Celebrating 100 Years
11-1E
The Student Voice Since 1903
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL OKLAHOMA
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2004
Barr crowned Miss Black UCO by Stephanie Johnson Staff Writer Fifteen women vied for the "Miss Black UCO" title Jan. 31, but Nikkia Barr took home the crown. The theme for the event was "Harlem Renaissance...A Night at the Cotton Club." The stage was decorated with a 1920's motif and old-time_ music was played. The 15 "Harlem Sweeties" participated in a swimsuit competition, a talent competition and an evening gown competition. "Showcase in Harlem," the talent portion of the competition, made up 30 percent of the score. The Mistress and Master of ceremonies, Charisma Pitre and Takeme Willis, announced the five finalists: Katrina Scott, Tanischa Williams, She'Nikkia Simpson, Tova Henderson and Barr. Keneisha Green, Miss Black UCO 2003, asked each of the top five contestants projection questions that related to her platform. Barr was asked, "If you were crowned Miss Black UCO 2004, how would you educate UCO about Lupus?" Barr said that she would partner with the Oklahoma Lupus Association to have programs so the majority of Central's black women would know about the disease, since Lupus most commonly occurs in black females. Tanischa Williams was asked, "If you knew a high school teenager with low self-esteem, what would you do to help them? She said that she would "let them know everything will be all right," using her "Right to Be" program. Williams was awarded first runner-up and named "Most Photogenic." Williams danced to Lauryn Hill's "I Get Out" for the talent portion.
She'Nikka Simpson, a sociology and human services junior, was asked, "What program would you implement to aid in prevention of domestic violence on females?" Simpson said that she would help males and females, since domestic violence occurs with both, using a program in Chicago. Katrina Scott was asked why she felt it was important for young people to be involved in public service. Scott, a speech pathology sophomore who received second runner-up, said that she thinks it is important to give back to the community by helping in public service. Tova Henderson was asked why she thinks it is important for minorities to vote in the upcoming election. "I think it is important for minorities to vote because, right now, statistics are down for minorities. We can choose our opinion leaders by voting," she said. Henderson, a fashion marketing junior, was awarded the "Business Woman of Tomorrow" title. Johna Davis, a fashion marketing junior, was awarded "Miss Congeniality." The "People's Choice Award" was given to Q_ueena Morgan after an intermission vote from the audience. Cyclesha Knox was awarded "Most Talented" for her performance of her monologue, "Address Me as Such." Barr sang "Miss Celie's Blues" from "The Color Purple" while dressed in a red boa and head feathers. She wore a black dress with sheer accents for the evening gown competition. For the Miss Black UCO title, Barr received a $1,800 scholarship, a $500 wardrobe allowance, a diamond tennis bracelet and other gifts. Pageant directors Kellie Anderson and Lindsay Echols were also given gifts for their work.
Photo by Robert Crauthers
Nikkia Barr salutes the crowd after being crowned Miss Black UCO 2004 Jan. 31 in Mitchell Hall Theatre. For more pageant photos, see page 3.
SBC grant to school named for Sen. Cal Hobson by Rick Russick Staff Writer A program at Central that educates and trains teachers about new technologies for their classrooms has been renamed to honor state Sen. Cal Hobson, D-Lexington. President W. Roger Webb made the announcement at a Jan. 30 ceremony in Evans Hall. In attendance at the event were Central faculty, staff, students, and local and state officials, including First Lady of Oklahoma Kim Henry. Henry, a former history teacher, said Hobson deserves the honor because of his many years of work and his dedication to improving Oklahoma's educational standards. "Of all the people I know in state government, no one better represents education and the pursuit of educational excellence than Sen. Cal Hobson," Henry said. "Sen. Hobson has been and continues to be a true and lasting champion of education." Webb called Hobson, who has served 26 years in the state legislature, "an unfailing, tireless and dedicated champion for our schoolchildren in Oklahoma." Hobson said that technology is the most important issue facing Oklahomans today. "I'd like to be remembered as a lawmaker who left the state of public education in Oklahoma in a much better shape than what it
was when I first entered public office," Hobson said. "In my mind, there's no more important issue for our state than education, and no issue that has more impact on our future and our success." "Using technology to ensure that every student in Oklahoma has equal access to the latest facts, data and instruction is a key element in preparing our young people to succeed in the information age." Central launched the program last year after receiving a $650,000 grant from the SBC Foundation The program was established to support and encourage education students and in-service teachers to use technology to enhance kindergarten through 12th grade instruction, said Dr. Dana Owens, director of Technology and Special Projects for the UCO College of Education. Don Cain, president of SBC-Oklahoma, said his company has a long and proud tradition of supporting the Oklahoma communities where it does business. "Our teachers have dedicated their lives to making other lives better," Cain said. "Our teachers work very to hard to get an education. They re-educate themselves [through modern technology] so they can educate others and do the very best job possible." Since 1998, SBC-Oklahoma has contributed about $13 million to support Oklahoma pro-
grams and activities that enhance education and community initiatives. "Cal Hobson has been a remarkable leader for our state, particularly in the area of improving education for all Oklahomans," Cain said. "SBC-Oklahoma is proud to be a part of this effort in recognizing such an admirable public official." Last summer, Central launched the program with eight, weeklong workshops for about 200 teachers from across Oklahoma. "These teachers had the opportunity to develop curricula for their classrooms that integrated technology such as digital photography and PowerPoint presentations," Owens said. Kathy Ice, a seventh-grade teacher from Guthrie, has used her technology training to integrate the Internet into her class assignments, including a project on heart transplants. Her students viewed an actual transplant on the Internet and then did research on the heart and its functions. Karen Jackson, a sixth through eighth grade Family and Consumer Science teacher at Sequoyah Middle School in Edmond has used her digital camera to take her students on digital photo field trips, which is less expensive than taking students to various locations. Simon Gallagher, an eighth grade history teacher from Hefner Middle School in Oklahoma City, has created an electronic history review game for students using PowerPoint.
