Category: 2017

Most of us have heard of DC Recycling and what the project entails. Defiance College Recycling is one of many 701 projects that we have on campus. The project was first started by an individual where she would collect recyclable items in her dorm room. Since then, the project has expanded and is now located in the basement of McReynolds Hall. The purpose of the project is to help create a more friendly environment. The organization is ran by students, Madysyn Creighton, Rebekah Groden, and myself, who are in managers of the project.

Those who are apart of the project work together to collect, sort and take items to Werlor, the local Recycling/Waste Center. Each resident living on campus is given a recycling bag so they can recycle throughout the year. Around campus there are bins located in each academic building in order to recycle. Every Sunday through Wednesday, there is something that DCR is doing. However, what is done each night changes. Sundays, recyclables are collected from all resident halls. Monday nights, is collection from all academic buildings. Tuesdays and Wednesday consist of sorting all materials that have been collected. When sorting, cardboard is broken down, pop cans are crushed, and plastic lids are taken off so that the bottles can be smashed. After everything is sorted, it is then weighed before loading up the trucks and taken to Werlor.

What can be collected varies upon the product. For plastics, located on the bottom of the item there is a recycling symbol with a number. Plastic items that can be collected must have a number between one and five on it. Cardboard is also collected along with paper, tin, and aluminum. What can not be collected is food, shiny paper, plastics with a number six or above, greasy pizza boxes, candy bar wrappers, silverware, cafeteria cups, and Styrofoam.

There are a variety of students who participate in DCR. Jennifer Nashasky had stated that she likes collection days because she “enjoys seeing how much people actually recycle.” Another student also enjoys being apart of DCR. Kelsey Brenneman reported that she takes part in the project for service leadership hours and “to help the environment.”

Currently, us managers are working towards getting small trash bins for each of the Grand Ave apartments so that they can collect, and putting a few bins along the walk ways. Please continue to support DCR when school starts back up in January!

Written by Ray Ramos

(Defiance, OH). The Defiance College Yellow Jackets took on Manchester this past Wednesday for their conference opener. The Jackets have not had the start they would have liked, despite playing very tough competition. They were looking to bounce back against the Spartans.

The Lady Jackets had an incredible start to the game, starting off 23-18. They then followed that up with an even stronger 2nd quarter, expanding their lead to 52-34 at the half.

The Spartans came out stronger in the 3rd though, finding a way to stop the Jackets hot offense, and finding momentum of their own. They were able to cut the deficit to 58-50, and only allowed 6 points from the Jackets during the entire 3rd quarter. The Jackets were able to hold on though, finishing for a victory of 79-64.

The Jackets had several players make huge contributions to the game. Senior Whitney Schalk played 39 total minutes, and was able to rack up 5 points, 5 boards, and 6 assists! Sophomores Lauren Rogers and Sam Ervin led the night in scoring with 16 a piece, and Shelby Stamm added 11 of her own. Mekai White was able to have 9 off the bench. Ervin also led the team in rebounds with 9, while Rogers followed with 8 of her own.

The Jackets shot 42.2% from the field, along with 42 total rebounds, and 16 total assists. They were able to capitalize with 15 points off turnovers, and 27 points coming from the bench!

After the game, we caught up with Senior Whitney Schalk, and she had this to say “This was a game we wanted to make a statement about due to us being tied with Manchester in the conference. I thought we played well as a team, our shooters shot extremely well, our posts dominated on the boards. Our bench was active and loud. Everyone on the team played their role and that’s all we can ask for. We executed a great game plan by our coaches and that’s how we are going to win ball games this year.”

The Jackets play their next game this Saturday, at Franklin as they continue their conference play. Go Jackets!

Written by Zack Bires

The holidays bring all sorts of things: singing, food, family, joy, and so much more. However, some families may not be as fortunate as others. Whatever the difficulty may be, financial or otherwise, gift-giving can be hard in some families. Where there is struggle, there is also a community of people willing to help.

Members of the Defiance College community joined up with 98.1’s Christmas for Kids to help create a memorable Christmas for all kids. Every year, the news station joins representatives from several Defiance College organizations around the Christmas tree in Serrick to partake in the giving of presents to those less fortunate. Many sports teams donate gifts along with other organizations on campus like Alpha Phi Omega, the service fraternity on-campus.

