The Vista Feb. 19, 2019

Volume 117, Issue 5

the VISTA “Our Words, Your Voice.”

ucentralmedia.com vistanews1903 @thevista1903 @thevista1903 The Vista

Tuesday, February 19, 2019

UCO Coach Named in Settled Lawsuit Christian Tabak @CaffeineWallace Editor-In-Chief

UCO Assistant Wrestling Coach Scott Chenoweth was named in a recently settled lawsuit against the Perry School District that alleged district officials did not act on information that an assistant teacher was molesting students. Chenoweth was superintendent of the school district at the time and resigned in May 2017. (Provided/UCO Photo Services)

A University of Central Oklahoma assistant wrestling coach was named among a list of Perry School District officials in a recently settled lawsuit brought against the district that alleged its administrators were made aware of the sexual misconduct but did not act on it.

The Vista learned of the lawsuit that was settled on Jan. 16 and found current UCO assistant wrestling coach Scott Chenoweth was superintendent during the time of the misconduct and was listed among the district officials the lawsuit alleged did nothing to intervene.

The lawsuit alleged the Perry School District received notice Arnold Cowen, an 86-year-old assistant teacher, was preying on school children, but that administrators had

Olayinka Crowned as the New Miss Black UCO

Yi Wen Wong

not acted on information provided to them by students and faculty.

“Despite having knowledge in December 2016 of a pattern of Cowen’s criminal misconduct from several victims, the school district did not immediately notify law enforcement,” the lawsuit read.

Last month the school district admitted liability for "unwanted and unlawful touching" of 14 girls by a former teacher's assistant and agreed to pay the families $3.5 million to settle the case. Cowen pleaded guilty last February to molesting 10 girls at Upper Elementary School in 2016 and 2017 and is now serving a 10year prison sentence.

The lawsuit was filed by the parents of one of the students Cowen was found guilty of molesting and is one of two lawsuits that have emerged from the investigation.

“On or about January 18, 2017 Principal [Kendra] Miller told

Mr. Scott Chenoweth (the school district’s superintendent) (“Chenoweth”) about the allegations of Cowen’s misconduct,” the lawsuit read. “Chenoweth chose to not report Cowen’s misconduct to law enforcement. Chenoweth chose not to report Cowen’s misconduct to the Department of Human Services.”

While the administrators were listed in the lawsuit, formal charges were not brought against Chenoweth.

The only defendants listed in the lawsuit were the Perry School District and Cowen.

The district accepted Chenoweth’s resignation agreement in May 2017, which included the stipulation that neither Chenoweth or the district would make statements regarding the situation.

Prior to serving as superintendent, Chenoweth was a USA Junior World Continued on Pg. 5

Highest Increase in Sales Tax History Hits Edmond Katie Standlee

@TheVista1903 Reporter

@katiestandlee Managing Editor

Jesujomiloju Olayinka, a sophomore nursing major from Ogun State Nigeria. was crowned Miss Black University of Central Oklahoma 2019-20 during the 35th annual Miss Black UCO Scholarship Pageant on Feb. 16 in the University of Central Oklahoma’s Constitution Hall.

“No words can describe how happy and blessed I am to have got this opportunity,” said Olayinka. “It is truly a Continued on Pg. 6

Jesujomiloju Olayinka, UCO sophomore, was crowned Miss Black UCO for 201920. (Yi Wen Wong/The Vista)

SUPERCROSS

Closest Race in History for Monster Energy AMA Supercross

See Pg. 10

The largest category for sales in Edmond is deparment stores, for the city’s sale tax collections. (Sarah Jekel/The Vista)

Edmond has seen the highest increase in sales tax history paid to the City of Edmond over January and highest use tax collections over February.

“On the sales tax side, the largest category for sales in Edmond is department stores. This category makes up almost 17 percent of our total collections from July ’18 thru December ’18,” said Warren Porter, director of Continued on Pg. 11

BRONCHO SPORTS

Baseball Walks Off with a Win See Pg. 13

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the

Feb. 19, 2019

VISTA

CONTENTS Side Jobs.............................................................................3 Around Campus ...................................................................4 Settled Lawsuit/Trump..........................................................5 Miss Black/New Programs....................................................6 Crowning Miss Black............................................................7 Supercross.............................................................10 Sales Tax/Zora...................................................................11 Hammers.................................................................12 Clinch...................................................................13 Power............................................................................14 Bucking Broncho.................................................................15

THE VISTA

is published as a newspaper and public forum by UCO students, weekly during the academic year, at the University of Central Oklahoma. The issue price is free for the first copy and $1 for each additional copy obtained.

EDITORIALS

Opinion columns, editorial cartoons, reviews and commentaries represent the views of the writer or artist and not necessarily the views of The Vista Editorial Board, the Department of Mass Communication, UCO or the Board of Regents of Oklahoma Colleges. The Vista is not an official medium of expression for the Regents or UCO.

LETTERS

The Vista encourages letters to the editor. Letters should address issues and ideas, not personalities. Letters must be typed, double-spaced and must include the author’s printed name, major, classification and phone number. Phone numbers are included for contacting purposes only.

Letters are subject to editing for libel, clarity and space, or to eliminate statements of questionable taste. The Vista reserves the right not to publish submitted letters.

ADDRESS LETTERS TO:

Editor, The Vista, 100 N. University Dr. Edmond, OK 73034-5209, or deliver in person to the editor in the Communications Building, Room 131.

Letters can be emailed to thevista.ads@gmail.com.

