The Grace College School of Business is proud to announce the winners of the 2013 Business Plan Competition. On Wednesday, April 24, six teams of Grace College business students gathered at the Orthopaedic Capital Center for the final round of the contest. Each team was given five minutes to present their business plan to a panel of judges and ten minutes to answer their questions. Joy Itiola received the first place award of $5,000 for Eulalie, an alternative apparel brand. The second place prize of $2,500 was awarded to Joseph Risinger for his Green Stripe Lawn Care business plan. Third place (a $1,000 prize) was awarded to Ryan Ramey with his plan for Showroom Auto.

The event was hosted by the Grace College School of Business and the Gordon Institute for Enterprise Development and sponsored by Silveus Insurance Group, Redwood Information Technology and Wildman Business Group. The competition offered students in the School of Business the opportunity to create a viable business plan and compete for funds to help create that business. Students were given about four months to research and write detailed plans for their proposed business ideas.  During the process, students met with members of SCORE, volunteer business consultants from Elkhart and Fort Wayne, to receive direction and advice. The first round of the competition consisted of judges analyzing the written copies of each plan and choosing finalists out of the original 15 teams.

Other finalists in the competition included Kairos Studio & Café, created by Carmen Barnhill and Jalisa Thayer; IRE Industries, created by Michael Depositar, Dana Johnston, and Katie VanSloten; and SIPS, created by Michael Reitz and Jordan Wodetzki. The panel of judges included Caleb France, owner of Cerulean Restaurants; Kim Snow, owner of Prosperity Institute in Arizona; Terry Schlotterback, owner of TDS Orthopaedic Consulting and Stepstone Angels;  George Robertson, president of Kosciusko Economic Development Corporation;  John Becker, president of Advocate Financial; Mark Dobson, president of the Kosciusko/Warsaw Chamber of Commerce;  and Jeff Cahill, entrepreneur .

“The Business Plan Competition was a great success,” said School of Business Dean Dr. Jeff Fawcett.  “The student teams worked hard to prepare their business plans and presentations and it was evident that they had poured their hearts into that work. Our greatest accomplishment in the Grace College School of Business is to encourage students to make the connection between their passions and their calling in ways that supply for the needs of their families and others while bringing glory to God.  I believe that the Business Plan Competition provided a glimpse of that goal coming to life.”

Business Plan Competition Finalists. Back row (L to R): Ryan Ramey, Joseph Risinger, Jordan Wodetzki, Mike Reitz, Dana Johnston, Carmen Barnhill. Front row (L to R): Joy Itiola, Mike Depositar, Jalisa Thayer, Katie VanSloten.

The Northern Indiana Lakes Festival will host multiple races and other athletic events over the weekend of June 7-9.

Held annually in Warsaw and Winona Lake, the Lakes Festival celebrates lakes while educating attendees about caring for water resources.

The youngest festival goers can participate in the Water Waddle, a 1-mile fun run for toddlers to 14 year olds.

For adults and families there is a 5-kilometer run or walk. The Run for Others 5K is organized by Integrated Community Development International, a nonprofit organization working in the Central African Republic to provide clean water. All proceeds from the 5K will go toward their efforts.

Cycling enthusiasts can enjoy the Winona Lake Trails as part of KCV Cycling Club’s mountain bike time trial series. Once a month, starting with the Lakes Festival and continuing through September, the club gathers to improve their fitness and racing skills.

This is also the inaugural year of an outdoor 3-on-3 basketball tournament co-organized by the Kosciusko County YMCA.

Finally, it wouldn’t be a celebration of lakes if there wasn’t a swimming event. Center Lake Conservation Association organizes a 1-mile swim race in Center Lake called the Warsaw Aqua Mile. All proceeds will go to the Center Lake Conservation Association and their efforts to keep the lake clean.

In addition to enjoying the scenery of beautiful lakes, participants and their families can take advantage of the festivities associated with the Lakes Festival. These include a ski show, canoeing, lake education activities, food vendors, a business expo and much more.

For race times, registration and other details visit www.lakesfestival.org.