The softball team was also one of those teams that joined in donating. The team decided to meet around the tree at about 7 a.m. bringing several gifts. From board games to toys, the team brought all sorts of things to help bring joy this holiday season. Senior Sydni Smith stated that she enjoys donating to Christmas for Kids because “giving back to kids that don’t have a lot makes you feel so good and so appreciative of all that you are fortunate to have in your life.”

This holiday season, make it a goal of yours to give back to the community in some way, shape or form. It’ll make you feel better but will also make a huge difference in someone’s life.

Written by Jordan Osborne

Three representatives from Defiance College, Adam Swisher, Kaity Kuhn, and MacKenzie Combs attended the 2017 Propel Conference at the University of Akron on November 17th.  The focus of this year’s conference was Childhood Poverty and how it affects all aspects of a child’s life from birth to adulthood. Senator Sherrod Brown and Senator Rob Portman both made remarks on the topic and how as Ohio, we can combat these issues. A panel consisting of Barbara Poppe, Dr. Robert Murray, and David James discussed how to have the hard conversations to make our communities and Ohio better for our children and their futures. There were also student breakout sessions talking about the intersection between food insecurity and housing instability as well as the opioid epidemic and how it affects the development of children in and outside the classroom.  Adam Swisher stated “My favorite about Propel Ohio was the session about opioid epidemic. It really encouraged me to think about the crisis in a different way and challenged me to think about how I can help the cause.”

Written by Kaity Kuhn

Last week the Social Work Program traveled to Detroit, Michigan for their annually urban trip. This trip consisted of a total of thirty-three social work majors, ranging from freshman to senior, as well as DC faculty. The first agency the program visited was CHASS or Community Health and Social Services Center. This center was unique as it had many doctors’ offices in one building. Some of these include a pharmacy, dentist office, gynecologist, and much more. Also, this organization is community based and is a non-profit health care center that focuses on underserved populations. After speaking with some of the people that went on this trip, most stated that CHASS was their favorite organization as everywhere they need to receive service service is at one place.

Next, the group attended a tour from Cass Community or most popularly known as Tiny Homes. This group is also a non-profit organization that builds tiny homes for people of lower socioeconomic status. This group has bought property in Detroit that has not been developed yet and plans to build a community of tiny houses. Sarah Kaya, a senior social work major, shared that Tiny Homes was her favorite organization to visit. She stated that “it was interesting to learn about how this organization helps the people living in city as well as the number of other areas this could be applied to”.

Additionally, the Social Work Program attended a tour at Affirmations. This organization is also non-profit focusing on serving all forms of sexual orientation and gender identity. Our social work majors received a tour of Affirmations that displayed rooms dedicated to support groups as well as worship and “safe places.” Moreover, cultural awareness was brought into the church we stayed at as Professor Yakos-Brown encouraged students to eat grasshoppers from the restaurant some attended for dinner.

Lastly, the group attended the Arab American National Museum (AANM) in Dearborn. At this museum, social work students learned what it means to be an Arab American as well as what countries and characteristics make up the Arab culture. Additionally, it was interesting to learn that Dearborn has one of the largest populations of Arab Americans. Moreover, this museum displayed stereotypes within an art display that surround issues like racism, sexism, and sexual orientation.

Written by Madysyn Creighton

(Defiance, OH). The Defiance College Honors Program recently took a trip to the Toledo Library for an event that they put on periodically called Authors, Authors! This event is where they have authors of books, movies, or anything else come in and talk about current topics, their upcoming books, or even their old books.

This time, DC got the chance to listen to Wil Haygood, the author of The Butler: A Witness to History, and Showdown. Mr. Haygood talked about several topics, but he was not just an author. He was a storyteller. He had the ability to have every single person in the room wrapped around what he was saying.

The main topic throughout Mr. Haygood’s speeches throughout the night were his books, but it was interesting because he did not talk about them in a way where he was saying you have to buy them, but he talked about them in a way where he explained the importance of the events of Thurgood Marshall and Eugene Allen.

