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Back-to-School Edition 2009

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WELCOME BACK BACK-TO-SCHOOL EDITION 2009

’NEATH THE WESTERN SKY, OU’S CHANT WILL NEVER DIE. ILLUSTRATION ON BY ELI HULL/THE DAILY

section A David Boren mark marks 15 years as OU section B president. Nearly 1,500 fresh PAGE 6A faces take over campus for Camp Crimson. PAGE 6B

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section C He Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford win returns to lead the ret Sooners in the 2009 So season. se PAGE 1C PA

VOL. 95, NO. 1

Back-to-School Edition 2009

Student representatives prepare for new year UOSA begins campaign to fill vacancies, focuses on transparency, community

Despite a low number of candidates in last year’s UOSA elections for the Undergraduate Student Congress, which have left many vacancies, and an uncontested election for the executive branch, the University of Oklahoma Student Association is ready for another year of legislating and giving students a voice in university policy.

one to remember.” Student Congress already has plans for increasing it’s effectiveness for the student body. “We want to make Green Week a bigger event, have an efficient Web site in which students can see all legislation coming through the Congress, and we also are working to put condom machines in the dorms among other things,” Pittman said. Student Congress is starting off Fall 2009 ready to work and get things done. “We want our constituents whom we are serving to be able to know the progress and improvements we are making for not only them, but for the student body as a whole,” said Matthew Gres, political science senior and vice chairman of Student Congress.

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT CONGRESS

UOSA EXECUTIVE BRANCH

With a lack of candidates in many districts, the Student Congress has launched a campaign to fill the vacancies left by last Spring’s elections. “We want to have complete and full representation in the Congress,” said Spencer Pittman, Student Congress public relations director. “Some districts are going without representation, and we see this as problematic.” Pittman said a campaign to fill the vacancies is underway in which students who want to be a member of the congress can sign up to fill a vacant seat. If they are approved, they will be appointed to represent their selected district like an elected representative would, and will take office two weeks after approval. The only districts without vacancies are business, education, physical sciences and international and area studies. All other districts are partially represented if not completely vacant. “The campaign to fill the vacancies is actively underway,” he said. “We’ve also been to Camp Crimson and helped students who were interested fill out applications.” Student Congress has been known to experience some amount of political infighting in the past, but Pittman said this year will be different. “Usually we have two sides with bias that fight about the issues, but this year is going to be different. We’ve had a huge turn around in leadership,” Pittman said. “We are all friends, and we are all willing to work twice as hard this year to be progressive and get things done.” He said since many former members of Congress graduated, many incumbents, including those who were freshman, have stepped up to the plate to work to make a difference and get legislation passed. “We have more passion and more progressive policies,” Pittman said. “We weren’t able to do things last year because of fighting over funding, but that is not going to happen this year. We have one goal in mind. We want students to have the best experience while they’re at OU. This year is going to be

UOSA President Katie Fox and Vice President Dewey Bartlett have said they will work to strengthen the sense of community at OU by planning campus-wide events, holding public meetings to hear student ideas and increasing transparency. “We’ve been working with Housing and Food [Services] to develop a tailgating party on gameday,” Bartlett said in a press release. “They will be serving hot dogs, hamburgers, and soda on the corner of Lindsey and Asp in front of the Honors College.” Bartlett also said he and Fox are currently working with Richard Taylor, dean of the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts to create a ‘fine arts season pass.’ Just like season passes for basketball or football games, the fine arts season passes will include admission into museums, musicals, plays, ballets and concerts. The tickets will include the original student discount, plus an additional 20 percent reduction in price. “Whether it’s going to be increasing the information available on the UOSA Web site or if it’s going to be trying to increase the amount of time that we spend talking to students and student organizations, I think it’s these small types of changes that are really going to help strengthen UOSA and make it the best that it can be,” Fox told The Daily last Spring after her inauguration. Both Fox and Bartlett are planning to hold monthly events in the Cate Center where students can meet them and express concerns.

RICKY MARANON The Oklahoma Daily

CAMPUS ACTIVITIES COUNCIL Campus Activities Council Chairman, Kely Van Eaton stated in a press release that he is ready for the new year, and CAC is working to preserve the traditions of events while improving upon the 14 annual events that it puts on every year.

PHOTO PROVIDED

Katie Fox (seated) and Dewey Bartlett (standing) are the 2009 UOSA president and vice president, respectively.

“[Our] executive board members always wants to challenge what has been done before them and strive for the best possible experience they can create for the student body.” KELY VAN EATON, CAC CHAIRMAN

“[Our] executive board members always wants to challenge what has been done before them and strive for the best possible experience they can create for the student body,” Van Eaton said. Upcoming CAC events that students can look forward to include events such as Howdy Week, University Sing, Dance Marathon and Sooner Scandals.

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Back-to-School Edition 2009

Couch Cafeteria gets new features, name Renovations at student eatery will add coffee shop, video games JAMES LOVETT The Oklahoma Daily

OU Housing and Food Services is nearly complete with Phases II and III of its renovation of Couch Restaurants, the university’s campus cafeteria. The renovations are expected to be completed by the third week of August when freshman begin moving into the dorms. Frank Henry, Housing and Food Services director of board operations, said the cafeteria’s new look resembles more of a fine dining restaurant. “Everything has been changed,” Henry said. “ It’s not Couch Cafeteria anymore, it’s Couch Restaurants. We want everyone to feel like when you go in there you’re not going to the cafeteria, you’re going to a restaurant.” Phase I of the renovations opened in January and included four new restaurants — a smokehouse, a stir fry eatery, a Mexican burrito line and a breakfast area on the south side of the cafeteria. Arthur Drain, general manager for Housing and Food Services, said the budget for the renovations, estimated around $10 million, allowed for bigger changes to the cafeteria that had been desired for several years. ELIZABETH NALEWAJK/THE DAILY “The building was opened in 1967 and it’s hard to have Diners wait in line at Casa Del Sol, one of the many eating establishments located within the Couch Cafeteria. major renovations to a building that big,” Drain said. “When you’re spending maybe $100,000 or $200,000 Sooner Sweet Shop, which is going to have a coffee shop dollars at a time, which is what Food Services had been added as well as serving espressos and lattes,” Drain said. able to budget, you can’t really do much in a building like “That’s a new service now. Typically we used to just have that. With this $10 million renovation you’re able to make coffee and a little hot chocolate machine.” all these changes we’ve been wanting Henry said the coffee shop will into make for years but never really had clude comfortable couches and wireNEW ADDITIONS the funding.” less internet, giving students another FRANK HENRY, HOUSING AND FOOD SERVICES Drain said the services provided at place to relax and interact with one Thirteen 9-inch mini-LCD screens the cafeteria have come a long way another. since they building first opened. “The restaurants will just be more Coffee Shop “Back when the cafeteria was origiof a community building place,” by the things that we are able to do for our customers. nally built, it was eight lines and you Henry said. “In the past it’s just been With one swipe of a meal card there are about 14 difUpdated fire alarm system had the same food on every line,” he come eat and then go hang out in one ferent restaurant concepts that students can access in said. “Everything was made in back of the residence halls, but it’s becom- Couch Restaurants once it’s all done, and that’s an amazTwo 65-inch TV panels with video game and brought out front. With the way ing amount of opportunity to customize a great healthy ing a hang out spot.” configuration the building was configured, it really Lauren Royston, Housing and meal and then to enjoy time with friends.” took a complete gutting of the buildJohn Allen, business senior, said he was impressed Food Services spokeswoman, said First floor restroom ing to be able to bring that food proby the renovations at the cafeteria and wished they had the feedback to the new look of the duction out front. We’ve finally been been done when he was a freshman. cafeteria has been overwhelmingly Fire sprinkler system able to kind of build the facilities to “I think [the renovations] really class-up the caf,” Allen positive. support the menu like we’ve wanted said after dining in the restaurant for the third time this “When the first phase opened in to.” January, we had people from across summer. “I would have probably spent a lot more time Drain said he expects the cafeteria’s campus, not just our students who here when I was a freshman if it had looked like this. It new coffee shop to be one of the more popular additions were excited to take advantage of it,” Royston said. “You will probably make a good selling point for parents and amongst students. have faculty members and staff members who hadn’t potential students when they’re considering living in the “In the middle third [of the cafeteria] we’ll have the come back in 10 or 15 years who are absolutely floored dorms at OU.”

“In the past, it’s just been come eat and then go hang out in one of the residence halls, but it’s becoming a hang out spot.”

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Back-to-School Edition 2009

How to use the opinion page Welcome to the opinion page, where people are allowed, even encouraged, to display their thoughts, comments, biases and, of course, their opinions. In order to create a distinction between fact and bias, The Daily opinion columnists do not report on news stories or participate in any other The Daily section desks. We choose our writers specifically to ensure they come from a wide variety of backgrounds and ideologies. We know the columnists have a license to write about just about whatever they want, as long as their arguments are well-reasoned. We welcome letters to the editor — we print most letters we receive — and encourage students to write guest columns expressing their views. This opinion page is also your page to express your beliefs, not just read what we print.

STAFF CARTOON

We have a commitment to balanced coverage on our news pages and good, partisan argumentation on the opinion page. Many have accused the opinion section of leaning too far in one political direction. We have been accused of being too far to the right, too far to the left and too centrist. The editorial board is made up of the section editors, each with their own ideologies and political alignments, who each help create a position on an issue, which is voted upon. We encourage you to write letters if you support or oppose a particular column, cartoon or editorial or have your own different perspective. We hope you will express your views on OUDaily.com (we print some online comments), especially on the opinion blog, where you can actually converse with columnists in what we hope will be a civil dialogue. Mai-Thao Nguyen is a biochemistry senior.

SUMMER STAFF COLUMN

US cultural dominance influences student summer abroad I could little have known three weeks ago, when taking my seat on a British Airways flight from New York to London, then to Milan and finally to Bulgaria, where I have been teaching students from orphanages around the country, that such a trip would yield quite so powerful a set of observations about how Europeans view Americans today, nor so conflicting. Nor could anyone have told me — well, perhaps that’s obvious — that both Michael Jackson and Vietnam-era Defense Secretary Robert McNamara would make their final exits from the world stage at this moment. I mention these men because in a sense, they represent two halves of U.S. exceptionalism in the world — our prestige cultural exports, long-loved and envied everywhere, and our military indus- SLATER trial complex, both the salvation at times and cha- RHEA grin of lands on every continent. And also, they both meant something to me. Michael Jackson was for a time an idol of mine, as he was for so many of my generation, and I must admit I’ve dusted off my rendition of “The Way You Make Me Feel” for the kids here, and to no small acclaim.And Robert McNamara endeared himself to me through his wit and humanity, and pity and hope, through his book “In Retrospect: The Tragedy and lessons of Vietnam,” and the Academy Award-winning documentary about and featuring him, “The Fog of War.” What is more, these men moved the lives of hundreds of millions of people; together, really no one in our modern world has been untouched by their respective influence. And so it is particularly poignant to see Jackson’s collapse at the moment of near redemption, broken under the weight of so great a task as his comeback tour, and it is well to ask if we can do better now to recover as a nation. Robert McNamara slipped largely unnoticed into his fate says something about the future of our dominance in this world, however coincidentally. It has been clear to me, by the shear pervasiveness of U.S. culture here, that our dominance is not over, but is necessarily a velvet dominance, one of popular music and movies, fast food and free enterprise, which, as a weed under concrete cannot be repressed. I’m sorry to shift my thoughts here, but my thesis

has been evolving from the moment I disembarked in Bulgaria. Starting with the insupportable decadence of the three wines, five teas and many dessert items I was offered on my British Airways flight, and the wonderful on-demand opera selection (but rather poor jazz offering), all of which fed my gravest concerns about the Western excess that led to the global recession. Then there were coarse looks from, and exchanges with, people in airports, and then the thanks you’s and fist-bumps for our president, and a grudging tolerance which I grew to resent. Don’t misunderstand me — I was greeted as anyone who comes humbly to serve, with friendship and kindness. The people I have encountered here are very largely open and eager or willing to interact, and very appreciative of any effort or deference. But they are people who have too long been oppressed, by the Ottoman Empire — from whom they very proudly spared the rest of Europe, by the Kremlin — from whose influence they still are not free, by ineffectual government, perhaps always, and last and perhaps most, by the irrepressible invisible, but so penetrating hands of U.S. commerce. And they resent it. And I resent that what they know of us is based on this what they love of about us is based on the mass-produced and formula-driven swill we pump into our own veins, and then those of everyone else. A few days ago, I was sampling some local beers with two young women (who drank me under the table, by the way), and I found myself confronted at once with the arch-stereotype of “most Americans” who unlike me were greatly ignorant, and greatly oppressed by our government and its propaganda. In a moment of half-drunken anger and patriotism, I blurted “America has done more good for the world than bad!” And I believe it. But if we hope to maintain — no, regain — the place of real prestige and honor in the world, much must be done in the way of service and humility, and showing that most Americans are not most Americans, and are good and decent, and wish the world no ill, no oppression. I tire of anyone’s preaching, and I don’t intend to do it, but we must realize, now as ever, and more, that our influence is finite, that the constancy and power that pervades in U.S. history is rare and recent, and that as easily as we use it,

it may slip away. All I know is this: Ignorance and bluster have been the face of the U.S. for most of the last decade, and people who once beheld our wisdom and protection are forever convinced of our foolishness and arrogance. Given our new president’s unique position as symbol and eloquent articulator of American promise, we have a chance for redemption, but like Michael Jackson’s aptly named and abortive final concert series, “This is It.” Slater Rhea is an English literary and cultural studies and letters senior.

