Thursday, March 29, 2012

Graduate Parlays Washington Center Internship into Career with the U.S. Marshalls

Darrick Oswald, who graduated last year with a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice, reported to Dr. Alexander that he has accepted a position with the U.S. Marshal Service. Darrick maintained a busy schedule of external experiences while at ONU. In addition to his internship with the Marshals through the Washington Center that led to his current position, Darrick also spent a semester at the University of Queensland in Brisbane Australia.

Darrick emailed Dr. Alexander permission to use his good news in this blog, and told Dr. A that "I want to make it apparent that it was the teaching and leadership examples I received as a student that helped contribute to my work ethic and subsequent job offer. I cannot help but think about how things would be different if I had done a quickie internship last spring and graduated on time, but because I waited and did the TWC program, I was able to make the connections that led to a job offer upon graduation."

Well done Darrick! It is always great news when our graduates do well after their time here. We love hearing these stories and wish you great success in your new career!

Alumna Returns in Triumph

Kelly Morman, who graduated in 2011 with a BA in Political Science visited last week from her teaching job in Mississippi. Morman was accepted into the exclusive Teach for America Program and has been teaching disadvantaged students in the Mississippi Delta for the past year.

PMCP Sponsors Talk on Lucasville Prison Riot


Art Tate, the warden at Lucasville prison during the prisoner rebellion in 1993 was on campus on Wednesday, March 28 to present a discussion of the causes and consequences of the Lucasville Prison Riot. The lecture was held in the large moot courtroom of the law school. Dr. Jo Ann Scott and the Prison Management Certificate Program brought Tate to campus and reports of his talk were also broadcast on WLIO in Lima.

Tate began by describing the conditions that led to the riot, including rampant violence and drug use among prisoners, aided by the casual attitude and outright illegal activities of some staff. The riot was precipitated when Muslim and Skinhead prisoners joined in common cause to resist efforts to test all prisoners for tuberculosis. When news of the plan to begin testing leaked, the prisoners in one cell block rioted, killing several of their fellow prisoners and one guard.

Tate told an nearly overflow audience made up of PMCP officers, law students, and other students that the riot ended when security forces closed off the cell block and many of the Muslim prisoners were granted the ability to transfer to another prison.

photos by Jose Nogueras of ONU Communication and Marketing


Civil War Class Learns How to March


Several students from The HIST 4331 Civil War and Reconstruction class, team taught by Dr. Waters and Dr. Crawford, traveled to the University's Wetland Preserve south of Alger and spent a few hours learning the skills that soldiers during the American Civil War (1861-1865) had to know. Under the tutelage of Brendan Kinder and his fellow reenactors, the students first learned how to march, then the manual of arms.

The weather cooperated and the students enjoyed learning what the soldiers they are learning about must have gone through. Some of the more amusing, but likely historically accurate moments came when one of the officers gave the command for the students to turn right, then turned left. In another instance, when practicing bayonet thrusts, one student found her bayonet not well attached, and the device flew off the rifle barrel.

This was not only fun, but valuable in giving the students a taste of what type of training soldiers went through. The difficulty they had in mastering close-order drill makes the initial debacle at the First Battle of Bull Run more understandable as poorly trained union soldiers broke in the confusion of their first battle.

Thank you very much to Brendan and your comrades in arms!

Students Present at Phi Alpha Theta National Conference


Several HPJ students traveled to Orlando, Florida for the Biennial Phi Alpha Theta Convention held between January 4 and 6. In addition to getting to a warmer clime, the students presented papers to the convention and even found time to visit Disney World.

Papers included:

John Alexander Curiel
A Successful Marriage: The Republican Party Unites with Big Business in 1888”

Kaitlin Quinn Durbin
Advertising Wars: Pulitzer, Hearst, and the Shape of Journalism”

Bethany Maura Miller
A More Humane Approach: Moral Treatment in American Insane Asylums, 1812-92”

Megan M. Piersol
Aggressive Defense or Terrorism? Militant Zionism in Mandate Palestine”

Well done presenters! You did a great job representing HPJ and ONU!

Friday, March 16, 2012

Phi Beta Delta: Dr. Smith Speaks of Security and Terrorism in the Caucasus Region


Dr. David Smith spoke for the PBD International Forum last night, telling the overflow audience about his experiences traveling in the Caucasus Mountains in December of last year. Smith was in the Russia for the conference on security issues in the region and took a trip to North Ossetia. The conflict over the South Ossetia region of Georgia broke into hostilities in 2008 when Russia invaded the region.