Mr Haygood was able to bring a very, very sticky topic in today’s culture, and have a very professional conversation, while shining light on both sides of the issue. The topic was race, and he was captured the audience with every word he said.

Mr. Haygood left the audience with several thought provoking concepts. The first thing that he talked about was advice that he was giving the audience to “let ideas hatch.” He said that we as a society tend to talk ourselves out of ideas that can become really good, as long as we let them develop into what they need to. He wanted everyone in the audience to follow their dreams.

The next concept was when asked about how to get more respect for African Americans and fight for more respect. He referenced November 4th, of 2008, when Barack Obama was elected. He mentioned that this is something as a culture that we need to look at as a respect for all types of people. President Obama being elected was not a win just for one race, but a win for the world as a whole. That event changed the world, to where we are starting to take steps in the right direction.

The final concept that he left us with is when we talked to him personally after his speech. He told us to “go in the direction of our heart beat.” This is something that can be left up for interpretation, but is a very powerful message.

If someone on the campus has a chance to listen to, meet, or read anything by Wil Haygood, I highly suggest it!

Written by Zack Bires

(Defiance, OH). The Defiance College Women’s Soccer team played in their final regular season game Saturday, October 28th as they took on the first place Mount St. Joe Lions, who had a record of 16-3, and 7-2 in conference.

This was also the Women’s Senior Night, where they had the opportunity to celebrate three seniors who put in countless hours into leaving the program better than they found it. These seniors were Kassie Memmer, Megan Weasley, and Lea McCoy. Thank you ladies for all the hard work!

The first half did not go as the Jackets had planned. The Lions were able to run in and out of the defense, putting 4 out of 22 shots on frame into the back of the net. These happened in the 12th, 25th, 41st, and 44th minutes. The Jackets went into the half trailing 4-0.

The second half was more in favor of the Jackets, as they were able to squelch Mount St. Joseph’s offense, and put together something of their own. This came in the 70th minute, when senior Kassie Memmer, playing in her last collegiate soccer game, lined up for a free kick. She was able to put it over a jumping keeper, adding to her already incredible career here at Defiance. This was not enough, as the Jackets fell to the Lions 4-1.

After the game, we caught up with Kassie Memmer, and she had this to say about the game, “ We didn’t get the result we wanted from this game, but never stopped playing and battled with MSJ until the last whistle. We were able to put one in the back of the net and that was a good note to end the season.”

Memmer also wanted to leave her teammates with this, “I’m very thankful for this season, but more so for the girls I got to spend my last season playing with. Throughout the course of the season we grew a lot and I know the future of the program will be better because of the group of girls. They have a lot to look forward to and I am very excited for them!”

Written by Zack Bires

Defiance College has multiple different organizations on campus through the Project 701 office. All these organizations are non-profit, service oriented organizations that are student-run. Project 701 reaches out to the community to try and get others involved and help out with community needs.

One of the organizations through the Project 701 office is Dance Marathon. Dance Marathon is all about putting on fundraisers throughout the year to raise money for the Mercy Children’s Miracle Network. This movement is all about raising money “For The Kids”. Dance marathon is in college, university, and high school programs all throughout the country. It helps to raise awareness for children who are born with deficiencies, live with illnesses, or suffer from injuries that keep them from being a typical child. The proceeds go toward making sure these children and those to come do not fight alone in ways of research, equipment, or helping with medical bills. Throughout the country, there are over 300 Dance Marathon programs, with nine campuses raising over $1 million annually. Though Defiance College’s program is very small and may not be able to raise $1 million, it was able to raise $1,400 last year. Any amount is accepted when it comes to raising money for these children and their families that are in need.

