Hiram College Receives Second National Endowment for the Arts Grant for The Big Read in Portage County

Hiram College’s Lindsay-Crane Center for Writing and Literature has received a $17,050 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to host The Big Read in Portage County, focusing on “The Things They Carried” by Pulitzer Prize finalist Tim O’Brien. This is Hiram’s second Big Read grant; it hosted a Big Read in January and February of 2009 focusing on Dashiell Hammett’s “The Maltese Falcon.”

As the NEA says, “Tracing the tour of one American platoon, this book is not just a tale of the Vietnam War, although it’s considered one of the finest books ever about combat. This award-winning book is a brutal, sometimes funny, often profound narrative about the human heart—how it fares under pressure, and what it can endure.”

Hiram College is one of just 75 not-for-profits—including arts and cultural organizations, libraries and universities—to receive a grant to host a Big Read project between September 2010 and June 2011. The Big Read gives communities the opportunity to come together to read, discuss and celebrate one of 31 selections from U.S. and world literature. Since the 2006 pilot program with 10 participating organizations, the NEA has given more than 800 grants to support local Big Read projects.

“Hiram College is excited to engage the community in a timely and thought-provoking book by a contemporary American author,” said Paul Gaffney, Hiram College assistant professor of English and Big Read director. “It is our hope that these events will lead to positive and enriching discussions about issues of war and memory within Portage County.”

In planning the Big Read events, Hiram is partnering with numerous Portage County organizations, including Kent State University, Portage County District Library, Reed Memorial Library, Kent Free Library, WKSU, PARTA and the Record-Courier. Big Read activities will take place throughout the month of October 2010. Highlights include a visit by author O’Brien; presentations by local authors Peter Scott, Janie Reinart and Mary Anne Mayer; a reading by poets Naomi Shihab Nye and Chana Bloch; a musical performance of Vietnam War era music; dramatic readings; movie screenings; book discussions; postcards for current overseas troops and an exhibit of art by Vietnamese children on the themes of peace and war.

“The arts in general – and literature, in particular – often serve as an expression of our shared values,” said NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman. “This is exactly why they are so effective as a fulcrum for community engagement. Thanks to these 75 grants, communities nationwide will be inspired, delighted and challenged by a book they are discovering for the first time, or an old favorite to which they are returning.”

The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts designed to restore reading to the center of American culture. The NEA presents The Big Read in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and in cooperation with Arts Midwest. Support for The Big Read has been provided by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, the Boeing Company, the Poetry Foundation and the Ford Motor Company.

For more information about The Big Read please visit www.neabigread.org.

Celebrating Excellence at Hiram

Honoring our students’ outstanding work.

Each spring the Hiram College community gathers to honor all that our students have accomplished throughout the year. Various departments hold picnics, barbecues and award presentations to recognize and celebrate the work they have done. The festivities culminate in the campus-wide Honors Convocation, where we continue the tradition of handing out some of our community’s most prestigious awards.

2010 Award Recipients

President’s Achievement Award
2010 Recipient: TBA

Distinguished Student Leadership Award
2010 Recipient: TBA

Hal Reichle Memorial Award
2010 Recipient: TBA

Nancy Moeller Award
2010 Recipient: Lesley Holdren

Yuskel Ismail Scholarship in Humanities
2010 Recipient: Danielle Mantz

ODK National Leadership
2010 Recipients: Sasha Davidson, Nicole Foisy, Ed Grauel, Dontavius Jarrells, Wenhao Li, Philip Major, Claire McCarthy, Willis Mitchell, Radina Petkova, Melissa Santana, Evelyn Washabaugh

North Coast Athletic Conference Scholar-Athlete
2010 Recipients: TBA

Phi Beta Kappa
2010 Inductees: Ann Dombroski, Katherine Eppley, Jessie Lanterman, Michelle Morgan, Ngai Lam Woo, Eric Walker, Jared Wolschlager

Alpha Society
Alpha Society is one of Hiram’s highest academic honors. Membership is limited to students who have completed 12 or more hours of graded coursework at Hiram College and whose cumulative grade point average is 3.75 or better.

