, sometimes it’s a little stressful trying to get them on to the live classes because I may have meetings or things I need to do, so that can be a little stressful,” Thompson said. “But we try to do as many of the live meetings as we can or the live schooling as we can. Mrs. Benson records them for everybody, so if they’re not able to attend live, then we’re able to go back to the recorded.”

Despite the connectivity troubles that other students are having, Thompson said she has more difficulties with working on the school-issued Chromebooks for assignments.

“Working with the Chromebook, I wish there were more options,” Thompson said, referring to how her grandchild’s work is uploaded. “So that’s a little technical difficulty that, you know, we experienced from time to time, but, I mean, (no issues are) so great that we can’t manage it.”

There are other issues that have been brought from learning remotely from home, such as being able to have a device to use for online learning, parenting an online student and truancy.

Belpre City Schools also has to make sure there are enough Chromebooks for students to use.

“We have had a supply of Chromebooks, and it’s been a challenge to have enough devices to split up,” Greenley said.

“I think that’s been exacerbated by some of the manufacturing issues. I think we placed an order in May, and we didn’t receive Chromebooks until the middle of August. And I think if you order now, you don’t get them until February.”

Although the Athens City School District does not have the same issue of trying to make sure everyone has a Chromebook or internet access issues to the extent of Federal Hocking, truancy is a concern that persists for online learning.

“In some instances, we’ve had to work with the county prosecutor’s office this year, (it) created a new position where they will make contacts with families that aren’t participating in instruction, just knowing that being online may be a little bit more difficult for families,” Gibbs said. “We’ve had to work with them on a couple of instances, and then in some instances we just can’t find the students. And we’ve worked children’s services to try to locate where they might be and if they need assistance.”

“

I don’t feel like I’m doing them justice. I do not feel like I’m teaching at the level that I would be in class, especially because they are kindergarteners, and many of them have not had preschool experience, so they’re not getting the things that they would in class that are not necessarily academically related.”

-Christa Benson, a teacher at Belpre Elementary School

It is a shared hope among those teaching and facilitating online learning that virtual learning during COVID-19 will further expose to government officials in Ohio how poor the internet access is for people who live and work in Southeast Ohio.

“If we want Appalachian and rural students to compete with students across the country, these are basic building blocks that are requisite to be able to compete in a 21st century economy,” Greenley said. “And I understand the concerns about cost, that last mile of internet, and those kinds of things, but if we really believe what we say, which is equitable outcomes for all kids, it’s a critical need that needs to be addressed from a state level funding item.”

@JILLIANCRAIG18 JC986517@OHIO.EDU

ILLUSTRATIONS BY OLIVIA JUENGER

THEPOSTATHENS.COM / 9

Science majors persevere during pandemic RYAN MAXIN FOR THE POST Taking a science course in college is difficult enough on its own, but now that many classes are offered in a virtual format, the laboratory component of these courses presents a unique set of issues.

Professors in these types of fields — namely, biology, chemistry and physics — had to get creative with how to present a course’s content.

McKenna Beitzel, a freshman studying chemistry — pre-dentistry, said despite the difficulties of learning online, the accommodations made by some of her professors in their coverage of lab content are really helpful.

“I think that (my professors) actually are doing a really good job, making it online-friendly,” Beitzel said.

“It’s harder to learn online, obviously, not having that face-to-face instruction, so I do think … professors are doing really good at accommodating for online.”

The actual process by which Beitzel and her classmates learn class material is indicative of the monumental role that technology plays in the education of today’s students.

One of her professors records videos of the labs and posts them to YouTube, Beitzel said. Then, she has to fill in an Excel sheet with data to answer post-lab questions in order to demonstrate her understanding of what was taught.

Maddie Bowman, a junior studying biological sciences pre-physician’s assistant, has labs both in person and online. Her online experience is similar to Beitzel’s.

For her in-person labs, Bowman said there are plenty of precautions taken, both with regards to physical distancing and individual use of one’s own lab materials.

In her virtual labs, Bowman said she engages in group projects online with her classmates, and there are lab manuals that she has to fill out on the computer.

Carl Brune, a physics and astronomy professor, said there are some hidden challenges to teaching at this time.

“One of the things that has been a little bit challenging for me is, how do you replace the chalkboard and demonstrate problem solving?” Brune said. “It’s a learning process to figure out what’s going to work

“

ILLUSTRATION BY OLIVIA JUENGER best for what you’re trying to do (with online classes).”

Brune also said the newness of a university-wide reliance on technology and programs that were seldom used before the pandemic has given him some problems.

“I personally felt a little bit challenged on some of the technology,” Brune said. “And we’re working

I think that (my professors) actually are doing a really good job, making it online-friendly. It’s harder to learn online, obviously, not having that face-to-face instruction, so I do think … professors are doing really good at accommodating for online.”

- McKenna Beitzel, a freshman studying chemistry — pre-dentistry

10 / OCT. 15, 2020

through it, but it’s not something that has been automatic or easy.”

Despite the struggles of teaching in an online format, Brune did mention his and his colleagues’ continued efforts to work through the novelty of online instruction.

Julie Roche, a physics professor, shed some light on the necessity of having students in person this semester, for the sake of her labs.

“If all of my students decided to be online … I’m not sure the class would have been offered,” Roche said.

“I’m trying to be as flexible as I can to try to make it work for everyone.”

Roche also congratulated her students and others for their willingness to roll with the punches during this Fall Semester of extreme uncertainty.

“I think that they are really motivated to learn and be willing to shift… I think it’s very impressive,” Roche said. “It has to be complicated … but they are doing it.

It’s really impressive.”

@RYANMAXIN RM554219@OHIO.EDU

ACRN prepares for upcoming virtual concerts ANASTASIA CARTER FOR THE POST As the university adjusts to the new normal, student organizations, such as ACRN, have been working to provide virtual entertainment to students.

After classes moved online in the spring, ACRN had to cancel numerous live shows it had planned, including LobsterFest.

“We were planning on hosting our annual music festival, LobsterFest, at the union last April, but obviously, that fell through,” Catie Bugos, a senior studying recording industry studies and the public relations director at ACRN, said. “We ended up doing a ‘quaran-stream’ series on our Twitch channel.”

ACRN brought in several artists to perform throughout the Spring Semester. It also started a GoFundMe for artists who appeared on the stream.

“People would donate to that, and it would just go straight to the artist, and it was wildly successful,” RJ Martin, a senior studying music production and the music director at ACRN, said.

The “quaran-stream” series was such a hit in the spring that ACRN decided to bring it back for another show this semester. Its first virtual show of the semester aired Sept. 26, including performances by Blood-

hounds, Birds with Vertigo and Martin.

“Without in-person shows, it’s the next best thing you can do,” Martin said. “We’ve been planning more as the year goes along.”

Without in-person shows, this raised problems over how ACRN would conduct Battle of the Bands, or BOTB. BOTB is an annual contest in which local bands can apply and play a set in order to win over the audience and gain their vote. The event is typically held in Baker Center. However, this year things have changed.

“We’ve obviously had to learn to operate in a virtual realm,” Bugos said.