The Lakes Festival is organized by Kosciusko Lakes and Streams, a center for water research and education at Grace College, with sponsorship from Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Biomet, Zimmer, CenturyLink, Louis Dreyfus and Silveus Insurance Group.

Top CEOs from around the country will be presenting strategies and tactics for “Competing in Tough Economic Times” on Tuesday, April 30. Anyone interested in learning these techniques is invited to attend. The keynote speaker is Bill Yeargin, CEO of Correct Craft. Correct Craft is a luxury powerboat company in business for over eight decades and the oldest family-owned boat company in the United States. Correct Craft has a history of innovative strategies such as being the first boat company in 1926 to trailer boats by semi on the road rather than rail-system. They were also the first boat company to use tow pylons as early as 1936. During World War II, the government commissioned Correct Craft, in what was later dubbed by National Geographic as the “Miracle Production,” to build 400 boats in 15 days. Correct Craft holds over 15 United States patents for various towing and hull designs which were deemed novel. The National Marine Manufacturer’s Association awarded them the Customer Satisfaction Index Award eight years in a row for achieving a 90 percent or higher standard of excellence for customer service.

In addition, WOWO Radio political analyst Pat Miller will moderate the event.   He will be joined by panelists John Bachmann, former Edward Jones CEO; Tobias Buck, Paragon Medical CEO; Sheryl Conley, OrthoWorx CEO; Kevan Johnston, Hy-Vac Group president; and John Zeglis, former AT&T CEO. About 40 student volunteers from Grace College are involved in the planning and execution of the event.

“Grace College School of Business and the Gordon Institute for Enterprise Development are excited about sponsoring this large-scale event in partnership with Silveus Insurance,” said Alan Grossnickle, director of the Gordon Institute.  “We are pleased that this topic will help provide strategies to help businesses continue to be competitive in our current economic state.”

The forum, held at the Orthopaedic Capital Center located at 601 Wooster Road on the Grace campus, is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. and conclude at 11:45 a.m.  Admission is $40 per person, which includes a networking breakfast to kick off the event. RSVP by visiting www.graceceo.com. For more information or questions please email Dee Anna Muraski at muraskd@grace.edu.

A familiar face will return as the Director of Athletics at Grace College. Chad Briscoe will make his reemergence at the helm of the Lancers’ athletic department starting mid-summer.

Briscoe, before recently serving as the AD at Mooresville High School for two years, led Grace athletics from 2007-2011.

“Our family is very honored and excited for the opportunity to return to Grace. I look forward to the continued pursuit of Christian excellence through athletics that has been such a great tradition at Grace College,” Briscoe said. “I am committed to assisting all 15 of our athletic programs to continue to build success through the athletic and academic experience at Grace. I look forward to once again working with the coaches, students, campus and community that make Grace such a special place to serve.”

During his tenure at Grace, Briscoe was honored as the conference’s Athletic Director of the Year in 2010.

Under Briscoe’s guidance, student-athlete aid at Grace increased substantially. He also raised funds for a press box and scoreboard at Grace’s softball diamond, a pristine team room for the volleyball team and a remodeled coaches’ office at the Gordon Recreation Center.

“I want to thank Dr. Manahan, Dr. Katip and Dr. Swanson for the opportunity to serve through leading the athletic department at Grace College,” Briscoe continued.  “There is a strong commitment by the college administration to continue building athletic success and for the athletic experience to assist students to grow spiritually, academically, socially and athletically. My family and I look forward to once again being a part of the campus community.”

Before he accepted his position at Mooresville, Briscoe secured Grace College as the host for the NCCAA Division I National Championships for men’s and women’s basketball from 2012-2014 – the first time the NCCAA has held both championships at the same venue.

Briscoe also arranged Grace’s first Big 10 basketball game in school history when the Lancers played Indiana University at Assembly Hall on Nov. 4, 2009.

“It’s exciting to welcome Chad back to Grace as director of our athletic program. Chad’s abilities with developing coaches, enhancing programs, and marketing athletics are among many of the strengths he brings to the position,” said Grace Vice President for Academic and Student Services Jim Swanson. “Chad is a leader in bridging the greater Warsaw community and Grace’s athletic program, and we are looking forward to his return.”

