MULTIMEDIA

Relay For Life hopes for $46,000

For 18 consecutive hours, volunteers will be walking at Ping Recreation Center.

Want to file your own records request? Here are some tips

We promised yesterday that after a week’s worth of pontification about Sunshine Week and open-records laws we would run you through what it takes to obtain public documents on your own.

Swimming and Diving: Ferguson to represent Ohio in tourney

Although her teammates are done competing for the season, sophomore Addison Ferguson continues to swim on. 

Cartoon: 3/21/2014

Records reporting generates some of our juiciest stories

We promised at the beginning of Sunshine Week to write about some of our successes with records requests as well as our struggles. In fact, some of our most impactful reporting in recent memory has been fueled by public records. Here are some of the highlights:

Students become blind for a day

Revving vehicles, talking people, chirping birds, rustling trees and a partner were relied on by some students to get across campus this week.

Wrestling: Hightower earns first NCAA bid

For three years, Ohio redshirt junior Harrison Hightower has found countless ways to get the attention of his teammates and coaches. He’s never won a tournament, never led Ohio in wins, and until this time three weeks ago, had never earned a national tournament berth. Yet, Hightower has made a clear niche as one of the Bobcats’ most well-respected wrestlers.

City Council aims to stop teen drinking

A student caught drinking underage wouldn’t be the only one in trouble if Athens City Council approves a new ordinance law enforcement plans to propose.

New technology offers a powerful tool for popular Humans vs. Zombies game

Humans vs. Zombies might get a little more intense.

Softball: Ohio prepares for a doubleheader against Dayton Thursday

One of Ohio’s major goals this season is being the best team in the state.

International Earth Day reminds students, staff to love planet

The April 22 Earth Day is commonly known as a day during which people across the US celebrate the planet and work to conserve its natural resources. However, many may not know there is an International, or equinoctial, Earth Day celebrated in March.International Earth Day, March 20, marks the change of seasons across the globe. International Earth Day presents an opportunity to increase environmental awareness.Cardboard, paper and aluminum cans are among the most popular recycled materials at Ohio University. Andrew Ladd, the manager of the Recycling and Refuse Center, said pollution can be reduced when virgin materials aren’t being used to create new products.Currently, there is a 59 percent recycle rate at Ohio University, Ladd said. The goal recycle rate of 2016 is 80 percent. Another surprising statistic is that the lowest recycle recovery rates come from the residence halls. Their recovery rate is 20 percent.Some students, however, are particularly involved in recycling on campus. Sarah Maj, a senior studying environmental geology and an employee of the Recycling and Refuse center, occasionally cleans out old buildings or vacated professors’ offices. She then recycles any eligible materials found in them as part of her job.“If it’s something we deem reusable, we donate it,” Maj said.Maj mentions that certain plastics and glass materials aren’t easily biodegradable. When these materials end up in the landfill, they just remain there for incredibly long periods of time.With this in mind, Maj said she encourages other students to participate in recycling. If she sees a student throw away something that can be recycled, she sometimes reminds them of the many outlets OU’s campus has for recycling a variety of different items.“I don’t really think there is a reason why you wouldn’t want to recycle,” Maj said, “There’s a million different reasons why you should.”One of these reasons is that companies sometimes can even pay for recycled material.Accurate IT works with the Recycling and Refuse center when it comes to recycling old electronics equipment. The company will sometimes pay clients for their old laptops or other computers. But, the closest location is in Columbus.The company collects these used or broken electronics from multiple partners, such as OU, and pulls any working or reusable pieces from the discarded gadgets.“Our goal is to educate our clients about all the products that can be recycled and divert them from going to landfills,” said Jack Knapp, the director of client relations at Accurate IT in Columbus.Knapp said the recycling of unwanted equipment can be beneficial to local areas, but it can be even more beneficial to the global environment as a whole.When an old, broken electronic can be turned into a new, usable item, pollution from industry production can go down. More recycling essentially means less pollution is being emitted into the environment.“Recycling one ton of paper saves 17 trees and 5,000 gallons of water,” Ladd said.tt315212@ohiou.edu@TiffanyTouville

Bobcats down Vikings in tournament opener

With senior Jon Smith leaving the team on Monday, Ohio entered Wednesday’s CollegeInsider.com Tournament opening round game against Cleveland State shorthanded.

Staples closing its doors at 225 stores

As the digital age takes over our everyday culture, it forces both small and corporate businesses to make adjustments to fit the needs of consumers. To instead meet business necessities, officials from office-supply giant Staples Inc. recently announced that the company will downsize.

