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SIGNAL 9.8.17
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Vol. 126, Issue 2
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The Farmhouse finds a “Great Place to Call Home” By Kacy Spears Staff writer
Shaylah Montgomery of Berlin, NY, fell in love with Arkansas and a storefront. Montgomery made the move to Arkadelphia from New York after marrying her husband, Justin, and finishing nursing school. “I remember looking at the water tower and thinking ‘yeah, sure, a Great Place to Call Home,’ and now I think it really is,” said Montgomery. Now, she’s the owner of The Farmhouse, a corner store in downtown Arkadelphia, that sells fair trade items, soaps, home décor, healthy living essentials and more. “Before I did this, I had a small online business, Montgomery Essentials, and I made essential oil blends and homemade soap. I was really into healthy living prior to this,” said Montgomery. “When I found this awesome soap brand and was able to create my own blends with them, that inspired me to want a bigger space.” When touring downtown Arkadelphia, Montgomery saw the empty corner storefront, and was instantly inspired. She knew she had to have it. Her husband renovated the store almost single-handedly—
hanging new doors, painting, and creating her dream store with lots of natural light and a clean look. “He did it all in about a month,” says Montgomery. “When people come in here and say ‘oh my goodness it looks so different,’ I truly say that it’s a labor of love because we have put a lot of time and love into this place.” Montgomery credits a lot of the work and creation of The Farmhouse to her mother, Renee Morris. “In the midst of deciding if we were going to open the store and going back and forth, my mom was living in New York with my grandmother,” said Montgeomery. “It finally got to a point where I said, ‘Grandma’s getting older. It’s time that you move her down here, and come with her.’…A lot of my inspiration, too, was to know that my mom would have this place as well.” Morris moved down from New York and helped Montgeomery start The Farmhouse from the ground up. The hand-painted mural of The Farmhouse logo was done by Morris, herself. Calli Birch of Storyweaver Mercantile has set up her first in-store display at The Farmhouse. Storyweaver Mercantile’s mission is “artisan see Farmhouse z 2
Danielle Droste z Photo Lab
Danielle Droste z Photo Lab
Danielle Droste z Photo Lab
top: The Farmhouse is located in a renovated corner store in downtown Arkadelphia. BOTTOM LEFT: An apron featuring the logo created by Renee Morris sits on display in The Farmhouse. BOTTOM RIGHT: Owner Shaylah Montgomery.
Rogers begins journey as OBU Dean of Students ASC teaches basic skills
for success in college
By Chris DiGiovanni Staff writer
When Scott Haynes announced in the spring of 2017 that he would be stepping down as dean of students at the end of the school year, Ouachita began the process of finding someone to take the spot. Rickey Rogers decided to apply and was chosen from a long list of applicants. Rogers, a man with a servant’s heart, is the perfect man for the job. Rogers’ Ouachita journey begins like many of the athletes: with a campus visit. “I played football, and so OBU recruited me and invited me on a visit,” Rogers said. Rogers was a six-hour drive from his hometown in Mississippi, but once he visited campus and sat in on some classes, he was hooked. He especially loved the community and the emphasis on education, two things that would play key roles in his career. Rogers starred as a wide receiver while attending Ouachita, and began to make important connec-
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By Anni williams Staff writer
Dr. Wesley Kluck z Courtesy Rickey Rogers, pictured above, was appointed Dean of Students in the spring of 2017.
tions as he did. “I played under Coach Knight, who is the head coach now, for two years. I ended up building a strong relationship with him and developed an appreciation of how he not only coached the guys, but also took the opportunity to mentor the guys,” Rogers said. After he graduated in 2002 with a major in physical education and a minor in psychology, he started working in the TRIO program on campus at Ouachi-
ta. The program is a federally funded effort to help less fortunate individuals gain access to a college education. “I worked with older adults that may not have gone to college. So I helped them do a lot of financial aid, stuff like that,” Rogers said. However, Rogers began to feel called in a different direction. “My wife and I had been praying about going back see Rogers z 2
As life at Ouachita settles into a routine of classes, quizzes and tests, the folks at the Academic Success Center want to let students know that they’re here to help. The Academic Success Center exists to help provide students with the resources they need to be successful in their academic life. They want to support freshmen in their transition from high school to college, and encourage returning students to continue to work hard. “We realize that there is a transition from high school to college, and that it’s diffi-
cult,” said Nicole Porchia, the director of the Academic Success Center. “We work with students on a daily basis that struggle with the basic things students need to accomplish in their first year to survive here and be successful here.” The Academic Success Center teaches basic skills such as using a planner, reading for understanding, how to take notes, and other skills that are needed to be successful in college. They also offer tutoring for specific classes. There are many different kinds of tutoring: one on one tutoring, small group tutoring, walk in labs and study halls for athletes. And if students don’t see something see ASC z 2
Caden Flint z Photo Lab senior kaitlyn watson offers one-on-one help to a student during a study session at the Academic Success Center.
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