This year, local bands must apply online by Oct. 15 at 5 p.m. From there, the executives at ACRN will work together to choose six bands that will have the opportunity to record 15-minute sessions with the production and visual media departments. ACRN plans to record these six bands in different outdoor locations, such as a parking garage. By doing this, it allows the executives to do their different parts in recording the band while still maintaining social distancing.

“We’ll compile those into short performances and then premiere them all on the same day,” Reese Clutter, a senior studying music production and the production manager at ACRN, said. “I am engineering those outdoor performances, the capture, the mixing

and the mastering of them with the rest of my team.”

After being recorded, the event will premiere in a stream on Twitch.

ACRN has also changed how money is raised from the event. Instead of the audience raising the money, the bands will have to pay to participate. Each band that is chosen will pay a $25 entry fee. The entry fee will go toward the $125 prize for the winner (along with an in-studio performance with ACRN) and a $25 prize for the runner-up.

The audience will still have their say in the winner.

Previously, each audience member received a ballot to choose which band they thought should win. This year with going virtual, ACRN is hoping to utilize something like Google forms for audience members to vote.

After BOTB, ACRN hopes to host a DJ party via Twitch in order to fundraise for the station.

“We want to work with local DJs because I feel like Athens DJ scene is very prominent right now,” Bugos said. “We’re still working out the kinks for that one, but that will be coming up soon as well.”

Switching to the virtual realm hasn’t been completely easy, but so far, ACRN has made it work. Each department may not get to meet as usual at the studio in Baker Center, but they continue to meet virtually.

“We’ve been keeping our numbers up, and I know we’re all really excited about Battle of the Bands coming up because it’s our first major push this year of actually getting something out,” Clutter said.

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With Love From Mar BAYLEE DEMUTH MANAGING EDITOR In her parents’ unfinished basement, Marissa Owens meticulously arranges handpressed flowers in a mold until they’re perfectly positioned. With a steady hand, she pours hot resin over her design, sealing it in gold leaf flakes to create yet another one-ofa-kind ashtray.

Owens has always been an artist at heart.

From crafting bath bombs to painting frat paddles, she’s never been afraid of experimenting with different art forms. Barely a year ago, she got into resin crafting and hasn’t looked back since. Her small business, With Love From Mar, came to fruition six months later.

Owens’ most popular products are her resin earrings and ashtrays, but her shop’s website also includes a variety of handmade trinket trays, which can be used to display one’s jewelry. Her products contain anything from dried wildflowers handpicked from her mother’s garden and miniature mushrooms to cannabis-shaped glitter and cardboard cutout butterflies. While Owens boasts an abundance of products on her shop’s website, it’s her custom orders that seem to flourish.

“Lately, I’ve been getting so many requests for custom ashtrays for birthdays, and it’s so fun because I get to hear from someone else what they know their friend will love,” Owens, a graduate student studying college student personnel, said. “I like doing those the most, and I’ve been getting a lot of them lately.”

No matter the commission, Owens needs ample time to create her products and make them just right. While the designing of an ashtray only takes her anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour, the resin isn’t completely solid and done releasing toxic fumes for at least 72 hours. For earrings, some flowers need at least a week to dry. They’re then pressed in an old Peter Pan book. But Owens doesn’t mind the tedious work, especially when the finished products turn out the way they do.

“I’m constantly trimming, editing, adjusting — just trying to make every piece as perfect as it can be,” Owens said. “I’m the kind of person who loves having a physical result of the work I’ve done, so I love seeing the work that comes from my hand arranging these small, beautiful things.”

And her hard work has paid off. Not even out of her first year, Owens has had just under 50 orders, selling to many customers in Ohio, but also as far as Washington and Colorado. Through word-of-mouth and lots of perseverance, Owens has created a name for herself and what she hopes her business accomplishes.

“I have always been a pretty whimsical person at heart … and I really have always loved that magical, forest fairy aesthetic,” Owens said. “I want people who wear my earrings to feel that little bit of magic in every piece.”

But Owens’ small business journey didn’t start as smoothly as it’s going now. She taught herself how to handle the careful craft of resin art with the help of YouTube and various resin art Facebook groups, where she would pose different questions to understand what worked and what didn’t.

Leah Allan, a senior at Ohio University studying international business, marketing and linguistics, has seen firsthand how Owens, as one of her closest friends, has grown in her resin crafting.

“I think she’s had to go through a learning curve, not only with the resin, but also with new designs,” Allan said. “So each new item is a little bit harder for her, but she gets the hang of it, and once she’s hit that learning curve, she’s cranking them out.”

Allan herself has purchased a pair of teardrop-shaped earrings with blue glitter and gold leaf from Owens and was gifted a custom pair of teardrop-shaped earrings with black tea leaves from her as well. As her friend, Allan is incredibly proud of how far Owens has come and can only imagine how far she’ll go.

“She’s gone into doing marketing research and figuring out how she can best organize

WANT MORE? NEWS CULTURE SPORTS OPINION PODCASTS 12 / OCT. 15, 2020

Products for sale from With Love From Mar in Athens, Ohio.

(KELSEY BOEING | DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY)

her platform, what color schemes are best,” Allan said. “So she’s doing more than the average Etsy shopper. I think she’s really going in and looking at how she can make it the best small business she can.”

Owens’ intricate and well-thought out work is what prompts customers like Emma Rader to keep her push notifications on whenever Owens posts about new products.

Rader, a third-year at the University of Cincinnati studying information technology, has a large collection of Owens’ jewelry, owning 20 or so pairs of her earrings.

“It’s just really nice to have local creators and support those small businesses, and with such beautiful art, I was so excited about it,” Rader said.

Owens is proud to be part of the small business and resin crafting scene, but she stresses the importance of taking proper safety precautions when handling resin.

SCAN HERE

“A lot of people on social media, you see them using it with their bare hands and no safety gear, and that can give you serious injuries,” Owens said. “So I just want to make sure people are staying safe while they’re creating.”

In the future, Owens dreams of making larger products out of resin that go beyond just jewelry, but for now, she’s content creating what she can with a whole lot of love.

“I just want my customers to know all my pieces are coming from me to you with love,” Owens said. “When you receive a package from my business, I want you to be smiling, and I want it to be something that makes your whole day.”

You can follow With Love From Mar on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok @withlovefrommar, along with visiting her website, withlovefrommar.myshopify.com.

@BAYLEEDEMUTH BD575016@OHIO.EDU

Dolly Alm makes ‘one giant leap’ toward NASA RILEY RUNNELLS CULTURE EDITOR Dolly Alm won’t stop until she achieves her dreams.

Throughout her whole life, Alm has dreamed of working for NASA and helping facilitate future human life in space. She wants to help by working with the well-being, motivation and team dynamics of NASA staff.

Now, her dream is in reach.

But it hasn’t come easy.

Alm had her first son when she was in high school. He was about 3 years old when she started her first year of college to become a nurse. Her grandmother helped her attend classes and raise a child. But after she passed away, Alm was left to be a full-time caregiver — while also taking classes and working full-time.