On the Cover: Left: Ken Roczen takes the holeshot of the 450sx main event at the round seven of Monster Energy AMA Sueprcross on Feb. 16 in Arlington, Texas. (Tanner Laws/The Vista)

Right: University of Central Oklahoma baseball team gathers before a game earlier this season. They defeated South Western Oklahoma State University 3-2 Wednesday. (Gerald Leong/The Vista)

Contents

STAFF Christian Tabak Katie Standlee Jonathan Goudeau Tanner Laws Megan Thele Skyler Baldwin Vy Luong Michelle Pennza Yi Wen Wong Lauren Morris Madison Bolton James Jackson Derek Parker Samantha Karbelk Gerald Leong Teddy Burch Alex Brown

Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor Sports Editor Photo Editor Copy Editor Co-Copy Editor Online Editor Design Editor Reporter Reporter Reporter Sports Reporter Sports Reporter Photographer Photographer Adviser Advertising Specialist

Advertise with us!

The Vista is published weekly during the spring, summer and fall semesters.

In all issues, The Vista has opportunities for both digital, online and print ads.

For information or questions contact: 405-974-5549 or thevista.ads@gmail.com

Side Jobs

Feb. 19, 2019

3

Students Picking up Side Jobs to Pay Bills Madison Bolton @TheVista1903 Reporter

With the increase of tuition and busy class schedules, finding a job that students can balance while enrolling in a full class schedule can sometimes be tough. As a result, some full time students are taking advantage of social media to start their own businesses to help support them through college.

“I’ve always been crafty, and had good handwriting,” said Jaden Weir, student at the University of Central Oklahoma studying community and public health. “So, I started painting and would post my work on social media and people started asking how much and requesting orders.”

Weir has been running her own painting business, Jcwdesigns, on the side now for two years while also selling Arbonne and being a part-time nanny.

“I kind of wanted to take advantage of it, people started asking for certain things, so I decided to branch out and start a business,” said Weir. “Because, having money on the side is never a bad thing, especially while in college.”

While balancing college and work, Weir said one of the perks of this business is she manages everything on her own time.

“Doing this job is not your normal nine-to-five job and that’s what I love," said Weir. "It’s also relaxing when I paint these orders for people.”

Wedding season and Christmas are the most stressful times of the year for her business, according to Weir. She has become so successful that over Christmas break she had a pop-up shop located at Cinnamon Bears, a baby and children's clothing store in Downtown Edmond.

“School is my number one priority, but I still want to please my customers. It says on my social media that

I am a full-time student though, and people do respect that.” Weir said.

Logan Hendrix, UCO student getting her master's degree in speech language and pathology, has also created a successful side business to get her though college.

“I started my photography business my senior year of high school in 2013.” Hendrix said.

According to Hendrix, she has always had many long-time friends in photography. She would go to photoshoots and learn as much as possible, which is how she realized she could start to do this on her own.

“I started waiting tables at Old Chicago when I was 17 and then I quit that job my sophomore year of college,” said Hendrix. “I started comparing the income, writing down in my calendar how many hours I worked and how much money I made serving and compared that to my photography business.”

Hendrix said it came out to about the same amount of money, but there were less less overall work hours in her photography business. With this in mind, she decided to do photography full time.

“It was easier to make my own schedule and work from home during college,” Hendrix said. “Plus, I really love it.”

According to Hendrix, social media has helped her grow Loganna Photography tremendously.

“I basically started on Instagram and have grown since,” said Hendrix.

“It’s helped me connect to people I know and people I don’t know, it’s really how I get my business.”

Hendrix said she uses the money from her business to live off on while taking out student loans for her education. After growing her clientele over the years and updating her equipment, she has estimated that she makes about $25,000 to $30,000 a year.

Both Hendrix and Weir said they

Some students have been using social media to pick up jobs to pay for tuition and other bills. Jaden Weir, UCO student, started painting and posts her work on her social media at Jcwdesigns on Instagram. (Provided/SydneyDavidson)

plan to graduate and work in their career fields. They also plan to cut back on the businesses they have created while still doing them on the side.

But while that may be the plan for Hendrix and Weir, Dayshon Mathes, a former student at Oklahoma State University, quit college completely to focus on his business.

Mathes was majoring in apparel design and had been enrolled for about two years when he made his decision.

Mathes said he had a few problems with a professor in his department and felt like he had no freedom for his innovation.

“I was waiting for the next semester to come up, and over the break I started making clothes,” said Mathes.

“I posted what I had been working on on Twitter and it started going crazy.”

According to Mathes, he felt his short time in college taught him a

lot already, so he took what he had learned and used his knowledge to his full advantage. He showcases his work on social media and his website.

However, Mathes said he isn’t living off his business completely, yet.

According, to Mathes his clothing is affordable to many different target audiences. With anything from graphic tees costing $25 to other pieces costing $150 to $200.

Social media has helped Mathes grow his business and he said he has even been contacted by a few local famous people and celebrities.

Tuition at UCO has increased 5.5 percent over the last academic year, while total credit hour production has decreased from 403,901 in 2013 to what the university estimates will be 358,000 in 2020. This could be the explanation for why students are looking for and working on side jobs.

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Feb. 19, 2019

Around Campus

Newly crowned Miss Black UCO 2019 Jesujomiloju Olayinka stands on the stage alongside her supporters after the 2019 Miss Black UCO Pageant hosted on Saturday, Feb. 16 in the Nigh University Center’s Constitution Hall. (Yi Wen Wong/The Vista)

Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2019 Big Pink’s Good Vibes and Saving Lives: Big Pink will host a DIY button making event that celebrates the 60’s from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Nigh University Center Atrium.

