"ICD Round 2" Knocks it Out of the Atrium

As Major League Baseball starts off its season, ten more independent colleges and over 60 students were at the Statehouse in Columbus to advocate for maintenance of OCOG funds within the Governor's Executive Budget. The bill, HB 153, appropriates $41 million in each year of the biennium for need-based aid to assist low-income students attend Ohio's independent colleges.

The students and their campuses were on display in tabletop form for legislators and staff to peruse throughout the day. Statehouse press corps were there to obtain real-life stories of how OCOG made the difference in students' lives and legislators and staff engaged students in conversation over lunch.

Students were also able to hear from House Education Chair, Rep. Gerry Stebelton and Rep. Jay Goyal. These legislators gave their insight on what it is like to be a state representative in this General Assembly and fielded questions from students on Various issues.

By the end of the day, many students had participated in legislative meetings and witnessed legislation being debated in various House Finance Subcommittees being held throughout the day.

We at AICUO would like to thank those students and campuses who participated in Independent College Day this year, Round 1 or 2, as well as a special thank-you to the legislators who took the time to view the displays and learn more about campuses across our state. We hope they saw the importance of these institutions and were able to to hear from the students why they attended a smaller, liberal arts campus.

We are already in the process of planning next year's event, and hope to see upwards of 25 or more campuses next spring.

Independent Colleges Represent(ed)

Today more than 45 students from the University of Dayton, Baldwin-Wallace College, University of Rio Grande, Capital University, Wittenberg University, and Wilberforce University attended the first of two 2011 AICUO Independent College Days to advocate on behalf of their institutions and meet with legislators and staff. The event started with an Education Committee breakout session hosted by Senate Education Committee Chair, Senator Peggy Lehner (R – Kettering), and included unique display tables for the students and advisors to showcase their institutions as legislators and staff perused the tables and discussed policy and Ohio higher education with attending students. The students were also able to tour the Senate and House chambers, watch Senate skeleton-session in progress, as well as view committee rooms and other aspects of the historical building. Legislators were able to hear real-life stories about how need-based aid affects students and how important it is for them to remain in college; without it, many students would have to reconsider their educational path.

Independent College Day will return to the Statehouse on March 31, 2011 with more than 10 campuses already signed up to participate.

- Dustin A. Holfinger

Chancellor Petro Testifies Before House Finance Committee

After only four days as chancellor, Jim Petro stood before the House Finance and Appropriations Committee on Tuesday to testify on the Board of Regents' portion within HB 153, the State Operating Budget. He was very brief in his comments to allow for questions from the committee members, who took full advantage of the extra time. Questions ranged from asking what other states, who are competing for Ohio's high school students, do to rein in costs and attract students, to the possibility of attracting more Ohio institutions to compete for Third Frontier dollars, to the possibility of consolidation of Wilberforce University and Central State University.

The chancellor will have his hands full while learning higher education policy during a budget year, but committee members were impressed and ready to work with him as this portion of the budget develops.

For a copy of his testimony, click here.

Student Aid Alliance Launches New Website

We are pleased to alert you to the launch of the new Student Aid Alliance website. The following release provides an overview of the site's new features and a summary of what's at risk for federal student aid. NAICU, the national independent college association, co-chairs the Alliance with the American Council on Education.

You're encouraged to share word of the new site with your campus communities. Please invite students and others to visit the site for updates and to use our "action center" to contact their representatives; and encourage them to follow the Alliance on Facebook and Twitter. You can also show your support for the Student Aid Alliance by adding to your website an Alliance web button (follow the link, and scroll down the page to "How You Can Show Your Support, Too").

Other NCAA Basketball Results: Xavier Women Advance, Face Louisville Tuesday

Division I Women’s Tournament

First Round

March 19 at State College, Pa.

Penn State 75, Dayton 66

March 20 at Cincinnati

Xavier 72, South Dakota State 56

Second Round

March 22 at Cincinnati

Louisville at Xavier, 7 p.m.

Division I Men’s Tournament

March 18 at Cleveland

Marquette 65, Xavier 55

Wooster Falls In NCAA Division III Men’s Hoops Final

NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Championship

at Salem, Va.

National Semifinal

Friday, March 18

Wooster 73, Williams (Mass.) 71

National Final

Saturday, March 19

St. Thomas (Minn.) 78, Wooster 54

This Weekend’s NCAA Basketball Tournament Action

Friday, March 18

Division I Men’s Tournament

Xavier vs. Marquette (Wis.), 7:27 p.m. at Cleveland

Division III Men’s Tournament

Wooster vs. Williams (Mass.), 6:00 p.m. at Salem, Va.

Saturday, March 19

Division I Women’s Tournament

Dayton at Penn State, 11:10 a.m.

Division III Men’s Tournament

Wooster-Williams winner vs. St. Thomas (Minn.)-Middlebury (Vt.) winner, 3:30 p.m. at Salem, Va.

