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Tag: Aliah Keller

  • Ohio elementary student brings cursive back to class

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    COLUMBUS, Ohio — It’s a skill many adults learned in school, but for some younger students today, it can feel almost foreign — because it isn’t as commonly taught in classrooms anymore.

    What You Need To Know

    • A fourth grader at West Mound Elementary started a cursive club to teach classmates a skill that’s become less common in schools

    • Educators say increased technology and computer-based testing have reduced time spent on handwritten skills like cursive

    • Teachers say cursive still plays an important role in everyday life, especially for tasks like signing documents

    That’s not the case for fourth grader E’lon Hamilton at West Mound Elementary School in Columbus. Cursive comes so naturally to him that he’s now teaching it to others.

    “I got it (cursive) from my parents. I used it on occasions when I needed to, like when I was writing something very important,” Hamilton said.

    Once a week during lunch at West Mound Elementary School in Columbus, Hamilton runs a cursive club he started himself. He gives tips, demonstrates letters, and watches closely as his classmates practice.

    “Because I wanted not just myself to know cursive. I want other people to know cursive as well. A lot of other people,” Hamilton said.

    For many of the kids in the club, cursive is a handwriting skill they might not have learned otherwise.

    “At the club, I think I’m a little bit good. Like, like connecting them is kind of, like, hard to not let go,” said club member Diana Oitiz.

    Educators say cursive has become less common as priorities in schools have shifted.

    “We have a lot of tests now that are on the computers that need to learn how to use the keyboards. So I can see that technology is probably taking over a lot of the handwritten things,” said Margaret Brown, principal of West Mound Elementary School.

    Still, educators say cursive can matter — not just for school, but for everyday life.

    “You have to sign a check. Right? You gotta pay your bills. You have to do this in your signature, in cursive. So at least being able to sign your name in cursive is important for us,” Brown said.

    When asked his favorite word to write in cursive, Hamilton didn’t just choose a word; he shared a message.

    “Happiness. I want everybody to be happy in this class. What I want, like, is the more we learn teamwork, the more we get along with each other, the more we make friends. Happiness is key. Teamwork is key,” Hamilton said.

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    Aliah Keller

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  • Theater group thrives amid arts funding strain

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    COLUMBUS, Ohio — New federal arts funding approved in Congress this week could bring relief to organizations across the country.

    But many arts groups are still absorbing the fallout from last year’s grant cuts and cancellations, and for those that didn’t rely on federal grants, the impact looked very different.

    What You Need To Know

    • New federal arts funding is back this year, but many arts groups are still feeling the fallout from last year’s grant cuts and cancellations

    • Stage Right Theatrics built a model that doesn’t rely on federal grants, staying steady through the cuts and using ticket sales, donors and local support to fund shows

    • Even with funding restored, experts say instability lingers because canceled grants forced programming cuts that haven’t fully returned

    Before rehearsals even begin, Robert Cooperman is already at work.

    He founded Stage Right Theatrics, a theater company producing short plays by writers from across the country. Ten years in, Cooperman is still hands-on.

    “Well, I felt that there was something missing in the theater world, and that was the more traditional or conservative point of view,” Cooperman said. “And I decided, why shouldn’t that voice be heard in the arts?”

    That perspective shows up in a mix of classic American playwrights and short plays that take on modern social issues. But Cooperman said that point of view also comes with challenges.

    “The kind of theater that I’m putting on, the ideas and philosophy I’m putting forth, that’s a little tougher to get any kind of grant,” he said.

    From the start, Stage Right built a different model. The company doesn’t rely on federal grants, meaning last year’s cuts didn’t hit them the same way. Instead, they’re funded primarily through ticket sales, donors and local support. Cooperman said local arts grants still came through last year, even as federal funding fell away for others.

    “Oh, twenty thousand dollars,” Cooperman said. “It may not seem like a lot, but it was a very, very good year for us… enough to sustain a couple of big shows.”

    While many arts organizations are still recovering from the federal arts cuts, Stage Right isn’t just surviving. It’s also finding a way to give back.

