Nancy Applegate, professor of English and ORK adviser, introduces the latest issue of the Old Red Kimono at the event. Photo by Nick Whitmire

The cake featured this year’s magazine cover art. Photo by Nick Whitmire

The Old Red Kimono held their annual release party on April 25 at the Floyd Campus.

People that contributed to this year’s literary magazine were able to speak about their works.

Everyone that attend got a free copy of the magazine and there was free food, including cake and drinks.

From left: Greg Schiefen, Phil Gaffney, AJ Farrar, D’Andre Bernard, DeMarcus Addie, TaJuan Johnson, J.J. Merritt and John Williams gather at Sophomore Day on Feb. 24. Photo by Joshua Mabry.

The Chargers men’s basketball team ended their season with an overall record of 20-10 and a GCAA conference record of 13-3.

GHC fell 103-99 to South Georgia Tech on March 9 at the NJCAA Region 17 semifinals at the Floyd campus gym to wrap up their season.

Prior to this game, the Chargers defeated Andrew College 91-76 at the NJCAA Region 17 quarterfinals game on March 6 to advance to the semifinals.

About his team’s season, Phil Gaffney, head men’s basketball coach, said, “On the whole, we’re happy. We won 20 games. We were nationally ranked. We won our regular season conference championship.”

Gaffney continued, “For most people, that’s a tremendous year. We’re actually disappointed because we wanted to go to Hutch.” Hutchinson, Kansas, is where the NJCAA Division I men’s national tournament takes place.

Gaffney said that GHC got better as the season progressed and the team lost most of their games this season during their first semester of play.

According to Gaffney, even though the Chargers lost the regional game, if they had lost four or five fewer games during their first semester, they would have received an automatic bid to play at the NJCAA national tournament.

“The season just didn’t end the way we wanted it to. We’ll figure out what we did wrong and get it better next year,” remarked Gaffney.

AJ Banton, freshman guard, said, “We came a long way. At the beginning of the season, it was way different. We could see the potential but we weren’t quite there yet.”

Banton believes that there is not much the Chargers could have done differently but did note that GHC did not always play as a team this season, especially in the second half of the season.

“I feel like we played our butts off. We have to learn from it and keep moving forward,” said Banton.

D’Andre Bernard, sophomore forward, said, “At the start of the season, with myself being the only person returning and AJ having redshirted last year, there were only two or three guys that actually understood our coach’s philosophy and what he expected from us.”

Bernard said that getting all of the new players on the same page was tough.

“Overall, I think it was a good season seeing how much progress we made. Honestly, I couldn’t be more proud of the guys,” said Bernard.

Gaffney said that several players from this season’s team will be moving on to Division I colleges. About this, he remarked, “That’s great. We’re glad some guys are graduating and moving on to Division I.”

About next season, Gaffney said that they have not signed any of the current players back yet. “We’ll wait and see how they do grade wise and what our needs are and see what they’re doing,” he said.

Gaffney continued, “We have a lot of guys that can leave and a lot of guys that can come back. We want what is in their best interest.”

Gaffney said that with redshirts, there are nine eligible players that can come back to GHC next year.

Gaffney said, “Realistically, that’s not how many are going to come back. Some of these guys are going to move on to other schools.”

In addition to the nine eligible players that can come back, GHC has already signed three transfer students to play next year.

GHC’s Student Support Services, Alumni Office and Student Life will be sponsoring a Job and Career Fair for both current students and alumni on April 3 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. in the Student Center on the Floyd campus.

According to Alison Lampkin, alumni development specialist and event coordinator, “The purpose of the event is to connect employers with potential employees – our students and alumni.”

Companies that will be present at the event include the Rome distribution of Coca-Cola Bottling, the Rome Home Depot, UPS, City of Rome, Floyd County Government, Georgia Department of Labor, United Way of Rome and Floyd County, Highland Rivers Health, Floyd Medical Center, Harbin Clinic, Renaissance Marquis Assisted Living, Boys and Girls Clubs of Northwest Georgia, WinShape Foundation, US Army Corps of Engineers, Home Instead Senior Care, Waffle House, T-Mobile, North Georgia Staffing, Rome Cleaners and Kelly Staffing.