Sunday, March 20

Division I Women’s Tournament

South Dakota State at Xavier, 2:30 p.m.

Division I Men’s Tournament

Xavier-Marquette winner vs. Syracuse (N.Y.)-Indiana State winner, at Cleveland, time TBA.

Turnovers Haunt Walsh Women in NAIA Tourney Semifinal Defeat

NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball Tournament

at Sioux Falls, Iowa

Semifinal, March 14

Davenport 68, Walsh 55

Basketball Roundup: Walsh Women Play Monday Night in NAIA Division III Semifinal; Wooster Reaches NCAA Division III Men’s Final Four

Walsh’s women’s basketball team plays undefeated Davenport (Mich.) in the NAIA Division III basketball semifinal game, Monday at 6 p.m. Central time in Sioux Falls, Iowa.

Torrid second-half shooting led Walsh to victory in its quarterfinal game over Black Hills State (S.D.) 83-73, while Davenport reached the semifinal by defeating Cedarville 81-58 on Saturday.

NCAA Division III Men

A 76-66 win Saturday over No. 1-ranked Whitworth (Wash.) brought Wooster to its third NCAA Division III men’s basketball semifinal, to be played against Williams (Mass.) Friday night at Salem, Va.

The previous night, Wooster dumped Cabrini (Pa.) 94-77 to set up the quarterfinal against Whitworth, which defeated AICUO member Marietta 93-77.

Wooster and Williams met in the semifinal in 2007, with Wooster falling in overtime. The other final four schools are Middlebury (Vt.) and St. Thomas (Minn.), setting up an all-independent Division III final.

Ozarks Ousts Walsh Men from NAIA Tourney

Home court had its advantage Saturday in the NAIA Division II men’s championship, as No. 1-ranked Walsh fell to the host school, the College of the Ozarks (Mo.), 71-66.

NAIA Division II Basketball Tournament Results, Upcoming Games

Men’s Tournament

at Point Lookout, Mo.

First Round

March 10

Eastern Oregon 82, Cedarville 74

Second Round

March 11

Walsh vs. College of the Ozarks (Mo.), 7:30 p.m. CST

Women’s Tournament

at Sioux City, Iowa

First Round

March 10

Walsh 80, Florida Memorial 71

Second Round

March 11

Cedarville 81, College of the Ozarks 76

Walsh 72, Marian 58

First Round NAIA Basketball Results

March 9

Men’s Championship at Point Lookout, Mo.

Walsh 81, Union (Ky.) 59

Women’s Championship at Sioux City, Iowa

Cedarville 73, St. Francis (Ind.) 58

NAIA Basketball Tournaments: Walsh Top Seed in Both Men’s Championship and Women’s Bracket; Cedarville Also In Both Tourneys

Two AICUO members, Walsh and Cedarville, are participating in two of basketball’s “other” small-college tournaments, those sponsored by the National Association for Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).

The top seed in the men’s tournament in NAIA’s Division II is Walsh. The men begin play on Wednesday at 4 p.m. (CST) against Union (Ky.); if they win, they face the winner of the game between the host school, the University of the Ozarks (Mo.), and Sioux Falls (S.D.) on Friday evening.

Cedarville’s men face off against Eastern Oregon at 7:30 p.m. (CST) Thursday evening; the winner plays Friday night against the winner of the Oklahoma Wesleyan-Sterling (Kan.) game.

The entire tournament is played at Point Lookout, Mo., and concludes with a national championship game Tuesday evening, March 15.

In women’s NAIA Division II play, seeding is announced differently. Walsh is the top seed in its eight-team bracket, and will play Florida Memorial Thursday at 10:15 a.m. (CST); a victory leads to a second-round game Friday morning against the winner of the Marian (Ind.)-Mount Marty (S.D.) game.

Cedarville’s women are in a different bracket from Walsh’s. They play Wednesday at 8:30 a.m. against St. Francis (Ind.), and with a win will continue Friday morning to face the victor of the College of the Ozarks-Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) game.

As with the men’s tournament, all games are at a single site, the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa.

NCAA Division III Basketball Tournament Results: Men’s Sectional at Wooster This Weekend

Wooster hosts one of the four NCAA Division III men’s basketball sectionals this weekend. AICUO members Marietta and Wooster play separately in first-night matchups, Wooster against Cabrini (Pa.) and Marietta against #1 ranked Whitworth, which travels all the way from Spokane, Wash.

Playing the first two rounds at home, Marietta advanced to the round of 16 by holding off Centre (Ky.) in the first round and rallying past AICUO member Wittenberg the next night. Wooster, also at home, defeated Benedictine (Ill.) and Manchester (Ind.) in closely fought games to reach the sectionals.