    The company offers half-priced tickets to theater-goers who bring food donations, which are then given to the Dublin Food Pantry.

    “I’m very happy, very delighted, to bring hundreds of pounds of food to the Dublin Food Pantry every time I run this promotion,” Cooperman said.

    But while Stage Right stayed steady, experts say many groups that depended on federal arts grants did not.

    “Organizations assumed when they were notified of their grants last year, or at the end of 2024, that they had those dollars coming in either for sustainability support or for specific programs,” said Sarah Sisser, executive director and CEO of CreativeOhio. “And when those grants were canceled, of course, they had to cancel some of that programming and didn’t have that support.”

    Even with federal arts funding approved again this year, Sisser said the damage doesn’t disappear overnight — because some programs that were cut never returned.

    “Everybody’s on edge about the reliability of some of this public funding that has been secured,” she said.

    For Cooperman, the plan moving forward is simple.

    “I am going to keep this thing going until I’m six feet under,” he said.

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  • New blood test helps detect cancer earlier

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    PATASKALA, Ohio — Most of us don’t think about cancer until it touches our family or until we start feeling symptoms. But for many types of cancer, by then it can already be too late.

    What You Need To Know

    • A blood test called Galleri caught Kevin McFarland’s esophageal cancer early, even though he had no symptoms or family history

    • The test can detect more than 50 cancers, sometimes before they show up on regular scans, but it costs about $1,000 and isn’t covered by insurance

    • Early detection saved McFarland’s life, allowing surgery before the cancer spread, and he now calls every day a second chance

    A new blood test is starting to change that, and it’s already making a difference for people like Kevin McFarland.

    After three decades of running into danger as a firefighter, McFarland is moving at a different pace these days: yardwork, walking his dog and enjoying retirement.

    But just a year ago, he didn’t know how much time he had left.

    McFarland said he felt strong, with no symptoms or family history of cancer. That’s why he was shocked when a routine blood test found something he never expected: esophageal cancer.

    The test is called Galleri. It looks for traces of more than 50 types of cancer, many of them with no standard screenings available. Insurance doesn’t cover it, and the price can reach about $1,000. But McFarland’s fire department pays for every crew member to get tested, and it caught his cancer early.

    “The test, 100%. The Galleri test caught my cancer and caught it early enough that surgery was all I needed. I did not need chemo or radiation… and luckily that’s what got it all,” McFarland said.

    Dr. Jeffrey Milks, a family physician who uses the test with patients, said that’s exactly the point: finding cancer sooner.

    “It’ll give you a positive result, sometimes long before the cancer would be evident,” Milks said.

    He said it can detect cancer too small to be picked up on normal scans, which can make all the difference for survival.

    “The idea is if we have a tumor that is smaller than a centimeter, the outcomes are much better,” Milks said.

    For McFarland, early detection saved his life. It also meant an 11-hour surgery that permanently changed his body.

    “They took the lower half of my esophagus out and moved my stomach up into my chest… it gives you reflux all the time,” he said.

    Those side effects forced him to retire five years earlier than planned. And while his cancer outcome is rare, he’s grateful it was caught in time.

    “Once we go out and talk to my surgeon, I realized that esophageal cancer has a 5% survival rate… if they would have waited… I probably wouldn’t be standing here,” McFarland said.

    Now cancer-free, he calls every day a second chance.

    “I want to travel a little bit, as long as my health maintains. I want to enjoy my family, my kids… and if there’s something now that I want to go do, I’m just going to go do it,” he said.

    McFarland said he’s grateful for the time he has and the test that gave it to him.

    Dr. Milks says he most often recommends Galleri for people with a family history of cancer, for smokers and for essential caregivers or business owners. Anyone can request it, but the cost and lack of insurance coverage remain hurdles.

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    Aliah Keller

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  • 57th All American Quarter Horse Congress gets underway

    57th All American Quarter Horse Congress gets underway

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    COLUMBUS, Ohio — The All American Quarter Horse Congress is well underway at the Ohio State Fair grounds. 