Alpha Society Graduating Seniors

Samuel Amata Derrick Beczynski Teri Bradshaw Debbie Buckeye Brett Burkey Lydia Cancilla Kirk DeGroff Lisa Delsignore Ann Dombroski Mary Fassett Danielle Fisher Stephanie Gasper Daniel Gavazzi Christina Gladden Natasha Glodek Kanako Goto Amanda Gullett Brian Hoodin Beth Henderson Gary Ising Jeffrey Kish Charles Kraus Jessie Lanterman Michael Lipkin Lauren London Michael Majetich

Danielle Mantz Rebecca Marlatt Laura Matlock Eileen McIver Donna McPeek William Mooney Natalie Moore Michelle Morgan Erin Mullins Samantha Narduzzi Margaret Pelster Sara Pero Allison Poloha Kimberly Rittner Tammy Rosboril Wiley Runnestrand Virginia Schminke Simone Smit Emma Strong Jooi Vyas Matthew Wilson Jared Wolschlager Brian Yeager Rachel Yunck Huanran Zhong

Alpha Society Juniors, Sophomores and First-Years

Shishir Adhikari Zeerak Ahmed Michelle Allamon Kathleen Andrea Alzira Avelino Madhumitha Balasubramanian Ian Barton Cara Battaglia Chelsea Beabout Pamela Beach Kathleen Behra Rachel Bisker Colleen Black Carla Bold Bonnie Brentar Caitlyn Caldwell Leland Cancilla Michael Carey Alicia Choo Caroline Christoff Miriam Clarke James Clay Anthony Clemente Leigh Collier Karen Cover Brendan Curtin Philip D’Amico Grace D’Angelo Robert Danczak Kathie Dickinson Christina Dominak Amelia Dorschel Rachel Drake Ashley Durst Alina Dvorak Andrea Dye Elizabeth Ellis Devon Gahr Alexander Gill Robert Glowacki Dobromir Gospodinov Sharon Gmutza Derek Green Emily Greggor Tamara Guseman Elizabeth Haase Emily Hatala Abigail Hexamer Michelle Hickox Maryann Hudak Richard Ivans Lauren Jasko Kenneth Kall Stacy Keene-Rosenthal India Keller Chelsea Kerns Kritsinee Khowcharoen Nicole King David Klecyngier Connie Knop Lindsay Kuhn Sara Lazio Caleb Lemmo Wenhao Li Karen Lind

Hannah Lint Emily Luckring Francesca Luppino Timothy Luttermoser Patricia Markel Jasmine Marks Claire McCarthy Samuel McCarthy Erin McGarry Ann McKee Adam Miller Jennie Minor Tessiana Misko Michael Mohan Santiago Morales Amy Morton Rebecca Moseley Michael Mroz Bryan Nemire Ellen Nicholson Gwendolyn O’Connor Megan Orosz Geisa Ortet Hannah Petcovic Rachel Petrack Elizabeth Prorok Rachael Purta Elise Randall Joseph Randolph Stephanie Ratliff Heather Reboudo Kimberly Renner Kimberly Riffle Mariah Roswell Eileen Russell Mark Saienni Angela Savinda George Schatz Darin Scribner Derik Scribner Rachel Searle-White Alyssa Sedlak Victoria Sferra J Shaffer Jonathon Sitosky Emily Smith Denise Soloman Cara Story Bonnie Sypolt Rebecca Szanto Erica Templeton Aimee Thompson Julie Thompson Debbie Tisch Danielle Vancura Alexander Van Meter Kara Vantaggi Megan Wade Jack Wood Jiazuo Xie Yuting Ye Ken Jon Yeong Lisa Zamecnik Milica Zivak

