10 Students of the Student Center

Written by Shannon Niedzwicki, Director of the Alber Student Center.

 

As the semester comes to an end, and my first year at the marion campus is wrapping up, it is a great time to reflect on the student center and the awesome students that come in here. This campus has such a wide array of student personalities, majors, and interests. It has been a great year; I am lucky to be able to work closely with these students. Here are the ten students of the student center:

  1. The sleeper: This student you will catch sleeping in the student center after a big test, before class or during free time. They are usually on the couches or in the classroom.
  2. The world is their stage: These students will break out in song and dance at the drop of a dime. They usually have their own open mic days and plan flash mobs for the campus. They keep the student center in a great mood.
  3. The debaters:  You do not want to get into a political talk with this student. They are fierce. They strive to make change a global level and will do everything they can to get there.
  4. The engineer: This is the studious student. They are always here early in the morning and have either their math book, calculator, or laptop out. The person is usually the more responsible role model for the student center.
  5. The gamer: You will find this group of students in the office behind marion campus recreation. They get there early, and close the building down with the staff. They know everything about gaming systems, software and local restaurants.
  6. The participator: This student is down for anything. They always participate in intramural sports, the climbing wall, and anything going on in the student center. They are also known as the cheerleader of the group.
  7. Too cool for school: When talking to this student you may think they don’t like the marion campus or college in general; however they are always getting involved, they hang out at the student center all day, and they volunteer when needed.
  8. The athlete: This student is the all-around sports player. They will do anything that has a prize attached to it; the more competitive the better. You will always find this student participating in intramural sports.
  9. The veteran: You will find these student in our veterans lounge located in the Student Center. They are usually wearing a patriotic shirt and try spread awareness of their organization in the best way possible.
  10. The nontraditional: This student did not take the traditional track to college. They come into the student center when it is convenient for them; they usually have a full time job or a family at home to provide for.

Next year we will have new students; maybe some more engineers, maybe a few more participators, but all in all, the memories these kids make in the short time they are here will last a lifetime.

Cheers to a new year!

 

Do Not Hold Back!

Well I did it. I am officially done with my undergraduate degree! I will be receiving a Bachelors in English next weekend from The Ohio State University! As excited as I am, I can’t help but be a little sad. Ohio State Marion is not going to be an easy place to leave. This place has been my knowledge center for four years. I have cried here, I have laughed here, and I have made so many wonderful memories. Ohio State Marion has truly built me into the person that I am today. There have been so many people that have believed in me and pushed me even when I felt like I had no idea where to turn. I changed my major four times and yet I am actually graduating on time! I have been told so many times that my degree is too broad and I will have to receive my masters to do anything worthwhile or to even get a great job. I have been told that going to a branch campus would be a mistake. I have been told that you never will experience the world if you do not leave home at 18. To all the people telling college students and graduating high school seniors all of these things, I have a message for you. This degree has prepared me to be able to professionally write in any and every situation. Name one job where there is not some form of writing! Staying close to home was one of the best decisions I ever made in my life. I was able to financially put myself through school with minimal debt. I have had the support of my family every single step of the way throughout college. I have been able to give back to my hometown the entire time I have been in school.  I did this through speaking on behalf of all the students at the Marion campus last year at the groundbreaking of some amazing improvements to this campus. I also represented the Marion campus and Marion itself, as a member of the 2015 homecoming court. Not only was I able to participate on campus, but I also became apart of a local young adult group through Dayspring Wesleyan Church where I was able to meet new people and develop a spiritual support system that I cherish dearly. You do not have to leave home to do great things. You do not have to get the degree that everyone tells you to get. I will succeed and I will use this degree to do great things in the future. Do not ever let people tell you that you can’t do it or you are not making the best decision for yourself. They do not have to live your life, you do. So make every decision for yourself and do not let the idea of a regional campus hold you back from chasing your dreams. I am in the process of chasing mine thanks to this campus and I could not be more excited!