“You know that saying, ‘Once you take

a break, you’re most likely not going to go back?’” Alm said. “I do fall into that scenario — because life happened.”

Now at 39, Alm is a junior working toward a degree in organizational behavior, a major she designed through specialized studies.

She studies psychology within an organization, or human behavior in the workplace, and wants to enter into grad school for industrial and organizational psychology.

However, her dream remains the same: to work for NASA. It wasn’t until she took the strategic leadership onboarding class with Kim Jordan that she started to turn those dreams into a reality.

In the course, Jordan created a project where students experience strategy by creating one for themselves and their professional development. In the project, students were asked to look at an industry and identify what their dream job would be and where

Dolly Alm stands at Ohio University Lancaster Campus in Lancaster on Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020. Alm, part of a team in the NASA L’SPACE program, is currently working on a proposal for technology that NASA currently needs. The proposal “is not something I can reveal at this moment,” she said. (NATE SWANSON | PHOTO EDITOR)

they are now in terms of getting there.

Jordan’s job is to figure out how to close the gap between where her students are today and where they need to be to fulfill their dreams.

“Dolly has a big dream,” Jordan said.

“She was willing to engage with that dream.

She is a slightly non-traditional student — slightly older, so I think she comes back to school with a real passion for ‘How can I make this happen?’”

After speaking with Alm about her specific desired work for NASA, Jordan encouraged her to shake out the Bobcat tree and see if she could find some connections in the industry. What they found in their search for closing the gap was the L’SPACE program.

The NASA L’SPACE program is a free, online, interactive program open to undergraduate STEM students interested in pursuing a career with NASA. There are two academies: Mission Concept Academy and the NASA Proposal Writing and Evaluation Experience Academy.

Alm is participating in the 12-week Proposal Writing and Evaluation Experience Academy. Students get partnered in a team and work together to write a proposal for technology that NASA currently needs. At the end of the program, the winning proposal and team receive $10,000 to proceed with the concept.

Though receiving admittance into this program doesn’t guarantee an internship, Alm said it’s an important tool to have on her resume when NASA reviews her internship application in the future.

“What I hope to get out of this is a skill set because I’ve never participated in proposal writing, which will be necessary for me to receive grants in the future for research that I’m doing and working with NASA,” Alm said.

“And it’s just interesting, the amount of creativity and thoughts and how the team works together to visualize these ideas and work together to make that happen. It’s actually a phenomenal experience.”

James Richards, Alm’s oldest son, is proud to watch his mom achieve her dreams and is happy that she didn’t give up.

“Honestly, my mom’s always proven to me that she can do whatever she puts her mind

to,” Richards said. “So it’s still amazing that she goes out there and does all she does, but she’s always proven to me that if she wants to do it, she can do it.”

Jordan is not only proud to watch one of her students succeed, but also knows Alm’s story is symbolic for many other people.

“For every student on this campus, there’s a part of Dolly in them,” Jordan said. “Some students could use a little more help in bringing out that part of themselves that really does dream big and wants to have somebody help them and have a process to connect their big dream to making it happen. I hope that people read her story and see it also as an opportunity for themselves.”

As for Alm, she’s just excited to be taking tangible steps to achieving her ambition.

“Being 39 and trying to do this now, I’m so focused on me,” Alm said. “Because I think it’s time. I put everybody before me and now it’s just my time, and it’s coming together so nicely, and it’s just really exciting.”

“

For every student on this campus, there’s a part of Dolly in them.

Some students could use a little more help in bringing out that part of themselves that really does dream big and wants to have somebody help them and have a process to connect their big dream to making it happen. I hope that people read her story,and see it also as an opportunity for themselves.”

- Kim Jordan, professor of the Strategic Leadership Onboarding cours

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Pandemic introduces students to roller skating KERI JOHNSON ASST. CULTURE EDITOR The pandemic has brought about many lifestyle changes, one of them being hobbies.

People have adapted their hobbies for socially distant, COVID-friendly activities.

Within the past seven months, Ohio University students have picked up photography, sewing and latch hooking. As October marks National Roller Skating Month, it also marks a particular hobby that has taken off in 2020.

According to Google Trends, interest in rollerblading and rollerskating increased in late March and peaked in late April and early May. Justine Orr, a junior studying journalism, wasn’t new to the sport. In fact, her revived interest in skating due to the pandemic marked a return to the activity.

Orr learned how to rollerblade in first or second grade, she said, but after a couple years, her interest trailed off — until this past spring, when she bought a pair of nice skates after 12 years.

“I’ve been wanting to get back into it ever since I was a kid,” Orr said. “It’s always been right for me.”

Orr likes rollerblading because it is a good way for her to exercise.

“It gives me a purpose sometimes,” Orr said. “It really helps with my mental health and getting active in general.”

Orr said though she’s not very good, she can go pretty fast.

“It’s so rewarding,” Orr said.

Some of Orr’s favorite spots on campus to rollerblade are the Nelson parking garage, the Athens Skate Park, the Hocking-Adena Bikepath and around her neighborhood on the West Side. She has a rollerblading playlist, she said, consisting of a lot of ABBA, Fiona Apple and Stevie Wonder.

Orr said she finds rollerblading easier than roller skating. Rollerblading is a type of roller skating. According to inlineskateworld. com, there is not a huge difference between the two, other than wheel setup; however, both require a learning curve.

Maddi Butina, a senior studying journalism, prefers roller skating. Like Orr, she had experience roller skating in elementary school. It wasn’t until April when she was looking for a new hobby that she hopped on another set of wheels.

When quarantine hit and Butina was still with her family in Pennsylvania, she looked for a fun way to get out of the house.

“I don’t remember what really sparked it,” Butina said. “I started doing research online 14 / OCT. 15, 2020

and watched a ton of videos. There’s a big roller skating community online.”

Butina got some skates and went to work.

She started practicing in her driveway and said the first thing she did was fall. It took her some time to get used to the skates, but once she did, her passion was reunited.

Butina thinks the ability to skate depends

“

I’ve been wanting to get back into it ever since I was a kid. It’s always been right for me.”

- Justine Orr, a junior studying journalism, said.

on the individual, but Orr thinks everyone can –– or should try to –– rollerblade.

“I recommend it to everyone,” Orr said. “It honestly came pretty naturally to me. I have no sense of balance. I can’t skateboard for the life of me. It was really easy to pick up.”

Rylie Miller, a senior studying strategic communication, thinks one of the great things about roller skating is that, unlike ice skating, it can be done year-round. Unlike Butina and Orr, Miller picked up rollerblading just this year after she was given a pair of skates. She was inspired, in-part, by rollerblading she’d seen on TikTok. “(My cousin) who was pregnant at the time was like, ‘I have rollerblades, and I won’t be using them any time soon,” Miller said.

In April, she donned a pair of thick socks and began skating around her Cleveland neighborhood. Living next to both a metro park and empty parking lot, she had great options to learn to skate.

For Miller, rollerblading was a good way to bond with her family during the pandemic. She always skated around town with her 8-year-old sister.

“She’s a lot younger than me, obviously.