Academic Achievement Department Awards

Art Department

Alex and Tamara Brady Pendleton Best in show Award
2010 Recipient: Alexis Linton

Paul A. Rochford Award for Excellence
2010 Recipient: Jared Friedberg

Ellen Jagow Award for Painting
2010 Recipient: Shalimma Fadzl

Abigail Flint Award for Photography
2010 Recipient: Matthew Young

Award for Outstanding work by Freshman or Sophmore
2010 Recipient: Alex Gill

Prizm Artist’s Supply Store Award
2010 Recipient: TBA

Utrecht Art Supply Award
2010 Recipient: TBA

Juror’s Mention
Kayla Burkett, Katie Engstrom, Jose Fabian Elizondo, Nicole Spencer

Art History Book Award
J.B. Henry

Biology Department Awards

James H. Barrow Scholarship in Biology
2010 Recipient: Nicole King

Dwight. H. and Trudy Berg Scholarship
2010 Recipient: Jessie Lanterman

Eastman Kodak Company Awards
2010 Recipients: Michelle Morgan, Jooi Vyas,
Laura Matlock, Kimberly Sage, Michael Majetich, Mary Hamilton

Grace Pickford Scholarship
2010 Recipient: Rachel Yunck

Kelton Scott McMurray Memorial Scholarship
2010 Recipient: Samantha Narduzzi

Mein Kind Brunhilde
2010 Recipient: Caresse Nichole Cortes

Paul Smey Award in Biology
2010 Recipient: Ann Dombroski

Thomas E. Lingafelter Memorial Award
2010 Recipient: Molly Gagnon

Biomedical Humanities Department Awards

Outstanding Achievement in Medical Humanities
2010 Recipient: Tria Charnas

Outstanding Achievement in Experimental Learning
2010 Recipient: Laura Matlock

Outstanding Achievement in Biomedical Research
2010 Recipient: Simone Smit

Chemistry Department Awards

Outstanding First Year Student and CRC Taylor/ Francis Publishing Award
Adam Miller

Outstanding Sophomore Student
Elvis Cudjoe

Outstanding Junior Student
George Schatz

Outstanding Senior Student
Brian Yeager

Outstanding Senior Biochemistry Student
Heather Lane

Outstanding Organic Students
Aimee Thompson, Santiago Morales

Outstanding Inorganic Student
Claire McCarthy

Outstanding Analytical Student
Eileen Russell

Outstanding PChem Student
Maria Sember

Outstanding Biochemistry Student
Claire McCarthy

Outstanding Departmental Service
Maria Sember, Michael Owen

American Chemical Society- Akron Section Outstanding Chemistry Major
Michael Mastromatteo

Communication Department Awards

Russell L. Caldwell Memorial Research
2010 Recipient: Lindsay Kuhn

Computer Science Department Awards

Irna Lomonosov Award
2010 Recipient: TBA

Angela Guercio Award
2010 Recipient: TBA

Economics Department Awards

Allyn A. Young Memorial Prize in Economics
2010 Recipients: TBA

Education Department Awards

Kappa Delta Pi Awards
2010 Recipients: TBA

English Department Awards

Carl R. Brown Memorial Scholarship
2010 Recipient: Devon Gahr

Hiram College Writing Center Award
2010 Recipient: Brian Klinzing and Leah Rectanus

Howard Seymour Bissell Scholarship Fund
2010 Recipient: Karen Cover

John S. Kenyon Memorial Award in English
2010 Recipient: Virginia Schminke

Richard C. Underwood Endowed Memorial Fund
2010 Recipient: Beau Bradley

Grace J. Chamberlin Prize in Creative Writing
2010 Recipient: Rachel Purta

Foreign Language Department Awards

Lee and Irma Cannon Memorial Award
2010 Recipient: Nicole Foisy

Foreign Language Achievement Award (Spanish)
2010 Recipient: Beth Henderson

Foreign Language Achievement Award (French)
2010 Recipient: Mike Chislow

History Department Awards

Phi Alpha Theta
2010 Inductees: Lydia E. Cancilla, Jessica L. Cowan, Matthew D. Hintz, Kaitlin M. Karpinski, Ellen A. Nicholson