    It’s known as the largest single-breed horse show in the world, attracting hundreds of thousands of people every year to Columbus and generating hundreds of millions of dollars for the economy, but one man in particular is known to dominate the track. 

    What You Need To Know

    • The All American Quarter Horse Congress is known as the largest single-breed horse show in the world

    • The event runs for an entire month, attracting hundreds of thousands of people every year to Columbus and generating hundreds of millions of dollars for the economy

    • Reigning champion Shawn Flarida competed again this year

    The dream started when he was young. 

    “My dad brought me here when I was a youth kid,” Flarida said, “and started showing horses at the Quarter Horses Congress. I’ve been a professional horse trainer since 1988, so that’s all I’ve ever really done. It’s all I really know.”

    He’s getting ready to compete in The All American Quarter Horse Congress again this year, but as trainers like Flarida keep their eyes on the prize, CEO of the Ohio Quarter Horse Association Justin Billings is the man pulling it altogether. 

    “This is the Super Bowl of Quarter Horse Competition right here in Columbus, Ohio. There’s 200 staff that help pull it off,” Billings said. 

    The All American Quarter Horse Congress started back in 1967 as a three-day event. Fifty-seven years later, it runs for an entire month.

    “as we’ve grown into a 30-day event with over a half a million visitors, 4,000 horses, that turns into a huge economic impact for the central Ohio area, just shy of $430 million generated for our local area,” he said. “And that’s hotels, that’s restaurants, that’s trucks, that’s trailers. That’s the 200 vendors here for the trade show generating over $400 million for the central Ohio area.”

    Competition may be fierce this year, but Flarida still has a reputation to uphold, crediting that to none other than his horse. 

    “You’re only as good as the horse that you’re riding,” Flarida said, “and, you know, the owners and the people that support me and get me up and down the road and get me there. They’ve been tremendous to me.”

    But no matter, win or lose, Flarida’s doing what he loves where he first fell in love with the sport many years ago. 

    “It’s an honor to be here at the Congress. I’m probably one of the few people that can do something that I love to do every day. There’s not a day that that I don’t wake up looking forward to go do my job,” he said.

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    Aliah Keller

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  • Food system aims to better feed astronauts in deep space

    Food system aims to better feed astronauts in deep space

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    COLUMBUS, Ohio — The logistics that go into sending astronauts to space go far beyond making sure the rocket ship is ready to go. Among the important things NASA has to consider is making sure the astronauts have enough food for their mission, especially as those missions are getting longer.

    What You Need To Know

    • NASA created the Deep Space Food Challenge to find sustainable systems that can keep food good during long trips to space, the moon and Mars

    • The final phase was hosted at Ohio State

    • Jacob Scoccimerra, space program lead at Interstellar Lab in D.C., was part of the team that won

    That led NASA to create the Deep Space Food Challenge. 

    Jacob Scoccimerra, space program lead at Interstellar Lab in D.C., was part of the team that won the international competition with the goal of creating sustainable systems that can keep food good during long trips to space, the moon and mars.

    He says his group developed a system that can grow vegetables and other foods without rain, soil, and sunshine.

    “Three of the nine corks are dedicated to helping the computer water irrigation system, the airflow. Then the other six quarts are dedicated to growing the biology inside of them.” Scoccimerra said,

    The system was tested for over a month and a half at Ohio State, which then hosted the symposium where the winners were unveiled.

    John Horack runs the aerospace technology program at Ohio State and helped facilitate some of the tests on campus. He says developing new systems is a step in the right direction. 

    “Right now, everything that’s eaten on the space station is carried up by a rocket,” Horack said. “And we can’t just carry everything with us that we want to take to Mars or even for a long duration on the moon.” 

    Horack says advanced food systems will also have benefits here on earth. 

    “Growing plants in space and fresh food in space is going to be just as important as it is on the ground,” he said. “Our diet is better with fresh food; calories are cheap and nutrition is really important. So it can’t just be about the calories. It’s got to be about the minerals and other nutrients that you get from plants.”