SUMMER STAFF COLUMN

SUMMER CARTOON

Bigger music venues needed in Norman

Mai-Thao Nguyen is a biochemistry senior.

Every summer hundreds of bands put out new albums and go on the road. However, one place you will not see on their tour calendar is Norman, Okla. Usually, colleges are hot spots for bands to visit because of the amount of young people located in such a small area. But Norman has lost its ability to draw bands in because of the lack of a venue big enough to raise enough money to make their trip worthwhile. Currently, Norman has only one main stage where out-of-town bands usually visit. The Opolis, run by local musicians The Starlight Mints, used to be able to host concerts with bands people may have actually heard of. Now, instead, they are filled with the same type of indie bands every week. If you are not a hipster, there is always The Deli, but then again, if you are not a hippie, and do not want to see a jam band every night, you may not like that place either. Now, all these bands that used to come to Norman are going to Oklahoma City and Tulsa. In fact, the only concert worth even noting coming to Norman anytime soon is U2 in October, and the only good a U2 ticket would do me is to earn me a few bucks off of an eBay sale. Besides that, it is either a 25-minute drive to Oklahoma City for a concert, or for bigger

bands you probably have to go to Dallas. The Norman Music Festival is a prime example of how the local music scene is quickly dwindling. During its first year the event was able to bring in a wide variety of bands from across the nation. While this past festival seemed like a local music showcase, with the exception of Of Montreal and a few others, . A better music venue – and by better, I mean bigger and preferably air conditioned – could point Norman on the map for musicians. A bigger venue would also allow for ticket prices to go down, which would make it more affordable for everyone. It would also help local bands in getting their name out there to the public. It isn’t impossible. The Flaming Lips were able to build a career out of Norman. During that time, there were venues such as the American Legion Hall, which I doubt any of us even knows where that is located. These days local bands mostly see Norman as a stepping stone before moving on to another city in hopes of getting a record deal. Touring for a band is more important than ever now for earning money. Bringing in bigger bands and having more concerts would provide all of us with something fun and exciting to do on the otherwise mundane nights in Norman. Dara Mirzaie is an economics senior.

Back-to-School Edition 2009

SUMMER STAFF COLUMN

SUMMER CARTOON

Obama’s domestic policy ineffective I recently had the displeasure of watching Wanda Sykes give a speech at the White House Correspondents’ dinner in Washington, D.C. I, of course, did not watch the entire address because I had better things to do, but I did happen to hear her bloviate about her hatred for Rush Limbaugh for a few minutes. In case you haven't heard about this (hard to do considering the media's obsession with this story), Sykes is upset because Rush Limbaugh said during his radio show that he hoped Obama would fail in implementing the Democratic Party’s agenda. Sykes's attacks on Limbaugh's patriotism were humorous not because she said anything funny (she didn't), but rather because of how hypocritical her statements were. I'm not going to ELIJAH watch hundreds of old Wanda Sykes LAVICKY videos looking for the direct quote I need so I'll just go out on a limb on this one: I'm willing to wager that Ms. Sykes wanted President Bush to fail when he tried to partially privatize social security in 2005. But disregard the blatant hypocrisy, that is not the issue. What is important is that someone is being demonized for trying to stop the increase in size of the federal government. The fact is that for its 230-year-long history, the federal government has displayed complete ineptitude in solving domestic policy issues. Interventionist domestic policy has shown itself to be an inefficient, wasteful and contradictory failure. But don't take my word for it, the best way to analyze the effectiveness of policy is to look at results. People's exhibit one: The "war on poverty." America has been fighting a "war on poverty" for a little over 40 years now. Since that time, close to 10 trillion dollars has been spent trying to eradicate the problem in this country. The results? Nonexistent. The poverty rate was 12.8 percent in 1968 and 12.5 percent in 2008. To further illustrate how wasteful the federal largess can be, take 2006 as a case study. In that year $477 billion was spent on a myriad of programs directed at reducing the number of people in poverty (who numbered 37 million). Some quick math

reveals that in that year the feds spent $13,000 for every person below the poverty line. Now for the good part. In 2006, the definition of poverty as determine d by the U.S. Census Bureau was a yearly income of less than $12,294 per individual. That's right. If the government simply took the $477 billion and divided it among those living in poverty, there would be no more poverty. Breathtaking isn't it? Somehow, Washington is able to spend an amount of money that is enough to eradicate a problem in such a fashion that it doesn't even come close to fulfilling its intended purpose. Now that is what I call waste. Other exhibits of federal incompetence are not hard to find. Take the Washington D.C. school system, which simultaneously has the third highest per pupil spending average and one of the lowest average test scores in the nation. Take the department of agriculture, which funnels farm subsidies to millionaires and employees one bureaucrat for every twenty-seven farmers. Or perhaps Amtrak, which receives billions of dollars in subsidies every year despite the promises of policy makers in 1971 that it would be self-sufficient. The list could go on and on. So when Rush Limbaugh stands against spending more money that we don’t have, he is not being unpatriotic. Quite the opposite. He knows that President Obama's policies will do nothing more than steal from our grandchildren in the future to pay bureaucrats in the present. Government is not the solution and it never has been. The solution lies in the creativity and hard work of the American people. Unfortunately, those abilities that built this country are being shackled by an over-taxing, over-regulating, and over-reaching federal government. The great columnist George Will likes to say that the government ought to "deliver the mail, defend the shores, and get out of the way." Sounds good to me.

Mai-Thao Nguyen is a biochemistry senior.

Opinionated? The Daily is looking for writers. The Daily is looking for opinion writers of all backgrounds, ideologies and political affiliations. You can come by the newsroom at Copeland Hall 160 to pick up an application, or you can e-mail the fall opinion editor, Will Holland, at will.j.holland-1@ou.edu.

Elijah Lavicky is a finance senior.

SUMMER CARTOON

Mai-Thao Nguyen is a biochemistry senior.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR PUBLIC EDUCATION IS FAILING In response to Tarrant Carter’s column “Public education immoral at its core” published on Thursday, March 12: We all know what happens when you give children the option of playing whatever sport they want: they end up gravitating towards sports they happen to be good at, or at least the ones they like. The result is that some of them won’t play sports at all, but those who do play will all play different ones. Importantly, no one has ever seriously suggested that the nation’s children all be forced to spend the greater part of their youth mastering a single, statedesignated sport. There are two important principles at work here: first, different children have different talents and interests, and second, children will be happiest and most successful if they can determine their own engagement. These principles are simple enough, and we tend to apply them to all extracurricular activities, not just sports, which suggests the question: if these principles are good enough for extracurriculars, we don’t we apply them to the curriculum itself? The answer, of course, is that on the matter of education we have agreed to force our youth to master a single, state-designated curriculum, a plan which we reject in other contexts as nonsense. The ironic thing is that we all know public education is failing. We’ve all heard the stats on drop-out rates, we all have anecdotes about social promotion, we all know the kid who’s really bright but doesn’t do well in school because he’d rather be anywhere else.

Luke Atkinson James Lovett Elizabeth Nalewajk Luke Atkinson Eli Hull Luke Atkinson

Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor Night Editor Opinion Editor Photo Editor Senior Online Editor

Of course, some people deny that public education is a failure; they point to the success of some students and applaud what we have given them. But if the point of public education were simply to enable some students to become educated, we wouldn’t need it—we all know that before there were public schools there were private ones, and people did attend them. The point of public education is to make education universal, so as long as we aren’t graduating all of our students, and in a meaningful way, we are failing. We have tried three basic strategies to fix public education— lower standards, more money, and more testing—but none of them have turned public education into something truly universal. The problem with lower standards is that you can’t make something more compelling just by making it easier (indeed sometimes you make it less compelling, remember the bright slacker student?). Many have noticed that the recent explosion in college enrollment is really a reaction to the ever-decreasing value of a high school diploma, but the really astounding thing is how many people still don’t earn a high school degree. If our high schools have turned into diploma mills, they are surprisingly ineffective at turning out diplomas. The idea that more money will fix public education doesn’t even make sense in theory. No one really thinks that you could turn anyone into a decent politician, a skilled musician, a compelling actor, or a good quarterback just by spending more on fancy coaching, but somehow they expect money to make us all educated. In reality, we all know that money can’t make up for a lack of talent or desire. It’s bad enough that the “more money”

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solution doesn’t make sense in theory, but it doesn’t work in practice either. The DC public schools are notorious for two things: the high quantity of input in dollars and the low quality of output in students. Finally, it should be immediately obvious that testing can’t fix education. Testing can’t fix anything, that’s not what it does. CAT scans don’t cure cancer, they only tell you that it’s there. Testing is by definition an evaluation and so, at best, testing can diagnose the problem. But at its worst, testing becomes a substitute for the real goal. In education, we call this “teaching to the test.” The bottom line is that we have given our public teachers a conflicted mandate. We want everyone to have an education, and we want that education to mean something. But you can’t get there from here: lower standards, more money, and more testing won’t do it. Better teachers or better-paid teachers won’t do it either—teachers can’t pull rabbits out of hats, and, let’s face it, magicians can only do it because the rabbit is already in the hat. The fundamental problem with public education is that it tries to universalize something that isn’t universal—it isn’t universal by necessity, and it isn’t universal by appeal. You don’t need to know how to titrate a solution to be successful in politics, and you don’t need to be able to analyze Shakespeare to be a good mechanic. The problem with public education isn’t, as some argue, that we don’t have enough teachers, it’s that we have too many students. The answer is to abolish public education. Andrew Olson, Yale alumnus

The Oklahoma Daily is a public forum and OU’s independent student voice. Letters should concentrate on issues, not personalities, and should be fewer than 250 words, typed, double spaced and signed by the author(s). Letters will be cut to fit. Students must list their major and classification. OU staff and faculty must list their title. All letters must include a daytime phone number. Authors submitting letters in person must present photo identification. Submit letters Sunday through Thursday, in 160 Copeland Hall. Letters can also be submitted via e-mail to dailyopinion@ ou.edu.

Guest columns are accepted at editor’s discretion. ’Our View’ is the voice of The Oklahoma Daily. Editorial Board members are The Daily’s editorial staff. The board meets Monday and Wednesday at 2:45 p.m. in160 Copeland Hall. Columnists’ and cartoonists’ opinions are not necessarily the opinions of The Daily Editorial Board.

Back-to-School Edition 2009

BOREN MARKS 15 YEARS AS PRESIDENT don’t break my heart. You know how much I would love to come back to Oklahoma and how much I’d love to do that.’ She also went to the university and got her masters in English as well as her law degree here. And she always had this dream to come back to Oklahoma and come back to OU. She said, ‘You’re not going to do it. You’ve been in politics all your life. You’ve wanted to do politics all your life.’ And I said, ‘Well, I’ve also loved education.’” “I thought, unless I’m definitely going to run for re-election (to the Senate), and this, I’m 53 years old, and the next time this comes around I might be too old to be starting out as a new president. So, I after about a week, I decided I would do it. I had conditions. I said ‘I’m not a traditional academic, so I want to know how the faculty feels about it.’ So, Fred Gipson, who, at that time was General Counsel, agreed that he would get together at his home here in Norman, a group of about 30 of the key faculty leaders, (the) most active faculty members. And we would just kind of have coffee one evening ... And I said, ‘You know, would you really want me to come? I’m not a traditional academic. I so admire what academics do, and I think at heart I’m an academic, but I haven’t had a traditional academic career.’ The group, unanimously, in essence, there was no vote or anything like that. But, they all said, ‘please come.’”

ON HIDING BEHIND A BUSH TO AVOID TV CAMERAS IN NORMAN ESTEBAN PULDIO/THE DAILY

President David L. Boren talks in his office in Evans Hall. Boren has been president of OU since 1994.

Boren looks back on inauguration, decisions made CHARLES WARD The Oklahoma Daily

David Boren will mark his 15th anniversary as president of the University of Oklahoma in November of this year. The OU Board of Regents recently renewed his contract through at least 2014, which will make Boren the second-longest reigning president in OU history, behind George Lynn Cross. Boren recently sat down for an interview with The Daily’s Charles Ward. During that interview, Boren touched on several topics about his tenure with the university. What follows are some of the highlights from that 90-minute conversation.

ON HOW LONG HE WILL STAY IN OFFICE Boren: Now, my contract says that I’ll be here until what, 2014. And then it says a year is added to it every year to keep it five years. I’d actually have to be here until 2019 to break Dr. (George Lynn) Cross’ record. So, I don’t know. I sure intend to at least make the first goal. We’ll see how I feel and how my mind’s working by the time we get to (2014). In July, I became the longest-serving president in the Big 12. So, that’s a milestone I never thought I’d ever see. Gosh, David [Garland], the acting president of Baylor ... is one of my former students when I taught at (Oklahoma Baptist University). So, it’s

really amazing to have one of your former students, now a colleague, among the Big 12 presidents. So I know, I’ve been around for a while when that starts to happen.”