Dorothy Garrett Martin Merit Award in History
2010 Recipient: Kaitlin M. Karpinski

Stephen H. Miller Memorial Award
2010 Recipient: TBA

Russell L. Caldwell Memorial Research Award
2010 Recipient: TBA

Thomas Mark Pytel Award
2010 Recipient: TBA

Mathematics Department

Herbert L. Jones Memorial Award in Mathematics
2010 Recipient: TBA

Erma Bouts Scholarship
2010 Recipient: Angela Savinda

Hiney Mathematics Award
2010 Recipients: Gary Ising and Ken Young

Music Department Awards

Departmental Honors
2010 Recipients: TBA

Andrew Hopkins Music Award
2010 Recipient: Soya Hirano

John M. Watson Senior Prize in Music
2010 Recipients: TBA

Philosophy Department Awards

Eugene H. Peters Prize in Philosophy
2010 Recipient: Caroline Christoff

Psychology Department

Psi Chi awards, National Honor Society in Psychology
2010 Inductees: Eric Grounds, Sara Natera, Maryann Hudak, Alexandra Oleszko, Joclene Inman, Melissa Santana, Hoi Yan Lam

Psychology and Philosophy Departments

The Thomas Wayne Grant Prize
2010 Recipients: Hoi Yan Lam (Psychology)

Psychology and Sociology Departments

Jay Michael Schechter Scholarship
2010 Recipients: Melissa Santana and Eileen McIver

Athletic Department Awards

North Coast Athletic Conference Scholar-Athlete Award
Whitney Dropsey (Women’s Soccer and Softball)
Philip Major (Men’s Soccer)

Donald M. Campbell Memorial Award
2010 Recipient: David Mason (Men’s Soccer)

Helen M. Petrosky Award
2010 Recipient: Whitney Dropsey (Women Soccer and Softball)

Charles A. Henry Award
2010 Recipient: Chris Roberts (Men’s Basketball)

Herbert C. Matthews Memorial Award
2010 Recipient: Kyle Kovach (Baseball)

Team GPA Award
2010 Recipient: Women’s Golf (3.45)

Team of the Year Award
2010 Recipient: Volleyball

Yunck ‘10 Receives $122,500 in Grant Funding For Harvard Medical Ph.D. Program

Rachel Yunck, a senior biology major from Cleveland Heights, Ohio, and one of Hiram’s Goldwater Scholars, was recently selected to receive a 2010 National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship (GRFP).

According to the program’s Web site, the NSF GRFP helps ensure the vitality of the human resource base of science and engineering in the United States and reinforces its diversity. The program recognizes and supports outstanding new graduate students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees in the U.S. and abroad.

The program is the oldest graduate fellowship of its kind and has a long history of selecting recipients who achieve high levels of success in their future academic and professional careers. Past fellows include numerous Nobel Prize winners, U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, Google founder Sergey Brin and “Freakonomics” co-author Steven Levitt.

As a GRFP fellow, Yunck, a graduate of Cleveland Heights High School, will benefit from a three-year annual stipend of $30,000 along with a $10,500 cost of education allowance for tuition and fees, a one-time $1,000 international travel allowance and the freedom to conduct her own research at any accredited U.S. or foreign institution of graduate education she chooses. With a total award of $122,500, Yunck will be among a select few graduate students in the country who will pursue their research interests anywhere they want absent financial limitations.

Today’s fellows are tomorrow’s experts who will contribute significantly to research, teaching and innovations in science and engineering.

When she first read the news that she had been selected as a fellow, Yunck did not believe it. “I had heard rumors that results were going to be posted early this week,” she said. “I was up late studying and decided to keep regular tabs on the Web site. Around 2 a.m., there was a notification that results had been posted. I logged into the NSF GRFP Web site and saw that my page said ‘Welcome Fellow’ and showed an option to accept or decline the award. After an initial state of exhausted confusion, I realized, ‘Whoa! That means they are offering me a fellowship!’”

