Campus

Business, Campus, Downtown Bowling Green August 17, 2017

Scavenger hunt helps international students discover downtown BG

By DAVID DUPONT BG Independent News Students from around the world got a chance to explore downtown Bowling Green Wednesday afternoon. The international students from Bowling Green State University came from many countries—France, Taiwan, China, Saudi Arabia, Germany, Zimbabwe, Netherlands – just to name a few. A scavenger hunt organized by the Four Corners Center had them searching out all the treasures they could find in the downtown. That included the coffee shops, restaurants, gift shops, restaurants, and even the farmers market. Teams of about half dozen students each buzzed about town. Members of one group said they didn’t have time to talk as they hurried off to find Homeworks. Elisa Erbrech, a business student from Strasbourg, France, said, those on her team were too intent on winning to even stop and taste the cookies and coffee the Wood County Library had set out. And they accomplished their mission. The team was the first to finish. Marcia Salazar-Valentine, the director of International Programs and Partnerships, said the idea behind the scavenger hunt was to introduce the students, all of whom had just arrived at BGSU, to the downtown, and to introduce downtown businesses to the students. “The international students are so important,” said Wendy Chambers, the director of the Wood County Convention Visitors Bureau, one of the Four Corners entities.  “We wanted to welcome them to the community.” BGSU enrolls more than 1,000 foreign students. “I think it takes a while because they have so much to do the first weeks,” Salazar-Valentine said. She remembers arriving as an international student in Bowling Green. “I came downtown and learned so much…

Posted by:
David Dupont on August 17, 2017.
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Campus August 5, 2017

BGSU summer grads urged to persevere in face of life’s curve balls

By DAVID DUPONT BG Independent News Almost 15 years ago to the day, Brady Young got some bad news, and he was flown to Zurich, Switzerland, to get it. He’d been summoned to Zurich before, so he thought little of it. Then his boss informed him in short order that the company was closing down the division he headed, and in 90 days his and the entire staff’s employment would be terminated. Young, a 1982 graduate of Bowling Green State University, apologized for talking of such things at graduation. After all the 958 candidates for degrees at Saturday’s BGSU commencement, were here to celebrate moving forward. Divorce, health problems for oneself and loved ones, job lose, and financial problems — in the 1990s, Young said he encountered all of these “curve balls.” “I hate to be the bearer of bad news on a day that’s all about celebration but each of you will face challenges like these as you move into this new phase of your life,” he said. “Job, relationship, and family are a potent brew that brings all kinds of wonderful but also challenging experiences. … Dealing with success is easy. Your life will be defined by how you deal with uncertainty.” So in that office in Zurich, Young let the bad news sink in, and then he made a proposal. He asked whether the company would sell the division so it could continue as a smaller, independent company. Young sealed the deal to do just that several days later, on Aug. 8, 2002. So he continues as the president and CEO of Strategic Risk Solutions, a company…

Posted by:
David Dupont on August 5, 2017.

Arts and Entertainment, Campus, Community Voices, Music August 3, 2017

University Choral Society auditioning singers for new season of Bach, Brahms & Christmas music

BGSU OFFICE OF MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS An exciting season is ahead for the Bowling Green State University Choral Society. Bowling Green State Bach Cantata No. 80, the Brahms Requiem, and a new, festive holiday concert titled “Joyous Sounds” are all being planned. Auditions for community members of the choral society will be held on the evenings of Aug. 15 and Aug. 22. Community members who would like to participate in the UCS should sign up for an audition time online at http://bit.ly/2f7Z5Pd. Those auditioning should bring a piece to sing. The first rehearsal of the season will begin at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 29 in 1040 Moore Musical Arts Center at BGSU. This year’s performance schedule includes: Oct. 29, 4 p.m.  – J.S. Bach Cantata No. 80 “Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott” (A Mighty Fortress Is Our God) with soloists Chelsea Cloeter, Ellen Scholl, Christopher Scholl and Lance Ashmore, the chancel choir of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church and a chamber orchestra at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, 315 S. College Drive, Bowling Green Nov. 28, 7 p.m.  – “Joyous Sounds: A Yuletide Celebration” with the BGSU Graduate Brass Quintet and organist Michael Gartz at First United Methodist Church, 1526 E. Wooster St., Bowling Green April 22, 3 p.m.  – Brahms “Ein deutsches Requiem” (A German Requiem) with the BGSU Philharmonia in Kobacker Hall on the BGSU campus.

Posted by:
David Dupont on August 3, 2017.

