Event-Full October

Event-Full October

Join Ohio Wesleyan for Community Day, Kickstart Ohio, 'Macbeth,' and More

DELAWARE, Ohio - Ohio Wesleyan University, including its Richard M. Ross Art Museum, announced its October 2025 public events today. Unless otherwise noted, admission is free.

Through Oct. 7- Painter David W. Groff exhibits "Divine Specimens," featuring 16 paintings of horses, at Ohio Wesleyan's Werner Gallery inside Edgar Hall, 35 S. Sandusky St., Delaware. Groff says he tries to create a backstory for each piece of art and to remain "keenly aware of shape, value, edges, and texture" as he paints. He was born in Mansfield, Ohio, and his career has included freelance illustration work for clients, including the Walt Disney Co., National Football League (NFL), and Cartoon Network. The exhibit is open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. Admission is free. Learn more at https://www.groffland.com.

8 p.m. Oct. 3, 10, 17, and 24 - Friday night skywatches, at Perkins Observatory, 3199 Columbus Pike (U.S. 23), Delaware. Content varies based on weather conditions, but may include a planetarium show, observatory tours, and stargazing with the 32-inch Schottland Telescope. Tickets are $10 in advance or $12 on the day of the event and at the door. Reserve tickets by calling (740) 363-1257. Learn more at owu.edu/Perkins.

8 p.m. Oct. 17-18 - Ohio Wesleyan Musical Theatre Scenes, in Jemison Auditorium inside Sanborn Hall, 23 Elizabeth St., Delaware. Admission is free. For more information, visit owu.edu/PerformingArts.

1 p.m. Oct. 18, with a free noon tailgate - Bishop Backers Fall Community Day with free admission to the Ohio Wesleyan vs. Wooster football game, at Selby Stadium, 45 S. Henry St., Delaware. Enjoy a free tailgate at noon with City of Delaware police officers and firefighters, and Ohio Wesleyan Public Safety officers grilling hamburgers, hot dogs, and meat-free options outside the stadium. The Battling Bishops vs. Fighting Scots game kicks off at 1 p.m. Admission is free, but donations will be accepted and a 50/50 raffle held to support the Delaware Speech and Hearing Center. This nonprofit clinic provides personalized hearing, occupational therapy, and speech/language treatment and education. Before the game, the Delaware Speech and Hearing Center will host its annual "Walk for Communication" beginning at 10 a.m. and stepping off from OWU's JAYwalk. Participants will gather in front of Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, 40 Rowland Ave., Delaware. The event includes local vendors, children's activities, raffles, and a 1.5-mile walk through downtown Delaware. The walk will end at Selby Stadium in time for the tailgate and football game. OWU's Delta Zeta sorority will help check in walkers. Register at https://www.delawareshc.org/event/2025-walk-for-communication. Learn more at owu.edu/BishopBackers or battlingbishops.com.

2 p.m. Oct. 19 - Guest Performance, featuring Peter Steiner, trombone, and Constanze Hochwartner, organ, in Gray Chapel inside University Hall, 61 S. Sandusky St., Delaware. Admission is free. For more information, visit owu.edu/PerformingArts.

8 p.m. Oct. 23 - Ohio Wesleyan Symphonic Wind Ensemble fall concert, in Gray Chapel inside University Hall, 61 S. Sandusky St., Delaware. Admission is free. For more information, visit owu.edu/PerformingArts.

Oct. 23-25 - Ohio Wesleyan's inaugural Kickstart Ohio entrepreneurship conference, with presentations from entrepreneurs, founders, and business innovators, in Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, 40 Rowland Ave., Delaware. Kickstart Ohio offers five tracks to support entrepreneurs at each stage of their business journey: Conceptual, Startup & Early Stage, Growth & Expansion, Rapid Growth & Maturity, and Innovation & Exit. Kickstart Ohio will conclude Oct. 25 with a fireside chat between Apple Computer co-founder Steve Wozniak and Ohio Wesleyan President Matt vandenBerg in Gray Chapel in University Hall, 61 S. Sandusky St., Delaware. The conference is a ticketed event organized by the Delaware Entrepreneurial Center at Ohio Wesleyan University (DEC OWU). Learn more or purchase tickets at https://www.kickstartohio.com.