Yunck says she is honored and grateful for the fellowship. “It is an incredible honor to receive a fellowship such as this as I embark on my scientific career,” she said. “It also makes me fully appreciate how much I have learned during my time at Hiram. Four years ago I never could have envisioned pursuing a career in research, attending graduate school, presenting at conferences or writing a grant proposal. It is amazing how much you can grow over such a short time span, of course aided by the guidance of some absolutely amazing professors.”

Yunck saw the fellowship as an opportunity to assist her with her future graduate school work. “I applied so that I could receive external funding for graduate school, which would give me greater personal financial support as well as greater flexibility in choosing a research project/lab,” she said.

In order to apply, Yunck had to submit a personal statement essay, an essay on her previous research experience, a grant-style proposed plan of research, three reference letters and academic transcripts.

For her proposed plan of research, she chose a topic she has researched here at Hiram. “My general area of interest is microbiology,” she said. “I decided to write my grant proposal on a topic related to the research I conducted in Brad Goodner’s lab on ABC-transporter specificities in Agrobacterium tumefaciens. It was my chance to get creative and try to imagine experiments that I would love to do in the future if time and money allowed.”

Professor of Biology Brad Goodner mentored Yunck through the fellowship application. He said he is not surprised that she was chosen for the fellowship. “I am absolutely elated for Rachel, but I am not surprised,” he said. “She is an exceptional student who has set high goals for herself. All the hard work she put into the grant proposal part of her application really paid off. Rachel proposed a research strategy for figuring out the individual jobs of a large number of transport proteins, which is one of the ‘holy grails’ of current genomics. She read a lot of research articles, bounced ideas around and came up with a well-written, innovative and doable proposal.”

The fellowship will only help Yunck in her graduate pursuits. It will allow her to make her dreams of doing graduate work in the world’s top labs a reality without having to worry about funding – something that would have been impossible without the award.

“This award will provide additional financial support as I work my way through graduate school,” she said. “It will also give me more flexibility to work in labs that fit my interests, unrestricted by funding limitations.”

Once she graduates this spring, Yunck plans to attend Harvard Medical School. “I will enter a Ph.D. Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS) program at Harvard University – Division of Medical Sciences,” she said. “My primary focus will be in microbiology, although the BBS program gives me flexibility to explore other fields as well.”

She hopes to one day have her own research lab and to be able to teach microbiology. Goodner is confident that she will achieve great things in the future. “I know that Rachel will be successful at the next level and beyond, and she will always be a fantastic role model here at Hiram,” he said.

Hiram President Thomas V. Chema Unveils Cleveland’s First “Brag Book”

The Cleveland Professional 20/30 Club showcased the Got*City GAME! Cleveland City BRAG Book and announced its new video series HotShots@HotSpots at their monthly “Around Town” happy hour event on April 1 at the Hard Rock Café at Tower City from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Hiram College President Thomas V. Chema unveiled the digital Cleveland City BRAG Book during a game show event at the popular downtown restaurant.

The Cleveland City BRAG Book is a trivia game with 157 “wow” questions and answers about the community’s business, education, and lifestyle assets. Readers will be saying, “Wow, I had no idea we are doing that…are first in this…have that going on…” as they explore every page of this new online resource.

“For the first time we have a tool to knit together a web of everything great in Northeast Ohio,” said Barbara Oney, executive producer of Got*City GAME! “We’re reaching out to the region’s young professionals where they are—online—with what excites them most about setting roots in a place to work and play.”

Readers of the Cleveland City BRAG Book scroll over a question and the answer pops up. They click “www” and are taken to a corresponding site for more information. Additionally, Cleveland BRAG Banner buttons will be on Web sites throughout the region directing people to the book.

Area Web managers should contact Oney (bsoney@gotcitygame.tv) to add the banner or the entire book to their Web sites.

“The Cleveland City BRAG Book isn’t the end product, it’s the beginning of a dynamic social network that will get the word out about Cleveland’s assets to the important 18 to 35 year old demographic,” added Oney.