Lampkin hopes that Georgia Power, Floyd County Schools, Mohawk Carpet and Flooring, HON Furniture and Lowe’s Distribution Center will also be present.

Lampkin remarked, “Students may bring their resumes to share with prospective employers and they are being encouraged to talk with you about career goals and opportunities in their field of study.”

The Resume Doctor will be looking over resumes during the fair. There will be practice interviews as well to give students a taste of the interview process. GHC faculty members will be the interviewer while students will be the interviewee.

Lampkin said an alumni panel will also be present to answer questions about how they have succeeded and what has helped them along the way.

Shae Brown attempts to make a three-pointer at the Region 17 quarterfinals game. Photo by Catie Sullivan

Jeremiah Buford. Photo by Catie Sullivan

The GHC Chargers men’s basketball team ended their season after falling 103-99 to South Georgia Tech in the NJCAA Region 17 semifinals on March 9 at the Floyd campus gym.

AJ Farrar led the way for the Chargers during this game with 25 points and 16 rebounds while DeMarcus Addie had 22 points.

Prior to this game, the Chargers defeated Andrew College 91-17 in the NJCAA Region 17 quarterfinals to advance to the semifinals.

For a full season wrap-up, check out the April 17 edition of the Six Mile Post.

Cierrah Perdue goes for a layup at the game on March 2. Photo by Catie Sullivan

The Lady Chargers ended their season after falling 78-74 to Central Georgia Tech in the GCAA semifinals on March 2 at South Georgia Tech. This made the team’s overall record 19-13. Only five Lady Chargers were eligible to play at this game.

GHC only had five players because some of the team was ejected after an argument occurred between some of the Lady Chargers and some of the Central Georgia Tech players.

Brandan Harrell, head women’s basketball coach, said he feels terrible about how his team ended the season. “It was really unfortunate,” remarked Harrell.

Even though it was unfortunate, Harrell said, “Under the circumstances, I could not have asked for our players to do anything different.”

Harrell said that the way players were ejected from the game was not appropriate. There were some of the Lady Chargers who did not deserve to be ejected, according to Harrell.

Harrell said, “I think the officials did the best with what they had to work with but there is certainly a need for officials to be able to use video in reviewing incidents like that. The video is pretty clear. It’s frustrating to go back and see that.”

Kateryna Khomenko, a sophomore Lady Charger, echoed Harrell’s remarks. She said, “The game felt really unreal. It was crazy to play in that kind of situation.”

“We were all shocked about what just happened because we’ve been working the whole year to play a game and we basically didn’t get a chance to play,” Khomenko continued.

About going forward, Harrell remarked, “Maybe we’ll use this as a catalyst to kind of change the way we do things.”

Khomenko said, “We’re going to learn from it and hopefully it’s never going to happen again.”

Prior to this game, the Lady Chargers defeated Andrew College 75-46 in the GCAA quarterfinals at the Floyd campus gym on Feb. 27 to advance to the GCAA semifinals.

About the season as a whole, Harrell said that he thought his team was going in the right direction.

“We were playing well towards the end. I really though our best basketball was ahead of us,” said Harrell.

Harrell said that the Lady Chargers overcame so much throughout the year.

Harrell continued, “I hurt so much for them. They didn’t have a chance to fully go through the conference tournament. That’s pretty heartbreaking.”

From left: Shakierya McClendon, Brianna Davis, Elizabeth Newberry, Anna Stewart, Kateryna Khomenko, Eric Blankenship and Brandan Harrell celebrate Sophomore Day on Feb. 24. Photo by Joshua Mabry

The Six Mile Post and GHC Intramurals cosponsored ping-pong tournaments will start up next week at the Floyd and Cartersville campuses.

