University offers new stadium seat program

By Bill Estep

Ohio State's Department of Athletics has unveiled a club seat program for football games that will allow faculty and staff the opportunity to purchase choice seats on the west side of Ohio Stadium and help finance the $187.7 million renovation of the 77-year-old structure.

About 2,500 club seats will be made available between the 25-yard-line markers on the west side in A-deck. Those eligible to purchase the chairback-style seats include everyone currently sitting in that area; all faculty and staff, whether ticket holders or not; Varsity "O" football alumni; and members of the President's Club and Buckeye Club at the $2,500 level.

Club seat holders also will have access to a new stadium club that will overlook the Olentangy River.

The entire B-deck on the west side of the stadium is being turned into 82 hospitality suites that will seat 10 to 16 fans and be available for the 2001 football season. The renovation also includes a new AA-deck surrounding a field lowered by 14 feet, an additional 19 rows in C-deck, more restrooms and concession stands, wider aisles, and increased handicapped seating and access. Seating capacity of the stadium is expected to increase to as much as 98,000 from the current 89,840.

The new A-deck club tickets will cost $2,000 or $3,000 per seat for each season, depending on the location, according to Steve Snapp, director of external programs for the athletic department. Additionally, those eligible must be members of either the President's Club or the Buckeye Club -- at the $2,500 level -- and maintain that membership throughout the duration of their agreement.

Those interested in the club seating in A-deck will be asked to sign a five- to seven-year agreement for each seat. Fans will be able to purchase up to six club seats.

Eligible ticket holders and all faculty and staff will be mailed information on the new club seat program in mid-January, and the application deadline is Feb. 28. A Web site and phone number should be online by Jan. 18.

Snapp said the seats in the A-deck club seat area and the hospitality suites -- about 3 percent of the stadium's total seating capacity -- are expected to finance 80 percent of the renovation price tag over a 25-year period.

"This project would not have been possible without the club seats and the hospitality suites," Snapp said. "If we tried to build a new stadium from the ground up, we'd be looking at somewhere between $350 million to $400 million.

"If we were just trying to bring it up to code, we would have lost 13,000 seats and it would have cost in the neighborhood of $50 million. And there wouldn't have been any way to recoup that money."

Revenue from increased ticket prices and concession sales is expected to finance the other 20 percent of the project, Snapp said.

Richelle Simonson, assistant athletic director for tickets and events, emphasized that people who do not choose the A-deck club seating area "will still be given a choice seating area" in other sections of the stadium.

"I think there's a perception out there that because we're identifying these club seats on the west side, it means there won't be any other good seats for other people, and that's just not true," Simonson said. "The stadium renovation project allows us the opportunity to improve the overall seating by adding more seats between the goal lines with the addition of the new rows in AA- and C-decks, and also eliminates many of our vision-obstructed seats."

The AA-deck will include 10 rows of seats circling the field. OSU athletic department officials say the stadium renovation is on schedule for completion by the 2001 season.

Focus groups to explore draft diversity plan

As a follow-up to a public forum the University held Jan. 12 to hear opinions on the draft Diversity Action Plan, a series of focus groups is scheduled over the next several weeks. The meetings are for anyone interested in exploring the goals outlined in the plan in more detail. All focus groups are from 4-6 p.m. in the Ohio Union Memorial Room. The topics and their dates are:

Jan. 18: Creating Welcoming Environments of Support.

Jan. 20: Recruiting and Retaining Women and Minorities into Faculty, Staff and Administrative Positions.

Jan. 24: Recruiting and Retaining Minority Students.

Jan. 26: Developing Diversity Models of Excellence.

Feb. 1: Creating Databases to Describe, Monitor and Improve Campus Diversity.

Feb. 3: Determining and Maintaining a System of Accountability.

There will be a limit of 30 seats at each session to promote effective discussion among the participants, said Tina Love, director of special projects for the Office of Student Affairs. Call 292-2135 to sign up.

"We want to give the people who will be affected the most by the Diversity Action Plan -- students, faculty and staff -- the opportunity to talk with University officials about changes and suggestions outlined in the plan," said David Williams II, vice president for student and urban/community affairs.

The Diversity Action Plan includes several initiatives that are central to the University's mission and to the academic goals Ohio State has set, including gaining a space among the nation's top public universities, Williams said.