Poetry Behind the Scenes

So if you haven’t made it to the library this month yet you might not know that it’s National Poetry Month! The library is taking full advantage of this month! Along with a 2 displays in the Library Classroom building (one featuring the Cornfield Review and the other a Poet-Tree), there’s also a pop up display featuring some poetry books by faculty members, display cubes of famous poets, a children’s literature display, and the main attraction: Magnetic poetry!

Located right in front of the circulation desk there are two magnetic boards with countless little word magnets just waiting for you to come and create your own poem. I’ve spent quite a bit of time arranging and re-arranging words, and laughing with co-workers and patrons alike about random word mashups that sort of just come together on their own. Not only is this entertaining but I find myself sitting in front of the words and just feeling calm. There’s something soothing about a bunch of random words right in front of you sometimes, I guess.

So how did this great activity come to be? The credit goes to supervisor Deanna Bachtell. Deanna has been on board with the Campus Library 5  and 1/2 years as a student worker and 4 years as a Library Associate. Some of her personal creative writing has been featured in the Cornfield Review (2006 and 2007 issues) and she has submitted some of her creative writing to various creative writing journals. I’ve been lucky enough to read some of Deanna’s poetry and I definitely recommend it! Some of the magnets featured on magnetic poetry boards come from Deanna’s own personal magnetic poetry set. Some of Deanna’s favorite poets are Emily Dickinson and Pablo Neruda.  

Stop by the library and check out all the awesome and fun displays, and say hi to Deanna!

"Write a poem because you're epic."

“Write a poem
because you’re epic.”

Experience it All

IMG_3088Last week I had the wonderful chance to experience the International Festival on campus and all I can say is WOW! I found it so interesting that many different people found this event to be something that they wanted to be a part of. There were many families who had brought their children, there were high school students, and college students, aIMG_3084nd many different representations of culture. I had no idea that this event was something that had become so important to the community! This was completely inspiring to me. I figured that it would be mostly OSUM and MTC students but that was not the case at all! It was mostly families! Do you know what this means for this campus!? It means that we are reaching out and inviting people of all ages to come and be a part of what we are, and they are taking us up on the offer! They are feeling comfortable here and wanting to come learn here! We are inspiring young learners to not be afraid to learn about those different than you. If that is not inspiring and encouraging, than I do not know what is!

Scarlet(?) and (definitely) Gray

 

I’m not sure if this was planned or not… but I’d like to think that the people in my class just love being a Buckeye! I was wearing my Ohio State hoodie that day; I could’ve been the Scarlet to their Gray.

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Professor Turner’s Chemistry 1220 class

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Brutus Buckeye definitely approves

The Center of OSUM

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With the school year coming to a close it’s time to make that one last effort to meet new people. Take it from me, someone who met all of his friends this year during the last two weeks of my freshman year.

My schedule last year was quite different, as I had one class in the morning/afternoon and one at night. This left a lot of dead time between the two classes and often times if I didn’t feel like going home I would simply just stay at the school and sit by myself. Now as someone who considers them-self outgoing I was often times very board just sitting around though. I can remember it like it was yesterday when Matthew Meade and Nic Pomeroy invited me to come hangout with them in the current Veterans Lounge. It was pretty evident early on that our personality types mashed and we started to hangout on a more regular basis. I had never seen those guys around the school. If it hadn’t been for the student center i would have never met my two current roommates.

Luckily for any students looking to meet new people you don’t have to sit around and wait for someone to invite you hangout with them as there are plenty of activities going on in the student center. For example this Wednesday the student center will be holding a “What Not to Wear” fashion show at noon. Maybe you’ll see someone one you’ve never met or have always been interested in getting to talk to there.

The student center offers things far beyond just a friendly environment. Take the Job and Internship fair that’s going on this Thursday this is a tremendous opportunity to advance your career in whatever field you plan to pursue. My Dad always told me, “It’s not what you know in life but who you know”. Thanks to the student center you may just meet someone that can open a door for you that you would have never found.