The Cleveland Professional 20/30 Club joined forces with Got*City GAME! to develop HotShots@HotSpots, a new video series that can be found on the Got*City GAME! webTV site. The programs feature 20/30 Club members as they show off what they think are the “Hot Spots” for fun, work and living.

“The partnership between the 20/30 Club and Got*City GAME! is ideal. It fulfills our goal to show off what is great about our city in a dynamic and accessible way,” said Gautam Pai, 20/30 Club member and executive producer of HotShots@HotSpots. “Placing the programs on the Got*City GAME! site helps us reach an even greater audience.”

Cuyahoga Community College, Hiram College, and LiveCLEVELAND! were early sponsors of Got*City GAME!, a viral Web-based reality show that attracted viewers from more than 1,000 cities and 61 countries worldwide to watch teams of young professionals compete for a chance to win a year’s lease at Tremont Place Lofts and tickets to the hottest venues in Northeast Ohio. The program concluded on February 12, 2010, when Kim Sullivan and Alex Hamberger of Team LiveCLEVELAND! were declared the winners of Got*City GAME!

Garfield Institute Presents the Seminar, “Economy: Examining the Financial Crisis”

On Monday, March 22, 2010, the Garfield Institute for Public Leadership will present the seminar, “Economy: Examining the Financial Crisis,” cosponsored by Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence, Case Western Reserve University.

Former United States Senator Phil Gramm is the featured panelist for this event, which will explore the causes and possible outcomes of the current world financial crisis. Gramm is among the most qualified analysts and commentators on this issue, having earned his doctorate in economics from the University of Georgia and having taught at Texas A&M University prior to a distinguished 24-year career in the U.S. Congress. Gramm was first elected to the House of Representatives in 1978 and to the Senate in 1984. His leadership in the Senate included an appointment on the Senate Budget Committee from 1989 until he left the Senate in 2003, and an appointment as the chairman of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs from 1995 to 2000.

Also on the panel will be Mark Sniderman, executive vice president and chief policy officer for the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. Sniderman earned his doctorate in economics from the University of Wisconsin at Madison before joining the bank’s research department as an economist in 1976. He held positions of increasing responsibility and was appointed to his current role in 2007. He has served as senior economist for economic policy analysis for the U.S. Senate Budget Committee while on leave from the bank.

The panel discussion is from 4:15 – 6:15 p.m. in the Kennedy Center Ballroom, and is free and open to the public.

Hiram Takes Innovative 3-Week Format Into Summer School

Earlier this week, Hiram College introduced a new summer class schedule that adds its distinctive 3-week class format to its long-standing evening and weekend course offerings.

Beginning March 15, students may register for summer courses in either the day or evening/weekend format. Hiram students who register by April 15 will receive a 10% discount on their summer tuition. Housing and meal plans are also available to continuing Hiram students.

Non-Hiram college and university students are welcome to attend Hiram’s summer school. Students who reside in Northeast Ohio during the summer may find our 3-week and evening/weekend schedules convenient to pick up extra credit hours.

Hiram College announces tuition freeze for 2010-2011 academic year

Hiram College officials today announced that they will not increase tuition for students entering Hiram for the 2010-2011 academic year. The zero percent increase is in addition to the institution’s Tuition Guarantee, which was established in 2004 and locks in a student’s tuition for four years.

Under Hiram’s Tuition Guarantee, each entering class paid a slightly higher rate for tuition than the previous class, and those costs were locked in for four years. With a zero percent increase for the entering class, traditional students coming to Hiram next fall will pay tuition costs equal to traditional students who entered Hiram in 2009, and those costs will be guaranteed not to increase.

“We believe this is the right thing to do for our prospective families,” said Hiram College President Thomas Chema. “In this economic environment, and with college costs nationally spiraling out of reach of many families, we’re fortunate to be in a position of strength and to be able to take an additional step to demonstrate our affordability. We are confident that we are appropriately priced as one of the most respected liberal arts institutions in the country and we do all that we can to make a Hiram education affordable and predictable for our students and their families.”