I’m a senior in college, and she’s in elementary school,” Miller said. “The pandemic is really weird for both of us. We’ve both really been able to tell how it’s altered our lives.”

For those interested in picking up the hobby, it might be best to start secondhand.

Orr, Butina and Miller all said they’ve found that skates are hard to come by and sold out at many retailers. Orr also said it is essential to get a good pair of skates.

For Butina, it’s additionally important to recognize the history of skating and its contextual origins.

“Roller skating has a deep history in African American culture,” Butina said.

Though the activity seems like it’s experiencing an online resurgence, roller skating transcends both time and circumstance.

@_KERIJOHNSON KJ153517@OHIO.EDU

Ohio University junior Justine Orr rollerblades along the bike path in Athens, Ohio on Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2020.

(KELSEY BOEING | DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY)

ARTS/West closes, community disappointed LILY ROBY CULTURE STAFF WRITER Local venue and arts center ARTS/West was temporarily shut down on Aug. 7, 2020.

After a rocky year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the creative hub at 132 W. State Street eventually announced its closure until at least Jan. 4, 2021, and placed remaining employees on furlough.

A number of individuals within Athens, both community members and former ARTS/West staff members, are disappointed by the sudden closure.

ARTS/West is funded by the city of Athens and taxpayer dollars. It essentially depends on tax funding in order to stay open. Emily Beveridge, the current program specialist at ARTS/West, said the center maintained its revenues in early 2020 at a rate similar to the past three years.

However, once the pandemic hit and ARTS/West closed briefly in March, it never really fully reopened. Emily Prince, the previous program specialist at ARTS/West from 2007-2012, said the arts center closed due to a “lack of work.”

“I feel let down,” Prince said in an email.

“I feel like, true or not, it sent a message to the Athens community that the arts are expendable or an extra or not necessary -- all of which are not true.”

There were a number of staff openings when the pandemic hit, making the situation even more difficult as it had a small staff, Beveridge said. She was actually the only employee within her department assigned to ARTS/West, other than a childcare program specialist.

Both the childcare program specialist and Beveridge were the first two full-time employee layoffs. However, Beveridge said, the layoffs are supposed to be temporary.

“When we were notified when we were laid off, we were told that these would be temporary layoffs for lack of work and that we would be reinstated into our positions on January 4, 2021, which is the beginning of the next fiscal year,” Beveridge said. “My concern with that is that the city operates year-toyear, based on the previous year’s intake, and obviously, the 2020 taxes are going to be considerably lower than the 2019 taxes because of the pandemic.”

Nonetheless, Beveridge is still worried about the status of her position.

“One of my concerns with the situation is, while the layoff may be classified right now as a temporary layoff, the budget for next year is going to be considerably worse, and at that point, the layoff could become permanent,” Beveridge said.

ARTS/West technically reopened in June after its March closure under the gallery guidelines by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine. These guidelines, which outline how classes and gallery spaces could reopen, made Beveridge optimistic for the reopening of ARTS/West.

She continued to work on ideas, such as a local socially distanced plant exchange or half-day art enrichment programs for children staying home from school. However, the arts venue was shut down under order by Terri Moore, director of the Athens Community Arts, Parks & Recreation Department.

Beveridge thinks ARTS/West could’ve stayed open, especially in a town like Athens that supports the arts.

“I absolutely think that ARTS/West could have continued to provide services to the public,” Beveridge said, adding that other arts centers such as the Dairy Barn Art Center and Stuart’s Opera House have remained open with funding.

Both Beveridge and Athens Municipal Arts Council member Chelsa Morhan questioned if there really was a lack of work or if the arts were simply left behind when budgeting tax dollars amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Morhan and others are pushing to create a Friends of ARTS/West nonprofit group, Friends of ARTS/West, in order to open up different revenue streams. Morhan, who was also a program specialist at ARTS/West from 2012-2016, expressed excitement that the Athens Municipal Arts Commission, or AMAC, recently attended a City Council meeting to address the closure of ARTS/West.

AMAC is attempting to get funding for ARTS/West through the CARES Act, a bill meant to stimulate economic growth during the pandemic, Morgan said. If it gains funding, AMAC plans to update ARTS/West’s WiFi and reopen the building as a local hotspot.

“One of the things that really bothers me … is that the arts are always the first thing to get cut because they’re not what people would call ‘essential,’” Morhan said.

For Morhan, the arts are an essential part of life.

“Art is all around us,” Morhan said. “I mean, the pictures that are hanging in your house, the movies that you watch, the books that you read — those are all forms of art. To a lot of people, they are rather essential.”

@THELILYROBY LR158117@OHIO.EDU

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HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL

Nelsonville-York’s Drew Carter prepares to throw the ball during the Buckeyes’ game against Vinton County on Friday, Sept. 18, 2020.

Nelsonville-York won the game 17-14 in double overtime. (ANTHONY WARNER | FOR THE POST)

Jagger Cain, Logan Jenkins are the Spartans’ future stars TYLER JOHNSON FOR THE POST Jagger Cain wants everyone to know that he’s “built different.”

In the sophomore’s first year as a key player for Alexander, he, along with freshman Logan Jenkins, have shown themselves to be core pieces for the Spartans’ future.

Coach Earich Dean has discussed his big plans for both Cain and Jenkins, and he’s shown his belief in the two underclassmen with how much playing time they’ve gotten this season.

The amount of pressure that comes with knowing your coach wants to build his program around you could break some players, but as Cain said, he and Jenkins are “just built different.”

16 / OCT. 15, 2020

“It’s nothing new to me,” Cain said. “(Jenkins and I) kind of had the same thing when we played in junior high together.”

It’s true: in junior high, Jenkins and Cain proved themselves to be standout players, making Dean all the more excited to coach them once he got his chance.

In a season where he has emphasized the importance of everyone being able to step up and contribute to the team whenever necessary, Dean knew it wasn’t enough to just rely on the juniors and seniors to carry the team. He needed guys like Cain and Jenkins to step up.

Dean has been especially impressed with their versatility. Losing a number of seniors last season meant the roster became thinner. When the depth goes, key players have to start getting snaps at mul-

tiple positions, and that includes Jenkins and Cain.

Dean had no worries about them getting a large volume of snaps because he trusted in their athletic ability and pension for learning quickly to allow them to make the impact he expected.

“They’ve excelled everywhere we’ve put them,” Dean said. “We’ve leaned on them, and even the older kids, the upperclassmen, they know it, and they feel very confident when we put them in positions to make plays.”

The confidence has been proven to be well-placed based on their performance this season.

Cain has three rushing touchdowns on the season, and both he and Jenkins have shown the ability to hit the big play with

multiple long rushes this season. The bigplay ability also showed itself in the kickoff game, as both Jenkins and Cain had the ability to set up Alexander with good field position with their returns.

On defense, Cain is part of an impressive Alexander secondary that includes Michael Lash and Xander Karagosian.

Even with those two standouts, Cain has shown himself to have a nose for the ball as a defensive back, recording two picks on the season.