What makes the student center so welcoming is the staff that runs it. All of the staff that works in the student center office go to OSUM or MTC. In fact if you are looking for another way to get involved you could apply to work in the student center.

The student center truly is the epicenter of campus and offers so much to every OSUM or MTC student

Campus Campaign 2016 Kicks Off

What better way to introduce this year’s Campus Campaign than a cheesy promo video? Donations this year go toward replacing the furniture in Morrill Hall’s student lobby. To learn more about Campus Campaign, visit here.

Disclaimer: not scripted, entirely improv with Amanda DeJonge behind the camera.

 

So, I’m Taking a Yoga Class…

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So, yeah, I’m in a yoga class here at The Ohio State University at Marion. And I’ve gotta tell ya – I LOVE it! I know there’s a lot of trepidation when people hear about yoga classes. I’m sure they picture what I did when I scheduled for this class: lots of “ooohmmm”s and standing on my head. They picture pain and getting out of breath or, heck, maybe even “Escape” by Rupert Holmes (I like pina coladas and getting caught in the rain! I’m not into yoga – I am into champagne!). So I’m here today to tell you all about my experience in yoga class here at OSUM!

 

#1 Hang on a minute, yo, I’m going to look ridiculous

Get. In. Line. One of my initial biggest worries about joining a yoga class was that I was going to look HORRIBLY unprepared. Sure, I may have dabbled for a summer in high school with one of those corny pregnant-yoga DVDs, but I was sure with my height I’d looklaughable.

Not true! For many in this class, there are people who have never practiced yoga. It’s one big learning experience when we’re all in there together. I never knew that my leg could cross a certain way or that I could FINALLY stretch out this one kink in my back. We’re all learning how to move our bodies in ways we haven’t before. The teacher leads us through the postures and helps us along the way.

 

#2 I don’t know how to do yoga!

It’s a good thing there’s a class for it then! When we come to class, the teacher gives us small readings that we can take home and keep for our own yoga folders. These small paragraphs explain the basics of the day, including new moves, and the namas and niyamas for the session/week. You also learn the lingo of yoga, too and the history. (More on that below!) We perform hatha yoga, which isn’t anything surprising like swinging in the air like aerial yoga or hot yoga. Hatha yoga is the jack of all trades of yoga. We not only work on basic moves but we also do meditation and relaxed breathing and even athletic stances. Our teacher even tells us about basic spine alignment and how to sit properly at a desk or how to unwind after a long night of studying and class time. Our teacher also models each of the moves before you do them. What’s really cool about this class is that you can modify the moves to fit you! Which brings me too…

 

#3 I don’t think I can… I’m going to hurt myselfdog-733832_960_720

This is a legitimate concern for some people and it may prevent them from signing up for the class – but it doesn’t have to! On the first day of class we filled out a medical sheet so she could know not only what we wanted to get from yoga (like toning and flexibility VS spiritual cleansing) but also if we had any injuries or bodily concerns. For example, I have a bit of scoliosis and I have issues in my wrists. Because of this, I can modify moves like downward dog (as modeled quite accurately by this stock photo Irish terrier) so my wrists don’t hurt and I can breathe.

 

 

 

#4 But if I modify my poses, I’m not good as good as the rest of the class

It’s time for the biggest buster of yoga mythos yet!

When I signed up for the class I thought yoga was going to be all about stretching myself to the extremes. So much so that I would be in pain and would be uncomfortable, like a taffy puller! But at the same time I’d be worried that I looked like Snorlax trying to wake up.

During my last class I had to modify what was pretty much a basic move – the downward-facing dog while everyone else in the class was having crazy success with it. I just couldn’t breathe in that position! I found myself grinding my teeth and having short, panicked breaths. My wrists hurt like crazy because all my weight was resting on them and I just KNEW that my back wasn’t aligned right. I sank down into child’s pose (my favorite pose, actually) and was finally able to breathe and release all of my tension. I couldn’t relax like other people and in those moments before we finished our sun salutation, I felt like I wasn’t as good as the other people.

