The Vista June 16, 2010

Page 1

Campus Quotes

Alternative Transportation

LSC Awards

United States vs. England

Have you been following the World Cup? Page 2.

Alternative transportation helps increase parking space for UCO students. Page 3.

Two UCO athletes are given Lone Star Conference honors. Page 7.

The match between USA and England ended in a 1-1 draw. Page 8.

JUNE 16, 2010

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THE VISTA

UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL OKLAHOMA’S students voice since 1903.

Tobacco Free Policy

BEHIND THE BAN By Andy Snow / Staff Writer With the campuswide ban of all tobacco products looming on the horizon, students and faculty may still be wondering just what this means for those who are visitors to the school. The policy will apply to anyone who sets foot on campus, be it students, faculty, staff and even visitors. Additionally, this policy will stretch across all properties owned or leased by UCO, including facilities such as the UCO Jazz Lab and ACM@UCO. “Tobacco users on university-leased policies will be treated just as they would not complying on campus,” Danielle Dill, assistant director of the Wellness Center, said. The tobacco ban, which goes into effect July 1, 2010, was approved by President Webb in October last year. Dill and Robin Shipman, UCOSA senator for community health, have been important figures in pushing the tobacco ban through to administration. “UCO started looking at the idea of a tobacco-free campus about five years ago,” Dill said. “At that time, we just put a lot of effort into doing our homework. We looked at other institutions that had gone tobacco-free. We really wanted to do our best to understand the whole idea, the whole concept.” It was around this time that UCO put into place a comprehensive tobacco policy, according to Dill. “The policy consists of three things: prevention, cessation and policy,” Dill said. The tobacco ban policy can be viewed in its entirety at UCO’s website, for those curious about the regulations and rules contained within the ban. Dill encourages anyone who is curious to read the documents containing information about the ban. “There were several reasons behind the implementation of a tobacco-free campus,” Dill said. “We want to promote a healthy environment for students and employees, but we also assessed the importance of having a green university.” Dill said the ban also addresses safety concerns. “The ban is a health issue, an environmental issue, but it’s also a safety issue,” Dill said. “We want people to be safe from trash can fires and other dangers linked to the issue.” The passing of the ban and the changes it promotes are sure to alter the way some students and faculty go about their business while on campus.

P H OTO BY T H E VIS TA

The tobacco ban goes into effect July 1, 2010, and includes all UCO property. However, officials say they will depend on the help of faculty and studetns to help enforce it.

UCO Police Officers Lance Doherty and James Porterfield (left to right) will be enforcing the upcoming tobacco ban in July. Campus police will ease into enforcing the policy. “We won’t be searching student and faculty vehicles for tobacco. We will only be enforcing the use of tobacco on campus,” Jeff Harp, executive director of UCO Police Services said.

However, one very important question does remain: How will this tobacco ban be enforced across campus? “We are spending a lot of time making sure that people are informed and educated about the policy,” Dill said. “However, there is also the concept of self-enforcement. This means all of us, faculty and students, have the right and the responsibility to comply, but also to respectfully ask others to comply.” Jeff Harp, executive director of UCO Police Services, has additional insight into what can be done to enforce the tobacco ban.

“The tobacco ban will be handled and treated like any other issue of misconduct,” Harp said. “This means that those caught using tobacco on campus could be reported to the Office of Student Conduct, or in the case of faculty, may be reported to a supervisor.” Harp said the campus police will not be attempting to make arrests regarding the matter of campus tobacco use. “This will be more of a cease and desist policy,” Harp said.

Continued on page 3

Endeavor Games

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DID YOU KNOW? During this week in 1846, the first organized baseball game with official rules was played in Hoboken, New Jersey. At Elysian Field, the New York Nine defeated the New York Knickerbockers.

ATHLETES COMPETE IN ENDEAVOR GAMES By Samantha Maloy / Staff Writer The 11th Annual UCO Endeavor Games took place this past weekend in the Edmond and OKC area. More than 450 athletes converged on the UCO campus and other nearby facilities to compete in events ranging from archery and swimming to basketball and power lifting. The U.S. Paralympics is one of the sponsors for the event. It uses the Endeavor Games as a launching pad for athletes with physical disabilities to be introduced to adaptive sports. The games are also used to recruit potential national team members. Ryan Wilson, UCO marketing and PR assistant, said this was his third year working with the Endeavor games. “I was a PR intern my first year, and then was hired on full time after that,” Wilson said. The games bring in people from all over the country to the Edmond area. At these games, at least 30 states are represented, along with athletes from Costa Rica, Panama and Great Britain. “I like meeting people and hearing about their stories,” Wilson said. “We have 95 military personnel this year, including a group of veterans from

PHOTO BY GARETT FISBECK

WEATHER

Anderson Wise lifts some weights in the Powerlifting competition. The opening ceremonies were on Friday, June 11, at the AT&T Bricktown Ballpark before the RedHawks game against the Albuquerque Isotopes.

Great Britain.” There are many inspirational stories and moments wrapped up in the Endeavor Games. Wilson said one of his favorite moments was watching the swimming competition last year. He said though the aquatics area was small, supporters packed it out for the different races. The crowd went crazy cheering for the athletes; even if there was just one competitor left finishing the race, the crowd was cheer-

ing to the end. The games have two components: the clinics and the competition. The clinics are put on by the U.S. Paralympics and are a “precursor to the actual competition,” Wilson said. It is a chance for some athletes to receive basic instruction on how to play their adaptive sport. For more experienced athletes, it is a chance to work with top Paralympic coaches and hone their skills.

Daphne Wright, currently a member of the U.S. Paralympic/U.S. Navy Emerging Athlete Program, is a Gulf War veteran and had suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI). She had completed one of the strength and conditioning clinics on Thursday and was looking to qualify in the javelin competition later that day. “We’re learning how to condition our bodies for this level of competition,” Wright said. Wright, a first-time Endeavor Games competitor, has been training for five months and currently holds the American record for Class F38 in the javelin and shot put. This particular class is for those who have suffered a TBI. “I want to show other disabled athletes that they can compete on an elite level if that’s what they choose to do,” Wright said. The opening ceremonies were on Friday, June 11, at the AT&T Bricktown Ballpark before the RedHawks game against the Albuquerque Isotopes. This is the first year for the opening ceremonies to be at the ballpark, as they are usually on the campus of UCO.


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