Meanwhile, Jenkins has found himself taking snaps at outside linebacker this season, learning from senior Logan Neal and finding ways to contribute. Whether it be making plays in the running game, working within the defense to force fumbles or helping in pass coverage when needed, Jenkins has shown himself to have a do-itall ability as linebacker.

Neal, the lead running back, inside linebacker and one of the team leaders, has passed on as much knowledge as he can to both Jenkins and Cain and has helped to make sure that their jump from junior high to high school went as smoothly as possible.

With an increase in both talent and speed of the game at the high school level, the underclassmen duo appreciates Neal for stepping in as a leader whenever they’ve needed him. And they admit to needing him a lot while they’ve been learning.

With he and Neal both playing linebacker, Jenkins has found himself making sure to watch out for any callouts and orders Neal may have on the field. The freshman has been watching Neal’s tendencies intently this season, as he may be set to replace Neal when the senior graduates.

“He’s always pulling us to the side and showing us what we need to do,” Jenkins said. “Even during games, he helps me.”

As both the Jenkins and Cain duo and Alexander as a whole matures, the expectations for the Spartans grows. They want to play winning football, and they want to do it soon.

Despite the struggles the team has faced this year, Dean thinks Alexander can be a playoff team next year. He sees the talent that is on his team and believes in their ability to take the step up next season.

And he’s gotten his team to buy in as well.

“We’re going all the way,” Cain said.

Jenkins and Cain are confident about what they bring to the team and about the future of Alexander.

And when you’re built different, you can be confident.

@TYLERHJOHNSON7 TJ932016@OHIO.EDU

FOOTBALL

A trio of Ohio seniors look to make the most of 2020 J.L. KIRVEN SPORTS EDITOR For Cam Odom, Jared Dorsa and Austin Conrad, being able to play football this season has been a blessing.

A few months ago, it was unlikely the trio of seniors would ever suit up again for Ohio.

Yes, the Mid-American Conference said it would explore moving its season to the spring after postponing all fall sports Aug. 8, but the likelihood of playing two seasons in 2021 seemed improbable.

Still for Odom, Dorsa and Conrad, playing one last year for the Bobcats was a dream worth clutching to. If the season came back, they would be ready. And Sept.

25, they were.

That Friday afternoon, the Bobcats learned after 48 days, the MAC was back.

Ohio had to watch other teams play Saturdays. Now, it would be joining the fun. The Bobcats would only get a six-game season and potential shot at a MAC title. At least they finally had something to play for again.

“We were just out here practicing and not playing on Saturdays, watching other teams play,” Odom said. “So this process we’re going through right now is something we’re all excited about, and we’re looking forward to November 4th.”

The process includes COVID-19 testing four days a week, masks at all times and limited interactions with friends and family. It’s a sacrifice that’s worth it.

“Everything about this year is completely different,” Dorsa said. “It’s just the little things, you know? If you want to go to the grocery store, you have to think twice about when you go to the grocery store. I’ve been going to the grocery at 6 in the morning because I know for a fact nobody’s going to be there.”

All across the country, teams have to deal with the same hurdles as the Bobcats.

While some schools have thrived, others have failed with multiple cases of COVID-19 to show for it.

The Bobcats could be placed in the thriving category. Since the Bobcats switched to testing four times a week, no players have tested positive.

“They’ve worked tremendously hard trying to do the right things to allow us to go forward,” Ohio coach Frank Solich said. “It can be taken away from you at any time. We understand that.”

Ohio tries to maintain those numbers by wearing masks on the field, maintaining distance whenever possible. Still, the transition can be a pain.

And the Bobcats need leaders to get through it.

Not only are Odom, Dorsa and Conrad three of Ohio’s best players, but in July, the trio was named team captains alongside running back Julian Ross, center Brett Kitrell and defensive tackle Kai Caesar. Odom was the only two-year captain. For Dorsa and Conrad, it was an honor five years in the making.

“One thing I was taught growing up was to be a leader,” Conrad said. “It’s an opportunity I’ve been waiting for my whole career.”

The wait was long. However, the job won’t be. Odom, Dorsa and Conrad have three weeks until the Bobcats play Central Michigan in the season opener, and Ohio doesn’t even know who its quarterback will be. The defense has to find a way to replace All-MAC safety Javon Hagan, and don’t forget this is all happening in the midst of a pandemic.

Dorsa hopes his experience will help him lead the team to its first MAC title in 52 years. It’s not like anyone wrote him a manual on how to do it, though.

“I was good friends with Evan Crouch,

and he was a captain, but I can’t go like ‘Hey, Evan, how did you deal with your pandemic when you were here?’” Dorsa said.

Throughout it all, the Bobcats have stayed positive and locked in on their goals.

“I’ll say one thing about this group is they really have a great attitude all the way through,” Solich said.

Part of the great attitude can be attributed to the feeling of gratitude Odom, Dorsa and Conrad feel toward the season. None of the three wanted last year to be their last year.

Because of a torn tendon in his toe, Odom had his worst season as a Bobcat in 2019. He only caught 19 passes for 207 yards and zero touchdowns. After a surgery in March, Odom said he feels fine and is ready for a breakout year.

Dorsa and Conrad were the anchors of a defense that under-performed through most of the season. Eventually, the defensive problems fixed themselves, but Ohio’s chances at the MAC title were gone by then.

Because the season is back, Odom, Dorsa

and Conrad will be able to make the most of their last year. Well, if they want it to be their last year.

On Aug. 21, the NCAA granted an extra year of eligibility for all fall sport athletes, even if they played this season. Odom, Dorsa and Conrad all love the sound of coming back in 2021 and having a full senior season, but they know their lives might require them to move on.

“It’s tough because I came here for my five years, and I don’t have another degree after this,” Dorsa said. “I’m also getting married next summer, so I have a lot of life decisions to kind of work around.”

It’s not the senior season they imagined.

There will be no homecoming, no crowds, the lack of celebration can feel empty, but not for Odom, Dorsa and Conrad. No matter how this season unfolds for the trio of Ohio seniors, every game, every play and every second of it all will be a blessing.

@JL_KIRVEN JK810916@OHIO.EDU

Ohio University linebacker Jared Dorsa (#49) attempts to tackle the Marshall University offense during the Battle for the Bell on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2019. (KELSEY BOEING | DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY)

THEPOSTATHENS.COM / 17

FOOTBALL

Jeremiah Wood prepares to transition from safety to linebacker TEE WILLIS FOR THE POST On Sept. 25, Jeremiah Wood stood tired in a huddle after another hard practice — the last of the week for the Bobcats. The redshirt sophomore had heard the rumors and speculation all week long about the status of the upcoming football season.

Those rumors, however, were put to rest in a matter of seconds after the team was told that Mid-American Conference football would be returning this fall.

After learning its season was canceled a month prior, Ohio had new life, and the team’s energy was higher than it had ever been.

“We had just seen how the Big Ten was coming back, and we were really hoping that we would get the chance, too,” Wood said. “We’re excited to play and ready for any opportunity to compete for a MAC Championship.”