While at Mooresville, Briscoe oversaw a $100,000 project for the school’s softball fields. He also secured a three-year sponsorship from St. Francis Hospital for the athletic department as well as directed improvements at the school’s tennis courts, baseball field, weight room, football and track building, basketball gym and soccer field.

“We appreciate the impact that Chad has made on the lives of people of Mooresville Schools and the greater Mooresville Community,” said Mooresville Superintendent Brad Lindsay. “Chad showed us the way, the truth and the life to the glory of Jesus during his time at Mooresville. We are thankful for Chad and his family and their significant sacrifice, service, and contributions through athletics and beyond. We respect Grace College for bringing Chad back to the helm of athletics and wish Chad and Grace College all the best as they pursue their mission to the glory of the Lord.”

Before his first stint at Grace College, Briscoe was the assistant athletic director and head assistant men’s basketball coach at Geneva College. He also spent two years on the men’s basketball staff at Ball State University.

Briscoe went to school at Anderson University where he was a standout basketball player. He continued his basketball career overseas, playing professionally in Sweden.

He has also been involved in upper management for professional baseball, working with the Texas Rangers’ minor league system from 1998-2000. He served as the General Manager for the Pulaski Rangers in the Appalachian League.

Briscoe received a bachelor’s degree from Anderson University in 1996 and a master’s degree in sport administration from Ball State in 2006. He and his wife Jamie have two daughters, Kate and Kinley.

During the evenings of April 16 and 17, the Circuit on Professionalism series sponsored by the offices of Career Services and Advancement hosted a mock interview event for Grace College juniors and seniors. More than 50 employers in the Kosciusko County area came to the Grace campus to conduct the interviews, including the Warsaw mayor and Winona Lake chief of police, and HR executives from Zimmer, DePuy, Biomet, Silveus, Louis Dreyfus and many more.

I thought the evening was very well organized and met the needs of the students,” said Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer. “I was impressed with the overall quality of the experience and the quality of the students. It was a great experience for me as well.”

The event gave students an opportunity to practice their interview skills in a trial setting. Employers provided feedback on what students did well and gave advice on how to improve.  Freshmen and sophomores who are a part of the Millennial Scholarship program were also privileged to attend.

“The success of the event reflects the tremendous community support we have and our partnerships with multiple local businesses,” said Denise Terry, director of Career Services at Grace College.

Participating employers included the 1000 Park Bãkafé, the Animal Welfare League, Baker Youth Club, Best Schotz Productions, Biomet, Brandpoet, Center Street Partners, Cerulean Restaurant, the City of Warsaw, Claypool Elementary School, Combined Community Services, Crowe Horwath LLP, DePuy, Egg Innovations LLC, Grace Village Retirement Community, Hand Industries Inc., Junior Achievement, Louis Dreyfus Commodities, Royal Blue LLC, the Smith Academy for Excellence, Silveus Insurance Group, Superior Wood Products, Tree of Life Bookstore, United States Army, Winona Lake Police Department, Winona Lake Grace Brethren Church, Zimmer, and Zing! Recruiting.

“The event was an amazing chance for students and community members to connect,” said Dave Grout, representing Brandpoet. “Not only did students learn great skills to take into the workforce, but members in the community were able to see firsthand the student body which lives in the community that they work.”

Maria Beam, Human Resources Information Systems Analyst at Zimmer presents on “Ten Essentials to Good Interviewing”

Rachael Neumeier, Grace College student

Nate Bosch – Associate Professor, Environmental Science; Director, Environmental Science Program; Director, Kosciusko Lakes and Streams

Nate Bosch, associate professor of environmental science and director of Kosciusko Lakes and Streams at Grace College, was recently published in PNAS, the official journal of the United States National Academy of Sciences and one of the most prestigious journals in the country.  Bosch co-authored an article about the largest blue-green algal bloom in Lake Erie’s recorded history and its possible future ramifications as a part of his ongoing research and work with water quality in the Great Lakes region.

Based in Washington, D.C., the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America began with a congressional charter in 1863 under Abraham Lincoln. It has around 2,100 members and its membership has included 200 Nobel Prize winners. The PNAS, or “Proceedings,” is the academic journal published by the society.