Mayor unconcerned by Mill, High fests

Athens Mayor Paul Wiehl had one reminder for citizens and Ohio University students: stay safe during Fest Season.Although it’s still relatively early, Athens Mayor Paul Wiehl said during Wednesday’s press conference there haven’t been many reports of excessive rowdiness from last Saturday’s Mill Fest.“It’s the first of a series (of parties),” Wiehl said. “It’s still early in the season.”Police said the turnout for Mill Fest was a “big increase,” and arrests by Ohio University Police Department and Athens Police Department were up to 39 from 29 the year before, according to previous Post articles.Yet, some students still said they enjoyed Mill Fest because it did not get shut down until 6 p.m.“Well, my close girlfriends live at 117 Mill so they had our friend DJ and it was a lot of fun,” said Nora Lydon, a junior studying communication studies. “They had two kegs and that’s what I did.”Wiehl said he was relatively surprised by the number of attendees during Mill Fest, but didn’t find the festivities to be an extreme danger to anyone partying on the streets and doesn’t expect High Fest to be any more or less disruptive than the other planned fests, such as Palmer Fest, which will take place Saturday, Mar. 29.“High Fest has been pretty mellow in the past,” he said. “I think a lot will depend on the weather. It’s not (usually) as warm as last week, so I don’t know about Saturday.”Another OU student said she does not expect High Fest to be out of hand. “Depending on the weather, I’m sure if it’s nice it will be crazier,” said Gabriella Marrison, a junior studying communications. “High Fest to me is usually the tamest out of all of them.”Wiehl also touched on how there weren’t too many reports of vandalism. However, he did say he was concerned with the amount of the litter that accumulates. There were also concerns with the amount of money the city spends on safety during fest season.Wiehl said that Athens had spent an estimated $50,000 across various departments during the fests in spring 2013.“It’s a little disconcerting when that money could’ve been used elsewhere for the city. It’s always looked to be used elsewhere,” he added.Lydon said she is one of many students who are planning on attending High Fest on Saturday.“I don’t know anyone that lives on High Street this year, so I’m hoping to run into friends, which I always do,” she said. “(I) will still have a good time.”Marrison said she isn’t sure if she will be attending High Fest yet. However, she advises other students to know their rights and keep safe.“Make sure to bring water and to make sure you don’t get dehydrated,” she said. “Stay behind the sidewalks and ask before you pet  the horses.”@hannahmyanghy135010@ohiou.edu

Ferguson to represent Ohio in tourney

Although her teammates are done competing for the season, sophomore Addison Ferguson continues to swim on. 

Post Picks

New, must-watch comedy With the exception of shows like South Park, Tosh.0, The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, Comedy Central has always been a channel that has struggled in creating new, great and/or lasting content. Some shows are good but fail to find their audience — like Dog Bites Man — while others are decidedly mediocre, yet find enough of an audience to stay on the air in a midday slot, like Workaholics.But, of late, with shows like Inside Amy Schumer, Key & Peele and Broad City, it appears that the channel is finally starting to get their act together in a more productive way. And with their latest show, Review, they may be on the verge of creating one of their best programs yet.Giving comedian/actor Andy Daly the vehicle he deserves, the show follows the main character as he attempts to review everything from stealing to racism. It is as politically incorrect as you can imagine, but it is also just as wicked and dryly funny as you would hope. There have only been two episodes so far, but there are more laughs packed in those two episodes than some shows induced in whole seasons.Plus, each episode is only 20 minutes long. I’m sure you can spare a couple minutes away from taking another Buzzfeed quiz to check it out. You’ll be glad you did.Will Ashton, For The Post Lady power rules Comedy CentralMy esteemed colleague Will might be going with Review for his fav. new Comedy Central show, but I’ve got to talk up Broad City. The show is created by its stars, Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer, and these two fly girls are hilarious. They have a knack for taking the smallest daily event and turning it into the most delightful 20-minute episode.I can’t get enough of this awesomely lady-powered show. If vulgarity isn’t your thing, you’ve been warned, because Ilana can get downright nasty sometimes, but every time I tune in, I can’t stop laughing.And lucky for you, busy college student, this gem is available on Hulu, so check it out when you’ve got a spare 20 minutes.Nicolien Buholzer, Managing editor

Beyond the Books: Support systems are essential for students

Confession time: I’m still learning when I need to let myself lean on those who love me most. 

Federally-funded grants may benefit counties, communities

As Athens County prepares to apply for a series of federal grants, officials are picking their priorities for what they think the area needs.

International Earth Day reminds students and staff to love the planet

The April 22 Earth Day is commonly known as a day during which people across the US celebrate the planet and work to conserve its natural resources. However, many may not know there is an International, or equinoctial, Earth Day celebrated in March.

Editorial: Sports reporting presents challenges in information access

In the spirit of Sunshine Week, today’s editorial touches on one of our coverage areas that frequently hits speed bumps when it comes to transparency and open access to public information: sports reporting.