While Wood was excited to return to the game that runs deep through his family tree, he also knew he had a chance to show his improvement in the offseason, switching from safety to linebacker. Wood always entertained the idea of moving to the position if he didn’t play safety, so the transition wasn’t a difficult one to make.

“Really, I think knowing more about the safety position and now learning from the linebackers and the linemen have just helped me learn the whole defense,” Wood said.

Making that smooth transition is a testament to Wood’s versatility. He prides himself on his physicality and toughness combined with his quickness and ability to make tackles. He plays with a certain physical toughness but also believes much of the game is won mentally — virtues he learned early on in his football career.

Wood hails from Pickerington, home of NFL players Taco Charlton, Jake Butt and Pat Elflein as well as numerous current and former collegiate athletes. His older brother, Jamie, was a U.S. Army All-American and All-Ohio defensive back for Pickerington Central before playing three seasons at Ohio State. Although his career was cut short due to a series of injuries in his junior season, Ja18 / OCT. 15, 2020

mie’s drive and work ethic left an imprint on his younger brother.

“Since the eighth grade, getting up in the morning and working out with him or even going down to OSU when he was there and working out on their fields helped a lot,” Wood said. “Even him playing at that high of a collegiate level then helped prepare me for times like now.”

Of all the mentors and leaders that helped take his game to the next level, few rival in comparison to his high school football coach, Jay Sharrett.

Sharrett has been coaching for nearly 30 years and had the privilege of coaching the Wood brothers respectively in their time with the Pickerington Central Tigers. He’s a blue-collar coach who takes pride in tradition, hardwork and his signature brand of hard-nosed, physical football. The Tigers have had many great teams under Sharrett and a number of highly touted recruits but none as special as his 2017 squad where Wood served as a defensive captain.

The team had over a half dozen Division I college recruits and ultimately brought the school its first state championship.

“Being under Coach Sharrett and learning from him, it taught us what to do, and he really taught us more than just about football, but about being a man, too,” Wood said. “It brought us closer together, and we had a bond that most teams didn’t really have.”

That bond has been carried with him through college as well. He continues to keep in touch with his teammates at their respective schools, whether it’s through heckling in group chats or hopping on his Playstation for a few rounds of Call of Duty after practice. Their camaraderie and support keeps Wood grounded and pushes him to exceed

on the field as well.

Off the field, Wood is as laidback as it gets. When he’s not giving his all on the gridiron, Wood spends time inside with his roommates and fellow linebackers Bryce Houston and Keye Thomspon playing video games (don’t worry; he’s got his PS5 pre-ordered already). While he likes to relax, he takes his academics seriously. As a mechanical engineering student, his course load comes with its own stressors and takes up a majority of his time.

Wood has the mentality and focus that it takes to make an impact for the Bobcats, and from a leadership standpoint, he has the opportunity to learn from a solid linebacker and defensive captain in Jared Dorsa. Preparation and time are the key to Wood’s growth in becoming a threat for Ohio’s defense. As just a red-

shirt sophomore, he has time to sharpen his strengths like speed and physicality and make a difference on the field with the time he’s given.

“I want to be known for being a good player, good teammate and just a good person to be around,” Wood said. “I’d like to leave have a bigger impact than just football, but I want to have a good impact overall leaving Ohio.”

@18TEEDUB TW532416@OHIO.EDU

ILLUSTRATION BY MARY BERGER

Football: Bobcats are doing their best to adjust to COVID-19 JACK GLECKLER SPORTS EDITOR Jared Dorsa goes grocery shopping at 6 a.m. to ensure he doesn’t have to deal with a large crowd at the store. It’s not that he doesn’t like big crowds. Dorsa wants to minimize his risk of contracting COVID-19.

The redshirt senior has made adjustments to his daily life this season to keep himself healthy. Whatever changes Dorsa makes are to ensure his teammates take the field for Ohio’s season opener at Central Michigan.

“You can only do so much,” Dorsa said. “It’s just doing the little things that you don’t usually have to think about and changing your routines and how the little things that you’re doing are going to affect everybody and our chances at a season.”

The Kings Mills native has also forgone his usual plans to go home on weekends in order to limit unnecessary exposure. Dorsa is never sure who all his parents have been in contact with, so he doesn’t want to take the risk.

Dorsa isn’t alone. The Bobcats are all changing their routines to keep their hopes of a season alive. While the players care about their own health, they know they have a strong chance of beating COVID-19. The precautions they take are to protect their coaches, specifically Frank Solich.

Solich turned 76 in September and is the oldest active coach in college football.

He’s also the winningest coach in Ohio history, so the Bobcats cannot afford to put his health at risk right before the season begins.

“You can’t just think about yourself and be like, ‘Oh, if I get the disease, give me two days, and I’ll be good,’” Dorsa said. “It’s a selfish way to think about it because of the coaches. If we were to be selfish and do something and put them at risk, the consequences could be much more severe than just no games.”

After being elected team captain this season, Dorsa and fellow captain Cam Odom have taken it upon themselves to ensure the Bobcats are following procedures and staying safe. If Ohio is going to have a season, everyone has to endure it together.

Dorsa and Odom have estimated a 12-week stretch between the MAC announcing the return of fall football and the Mid-American Conference championship

in Detroit on Dec. 18. If the Bobcats can endure 12 weeks of self-containment, it will all pay off.

Odom thinks the message is getting through.

“The things that we’ve been doing right is allowing us to have these whole two weeks of practice that we’ve been having,” Odom said. “So our goal is just to keep focusing on doing the right things outside of practice so that we can continue.”

Of course, not every player is going to risk contracting COVID-19 to play football. When speaking to the media for the first time this season, Solich noted a handful of players had elected not to play this season. There weren’t many players, but it was enough to mention. The most notable opt-out was senior cornerback Marlin Brooks.

Neither Solich nor the other players harbor any bad feelings toward those who chose not to play. They can’t blame a player for putting the health of themselves or others first.

“If they’re concerned about their health, we’re all for them,” Solich said. “If it’s a situation where they don’t feel like it’s good to be in Athens or it’s good to be on this football team, that’s a decision for them.”

Solich has done the best he can to keep himself and his players at minimal risk for infection. Most team meetings this season are virtual with the occasional distanced meeting in the auditorium.

Even when the pandemic started, Ohio had its players mask up and keep safe distances.

The Bobcats have struggled to adjust to the standards they have to meet. Dorsa still finds it difficult to breathe with both pads and a mask on. He endures it, however. He knows a little discomfort is worth being able to take the field. The linebacker even thinks the pandemic will improve his leadership abilities.

“I feel lucky to be helping this team through something like this for the first time,” Dorsa said. “I was good friends with Evan Croutch, and he was a captain, but I can’t go, ‘Hey Evan, how did you deal with the pandemic when you were here?’ It’s all very, very unique for this group of seniors to try to lead whatever way we can.”

@THEJACKGLECKLER JG011517@OHIO.EDU

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THEPOSTATHENS.COM / 19

PONDERING WITH PATTERSON

The Beach Boys aren’t just for summer traordinary. It provides surf-rock gems along with an album like Pet Sounds that digs into psychedelic-pop is a sophomore studying journalism at Ohio University and art-rock. In terms of the range of discography, it’s quite incredible.