    But even though the system Scoccimerra’s team came up with was victorious, there’s more work ahead. 

    “This particular unit is not currently designed for spaceflight. So, we need to do a lot of things to it to modify it to meet those requirements of spaceflight,” he said.

    He hopes to have it ready by early next year and is over the moon for the day their system makes it up in space.

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    Aliah Keller

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  • ‘Get Up and Win’ event empowers women

    ‘Get Up and Win’ event empowers women

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    COLUMBUS, Ohio — Life is usually easier when your finances and health are in order, and one event coming up is hoping to give women a better chance to accomplish that.

    Shaletha Sanders always gets done up for walks. 

    What You Need To Know

    • “Get Up and Win” is an event that’s meant to empower women in their finances, mental health, and wellness

    • Shaletha Sanders put the event together after facing adversity in her life

    • “Get Up and Win” is Sept. 21

    • Some proceeds from the event help feed kids in Ghana

    “I love my heels,” she said. “Everywhere I go, I always wear them.” 

    But she never imagined she’d be on her feet again after facing adversity several years ago. 

    “I was working out, going to the gym, and I thought I had a muscle spasm,” she said. “So, it was like 19 inches in diameter, and it was really, really big, like the size of somebody’s waist.” 

    The doctor said birth control pills caused a blood clot in Sanders’ leg. She said she was told she’d never walk properly again. 

    “This leg was like an ostrich for a month and a half. I had a cane.” 

    But the pain went away one day.

     “My leg… I literally saw it just straighten up. And for me, I was like, ‘Oh my God’.” 

    She recovered well, but hit a few more curveballs throughout her life. 

    “During that time, I was depressed, full of anxiety,” said Sanders. 

    But in the end, it was those struggles that made her resilient, pushing her to make a change for herself and others. 

    She became Outreach Program Director at Faith Empowerment Center, helping women and girls through support groups, coaching and different giveaways throughout the year. Her team has a big event coming up called “Get Up and Win.”

     “The goal of the event is for individuals to be empowered, help boost mental health and help health and wellness,” said Sanders. “We’re going to talk about financial literacy, how to get your credit together, what it means to save and invest, what it means to be resilient, being able to bounce back after a difficult situation.”

    She says the event empowers women for a reason. 

    “It’s all about allowing for women to walk in freedom because I know what it feels like to suffer in silence and to feel like no one cares and be isolated from the world,” she said.

    “Get Up and Win” is Sept. 21. Some proceeds from the event feed kids in Ghana, and Sanders says this year, they have enough to feed over 10,000 kids. 

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  • ‘Walk to End Lupus Now’ inspires hope

    ‘Walk to End Lupus Now’ inspires hope

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    COLUMBUS, Ohio — Battling lupus is tough. It’s a chronic autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks healthy tissue. 

    Cities across Ohio are working to raise awareness and funds through “Walk to End Lupus Now” events, and Saturday was Columbus’ turn. 

    What You Need To Know

    • Cities across Ohio are working to raise awareness and funds through “Walk to End Lupus Now” events

    • Rosie Chapman, a lupus survivor, participated in Columbus’ “Walk to End Lupus Now”

    • Chapman was diagnosed with lupus when she was 23

    Despite her battle with lupus, Rosie Chapman will be joining the walk this year. 

    She first was diagnosed when she was 23. 

    “It was really lonely,” she said. “I had a hard time with it.”

    Lupus has brought on several health issues for Chapman, and she almost died because of it. 

    “I almost lost all of my hair for a while. I’ve had tons of joint issues,” Chapman said.

    But she’s thankful for the life she has, hoping to inspire other survivors along the way. 

    “Yes, it’s hard,” she said. “Yes, sometimes it feels like it just completely beats you down. But you are never down. You are never out as long as you’re breathing.”

    Proceeds from the walk supports lupus research and programs. 

    Chapman and her friends have helped raise $3,000 for the walk.