Defiance College’s Dance Marathon has multiple events planned for the 2017-2018 year to help raise money for the Miracle Network. Currently, the organization is running a competition between teams through an online donation service called Donor Drive. This will be up and running the entire school year. Other fundraising events for Defiance’s Dance Marathon is multiple Minute-to-Win-it fundraisers at different sporting events, a Christmas Carnival, a candy-gram fundraiser, a promo night at a local restaurant, and the end of the year Buzzathon. The organization’s goal is to raise $2,000 for the Miracle Network this year. Assistant manager, Michaela Bauer, commented “Dance Marathon has changed my life and gave me a new perspective on life. It has made me want to work with children and feel so passionate about helping children who may not have the opportunities that I have. It is life-changing seeing the smiles on the children’s faces at the events we put on and how happy they are.” If there is any interest in joining or any questions about the movement, contact Taylor Gillig or Michaela Bauer for more information. Dance Marathon is this generation fighting for the next.

Written by Michaela Bauer

(Defiance, OH) Defiance College’s Women’s Soccer team traveled to Anderson on Wednesday, October 25th to take on the Ravens for a frigid game under the lights. The Ravens came into the game with a record of 10-2-3 and in conference of 5-1-3. The Ravens were playing for a playoff spot before this game!

The Jackets did not let the cold air stop the fire that they came to play with. Though Anderson was better on paper, they came ready to prove that they belong in the HCAC. The first half was gridlocked at 0-0, with the Jackets having 2 shots on frame, while Anderson had 8.

The second half was a similar story, with the Jackets having 1 shot on frame and Anderson having 10. With all these shots on frame, it did not phase sophomore goalie Madi Bowman, who had an absolutely incredible game protecting her net. She was diving, jumping, and sliding for balls that would have gone in against most other goalies in the HCAC.

The game went into overtime with great defense by the Jackets and an incredible performance in goal by Bowman. Sadly, neither team could capitalize in the first or second overtime of this very cold night. Possessions changed, while there were several shots on goal for each team, but neither would give into one another.

The game ended in a 0-0 tie, with both sides playing extremely well. The Jackets have yet again proved that they can hang with some of the best, even though on paper the record does not work in their favor. After the game, we caught up with Blake Newman, and she had this to say, “The season may not have gone as everyone might have liked so far, but we are young and hungry and show a lot of promise for years to come. It is time to get to work.”

The Jackets are home this Saturday, October 28th, for their last conference game, and senior night, against Mount St. Joseph. As always, come out and support and Go Jackets!

Written by Zac Bires

The Defiance College volleyball team hit the road to Bluffton University on Wednesday evening, November 1st, for the first round of Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament play. The Yellow Jackets lost in three sets, ending their 2017 season.

Defiance started the first set slow, but came back quickly, leading Bluffton 13-11. After a string of Jacket errors and Beaver kills, Defiance fell behind 14-19. The Yellow Jackets were able to string together a few points, but fell short to the Beavers, 23-25. Bluffton dominated in set two, coming out with a 4-0 lead over the Jackets. Defiance was able to stay with Bluffton until the Beavers got on a kill streak and ran away with the score. Bluffton won set two 14-25. The Yellow Jackets came back in the third set, battling back and forth with the Beavers. Defiance found themselves in a 13-9 advantage over Bluffton, but the Beavers soon came back and tied the set at 15. The teams battled back and forth, but the Jackets fell short, losing 23-25.

The offensive side was led by Emma Seitz with 10 kills and 7 kills by Marissa Windau. Morgan Porter led the defense with 20 digs, with Windau right behind with 18 and Jaidyn Patridge with 16. Seitz also led at the net with 7 blocks on the night. Assistant coach, Alicia Kalik commented on the girl’s season, “ The 2016 season was a year of a lot of growth. Having a majority of our team being underclassmen, there were several girls who had to step up and be key components in our play. We started off the season learning how to work together with everyone in their new roles and that took some time, along with battling through some injuries. However, we continued to build and learn and that helped us to go 5-4 in conference play. Overall, we would have loved to have more wins in the record book, but the growth of each player is what excites us for the future.” The loss to Bluffton finished the volleyball team’s season at 10-13. Kalik also had to say, “The recruiting class for 2018 looks very promising. Adding the talented class of 2018 on top of our returning squad, it excites us for our future! I also want to give a huge shout out to our seniors who have devoted so much to our program. They are truly going to be missed!!” The volleyball team plans to work very hard in the off-season to improve their skills and achieve their goals.

Written by Michaela Bauer