The article, entitled “Record-setting algal bloom in Lake Erie caused by agricultural and meteorological trends consistent with expected future conditions” and authored by researchers from eight institutions, including Bosch, explores the role of several factors that may have contributed to the 2011 Lake Erie bloom.

“I am excited and encouraged to have Grace College be a part of this research team as well as to publish our work in such a significant scientific journal,” said Bosch.

According to Bosch, “This Lake Erie research connects well to the local research Grace College is conducting on inland lakes in northern Indiana as part of the Kosciusko Lakes and Streams center.  In our local lakes, we saw 2011 blue-green algae toxin levels over twice as high on average compared to 2012.  We also have many of the same driving factors believed to make 2011 algae conditions more common in the future.”

Bosch and Grace College will continue to be involved in the Lake Erie and northern Indiana inland lake research studies this coming summer.  Kosciusko Lakes and Streams is a center at Grace College that focuses on applied research, education and community collaboration. For more information on Kosciusko Lakes and Streams, visit water.grace.edu.

On June 1, 2013, Metzger Outdoors will be hosting the Vector Adventure Race at Salamonie River State Forest outside of Andrews, IN. The day’s events include a 5 a.m. race and a 9 a.m. race, both concluding at 1 p.m. The races will include canoeing, orienteering/hiking, mountain biking and surprise challenges. Entry fees directly support 2nd Mile Missions and Grace’s 2013 Go Encounter trips.

Racers must pre-register by May 26 and the mandatory gear list includes a mountain bike, canoe or kayak, (rentals available) and rugged clothes. Food, awards and door prizes will be provided for the day’s events. For more information and to register for the race, visit www.metzgeroutdoors.com or contact Matt Metzger at 260-579-1505.

“Vector is going to be a spectacular event,” said Matt Metzger, owner of Metzger Outdoors. “Its location at Salamonie provides perfect terrain for an adventure race: lots of water, forest, unique topography and great facilities.”

Metzger Outdoors hosts adventure races to Kosciusko County and the surrounding area, also attracting racers from adjacent states of Ohio, Michigan and Kentucky to their unique, exciting events. Typically hosting one or two adventure races each year, Metzger Outdoors also hosts 5K runs, endurance runs, mountain bike rides and obstacle course races.

Go Encounter trips exist as a unique part of Grace’s general education core, allowing students the opportunity to take short-term trips to various countries throughout the year as one way to meet the cross-cultural field experience requirement at Grace College.

2nd Mile Missions has provided a children’s church, a soup kitchen, and an elementary school for over 500 children in the city. Working alongside a church in Bavaro, Dominican Republic, 2nd Mile Missions works to continue providing opportunities for children to grow spiritually and academically in order to help them break the cycle of poverty in their world.

History Majors Caleb Day and Jeff Watkins evaluate documents in the Reneker Museum of Winona History

History majors at Grace College are spending eight weeks during the spring semester working at the Reneker Museum of Winona History. The internships were designed to help students learn valuable professional skills and practical knowledge while helping support the fascinating heritage of the Winona Lake community.

The program was offered as part of a class on Historical Preservation taught by Associate Professor of History, Dr. Jared Burkholder and counts toward a students’ applied learning credits. The students’ tasks include sifting through hundreds of documents and artifacts at the museum, located in Westminster Hall, cataloging what they find, and making decisions about sound storage and handling practices.

The original mission of the Reneker museum, which was created in 1999 under the direction of Steve Grill and Carol Forbes, was to reach out to the community. This new effort is a continuation of this mission, and the materials will be preserved for researchers and future generations. It is also part of a larger effort by Grace College to improve its archival holdings, which also include materials related to the college and seminary as well as the Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches.

“Working as an intern at the Reneker Museum has given me an opportunity to experience history first-hand,” said Nina Ferry, student intern. “Dealing with artifacts and documents that make Winona Lake so significant in American evangelical history has given me the opportunity to discover Winona’s rich past and also the colorful personalities that called Winona Lake home for so many years. As a history major, it has sparked an interest in me for historic preservation and museum work as I have been introduced to the importance of historical preservation and conservation. Keeping local history alive is the key to preserving a town’s heritage to inform and inspire future generations.”