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  • More than 200 medical students earn their white coats

    More than 200 medical students earn their white coats

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    COLUMBUS, Ohio — It’s a big milestone for Rachael Black.

    She’s one of the more than 200 first year medical students at Ohio State earning her white coat. 

    What You Need To Know

    • More than 200 medical students earn their white coats during Ohio State’s 78th Annual White Coat Ceremony

    • Fifteen of the students earning white coats are in the Community Medicine Medical Degree Track

    • Students in the Community Medicine Medical Degree Track will train to care for patients in rural and smaller communities, addressing a national physician shortage

    But being from a small town, Black often thinks of the challenges she faced when she was little. 

    “So, I grew up in a very rural community,” Black said. “I just kind of started seeing how much lack of access to medical care can affect how a community operates, how it runs, the health of the community members. I know just as a kid I remember driving 45 minutes to see my pediatrician.” 

    And she’s not alone. 

    Data from the Cicero Institute show 57 of Ohio’s 88 counties are health professional shortage areas, impacting rural and Appalachian residents the most. 

    Dean of Ohio State’s College of Medicine, Carol Bradford, explains why that is.

    “We really aren’t educating enough physicians in our country in general,” Bradford said. “There are just not enough physicians being trained. And we do not have enough physicians trained and prepared to practice in rural and small underserved communities.”

    That’s why Ohio State’s 78th Annual White Coat Ceremony is crucial this year. 

    Of the hundreds of students receiving white coats, only 15 are in the community medicine medical degree track, including Black. She’ll be one of the few caring for patients in rural communities, addressing the physician shortage head on. 

    “I love rural communities,” Black said, “and just having the opportunity to serve them and make that community better is something that’s very important to me.”

    Black has big dreams for the future, but she’s excited about her next big venture. 

    Black still has two years of medical school to go before heading into the rural communities to serve others.

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    Aliah Keller

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  • Intel superload makes its way through Ohio

    Intel superload makes its way through Ohio

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    WAVERLY, Ohio — As Intel’s new chips plant is being built in central Ohio, trucks have been hauling giant equipment across the buckeye state to Licking County. 

    Another one of those trips is happening this week. 

    What You Need To Know

    • Massive trucks have been hauling Intel equipment across Ohio for its construction project in Licking County

    • The shipment this week is carrying an air processor, which is used in the silicon chip manufacturing process

    • The superload left Manchester on Monday and isn’t expected to reach New Albany until next Tuesday

    The load carrying equipment for Intel is massive. It’s nearly the length of a football field and weighs about 900,000 pounds. 

    It was carrying an air processor, which is used in the silicon chip manufacturing process. 

    Matt Bruning with the Ohio Department of Transportation has been keeping an eye on the convoys these last several months. He said while the equipment is heavy, ODOT came prepared. 

    “When we found out that the companies were wanting to move these loads,” Bruning said. “We started working with the various stakeholders and figuring out what’s the best route from Adams County to Licking County that has roadways that can handle the weight.”

    And the sheer size of it was another big task for ODOT. 

    “We had to analyze a lot of vertical clearance issues.” He said. “So, can it fit under traffic signals like the ones behind us here? Can it fit under bridges or do we need to pick a different route?”

    The Ohio State Highway Patrol is escorting the convoy the entire way, but if drivers cross its path, Bruning said it may cause an inconvenience. 

    The superload left Manchester on Monday and isn’t expected to reach New Albany until next Tuesday. 

    ODOT said this is Intel’s 13th superload to make its way through the state this year, with about 10 additional ones still to come. The next one is supposed to happen later this summer.

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  • Powell student wins prize in C-SPAN’s StudentCam Competition

    Powell student wins prize in C-SPAN’s StudentCam Competition

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    POWELL, Ohio — Competition for C-SPAN’s 20th annual StudentCam was tough. Thousands of students from 42 states participated. They took on tough topics while showcasing their video-making skills, and one of the prize winners is from Ohio. 