Hiram’s tuition is among the lowest in the North Coast Athletic Conference. Institutions in the conference include Wooster, Allegheny, Earlham, Wittenberg, Ohio Wesleyan, Denison, Wabash, Oberlin and Kenyon.

According to Chema, Hiram’s effort to control college costs for prospective families is one of the reasons the institution has achieved substantial growth in the past four years. Classes entering Hiram in that time period have been among the largest in the history of the institution. Additionally, the College has invested more than $45 million in campus improvements including construction of a new residence hall, dining center, townhouse apartment complex, nursing suite, and meeting house, home to the James A. Garfield Institute for Public Leadership.

“We believe keeping tuition costs at the 2009 level, and then guaranteeing those costs for four years as part of our Tuition Guarantee, will be an attractive option for students and their parents,” said Chema. “It is also a profound statement reflecting our historic commitment to affordability.”

Kiffer, Hexamer Become Local TV Stars

Kyle Kiffer of Parma and Abby Hexamer of Canton are the two-member team for Hiram College on Cleveland’s first reality show, Got*City GAME!.

Kiffer is an senior accounting and financial management major and entrepreneurship minor who is active in Hiram’s Student Senate. Hexamer is a sophomore management major who is also completing requirements to enter medical school. Also a member of Student Senate, Hexamer is a volunteer at Akron Children’s Hospital and is currently serving as the “queen” for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton.

They were a natural choice for the judges who culled over dozens of audition tapes for Cleveland’s web-based reality series.

“When Abby and Kyle were picked, we knew we had two young people who could represent the region and Hiram College. But when we got to know them, we realized how much they represent the get-up-and-go spirit of our region,” claims T.L. Champion, executive producer of Got*City GAME!. Kiffer and Hexamer are competing with two other teams representing Cuyahoga Community College and LiveCleveland. The teams are competing to win downtown Cleveland for a year including a free lease at Tremont Place Lofts and free eats and seats at area performance, dining and clubbing establishments.

Kiffer and Hexamer were filmed during 15 different challenges in which they competed for points against the Cuyahoga Community College and LiveCleveland teams. Viewers are asked to go to www.gotcitygame.tv to watch the weekly webisodes and vote for their favorite team. The team with the most “combined/accumulated” points at the end of the 15-show release wins.

The webisodes post each Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. on www.gotcitygame.tv

James A. Garfield Statue “Recapitation” Ceremony Attracts Ohio Media

News media from throughout Northeast Ohio converged on Hiram’s campus today at noon to witness the James A. Garfield Statue “Recapitation” Ceremony. The ceremony was held in the front lawn of the Garfield Meeting House on the intersection of State Routes 82 and 700 on the Hiram College Campus.

Hiram’s statue of its former student and principal and the 20th President of the United States was vandalized shortly after the dedication of the Garfield Meeting House in May, capturing the curiosity of people worldwide. College officials nearly gave up hope of finding the missing head when a Good Samaritan returned the missing artifact to the Village Police earlier this summer.

Tuesday’s ceremony marked the end of this bizarre story as the iconic cornerstone of the Village of Hiram was restored to its original condition.

Speakers at the ceremonial recapitation included Hiram College President Thomas V. Chema, Village of Hiram Mayor Lou Bertrand, and Vice President of Student Senate Kyle Kiffer.

See more photos from the event here.

Building the future

Even though the buildings on Hiram’s campus may look old, not all of them really are. In fact, our campus has grown quite a bit in the past five years. From the newest student townhouses to athletics facilities and classroom buildings, we’ve invested heavily in new spaces for students.

Fall 2009 – New Dining Hall

We also revolutionized our food service with 18,000 square-foot dining hall this summer. The new dining hall features:

• An open floor plan
• Large seating area
• Private rooms for groups or meetings
• Food stations set up in an circular pattern
• A full range of food choices from traditional to international dishes

Fall 2009 – Townhouses

This summer we built 26 townhouses that are currently housing 104 upperclass students for the 2009-2010 year. Each townhouse has:

• Four single bedrooms
• Two baths
• A living room
• Kitchen with breakfast bar
• Laundry room
• A separate entrance
• On-site parking for each occupant

Fall 2009 – Hinsdale Hall

Our main classroom building, Hinsdale Hall, got a makeover over the summer and reopened in the fall of 2009. The interior received a new look with new paint and new floors and a new set of furniture that makes the building a much more comfortable learning space for professors and students.