IX Reasons Why: Join the American Association of University Women @ Central and the University of Central Oklahoma’s Title IX Coordinator, Adrienne Martinez, from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. in Nigh University Center Room 304 for a discussion on why Title IX matters for university students.

Heroes of Heritage Veteran Speaker Series CSM (Ret) Steve Rodgers: The University of Central Oklahoma Office of Veteran Student Services will host Command Sergeant Major Robert Steven Rodgers for their Heroes of Heritage Veteran Speaker Series from 1-2 p.m. in the Quad Room 111. Rodgers will be discussing overcoming challenging situations, overcoming disadvantages and finding pathways to success, growing into a leadership role and his global experiences. The event is STLR tagged.

Life Skills Around Eating: This free and confidential group meets from 3:30-4:30 p.m. in Thatcher Hall Room 328. The group will discuss and focus on the affect regulation approach to eating disorders and will teach how to handle stress triggered by food.

Anchor Weekly Meeting: Christian student organization Anchor will host

their weekly meeting from 7:30-9:30 p.m. in the Nigh University Center’s Cherokee Room 213. The event will feature food and activities.

Don’t Touch My Hair: The Black Student Association will host a discussion on the history and significance of African-American hair from 4-6 p.m. in Nigh University Center Room 201.

Founder’s Day Celebration: The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People will host a Founder’s Day celebration in recognition of the founding of the of the NAACP on Feb. 12, 1909.

Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2019 Big Pink’s Dye it Pink: The University of Central Oklahoma’s Big Pink committee is hosting a Big Pink tie dye event from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Clocktower.

Non Traditional Student Support Group: This group is designed to help non-traditional students find support at UCO with others students who can relate to your life experience and share resources to help meet personal needs and ensure success at UCO. The meeting is from 2-3 p.m. in Nigh University Center Room 322.

African Student Association General Meeting: The African Student Association will host a general meeting from 4-6 p.m. in Nigh University Center Room 314.

Making Soccer History Again: Integrating Soccer and Public History by History Instructor Patrick Salkeld: UCO History instructor Patrick Salkeld will discuss his research on American soccer history from 5:30-6:30 p.m. in Liberal Arts Room 212. The presentation will focus on connections to gender and popular culture from 1960 to the 2000s. Salkeld has previously presented his research at the American Soccer History Symposium and his forthcoming book will be published

by Rowman and Littlefield.

Big Pink Trivia Night: Big Pink and Housing Activities Council will host a trivia night during Paint the Campus Pink Week to raise money and awareness for breast cancer from 7-9 p.m. in the Broncho Sports Grill.

The event will feature prizes and discounted appetizers.

Thursday, Feb. 21, 2019 Stress Paws: Come take a stress “paws” with therapy dogs from 3-5 p.m. on the Nigh University Center fourth floor.

[Medieval Society] February General Meeting: The Medieval Society will host UCO alumni Christina Petty, an internationally known expert in medieval fabrics and weaving, from 3:30-5 p.m. in Liberal Arts Building 225. The presentation, entitled “What Not To Wear: Medieval Edition,” will prepare attendees for a Medieval Weaving Workshop led by Petty later in the month. The first 30 minutes of the meeting will focus on society

business, with the presentation starting at 4 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 22, 2019 Chill Skills: This group works to reduce conflict in your life; identify triggers, patterns and purpose of anger; gather more tools for enhancing communication, boundaries and healthy relationships. The group meets from 9:30-10:30 a.m. in Nigh University Center Room 322.

LGBTQ Support: From 1-2 p.m. in Nigh University Center Room 322, the Center for Counseling and Well-Being will host a support group for those considering coming out as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, and those who have recently come out. Anyone who identifies as LGBTQ, is questioning or unsure can meet and talk about various topics around sexuality, gender and other life issues.

A Life Worth Living: This group works on skills for improving boundaries and strengthening healthy relationships, enhancing sense of self and ways to manage distress. The group meets from 2-3 p.m. in Thatcher Hall Room 328.

UCO Baseball vs Missouri Southern: The University of Central Oklahoma Bronchos will face off against the Missouri State Lions at 5 p.m.

The game is part of a three part series, with a game on at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 23 and on Sunday, Feb. 24 at 1 p.m.

Settled Lawsuit/Trump

Feb. 19, 2019

5

UCO Coach Named in Settled Lawsuit Continued from Pg. 1

Freestyle team coach in 2008 and 2010, was a National Coach of the Year finalist in 2010 and was inducted into the Oklahoma Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame for Lifetime Service to Wrestling in 2011.

Following his resignation in 2017, he was hired as an assistant wrestling coach at UCO later that year.

When asked about the circumstances surrounding Chenoweth’s hiring and the university’s knowledge of his time as superintendent, the university’s director of sports media relations, Chris Brannick, said that the department does not comment on hiring decisions.

For the university’s hiring process, the university employs a pre-employment screening agency, Scree-

ningOne, to conduct its background checks. The standard check includes the National Criminal Search, National Sex Offender Search and Social Security Number Trace. If there is a hit, then further details will be pulled from a county criminal records search.

Adrienne Nobles, assistant vice president for University Communications at UCO, said that searches typically return within 5 minutes, but can last longer if there is a hit on one of the databases.

Aside from the databases, Nobles said that social media and internet searches are not included in the hiring process and that a resignation associated with no criminal charges would not appear as part of a background check.

“This kind of information would

Hiring practices at the University of Central Oklahoma involve a standard background check that includes the National Criminal Search, National Sex Offender Search and Social Security Number Trace. Background checks do not include social media or internet searches. (Archive/The Vista)

either have to be discovered in a reference check or volunteered by the applicant,” Nobles said. “The reasons for a resignation, when not connected to formal criminal charges, are part of a company’s employment records,

which are kept confidential.”

