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OUDAILY
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HURTS BREAKS OU RECORD • 5
Former SGA president continues to represent
OU BSA talks Harroz plan Leaders discuss ideas for increased diversity, inclusion BLAKE DOUGLAS @Blake_Doug918
Pae graduated from OU in May 2017 with bachelor’s degrees in political science and economics and a master’s degree in public administration. After leaving OU, he worked in Lawton’s city manager’s office
Leaders in the Black Student Association say the consequences of last spring’s five racist incidents are still being felt at OU, impacting how freshmen view race as they settle in on campus. Nia Blackwell is vice president of the BSA Freshman Action Team, an organization which helps acclimate black freshmen to campus life and get new students involved in the BSA community. Blackwell said she noticed a tangible difference in the demeanor of some of this year’s incoming black students compared to her freshman class. “I definitely do believe that the freshmen, especially right after the incident occurred, definitely didn’t want to come here, especially people from the African American community,” Blackwell said. “I do think that the freshmen that did still decide to come here, they do feel uncertain about, ‘Oh, maybe that’ll happen when we’re here.’” On social media, Blackwell said, she noticed some black students were reconsidering their college decisions following the racist incidents. “There were some that just decided not to come because of the events,” Blackwell said, “but they’re not on the inside, so they’re not seeing how we did develop a stronger sense of community. They’re just seeing racism and saying, ‘We don’t want to have any part of it.’” The impact of last spring’s racist incidents was also seen at the George McLaurin and Sylvia A. Lewis Leadership Initiative, a summer conference hosted by OU to recruit underrepresented and minority students, Blackwell said. “One thing I noticed was that there were less attendees,” Blackwell said. “I’ve also spoken with some of the people that did work that program last year who were saying that they didn’t want to recruit black students here.” Psychology sophomore and BSA member Payten Anderson said race issues at predominantly white institutions can cause African American students to more strongly consider enrolling in historically black colleges and universities, like Langston University — Oklahoma’s only historically black university offering degrees. “The thing that would persuade a student to go to Langston is if some racial incident did happen,” Anderson said. “It makes (enrolling in an HBCU) seem even better because not only is it a cheaper tuition option, you don’t have to worry about a racial incident like that because you’re only surrounded by black students.” While the option to attend an HBCU might be appealing following racist events on campus, Anderson said students who choose that path would be missing out on the sense of community that has only grown stronger at OU since spring. “At OU there is still so much beauty to be had in our black community, even though we have to endure more than the HBCU student has to endure for
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Former OU SGA President and current Oklahoma Rep. Daniel Pae, R-Lawton, poses for a photo on the OU campus Sept. 9.
PARKER PRIMROSE @parker_primrose
Michael Lutter was ready to announce his bid for SGA president. Then a junior at the University of Oklahoma in 2016, Lutter had begun reaching out to gauge people’s interest in joining his ticket and running as his vice president. Lutter was preparing to make his choice and begin laying the groundwork for his campaign, but he had one more meeting before kicking everything into gear. That meeting was w ith then-junior Daniel Pae — and it fundamentally changed Lutter’s outlook on the election and the history of student government at OU. Pae told Lutter he also planned on running for SGA president, but there was a catch: If Pae didn’t win, he wanted Lutter to have his personal list of his goals for the university and his plans to achieve each goal so that Lutter could accomplish them. “If we were going to be running against each other, (Pae) basically put all his cards on the table and gave me all of his plans,” Lutter said. “People, if it’s all about them, they don’t do that, but what he was all about was the university. That was kind of the point for me where I was just like, ‘Man, this guy is authentic. He actually cares more about this university than anybody I’ve ever met, and he actually has a plan for making these changes.’” Lutter called Pae that night and let him know he no longer was running for SGA president. Instead, Lutter asked to run as Pae’s vice president. Pae, with Lutter’s help, went on to win the SGA election and led one of the most effective SGA administrations in recent history. Just three years later, Pae now serves as one of the youngest representatives in the Oklahoma Legislature. Despite Pae’s meteoric rise, the Lawton native and son of South Korean immigrants
is still defined by his humble roots, tenacious work ethic and a desire to serve others. And he isn’t done rising. A SOONER START Pae’s parents immigrated to the United States from South Korea in 1983 and opened a laundromat in Lawton, Oklahoma. Despite coming to the U.S. with little money and few connections, Pae said his parents followed their ambitions and set a standard of selflessness and determination that he still carries with him.
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that you think about living a life bigger than yourself.” Pa e s t a r t e d at O U a s a pre-med student seeking to eventually become a doctor. But after taking courses on American government and economics his freshman year, his aspirations began to change. “(Government and economics) really fascinated me,” Pae said. “Especially the idea that you could rise up, run for elected office and try to do good work. That’s what led me to get involved with student government sophomore year.”
(OU) really laid a solid foundation for leadership. The basics are the same. You just work hard, do your best and help other people. -Daniel Pae Oklahoma representative and former OU SGA president
(Pae) has always been himself. He’s never been anything different than what he presents himself as, and I just love the fact that with all the success that he’s seeing, that he just does not change. -George Ahmadi
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Daniel Pae’s political journey leads to Oklahoma House
OU SGA adviser and assistant director for student programs
“I really saw the fact that the American Dream is still evident and possible today,” Pae said. “I think growing up in that environment with them as mentors really taught me to be humble and not to take myself too seriously. And to just remember that you’re only on this earth for so many years, so you’ve got to make sure that you use your time wisely and
Pae served as a legislator in OU’s Undergraduate Student Congress before launching his successful campaign for SGA president, a position that few initially believed he could win. “Back during that campaign, there were a lot of folks who discouraged me from running in the first place,” Pae said. “I wasn’t in a fraternity, I wasn’t
in any big organization like (President’s Leadership Class) or (President’s Community Scholars) or Crimson Club. But because of my involvement in the SGA Congress, I felt that I could bring a lot of knowledgeable experience to the table and ... I could use the position for helping our campus really move forward.” Once in office in 2016, Pae and his administration immediately got to work. During his year as president, Pae’s administration launched OU’s Student Legal Services program, brought the Crimson Cruiser bikeshare program to OU, established the OU Food Pantry and completed dead week reform. To Tim Crisp — who served as Pae’s chief of staff in SGA and campaign manager for both the SGA election and Pae’s run for the House — Pae and his administration’s ability to accomplish so much was tied to Pae’s ability to bring groups of people together for a common goal. “His big word was ‘synergy’ throughout the entire process,” Crisp said. “He wanted to create synergy between the branches of SGA and the people on campus and the students that we served to create an ability to openly and actively share our processes to move our campus forward, and we accomplished that. It was really one of the first SGAs to accomplish harder, large-ticket items in a very long time.” The impact of Pae’s SGA administration is still felt today, current SGA President Adran Gibbs said — not just in its tangible achievements, but also in the way it raised the bar for future campus leaders. “Daniel set the new standard for SGA for what it should be,” Gibbs said. “He was the epitome of listening to students and following through.” HEADING TO THE HOUSE