He has used his digital camera to take photos of students working on projects and for a Web page. Lacy Powell, a first grade teacher from Western Village Academy and Tracy Rich, a third grade teacher from Northern Hills Elementary School, have created PowerPoint presentations to assist with various themes and topics within their classrooms. Rich has also taught her students to make video clips with accompanying storyboards. The program also created a position within Central's College of Education called the Master Teacher in Residence. Owens said that since September, Susan Gabbard, all award-winning Oklahoma City art teacher, has served as the first in that position. She said that Gabbard has led a number of brown-bag lunch sessions with teacher candidates, provided mentoring to teachers working to be certified participated in numerous workshops and has overseen many other activities. Hobbs said that the object behind the program is to help Oklahoma's teachers and students become successful. "You [teachers] will take those investments and we're not going to have any areas of mediocrity in the state of Oklahoma," Hobbs said. "Central has been educating teachers for 100 years," Webb said. "And no one does it better."
Arts council to hold local forum The Edmond Arts and Humanities Council is hosting a roundtable discussion to identify community needs. The Edmond Arts and Humanities Council will host "An Arts Round Table: Helping Edmond's Arts Community Network" from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Feb. 7 in the Will Rogers Room of the Nigh University Center on the UCO campus. "We're holding the event to have those who are interested in the arts have a chance to meet and to have a forum to exchange ideas," said EAHC Chairperson Nellie Green. "We want the community to see what the council is doing and to let us know what we can do to help them. We'd like to know what people want to see happen." Green said she Hopes her organization can become a clearinghouse for information and a resource for services to the art community. She will unveil plans for the council's new Web site, which is intended to be an art community "hotline." It will
include a master calendar of arts events. Other services, such as help with news release writing and other marketing activities will be available. In addition to showcasing the EAHC achievements over the last year and plans for the next, the roundtable's featured speaker will be Leslie Spears, communications manager for the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. Spears will offer insights on the marketing of art-related events and exhibits. "Arts organizations have so much to compete with for audiences," Spears said. "We're competing with movies, computers, the malls, sports, television, music, each other's events and more in today's world of quick information and entertainment. You have to always play catchup and know what the trends are. You cannot ignore this. You have to find unique ways to promote what you have.
Be different (and use) unconventional advertising. What makes your facility or event different or 'the place to be?'" she asked. A representative of the Oklahoma City Arts Council will also be available to answer questions on fund-raising, grant writing and other arts-related issues. Green said she hopes that the brunch will provide participants with an opportunity to share ideas and to exchange solutions and problems. "There will be time devoted to discussion of different areas of importance," she said. "We'll ask each table to share those discussions and ideas at the end." Admission to the roundtable and the brunch are free, however, reservations are required and can be made by calling the Arts and Humanities Council at 3594683 by Feb. 3.
`Naked' kicks off after delay, tech problems The once-postponed "Naked in the Morning" has finally hit the airwaves. • The show was scheduled to make its debut during the second week back from winter break but the program ran into some roadblocks. "We . had some technical glitches. We were ready to go on, but the equipment wasn't," said David Doughty, one of the show's co-anchors. "It took us a few weeks to make sure that we had everything in order, but now we are ready to go," co-host Kevin Rizer said. With the two-week delay behind them, the crew said
that the show will be better than ever. "Out T-shirts are in, our signal is up, and our clothes are coming off," said Krista Lander. Prank calls, controversial topics and an interview with Michael Jackson are all on this week's to-do list of the Nude Crew. "Naked in the Morning" can be heard from 8 to 9 a.m. Monday through Friday on Z99. The station will be set up this week on remote locations. throughout campus, where they plan on giving away Tshirts and concert tickets.