The Vista has made multiple attempts to contact both Chenoweth and the Perry School District. Both parties have yet to reply to any inquiries.

Trump Declares National Emergency Dustin Pierce @TheVista1903

Contributing Writer

On Friday morning, February 15th, President Donald Trump signed a multi-billion-dollar spending bill to avoid another government shutdown, which secured federal employees a 1.9 percent pay raise and finalizes all government spending through Sept 30.

The spending bill that's been passed has roughly $24 billion in it, $22.5 billion of which goes to Homeland Security and $1.4 billion for a 55-mile-long physical barrier along the southern border, in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.

After signing the spending bill President Trump then declared a national emergency at the southern border to get even more funding for the wall.

The president said in a press conference that he is planning on pulling money from different departments of the government. $1.375 billion will come from the spending bill Congress passed Thursday, $600 million from the Treasury Department's drug forfeiture fund, $2.5 billion from the Pentagon's drug interdiction program, and through an emergency declaration, $3.5 billion from the Pentagon's military construction budget.

"I could do the wall over a longer period of time,” Trump said. “I didn’t need to do this, but I’d rather do it much faster.”

The president's decision to declare this national emergency has sparked

FILE - In this Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019, file photo, President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington. The Senate resoundingly approved a border security compromise Thursday that ignores most of President Donald Trump’s demands for building a wall with Mexico but would prevent a new government shutdown. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

controversy and questions of its legality.

Dr. Louis Furmanski, UCO Professor and Chair of Department of Political Science, does not agree with the president's decision and finds it unconstitutional.

“No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law,” Dr. Furmanski quoted from the constitution.

"What Trump is doing undermines the constitutional powers of Congress. So, yes, I regard what Trump has done as being unconstitutional,

and thus an impeachable offense. " On the other side of the coin there are people that are defending the president's decision. Senior policy adviser Stephen Miller defended President Trump’s national emergency declaration.

"If the president can’t defend this country, then he cannot fulfill his constitutional oath of office," Miller said.

"This would not be even an issue if the president was invoking that statute to support some foreign adventure overseas."

Local citizen of Oklahoma, Kade

McAlvain, a wind turbine technician, said he is torn at the situation that the president has made.

"The two main jobs our federal government has is to abide by the constitution and protect our borders," McAlvain said. " What the president has done here is protecting our borders, but it's potentially unconstitutional. I don't want the next president coming in thinking they can declare national emergencies just to pass laws that they personally see fit."

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Feb. 19, 2019

Miss Black/New Programs

Olayinka Crowned as the New Miss Black UCO Continued from Pg. 1

precious moment to experience.”

Through Olayinka's platform, “Secure Yourself”, she hopes to empower women to recognize, love, and be comfortable in who they are. She said she wants to have that sense of satisfaction that she changed or helped to

“I decided to do a selfcomposed talent, because I wanted everyone to see me, who I was before the pageant, during the pageant, and a sense of the new me after the pageant.”

Jesujomiloju Olayinka

improve lives.

Miss UCO International Pageant 2018-2019 was her first pageant, but it did not turn out well for her. From there Olayinka knew she had insecurities, which was affecting her day to day life. She decided to participate in Miss Black UCO, because she wanted to be among women who looked like her.

“I had to learn to believe in myself, efforts and prayers,” said Olayinka.

“At the final stage, I told myself, ‘way to go magnificent lady, you will win this mainly, because you serve a living God’.”

For talent, Olayinka wrote her first ever motivational speech titled, “I Am Becoming.”

“I decided to do a self-composed talent, because I wanted everyone to see me, who I was before the pageant, during the pageant, and a sense of the new me after the pageant,” said Olayinka.

Something Olayinka said she wanted to show was that anyone who is de-

termined can breakthrough. She said she advanced from an insecure young African girl in American culture with the belief that she’s not a standardized definition of what a woman should be.

To a woman who finally recognized insecurity as an endurance in her life, makes changes, and wants to move other women along.

Kedriuna Townsend, Miss Black UCO 2018-19 said being crowned has been one of her biggest accomplishment thus far. She has learned that one-person can truly make a difference, even if it is in just one person’s life.

“Knowing that I have held such a prestigious title brings me great joy, and it was more to me than just a title. It has allowed me to become more comfortable with my flaws and truly become confident in myself,” Townsend said.

Olayinka received a $1,600 tuition waiver for winning the crown, along with a sash. She also won the Director Choice Award, Photogenic Award,

People Choice Award and Best Talent Award.

“I received a lot of support from family, friends and my church Miracle City CAC and my pastor has been more than a preacher but a great support system and a father,” said Olayinka. “I have always wondered what it was like to have a father figure considering the fact I never had one. But with him, I boldly say I have a father.”

Lakish Woodard, a junior majoring in psychology, is the first runner-up.

She also won the Future Business Woman Award. Jada Wells, a freshman double majoring in forensic science and biomedical science, is the second-runner and Jala Littles, a freshman majoring in biology, is the thrid runner-up.

The pageant is sponsored by the Black Student Association and Office of Diversity and Conclusion. It take places annually during the Black Histoy Month. Jeanee Canada, Miss Black UCO 2013, is this year's director.

New Programs Coming to UCO Next Fall

Lauren Morris @TheVista1903 Reporter

The University of Central Oklahoma will offer several academic programs starting next fall semester.

