Shepherd University Story Archives - Page 5 of 18 - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Shepherd University Student Displays Appalachian Art In Traveling Showcase

ARTtrek is set to show paintings, sculptures and other works made by artists local to the region.

It will also be at the parking lot outside Shepherd University’s football stadium April 15 to 16, alongside other student visual art projects.

Senior Abby Bowman came up with the idea of showcasing different kinds of art in a mobile box trailer, dubbed ARTtrek, after talking to one of her professors. ARTtrek is set to show paintings, sculptures and other works made by her and other artists local to the region.

“It’s just all about connecting communities and connecting with our culture overall,” Bowman said. “The box trailer itself will trek through the mountains and connect Appalachian artists together.”

Bowman said she hopes to promote the state’s cultural heritage by introducing more contemporary artists to a wider audience.

“I think our region and our landscapes play a part in that as well, that we’re sheltered in a way from the outside world, which has kept it so rich and so meaningful to each of us,” she said.

The first exhibit on April 7 will showcase paintings of local Shepherdstown monument Shepherd’s Mill, alongside Bowman’s depictions of Appalachian landscapes in quilted sculptures. Works from Shepherd University’s Visual Arts Collection will also be exhibited the following week.

Eventually, Bowman would like to expand the trailer to accommodate emerging student artists across Appalachia.

“I just want it to be an opportunity for any Appalachian artists, whatever their concentration is,” she said. “It’s very hard to get into art galleries and get into shows. You have to pay all this money and it’s very hard especially when you’re a college student already struggling.”

Bowman said she’s trying to organize plans for the trailer to appear at festivals and events throughout the state. Its first appearance is scheduled in Shepherdstown on April 7 and 8 from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Gender-Affirming Health Care And Sen. Capito Visits Shepherd University On This West Virginia Morning

On this West Virginia Morning, one hotly debated bill before the state legislature is one that restricts gender-affirming health care for state youth. It’s slowly moving forward in the Senate. In our latest episode of The Legislature Today, News Director Eric Douglas speaks with reporter Curtis Tate about the bill.

On this West Virginia Morning, one hotly debated bill before the state legislature is one that restricts gender-affirming health care for state youth. It’s slowly moving forward in the Senate. In our latest episode of The Legislature Today, News Director Eric Douglas speaks with reporter Curtis Tate about the bill.

Also, in this show, Shepherd University hosted U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-WV, Monday after close to $3 million of congressional funds were granted to support programs on campus. Eastern Panhandle reporter Shepherd Snyder has more.

West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting which is solely responsible for its content.

Support for our news bureaus comes from West Virginia University, Concord University, and Shepherd University.

Listen to West Virginia Morning weekdays at 7:43 a.m. on WVPB Radio or subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode. #WVMorning

Capito Tours Shepherd University, Programs That Received Federal Funding

Shepherd University hosted U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-WV, Monday after $2,708,000 of congressional funds were granted to support programs on campus.

Capito visited both the school’s Tabler Farm and Byrd Science and Technology Center during a visit to the Eastern Panhandle.

One part of the total funding will help create a “small business incubator” for new farming students, specifically to help teach them small-scale agricultural practices in a way that’s hands-on and community oriented.

“Shepherd (University) is located in a unique part of West Virginia that has already historically been an agricultural community,” said Madison Hale, farm coordinator at the school’s Agricultural Innovation Center. “But we are quickly seeing that shift away as a lot of the old ways of farming are kind of no longer being used in practice, and so a lot of land has been sold for development. We’re kind of at a turning point where we could still foster a thriving agricultural community here, but the farmers really need more resources.”

Another set of funding is going towards revitalizing and modernizing the school’s chemistry labs.

“We just want to make them more collaborative, because one of our focuses moving forward as a chemistry program is more and more teamwork and collaboration,” said Jacqueline Cole, the school’s chemistry department chair. “One of the things that the sciences really excel at in lab is teamwork. And so we want to move that into the classrooms as well.”

The funds come from the $1.7 trillion Consolidated Appropriations Act passed by the Biden administration in 2022.

Capito, along with Sen. Joe Manchin, requested some of these funds for the university. Both serve on the Senate Appropriations Committee.

“It’s easier for me to be able to direct that spending into valuable projects than it is for Shepherd to have to apply to a grant in D.C. to compete nationwide,” Capito said.

Funding was also awarded to two other university programs: a special education curriculum for the School of Education and a professional development program for high school teachers.

Capito also visited the Rockwool Manufacturing insulation plant in Ranson earlier in the day, according to a release from her office.

Prominent Light Therapy Researcher Visits Shepherd University

A group of nursing students at Shepherd University got a close up look Wednesday at a form of light healing therapy.

Renowned Australian scientist Ann Liebert spoke with students in the Doctor of Nursing Practice program about photobiomodulation (PBM).

“As a researcher and a person that has been doing this for a long time, I really want to excite and be part of any research that’s going on and to mentor and to demonstrate to any of the nurses, physicians or other practitioners that we have here,” Liebert said.

Light therapy has been around since the 19th century, and has been used to treat pain and inflammation, PBM uses infrared laser light to increase cellular metabolism and speed up patients’ healing processes.

Liebert is a clinician and scientist from the University of Sydney, who researches and uses the practice in her own work. Currently the director and chief researcher at medical technology company SYMBYX Biome, she has studied its effects on more serious, chronic pain conditions, like fibromyalgia and migraines, as well as neurological diseases like Alzheimers and Parkinson’s.

