College Students Receive Attention After Appearing in Pinup Calendar

Dates attract dates, comment on campus

Calendars provide revealing exposure to student models

For Danielle Shinaberry, the recognition that comes with being a model in a provocative pinup calendar isn't all it's cracked up to be.

"I was walking across the Oval, and two girls who recognized me from the calendar called me a bitch," said Shinaberry, a sophomore from Canton, "but I've received some nice comments, too."

She is one of several OSU students who posed for calendars called "Women of the Scarlet and Gray" and "Campus Men® of the Scarlet and Gray."

The calendars reveal more than the months of the year.

Both female and male models are scantily clothed and sensually posed.

"There are some provocative shots," said Sean Ashbrook, 23, a former OSU student who produces the calendars, "but there are some all-American shots, too."

Ashbrook has put out calendars each of the last three years. He said this year's photographs, which were shot on Florida beaches and the OSU campus, are the raciest in the calendar's brief history.

Amy Mace, a junior from Westerville, said she decide to pose for the calendar at the urging of her mother.

"The general consensus that I'm getting from my family and friends is that it is very tasteful and very professional," she said.

Jill O'Donnell, a junior form Westerville, said she has taken both the good with the bad for posing for the cover of the calendar.

"I have gotten some nasty comments from females," said O'Donnell, an industrial design major.

"But I have gotten asked out by guys quite a bit, too."

Jon O'Donnell, a sophomore from Cincinnati who is not related to Jill O'Donnell, said he has taken some ribbing from his roommates for appearing in the calendar.

"They like to kid me about it," he said, "but if they had the opportunity to do it, I'm sure they would, too."

Some of the students said they posed to build portfolios for potential modeling careers; others did it as a lark.

"In 10 or 15 years, I'll look back and be glad I did it," said Kristen Herold, a junior form Worthington who is majoring in fashion merchandising.

"Im glad I did it, now."

OSU does not share Herold's enthusiasm for the project.

A couple of years ago, the university tried to block the release of the calendars, claiming they infringed on the protected OSU trademark.

The calendars are not illegal, OSU officials said, but the university wants to maintain its distance from them.

"The university has no position on the calendars," spokeswoman Ruth Gerstner said. "They're not ours.

"Some students have jobs at McDonald's. Some are store clerks. The jobs students hold are not a part of their life that the university has jurisdiction over."

The calendars are available in many local bookstores and, because they receive a percentage of the sales, the student models have ben hawking the calendars themselves.

"I have had professors hold them up in the class for me. I say, ‘Please buy them from me,'" Mace said.