The Academy of Contemporary Music at UCO will offer two new bachelor's degrees of applied technology in audio production and commercial music. They are currently only available as associates degrees. There will also be a bachelor of arts for Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies as well as a bachelor’s of science for Data Science.

A master’s degree in Business Administration available only online and a master’s in Forensic Science — Biology and Chemistry will also be offered. A bachelor’s in Applied Liberal Arts, a master’s in Adult and Higher Education and a master’s in Library and Media Education will start to be available for online delivery.

New programs usually start from the communication from students and faculty, observation from the administration, strategic thinking or workforce data showing that a program needs to be added or changed. It could also start off by being an extremely popular minor.

Associate Vice President Office of Academic Affairs Charlotte Simmons estimated it takes around a year to a year-and-a-half for programs to go through the whole process.

John Barthell, UCO provost, said that while very few programs start or change, there are very many proposals.

Changing or adding a program, deleting a program, or changing course requirements all have to go through the same process.

Most of the time, the department housing the program will give a proposal to the rest of the department to review. The proposal will then go to the college-level committee with representatives from each collegiate department.

“In each case along the way, there has to be a signature of the responsible administrator … at the university level, the provost, in my case, will have to sign off on it,” Barthell said. “From my point of view, I respect a great deal and advocate for shared governance, and so, you know, if something hits my desk, and it’s been through all of that, and it survived, it’s not common that I will stop that program.”

After Barthell signs the proposal, it has to go to the Regional University System of Oklahoma, where the regents take a look at it. Barthell said there is not rigorous process at that level, but they still want to see it and offer any available input.

If the proposal passes through the regents, it goes to the state level at the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education. They give the proposal a review to justify its costs and relevance for the university.

Crowning Miss Black

7

Feb. 19, 2019

Crowning Miss Black UCO 2019

Above: Miss Black UCO 2019-20 Jesujomiloju Olayinka, front, gives an original monologue named “I am Becoming� at the talent competition at the 2019 Miss Black UCO Scholarship Pageant on Feb.16 in Constiution Hall. (Yi Wen Wong/The Vista)

Miss Black UCO 2019-20 Jesujomiloju Olayinka participates in the swimsuit competition at the 2019 Miss Black UCO Scholarship Pageant on Feb.16 in Constiution Hall. (Yi Wen Wong/The Vista

Above: From front to back Miss Black UCO 2019-20 Jesujomiloju Olayinka, Miss Black UCO 2018-19 Kedriuna Townsend, Miss Black UCO 2017-18 Oluwakemi Olurotimi pose for a photo at the 2019 Miss Black UCO Scholarship Pageant on Feb.16 in Constiution Hall. (Yi Wen Wong/The Vista) Right: First Runner-up Miss Black UCO 2019-20 Lakisha Woodard, participates in the swimsuit competition at the 2019 Miss Black UCO Scholarship Pageant on Feb.16 in Constiution Hall. (Yi Wen Wong/The Vista)

Miss Black UCO 2019-20 Jesujomiloju Olayinka, front, is crowned by Miss Black UCO 2018-19 Kedriuna Townsend at the 2019 Miss Black UCO Scholarship Pageant on Feb.16 in Constiution Hall.

(Yi Wen Wong/The Vista)

Miss Black UCO 2019-20 Jesujomiloju Olayinka, center, poses for a photo with her supporters at the 2019 Miss Black UCO Scholarship Pageant on Feb.16 in Constiution Hall. (Yi Wen Wong/The Vista)

Supercross

10

Feb. 19, 2019

AT&T Stadium Hosts Closest Race in Supercross History

Top Left: Points leader Austin Forkner, left, turns to fist bump Justin Cooper as they finish the 250sx main event during the round seven of Monster Energy AMA Supercross on Feb. 16 in Arlington, Texas. (Tanner Laws/The Vista)

Top Middle: Cooper Webb, left, passes Ken Roczen for the win during the 450sx main event. Webb and Roczen battled for the win, going down as the closest race in Monster Energy AMA Supercross history finishing with a gap of 0.02 seconds during the round seven of Monster Energy AMA Supercross on Feb. 16 in Arlington, Texas.

(Tanner Laws/The Vista)

Top Right: Points leader Austin Forkner encourages the crowd to cheer after winning the 250sx main event during the round seven of Monster Energy AMA Supercross on Feb. 16 in Arlington, Texas.

(Tanner Laws/The Vista)

Middle: Supercross riders battle for the holeshot during the round seven of Monster Energy AMA Supercross on Feb. 16 in Arlington, Texas. (Tanner Laws/The Vista)

Bottom Left: Joey Savatgy glides through the air at the round seven of Monster Energy AMA Supercross event on Feb. 16 in Arlington, Texas. (Tanner Laws/The Vista)

Bottom Right: Blake Wharton caught midair at the round seven of Monster Energy AMA Supercross event on Feb. 16 in Arlington, Texas. (Tanner Laws/The Vista)

Sales Tax/Zora

Feb. 19, 2019

11

Highest Increase in Sales Tax History Hits Edmond Continued from Pg. 1

up almost 17 percent of our total collections from July ’18 thru December ’18,” said Warren Porter, director of Financial Services for the City of Edmond. “The growth in this category has been 6.9 percent this year compared to the same period last year.”

Porter said in the use tax collection the biggest category has been electronic shopping, which includes services and businesses like Amazon.

This year the category, which is up 81 percent over last year, has made up 28 percent of the city’s total use tax collections.

“Through December, we were up almost $1.4 million in total use tax collections and electronic shopping, and oil/gas support activities accounted for almost $900,000 of the increase,” Porter said.

