Today's Update: Friday, January 9, 2026

January 9, 2026

Dear Student Life team,

Happy High Five Friday! 

I hope you were able to take some time to refresh and rejuvenate over winter break. I think we’re ready for students to officially return Monday as we begin the new year and new semester.  

Our support for students certainly didn’t take a break. High Five to everyone, especially Michelle McGregor from Student Advocacy, for consulting on and connecting with a student of concern right before Christmas.  

A big Buckeye High Five goes to Josh Bodnar who knocked it out of the park with a mission-critical report and proposal. And then he even Zoomed in from a Buck-I-SERV service trip in Guatemala to help deliver it and answer questions. 

While the result on the field at the Cotton Bowl wasn’t what we wanted, the Student Life team proved once again to be national champions for a wildly successful bowl tour and service project. High Fives to Tracy Stuck, Candyce Williams, Noah Gilbert, Beth Ullum, Christy Muhoberac, Travis Barnhart, Adrienne Gladish, Dave Isaacs, Kellie Uhrig, Anita McCoy, Tiffany Quattlebaum, David Wiseley, Kayla Davis, Jen Vandemark, John Cronin, Drew Stark, Joe Hast, Hannah Warner, Dan Hausman, Jon Christopherson, Rachel Conners, Anne McDaniel, Patrick Ionno and Serena Rabi. In case you missed it, we packed 21,800 meals at the North Texas Food Bank the day before the game.  

We now know the spiciest floors in Lincoln Tower. There was a fun December contest to collect spices for the food pantry at the Monda Student Resource Center with more than 550 items donated. The 9th floor (Housing and Residence Education) took the Big Spice Award for the heaviest donation with more than 100 pounds of flour and sugar. Most Items Donated (the Alotta Spice Award) went to the 6th floor (Planning, Projects and Space Management and Student Life Facilities) with more than 150 items. This was an important project because spices are in big demand at the MSRC pantry but seldom donated. High Fives to the team members who helped out as floor coordinators including Michelle Rankin (Dining Services), Kirby Bell (Student Conduct), Samantha Bradway (Planning, Projects and Space Management), Teri Cugliari (Risk and Emergency Management), D’Arcy Oaks (Financial Management), Jennifer Nelson (Housing and Residence Education) and Harry Warner (Counseling and Consultation Service). 

Have a Scarlet and Great weekend, and without hesitation, Go Bucks!  

 

Melissa S. Shivers, PhD        
Senior Vice President for Student Life         
The Ohio State University