ON WHEN HE DECIDED TO LEAVE THE UNITED STATES SENATE AND BECOME PRESIDENT OF OU Boren: “When (Richard) Van Horn became president (in 1989), when Dr. (Frank) Horton retired, some of the regents talked to me at that time about coming back to OU as president. I said I just couldn’t, because I was Chairman of the Intelligence Committee, and that’s a job you have for only a set number of years. I was chairman six years, and then you go off the committee. It was just in the middle of my service as Chairman of the Intelligence Committee, and I felt like I really needed to finish that. So I said, no, but, you know, maybe someday. Don’t take me off the list.” “So, (two or three regents) said, ‘We really want you to seriously think about coming. The president has resigned, and we want you to seriously think about coming ... We want you to come and be president of OU, and we want you to seriously think about it. We want permission to let the search committee consider you.’ I was kind of surprised myself. I said, ‘Well, I’ll think about it.’ And I went back home and told my wife that night, we had our home in Seminole then, and I said, ‘They’ve asked me to really think about it. She said, ‘Oh no,

2009 FOOTBALL Freshman and transfer SEASON TICKET SALE AUGUST 17 - 21 OU Freshman and Transfer student season tickets for the 2008 season will be on sale August 18 through August 21. Season tickets can be purchased @ SoonerSports.com or in person at the OU Athletics Ticket Office.

ticket prices: Student season tickets are $160 and will be placed on the student’s bursar account. There is a $10 processing fee for all orders.

Purchasing tickets online: Tickets will be sold online 24 hours a day during the sale beginning at 8 a.m. on August 17 and lasting through 3 p.m. on August 21 while supplies last. A lottery will be held the afternoon of August 21 if demand exceeds supply.

Purchasing tickets in person: Tickets can be purchased in person by visiting the OU Athletics Ticket Office, located on the South Plaza Level of Asp Avenue Parking Garage. The OU Athletics Ticket Office will begin its walk-up window sales at 8 a.m. on August 17 and will continue every business day until August 21 from 8 a.m. - 3 p.m.

For detailed policy information please visit:

Boren: “As we came down the stairs, onto the second floor, and we were walking kind of through the Baird Lounge, we heard, way down at the other end of the hall, behind us. ‘I think I saw him!’ And ‘I think I saw him with someone.’ And so, this camera man, and this newsman started chasing us. So, we ran the full length of the second floor, you know, past the Meacham Auditorium and out and we ran down ... We ran around and we got behind that hedge right there. And they went past us and when the coast was clear, I left. So, they never actually could prove I was here that day. And then we had the public announcement. We laughed. We said, ‘Boy, if they’d pointed the camera over that hedge, they’d really have a shot, me with Dr. [Chris] Purcell (executive secretary of the Board of Regents) crouched behind the hedge.’”

ON GEORGE LYNN CROSS TELLING HIM OU WAS AT A CROSSROADS WHEN HE TOOK THE POSITION Boren: “He called me and just pleaded with me to come back, and he said, in some ways I feel like what I spent my lifetime doing is in danger. We’re really sliding back in the wrong direction, and so, he pleaded with me to come back. And it was very convincing, because I had a very deep love for Dr. and Mrs. Cross, and also, he was such an example for me because I saw how he made a difference in the lives of students. He did with me even when I was a law student, and I was back here. BOREN CONTINUES ON PAGE 7A

Back-to-School Edition 2009

BOREN CONTINUED

He used to have coffee with lots of students, he spent a lot of time with students, and so I really saw how a president of a university could make a difference in the lives of students, because he made a difference in my life.” “The buildings were not maintained. The grounds looked really run down and certainly not beautiful like they are now. So, (Cross) was really worried, because, during the Cross years, as during the Bizzell years, for example, OU was really considered one of the great state universities in the nation. I found that. And also, I found, the faculty was demoralized. They’d not had a raise in four years, while some of the administrators were continuing to get raises. And people had lost ... they’d forgotten a lot of the great things about OU. They’d forgotten about so many of our strengths, like our great collection of rare books in the history of science, or our art museum. They’d forgotten them all. And, so, we ran a big campaign when I first got here. ‘OU Excellence. Don’t keep it a secret...’ I felt that bringing back pride and really setting high standards and high goals and believing in ourselves was step one.”

ON THE REACH FOR EXCELLENCE CAMPAIGN, WHICH RAISED MORE THAN $500 MILLION FROM 1995-2000 Boren: “People were ready. They believed in the greatness of the state, they believed in the possibilities of the university. And, we laid out a blueprint of what we’d spend the money for. I mean, I think that’s the other thing. You can’t just go and say, ‘because you love OU, would you give me $1 million?’ You have to go with a blueprint. And, one of our blueprints was we had a three-legged stool, so to speak. One, you have to have great faculty, and so we said were going to double, triple the number of endowed chairs, to keep and bring great faculty. Well, we ended up now, we’ve increased it fivefold. We’ve said we want to have scholarships to attract great students. And we have to have great facilities. And the fourth thing was we wanted to internationalize. It was really a four-legged stool, I guess.”

ON WHAT ACCOMPLISHMENT HE’S MOST PROUD OF DURING HIS TIME AT OU Boren: “It is, I would say, the increased feeling of community on campus. And by community, I mean mutual respect for each other. You know, you never get there, but you’re always striving for a greater sense of community. But I think we’ve come to understand and respect each other, faculty, students, staff from all backgrounds, to a greater degree. A lot of things have contributed to that. For example, I think differences of race. Differences of economic background of your family. Differences of religion. Differences of sexual orientation. I mean, I could just go down the whole list of the ways in which in we’re a very diverse people. Yet, we have become like a family where we treat each other with mutual respect. I think your ultimate legacy is not so much programs, or buildings or even how much money you’ve raised ... it’s the values our students take with them when they leave here. It’s the amount of change that’s come in their own lives. I hope my ultimate legacy is the values of this next

FILE PHOTO BY JACONNA AQUIRRE/THE DAILY

David Boren speaks to a rain-soaked crowd about the goals he wants to accomplish during his presidency on Sept. 15, 1995. generation of Oklahoma’s leaders, but national leaders.”

ON HIS GOALS GOING FORWARD

ON HIS ROLE WITH THE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT

Boren: “One of my big goals, looking forward ... is to double the number of our students that have a study abroad experience over the next five years. Because, just more and more, you realize, we’re just one of the major players in the world, and we have to really learn how to thrive in an international environment. We’re not preparing our students or doing our job if we don’t.” “We’re in the process now in the College of Architecture of setting up the Institute for Quality Communities. We want to bring some of the greatest city and community planners ... from all around the world.” “I think, going forward, we really have to know who we are. And one of the things that has really concerned me ... that we protect constitutional individual rights. I think, in our panic after 9/11, we lost our way about some of those things … When half of the high school graduates don’t even know which side we fought on in World War II and a fourth of Ivy League students said they thought the President could just suspend the Bill of Rights anytime he wanted to, or she wanted to, you know you’ve got trouble. So, we want to establish an institute on studying the American Constitution and the ideas behind it. So, we’ll … have a little better anchor when we go through these emotional times.”

Boren: “I have been heavily involved. I’ve been involved in the hiring of every coach.” “What we’ve generally done, just like we did most recently with (men’s basketball) coach (Jeff ) Capel, when we’ve had a vacancy, I’ve charged (athletic director) Joe (Castiglione) with going out and getting a short list put together, two or three or four, and, do due diligence. Then we sit down, and I’m involved, and sometimes I’ll involve, like with Capel, regent (Larry) Wade and (Jon) Stuart. We went off to Atlanta and we interviewed two or three finalists. And (we) came to a conclusion that we wanted Coach Capel. And he was our first choice, same as we did with Bob Stoops. He was our first choice. So, its been that kind of model, that we’ve used. With nearly every one of them, I’ve been involved. And I think it’s very important (to be involved).” “There’s one of Dr. Cross’ books, ‘Presidents Can’t Punt.’ And by that he meant a president cant just say, ‘Oh, OK, I’m not going to bother myself with the athletic department.’ No … I’ve got to stay on top of it.”

Back-to-School Edition 2009

REGENTS APPROVE $1.48B BUDGET Boren: University’s hiring, compensation freeze saved $8 million since June 2008 CHARLES WARD AND JAMES LOVETT The Oklahoma Daily

The OU Board of Regents approved a $1.48 billion university operating budget at its June meeting in Ardmore. The budget called for no increase in tuition or in mandatory fees that all students would be required to pay. $772 million of the budget will fund the Norman campus, with the remaining $716 million funding the Health Sciences Center. OU President David Boren originally announced there would be no across-the-board increase in tuition and fees May 28 by e-mail and in letters to parents. “I fully expect that my recommendation will be approved because our Board of Regents has been strong in its support of keeping student costs to the minimum needed to maintain excellence,” Boren said in the campus-wide e-mail. “While we are holding down costs, we are committed to maintaining the university’s high standard of excellence. In spite of a short fall in revenues, the governor and the state legislature did their best to avoid cuts in education budgets. In addition, OU made approximately $8 million in internal savings through freezes in hiring, in compensation, and other areas.” Both campuses took a combined $18.5 million hit in state appropriations, which will be made up with federal stimulus dollars. The stimulus money is a one-time appropriation. The campuses received $5.9 million in new appropriations, plus funding to cover increased teacher retirement. “You still have a long-term concern, because stimulus money is for this year. Stimulus money is for next year, and

“You still have a long-term concern, because stimulus money is for this year. Stimulus money is for next year, and then year three, once we get out as far as 2011, there are not stimulus funds at this time.” OU PRESIDENT DAVID BOREN

BREAKDOWN OF OU STUDENT FEES FEE

AMOUNT

Academic Excellence Fee

$52.70

Academic Facility & Life Safety Fee

$15.00

Student Activity Fee

$5.95

Assessment Fee

$1.25

Education Network Connectivity Fee Library Excellence Fee

$14.80

Student Facility Fee

$13.00

Transit Fee Security Services Fee Special Event Fee

$2.00 $3.40 $2.00

$11.00

USE Supports the costs to recruit and retain excellent faculty, plus their scientific and academic research including laboratories, classroom renovations, equipment, publishing costs and research assistants. Supports classroom maintenance. A major portion is used for resident hall improvements to ensure campus housing meets the latest standards for fire and personal safety. Supports student organizations and services, counseling and testing, student media, career services, campus facilities, and transportation services. Supports university wide general education program, required for accreditation mandated by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education. Supports university educational computer network services. Supports library staffing, acquisitions of books and documents and subscriptions to scholarly journals. Supports increased maintenance, staffing, and operational expenses for student facilities like the Huston Huffman Center and the Oklahoma Memorial Union. Supports maintaining and operation campus transit services. Supports services involving campus lighting, emergency phones and OUPD. Supports special events costs, including renowned speakers and lecturers. SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE BURSAR

then year three, once we get out as far as 2011, there are not stimulus funds at this time,” Boren said at the regents meeting in June. “We are more fortunate than other states [because] ... we have the rainy-day fund.” The hiring freeze at OU will remain in place, Boren said, but there are no extraordinary cost-cutting measures, such as layoffs or furloughs, planned. “That would have to be like the end of the world, virtually, because we have maintained some reserves in our budget, in case we continue to have month-by month-shortfalls,” Boren said. “For example, the June numbers came in under the estimate, and so we were prepared. We do not foresee a scenario that would force us into furlough days.” In July 2008, Boren implemented a hiring freeze and placed a limit on the issuance of bonds for new spending

projects. He first revealed his intention to freeze tuition and fees at the January Regents meeting. OU Press Secretary Jay Doyle said although across-theboard fees are not being increased at the university, it is up to the college deans whether they feel increases are necessary. “[A fee increase] is up to the deans of each individual college,” Doyle said, “but it has to go before the Board of Regents before increases are approved.” Doyle said tuition was also kept constant from 1999-2000 and 2000-2001. He said he was unsure whether fees were held at the same level during those years. In May, the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education approved a $1.124 billion state higher education budget for next year. The budget is an increase of approximately 2.8 percent over last year.

ZACH BUTLER / THE DAILY

Football head coach Bob Stoops yells to players on the field during the 2009 FedEx National Championship against Florida on Jan. 8 in Miami.