The meetings are part of "A Place for Community Dialogue at the Ohio Union," a program encouraging dialogue among students, staff, faculty, administrators and the public.

The Diversity Action Plan is available on the Web at www.osu.edu/diversityplan/.

Outreach program mixes nutrition, oral hygiene

Seniors absorb advice from OSU Extension, College of Dentistry

By Randy Gammage

An Ohio State outreach program that partners the College of Dentistry and OSU Extension is bringing smiles to the faces of the elderly at some local adult day-care centers.

The Oral Health and Nutritional Health Promotion Program adds another component to a geriatric dentistry program at Ohio State that is already the largest and most comprehensive in the United States, said Abdel Mohammad, clinical professor of geriatric dentistry and oral medicine.

The new outreach program aims to increase oral health and nutritional health among the elderly in Franklin County through an oral health assessment, oral cancer screening, and instruction in maintaining good oral health and nutritional health.

Mohammad

Seniors receive oral hygiene items such as toothbrushes and denture cream, nutritional education and referral to the Geriatric Dental Clinic at Ohio State for treatment when appropriate.

The program was started in October 1999 with an $8,500 grant through OSU CARES. It teams Mohammad, Cheryl DeVore, associate professor of dentistry, and Lisa Gibson, OSU Extension program coordinator for the Family Nutrition Program and the Senior Series. They conducted their first presentation Oct. 22 at the Wexner Heritage Adult Day Health Center, and have visited three other adult day-care centers since.

So far, the response at the presentations has been positive. "People really respond to Dr. Mohammad," Gibson said. "The people love him and he has a great sense of humor."

Mohammad and senior dental students from Ohio State conduct the examinations. But before that, Gibson demonstrates how to cook nutritious foods that taste good and accelerate the healing process.

She said a menu of vegetable soup and a tofu fruit dip she prepared recently were met with rave reviews by the seniors.

Courtesy of College of Dentistry

Senior dental students, left to right, Jorge Vasquez, Ronald Katyal, Amin Tabatabain and Jason Richards provide advice on oral health prior to performing examinations on seniors at the Wexner Heritage Adult Day Health Center.

Gibson said that as adults get older, they often don't eat properly.

"When you don't eat properly, you compromise your immune system and leave yourself open for illness," she said. "Really, your health is your true wealth."

Gibson recommends eating a variety of foods with lots of color.

"God gave us beautiful red cabbage, yellow peppers, green broccoli and orange carrots. We have to learn to eat those foods," she said.

Gibson said older adults often suffer from poor appetites, and come up short on the amount of fruits, vegetables and fiber in their diets. She advocates 25 to 30 grams of fiber per day, but says most adults average only 15 grams.

"The higher-fiber foods are harder to chew," Gibson said. "If their mouths are being compromised by dental treatment, it causes pain to chew those foods."

Gibson often includes soy in recipes she prepares at the day-care centers. Why soy? Because it is soft, easy to chew, high in protein and can be calcium- and vitamin-fortified.

The initial visit to the adult day-care centers is followed by a second visit after five months to assess the impact the program has had on participants' oral health. Then the center will be added to the list of 17 nursing homes Mohammad and his dental students already visit on a regular basis, weekly or biweekly, depending on what is requested.

Mohammad said data collected during the initial visits to day-care centers would help determine the overall dental status of the elderly in Franklin County.

"Once we know what the status is, we can tailor a program to meet the needs of the elderly," he said.

So far the predominant issues have been tooth loss and inadequate dentures, caused by either poor dental hygiene or old dentures. He said seniors often put up with poor dentures because of a fear of the cost to replace them, but are "surprised at the affordability of the clinic."

Mohammad said reaching out to seniors is natural, considering that the elderly are the most rapidly growing segment of the population of the United States. More than 13.5 percent of the population is 65 or older, with that expected to increase to 23 percent by 2040. Five to 6 percent of those over age 65 are living in nursing homes.

The oral health and nutrition program is just part of geriatric dentistry offerings at Ohio State, Mohammad said. Besides the regular visits and oral examinations at 17 area nursing homes, the new oral health and nutrition program, and the Geriatric Dental Clinic established in January 1999, Mohammad envisions extending Ohio State dental care to the Appalachian region by 2001.

"Those are people that really need assistance," he said.