At 8.5 percent, Edmond has the lowest sales tax rate in the Oklahoma City metro area, Porter said. Of

that 8.5 percent, 4.5 percent goes to the State of Oklahoma and the City of Edmond receives 3.75 percent.

There are no projects that will receive extra funding from this increase, but Porter said the city will be looking down the road for projects that may require funding in the future, assuming the city meets or exceeds their projections during the next fiscal year.

The City of Edmond gets 80.6 percent of general fund money from taxes, which makes up $ 42,765,514 of the city’s budget.

According to the Oklahoma Tax Commission, under Oklahoma law, state sales tax must be charged and collected on all transfers of title or possession of tangible personal property for valuable consideration that occur within this state. Oklahoma state use tax must also be paid on tangible personal property purchased and brought into this state for storage, use or consumption.

“The use tax increase is affected by

the 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision that allows states to tax sales that are delivered in state even though the seller did not have a physical location in the state,” Porter said. “The State of Oklahoma has implemented a program for the registration and payment of use taxes by these vendors.”

Porter said this type of program is leading to an increase in vendors paying the use tax.

The second largest category from the sales tax increase is the building materials dealers tax, which is down 1.3 percent while supermarkets make up almost 8.3 percent of Edmond’s sales tax and makes up 3.7 percent for the year, Porter said.

“Interesting is full service restaurants are down 0.1 percent for the year while limited service restaurant are up 7.1 percent for the current year over last year,” Porter said.

Another category that has increased this year is the oil and gas support activities, which Porter said is Ed-

mond’s second highest use tax category. This category makes up for 15.5 percent of collections and as a result is up 85.8 percent.

Another area that Porter said is contributing to the increase is the three medical categories in the top 12 classifications and, combined, they account for 13.14 percent of Edmond’s sales.

Porter said the sales tax collections did increase by 2.68 percent, but that increase just brought the city into the positive.

“We only budgeted for a 2-percent increase in sales tax increase for the year, and we will not alter our spending plan for the remainder of this year based upon this year’s increase,” Porter said. “ We expect to place the unexpected increase into reserves, in case we see a slow down on in the economy we won’t have to make dramatic programming changes.”

Rozlyn Zora Released New Single ‘Speechless’ Madison Bolton @TheVista1903 Reporter

This Valentine’s Day, University of Central Oklahoma singer-songwriter and musician Rozlyn Zora released her new single, “Speechless,” and embarked on a mini-tour over the weekend.

Rozlyn Zora, a student at the Academy of Contemporary Music at UCO, studying audio engineering, said she had been wanting to record this song for a while.

With the encouragement and help from fellow classmate and friend Katie Carmichael and Stuart Adams, a music production and engineering student worker for UCO ACM, the song was produced over winter break.

“She needed the motivation to make this happen,” Carmichael said. “We were talking about it and I said, 'What if I just started booking shows for us to do a run?' Then you would have to do it.”

Zora agreed with Carmichael to do the mini-tour and said that ‘Speechless’ was more of an afterthought, but as soon as it came together over winter break, she decided she wanted to release the song on Valentine’s Day, just in time.

“With ‘Speechless,’ the guitar part, I had been playing around with for the past few years,” Zora said. “The verses were more like, who I would pick to be with, and I want to be with

someone humble and kind.”

With the lyrics and the guitar part set, all Zora needed was the chorus, and that came to her one night in a dream.

“That night I was asleep, and I was dreaming, and the chorus came to me while I was sleeping," Zora said. "'Speechless, dreaming I only mean it when I say I want you.' I woke up and wrote it down real quick.”

Having the guitar part done before writing her lyrics is very unusual for singer-songwriter Zora, who has been performing since she was three-yearsold.

“Usually the lyrics come first,” Zora said. “As a singer-songwriter, I like to focus on the words.”

The song incorporates acoustic guitar, played by Zora, and piano, played

by ACM graduate Heather Becker.

Zora usually self-produces her songs, as she has done in the past.

“I’m super OCD, so I gave it to Stew [Adams] and asked him to help me mix this song,” Zora said. “I knew it wouldn’t be done in time if I was the one mixing it, so he was able to take that off my hands and help me with that.”

Adams and Zora met each other their first semester at ACM and have kept a relationship since. When Zora approached Adams about the song, he was happy to help.

“It was a really fun project to record,” Adams said. “We came in and tracked the whole song in one night,

Rozlyn Zora released her new single, “Speechless” on Valentine’s Day during her mini-tour. Zora is a student at the Academy of Contemporary Music at UCO and she is studying audio engineering. (Provided/RozlynZora)

with the acoustic guitar first. Then the piano player arrived, and it only took her two takes to play the whole song straight through.”

The three-day mini Makeup// Breakup tour started Feb. 14 in Tulsa at the Rabbit Hole, then onto the Reb Brick Bar in Norman on Feb. 15, and the tour ended Saturday nigh Feb. 16 in Bentonville, Arkansas at the Bike

Rack Brewing Co. Zora and Mandias [Carmichael's stage name] lead the line-up, with special guests, mostly all ACM and former ACM students, rounding out each show.

According to Zora, "Speechless" is available on all major music platforms — Spotify, iTunes, Pandora, YouTube and Google play etc.

12

Feb. 19, 2019

Hammers

SPORTS

Softball Hammers Home Ninth Straight Win

The University of Central Oklahoma infielder/outfielder JoBi Heath prepares to swing during a UCO-OC Invitational game this past weekend at Broncho Softball Field. Heath tied a school record with three doubles in a single game. (Provided/BronchoSports)

James Jackson

@JamesDJackson15 Sports Reporter

The University of Central Oklahoma knocked off four teams in the UCO-OC Invitational Saturday and Sunday winning their ninth straight game and improving to 13-1 on the season.

