FROM ONU.EDU/NEWS__Ohio Northern University inducted four accomplished individuals into the 2025 Athletic Hall of Fame during a ceremony and luncheon held Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. Inductees were Larry Cole, Alison (Steinbrunner) Kwiat, PharmD ’15, Stephan “Steve” Vagedes, BS ’02, and Tamika Washington, BA ’01.
Larry Cole
Head Coach, Cross Country and Track and Field (1991-1997)
The 2025 ONU English Reading Series event will open on September 16 in the Wilson Hall Elzay Gallery of Art at 7:00 p.m.
It will feature Phillip K Dick Award-winning author Alison Stine. In her biography on www.alisonstine.com, the author notes that she was "born next to a popcorn farm" and "comes from a long line of foragers and farmers.... [as a] child actor, she began writing plays and music when she was in middle school in Ohio."
Stine is the author of four novels and three collections of poetry.
SEPT 3 MEDIA RELEASE___Ohio Northern University has received a $1 million scholarship grant from the Austin E. Knowlton Foundation to support students pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM).
Under the agreement, ONU will distribute $200,000 a year in each of the next five years to qualified students with financial need from Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and Michigan.
SEPT 2 MEDIA RELEASE__Ohio Northern University will celebrate its Homecoming & Reunion Weekend on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 3 and 4, offering a full line-up of activities for alumni, students and the local community.
The weekend includes opportunities for alumni to reconnect with friends while enjoying campus and college tours, reunion gatherings, tailgating and much more. The weekend also includes many events open to the general public, including a parade, concerts and sporting events.
CLICK gallery to enlarge photos and view at your own pace / PHOTOS from ONU Facebook
By Paula Pyzik Scott
Some 750+ new neighbors moved into Ada this past week. That’s the size of Ohio Northern’s Fall 2025 freshman class, the largest to enroll in the last 10 years. On move-in day, August 20, a small traffic jam at the corner of Main and College was entertained by Polar Bear welcome staff who jumped and hollered with excitement.
From the office of University President Melissa Baumann, you could hear the occasional car horns and shouts. While her calendar has a steady flow of speaking engagements and meetings year-round, faculty and staff manage the nearly zero-to-sixty transition from summer to fall semester on campus. Total enrollment at ONU is over 3,000, more than doubling the population. In fact, the State of Ohio officially recognizes that the students are not permanent residents, so that the Village doesn’t have to become a city.