    What You Need To Know

    • Ben Kurian from Powell, Ohio wins 2nd place in the 2024 C-SPAN StudentCam middle school division and ‘fan favorite’

    • He covered ‘career exploration’ in his winning video submission

    • Kurian shot and edited the entire video, even making the music for it

    • Kurian won $1,500 from the judged competition, and an additional $500 from winning ‘fan favorite’

    Thirteen-year-old Ben Kurian plays piano and chess, oh, and he also placed in C-SPAN’s Nationwide StudentCam Competition two years straight.

    Kurian’s video won first place in the middle school division last year, and this year, his video won second and ‘fan favorite.’

    “I thought I had a decent chance to make it a pretty good video,” Kurian said.

    He picked career exploration as his topic for the video.

    “Twenty-five percent of 15-year-olds could not name what job they wanted to have at 30,” Kurian said. “It creates something called the career exposure gap, and that, that’s something that we really don’t want to see in our youth. It’s really important that we know what jobs are out there and what we are capable of.”

    Kurian shot and edited the entire video, even making the music. 

    “I got the opportunity to compose my own piece and soundtrack for this documentary,” he said.

    In his video, it poses the question ‘Who do I want to be?’

    If Kurian had to answer that, he said, “personally, I want to go into the medical field, a psychiatrist maybe because I think their service is really much needed in our community.”

    As for his future in video editing, he plans to continue making informational videos. 

    But until then, he’ll continue entering the StudentCam competition, hoping for more wins.

    Kurian won $1,500 from the judged competition, and an additional $500 from winning ‘fan favorite’. He said he plans on saving his winnings for college. 

    To watch Kurian’s full documentary, go here.

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  • OSU Women’s Ice Hockey Coach Muzerall becomes winningest head coach

    OSU Women’s Ice Hockey Coach Muzerall becomes winningest head coach

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    COLUMBUS, Ohio — As college hockey plays out, the Ohio State Women’s Ice Hockey team is contending for a national title.

    What You Need To Know

    • Coach Muzerall becomes the winningest head coach in OSU Women’s Ice Hockey program history

    • She’s led the team to more than 180 wins over 8 seasons

    • Ohio State has played in the Women’s ‘Frozen Four’ three straight years, winning it all in 2022

    The team’s success on the ice has a lot to do with their coach, who has now won more games than any coach in the program’s history.

    “You’re preparing to go to battle and go to war every Friday and Saturday. I love that piece of coaching,” said Coach Nadine Muzerall.

    Muzerall is the team’s general, leading Ohio State to more than 180 wins over eight seasons. That’s more than any other coach in program history. 

    “It’s great and it’ll be in the record books, hopefully, you know, for a while,” said Muzerall.

    But earning that wasn’t easy. She knew that eight years ago when she first got the call. 

    “Got the call to be the head coach for the Buckeyes,” she said. “I remember my husband just said, ‘Are you out of your mind? This is the Ohio State. It doesn’t get any bigger than this. This is the pinnacle of athletics.’ I remember saying, ‘Their hockey team’s not very good’. And he goes, ‘Well go. Fix it.’”

    That became Muzerall’s priority. 

    “A lot of missed birthdays, anniversaries missed with my husband, a lot of, you know, sporting events I miss for my kids,” she said. “I made a lot of sacrifices for the greater good of the team and the program. And I don’t regret it.”

    Muzerall’s passion rubs off on her players, like Jenn Gardiner, one of the team’s leading scorers.

    “She’s been basically a mentor and almost a mother, while I’m at my home away from home,” said Gardiner. “So yeah, she just inspires us every day.”

    Next on Muzerall’s sights, she says, “We want to get the trifecta… win all three, which has never been done before in program history.” 

    But until then, Muzerall will continue doing what she loves and winning while she’s at it. 

    “I’m getting to go to work and win games and that to me again is just the rushing, the adrenaline, and it’s exciting for me,” said Muzerall.

    Ohio State has played in the Women’s ‘Frozen Four three straight years, winning it all in 2022. They’ll likely be a top seed come tournament time this year.   

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