October Opportunities

Join Ohio Wesleyan for Homecoming, Fine Arts Faculty Exhibition, Theatre Production, and More

DELAWARE, Ohio - Ohio Wesleyan University, including its Richard M. Ross Art Museum, announced its October 2026 public events today. Unless otherwise noted, admission is free.

• 7:30 p.m. Oct. 1 - Wandia Chiuri, founder and CEO of Reactionpower, presents "Your Human Advantage in the Age of AI: How Judgment, Creativity, and Relationships Help Leaders Turn Change into Opportunity," in the Benes Rooms inside OWU's Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, 40 Rowland Ave., Delaware. A 2005 Ohio Wesleyan graduate, Chiuri's company is an executive branding and innovation firm that uses artificial intelligence insights to advise clients on executive authority, market influence, and growth. Ohio Wesleyan's annual Robert L. Milligan Leaders in Business Lecture is presented by The Woltemade Center for Economics, Business and Entrepreneurship. Admission is free. Learn more at owu.edu/Woltemade.
• Oct. 2-3 - OWU Homecoming and Family Weekend: Ohio Wesleyan will host its 2026 Homecoming and Family Weekend on Oct. 2-3, and the community is invited to join in these public celebrations. Learn more about Homecoming and Family Weekend at owu.edu/homecoming and more about Battling Bishop athletics at battlingbishops.com.
  • 8 p.m. Oct. 2 - "A Celebration of Sanborn: Performing Arts Alumni Recital," in Jemison Auditorium inside Sanborn Hall, 23 Elizabeth St., Delaware. This homecoming concert features music graduate performances by Ann Johnson, Class of 2004 (voice), Annie Moosa, Class of 2011 (piano), Lauren Spavelko, Class of 2011 (piano), Rachel Fitzgerald, Class of 2018 (voice), and Gavin Abrams, Class of 2023 (trombone). Admission is free. For more information, visit owu.edu/PerformingArts.
  • Football
    • 12 p.m. to 12:15 p.m. Oct. 3 - Bishop Walk - Show your Ohio Wesleyan pride and join the walking parade from the JAYwalk fountain to Selby Stadium, led by the OWU football team, Marching Bishops, cheerleaders, dance team, and Battling Bishop himself. (Meet at the fountain in front of Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, 40 Rowland Ave., Delaware.)
    • 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 3 - Battling Bishop Football Tailgate - Enjoy lunch and get fired up before the Ohio Wesleyan Homecoming football game. The Marching Bishops and OWU cheerleaders will be on hand for the festivities. Food trucks will have items for purchase outside Selby Stadium, 45 S. Henry St., Delaware.
    • 2 p.m. Oct. 3 - OWU vs. the College of Wooster football game: The halftime celebration includes recognizing the 2026 "W" Association Hall of Fame inductees. Game tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for senior citizens and non-OWU students. Admission is free for Ohio Wesleyan students with a valid university ID and for children under 10 for homecoming and all regular-season games.
  • Soccer
    • 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Oct. 3 - Battling Bishop Soccer Tailgate - Enjoy lunch or dinner and get fired up before Ohio Wesleyan women's and men's soccer games. The Backstretch's food truck will have items for purchase outside the Jay Martin Soccer Complex, 249 Park Ave., Delaware.
    • 4 p.m. Oct. 3 - OWU vs. the College of Wooster women's soccer game. Game tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for senior citizens and students. Admission is free for Ohio Wesleyan students with a valid university ID and for children under 10 for homecoming and all regular-season games.
    • 7 p.m. Oct. 3 - OWU vs. Adrian College men's soccer game. Game tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for senior citizens and students. Admission is free for Ohio Wesleyan students with a valid university ID and for children under 10 for homecoming and all regular-season games.
• 8 p.m. Oct. 16-17 - Ohio Wesleyan Musical Theater Scenes, directed by OWU's Dr. Jennifer Whitehead, in Jemison Auditorium inside Sanborn Hall, 23 Elizabeth St., Delaware. Admission is free. For more information, visit owu.edu/PerformingArts.
• 8 p.m. Oct. 16, 23, and 30 - 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. (The Oct. 2 and Oct. 9 skywatches are sold out.) Reserve tickets by calling (740) 363-1257. Learn more at owu.edu/Perkins.
• 3 p.m. Oct. 18 - Ohio Wesleyan senior recital featuring Ryleigh Jones, saxophone, in Jemison Auditorium inside Sanborn Hall, 23 Elizabeth St., Delaware. Admission is free. For more information, visit owu.edu/PerformingArts.
• 8 p.m. Oct. 22 - Ohio Wesleyan Symphonic Wind Ensemble concert, conducted by OWU's Dr. Richard Edwards, in Gray Chapel inside University Hall, 61 S. Sandusky St., Delaware. Admission is free. For more information, visit owu.edu/PerformingArts.
• Noon Oct. 23 - Ohio Wesleyan President Matt vandenBerg oversees a historic campus announcement, in the Rock Quad outside Merrick Hall, 65 S. Sandusky St., Delaware. Learn more about the university at owu.edu.
• 3 p.m. Oct. 25 - Ohio Wesleyan student recital featuring senior Liz Railsback, voice, and sophomore Dylan Craft, percussion, in Jemison Auditorium inside Sanborn Hall, 23 Elizabeth St., Delaware. Admission is free. For more information, visit owu.edu/PerformingArts.
• 6:30 p.m. Oct. 27 - Muetter Tohti, a human rights researcher specializing in documenting and analyzing the Chinese government's actions in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, discusses her work, in the Benes Rooms of Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, 40 Rowland Ave., Delaware. Tohti's research focuses on preserving evidence, examining patterns of state repression, and advancing accountability for abuses affecting Uyghurs and other Turkic and Muslim communities in the region. Her presentation is the 2026 Corinne Lyman Lecture. A retired OWU professor of politics and government, Lyman created Ohio Wesleyan's International Studies Program and chaired it until retiring in 1999. Admission is free. Learn more at owu.edu/InternationalStudies.
• 7:30 p.m. Oct. 29-31 and 2 p.m. Nov. 1 - Ohio Wesleyan fall theater production, "Oh, to Be Pure Again," written by Kira Rockwell and directed by OWU's Lusie Cuskey, on the Main Stage in Chappelear Drama Center, 45 Rowland Ave., Delaware. Exploring the tension between female desire and purity culture, this gripping play offers a raw, intimate, and often darkly comedic look at the struggles of growing up in a highly dogmatic environment. Set at a 2010 Charismatic Christian summer camp in rural Texas, the story follows Becca, a counselor guiding teenage girls, who grapples with her own shifting faith and disillusionment. 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 Richard M. Ross Art Museum will feature exhibitions and a talk series examining the complex issues surrounding "Communication, Surveillance & Democracy" throughout the 2026-2027 academic year.