Dr. Smith began by discussing the Geography of the region and gave a historical lesson on how Joseph Stalin, the then Minister of Nationalities under VI Lenin, was responsible for drawing the boundaries of temporary "democratic" republics under the Soviet Union. With the fall of the USSR, these regions became republics on their own and violence has often resulted.

While in South Ossetia, Smith visited Beslan, where nearly 400 school children and their parents were killed by terrorists in 2004. Despite the Russian government's contention that the terrorists were Chechens, Smith told the audience that many residents of the area believe that the terrorists were Ingushetians who were displaced by Stalin for collaborating with the Nazis in WWII. When Mikhail Gorbachev allowed the Ingushetians to return, they found their property owned by South Ossetians, and this, many locals feel, was the reason for the attack.

Sunday, March 11, 2012

ONU Hosted Mock Trial Invitational Tournament

The ONU Mock Trial Program finished another year. While not as successful as in other years, there were still numerous bright spots in the 2011-1012 Season. The best finish for the team was 4th place at the Illinois State University.

Directed by Dr. Jo Ann Scott and supported by HPJ and the Pettit College of Law, the 6th Annual "Polar Bear" Invitational Mock Trial tournament on January 14-15, 2012 brought 38 teams from across the U.S. to our campus. The tournament format consisted of two rounds on Saturday and two rounds on Sunday.

Case Summary: The year the students are litigating a criminal case. On September 24, 2010, Vanessa Sullivan, daughter of midlands' most prominent prosecutor, celebrated her 21st birthday with two friends, Taylor Hopson and Danny Dawson, at Chuggie's Sports Bar. After several hours of celebration at the bar, the three left in a car driven by Dawson. On the way home, Dawson lost control of the car, resulting in a crash in which Sullivan was killed. A special prosecutor was appointed because of the conflict of interest in having the victm's parent's office prosecute the case. A grand jury has returned a multi-count indictment charging the defendant, Danny Dawson, with murder and driving under the influence.

Among the awards earned by individual team members this year were:


SCARLET AND GRAY TOURNAMENT, October 14-16
HOST: THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY
FRANKLIN HOWARD----OUTSTANDING ATTORNEY AWARD
LISA BRADLEY----OUTSTANDING WITNESS AWARD
CAITLIN HIGGINS----OUTSTANDING WITNESS AWARD
LUAREN LIGHTCAP----OUTSTANDING WITNESS AWARD

EKU “ROBERT SANDERS” INVITATIONAL , October 28-30
LISA BRADLEY----OUTSTANDING ATTORNEY

ILLINOIS STATE UNIVERSITY, November 11-12
LISA BRADLEY----OUTSTANDING ATTORNEY
LAUREN LIGHTCAP----OUTSTANDING WITNESS (BOTH PROSECUTION & DFENSE)
TEAM 1120: 4TH PLACE (4TH OUT OF 30 TEAMS)

UNIVERSITY OF ST. FRANCIS MIDWEST CHALLENGER, December 2-4
TABITHA MOODY----OUTSTANDING ATTORNEY
MELDOY SMITH----OUTSTANDING WITNESS

POLAR BEAR INVITATIONAL MOCK TRIAL TOURNAMENT, January 15-16
HOST: OHIO NORTHERN UNIVERSITY
LISA BRADLEY----OUTSTANDING ATTORNEY
MELDOY SMITH----OUTSTANDING WITNESS

CINCINNATI REGIONAL QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT, February 24-26HOST: UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI
LISA BRADLEY----OUTSTANDING ATTORNEY

Well done representing HPJ and ONU this year, and better luck for team success next year!

Alumna Returns in Triumph


Melissa Mead, who graduated with a BA in Political Science in 2008, returned recently to see friends in Ada. Drs. Alexander, Crawford, and J Wilson, along with Shaleigh Alexander met with Melissa at the Inn to hear about her meteoric career since her time at ONU.

Melissa eared her JD from Syracuse Law in 2011, passed her Bar Exam in one try, and is currently working for the law firm Paludis, P.C. in Michigan.