9 a.m. Oct. 25 - Ohio Wesleyan's second annual U.S. Entrepreneurial Competition, featuring a "Shark Tank"-style competition with professional and college student tracks, in the Benes Rooms of Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, 40 Rowland Ave., Delaware. Winners of Ohio's largest entrepreneurship competition earn investment money, mentoring, and more. Applications to compete are due before 11:59 p.m. Sept. 26 at owu.edu/USEC. The competition is presented by the Delaware Entrepreneurial Center at Ohio Wesleyan University (DEC OWU). Learn more about the center, including memberships and programming, at owu.edu/DEC. Learn more about the competition at owu.edu/USEC.

7:30 p.m. Oct. 27 - Scott D. Milligan, group vice president for Thrive Pet Healthcare, presents the 2025-2026 Robert L. Milligan Leaders in Business Lecture, in the Benes Rooms of OWU's Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, 40 Rowland Ave., Delaware. A 1990 OWU graduate, Milligan has over 25 years of experience in healthcare leadership, development, and consulting. Before becoming group vice president, he previously served as Thrive Pet Healthcare's vice president for boutique specialty and new hospital growth, launching more than 20 veterinary hospitals in one year, and as its national director of radiation therapy. During his career, Milligan also led the development of the largest privately owned radiosurgery network in the nation, where he served as vice president of technology and oversaw the stereotactic radiosurgery business unit. He also worked as a senior manager in Ernst & Young's Healthcare Provider Business Transformation Group. Ohio Wesleyan's annual Robert L. Milligan Lecture is presented by The Woltemade Center for Economics, Business and Entrepreneurship. Admission is free. Learn more at owu.edu/Woltemade.

7 p.m. Oct. 28 and noon Oct. 29 - Dana Bucin, an award-winning immigration/international attorney, presents "What to do about immigration? An Immigration Attorney's Take on Navigating a Flawed System," on Oct. 28 in the Benes Rooms inside Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, 40 Rowland Ave., Delaware. On Oct. 29, Bucin will take part in a related panel discussion, in Room 301 of Merrick Hall, 65 S. Sandusky St., Delaware. A 2002 Ohio Wesleyan graduate, Bucin is a partner at Harris Beach Murtha, a 250+ attorney law firm with offices in Connecticut, Maine, New York, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia. Bucin is also the Honorary Consul of Romania to Connecticut, a diplomatic appointment that enables her to facilitate cross-border educational, business, medical, legal, military, and cultural exchanges. Both events encompass OWU's 2025-2026 Benjamin F. Marsh Lecture on Public Affairs; Butler A. Jones Lecture on Race and Society; and Robert Kragalott Lecture on Genocide, Mass Atrocity, and Human Rights. Admission is free. The events are sponsored by the departments of History, Politics & Government, and Sociology & Anthropology. Learn more at owu.edu/history, owu.edu/politics, and owu.edu/SOAN.

7:30 p.m. Oct. 30-Nov. 1 and 2 p.m. Nov. 1-2 - Shakespeare's "Macbeth," directed by Bradford Sadler, on the Main Stage in Chappelear Drama Center, 45 Rowland Ave., Delaware. This new take on the classic Shakespearean tragedy chronicles the violent rise to power of Macbeth, a Scottish general, obsessed with fulfilling a prophecy that he is destined to become king. Tickets are $10 for general admission, $5 for senior citizens, and free for OWU students and employees by visiting owu.edu/PerformingArts beginning two weeks before the show debuts. For questions, call the box office at (740) 368-3855.

