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AUGUST 22, 2019

Summer News Briefs

News you may have missed this summer

By Abby Miller | News Editor

T here was no shortage of news while Ohio University students were away from campus. Here are some of the top news stories that happened throughout the summer:

OU professor found guilty of additional sexual harassment claims

Journalism professor Yusuf Kalyango was found responsible for sexually harassing a graduate student in September, according to a previous Post report. In May, Kalyango was also found in violation of OU policies that include sexual harassment by hostile environment and sexual harassment by quid pro quo.

Kalyango was found in violation of those policies through an investigation by OU’s Office of Equity and Civil Rights Compliance, or ECRC. The investigation looked into claims of sexual misconduct that took place in 2011. During that time, an OU student was on a trip to Zambia for a course that Kalyango taught in conjunction with the University of Zambia.

OU denies usage of medical marijuana cards on campus

Ohio’s new Medical Marijuana Control Program lets certified physicians recommend up to a 90-day supply of cannabis and three refills to their patients, but OU will not be following the program’s implementation.

Since all forms of marijuana remain illegal under the federal level, university spokesman Jim Sabin said OU’s Code of Conduct and other policies regarding marijuana usage on campus will remain unchanged. However, if a student has a medical marijuana card, they do not have to report it to the university.

Athens resident found dead near parking garage

An Athens resident was found unconscious and unresponsive on College Street on May 31. He was pronounced dead at the scene and was later identified by the Athens Police Department as 36-year-old Evan D. Key.

Officials believe Key fell from the top of the parking garage, and nothing suggests foul play, according to an APD news release.

Alexander levy passes and survives recount

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Hannah Ruhoff | FOR THE POST

Just down the street from Baker University Center, 35 Park Place houses the Honors Tutorial College offices. (FILE)

For the first time since 1991, the Alexander Local School District passed a levy. The levy is a 1 percent earned income tax levy, and it will exclude income from capital gains, pensions and Social Security.

Ohio law states that if the margin of victory is less than half of 1 percent of all votes cast, a recount has to occur. The recount was consistent with the original count, with 1,184 votes in favor of the levy and 1,183 against it.

Ohio receives Princeton Review rankings

OU ranked in the Princeton Review’s list of top 385 colleges, but it also earned a high ranking on the list of schools with the least accessible professors.

The Princeton Review releases 62 lists every year that rank colleges in different factors based off student input. On the list of schools with the least accessible professors, OU ranked 12th.

The overall top colleges school is not ranked numerically. The list appears in alphabetical order on The Princeton Review’s website.

New dean of Honors Tutorial College selected

Donal C. Skinner began his new position of dean of the Honors Tutorial College on July 15.

Skinner comes to OU as the former dean of the University of Wyoming’s Honors College. He was dean of UW’s Honors College since 2017 and also served as a professor of endocrinology in the college’s Department of Zoology and Physiology.

A search committee for a new HTC dean was formed in December 2018 when former HTC Dean Jeremy Webster took over as the new Zanesville campus dean in June of 2017.

New Fraternity and Sorority Life department chooses director

OU’s Division of Student Affairs selected Ariel Tarosky to be the director of its new Fraternity and Sorority Life department.

As director, Tarosky will be in charge of overseeing all facets of OU’s greek life. About 14 percent of OU students participate in greek life and are members of one of 34 greek organizations.

Tarosky began her new position on August 1. She was formerly the director of education and communication for Triangle Fraternity, a men’s STEM organization in Plainfield, Indiana. She has been working within Greek life since 2010 when she served as coordinator of fraternity and sorority life at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.

AUTHOR: Abby Miller
EDITOR: Ian McKenzie
COPY EDITOR: Bre Offenberger
PHOTO: Hannah Ruhoff
ILLUSTRATION: Riley Scott
WEB DEVELOPMENT: Midge Mazur