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W E D N E S DA Y, N O V E M B E R 11, 2 015
SafeRide use rebounds this fall Voucher program sees level of interest return JESSE POUND news editor @jesserpound
The number of vouchers used for SafeRide this semester has rebounded to a near-normal level after suffering a large dip last spring, according to records obtained by The Daily. There have been 7.6 percent fewer vouchers used the first part of this semester than were used last fall. For a comparable time period, there was a 30 percent decrease in spring 2015 SafeRide voucher use compared to spring 2014. The data compares the first nine
weeks of this semester (from the Thursday of freshman move-in to Saturday, Oct. 17) to the comparable time frame last fall. Student Government Association has not made any significant changes to the program, said SGA adviser George Ahmadi. Ahmadi said he is aware of the numbers but hasn’t analyzed the big dip in the number of vouchers used in the spring. The car-sharing company Uber has been making a big push in the area lately, and OU has been making a marketing push for SafeRide as well, Ahmadi said. The Oklahoma City Traffic Commission approved business licenses for Uber and fellow ride sharing company Lyft in January.
SEE VOUCHERS PAGE 2
Students skimp on sleep
Group educates on slain women OU students seek to raise awareness of violence, trafficking BRYCE MCELHANEY news reporter @bryce_mac
Studies indicate many students go to class tired, with costs to both grades and overall health NOOR EEMAAN/THE DAILY
A Daily staff member poses for a photo exaggerating the effects of long-term sleep deprivation, common in college students.
Anna Mayer @AnnaMay136
T
he relationship between college students and sleep has always been messy at best, but recent studies show it may be worsening. With the steady decrease in the amount of sleep college students get comes an increase in the consequences. According to one study, daytime sleepiness among college students has turned into a major issue nationally, with 50 percent saying that they feel tired during the day as opposed to 36 percent of adults and adolescents. Additionally, 70 percent of students in the study claimed to receive insufficient sleep. SEE SLEEP PAGE 2
Native American advocates are bringing the REDress movement to OU’s campus to raise awareness about missing or murdered Aboriginal women in Canada. Indigenize OU members Sydne Gray and Ashley McCray will join OU’s Native American sorority, Gamma Delta Pi, in covering the South Oval with red dresses, posters and signs on Thursday for the event. Gray said aboriginal and indigenous women are facing a crisis. According to a report by the Native Women’s Association of Canada, there are around 582 documented cases of either missing or murdered indigenous women in 2010, Gray said. “Sixty-seven percent were murdered, 20 percent were missing, and the other 13 percent were suspicious deaths, attributed to police force or were unknown,” Gray said. McCray said the project isn’t necessarily in correlation with Native Amer ican Her itage Month, but a sign of solidarity with the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women movement. For McCray, it’s a very personal issue. McCray’s niece, Rose Downwind, granddaughter of Dennis Banks, the co-founder of the American Indian Movement, has been missing for over two SEE MISSING PAGE 2
WEATHER Windy with a high of 68, low of 37. Updates: @AndrewGortonWX
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