The Floyd tournament will start on March 7 in the game room. Registration ends on March 2 at noon. Contact J.J. Merritt, Floyd intramurals director and associate head men’s basketball coach, at jmerritt@highlands.edu or 404-399-6363 to sign up for this tournament.

The Cartersville tournament will also start on March 7. The deadline to register for this tournament is on March 6 at noon. Contact Clifton Puckett, Cartersville intramurals director and enrollment management specialist, at cpuckett@highlands.edu or 678-872-8006 to register.

The winner of each tournament will receive a trophy and recognition in the April Six Mile Post.

Anna Stewart looking to pass at the quarterfinals game on Feb. 27. Photo by Catie Sullivan

Kateryna Khomenko goes for a layup during the game of Feb. 27. Photo by Catie Sullivan

The Lady Chargers defeated Andrew College 75-46 in the GCAA quarterfinals game on Feb. 27.

Since the Lady Chargers won this game, they will now advance to the GCAA Final Four where they will face Central Georgia Tech on Friday at South Georgia Tech, the #1 seed.

Anna Stewart led the way for the Lady Chargers with 24 points while Kateryna Khomenko had a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds during the quarterfinals game.

Brandan Harrell, head women’s basketball coach, said that he is very pleased with how his team performed at this game, especially during the first 20 minutes.

“I thought our first 20 minutes were maybe as hard as we’ve played all year. That’s what you want to do this time of year,” said Harrell.

Harrell continued, “The last 20 minutes, we just kind of got by. We’re still working on some chemistry issues.”

About being ready for the GCAA Final Four, Harrell said, that his team is both ready and not ready. Cierrah Perdue Sharai Lay have just recently returned to the team after having surgery.

“They are rusty, out of shape and haven’t got those game reps in. The other kids have been playing 35-40 minutes a game. It’s been a long season. We went through 2 months where we were dressing seven and playing five or six.”

Harrell continued, “But, we’ve won 10 of our last 11 games, so I think we’re as ready as we can be this time of the year.”

Stewart feels like she performed well during this game. She said, “Today, my mom was really sick and her birthday just passed on the 22nd, so I wanted to score 22 points, but I ended up getting 24. That game was for my mom.”

Khomenko said that even though she got in foul trouble in this game, she has nothing to regret.

Stewart and Khomenko both think that the Lady Chargers are overall ready for the GCAA Final Four.

Stewart said, “Yes, I think we’re 100% ready. We’ve got little things that we’ve got to tweak, but other than that, I think we’re ready.”

“We are absolutely ready. We’re going to have two hard games this weekend. We still have three more days to prepare for those two big games.,” remarked Khomenko.

Follow the Six Mile Post on Twitter @6MilePost and sixmilepost.com for updates on the GCAA Final Four game.

According to J.J. Merritt, associate head men’s basketball coach and Floyd campus intramurals director, spring intramurals will start up soon at Floyd, and it is not too late to sign up for an activity.

Sign-ups are currently being held at the intramural table in the Student Center next to the game room and Student Life office. Any GHC student, faculty or staff member can sign up for intramural activities.

The first intramural activity that will take place is the NBA2K18 tournament. This starts on Feb. 26 in the game room. According to Merritt, the winner of this tournament will receive a $10 gift card.

Co-ed 3-on-3 basketball will begin on March 5 at noon in the gym. According to Merritt, if someone shows up and plays in at least three games, they will receive a free t-shirt.

The Six Mile Post cosponsored ping-pong tournament will start on March 7 in the game room. The winner of this tournament will receive a trophy and recognition in the April Six Mile Post.

The pool tournament will begin play on March 7 as well. Merritt said the winner of the pool tournament will receive a $10 gift card.

Merritt enjoys being over intramurals at Floyd. He said, “My favorite thing about being over intramurals at Floyd campus is the different people I meet and interact with during the activities.”