Coaches Stoops, Capel rewarded with raises CHARLES WARD The Oklahoma Daily

OU head football coach Bob Stoops will make $4.675 million in 2010 as part of a reworked contract approved June 24 by the OU Board of Regents. Stoops’ new contract, which will pay him $2.925 million in guaranteed compensation for 2009-10, includes a $700,000 per-year bonus for remaining at OU, and a $200,000 per-year increase in salary. OU President David Boren said the university could not control the market value for such a highly sought-after coach. “I wish we could,” Boren said. “Do I think salaries nationwide are too high? Yes. I certainly do, but, we can’t control the national marketplace. This does not make any of our coaches the highest paid. Coach Stoops, I think it probably puts him inside the top five nationally. But, his record is certainly in the top five, and the additional revenues brought to the university.” The Regents also approved a raise for men’s basketball head coach Jeff Capel, whose salary will increase to $1.5 million for the coming season. Capel’s new deal includes a $1.1 million stay bonus if he remains at OU through 2014, and an additional $400,000 if he stays through the 2016 season. Other head coaches receiving raises include women’s basketball coach Sherri Coale, head softball coach Patty Gasso and head baseball coach Sunny Golloway. “There’s a marketplace, and if you’re going to maintain a successful Division I program, you simply cannot cripple that program by losing the talent that produces the revenues as well,” Boren said. “Obviously, it’s not just a matter of revenues. It’s right values, right

“...if you’re going to maintain a successful Division I program, you simply cannot cripple that program by losing the talent that produces the revenues as well.”

Mountain, Fixed Gear, Road, Cruisers and Townies. We have it all!

OU PRESIDENT DAVID BOREN standards of conduct.” The Athletic Department will be bumping up its contribution to OU’s academic program to $4 million of direct contributions for the coming school year. Boren said the Athletic Department gave about $1 million per year to academics in previous years. When combined with indirect contributions from income from other Athletic Department-related sources, such as affinity card programs and soft drink sales, Boren said the Athletic Department’s contribution to academics would be more than $7 million. “Of all the universities in the country, we are one of only five or six that are receiving a subsidy [from the Athletic Department],” Boren said. “[Athletic Department funds] are not money that are being taken out of academics. Quite the contrary, the Athletic Department is subsidizing academics.” The Regents also approved a resolution to name a proposed health clinic in Tulsa after Wayman Tisdale, a former OU All-American basketball player from Tulsa, who died May 15. “To see a facility named after him is, I think, momentous,” said his brother, Weldon Tisdale. “I don’t think honored is a strong enough word.”

561 buchanan ave. 1 block from campus (405) 364-5513 buchananbikes.com

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Back-to-School Edition 2009

OU finalizing switch to new student service site New site combines student needs into one place JAMES LOVETT The Oklahoma Daily

The way students conduct university business online will change dramatically this fall when the all-inclusive Web site oZONE enters into it’s third phase, or “The Big Bang.” On Sept. 18, all major online service systems at OU will shut down for ten days so that data can be transferred into the new systems. During that time, no changes to student information can be made online. oZONE spokesman Nick Key said the 10-day downtime is necessary for transferring such a large amount of student data. “We’re taking about 30 years of databases, student data and services, and we’re going to be transitioning them into an entirely new student system,” Key said. “Essentially oZONE is going to be a foundational move from what we’ve had as student services before to the future of online student services at OU, We’re not just moving systems into oZONE, but we’re actually replacing all the current systems with new systems.” Phase I, which was completed last Aug., allowed Admissions and Recruitment Services to begin using the new site. Phase II was completed in March, and allowed students to begin using oZONE to manage their Financial Aid for the 20092010 aid year. As of Sept., the services in oZONE will include everything but the bursar, which moves into oZONE in late December.

SEPTEMBER DOWNTIME Key said students and faculty will be unable to make online changes in their enrollment or bursar balances during the Sept. 10-day transition. “[Faculty] won’t be able to go in and withdraw somebody from a class in the actual database, that’s something that they’ll have to do once the database comes online,” Key said. “But business will still

continue to go on during that time it’s just that the departments will have to be managing that manually. If a student goes to enroll and tries to login they won’t be able to get in, and if they go to pay they won’t be able to get in for those ten days. They have to manage those things through Buchanan Hall at that point.” oZONE spokeswoman Jean Ware said Sept. was the best time to make the systems unavailable. “For the most part, at least for fall enrollment, it’s after the add/drop period so the amount that could be done online anyway is much more limited,” Ware said. “That was the period that was decided this would be the least amount of interruption for people trying to do business. And advising for spring won’t start until after that so it seemed like the best time.”

AVAILABILITY oZONE spokeswoman Lindsey Johnson said one of the major benefits of the site will be the access and availability students have to the systems. “In the current online enrollment system, data is refreshed from the mainframe every 15 minutes,” Johnson said. “As a student tries to enroll, it could look like there is a seat available when another student may have actually enrolled during that 15-minute interval and taken the seat. In oZONE, the data is displayed in real-time. What you see is what you get.” Key said the current mainframe requires batch processing to make sure that all the different data entered from all the different services are combined accurately every night. “That was a major concern from a student standpoint, because you can’t access it about 121 days a year when you go by hours that it’s not accessible,” Key said. Key said there were currently no systems in place for oZONE use on mobile devices like iPhones and BlackBerrys, but it is something they are looking into. “There might be a future for secure mobile access to student data but that’s one of the areas that’s pretty tough to

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maintain security on,” Key said, “especially when you’re working with student data that has lots of government guidelines about what you can share and what you can’t. It’s definitely something that will be a long-term project and definitely something that’s on our radar screen.”

THE PROCESS OF SWITCHING PHASE I - AUGUST 2008 The first phase of oZONE was completed when staff in Admissions and Recruitment began using the portal for student admissions.

PHASE II - FEBRUARY 2009

REASONS FOR THE SWITCH Other than the benefits of better availability and access, Key said the old system was getting harder to maintain and keep up to date. “The mainframe, which was our previous student system, is over 30 years old,” Key said. “So things like development, support, hardware or anything that has to do with keeping the system up and running and evolving was getting very expensive to maintain and also the expertise to do that is also a dying expertise. For the most part the people that were really expert at dealing with mainframe are retired or approaching retirement age.” Key said the new system brings OU up to par with other major universities’ systems. “From a development standpoint, this is a system that is used by hundreds of other universities and a lot of big time universities,” Key said. “What happens is when those universities make changes, when they make updates or add pieces and features, those things get communicated back to the vendor and they roll it out as a new update.” Key also said oZONE security should be just as safe as the previous system.

Students began using oZONE to manage Financial Aid for the 20092010 aid year. Around 85 percent of the student body receives aid, allowing a majority of those students access to the site.

PHASE III - “THE BIG BANG” SEPTEMBER 2009 The third phase will integrate Records and Registration and open the site to the entire student body and a majority of faculty/staff. There will be a 10-day period beginning Sept. 18 where data cannot be edited online, and students can expect the site to be fully operational Sept. 29.

PHASE IV - JANUARY 2010 The Bursar will go live into oZONE, allowing students to pay their tuition bill directly through the site.

PHASE V - ONGOING oZONE will be constantly updated to incorporate new patches and system updates, allowing for a more efficient and user-friendly experience.

NEW SITE FEATURES Some of the new features students can expect with oZONE:

Oklahoma Daily RSS Feed Campus calendar

24/7 access Course schedule Grades and unofficial transcripts D2L links Weather updates

food.ou.edu

Degree Navigator Digital file locker to store files

housing&food

Financial Aid help

located just west of Couch Center.

14 unique restaurants. one great price for it all. Housing and Food Services is a department in OU’s division of Student Affairs. The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution.

10A Back-to-School Edition 2009

International organizations bring diversity to campus KELLY MAROSE The Oklahoma Daily

OUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s international groups are growing in diversity, producing new friendships and exposing students to new things. With a new semester approaching, students may be looking to get more involved. International clubs are allowing students to do just that, while also learning about other cultures. Hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a look at three of the many groups on campus.

PANAM CLUB OUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s PANAM club has been sharing its culture since 1974, according to Diego Alvarez, president of the club. Alvarez said the Pan-American organization is one of the largest OU international organizations, and their goal is to promote studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; cultures. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our main purpose right now would be to share the cultures of our memberâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s countries, and also any other country that wishes to share itself through us,â&#x20AC;? Alvarez said. The club organizes events that enable members to interact and get to know each other. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Because we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t really belong to a country, we actually create an environment where we are sort of mediators,â&#x20AC;? Alvarez said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We let people share themselves, and teach themselves a lot about who they are and where they come from.â&#x20AC;? The club also offers activities like meetings, barbecues, bowling, ice skating, tailgating and PANAM parties. According to Alvarez, PANAM Night is the organizationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s biggest event. He said dinner is provided and multiple performers from different countries come out and share their culture. Besides PANAM Night, the association is also recognized for its parties. Alvarez said they are well-known for the large crowds they bring in and for the variety of music that is played. â&#x20AC;&#x153;OU is big on football, and a lot of international students simply donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know about it,â&#x20AC;? Alvarez said. According to Alvarez, members of the club are planning new activities for the fall semester. He said the club will offer sessions on how to play football a week before the OU-Texas game. He said he thinks the groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s friendly mood is what sets them apart from other organizations. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have that little spark that everyone loves,â&#x20AC;? Alvarez said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just a part of the PANAM culture.â&#x20AC;?

ARAB STUDENT ASSOCIATION The Arab Student Association has been around for seven years, according to its president, Lilian Al-Dehneh. Al-Dehneh said the club promotes and brings awareness to the Arabic culture, while building a more positive view on the culture than is sometimes portrayed in the media. â&#x20AC;&#x153;A lot of people arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t aware of the middle eastern culture,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We want to bring awareness to OU and bring a different view on it that sometimes isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t given towards the Middle East.â&#x20AC;?

ELI HULL / THE DAILY

The Saudi Student Association performs a traditional celebratory wedding march at the Eve of Nations last spring. The performance featured a mix of Saudi traditional dances. Multicultural groups around campus offer diversity and a chance to meet new students. The organization has dinners and barbecues, and meetings are a good way to meet people. Al-Dehneh said the group likes to get involved with the community, sometimes for political reasons and other times just for fun. According to Al-Dehneh, the Arab Student Association is best known for its annual event, Arabian night. The event exposes students to fun aspects of their culture, like Arabic food and dancing. Al-Dehneh said that past Arabian nights have gone over so well, the organization is planning to incorporate more of its aspects into their fall activities. The club is trying to expand more and has been planning to collaborate on events with other organizations. She said she embraces the diversity and would like to see more students become involved. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We always welcome it because the purpose is to get out to the community, not keep it between us,â&#x20AC;? Al-Dehneh said. Al-Dehnehâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s favorite thing about the Arab Students Association has been the friendships she has made. She said she believes the teamwork of the organizations brings out the best in its members. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We go through a lot together, especially in preparation for Arabian night,â&#x20AC;? Al-Dehneh said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We learn a lot about people and other cultures as they help us out.â&#x20AC;?

INDONESIA STUDENT ASSOCIATION The Indonesia Student Association has been active since 1962, according to Siddarth Jayaraman, president of the association. Jayaraman said he shares the same standpoint the other

organizations do in wanting to raise awareness of their culture. The club offers members a chance to learn about their own heritage, and gives other cultures the chance to learn about it, as well. With 300 to 400 members, he said the organization has 200 to 250 Indian students and 100 to 150 students from other cultures. Jayaraman said he knows people hear about the organization and are curious. He would like to see more diversity within the organization. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have 27 different states and each state has its own language, followed by its own tradition,â&#x20AC;? Jayaraman said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have a lot of different students from the different states who can share their culture and knowledge of it.â&#x20AC;? He said that students who join the organization can experience events like India night, Eve of nations, and their barbecues. The members of the club are also planning to collaborate with other Indian student associations in the Oklahoma City area this fall. He said he is hoping to have students from those associations come in and perform. The Indian food may be the most popular aspect of the club, according to Jayaraman. He said the food and the variety of ways it can be prepared goes over well with students. Jayaraman said many people come to the events to also experience their food. Jayaraman is hoping to see a growth in members and an assortment of different cultures this semester. â&#x20AC;&#x153;All of the people are welcome to come out and try it,â&#x20AC;? Jayaraman said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s free of cost and great fun for students.â&#x20AC;?

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Housing and Food Services is a department in OUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s division of Student Affairs. The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution.

Back-to-School Edition 2009

11A

Campus construction project continues KYLE WEST AND JAMES LOVETT The Oklahoma Daily

Phase two of construction on Gaylord Hall is now complete, but the university still has several major construction projects to finish. A large annex and remodeling of Collings Hall, the construction of Devon Energy Hall and Rawl Engineering Practice Facility and a new annex to the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art are still in progress. Here is an update on each:

FRED JONES JR. MUSEUM OF ART Construction at the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art will create the Stuart Wing to showcase Native American art, and a new third-floor gallery will enclose the current rooftop sculpture garden, according to OU Press Secretary Jay Doyle. “Also, a major new staircase leading from the lower galleries into this new third-floor area will be constructed,” Doyle said. Jon R. Stuart and his wife, Dee Dee, contributed $3 million from the Stuart Family Foundation to help expand the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, according to a press release from OU Public Affairs. Doyle also said the Stuart Wing would add approximately 4,000 square feet of space, and that construction was scheduled to end in December 2010.