There are few things that say “ceiling stare” quite The ’60s, California, sunshine and feel-good like “God Only Knows.” It is painful, but at the same tunes ... It’s easy to see how The Beach Boys fit time, it’s stunning and intimate. The lyrics are raw: “I right into this mix but interesting to see how they may not always love you / But long as there are stars above you / You never need to doubt it / I’ll make fit into other mixes.

“Surfin’ U.S.A.” understandably doesn’t do it for me you so sure about it.” The lyrics combined with the these days as the temperature drops and midterms are instruments chosen give me exactly what I’m looking in full swing. In reality, many of The Beach Boys’ chart for. The track places you right into that vulnerable yet toppers (“Kokomo,” “Good Vibrations,” “I Get Around”) beautiful state, allowing staring off and contemplating although great, are unable to give me that “stare at the to come easy.

“Sloop John B” showcases the experimentation ceiling” kind of feeling that I’m looking for right about now. All of this considered, and as a matter of fact, used on this album. It’s a great example of the use of it usually isn’t my first instinct to crank out a Beach glockenspiel found on Pet Sounds, making the rock and Boys tune in the middle of October. However, if I take psychedelic genre elements that much more signifimy pick from 1966’s Pet Sounds, I’m able to match the cant. “Sloop John B” incorporates personal investigation hints, making it an intriguing listen: “Let me go mood perfectly.

The Beach Boys’ ability to mix these elements and, home / Why don’t they let me go home? / This is the almost more importantly, it working, makes it ex- worst trip I’ve ever been on.”

LAUREN PATTERSON

Pet Sounds demonstrates the ability to associate The Beach Boys with a less summer-y or sandy atmosphere. The album is able to be played out in October without feeling weird about longing to take up surfing, heightening the complexity of The Beach Boys. Pet Sounds can be listened to and analyzed both in instrumentals and lyrics, making it perfect for contemplation and mood-matching for the times when summer feels far away.

Lauren Patterson is a sophomore studying journalism. Please note that the views and ideas of columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to talk to Lauren?

Tweet her @lpaatt.

HONEST ADONIS

Don’t be fooled by Candace Owens ADONIS FRYER is a sophomore studying communication at Ohio University In recent years, Candace Owens has become a shining black star in conservative punditry. She’s accrued over 2.6 million followers on Twitter, just recently published a book and is the founder of Blexit, an organization aimed at persuading Black voters to leave the democratic party. While Candace Owens may be a favorite among white conservatives, don’t be fooled: she’s no Black conservative because her rhetoric is inherently anti-Black.

For starters, Owens is one of many Black political grifters who describes Black voters as living on “the democratic plantation.” That rhetoric is emotionally charged and anti-Black for two main reasons: it insults Black voters by implying they are not capable of looking at policy and deciding what’s best for them and does nothing to hold the Republican party accountable for the reasons why Black voters distance themselves.

If Owens’ rhetoric was based in any political history, she would know that Black Americans have changed their political affiliation over time depending on party platform. It’s true that an overwhelming number of 20 / OCT. 15, 2020

Black Americans are Democrats, but once upon a time, they were Republicans.

In the aftermath of the Civil War, the Republican party was progressive and contributed to the end of slavery. That, however, would switch in the aftermath of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, where Lyndon B. Johnson pursued legislation that sought equal protection for Black Americans and codified voting rights.

Many of the Dixie-Crats, southern Democrats who supported segregation, would switch to the Republican party as a result, forming our modern political coalitions. So it’s not that Black Americans are “slaves to the Democrats,” but it’s that they’re simply voting according to their interests.

Second, while Candace Owens has a massive platform, she refuses to criticize the radically racist Republicans over their deliberate attacks on Black Americans.

It’s easy to bring up the 1994 crime bill that Joe Biden signed, but it’s intellectually dishonest to not draw the same ire to the Trump’s rollbacks of Obamaera police reforms, his dismissal of police brutality, his jubilation at the fact that many Black Americans didn’t vote in 2016 and his party’s current agenda of voter suppression.

Ultimately, the problem with Owens is that she, and other so-called “Black conservatives” like Daniel Cam-

eron, Tim Scott, Burgess Owens and Larry Elder, are refusing to see the big picture. Yes, it’s true that the Democratic party has often disappointed Black voters, but that won’t be changed by cozying up to a political party whose members say that “slavery was a necessary evil” and have been indifferent to a pandemic that’s disproportionately harmed Black families.

It’s because of these reasons that no one should be fooled by Candace Owens. She’s not just trying to lead black voters from Democrats. She’s trying to lead them off a cliff.

Adonis Fryer is a sophomore studying communications at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Do you agree? Tell Adonis by emailing him at af414219@ohio.edu.

10 mask-friendly Halloween costumes JULIANA COLANT FOR THE POST

Halloween is a time to express yourself and dress outside of how you usually do. While masks have recently become part of our daily lives, they have always been custom to Halloween. This season, everyone will be rocking a mask, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still have fun dressing up. Here are 10 ideas that take the worry out of incorporating a mask in this year’s costume while keeping yourself and everyone around you safe:

Skeleton

Bring to life a spooky, scary skeleton by adding a face mask. Your look can be made more realistic by drawing a mouth on a disposable mask or buying a cloth mask with a skeleton mouth design. The iconic Jack Skellington is an easy character to copy. To draw his mouth, color two dots for a nose and thin lines to depict his signature smile. Then, all you need are skeleton-printed clothes.

The Masked Singer contestant

This hit show is perfect for mask-friendly costume inspiration; it’s even in the title. There are a multitude of eye-catching and glamorous costumes to choose from.

Binge-watch the seasons, and pick your favorite celebrity look to recreate for a one-of-a-kind costume.

Cousin Itt

Cousin Itt, from The Addams Family, is a unique costume that hides a mask and will turn heads as you walk down the street. This one is simple to DIY by watching YouTube videos. One popular way to pull off the look is by layering grass hula skirts on your body. After, you wear black sunglasses, a mask underneath the layers and a black hat.

Superhero

Superhero costumes are expected to be especially popular this year because a mask can be easily included. The options are endless, and let’s be honest, their outfits are pretty awesome. Whether you decide to go as Iron Man, Batman, the Hulk or pay tribute to Chadwick Boseman by dressing as the Black Panther, you’ll have a super costume all while staying safe.

Jack-o’-lantern

Create an authentic costume inspired by this Halloween classic. Dress up in your favorite orange clothes and add an optional stem headband. For the finishing touch, decorate your mask with a jack-o’-lantern’s iconic toothy smile. You can make this yourself by drawing on a disposable mask or using fabric markers/paint on a black cloth mask, or it can be purchased as well.

ILLUSTRATION BY OLIVIA JUENGER

Astronaut

Create an out-of-this-world outfit with a white jacket, white pants, NASA sticker and space helmet. A space helmet doubles as a mask and can be purchased or made DIY. Turn to Google and YouTube for endless tutorials.