And then my yoga teacher spoke. 12674559_956086217809790_1379082782_n (1)

To paraphrase, she said: “When I teach I am at my happiest and proudest when I see my students modify poses that fit them. Yoga is not about pain or pushing yourself to your extremes: it’s about breathing. If you can’t breathe in a pose or if you’re in pain when practicing, that’s the sign you need to modify your pose. It’s not a sign of weakness; you’re understanding your body and listening to it when you modify poses. When I see students modify poses I’m more proud of them than if you stood on your head for three minutes.”

Wonderful speech aside, one of my friends after class basically said the exact same thing happened to her. She was in pain, too! But we both let the pressure of what others did affect our poses. Can you say child’s pose buddies?!

We both practice downward-facing dog when we can, still trying to modify it and see if we can make it by moving our legs or lining our wrists certain ways. We’re getting there and we’re making great progress! 

 

Give yoga a try in these coming semesters! As someone who has almost 18 credit hours every semester, having a way to unwind and relieve stress is GLORIOUS!  

You can read all about the yamas and niyamas that we do in class here! This week’s assignment was to find time during the day to notice if you’re slumping. If you are – do something about it! There are plenty of ways you can apply yoga to the work place – even at your own desk!

Yoga is offered Fall 2016 and Spring 2017 – it’s only one credit hour and is kinesiology!

[All pictures taken were consensual and agreed to – just look at us go!]

The College Experience

Over the weekend, my boyfriend Jacob and I decided to treat ourselves to a little adventure with a hobby we’ve shared together over the past few years: geocaching. I’m careful not to give too much away to the “muggles” of the geocaching universe, but it’s much like treasure-hunting: follow a map, GPS, or compass to an exact location, and search for the goods. We decided we wanted to make our way from our hometown of Upper Sandusky to Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams in Powell, stopping to hunt for geocaches along the way. Of course, there’s no way we would be skipping out on the treasures of the Marion campus – I attend The Ohio State University at Marion, while my boyfriend, Jacob, is a Marion Technical College graduate. Turns out, there are four geocaches waiting to be found on our favorite campus. We only found three, but it wasn’t the geocaches that made this day memorable for me.

I’m no researcher, but I’m willing to bet that the number one question asked to high school seniors is, “where have you decided to go to college?” It’s at least in the top five. In my experience, answering “The Ohio State University at Marion” was often followed by someone chiming in, “The Ohio State COMMUTiversity.” I was always told that commuting to my university would result in missing out on “the college experience.”

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The college experience consists of so much more than living in a residence hall, and if Ohio State Marion has taught me anything, it’s that the college experience is what you make it. In my time here, I’ve learned how to research, speak a foreign language, think critically, appreciate the Earth, learn from the past, form connections with professors and peers, and discover myself as a student and as a human being.

The Marion campus is a homey, community-friendly one. It’s a place to take a walk on a Saturday afternoon, have a picnic with friends, or geocache out on the Prairie. It’s a place that reminds me to appreciate all the things I love about a small town, and all the people my university has connected me to, allowing me to pursue my dreams as an undergraduate and as an entrepreneur.

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As I made my mark on the slip of paper left for me to discover on the Prairie, I couldn’t help but think about the mark Ohio State left on me. I couldn’t imagine my college experience turning out any better than it has. So here’s to you, current and future Buckeyes, because if the college experience is a quality education, a plethora of opportunities, and a journey of self-discovery, you’ve come to the right place.

Spring Break

IMG_3009When all students are away for the break of spring, some of us stay and work throughout the week. This means that we must provide our own entertainment and joy while in Marion, OH when we could be away on a sunny beach in Florida. We create this joy in making wonderful cups of Hot Chocolate in the Admission office while stuff 250 bags for potential students. We listen to summer tunes while we stuff 500 scholarship letters in envelopes for students this upcoming year. We are able to stay behind and help prepare the office for the last half of the semester, and for all the upcoming new students.  Although we do not get away for Spring Break, We still allow ourselves to escape through our sweet tooth and our sweet tunes!