Art pays tribute to women's history

By Jo McCulty Suzanne Blake, office assistant for the Board of Trustees, views the work of students in Professor Judy Wu's History 525 class, one of three exhibits on display in Bricker Hall in celebration of Women's History Month. Wu's students displayed research projects relating to American-born women who trace their ancestry to East Asia, the Philippines, South Asia and Southeast Asia. Also on display were items from the National Afro American Museum in Wilberforce, Ohio, sponsored by the African Studies Center and the Office of Minority Affairs, and Spiritual Works by artist Alice Seifullah, sponsored by Women Student Services-Multicultural Center and the Office of Minority Affairs.

Heritage Festival marks 25th anniversary

New date, programming bring focus back to students

Plans to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the African American Heritage Festival are under way with a focus to return the celebration to the Ohio State community. The festival will be held April 21-27, one month earlier than in years past, requiring the exclusive use of indoor facilities.

Belinda Higgs, interim coordinator for the Office of African American Student Services, said student organizers have a clear vision of the type of festival they want to see. "AHALI," which means family in Swahili, has been chosen as the central theme.

"The student organizers have been very direct about their intentions to make this a week that will be celebrated on and by the Ohio State campus," Higgs said. "They moved the festival to April as a way to reduce the number of students attending from area colleges and universities who end their semesters in May."

Student chair Angela Woody said students wanted the heritage festival to return to its original intent, which is to celebrate, educate and share the African American experience with other cultures.

"We took a close look at the direction of the festival over the past years and felt that it was moving away from its purpose," Woody said. "Given our concerns and those of others in the community regarding crowds and traffic, we decided to make the changes necessary to maintain that focus.

"What we knew for sure was that the heritage festival was too important to just cancel."

The biggest changes were made to the weekend schedule, which last year drew just more than 3,000 people to campus.

A community service project, arts forum and semi-formal dance will take place on April 26. Events closing the festival on April 27 will include an indoor cookout, a gospel concert and walking tour of the Underground Railroad.

A facilities conflict will move the 16th Annual Pan-Hellenic Black Greek Step Show scheduled for April 25 to the Columbus Convention Center, 400 N. High St. Last year, the weekday event was attended by a record crowd of 4,000.

News veteran Ed Gordon, host of "BET Tonight," will help kick off the week, leading a town hall meeting April 21.

Woody said the heritage festival also will be highlighted with the publication of a commemorative booklet.

"We are proud of the accomplishments that have been made from what started as a simple block party held 25 years ago," Woody said. "We have definitely come a long way."

For more information, contact the Multicultural Center at 688-8449.

Group to rally support for higher education

An ad hoc working group of students, faculty and staff and representatives of the Alumni Association has been formed to discuss actions that can be taken to secure a greater level of support for higher education during the ongoing state budget process.

Coordinated by Richard Gunther, professor of political science and chair of the Senate Fiscal Committee, the group has identified several grassroots strategies to contact state legislators to urge increased higher education funding and express dismay over recent cuts. To date, plans include a USG-sponsored letter-writing campaign to the parents of undergraduate students encouraging them to contact their legislators, as well as a rally at the corner of 15th Avenue and High Street at noon on April 4.

The group plans to seek contributions to cover all costs of the campaign, including photocopying and mailing of the USG letter. For details about the campaign, contact Gunther at 292-6266 or gunther.1@osu.edu, or visit the Web at www.acs.ohio-state.edu/org/usac or www.usgonline.net.

Al-Akhras to deliver diversity lecture

Ahmad Al-Akhras, president of the Ohio chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a grassroots national organization, will deliver "Islam: Many Faces, Same Faith" at 2 p.m. April 3 in the Conference Theater of the Ohio Union. The event is part of the President and Provost's Diversity Lecture Series.

For details, contact Frank Hale Jr. at 688-4255, or visit the Web at www.osu.edu/diversity/buffer2.html.

Eyler to discuss service learning

Janet Eyler, professor of the Practice of Education at Vanderbilt University, will discuss "Where's the Learning in Service-Learning? Empirical Research on Outcomes of Academic Service-Learning," from 9-11 a.m. April 11 at 150 Younkin Success Center.

Eyler is co-author with Dwight Giles, Jr. of Where's the Learning in Service-Learning? Their book helps define learning expectations, links program characteristics with learning outcomes and presents extensive data from two groundbreaking national research projects.

For details, contact Susan Willson Brooks at 299-5940 or brooks.123@osu.edu, or visit the Web at www.service-learning.ohio-state.edu.