Richard M. Ross Art Museum

Ohio Wesleyan's Ross Art Museum will feature three exhibits opening Oct. 14 and celebrate them with a free public reception from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Oct. 16.

• Oct. 14-Dec. 14 - "Sprawl: OWU Faculty Show," including works by professors Kristina Bogdanov, Frank Hobbs, and Jeff Nilan. The OWU Department of Fine Arts, created in 1864, was one of America's first college art departments. It offers both Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) and Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degrees with majors in Studio Art, Art History, and Art Education. OWU's Fine Arts faculty are not only teachers but also working artists. Their 2025 exhibition will highlight their latest creations in ceramics, painting, photography, and more.
• Oct. 14-March 29, 2026 - "Demarcations and Delineations" by Michelle Stitzlein, using recycled materials and found objects - including old garden hoses, electrical wire, computer cables, piano keys, mini blinds, and more - to create imagery and abstractions from her imagination. Her work "venerates imperfections found in the handmade, the patched/mended and secondhand, and pays deference to nature and habitat enduring continual loss and destruction due to the industrial pursuit of new and raw resources." Learn more at https://www.artgrange.com/michellesculpture.html.
• Oct. 14-March 29, 2026 - "Our Changing Landscape: Life in the Anthropocene," curated to support OWU's First Year Seminar Curriculum. The exhibition explores the numerous complex problems surrounding environmental issues in the Anthropocene Era, an era profoundly impacted by human activities. The exhibit includes the OWU Natural History Museum's Passenger Pigeon.

Art and the Environment Talk Series

The Ross Art Museum, in collaboration with the OWU Department of Environment & Sustainability, will host a series of talks this year on the intersection of art and the environment. The series will include artists, activists, and scholars and their efforts to change the world around them for the better.

• 6:30 p.m. Oct. 14 - Terry Hermsen, a poet, writer, musician, and activist working in central Ohio, presents "Tiny Songs Poetry Reading." Hermsen uses his poetry and music to raise awareness and spur action for environmental and climate change-related issues. Learn more at https://www.terryhermsen.com.
• 6:30 p.m. Oct. 21 - Jeff Dickinson, a farmer, educator, and researcher at Stratford Ecological Center, presents "Regenerative Agriculture." Located in Delaware, Stratford Ecological Center is a 236-acre organic farm and nature preserve with a focus on education, food resiliency, and equitable access. Learn more at stratfordecologicalcenter.org.
• 6:30 p.m. Oct. 28 - John Ganis, a 1972 Ohio Wesleyan graduate and photographer, presents "America's Endangered Coasts." Ganis focuses his work on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, areas threatened by rising sea levels. His book, also titled "America's Endangered Coasts," pairs detailed color photographs with latitude and longitude data as well as elevation, highlighting the vulnerability of the overdevelopment of low-lying coastal areas. Learn more at https://www.johnganisphotography.com.

Children and Family Events

• 2-4 p.m. Oct. 26 - Ghost Family Portrait: Visit the Ross Art Museum to create a free make-and-take ghostly family portrait for Halloween and hear some spooky stories! This craft is open to all ages. (Younger children may need help with scissors.)

All Ohio Wesleyan public event information is subject to change. For the latest updates, visit owu.edu/calendar. For more Battling Bishop athletics events, visit battlingbishops.com.

Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation's premier liberal arts universities. Located in Delaware, Ohio, the private university offers more than 70 undergraduate majors and competes in 24 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Through its signature experience, the OWU Connection, Ohio Wesleyan teaches students to understand issues from multiple academic perspectives, volunteer in service to others, build a diverse and global perspective, and translate classroom knowledge into real-world experience through internships, research, and other hands-on learning. Ohio Wesleyan is featured in the book "Colleges That Change Lives" and included on the U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review "Best Colleges" lists. Connect with OWU expert interview sources at owu.edu/experts or learn more at owu.edu.