Merritt encourages others to join intramurals to make new friends and be more involved in campus activities.

David Mathis, assistant director of athletics, believes that intramurals are an important part of the college experience.

Mathis stated, “You meet new people and can play a variety of sports both as a team or individually.”

Mathis continued, “Intramurals give students a break from the daily grind of their studies.”

If anyone has any questions about intramurals, they can contact Merritt at jmerritt@highlands.edu or 404-399-6363.

Photo by Joshua Mabry

Balancing college classes and a manager position at a restaurant while being a mother to five children is not for everyone. But this is Floyd campus student Jerlisa Dennis’s daily schedule.

Dennis said that balancing all of these facets of life is very difficult. Dennis is a nursing major at GHC and a full-time manager at Taco Bell in Cedartown.

Dennis revealed that she has made a balanced schedule for herself that makes her life not quite so hectic. She explained, “I get very little hours of sleep, but I get everything done and manage to find a way to work around school hours.”

On Mondays and Wednesdays, Dennis comes to classes, but does not work. She said, “Those nights, I have cook time, homework time and get everything finished before work on the other days.” Dennis works every other day except Sunday. “Sunday is get the house together, laundry and stuff like that day.”

Dennis said about her schedule being like it is, “I get overwhelmed, but I never give up.”

Dennis enjoys taking classes at GHC. She decided to come to GHC because it was her closest and best option considering how much she has going on in her life.

Dennis said, “I think it’s better for me to focus on school specifically the two days I do use for school because I don’t want my grades to get behind versus trying to make more money because I am comfortable with the money I make now.”

Dennis hopes to become a registered nurse (RN) soon. She will be getting her CNA from the organization “CPR With Mickey” in Dallas, Georgia, and will then be applying for the nursing program at GHC in April.

Dennis confessed that she wants to become an RN because she loves babies. She said, “I have five babies, and I can’t have anymore because I can’t afford them efficiently. So, I want to work in labor and delivery where I can see babies for the rest of my life every day.”

Dennis believes that her biggest challenge to overcome was being pregnant twice in high school. Many longtime friends turned their backs on her.

One person that continued to support Dennis was her mother. Dennis said, “My mom was mad at me, so we kind of had a distant relationship through the way, but my mom was always my reliable babysitter since my first job when I was 15. Even with her being mad at me, she didn’t leave me.”

Dennis said, “My favorite thing about coming to Georgia Highlands is probably the teachers and the students. With having so many kids at a young age, I don’t get to interact with my other friends like normal, so being here kind of gives me a relief.”

Dennis then said, “I can talk to people and be my normal 25-year-old self. There’s no responsibility. I don’t have to worry about taking care of anyone here. They take good care of me here and the teachers are very nice and understating about a lot of things.”

Dennis said she loves being in class with students straight out of high school.

Dennis revealed, “I love listening to the new gossip because being a young parent, I want to be able to keep up with my children. When I hear the students saying new words, I go home and repeat them and my kids think I’m crazy.”

She continued, “I like keeping up with what’s going on because it opens my eyes to things my kids are going to be closer exposed to, so that way, I, as a parent, know how to cope with that.”

Many students that are in class with Dennis say that having her in class is like having a mother in class because she always has items such as pens handy. About this, Dennis said, “I love it because that means at home, I’m somewhat doing the right thing.”

The Lady Chargers’ basketball team defeated Atlanta Metro State 92-55 on Feb. 7 at the Floyd campus gym.

Anna Stewart led the way for the Lady Chargers with 30 points and 13 rebounds. Briana Davis scored 21 points while Kateryna Khomenko scored 18 points and had 23 rebounds.

This game made the Lady Chargers’ overall record 15-11 and GCAA conference record 10-4.

The women’s next game is on Feb. 10 at South Georgia Tech at 1 p.m. Their next home game will be on Feb. 24 against South Georgia State at 2 p.m. Follow the Six Mile Post on Twitter @6MilePost for updates.