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Volume 118, Issue 3
VISTA “Our Words, Your Voice.”
vistanews1903 @thevista1903 @thevista1903 The Vista ucentralmedia.com Tuesday, September 8, 2020
Students petition for refunds
INSIDE
UCOSA holds first meeting of semester New members of UCO’s student association were sworn in last week. See Pg. 3
Students walk through the UCO campus as the fall semester continues. A mask mandate has been enacted for everyone at the university. All students were sent home in the spring, and all classes were moved to an online structure. Some students are wondering if they will be refunded for on-campus experiences that they paid for with their annual tuition costs. (Alex Fischer/The Vista)
Esports, Mass Comm align to form minor UCO faculty shed light on the developments in Esports and academics on campus. See Pg. 6
Brianna Garcia Contributing Writer
A petition calling for the University of Central Oklahoma to partially refund students for the Spring semester has collected nearly 6,000 signatures online. Senior Natalie Marshall, in forensic science and criminal justice, launched the petition on change.org that seeks to partially refund students for campus services that were suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“When we pay to attend UCO, we are paying for the use of the campus and all the on-campus amenities. We no longer have access to that and we didn’t pay for ⅓ of the semester,” Marshall said in the petition. Many supporters of the petition commented that students are entitled to a partial refund because of the campus closure and the difference in online and in-class experience. The university’s tuition includes mandatory fees such as enhancement
fees, parking decal fees, university fees, and other campus services, which became unavailable once the campus closed down amid the coronavirus pandemic. UCO students who choose to enroll in online classes pay an additional fee per credit hour. Students were not charged any additional fees after classes transition to remote-only instruction last semester. Douglas Miller, Assistant Director of the Center for eLearning and Continued on Pg. 4
Oklahoma falls behind 2020 census reporting The census deadline is on the horizon, and Oklahoma will need to catch up to the curve. See Pg. 7
Around Campus
Events are happening all around campus! Several events this week will focus on honoring the lives lost on 9/11 as its anniversary approaches. See Pg. 2
Op-Ed: Oklahoma schools need to look into cultural appropriation Jacob Silva
JaNae Williams
Sports Editor
In the middle of august, the Kansas City Chiefs released a statement banning “ceremonial headdresses and American Indian-themed face paint” in their stadium. This decision came after the football team held discussions with Native American leaders and educated themselves on the issue of cultural ap-
OK County residents denied CARES Act funding Copy Editor
propriation surrounding their traditions and way of life. The Chiefs went on to say “our goal was to gain a better understanding of the issues facing American Indian communities in our region and explore opportunities to both raise awareness of American Indian cultures and celebrate the rich traditions of tribes Continued on Pg. 3
In a 2-0 vote on Aug. 19, the Oklahoma County Commissioners opted to direct the county’s remaining $34 million of CARES Act funding to the Oklahoma County Detention Center instead of finding ways to aid more citizens through its utilization. Commissioners Kevin Calvey and Brian Maughan
voted to transfer the county’s CARES Act funding, while Commissioner Carrie Blumert was left out of the vote. The meeting began, The meeting began, skipping the standard prayer and reciting of the pledge of allegiance. The CARES Act funding vote was item 22 on the meeting agenda. All agenda items one Continued on Pg. 5