It was great to catch up with Melissa and see that she is doing so well. She also got together with Dr. E Wilson later on during the weekend. It is always a treat to talk to our former students and see how their careers have been influenced by their time here, and to see how they have blossomed afterwards.

Well done and best of luck in your career Melissa!

Saturday, March 10, 2012

ONU Hosted Debate Over SB5

HPJ, in conjunction with the Petit College of Law, held a debate over issue 2 that was on the November ballot. An overflow crowd listened to speakers debate the issue. Below is the press release for the event that Jose Nogueras of Communications and Marketing sent out to local press outlets.

Ohio Northern University to hold debate on Issue2

ADA — Ohio Northern University will conduct a debate concerning Issue 2 (Senate Bill 5) on Tuesday, Nov. 1, at 7 p.m. in the ONU Pettit College of Law Large Moot Court room (129). The event, free and open to the public, is sponsored by ONU’s College Democrats, College Republicans, and Pi Sigma Alpha, ONU’s political science honor society.

Robert Sprague, Republican state representative from the 76th district, and Matt Huffman, Republican state representative from the 4th district and majority floor leader, will speak in favor of the passage of Issue 2. David Pepper, a former Hamilton County commissioner, and Fred Strahorn, a Board of Trustee member for Wright State University and former state legislator in the Ohio General Assembly, will speak in opposition to the passage of Issue 2.

Jeff Fitzgerald, news anchor for Your Hometown Lima Stations, will serve as moderator. The format will feature three rounds of questioning. The first two rounds will consist of questions from two area media members: Dan Robinson, reporter for the Kenton Times, and Ron Lerderman, editorial page editor for the Lima News. The third round will consist of questions from the audience followed by closing statements.

The Ohio Collective Bargaining Limit Repeal (Issue 2) will appear on the Nov. 8 general election ballot as a veto referendum. The measure would repeal legislation that limits collective bargaining for public employees in the state. Issue 2 will impact the state’s 400,000 public workers, restricting their ability to strike and collectively bargain. As it stands, the bill would only permit public employees to collectively bargain for wages, preventing them from collectively bargaining for health insurance and pensions. It would also prohibit all public employees from striking and could increase employee contributions for pensions and health care.

Ohio Northern University’s quality, student-centered education distinctively combines nationally ranked sciences, arts and professional programs for more than 3,600 students in its five colleges: Arts & Sciences, Business Administration, Engineering, Pharmacy and Law.

Dawn DeColbious GIS Minor Presents Poster


Dawn DeColibus, a junior from Strongsville, Ohio, majoring in biology and minoring in geography-GIS, presented a poster at the 2011 annual meeting of the East Lakes Division of the American Association of Geographers, held at Youngstown State University on Oct. 15. Her poster, titled “Buffalo Berry and Glacial Slumps in Ohio and Pennsylvania,” highlighted the experience she gained as an intern last summer working with the Botany and Natural Resources Department of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and the Adopt-A-Student internship program. During her internship, DeColibus helped identify the presence of buffalo berry bushes in northern Ohio and used Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to manage this threatened plant species.

CJ and PMCP Host Another Heoin Forum


On February 13, The History, Politics and Justice Department hosted a panel focusing on issues related to drug courts, prison drug counseling, and heroin!

Panelists for this event included:

Judge James S. Rapp, Judge of the Hardin County Court of Common Please, Probate and Juvenile Divisions

Wade Melton, LSW, M.A.C.E; Director of Programs, monitors the juvenile drug court program and Family Dependency Treatment Court program with the Hardin County Juvenile Court; Director of Hardin Community School

John Hall, Correctional Program Coordinator, Allen Correctional Institution Recovery Services Department; Ada-Liberty Rescue Squad Paramedic

This and the following panels contain aspects of heroin use, abuse, addiction, and treatment related to many different majors and fields of interest and we encourage your attendance!!!

The final panel will consider Legalization & Other Matters, on April 21, 2012

Professor Alexander Publishes New Book on Electoral College


Dr. Alexander has just published his third book Presidential Electors and the Electoral College: An Examination of Lobbying, Wavering Electors, and Campaigns for Faithless Votes

From the Cambria Publishing website: Robert Alexander is an associate professor of political science at Ohio Northern University in Ada, Ohio. He received his PhD and MA from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. He is the author of Rolling the Dice with State Initiatives: Interest Group Involvement in Ballot Campaigns and The Classics of Interest Group Behavior. Dr. Alexander’s work has appeared in journals such as the Journal of Politics,PS: Political Science and Politics, and the American Review of Politics. Dr. Alexander serves on the National Executive Committee for Pi Sigma Alpha and on the National Liaison Advisory Board for The Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars.