Spring 2009 – Writing House

A new home for the Lindsay-Crane Center for Writing and Literature also opened in the spring of 2009. The Queen Anne style Writing House was built in the 1890s and originally used as a boarding house. It houses:

• The Hiram College Writing Center
• Classrooms
• Faculty offices
• A kitchen
• Porch
• Backyard garden

Spring 2009 – Garfield Meeting House

One of the oldest looking buildings on campus was our next addition. The Garfield Meeting House serves as the residence for the Garfield Institute for Public Leadership. The former Mecca Community Church was taken apart, moved to Hiram’s campus and reassembled. It opened in the spring of 2009 and features:

• A meeting area on the first floor
• A library in the loft
• Faculty offices in the lower level

Fall 2008 – East Hall

Our newest residence hall was opened in the fall of 2008. East Hall is a $7-million residence hall which features:

• 102 beds in six- and eight-person apartment-style suites, with single and/or double rooms and a central living area.
• The Burton D. Morgan Entrepreneurship Center within the hall. The building combines both the residential facilities and the entrepreneurship academic and co-curricular facilities, making the entrepreneurship program truly integrated into campus life.
• The Burton D. Morgan Entrepreneurship Center houses: a 50-seat lecture hall, an incubator classroom, offices for the entrepreneurship center director and assistant director, meeting spaces, and a 2-bedroom Entrepreneur-in-Residence suite.

Fall 2008 – Nursing Suite

Hiram’s on-campus state-of-the-art Nursing Suite opened in the Fall of 2008. It features a simulated clinical learning laboratory that provides students with hands-on experience before moving into off-campus clinical settings. The lab is equipped with:

• An eight bed acute care area with simulation manikins
• A six station primary care area
• A critical care area which houses a SimMan and SimBaby

This advanced simulated equipment with realistic anatomical and clinical functionality allow for programmable learning scenarios which test students’ clinical and decision-making skills.

2008 – Gelbke Art Center

The art department’s new home, the Gelbke Art Center, also opened in 2008. The new facility features:

• An art gallery
• Faculty offices
• Photography dark rooms
• An art history lecture hall and seminar room
• An area for digital art
• Ceramics and sculpture facilities
• Print making and design areas
• Classrooms

Spring 2008 – James H. Barrow Field Station

The James H. Barrow Field Station, a popular destination for students in the life sciences, got updated in the spring of 2008. The 390 acre property boasts:

• 100 acres of mature beech-maple forest
• A coldwater stream
• Young forest
• Permanent and temporary ponds
• A six mile interpretive nature trail
• Terrestrial and aquatic environments for class projects and ecological research
• A waterfowl observation building with a large meeting room
• A student residence
• A renovated laboratory and teaching buildings.

2005 – The Coleman Sports, Recreation and Fitness Center

The Coleman Sports, Recreation and Fitness Center opened in 2005. It is the hub for indoor activity and includes:

• Price Gymnasium
• Martin Fieldhouse
• Fleming Fieldhouse
• Alumni Memorial Pool
• Andrews Fitness Center
• Connor Weight Room
• Steinem Aerobics Studio
• Krabill and Morris Racquetball Courts
• An indoor track

2004 – “The Myrt”

“The Myrt,” which opened in 2004, was made possible by the generosity of former softball coach and professor emerita Dr. Myrtis Herndon, who not only donated the land for the facility, but was also instrumental in the design and building of the structure. It features:

• A game field with full size brick dugouts for home and visiting teams.
• Storage areas and practice space.
• The game field features an all-dirt infield and a natural grass outfield with a warning track.
• The playing field also features a permanent scoreboard located beyond right field.

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