“There’s been increasing evidence, especially over the last five years, that it can help in recovery of wounds and injuries that are chronic,” Liebert said. “And these chronic conditions affect people’s quality of life.”

Advocates for PBM say it’s important to equip nursing students with this sort of knowledge, especially in rural, aging states like West Virginia where access to specialized care is limited.

“It’s another way to really help give them some tools in their toolbox for when they graduate and become family nurse practitioners, especially in rural West Virginia, where, you know, access to special care sometimes is limited for some people,” said nursing professor Kelly Watson Huffer. “We’d like to just equip them with as much knowledge as we can for non-invasive ways to improve healthcare.”

The visit comes after the university opened its own PBM clinic last March.

Naloxone, Overdose Prevention Clinics Scheduled At Shepherd University

Naloxone clinics are coming to the Eastern Panhandle to help educate locals on what to do in case of an opioid overdose.

A clinic is scheduled for Wednesday at Shepherd University’s student center. It’s set to teach those attending about what to do during an emergency, including identifying an overdose and how to administer naloxone.

“The biggest fact that we carry out through these trainings – our trainers will say this as well – Narcan and naloxone is safe for anyone, this isn’t something that will impact you if you’re not having an opioid overdose,” organizer and dean of students Jacob Mellow said. “But it can be life saving when in the opioid overdose situation. So that is the number one fact that we want to get out there is that it is safe for everyone, and it is safe to be carried and administered.”

Organizer and criminal justice professor Joshua Stout says these sort of clinics are important for the region. Berkeley County is one of the most vulnerable counties for overdose deaths in a state that has already seen the most deaths per capita from the opioid epidemic by a considerable amount, according to DHHR data.

“When we see these high numbers in our community, affecting our community, it’s near impossible today to find somebody who has not been impacted by the opioid epidemic in some way,” Stout said.

Also touched on during the training are ways to contact emergency services and familiarization with the state’s Good Samaritan law, which dictates that there will be no penalization for contacting said services during an overdose situation.

“That just makes it easier for a person to know that they’re going to provide a life saving service, and just to kind of prevent the stigma around calling or not calling for services,” Mellow said.

The clinic is scheduled for 11 a.m. in the student center’s Rumsey Gallery. Another clinic is coming to the school’s Martinsburg Center on Feb. 14. Both clinics are free and open to the public.

Shepherd University Football Team Heads To Division II Semifinal Game

This weekend, Shepherd University’s loyal fans in the Eastern Panhandle will cheer on their football program when they play in the Division II semifinals with hopes for a national championship berth.

College football in West Virginia is usually associated with the West Virginia Mountaineers and Marshall Thundering Herd. But this weekend, Shepherd University’s loyal fans in the Eastern Panhandle will cheer on their football program when they play in the Division II semifinals with hopes for a national championship berth.

The trip to the semifinals is the second for the Rams in as many years. The school is tucked away in a small town in the Eastern Panhandle, but like other small towns across the country, the success of their school’s sports teams is something many of the locals rally around.

“I’ve been to every single game, I haven’t missed a game,” Shepherd University student and student section leader Amelia Jenkins said. “I was in Connecticut when we started and I’ll be in Colorado on Saturday to cheer on the Rams.”

Fans like Jenkins were outside the school’s student center Thursday afternoon to see the team off in hopes for a road win against the Colorado School of Mines.

The team is led by quarterback Tyson Bagent, who was last season’s recipient of the Harlon Hill trophy – Division II football’s answer to the Heisman, which names the best player in the country. This season, he broke the record for most career touchdown passes in college football history, regardless of division.

“It’s good to know that all the work’s not going unnoticed,” Bagent said. “Also, I think it’s important for the younger people in my family to see what’s possible and kind of give them inspiration and motivation to do their thing.”

After his Harlon Hill campaign, Bagent had offers to transfer to Division I schools like West Virginia University and the University of Maryland, but ultimately decided to stay close to home. Despite playing at a smaller school, he’s gotten attention from scouts as a potential NFL draft pick.

“I’m from this area, I’ve always lived in this area,” he said. “So I mean, it’s all I know. And so for me to be an inspiration and kind of a motivating factor to the people in this area means everything to me.”

The team’s success is in part because of its coaching staff, led by head coach Ernie McCook. He was a coordinator with the program for years before he took over from longtime coach Monte Cater in 2018. Cater had more wins than any other active coach across college football before his retirement. McCook has continued the team’s level of success, but credits it to the school’s commitment to athletics.

“I think athletics is the front porch of every university and our success on athletic play and the playing field helps open up our university to a lot of different people,” McCook said.

The Rams have kept competitive by recruiting from local high school football powerhouses like Martinsburg High School, where Bagent was originally spotted.

“Seventy five percent of our alumni will live within 100 miles of the university,” he said. “So we’re able to have a lot of alumni support to help us and support us in recruiting.”

This year’s postseason saw Shepherd University beat the University of New Haven, as well as conference foes Slippery Rock and Indiana University of Pennsylvania. IUP handed the Rams a rare loss earlier in the season during the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference championship game.

Last season, the Rams beat the University of Findlay, Notre Dame College in Ohio and Kutztown University on their way to the semifinals before falling to eventual champions Ferris State University.

The semifinal game is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Saturday and will be broadcast on streaming service ESPN Plus.