Today's Update: Friday, October 27, 2023
October 27, 2023
Dear Student Life team,
Happy High Five Friday.
The Buckeyes for Charity campaign continues for another week. High Fives to our Buckeyes for Charity team of Teri Cugliari, Morgan Hammonds and D’Arcy Oaks. This week there was a Chili Cook-Off at Lincoln Tower. High Fives to winner Peter Hansen and first runner-up Jack Cilles, who finished second by just one vote. High Five as well to Bridgett Keener for all of her hard work in both setting up and putting together the Chili Cook-off, and for the creative trophy she created. Earlier this month, there was a Buckeyes for Charity “Knife Skills for Life Skills” class. High Fives to Chefs David Wolf and Shea Clinkscales for the program. You still have until next Friday (Nov. 3) to participate in Buckeyes for Charity by supporting any of 850 nonprofit organizations around Ohio.
High Five to the entire STEP team on the continued success of the program. A recent analysis completed by Erica Szeyller in the Center for the Study of Student Life found that in the most recent cohort of students, 99% of STEP students return for their third year at Ohio State, compared to 94.3% of students not in STEP.
A colleague suggests High Fives to Jen Cottrell Vandemark and Johna Walls “for always being so helpful and flexible with our marketing requests.” High Five, Jen and Johna!
High Five to the Ohio Union’s Jeff Pelletier for successfully earning his Student Affairs Educator Certification (CSAEd) through the Higher Education Consortium for Student Affairs Certification. The certification process involves a rigorous assessment of knowledge, skills and competencies essential for student affairs educators.
Counseling and Consultation Service’s Hunter Sully gets a High Five for being selected for the Ohio Psychological Association’s Leadership Development Academy. He will meet with other fellows and begin the program with a retreat in mid-November.
High Five to Buckeye Leadership Fellows director Mercedes Wallace for being selected as a member of Women We Admire, a membership organization comprised of over 1,500 of the most accomplished women leaders in business, finance, healthcare and other fields such as law, consulting, education and non-profit.
Harry Warner (Counseling and Consultation Service) and Ari Camel (Student Wellness Center) get High Fives for creating a guide for academic advisors to help them easily know where to refer students for mental and emotional well-being. When they received feedback from the advisors on the resource, it was shared that “even the most seasoned advisors are learning new things from that webpage.” You can see and share their great work here: https://ccs.osu.edu/supporting-your-student/academic-advisors
High Five to our Student Life team in Lima for their role in the city’s largest trick-or-treat event in more than 20 years.
I know I ask you for photos all the time, things like you and your team in spirit gear and cute pets. Keep those coming because I love to include them in the High Five Friday Update, and I have another photo request this week. If you go to a conference or some other professional event, send me a photo that Social and Digital Media Coordinator Kailee Bell can post on the Student Life LinkedIn page. Think of it as an external High Five!
Speaking of appreciation, consider this call from USAC, the University Staff Advisory Committee. They are looking for nominations for their Staff Spotlight, honoring team members across the university who exemplify what it means to be a Buckeye for for their great work ethic, hard work or volunteer work to help fellow Buckeyes. Staff may be nominated by a supervisor, colleague or campus customer. We have plenty of Student Life team members who are great candidates for a USAC Staff Spotlight, so I hope you’ll consider making a nomination online. Besides, winners not only get university-wide recognition, they also get a $50 gift card courtesy of USAC and Ohio State’s Office of Human Resources.
Have a Scarlet and Great weekend, and, of course, Go Bucks!
Melissa S. Shivers, PhD
Senior Vice President for Student Life
The Ohio State University