Minority health fair set for April 5

The 2003 Minority Fitness & Health Professional Career Fair will be held from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. April 5 in the Ohio Union ballrooms. The event includes free massages, health screenings, health education and information, and African and Latin dancing.

The event is sponsored by the Frank W. Hale Jr. Black Cultural Center, the College of Medicine and Public Health's Office for Diversity and Cultural Affairs, The Multicultural Center and the Ohio Union's Office of Student Activities.

Alumni award nominations sought

The Ohio State Alumni Association is seeking nominations for its 2003 alumni awards.

The deadline for nominations is March 31. Forms are available in the current issue of the Ohio State Alumni Magazine and on the Web at www.ohiostatealumni.org.

For details, contact 292-6881 or nash.34@osu.edu.

Ramp work leads to bike path detours

The Ohio State bike path is now closed between King Avenue and John H. Herrick Drive as part of the ramp project currently under construction that will connect state Route 315 with the OSU Medical Center. Crews will be building a new bike path along the Olentangy River that will open in the summer of 2004 after the bridges over the bike path are complete.

Bikers should detour to Cannon Drive -- detour signs will be posted.

For details, contact Lindsay Mendicino at 644-6584 or Michelle May at 644-8309.

TDWD registration begins April 9

Registration to participate in Take A Daughter to Work Day at OSU workshops on April 24 will be completely online this year; program booklets will not be mailed to faculty and staff. Workshops will be viewable online April 1, with registration beginning at 8 a.m. April 9.

For details, visit the Web at http://hr.osu.edu/daughter.

OSU CARES seed grants now available

Proposals for OSU CARES (Community Access to Resources and Educational Services) seed grants are due April 30. Grants for up to $7,500 to enhance University-wide outreach are being awarded through OSU CARES. Applicants are encouraged to use the grants to leverage a more formal partnership between colleges/units and OSU Extension.

For guidelines on submitting proposals, visit http://osucares.osu.edu/.

AFPW accepting award nominations

Nominations are being accepted for the annual Mary Ann Williams Woman's Leadership Award, recognizing a University woman who exhibits a special kind of leadership and instills in others a sense of confidence to succeed. The award includes a certificate and a $100 honorarium. Nominees may be full or part-time staff or faculty women and must have been employed at Ohio State for at least one year.

For more information and a nomination form, visit the AFPW Web site at www.afpw.osu.edu/.

International Affairs grants available

Grants of up to $5,000 are available to support interdisciplinary lectures, seminar series, or conferences on topics relevant to areas of the world outside the United States. Proposals are invited from faculty, interdisciplinary and area study centers, and academic units. The application deadline is April 11.

Applications are available at the Office of International Affairs or on the Web at www.osu.edu/oia.

For details, contact Frank Spaulding at 688-4464 or e-mail spaulding.1@osu.edu.

Hamilton is FOL author series guest

The Friends of the Libraries OSU Authors series will feature a presentation by Ann Hamilton, professor of art and recent subject of the biography by Joan Simon, Ann Hamilton, from 6-8 p.m. April 3 at the Prior Health Sciences Library.

The event includes dinner. For tickets, call 292-3387.

Water therapy classes offered at Larkins

The Department of Recreational Sports is offering three aquatic recreational therapy based programs spring quarter at Larkins Hall:

• Children's Adapted Aquatics, 5-7 p.m. Fridays in the Therapy Pool. Newborns to 18-year-olds are split into age-appropriate groups.

• Multiple-Sclerosis Water Exercise, 6:30-7:15 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays in the 50-meter pool.

• Arthritis Water Exercise, 6:30-7:15 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays in the Therapy Pool.

Registration will be from 5-7 p.m. April 7 and 9, in the Larkins Hall lobby.

For details, contact 688-3693 or keller.185@osu.edu, or visit the Web at www.ohiostaterecsports.org/program/ars/index.htm.

Caregivers support group available

Referrals are now being accepted for the spring 2003 session of the For the Caregivers Support Group, an emotional support group for family members, partners and friends of loved ones with cancer. Session are held from 6-7:30 p.m. Tuesdays from March 25-May 13 at the Griswold-Worthington Senior Center, 777 High Street, located on the northwest corner of High Street and Dublin-Granville Road.

Registration is required.

Call The James Line at 293-5066 or Pat Schmitt at 293-4426 to register or for details.

Critical Difference for Women grants available

Critical Difference for Women Professional Development and Women of Color Grants are available to faculty, staff, and students to apply for this spring quarter. Grants of up to $500 are awarded.

The application deadline is April 17. Application forms and guidelines are available at: http://criticaldifference.osu.edu/.

For details, contact Eunice Hornsby at 688-8643 or hornsby.1@osu.edu.