Campus August 1, 2017

Heritage meets the future in two of BGSU’s oldest halls

By DAVID DUPONT BG Independent News Prospective students will be offered a grand entrance into Bowling Green State University when they visit the new admission offices in University Hall. University Hall, one of the two oldest buildings on campus – Williams Hall just to the west was completed earlier in 1915 – is opening after a complete two-year makeover. And like Moseley Hall, another of the original campus buildings, University Hall offers all the cutting-edge amenities of the early 21st century without losing its sense of a 100-year-old heritage. Th projected final costs for the building renovations is $21 million for Moseley and $25 million for University Hall, according to the Office of Marketing and Communications. The west entrance of University Hall has retained the marble staircase that sweeps upward to the second floor, the new home for the office of admissions. “Of all the spaces in the building this is the one I’m most proud of,” said Brian Swope, the university’s assistant director of the office of design and construction, during a recent tour. In renovating the stairway “we kept as many of the original pieces as we possibly could,” he said. Where the original fixtures had to be replaced, replicas were purchased. That was true throughout the building. Crews stripped away the work of earlier renovations, opening up space, and exposing original walls. Drywall was removed at the top of the stairwell. The marble stairs will be treated give them a better grip, Swope said. Where a fireplace once graced the president’s office when the building first opened, a decorative fireplace has been installed in a lounge area…

Posted by:
David Dupont on August 1, 2017.

Campus, Community Voices August 1, 2017

BGSU invites public to tour renovated Moseley, University halls

From BGSU OFFICE OF MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS Community members are invited to tour Bowling Green State University’s renovated Moseley and University halls during open houses Aug. 10 and 12. Attendees will also be able to tour several other newly renovated facilities including the Michael & Sara Kuhlin Center and Falcon Outfitters and the Career Center, which are located in the Bowen-Thompson Student Union. Tour guides will also share information about the new Robert W. and Patricia A. Maurer Center, which will house the College of Business. “Our facilities are a critical component of the BG Experience,” said BGSU President Mary Ellen Mazey. “Next-generation teaching and learning spaces help to ensure that our students are prepared to compete and succeed after graduation.” The renovated University Hall will house the Office of Admissions, cutting-edge classrooms emphasizing technology, and active learning spaces. Because of their central role in BGSU’s mission, almost every prospective or BGSU student will have classes or use services now located in these historic buildings. The renovated Moseley Hall houses an interdisciplinary science complex featuring state-of-the-art, flexible laboratory and classroom spaces accommodating a broad range of science disciplines – biology, chemistry, geology and medical laboratory sciences. The first open house will be held from 5-7:30 p.m. Aug. 10. Tours begin at 5:30, 6 and 6:30 p.m. The second opportunity for community members to tour the new spaces will be held from noon to 2 p.m. Aug. 12. Tours begin at noon and 1 p.m. Free parking will be available in Lot A, which is located at the corner of Wooster Street and South College Drive. The buildings will be open for visitors to explore. Attendees interested in a…

Posted by:
David Dupont on August 1, 2017.

Campus, Sports July 31, 2017

BGSU grad launches petition drive to save Forrest Creason

By DAVID DUPONT BG Independent News A Perrysburg woman hoping to reverse Bowling Green State University’s decision to close the Forrest Creason Golf Course at the end of the current season. The decision was announced in March. Cheryl Joyce, a 1986 BGSU alumni and retired WBGU-TV employee, said she was approached by a fellow member of the club who said something should be done convince university officials to change their minds about the fate of the course. A family issue prevented Joyce from acting then, but about a week ago, she launched a petition drive on change.org (see petition). The petition, addressed to BGSU President Mary Ellen Mazey and Chief Financial Officer Sherideen Stoll, has attracted 81 signatures as of Tuesday afternoon. For Joyce, who started playing at the course 30 years ago, it is a treasure that merits more investment by BGSU, not closing. “It’s part of the community.” People from college students to senior citizens use the course. “It’s busy,” she said. “It’s not as busy as it used to be, but it’s busy.” Part of its appeal, she said, is that it’s an accessible course. “Forrest Creason is a great course for the average golfer. It’s not a high end country club where you have to dress to the nines to play golf.” While it has its share of hazards, sand traps and water, those add to its appeal without making too difficult to play whether for a beginner, a senior citizen, or a woman, she said. The course is where Joyce started playing golf in 1988 after she began working for BGSU. Now she runs two…

Posted by:
David Dupont on July 31, 2017.

Arts and Entertainment, Campus, News Break, Visual art July 30, 2017

BGSU undergrad wins NowOH Popular Choice Award

Yuanyi Wang won the Popular Choice Award at the 10th Annual Northwest Ohio Community Art Exhibit. Wang, an undergraduate student in the Bowling Green State University’s School of Art, was honored for her self-portrait “Perfect or Not Perfect.” The oil painting also received the Toledo Federation of Art Societies Award at the show, which was held in the Bryan Gallery in the BGSU School of Art. The exhibit, which was open to artists from 12 counties in Northwest Ohio, closed July29. At that point the ballots for the Popular Choice Award were counted. The $50 prize is sponsored by the Bowling Green Arts Council. Jacqueline Nathan, gallery director, said Wang’s margin of victory was definitive. See http://bgindependentmedia.org/nowoh-exhibit-surveys-local-art-scene/ for related story.

Posted by:
David Dupont on July 30, 2017.