Neither AICUO member in the women’s tournament advanced to the second weekend. Denison fell for the first time all season to defending national champion Washington (Mo.) in the first round, while Mount Union followed its first-round victory over Wisconsin-Whitewater by losing to homestanding Thomas More (Ky.).

Men

First Round, March 4

at Wooster, Ohio

Wooster 74, Benedictine (Ill.) 68

at Marietta, Ohio

Marietta 67, Centre (Ky.) 62

Wittenberg 74, La Roche (Pa.) 68

Second Round, March 5

at Wooster, Ohio

Wooster 47, Manchester (Ind.) 45

at Marietta, Ohio

Marietta 63, Wittenberg 62

Coming games

Sectional Round, March 11

at Wooster, Ohio

Marietta vs. Whitworth (Wash.), 5:30 p.m.

Wooster vs. Cabrini (Pa.), 7:30 p.m.

Sectional Final, March 12

at Wooster, Ohio

Marietta-Whitworth winner vs. Wooster-Cabrini winner, 7 p.m.

Women

First Round, March 4

at Hope, Mich.

Washington (Mo.) 71, Denison 55

at Crestview Hills, Ky.

Mount Union 69, Wisconsin-Whitewater 55

Second Round, March 5

at Crestview Hills, Ky.

Thomas More (Ky.) 76, Mount Union 63

NCAA Division III Basketball: Ohio Women Road Warriors, Again, While Men Stay Home

The Denison women’s basketball team, undefeated champion of the North Coast Athletic Conference, still has to travel six hours for its first NCAA tournament game tonight at twice-beaten Hope College in Holland, Mich. Hope, which has hosted the finals of this tournament in the recent past, received favorable treatment from the committee, as did tournament perennial Washington (Mo.), which picked up one of the few at-large bids to play Denison in tonight’s first-round doubleheader. DePauw (Ind.) faces Hope in the second game.

Also in the women’s tournament, Mount Union, which dominated the Ohio Athletic Conference, has a road trip just 90 minutes shorter than Denison’s, to the Cincinnati suburb of Crestview Hills, Ky., where Thomas More hosts another first- and second-round weekend. In a rematch of colleges that have played for the last six Division III football titles, Mount Union faces Wisconsin-Whitewater Friday night. The travel award goes to Piedmont (Ga.), which plays Thomas More in the nightcap.

In men’s play, in contrast to the women, the two AICUO members who are conference champions get to stay home, and the third member participating does not have to leave the state. At Ohio Athletic Conference champion Marietta, Wittenberg faces LaRoche (Pa.) Friday night, after which Marietta plays Centre (Ky.). Wooster, North Coast Athletic Conference champion, faces Benedictine (Ill.) at home Friday night, after a game featuring Manchester (Ind.) and Bethany (W. Va.).

Winners in all Friday action continue to second-round play Saturday at the host sites.

Schedule

NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Championship

March 4

First Round

At Marietta, Ohio

Marietta vs. Centre (Ky.)

Wittenberg vs. La Roche (Pa.)

At Wooster, Ohio

Wooster vs. Benedictine (Ill.)

Second Round

March 5

At Marietta, Ohio

Centre-Marietta winner vs. Wittenberg-La Roche winner

At Wooster, Ohio

Benedictine-Wooster winner vs. Manchester (Ind.)-Bethany (W. Va.) winner

NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship

First Round

March 4

At Holland, Mich.

Denison vs. Washington (Mo.)

At Crestview Hills, Ky.

Mount Union vs. Wisconsin-Whitewater

Second Round

March 5

At Holland, Mich.

Denison-Washington winner vs. Hope (Mich)-DePauw (Ind.) winner

At Crestview Hills, Ky.

Mount Union-Wisconsin-Whitewater winner vs. Thomas More (Ky.)-Piedmont (Ga.) winner

Finalists Revealed in the AICUO Award for Excellence in the Visual Arts

On February 18, 2011, the first round of judging culminated in the selection of this year's winners for the AICUO Award for Excellence in the Visual Arts. You can see these exceptional senior students' portfolios on the official AICUO Art Award Web site,www.aicuoartaward.com. They are:

Kenneth Aschliman - Columbus College of Art & Design
Wendy Birchfield - Cleveland Institute of Art
Rose Hermalin - Oberlin College
Katherine Richards - Cleveland Institute of Art
Rachel Shelton - Cleveland Institute of Art
Anh Hoang Vu - Ohio Wesleyan University

The competition isn't over yet, though. A second round of judging will decide which of the award winners deserves the coveted Grand Award title, which comes with a substantial monetary prize and other significant privileges.

There is also a competition among all 22 nominees for the online People's Choice Award. Visit the official Web site to vote for your favorite piece by these fine student artists from institutions all across Ohio. The voting process is unlimited, so feel free to click on as many people as you like, as often as you like.

All winners will be revealed at the AICUO Art Award Reception on April 13, 2011. Check out the reception page for more information.