• 6:30-9 p.m. Oct. 1 - "Good Night, and Good Luck" film screening at The Strand Theatre, 28 E. Winter St., Delaware. This award-winning 2005 film follows CBS journalist Edward R. Murrow and producer Fred Friendly as they use their groundbreaking television program "See It Now" to challenge Sen. Joseph McCarthy's anti-communist investigations and abuses of power in 1950s America. Rated PG, the film is directed by George Clooney, who stars with David Strathairn and Patricia Clarkson. The screening is part of the museum's "Communication, Surveillance & Democracy" Talk Series. Admission is free for everyone. Learn more about the theatre and its special events at strandtheatreoh.org.
• 1:30-2:30 p.m. Oct. 11 - Make-and-take your own free superhero mask before the Central Ohio Symphony's Superheroes and Supervillains concert at 3 p.m. in OWU's Gray Chapel inside University Hall. Learn more about the ticketed concert at centralohiosymphony.org.
• Oct. 13-Dec. 18
  • Ardine Nelson: City Center - Nelson's photographic series explores Columbus's short-lived City Center Mall, which operated from 1989 to 2009 before being demolished. Intended to revitalize the downtown urban core, the mall faced challenges almost from the outset. Nelson's images explore the limits of capitalism and consumer culture.
  • Ohio Wesleyan Fine Arts Faculty Exhibition - OWU's professors showcase their latest creations in ceramics, painting, photography, and mixed media.
• Oct. 13, 2026-April 4, 2027
  • A More Perfect Union - Featuring works from the Ross Art Museum's permanent teaching collection, "A More Perfect Union" examines efforts to live up to aspirations and ideals of the United States of America.
• 5-7 p.m. Oct. 15 - Opening reception for the above three new art exhibits. Admission is free.
• 8-9 p.m. Oct. 15 - Ohio Wesleyan sophomore Dylan Craft performs a solo show of experimental/improvised music and spoken word, with a focus on percussion and saxophone. Featured composers include John Cage, James Tenney, and Alvin Lucier. Admission is free.
• 6:30-9 p.m. Oct. 22 - Artist talk by "City Center" photographer Ardine Nelson. Admission is free.
• 6-8 p.m. Oct. 29 - Night at the Museum: Spooky cute adult coloring, featuring a low-key night of coloring and snacks. Admission is free.

During the academic year, the Ross Art Museum is open Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. It is closed Saturdays and Mondays. It will be closed Oct. 7-11 for mid-semester break. The museum is handicap-accessible and admission is always free. Call (740) 368-3606 or visit owu.edu/Ross or https://www.facebook.com/RossArtMuseum for more information.

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.