COLLINGS HALL Remodeling and extending Collings Hall officially began last October, but heavy renovations — including adding 15,000 square feet of space, began in May. The approximately 15,000-gross-square-foot addition will include new space for a student professional services center with a curriculum library and placement services, and several new conference and classrooms, Doyle said. David Robinson, construction supervisor for Collings Hall, said construction, including the add-on, is set to be complete in fall 2010. The building will not be open in the fall semester, he said.

pants of the new facility,” he said. Doyle also said Devon Energy Hall will be approximately 100,000 square feet, including new classrooms, research labs and graduate work areas. He talked about the features of the neighboring Rawl Engineering Practice Facility, currently under construction. “The building will include open high-bay work areas for selected major projects, a drilling simulator, support services and shared common work areas for computer-aided design, fabrication of components, subassembly, prototyping and display of products,” Doyle said. Construction is scheduled to be completed in the fall, but the first classes in the buildings will be held next spring.

GOULD HALL Doyle said the re-opened Gould Hall will include a large presentation gallery, design studios and a new library, in addition to an increase in square footage. “Upon completion of this project, Gould Hall will contain

approximately 108,000 gross square feet of space,” he said. Doyle said Gould Hall needed renovations to bring it up to current building safety codes. Construction is scheduled to be completed winter 2010. Currently architecture classes are being held at the old Hobby Lobby shopping center located on Main Street.

NIELSEN HALL Doyle said Nielsen Hall is being renovated to bring it up to current building codes. “Interior and exterior repairs will be made to restore the 1948 building to good condition,” he said. “The exterior brick and stonework of the building will be restored. Exterior windows will be replaced with new energy-efficient windows, and the existing roof will be replaced.” Doyle said the inside also is being renovated to improve labs and utilities. He also said the renovation of the existing corridors will match the original design of the building, which will be open in the fall.

GAYLORD HALL Phase two of construction on Gaylord Hall is now complete, and the extension has added approximately 42,000 square feet to the building, said Doyle. The extension includes a new student-led public relations and advertising agency along with an entire floor dedicated to graduate students and research. Joe Foote, Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication dean, said it was challenging designing the new building in a way that would compliment the existing one. “We wanted to be creative in the new part but pretty consistent with the standards of the old and with President Boren’s motif that he has,” Foote said. “You go to new mass communication buildings around the country and they’re real high-tech and modern, they’re not anything like this. Ours really sticks out with all the wood and old school things that you normally don’t find in brand new communications buildings. We tried to hide the technology a little better, but once you get into it, it’s impressive because we have all the bells and whistles like the others, they just don’t scream at you.” Foote said he was hoping to have an official grand opening for the building in early October, depending on President Boren’s schedule.

DEVON ENERGY HALL AND RAWL ENGINEERING PRACTICE FACILITY The construction of Devon Energy Hall is needed to accommodate growing enrollment and research, Doyle said. “The School of Electrical and Computer Engineering and the School of Computer Science will be the primary occu-

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12A

Back-to-School Edition 2009

OU senior slows down after winning Miss OK crown Miss OK enjoys a summer break after hectic tour, prepares for more

SOONERS IN THE NEWS POLI-SCI PROFESSOR HEADS TO BHUTAN Associate professor of political science Michael Givel is the first Fulbright Scholar to research and teach in the Kingdom of Bhutan. Bordered by India and China, the nation of fewer than 1 million people has been historically closed to outside influence, Givel said. “The Kingdom of Bhutan at the turn of the 20th century was an isolated Buddhist monarchy,” Givel said. “It has strong religious and cultural ties to Tibet and China. But it is slowly, surely and carefully moving in a direction that’s more open.” Givel said having a Fulbright Scholar admitted into the kingdom for research and teaching is a great accomplishment. “I think it’s important because beyond the research, one of my roles as a Fulbright is to be an unofficial cultural ambassador to promote mutual understanding,” Givel said. “I find it a great honor that the government of Bhutan has chosen me to be first Fulbright to come there.” Givel moved to Bhutan at the end of June.

CHARLES WARD The Oklahoma Daily

Taylor Treat’s life has calmed down somewhat since the initial week of press conferences and speeches she made after winning the Miss Oklahoma 2009 Pageant. Treat didn’t get the luxury of hitting the ground running in her new job as Miss Oklahoma 2009. “Normally, in the summers, it’s pretty laid back,” Treat, a human relations senior and two-time Miss OU, said July 24. “You spend a lot of time working on your platform, because that’s what you’ll be presenting once school gets kicked into gear, in September.” The laid-back days of summer are in contrast with the blitz of activity Treat went through in the days after winning the title June 6. “I got four hours of sleep [June 4], and last night I got five,” said Treat in a June 8 interview. Her win came in her fourth year competing in the Miss Oklahoma pageant. She defeated 41 other women to claim the honor. “Obviously, I was really excited,” Treat said June 8. “It still really hasn’t sunk in. I’m Miss Oklahoma. You have to talk yourself into [realizing] it.” Treat enjoyed a good deal of success throughout the week of the pageant. She earned preliminary awards in the talent and swimsuit competitions in addition to the overall crown. Those wins allowed her to claim more than $17,000 in scholarships. Treat previously claimed the titles of Miss OU in 2007 and 2009, Miss Ada and Miss Oklahoma State Fair. “Miss OU has been my favorite title so far,” the former OU pom squad member said. “You’re representing your university, and you get to do a lot of things on campus. As a student, it’s really amazing to say you are an ambassador for the university.” In September, Treat will begin to tour schools across Oklahoma to promote her platform of service learning. “[Service learning] is a program that goes into our school system and uses core curriculum classes and incorporates a service project into something they are already learning about,” she said. “For example, in a nutrition class, students might learn how to read a food label, and then participate in a food drive.” Treat’s introduction to service learning came when she was a student at Ada High School. The school required students to participate in service projects as part of their requirements for graduation. She recently attended the State Superintendent’s Annual Leadership Conference to pitch her service learning program to educators. In December, Treat will also begin preparations for the 2010 Miss America pageant, which will take place Jan. 30 in Las Vegas. One difference in this year’s Miss America pageant

Kyle West/The Daily

AP PHOTO

Taylor Treat, human relations senior, is crowned Miss Oklahoma 2009. Treat is also a two-time Miss OU winner. from pageants in recent years is that a reality show will not be filmed during the three weeks prior to the competition. “I’m kind of happy about it,” Treat said of the reality show’s absence. “If you don’t know much about scholarship pageants, then things can be portrayed negatively. It’s done nothing but wonderful things for me.” She will also get to meet the other Miss America competitors in August, when she travels to Orlando, Fla. to support Miss Teen Oklahoma, Georgia Frazier, at the Miss Teen America Pageant. “Being Miss Oklahoma, it’s kind of my time to maybe intimidate the other states a little bit,” Treat laughed. “And definitely show them that we’re coming to compete well at Miss America.” Along with preparing for a busy few months, Treat recently signed autographs at four Tulsa-area K-Marts, and will be at a Norman Homeland August 22 to sign autographs alongside some former OU Heisman Trophy winners. Treat will put her studies on hold for a year to serve as Miss Oklahoma. After she is finished serving as Miss Oklahoma, she plans to finish her undergraduate degree and attend graduate school. Eventually, she would like to open her own dance studio.

SWITZER RECOGNIZED FOR COMMUNITY SERVICE Former OU and Dallas Cowboys head football coach Barry Switzer was named recipient of the 2009 John F. Kennedy Community Service Award by the Oklahoma chapter of the Knights of Columbus. Switzer was honored with the award at a July 14 reception in Oklahoma City. Former Oklahoma Gov. David Walters, who serves as president of the Knights of Columbus Building Corporation of Oklahoma City, said Switzer was chosen for the award because of his service with the Special Olympics of Oklahoma over the past four decades. “One of the things folks don’t appreciate about Coach Switzer is how much he’s done beyond athletics,” Walters said. “He’s been head coach for the Special Olympics and attended all the Special Olympics games, and has traveled with them all across the U.S.” Jono Greco/The Daily

OU BIOLOGISTS DISCOVER CANCER BREAKTHROUGH Researchers at the OU Cancer Institute announced the findings of a new study on how a particular cancer stem cell protein causes tumors to grow. Cancer biologist Shrikant Anant and Dr. Courtney Houchin announced their discovery at a press conference May 21 in the Stanton L. Young Biomedical Research Center in Oklahoma City. “I would like the public to know that we are taking a different approach to researching cancer,” Houchin said. “This idea has been around for a while, but it’s only recently become a hot issue. I believe it’s going to be the future of cancer therapy. This will make it easier to target specific cancers in specific ways.” The researchers said it is the first evidence of a stem cell protein regulating a tumor suppressor. Kyle West/The Daily

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Back-to-School Edition 2009

13A

Free events give students affordable alternatives for fun

CAMP CRIMSON GETS A ‘DOUBLE-TRIPLE’

Free entertainment can save money for students this fall JAKE VINSON The Oklahoma Daily

ELI HULL / THE DAILY

Janelle, Jasmine, and Jessica Gore (back) and Lesley, Cassie, and Jessica Scott (front), the two sets of triplets joining the Class of 2013, gather together outside Couch Center after closing ceremonies of Camp Sooner July 25.

Two sets of triplets attend Camp Crimson, join Class of 2013 together CHARLES WARD The Oklahoma Daily

“My mom basically raised us to be Sooners. So, we decided when were probably like 10 years old... It’s not that we’re staying together or anything. It’s just, we all wanted to come to OU. We love OU. So, we were all just excited to come.” LESLEY SCOTT, INCOMING FRESHMAN

There’s a sure way to get under Janelle Gore’s skin: Lump her and her sisters, Jessica and Jasmine, together as “The Triplets.” “That is so annoying,” Janelle said. “I hate when people say the triplets. Why can’t you say, ‘Hey there’s Janelle, Hey, there’s Jessica. Hey there’s Jasmine.’ It’s always there’s the triplets.” With the Gore sisters spread through more than 21,000 students in Norman, they enjoyed a good chance of shaking the moniker of “The Triplets.” They didn’t know until arriving at Camp Crimson July 23, that another set of triplets, Lesley, Jessie and Cassie Scott, would help them from standing out as similar siblings. “At first, I was shocked,” Cassie said. “We know one set of triplets pretty well. But another set, here at OU, at Camp Crimson was pretty cool.” The Gores and Scotts each had met some other sets of triplets, but not each other, at conventions run by Triplet Connection, an international social and support group for triplets and their parents. The conventions even give awards for similarities. “We’ve been to three of them and the last one we went to, I believe it was, we got the most identical award,” Cassie said. “We look pretty much alike.” The Gores know another set of three born in the same hospital as they were. And, when they were in seventh grade, a set of triplets enrolled in the kindergarten of their school. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were about 1.4 sets of triplets born for every 1,000 live births in 2006. So, that there would be one set of triplets in an incoming freshman class of about 4,600 isn’t all that surprising. And the chances of one coming through the nearly 1,500 Camp Crimson attendees were about even. But two sets, not only in the same freshman class, but at the same Camp Crimson session of 512 people? And almost all in the same family group? Five of the six were in the Hoefnagels Family group, with Lesley the odd one out in the Franzese Family group. “It was rumored that there was going to be another

set, but we just thought that they were talking about us again,” Jasmine said. “I was really surprised. I was very surprised.” The Gores are mixed triplets, with Jasmine a fraternal triplet to her identical sisters. According to ParentingWeekly.com, mixed triplets “occur when two eggs are released and fertilized separately, and one of those fertilized eggs splits again.” The Scotts are identical triplets, which ParentingWeekly. com describes as “when only one egg is released and fertilized, but splits, and then one half splits again.” Janelle said she and her sisters toured several schools before all deciding on OU. “I always wanted to go to the same school,” she said. “Jasmine, she kind of wanted to do her own thing, but we ended up coming to school together, because it worked out for the best.” The Scotts, though, thought of little else other than coming to school in Norman. “My mom just basically raised us to be Sooners,” Lesley said. “So, we decided when were probably like 10 years old; watching football and just wanting to come here forever. It’s not that we’re staying together or anything. It’s just, we all wanted to come to OU. We love OU. So, we were all just excited to come.” Cassie’s late acceptance to OU threatened to keep the Scotts from all staying together. She eventually received her admission, preventing her from a six-hour separation from her sisters by attending Texas Tech. Now, the sisters look forward to creating identities separate from each other while at OU. “I know it’s a big enough campus that we’re not going to do the same things at the same time,” Jessie said. Maybe even big enough for relationships on a firstname basis, instead of just being one of the triplets. “It’s going to be good for us,” Jessica said. “We’re going to be at school together. We can make it work. Anywhere we go, we’re going to have fun.”