Health care worker

This past year has proven how essential health care workers are. Show your appreciation by dressing up as one. No need to worry about adding on a mask; it is already a part of their uniform. Wear scrubs or a doctor’s coat, a stethoscope around your neck and a mask of your choice.

Carole Baskin

A recent pop culture icon from the hit Netflix show Tiger King, Carole Baskin is sure to be a trendy costume this season. Create the look with loose fit flair jeans, a leopard blouse, a flower crown and a leopard print mask. A plus is that all these items can be used yearround, too. An optional way to amp up the look is carrying around a stuffed tiger.

Cowboy/Cowgirl

Unleash your inner wild west with a cowboy/cowgirl costume. There are many ways to create this, but some typical outfits include jeans, a flannel shirt, boots and a cowboy hat. Don’t forget to include a bandanna, which doubles as an accessory and a mask.

Ninja

Silently sneak around, making martial arts moves all night like a ninja. Wear black clothes, black shoes and a black mask or gaiter. To further the look, add a red scarf around your waist.

@JULIANA.COLANT JC079419@OHIO.EDU

THEPOSTATHENS.COM / 21

the weekender Live Healthy Appalachia hosts “Pup”kin Walk ANASTASIA CARTER FOR THE POST

As Live Healthy Appalachia celebrates its 10-year anniversary, it’s added a twist to its annual walk — which involves bringing a furry, four-legged friend.

Live Healthy Appalachia, located at 140-122 Columbus Road, is a nonprofit organization that promotes healthy lifestyles to those in Appalachia. The nonprofit traditionally puts on an event each fall.

“For several years now, we’ve had a fall walk, and it’s transitioned from the Pumpkin Roll and Stroll to the Pumpkin Hustle,” Heidi Frisch, executive director of Live Healthy Appalachia, said.

Other events Live Healthy Appalachia has put on include My First 5k, the Complete Health Improvement Program, or CHIP, the Appalachian Health Summit and Live Healthy Kids. This year, though, Live Healthy wanted to do something new.

“Every few years, it’s a good idea to kind of refresh your event,” Frisch said. “So last year, after the Pumpkin Hustle, we thought, ‘What else might we add to spice it up a little bit?’”

The answer, Frisch said, was dogs.

The “Pup”kin Walk is a socially distanced walk for people and their dogs. The event is this year’s “Anni-fur-sary” celebration. People can register on Live Healthy Appalachia’s webpage for the event.

Once signed up, Live Healthy Appalachia will send instructions on to registrants on how to participate in the walk. To encourage safety, the participants have three separate entrances to choose from: the Athens Community Center, at 701 E. State Street; Eclipse Company Store, at 11309 Jackson Dr., The Plains; and Hocking College, at 3301 Hocking Parkway, Nelsonville. All dogs must be leashed. The walk runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The walk will have turnaround markers, but people can turn around or walk further whenever they want, Laura Olbers, director of children’s programs at Live Healthy Appalachia, said.

With no time restraint, participants can start and end whenever they feel like it.

“In previous years, (in) the Pumpkin Hustle, everybody has the same start time,” Olbers said. “(The “Pup”kin Walk) is kind of a one-and-done sort of deal.”

Live Healthy Appalachia is also allowing day-of registration at the event.

“We typically do have a good turnout of day-of registrants,” Olbers said. “We’re hoping that (people continue to) follow the trend (this year).”

22 / OCT. 15, 2020

The event is $15 per person and $40 per family.

Dogs are not required, simply encouraged. At the walk, dogs will receive homemade dog treats and a festive bandana.

“I am working on sewing the bandanas that we will give out to our four-legged participants,” Olbers said.

Participants also have the opportunity to enter a raffle to win a dog goody basket donated by Friendly Paws Pet Supplies, a locally owned pet supply and grooming business.

To enter the raffle, participants text “Livehealthy” to 44321. This will provide them with a link where they can donate money. One dollar donated is equal to one raffle ticket.

“During these times, a lot of people find it hard to find things to do,” Reilly McIntyre, a freshman studying communications, said in a text message. “This (walk) gives them a great opportunity to get involved.

The money raised for the event goes toward Live Healthy Appalachia and will help the nonprofit with its expenses throughout the year. The event is what Live Healthy Appalachia is all about: healthy family fun.

“The primary goal of this is to get people out and moving because that’s part of our mission,” Frisch said.

“We promote active living, so we just want as many people to come out as possible and just walk.” @ACARTER3602 AC732319@OHIO.EDU

IF YOU GO WHAT: “Pup”kin Walk WHEN: Saturday, Oct. 17, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

WHERE: Athens Community Center, 701 E. State Street; Eclipse Company Store, 11309 Jackson Dr., The Plains, Ohio; and Hocking College, 3301 Hocking Parkway, Nelsonville, Ohio ADMISSION: $15 per person, $40 per family

WHAT’S GOING ON? Enjoy a Shabbat dinner to-go, shop some local art TAYLOR BURNETTE SOCIAL MEDIA DIRECTOR

FRIDAY OCT. 16 Shabbat To-Go at 4 p.m., hosted by Hillel at Ohio University. Although Hillel cannot host Shabbat in person, they still want to make your Shabbat dinner experience enjoyable. Sign up each week to receive a delicious kosher Shabbat meal with everything you need to bring in Shabbat to your residence with roommates or loved ones. Don’t forget to join them on Zoom every Friday at 6 p.m. EST for services.

Admission: Free

are welcome as well.

Admission: Free Autumn Days Are Here Again at 1 p.m. at White’s Mill, 2 Whites Mill Dr. Come out and celebrate the arrival of autumn with Hocking Valley Bank at White’s Mill. Although many things have been canceled, the change of the season has not.

This socially responsible event will require masks and social distancing. Kids will receive a treat and a pumpkin to take home and carve.

Admission: Free Online/Zoom OR Outdoor Power Flow with Liz at 10 a.m. at Bodhi Tree Studio, 8950 Lavelle Road, or online. Focusing on breathing and technique, this is a vigorous class designed to develop strength and mobility in the body and mind and an overall sense of well-being and peace in the flow of life.

PRACTICE S AFE SIX

Admission: Free to try on Zoom, must sign up

@TAYLORBURNETTE_ TB040917@OHIO.EDU

STAY INFORMED WASH YOUR H ANDS AVOID CLOSE CON TACT WEAR A MASK CLEAN AND DISINFECT MONI TOR YOUR H EALTH

SATURDAY, OCT. 17 Womyn’s Art Collective Fall Pop Up Art Sale at 10 a.m. at Kindred Market, 284 E. State St. Members of the Womyn’s Art Collective will be selling their artwork in the parking lot of Kindred Market. Masks and social distancing are required.

Admission: Free

BE S AF E B O B CATS. DIVISION OF STUDENT AFFAIRS

“Pup”kin Walk at 10 a.m. at the Athens Community Center, 701 E. State St. Celebrate the 10th anniversary of Live Healthy Appalachia with a healthy, energizing walk with your pooch. All dog participants will receive free homemade treats and a festive bandana. The walk will be socially distanced.

Those without a four-legged friend THEPOSTATHENS.COM / 23

We just launched something new.

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