Cambria's description was a bit out of date, as ONU promoted Alexander to full Professor rank the same week as his new book came out.

Well done Professor Alexander!

Professor Alexander in the Media


In addition to teaching his regular classes, Dr. Alexander has been busy with media appearances. He has been interviewed on several occasions by WLIO, and has also had an interview aired on CNBC. (click link to see interview)

Alexander is gaining a stellar reputation as a scholar of the Electoral College and is the go-to-guy for local networks and papers.

Football in American History Class Visits Hall of Fame


Several students from the Football in American History course, along with students from the PMCP and Technology visited the Professional Football Hall of Fame in Canton. In the photos, students play the video games, and students from Saudi Arabia pose with their country on the wall listing all of the places where NFL football has fans.

Criminal Justice and PMCP Host Heroin Panel Discussions


On November 14, the History, Politics and Justice Department hosted a panel focusing on issues involving schools and prevention related to Heroin.

Panelists for this event included:
Lorrie Lewandowski, Wood County ATOD School and Community Based Prevention Program Coordinator and Supervisor
Brenda Jennings, Kenton City Schools Nurse

This and the following panels contain aspects of heroin use, abuse, addiction, and treatment related to many different majors and fields of interest and we encourage your attendance!!!

Dr. Crawford Received Grant from Ohio Humanities Council


The $1,000 grant was to support the first ONU Social Studies Day, that was held on November 11, 2011 (Veterans Day). over 100 teachers and students attended sessions during the day, including two classes from Piqua High School led by Mr. Dustin Hornbeck and a colleague from the school.

The next Social Studies will be held on April 13 and since this is an election year, as well as the first one that many high school students will be eligible to take part in, we plan to focus on that topic. Speakers from our department will talk about the historical nastiness of elections, the workings of the Electoral College, and provide a student’s view of the 2008 Democratic National Convention. We hope to give teachers a deeper background in their subjects and to provide students with a greater appreciation for the same. The day will start at 9:00 AM and conclude at 2:00 PM, with an hour break for lunch.


Porfessor Nsia-Pepra Published in Distinguished Journal

Dr. Nsia's article Robust Peacekeeping? - Panacea for Human Rights Violations has just been published in the highly esteemed Peace and Conflict Studies Journal Vol. 18, No. 2 Fall 2011, pages 263-290. Click on the link above to read the full article.

The paper examines the emerging conviction that United Nations robust peacekeeping- a strong and forceful peacekeeping force- works better than UN traditional peacekeeping mechanism in reducing human rights violation, specifically, civilian killing, in areas of deployment. Using both negative binomial and logit regression statistical models, the paper finds that United Nations robust peacekeeping lowers civilian killings. Mission size is also associated with lower numbers of civilian killings. Great power participation, peacekeeper diversity and affinity with the host state, along with identity conflicts and at least proto-democratic status of the host state appear to be harbingers of potentially higher deliberate civilian killing total. The findings have both theoretical and policy implications in the field of peacekeeping.

Mock Trial in Action


The winners were: Franklin Howard, Outstanding Attorney; Lauren Lightcap, Outstanding Witness, Caitlin Higgins, Outstanding Witness, and Lisa Bradley, Outstanding Witness.

Student and Professors Publish Chapter


Kevin Cieplowski, BA ’09, from Garfield Heights, Ohio, Dr. Harry J. Wilson, visiting professor of geography at ONU, and Dr. Seungmug Lee, assistant professor at Western Illinois University, are co-authors of a chapter in the new book “Crime Prevention.”

Chapter 8, “Spatial Analysis of Property Crimes, Foreclosure and Other Socio-Economic Variables: An Examination of Garfield Heights, Ohio” details the work the three authors performed on the relationship between property crime, residential mortgage foreclosures and environment in Garfield Heights, Ohio, between 2004 and 2009. Their research used Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and spatial statistical methods to illuminate areas within the community that are in danger of becoming blighted.

The 440-page book is written by a collection of scholarly experts and presents significant issues related to contemporary crime prevention efforts. The textbook is written for courses within a criminal justice or sociology curriculum