Over the past nine games, the Bronchos have outscored their opponents 88-3. Many of their runs came in the first three innings as the Bronchos have outscored their opponents 77-21 in the first three innings this season.

“Getting off to a good start is really important to us, and we’ve done a great job of that,” said UCO Head Softball Coach Cody White.

“I love the attitude of this team and the way they come to play every day.

It’s early, and we’ve still got a lot of things to improve on, but I like the direction we’re going.”

After finishing the Raising Cane’s Softball Festival undefeated through five games, the Bronchos continued their winning streak by defeating Newman 3-0, as Sydney McLeod

threw a complete 4-hit game with four strikeouts, and Southwestern Oklahoma 10-1 on Saturday.

“I love the attitude of this team and the way they come to play every day. It’s early, and we’ve still got a lot of things to improve on.”

Cody White The Bronchos recorded just five hits in their win against Newman but against Southwestern the they were able to notch 12 hits. Allie Eicher and Carli Jones were both able to knock home runs in the battle with

the Bulldogs.

Half of the Bronchos ten runs came in the first inning.

“We got great pitching in both games, and our bats came alive against Southwestern,” White said.

“It was really cold out there, but our players didn’t let it bother them, and they just took care of business.”

Sunday, UCO defeated Colorado-Colorado Springs 7-3, as JoBi Heath went four-for-four from the plate and tied a school record with three doubles in one game, and Northwestern Oklahoma 15-3.

Against Northwestern Oklahoma, UCO scored 10 runs in the first inning. UCO hit threw the entire nine batter lineup, with five batters seeing the plate twice in the first inning as the Northwestern pitcher faced 14 UCO batters.

Hazel Puempel, Bailey Thompson, and Heath each recorded two or more hits.

UCO will be back in action Tuesday as they host a double-header against Angelo State at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

The Rams will enter the game with

an overall record of 13-1 on the season and are on a nine-game winning streak.

In the previous season, the Bronchos lost both games against the Rams with a combined score of 24-6.

University of Central Oklahoma utility Casady Webb fields a pitch during a UCO-OC Invitational game this past weekend at Broncho Softball Field. She had a two-run single in Sunday’s game against Northwestern Oklahoma State University.(Provided/BronchoSports)

Clinch

Feb. 19, 2019

13

Baseball Uses Walk-Off To Clinch Win

University of Central Oklahoma outfielder Kace Massner hits the ball during a Feb. 3 home game against Oklahoma Christian University at Wendell Simmons Field. Massner scored the winning walk-off run in UCO’s 3-2 win over Southwestern Oklahoma State University. (Gerald Leong/The Vista)

Derek Parker @D_Park2

Sports Reporter

The University of Central Oklahoma baseball team won their fifth straight game Wednesday night defeating Southwestern Oklahoma State University 3-2 after Junior Ryan Harrell hit a short hopper in the bottom of the ninth inning to score Kace Massner. The walk-off win moved Central to 6-2 overall on the season.

“It’s always good to get a win especially when you don’t play your best baseball,” UCO head coach John Martin said after the game. “We didn’t hit the ball well at all tonight, but the guys fought through in the end and we got the win.”

The Bronchos trailed the majority of the game, but a big two-run inning gave them the edge over the Bulldogs. Early in the ninth, Brice West hit a home run to tie the game at 2-2.

West swung at the first pitch he saw

University of Central Oklahoma pitcher Gabe Littlejim prepares to pitch during a Feb. 3 home game against Oklahoma Christian University at Wendell Simmons Field.

UCO pitchers combined for 11 strikeouts. (Gerald Leong/The Vista)

from Bulldog pitcher Brant Millerborg. The solo shot over center field was the first of the sophomore’s career.

Both of SWOSU’s runs came early in the game, when Alex Bedard hit a leadoff double in the first and quickly scored to make it 1-0. Bedard was hit by a pitch in the third inning, advanced around, and scored again on a wild pitch to make it 2-0.

Massner was next up to the plate, and reached first after hitting a 1-1 pitch to the first baseman. SWOSU intentionally walked T.K. McWhertor. Coach Martin brought in Brock Ruminer to pinch hit for Joe Mondragon, and the Bulldogs intentionally walked again, leaving the bases loaded with no outs.

Senior Josh Rutland ended the night on the mound for the Bronchos, entering in the top of the ninth and striking out two of the four batters he saw.

Central struck out 11 batters in the game, and allowed nine hits. They finished with just five hits, as Phillip Scott, Kyle Crowl, and Paul Kropf, the first three batters for Central, each finished with a hit, along with West and Massner.

Both Bronchos and Bulldogs went deep into their bullpen Wednesday.

Dylan Hall started it off for UCO, but was replaced by Landon Bond

after three innings. Brayden Nelson replaced Bond after one inning and threw two himself, and Junior Obeso threw two before Rutland finished it off.

After starting off 1-2 on the year,

“It’s always good to get a win especially when you don’t play your best baseball. We didn’t hit the ball well at all tonight but the guys fought through it.”

John Martin Central is now riding a five-game win streak into a six-day break before they play Oklahoma Baptist University. The Bronchos were set to take on the Bison’s Tuesday, at 5 p.m. in Shawnee, Oklahoma but the game has been postponed due to inclement weather.

14

Feb. 19, 2019

Power

Ichabod’s Power Past Bronchos

University of Central Oklahoma guard Josh Holliday, No. 11, drives past an Oklahoma Christian University defender during a Nov. 29 home game at Hamilton Field House.