“Grace College believes The Reneker Museum of Winona History is a community gem, packed with interesting stories about our wonderful community,” explained Dr. Steve Grill, Dean of the School of Adult and Community Education. “Volunteers have helped to make the museum available to the public since its inception, and today Grace College interns are working right alongside to keep our treasure in the community spotlight.”

Olivia Winget hitting her second home run against Bethel (photo credit to Tony Stennett)

Sweeping a league rival will always be a high note to any softball season. But ending a 16-game losing streak in the series with a sweep like Grace’s softball team did on Tuesday against Bethel College seems even better.

Olivia Winget homered twice for the Lady Lancers in the team’s 3-2 opening-game win, and freshman Alex Shipley tossed a complete-game shutout to lead Grace in their 3-0 victory in the second game.

The Lady Lancers (13-21; 5-3 Crossroads League) had not tasted victory over the Pilots since March 24, 2005, before their sweep at Miller Field on Tuesday.

In the opener, Olivia Winget’s towering two-run home run in the first inning handed the Lady Lancers their first lead of the game.

Winget added another blast on her next at-bat in the fourth inning to singlehandedly put Grace ahead 3-0.

The Pilots (19-7; 9-5 CL) picked up one more run with two hits and two walks in the fifth inning, but Olivia Winget pitched herself out of a bases-loaded jam with only a single tally against her.

Ashley Bossaer made the defensive play of the game in the top of the sixth by turning an inning-ending double play, erasing two Pilot baserunners.

Bethel threatened to rally again in the top of the seventh when they loaded the bases with nobody out, but Winget won the game from the mound by getting three straight outs. The Pilots managed to plate one run on a sacrifice fly, but Winget shut down the Pilots to secure the win.

Winget allowed eight hits and two runs in a complete-game effort, striking out seven batters. From the plate, Winget was 2-for-2 with two runs scored and three RBIs.

The second game was all about Shipley. The freshman pitcher threw a five-hit gem in blanking the Pilots. She struck out six batters without allowing a run to score in seven innings.

Winget scored the first run of the game in the second inning after walking. She was sacrificed to second base and reached third on a wild pitch. Tiffany Featherston then laid down a bunt to allow Winget to slide safely underneath the tag at home plate.

Grace opened up a 3-0 advantage in the fifth inning when Danielle Wellman hit a two-run single to right field to score Brooke Shell and Lacey Little. Those extra runs proved to be unnecessary as Shipley shut out Bethel on the scoreboard.

Shell led Grace from the plate by going 2-for-2, and Jordan McKinley batted 1-for-3 with a pair of stolen bases.

The Lady Lancers will look to continue their winning ways on Wednesday when they travel to Goshen College for a doubleheader at 3 p.m.

Tim Ziebarth: Director of Department of Online Education; Part-time Instructor, GOAL and Business

The Department of Online Education at Grace College is blazing new paths in the realm of online education this year. This March, Director of Online Education Tim Ziebarth and his team of collaborators achieved an astounding 100 percent on an online quality review of Grace’s Principles of Management class. This occurred only two months after receiving a top-quality “5” rating (scoring 90 percent or more) on a quality review hosted through Learning House, Grace’s online education solutions partner.

To determine the quality of course design, The Learning House uses a five-level scale with intricate standards of quality that each online class must meet in more than 40 distinct areas. This is the first time a school has ever achieved a 100 percent rating, making Grace College an unmistakable leader in offering quality online education.

“We’ve put a lot of time and effort to get to this point, but having a course that meets all of the quality standards is wonderful for Grace College,” explained Tim Ziebarth. “We want to keep improving in every single one of our online classes, one class at a time.”

“It is clear that Professor Ziebarth believes strongly in using identified best practices in online education to provide for a better student experience,” said Josh Smith, Director of Partner Curriculum at Learning House. “He collaborates weekly (if not daily) with our Course Designers to continuously improve his online courses in order to increase student learning. It is this dedication and passion for excellence that enabled him to achieve the first 100% on our course Quality Review Form.”