As the lights begin to dim and students settle into their seats, conversations begin to get quieter until they are almost nonexistent. The screen begins playing previews for upcoming movies and everyone’s concentration is focused on the images in front of them. This is how Tim Lueking, mathematics junior, spent several of his Friday nights last school year. Lueking was able to experience several of the year’s hottest movies, all without paying a single dime for a movie ticket. “I got to see some great movies like, ‘Tropic Thunder,’ ‘Quantum of Solace’ and ‘Zack and Miri,’ and I didn’t ever have to pay for them,” Lueking said. “I enjoy being able to go and see good movies within walking distance with my friends.” Lueking is one of hundreds of students who take advantage of free events and programs offered on campus. Several different organizations like the Union Programming Board, Housing and Food Services and the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art offer free events for students. These events and programs are available so students won’t be as stressed about finances. The Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art is one of the more popular places for students to go and visit without having to pay. The museum offers new exhibits and lectures throughout the year for students. Brittany Kelly, art history senior, is a frequent guest of the museum because she enjoys the free exhibits and lectures. “I like being able to go and see new exhibits for free, whether they are from prominent artists or student artists,” Kelly said. “I also like to attend some of the lectures that talk about exhibits. I think I learn a lot about the art being able to attend these.” The Sam Noble Museum of Natural History is also free for students any day of the week. The museum offers several rooms which display models of historic creatures and humans, a long with a wide collection of dinosaur bones and fossils from around the region. A good time for students to take advantage of free events around campus is during the first couple of days after move-in. There are many events during these first days that can be attended almost every hour of the day. Most are made possible by the coordinators of several different offices around campus working together to make times work out for the different student groups. Johnnie-Margaret McConnell, assistant director of Residence Life, plays a big part in the planning and execution of several free events from the time students arrive on campus to the time they attend their first classes. “What [Housing and Food Services] work toward is the coordinating of groups to get all the freshmen on campus by the Sunday before classes,” McConnell said. “On that Sunday, we have a huge dinner where students from the residential halls all come and eat together, and head back to their halls where they can meet with their residential advisors and talk about living in the hall. We are able to use the dinner to show students how to use the meal plan and also promote some of the up and coming free events for the year.” With all of the events and activities that are held for students during their first days at OU, there are plenty of ways for students to build new friendships and learn their way around campus so that they too may be able to enjoy the free events and activities with students like Lueking.

Faculty mentor program guides freshmen VICTORIA STAHL The Oklahoma Daily

The office of Dr. Kelly Damphousse is a warm and inviting one. Bookshelves are home to not only books, but also pictures of smiling, happy faces of family and friends. One item that made its way onto his shelf is a small stuffed toy dragon, a gift from one of his mentor groups. Damphousse’s personality is as warm and inviting as his office. His friendly smile reaches all the way up to his eyes while he speaks of his favorite memories from the past years at the University of Oklahoma. As associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Damphousse said he has been a participant in the faculty mentor program for freshmen since 1999, with only a one-year hiatus. According to Angela Gauthier, retention assistant at the Center for Student Advancement, the Faculty Mentor Program is offered by the University College and is a free program for freshmen at OU. She said the program gives students peer connections as well as contact with someone on the campus. “Our ultimate hope is that the students will stay in contact with their mentor throughout their college career,” Gauthier said. Gauthier said one benefit of the program is many times, mentors can help undecided students find the major that fits them best. Damphousse said the program gives him an opportunity to give new students a connection on campus that they can talk to about anything. “I think the best thing is that it gives [students] an opportunity to talk to someone of authority who doesn’t have authority over them,” Damphousse said. “They get a perspective that they may not get from talking to other students.” Damphousse said he schedules several events throughout the year to give students an opportunity to get to know him better, as well as other students. He also has a group meeting with all of his students at the beginning of the semester and they begin to plan the semester together. “I have them come over to my house to watch a football game, we go horseback riding, paintballing and usually see a musical at OU,” Damphousse said. “I try to take them to places they might not go on their own.” Damphousse said the program creates a unique way to get involved on campus. “The only bad experience is students who don’t participate in the program,” Damphousse said. “I’ve had students who never show up. Sometimes, they don’t realize the opportunity they’ve got.”

VICTORIA STAHL/THE DAILY

Dr. Kelly Damphousse, associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, works in his office in Ellison Hall. Damphousse is one of many mentors available through the faculty mentor program.

While some instructors in the program choose to take a more social approach for the students, others give students an opportunity to excel in a major or field they are interested in. Chemistry professor Donna Nelson will join the Faculty Mentor program for the first time this fall. Nelson said her reasoning for joining the program is to gear students toward more scientific majors. “I have events scheduled that I hope will show students the more interesting and more fun side of chemistry,” Nelson said. Gauthier said students can continue to sign up for mentors until around the middle of fall semester.

14A

Back-to-School Edition 2009

David Ray becomes interim dean of Honors College Political science prof, former city council representative will serve for two years JAMES LOVETT The Oklahoma Daily

Political science professor David Ray is the new interim dean of the Joe C. and Carole Kerr McClendon Honors College after the OU Board of Regents approved the hiring at its June meeting. Ray would succeeds Robert Con Davis-Undiano, who resigned as dean to focus on his new role as executive director of OU’s literary journal, “World Literature Today.” “I appreciate the extra service Professor DavisUndiano provided to the university by serving as both the Honors College dean in addition to his responsibilities as executive director of World Literature Today,” OU President David Boren said in the statement. “In concert with our efforts to minimize hiring during the economic downturn, I’m also grateful that Professor Ray will serve as interim Honors College dean for approximately two years, after which the university will conduct a national search for a permanent dean.” Ray joined the political science department in 1992. Prior to coming to Norman, he spent 14 years teaching at the Georgia Institute of Technology. While at Georgia Tech, he received the Teacher of the Year Award and the Inter-Fraternity Council’s Outstanding Professor Award. During his time at OU, Ray received the University General Education Teaching Award in 1995, the Regents Award for Superior Teaching in 1999, the Student Athletes Association “Most Inspiring Professor” award in 2000, and the University College award for Outstanding Instructor in a Freshman Seminar in 2001. In April of this year, UOSA honored Ray with the Outstanding Faculty Award. Ray represented Ward 4 on the Norman City Council from 2002-2003. Norman Mayor Cindy Rosenthal also represented Ward 4 before becoming mayor, but said she first met Ray working in the political science department at OU.

ESTEBAN PULIDO/THE DAILY

David Ray, political science professor, stands in his office in Dale Hall Tower. Professor Ray has been a professor at OU since 1992.

“We’re both political science faculty members and that’s how I first knew him,” Rosenthal said. “I think David has a well-established and well-deserved record as a really gifted teacher.” Rosenthal said she thinks Ray’s teaching capabilities will be a good fit for the Honors College. “To the extent that the Honors College is about quality teaching, I think he’ll be a great leader at the college,” she said. “He’s very well-liked by students and he’s just interesting, provocative, entertaining and thoughtful in the classroom, and that’s a lot of what the Honors College contributes to the university.

Boren also said Ray’s popularity among students will be beneficial to his new role as interim dean. “Professor Ray is a master teacher known as a professor who puts students first,” Boren said. “He is often mentioned by student leaders and those who have excelled academically as one of their most important mentors. The mission of the honors college is to serve as a catalyst for intellectual growth and vitality on our campus. The Honors College should be an integral part of the entire university, and I can think of no one better positioned to underline the importance of great teaching and mentorship than David Ray.”

Profs weigh in on using Twitter for class

OU STARTS TWEETING

Some say new micro-blogging site a fad MATTHEW MOZEK The Oklahoma Daily

The use of online social networks has grown to be incredibly prominent in the lives and experiences of today’s college students. While it is common for most students to use online social networks, such as Twitter, the usage of similar sites by professors and faculty is less prominent. OU press secretary Jay Doyle said the university does not have an official social networking policy for faculty and staff. However, the policies and guidelines that are in place for usage and privacy do extend to social networking sites, he said. “We have some faculty who are using Twitter,” said Joe Foote, Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication dean. “I know that faculty use Twitter in large classes to get real-time feedback on class discussions, guest speakers and assigned topics. I’m sure that other uses will evolve as well.” Foote said Twitter has become especially prominent in the journalism profession. “In journalism, Twitter has become a vital tool in breaking news where stories can change by the minute,” Foote said. “Many mainstream journalists are using Twitter to promote their upcoming stories on a variety of media.” In addition, journalism professor Chris Krug said he monitors breaking news stories as well as current events and uses Twitter to link his class and faculty colleagues to those articles. While not all members of the OU faculty use social networking sites, they still recognize the significance of these social networking venues while weighing the drawbacks of such devices. “I happen to know that quite a few professors are currently using the various social networking sites, including Facebook and others,” anthropology professor Jessica Walker said. “I am personally unfamiliar with Twitter. I

illustration by Eli Hull/The Daily

hear about it, but have not yet ventured to see what it is really about.” Walker said she is still unsure as to whether or not using these types of sites are a good way to interact with students. “I find the multiple networking sites to be quite timeconsuming and distracting, but I understand the benefits that they offer,” Walker said. “Personally, I would not use such sites to interact with my students, but I know there are some professors that choose to do that, particularly those professors that work with graduate students.” Twitter, as well as other popular sites like MySpace, Facebook and Xanga, has created another place for potential interactions between students and professors. But it remains to be seen whether this new venue for interaction has staying power, or if it will someday be remembered as another online fad.

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The University of Oklahoma began “tweeting” last spring to reach out to the current student population and potential students. “There’s so much that happens on campus, and this gives us the perfect outlet to talk about it,” said Erin Yarbrough, OU Web Communications spokeswoman. She said the purpose behind OU’s Twitter is connecting with the community. “We want to use Twitter as a conversation between the university and our followers,” Yarbrough said. She said OU’s Twitter aims to connect with anyone who is interested in the university such as current students, prospective students, fans and alumni. She said it was a way for the university to personally connect with people in a casual way. The university has five official “tweeters” in the OU Web Communications office, one of which is Yarbrough. Yarbrough said the university’s tweets include anything from things happening around campus to personally conversing with followers. The amount the school tweets varies, depending on how much is going on. “We may go days without something to say, or when something big on campus is happening, like graduation, we may tweet a few times a day,” Yarbrough said. The school’s profile name is UofOklahoma, and as of July 27, the account had over 2,000 followers. “This is constantly growing,” Yarbrough said. She said OU also tries to follow anyone who follows the school. Yarbrough said the school hopes to use its Twitter to communicate with and interest potential students. “With regards to potential students, we really just want to be here to answer any questions and join in the excitement of looking for a university,” Yarbrough said. “So, if we’ve motivated anyone to apply to OU because of our tweets, then that’s just gravy.” OU is currently not involving students in the tweeting process, but Yarbrough said they are discussing ways to involve the student body. Yarbrough said she envisions OU’s Twitter profile giving the university a face for people who may not be connected with it. She said OU’s twitter is helping create another community for its followers to reach out to the university. OU began using Twitter on April 21. Kyle West/The Daily Originally published May 18

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Back-to-School Edition 2009

15A

HEADLINES OF THE SUMMER

University Press lays off eight workers after Boren promise CHARLES WARD The Oklahoma Daily

The OU Press laid off eight workers June 24, the same day OU President David Boren announced the university did not foresee the university needing to layoff employees. “I don’t want [the media] saying we expect anything like that,” Boren said after the June meeting of the OU Board of Regents in Ardmore, referring to potential layoffs or furloughs. “That would have to be like the end of the world, virtually.” B. Byron Price, director of the University of Oklahoma Press, said the layoffs had been under consideration for several months. “They’ve been in process for a while, because it takes a long time for those to you know, work through the review process,” he said. Price said the layoffs were “across the board,” affecting the administrative, editorial, production and shipping and receiving departments. According to Price, the layoffs came as the OU Press planned to reduce its book-publishing output by 20 percent in the coming fiscal year. “Returns from wholesalers, lower demand for product, books, which many publishers, university publishers and commercial publishers are experiencing [led to the reductions],” he said. “And employee and production costs have impacted university presses nationwide.” Price said the press reduced its budget by 11 percent during the current fiscal year through internal cuts and savings, but those reductions weren’t enough to avoid layoffs. Catherine Bishop, vice president for student affairs, said the OU press works as a separate enterprise with a different financial structure than the rest of the university. “The University of Oklahoma Press is an auxiliary enterprise that produces books which generate sales,” Bishop said in an e-mail. “The OU Press has implemented a reduction in force involving eight employees to right-size for the amount of work they have scheduled for the year. This is not unusual for an entity where business and therefore, workforce needs, ebb and flow with national trends. Of course, our hope is that those impacted would consider other jobs available at OU.” Bishop said the layoffs at the OU Press were not a result of the budget adopted at the June Regents meeting. “The reduction in force at the OU Press was not a result of the budget adopted for the next fiscal year, but rather a business decision by a revenue generating unit to align its workforce for the upcoming fiscal year with its production schedule for the year,” she said. Price said while the layoffs were unwanted, they were necessary. “We still needed to cut our budget by another 12 percent,” he said. “And that couldn’t be achieved without a reduction in force. We looked at everything, and felt that although it was difficult, it was really necessary, because it’s impossible for us to have a 20 percent reduction in book production without reducing our workforce simultaneously.” Later in July, an employee laid off by the OU Press criticized

TYLER METCALFE/THE DAILY

Byron Price, University of Oklahoma Press Director and College of Art professor, displays a book recently shipped from the OU Press distribution warehouse on July 27. Price works closely with clients at the press ordering books and working to distribute publications. the layoff procedures and a lack of help in finding new employment within the OU system. “The reason I got laid-off was because when our sales started dropping, you know,” said Jack Williams, a shipping and receiving technician at the OU Press. “I asked a couple of questions and it made them mad in a meeting. And they were legit questions, I mean, they weren’t bad questions.” Williams said he questioned marketing decisions made by the OU Press. “We haven’t made any gross changes [in marketing],” Price said after hearing of the employee’s complaints. “We’ve streamlined the way we’re doing things. We may not be doing things on the same scale, but we’re still doing the things we’ve always done.” Williams said he had been at the OU Press “a long time” and that seniority was not considered when the layoffs were issued. “They didn’t do it by seniority, they just went and done it, who they liked and who they disliked,” Williams said. The University of Oklahoma Staff Handbook states that in the event of a reduction in force, “Employee retention will be based on both performance and seniority. Seniority will be considered as total seniority with the university. In the event performance is determined to be equal among employees, seniority will be given weighted consideration.”