Holliday scored 12 points during UCO’s 88-69 loss. (Tanner Laws/The Vista)

Marcus Powell

@TheVista1903 Contributing Writer

The University of Central Oklahoma men’s basketball team fell to Washburn Saturday afternoon in its last road game of the regular season 88-69. The Bronchos move to 10-14

overall and 3-12 in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association.

“That’s a tough one to lose,” UCO head coach Tom Hankins said.

“We came out ready in the first half but couldn’t get shots to fall in the second.”

Adarius Avery led the Bronchos

University of Central Oklahoma forward Adarius Avery splits two Oklahoma Christian defenders during a Nov. 29 home game at Hamilton Field House. He scored a gamehigh 27 points in Saturday’s loss. (Tanner Laws/The Vista)

with 27 points and 12 rebounds. He went 9-for-12 from the free-throw line and added two steals on the day. Josh Holliday and Colt Savage had 12 points each. Coming off the bench, Savage knocked down both of his 3-pointers, scoring all of his points in the second half. Marquis Johnson added 10 points.

The Bronchos shot 40.6 percent from the field and 30.4 percent from three-point range. Despite the loss, UCO shot 83.3 percent from the free-throw line and the defense forced 16 Ichabod turnovers.

Washburn got the first score of the game, scoring a 3-pointer, but UCO answered with one of their own. The first half went back and forth, both having the lead at one time.

With four minutes to go in the first half, Holliday scored a layup to tie the game 29-29. Washburn knocked down a three to take back the lead, but Johnson took the ball into the paint to score and get himself an easy two points. Washburn scored a layup, but Avery battled inside to get another two points for the Bronchos. UCO allowed Washburn to get one more layup with four seconds left before halftime making it 36-33.

Three minutes into the second half, Washburn utilized each possession to take a big lead.

With eight minutes to go in the

game, Washburn took a commanding lead over the Bronchos, but UCO cut the Ichabod’s lead to five with four-and-a-half minutes left in the game.

Washburn continued to score, but Avery took over the game for the Bronchos, taking it to the paint every time he got the ball and drawing

“That’s a tough one to lose. We came out ready in the first half but couldn’t get shots to fall in the second.”

Tom Hankins fouls. With fifteen seconds to go, Savage knocked down a three-pointer in the corner, but Washburn’s lead was too much for a Broncho come back.

UCO plays again this week in Hamilton Field House. They will face Fort Hays State at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 21 and Nebraska Kearney at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 23.

Bucking Broncho

Feb. 19, 2019

15

Durant Takes MVP During Memorable Weekend With the 2019 All-Star Weekend in the books, here are some winners and loser’s from a very memorable weekend.

Winner: Lebron James. For the second year in a row, Team Lebron has won the All-Star game, this year defeating Team Giannis. James drafted Kevin Durant, James Harden, Kyrie Irving, and Kawhi Leonard to join himself as the starting five, and it’s not hard to see why they took the victory. Team Giannis starting five consisted of himself, Paul George, Joel Embiid, Stephen Curry, and Kemba Walker. Russell Westbrook represented the Oklahoma City Thunder alongside George for Team Giannis. Team Lebron trailed by as many as 20 in the first half, but rallied in the second half behind Durant and Damian Lillard to grab the win. Durant finished with 31 points and seven rebounds to win the AllStar MVP trophy.

Loser: Trae Young, from Norman North High School, Young had a rough go in the All-Star Weekend Skills Challenge. After beating De’Aaron Fox and Luka Doncic in rounds one and two of the skills challenge, Young had the lead in the finals going up against second-year player Jayson Tatum. Young scored his layup first and raced down the court to end the challenge with a three-pointer. As he attempted his three, Tatum shot a half-court shot in desperation, which promptly hit the backboard and went in a wild finish to this year skills challenge.

Winner(s): Dwyane Wade and Dirk Nowitzki. The veterans participated in their very last All-Star game this weekend, each putting an exclamation mark on two hall-of-fame worthy careers. 40-year-old Nowitzki came in for just three minutes of the game, and scored nine points for Team Giannis, going 3-for-3 in his 14th all-star game. Wade had seven points alongside former teammate James in his 13th All-Star game.

Both players will leave the NBA this season top-5 all-time in their respective positions.

Loser: Seth Curry. On Saturday

Team LeBron’s Kevin Durant, of the Golden State Warriors receives the MVP trophy after the NBA All-Star basketball game as NBA commissioner Adam Silver, left, looks on Sunday, Feb. 17, 2019, in Charlotte, N.C. The Team LeBron won 178-164. (AP Photo/ Chuck Burton)

night, Steph and Seth Curry faced off in the Three-Point Contest. The brothers had a side bet going: loser pays for the family tickets whenever the two face off. Steph said the stakes were high due to amount of family members that could attend the games. Seth failed to make it out of the first round, while Steph advance to the finals, but eventually lost to the Nets Joe Harris. Regardless, looks like Seth will be paying up.

Winner: Hamidou Diallo. Oklahoma was well-represented on Saturday night as Diallo won the dunk contest. He brought his A-game for the contest, posting one of the most memorable to date. After dunking over legend Shaqille O’Neal and Atlanta rapper Quavo, Diallo won the trophy with ease, scoring 48 of 50 in round one, and 43 of 45 in round two.

Oklahoma City Thunder Hamidou Diallo leaps over former NBA player Shaquille O’Neal during the NBA All-Star Slam Dunk contest, Saturday, Feb. 16, 2019, in Charlotte, N.C. Diallo won the contest. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)