HEADLINES OF THE SUMMER

Price said decisions regarding which individuals would be laid-off followed the procedures laid out in the guide. Bishop denied that the layoffs targeted specific employees. “In a reduction in force, individuals are not targeted, rather, duties are either collapsed or consolidated, impacting individuals who are responsible for those duties,” she wrote in an e-mail. Williams also criticized the support he’s received from the university in finding a new position. He said that he’s applied for at least five positions at OU, in both Housing and Food Services and at the Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City, but that he’s yet to receive a call back from those positions. Williams said the positions he’s applied for have been minimum-wage jobs, which is currently $6.55 an hour, but will increase to $7.25 an hour July 24. Price said he did not know what priority employees who have been laid off had been given for other positions. “I know that Human Resources has been and continues to work with all of the staff that has been impacted in this layoff,” he said. “And I know that some have been interviewing for positions. I have served as a reference for staff. Some have informed me of positions they are interviewing for and others have been more private about that.”

CHILDERS PLEADS GUILTY

City of Norman bans smoking in public parks

A former University of Oklahoma student pleaded guilty to charges stemming from an incident in which police said he pulled a gun on a teacher. Michael Joseph Childers pleaded guilty on July 9 to kidnapping and using a firearm while committing a felony. A Cleveland County judge sentenced the 27-year-old Childers to 10 years in prison for kidnapping, with seven of those years suspended. The judge issued an identical sentence on the firearm charge. The sentences will run concurrently, meaning Childers effectively will MICHAEL serve three years in prison. CHILDERS In 2007, Childers illegally hacked into one of Yasuda’s computer accounts in an attempt to intimidate her. The following year, he was charged with violating the Computer Crimes Act in connection to the misdemeanor. Police say Childers pointed a handgun at Japanese instructor Mano Yasuda on Feb. 13 inside Kaufman Hall and tried to force her to leave the building with him before others came to her aid and he fled. He was arrested later that evening in Broken Arrow. Associated Press

ELI HULL / THE DAILY

The Norman City Council voted to ban smoking in parks June 23. The city ordinance went into effect July 23. JAMES LOVETT AND KATY PEARSON The Oklahoma Daily

Norman City Council members unanimously approved a city ordinance June 23 banning smoking and tobacco use in city parks. Norman police began enforcing a the new ordinance one month later on July 23. A similar proposed ban failed two years ago. Signs were posted in city parks July 20 to inform citizens of the changes that were to come. Norman Police Capt. Leonard Judy said that based upon the experiences of other cities that have enacted similar ordinances, the police department anticipates good compliance by Norman citizens and other park visitors. “We expect that our primary role will be one of education about the ordinance rather than enforcement of it,” he said. The ordinance excludes Westwood Golf Course because city officials say smoking on the golf course is not as likely to bother or harm others. Norman city parking lots are also exempt. City officials said 76 percent of residents surveyed supported a ban on smoking in the parks.. Norman is the third city in Oklahoma to pass such an ordinance, after Owasso and Noble, according to Parks Director Jud Foster. He said the ordinance is important because cigarette butts left on the ground pose a threat to children who might put them in their mouths. “It’s a public health issue, and it’s about the example we are setting for children,” Foster said. Judy also said officers have been informed of the new

ordinance and will primarily act to inform violators early on rather than cite them. However, if violators exhibit an unwillingness to comply when contacted by the officer, they may still be cited. According to Judy, violators can receive a citation. If the defendant appears in court within five working days and enters a guilty or no contest plea with a court clerk, the cost will be a $10 to $100 fine and another $44 in court costs. Judy said if the defendant fails to appear, a new charge of ‘failure to appear’ will be added and a warrant may be issued for his or her arrest. The Norman community’s reaction to the ban has varied. Robert Foster, political science sophomore, said he is thrilled with the new ordinance. He frequently goes to city parks with friends and said not only are the cigarette butts littering the ground unappealing and bad for the environment, but he also dislikes the secondhand smoke of passersby. “When I go to the park I expect it to be a healthy, wholesome, fun experience,” he said. “Now in parks I am choking on a stranger’s smoke - it’s no different than when I was walking on a crowded sidewalk in New York City.” Whitney Rogers, 21, is a smoker and frequent Andrews Park visitor. She said she used to go to concerts and summer events in the park and smoking was just part of the relaxing atmosphere. “I won’t be going to the park events near as much if I can’t smoke,” Rogers said. “Smoking is part of what I do to relax and enjoy my time in the park. I see people at these events drinking alcohol and then they drive home. How can it be fair that they can drink but I can’t smoke?”

ZACH BUTLER/THE DAILY

OUPD escorts Yoshiko Fukushima, Japanese professor, away from Kaufman Hall in the back of the police car, after being attacked by Childers on Feb. 13.

16A

Back-to-School Edition 2009

HEADLINES OF THE SUMMER

SOONERS LOSE ‘ONE OF THE BEST’ BY CHARLES WARD The Oklahoma Daily

"Wayman loves this place. He loves the University of Oklahoma. He loves people. That's what I would tell our guys. Just try to emulate the pride that he has for what you represent. Also have a passion for life that Wayman had." OU head men's basketball coach Jeff Capel spoke those words as he remembered Wayman Tisdale, the former OU basketball All-American who died Friday, May 15 after battling cancer. He was 44 years old. "Wayman, through this fight of his, was the most courageous person that I've ever seen," Billy Tubbs, Tisdale's coach at OU, said in a statement released by OU's athletic department. "He was so positive he almost made you feel he was okay when you knew he wasn't. It's a shock. I don't know of any athlete at Oklahoma or any place else who was more loved by the fans who knew him than Wayman Tisdale. He was obviously, a great, great player, but Wayman as a person overshadowed that. He just lit up a room and was so positive. This is a really hard loss and makes any loss in basketball or any other sport insignificant. He was a great human being. I'll miss everything about him." Tisdale dominated college basketball during his threeyear run at OU, becoming the first player in NCAA history to earn Associated Press first-team All-American honors in his freshman, sophomore and junior seasons. He also won the Big Eight Player of the Year Award in each of his three seasons. He led OU to appearances in three NCAA tournaments, including a run to the Elite Eight in 1985. OU's trip to the tournament in 1983, Tisdale's freshman year, was just the school's second NCAA appearance since 1947. OU also captured Big Eight regular-season championships in 1984 and 1985. In three seasons, Tisdale scored 2,661 points and pulled down 1,048 rebounds, both school records that stand today. He also holds school records in field goals (1,077), free throws (507) and free throw attempts (767). He also scored 61 points against Texas San-Antonio during his sophomore season, still an OU record for a single game. Tisdale played on the 1984 U.S. Olympic team, which won a gold medal in Los Angeles. He played alongsideNBA greats like Michael Jordan and Patrick Ewing and led the team in rebounds. "When you look at what he did," Capel said, "three years, first-team All-American, what he did for this program, and

PHOTO PROVIDED

Wayman Tisdale (23) shoots a field goal. Tisdale was an AllAmerican for three years in a row in the 1970s. what he did for Coach Tubbs. Look at the numbers he put up in three years. You look at the individual game numbers, the career numbers, everything. He's one of the best college basketball players, ever. One of the most dominant college basketball players ever, in my mind. I don't know that much about the history of the Big Eight, but he certainly has to be the best player in the history of the Big Eight, with what he was able to accomplish." Tisdale also overcame any notion that OU is a "football school," becoming the first athlete in Sooners' history to have his jersey retired, regardless of sport. However, he allowed OU to figuratively bring his number down from the Lloyd Noble Center catwalks, so that former Oklahoma forward Blake Griffin could wear it.

"This is obviously a sad day," Griffin said in a statement released by the OU Athletic Department. "Not just for Sooner fans but for anybody who knows Wayman, knows the kind of person he is, the joy he brings into people's lives and the example he is to everybody. I was privileged to get to know him over the two years I was at OU. I spoke with him pretty frequently this past season and he helped me in ways he probably doesn't even know. He's touched so many lives. I'm just happy he's going to a better place." Tisdale came to the University of Oklahoma after a prep career at Tulsa's Booker T. Washington High School. Tisdale and the Hornets captured the 1981 Class 5A State Championship (at the time, 5A was Oklahoma's largest class). The Indiana Pacers drafted Tisdale with the No. 2 overall pick in the 1985 draft, after he bypassed his senior year of eligibility at Oklahoma. He would go on to a 12-year NBA career, averaging 15.3 points per game for Indiana, Phoenix and Sacramento. In 1995, Tisdale recorded "Power Forward," a contemporary jazz album for the Motown subsidiary MoJazz. "Power Forward" hit No. 4 on Billboard Magazine's Top Contemporary Jazz albums list. Eight of Tisdale's releases would reach the top 10 on that chart and three, "Face to Face," "Way Up!" and "Rebound" would reach No. 1 on that list. "Way Up!" and "Rebound" also charted on the Billboard 200. "I loved his music," Capel said. "Even before I got here, I loved it. I had his CDs. My dad's a big jazz fan, so that got me into it a little bit. I loved it. I have an autographed Wayman Tisdale CD up in my office. It's probably one of the two autographs in my life that I've ever gotten." Last August, Tisdale's leg was amputated in an effort to fight his cancer. His diagnosis came in 2007 after a fall in his Los Angeles home. "In his two-year battle with cancer, Wayman demonstrated courage, faith and true strength of character," Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry said in a statement released by his office. "Even in the most challenging of times, he had a smile for people, and he had the rare ability to make everyone around him smile. He was one of the most inspirational people I have ever known." Henry was an undergraduate student at OU at the same time Tisdale was. Henry would go on to appoint Tisdale to the state Tourism Commission. In his statement, Henry called the appointment "one of the best appointments I have made as governor." Tisdale is survived by his wife, Regina and four children.

Cronkite’s legacy leaves memories for Sooners Late CBS news anchor was one of the first to broadcast OU football JAMES LOVETT The Oklahoma Daily

Walter Cronkite’s play-by-play of OU football wasn’t the news legend’s greatest job. In fact, he was awful at it. “The first game was the traditional opener against Tulsa,” Cronkite wrote in his autobiography, “A Reporter’s Life.” “The broadcast was a disaster. I was trying to get the numbers off the jerseys as the plays progressed, refer to the program and finally deliver some sort of report on the play, which by then had unfolded some minutes before. The cheers for that play had long since died down and were being succeeded by the cheers for the next play before I had identified the players in the first one. I was hopelessly blind.” Like Cronkite, the 1937 Sooners also got off to a shaky start, winning just one of the team’s first five games with a pair of ties. But the team’s two ties ended losing streaks to rival opponents. The 7-7 outcome with Texas, Cronkite’s alma mater, ended a stretch of three straight wins by Texas in the Red River Rivalry, while the 0-0 tie at Nebraska ended a six-game losing streak to the Cornhuskers. Cronkite, who died July 17 at the

age of 92, was 21 at the time. He broadcasting for WKY-AM 930 in Oklahoma City, which had just secured the exclusive rights to broadcast OU football for the first time. “WKY was a first-class operation. It was owned by the Daily Oklahoman and Times, the state’s preeminent newspaper, was an affiliate of NBC and did a lot of fine local programming,” Cronkite wrote. “There were still a couple of months to the football season, and they suggest I might like to live on the university campus at Norman to get more familiar with the team.” Cronkite wrote that his rocky first broadcast provided him an educational experience he would remember his entire life. “I had learned a lesson that would prove highly valuable as the years went on,” he wrote. “Never again would I be caught without doing whatever research was possible for whatever it was I was going to cover.” Joe Foote, dean of the Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication, spent some time with Cronkite during the anchorman’s later years in life while working as director of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. Foote said Cronkite’s eagerness to do a job he had no experience with is just one example of his constant curiosity and love for reporting.

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PHOTO PROVIDED

Walter Cronkite interviews Sooner quarterback Beryl Clark in 1937 for Oklahoma City radio station WKY-AM. Cronkite was known as the “most trusted man in America,” and died July 17 at age 92. “Just the way he started in high World War II. He was 25 years old place before they were born. It enschool and worked during col- and look what he had done.” ergized him so much, like a lot of lege was [remarkable],” Foote said. Foote said he met with Cronkite successful people. “How much ambition he had, how several times during his tenure “They want to surround themmuch excitement he had wanting at Arizona State, and remembers selves with young people, they to be a part of things. Just like with how excited he was to work with want to absorb the new ideas. The his OU football thing, he had never up-and-coming journalists. way [students] received energy broadcast football before and he “As director of the school, I was from him and visa versa was just just shows up and he does it and naturally interested in seeking his really special.” goes on. The next thing you know opinion,” Foote said. “Students he’s in Kansas City and the next really connected with him even Information provided by the OU Athletics thing you know he’s in Moscow though they were really far reand then on the front lines covering moved from his career, which took Department.

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Back-to-School Edition 2009

17A

HEADLINES OF THE SUMMER

SOONER ALUMNA ‘ATTACKS’ HOLLYWOOD CAREER CHARLES WARD The Oklahoma Daily

Olivia Munn’s description of the 1,000th episode of “Attack of the Show” begins with a bit of standard hype. “Something epic is going to happen,” Munn said. “Something truly, truly epic, and it could be disturbing for some.” So far, it could be a very special episode of just about anything. “I still smell like Old Spice in some way, and I can’t say anything more than that.” Wait. What? For fans of G4’s daily tech and pop culture review program, and of Munn, a 2002 OU graduate, this revelation might not be surprising. Previous “Attack of the Show” segments have featured her birthing balloons, cliff-diving and running around a Star Wars convention dressed as Princess Leia. “We’re bringing on old hosts from the past, and we’re going to be showing some of my best moments on the show,” Munn said. “I do a lot of comedy. I do a lot of dressing up and doing skits and stuff like that and dressing up as every super hero you can think of.” Before Munn set out to co-host “Attack of the Show” and its contained craziness, she grew up dividing her time between Oklahoma and Japan, where her stepfather was stationed in the Air Force. She graduated from Putnam City North High School and remained in Oklahoma for practical reasons. “It’s an in-state school, and we couldn’t afford an out-of-state school,” Munn said. “I just stayed [with] OU because ... it was what accepted me and what my mom could afford. And my grandmother lived down the street.” While at OU, Munn majored in journalism and wrote for several publications (including The Daily). In Norman she substituted the written word for what she really wanted to

do, which was act. “I wanted to do theater, but my mother just wasn’t convinced there was anything you can do in theater,” she said. “She really didn’t think going to [a] university for three or four years made sense to just do theater. So I thought, ‘Well, there’s journalism,’ and I really love telling stories. I think that’s what journalism is all about — finding a way to tell a story and entertaining people.” Munn moved to California and took a job with Fox Sports after graduation, working as a sideline reporter for women’s college basketball broadcasts before getting sidelined herself with more lucrative gigs. “I started modeling and booking commercials and that was just paying more money than Fox Sports was, so I started doing that,” Munn said. She also landed a small role in “Big Stan,” which starred Rob Schneider, along with a role in a Nickelodeon show “Big Break.” Her current show, “Attack of the Show” lacks the prophetic name of her Nickelodeon gig, but her role as co-host has moved her further into Hollywood’s consciousness. Not only has she been hosting “Attack of the Show” for more than three years, she’s filmed four films this year: including a sequel to 2008’s “Iron Man” and “Date Night” with Steve Carell and Tina Fey.’ She’ll also begin a recurring role in “Greek,” the ABC Family program about fraternity and sorority life. “I’ve been very lucky, just this last year, with the movies that I’ve been able to do with the other actors and me,” Munn said. In another revelation that might disappoint some, she doesn’t offer any spoilers for the upcoming “Iron Man 2.” “It’s definitely under lock down,” Munn said. “I think the fans would be pissed at me for spoiling anything. I wouldn’t want to hear anybody tell me what was going on if I wasn’t in it already. I actually only know the things that I did. That’s how secretive the movie is. I

PHOTO PROVIDED

Olivia Munn hosts the “Attack of the Show” on the G4 network. Munn is a 2002 graduate of OU. only know my part.” And that’s only the moving pictures. She also did a photo shoot for Playboy magazine that landed her on the cover of the July/August issue. The pictoral is unusual for Playboy in that she’s not fully nude in her photos. “They came to me first with the regular nude offer and then I said no,” she said. “Nothing’s wrong with women who do it, it’s just not something I could see myself doing. Then, a few weeks later they came around and said ‘No, we still want you for the cover, and you don’t have to get naked.’” The opportunities at movies and magazine covers won’t tear her away from “Attack of the Show”, however. “I have a lot of loyalty to the people in my life,” Munn said. “I have the same hosting agent I’ve had since the day I moved out here.

I have a big loyalty to people who helped me and believed in me.” Nor will her new and expanded opportunities drive her from active involvement with her Web site, oliviamunn.com, which she uses for much more than a collection of publicity photos and infrequent posts. “I don’t have a ghost blogger, because I don’t think that anybody else can write the way that I write or have a sense of humor that I do,” she said. All of which would seem to prevent her from finding much spare time for anything, let alone return trips to Oklahoma. Yet, Munn does periodically return to the Sooner State to see friends and familywho still live here. “I love Oklahoma,” she said. “As soon as [I] fly in, I can look [out] the window and see everything. Some things just feel like home, and Oklahoma just feels like that.”

Study says Wii video games are good for children Video console uses exercise, motion to get kids to get up and move while playing

CHARLES WARD The Oklahoma Daily

OKLAHOMA CITY — Kids everywhere now have a new talking point when asking, begging or pleading with parents for a Nintendo Wii. The Wii system is good for them, according to a new study from researchers at the Harold Hamm Oklahoma Diabetes Center at the OU Health Sciences Center. The study, which appears this week in “Pediatrics,” a journal issued by the American Academy of Pediatrics, examined the number of calories burned by 23 children aged 10-13 as they played ‘Dance Dance Revolution’, ‘Wii Boxing’ and ‘Wii Bowling.’ The researchers then compared those rates to the energy output of walking at 3.5 mph on a treadmill and watching TV. ‘Wii Boxing’ and level two of ‘Dance Dance Revolution’ produced levels of caloric output two to three times that expended while watching television, similar to the calorie-burning rate of a treadmill. ‘Wii Bowling’ and the easiest level of ‘Dance Dance Revolution’ produced an energy output rate that doubled the energy expenditure of watching television. “We’re not saying that this is equivalent to being on the soccer team or the basketball team or going for a run outside, but it’s a good way to increase your energy expenditure during those times when you’d otherwise be sedentary, [such as] a rainy day or when they’re playing video games anyway,” said Kevin Short, the principal investigator during the study and an assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the OU College of Medicine.

Short said the current recommendation is for children to get at least 60 minutes of moderate-level or greater activity in a day, and that the video games tested would help reach that total. “The national surveys that have been done show that young kids are usually pretty good about meeting that goal,” he said. “But sometime during adolescence, in those teenage years, that level drops down and less than half of kids are meeting that goal, in the United States currently.” The games can also provide some improvement in children who are already obese, Short said. “Only about 30 years ago, 5 percent of our children were obese in the United States,” said Dr. Kenneth Copeland, co-director of Pediatrics at the Hamm Center and the section chief of Pediatric Endocrinology at the OU College of Medicine. “And now, one third of our children are either overweight or obese, and Oklahoma is certainly one of the leading states in that dubious distinction.” Childhood obesity’s link to diabetes in adults is becoming stronger, according to Copeland. “This is prevention at its very best,” he said. “first of all, defining how much of an intervention do you have to [do to] prevent obesity, how much of an intervention like the Wii games, the video games, do you have to make to really make a difference on energy expenditure, caloric expenditure.” Children were excited to participate in the study, according to Lauren Pratt, a co-investigator on the study. Advertisements that promoted the video games as ways to exercise, along with a previous Health Sciences Center study which used ‘Dance Dance Revolution’ as an exercise stimulus in schools, provided the genesis for the study. “So many companies are promoting these active video games and systems, like ‘Dance Dance Revolution’ and the Nintendo Wii, that we [asked], ‘How many calories are kids expending when they play these games, or adults for that matter?’” Short said. “And how does this compare to other forms of exercise that we regularly promote.”

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Children who play the Wii expend two to three times as many calories as they would sitting and watching TV. Researchers at the Harold Hamm Oklahoma Diabetes Center at the OU Health Sciences Center performed the study. Future studies, including one that is currently under way, will determine if these results are consistent across age groups, including adults, and how exercise affects the blood sugar levels in children and adults.

18A

Back-to-School Edition 2009

HEADLINES OF THE SUMMER

Landmark to become Chipotle restaurant Freebirds World Burrito â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;not too worriedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; about competition from national chain KYLE WEST The Oklahoma Daily

The historic Boomer Theater on Campus Corner will soon open its doors to Chipotle Mexican Grill, marking the first time the Norman landmark will be home of a restaurant establishment. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Right now, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s probably looking like the Norman location will open in November,â&#x20AC;? said Chipotle communications director Chris Arnold. The Boomer Theater was originally built in 1947 but stopped showing movies in the mid-1970s, according to the Campus Corner Merchants Association Web site. In 1985, the theater was purchased and remodeled by Haroldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Stores, Inc., which vacated the building after filing for bankruptcy last year. Helen Wolney, Campus Corner Merchants Association president, said Chipotle should make an excellent addition to the university-based business district. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This will be an attraction people will come to,â&#x20AC;? Wolney said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think it will add to the element that there are shops and restaurants down here, and not so much office-type space, which will be upstairs.â&#x20AC;? Wolney said Chipotle likely will be a draw for many students. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Anything that attracts students is a great place,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And any non-empty building on Campus Corner is a plus.â&#x20AC;? Arnold said Chipotle restaurants are popular in college towns across the nation. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Students seem to gravitate toward our restaurants because of the quality of food they get for a reasonable price,â&#x20AC;? he said. Erika Kelly, psychology graduate student, said she grew up with Chipotle in Kansas City and is happy a location is opening in Norman. Kelly said she also likes Freebirds World Burrito a, on the corner of White and Asp Streets at Campus Corner, but has only been there a few times. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Freebirds has a different style, so I guess it depends on what youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re after,â&#x20AC;? Kelly said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sometimes, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not in the mood for a 10-pound burrito.â&#x20AC;? Robert Hernandez, general manager of Freebirds World Burrito in Norman, said the business will face some competition when the new Chipotle opens, but that Freebirds management is not worried. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re very confident about what we do,â&#x20AC;? Hernandez

TYLER METCALFE/THE DAILY

Construction on the old Boomer Theater is under way as a Chipotle Mexican Grill perpares to move in this fall. The building is located on Asp Ave., in the heart of the ever-changing Campus Corner. said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have such a fanatic base, but it might affect us at the beginning. When we have a new place coming in, it always affects the surrounding businesses. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not like weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re hugely worried about it. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not too worried about what they do but about what we do.â&#x20AC;? Hernandez said his restaurantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s festive atmosphere and good service would give them an edge over the competition. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are ready for the competition,â&#x20AC;? Hernandez said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Bring it on.â&#x20AC;? Patrick Nesbitt, business senior, also said he is excited to eat at Chipotleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new location. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been to Chipotle in other cities, and I like their quesadillas,â&#x20AC;? Nesbitt said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m definitely excited to go there.â&#x20AC;? Depending on the speed of construction and the hiring of staff, Chipotle could open anytime between October and December this year, Arnold said.

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Back-to-School Edition 2009

Images of the summer »

19A

Summer in Norman is as exciting as the rest of the year. Here are The Daily’s favorite pictures of summer events.

LIZ GREENE/THE DAILY

JOSH BOYDSTON/THE DAILY

Wilco lead singer Jeff Tweedy (top right) performs before an Oklahoma audience June 15 at the Coca-Cola Bricktown Events Center. ELI HULL/THE DAILY

JESSICA WORRELL/THE DAILY

Elephant Revival (top left) plays in the Summer Breeze Concert Series, May 24 at Lions Park.

Dancers (middle right) perform in the Reynolds Performing Arts Center for the School of Dance’s production of “Around the World in 80 Minutes” in July. TYLER METCALFE/THE DAILY

Participants of the Red Earth Parade (above) dance for the audience in their traditional Native American clothing. The Red Earth Festival of Oklahoma City features a gathering of dance competitions, story telling and art.

Guitarist Chris Flory accompanies Judy Carmichael during the second night of the Jazz In June Music Festival.

Want to earn money for making good grades? Where faith engages both your heart and your mind… Norman United Church of Christ is a developing community planted in Norman by Mayflower Congregational UCC of Oklahoma City. We are an open and affirming church who welcomes everyone regardless of race, creed, gender, sexual identification, political viewpoint, the number of times you’ve been born or any other barrier we put in between us. Come to our service if you are interested in taking the Bible seriously enough not to take it literally, in finding ways to reach out to a world in need of more practicing Christians, and in returning the church to its radically inclusive, spirit-led, counter-cultural, transformational roots.

It pays to live in OU Traditions Square or the residence halls as an upperclass student. Each semester you earn a GPA of 3.25 or above, you could be eligible to receive a reward for your scholastic excellence. Visit housing.ou.edu for all the details on this program and the other perks of campus living. Be a part of the

OU Academic Success Rebate Program.

If you’re interested in Christianity as a way of life, not just a set of beliefs demanding total conformity, then come and visit us each Sunday at the United Ministry Center – 1017 Elm (2 blocks south of Elm & Lindsey) for adult classes at 9:30am (childcare provided), fellowship at 10:30 and worship at 11. www.normanucc.com www.ucc.org

housing&food Housing and Food Services is a department in OU’s division of Student Affairs. The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution.