November 3, 2021 by MediaOCU

THE CAMPUS

‘We are family’ homecoming 2021

MONDAY HIGH-NOON FEVER

November 3, 2021 – Volume 115, Issue 10

OCU Student A��airs

Mackenzie Shaw

Student Publications

OCU Student Affairs kicked off the 2021 Homecoming festivities with a disco-themed Spirit Day music fest and photo challenge Monday during lunchtime at the Student Center, where they played classic dance tunes from the ‘70s, gave away T-shirts, and invited everyone to show off their best retro fits. Above, Richi Slade, senior dance pedagogy major, left, and Mackenzie Farrell, senior dance performance major, strike a pose by the AXΩ poster.

CAMPUS NEWS

Tornado warning sparks concerns Ava Karas

NEWS EDITOR

There was a tornado warning for OCU students on Wednesday, Oct. 13. The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning at 5:07 a.m., and subsequently, sirens were activated. Students were notified to seek shelter via Blue Alert at 5:27 a.m. According to Levi Harrel, dean of students, the best practice for students is to be weather aware. “First and foremost, we encourage students to be weather aware, tune into local news sources online, on television, or via streaming services, get information that way,” Harrel said. Harrel said students should seek shelter when advised by local authorities or by university officials. “We have several tornado shelters in residence halls, as well as academic buildings such as Goldstar, and the basement of the Chapel,” Harrel said. Several students expressed concern about OCU’s tornado protocol, as well as the delayed response to the severe weather. According to junior psychology major Hannah Prentice, Blue Alert did not inform students to take shelter until after the tornado warning had passed campus. “The Emergency Alert from the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning at

M MEDIAOCU.com

5:07 am,” Prentice said. “At that time, the news was saying that the severe weather was headed right toward OCU and the pocket of weather they were concerned about was going to form a tornado would be coming right onto campus. By 5:20 am, the storm had moved so fast, the news was saying that OCU was safe and our campus was mainly in danger of flooding.” According to Prentice, OCU’s Blue Alert system was not activated until well after the initial tornado warning. “If anything, had this been a severe and life-threatening tornado, our campus would have already been in grave danger, with no word or comment from the university by the time it was gone,” Prentice said. “In my opinion and from experience from 20 years of tornado seasons, with a real emergency, in order to potentially save students and keep us safe using the Blue Alert system, something would have needed to be out by 5:10 am at the latest.” Junior music theatre major Ella Dolynchuk said that, as a student living in Cokesbury Court, there was no clear direction as to where to shelter during the tornado. “For kids who didn’t grow up in tornado zones, this kind of experience can be scary,” Dolynchuk said. “I hope President Evans can meet with university officials to come up with a better system for the future, for when this happens again.”

Homecoming Royals

Peyton Davis, Miss OCU’s Outstanding Teen 2022, left, and Ava Cruchon, Miss OCU 2022, right, were crowned in the annual pageant Oct. 23 at Kirkpatrick Auditorium.

PAGE 2: Opinion

Domestic Violence Awareness Month is over. The pain is not.

PAGE 2: Correction / Clarification

A photo caption on Page 1 of the October 6 issue mistakenly identified its event and date. The photo portrayed the Constitution Day Roundtable on Sept. 7.

PAGE 3: Arts

OCU School of Music revisits a classic Andrew Lloyd Webber musical.

PAGE 4: Sports

OCU Esports plays host to OKC Public Schools tournament.

Miss Oklahoma City University Scholarship P�ogram

opinion IN OUR VIEW

Domestic Violence Awareness Month is over. The pain is not.

The victims of these crimes are not numbers - they are people Domestic Violence Awareness month is over. Though, that does not mean we should stop raising the issue of domestic violence. Domestic violence and dating violence are related to sexual assault, harassment, and stalking. Many of these crimes have to do with a perpetrator using physical, emotional, financial, relational, professional, or other means to take advantage of and harm a victim. These issues are persuasive on university campuses, and we will not leave them behind after graduation. These crimes can be committed by someone holding any function in our lives. The victims of these crimes are not numbers. Behind every number is a person. Student Publications stands with victims of domestic and sexual violence. As employees of Oklahoma City University, we are required to inform campus authorities of sexual violence. Domestic violence is a damaging and destructive force that needs to be stopped. It is important that we continue to stand against domestic violence after the conclusion of Domestic Violence Awareness Month. University Counseling is available at (405) 208-7901, as is the OCUPD non-Emergency (405) 208-5001 and Anonymous line (886) 943-5787. Blake Uhlig Student Publications

CAMPUS VIEWPOINTS Q&A

Chief: Universities often VP HR: OCU cares about have more resources our students’ well-being Q: The total number of forcible and non-forcible sex offenses reported in the 2021 Annual Security Report on campus between 2018 and 2020 is 4. Do you believe this number accurately reflects the true number of cases of sexual offenses on campus? A: The number of non-forcible sex offenses listed in the OCU 2021 Annual Security Report accurately reflects the number of incidents reported to OCU Police, and those reported to OCU Campus Security Authorities, who are required to report that information to campus police. A CSA member is not necessarily a police officer. They consist of university staff, faculty, employees, and contractors. Obviously there could be incidents worthy of reporting that were not reported to police or to any of the universities CSA’s for a number of reasons. We can only report the incidents that are reported to us. I’ve been in law enforcement for over 34 years. I know that some criminal activity goes unreported in the general public. College and university campuses are no different in that regard. Q: The total number of dating violence and domestic violence cases reported between 2018 and 2020 is 0. Do you believe this number accurately reflects the true number of cases of dating and domestic violence on campus? A: Again, the reported number of dating violence and domestic violence incidents in our Annual Security Report reflects the actual number of incidents reported to campus police and the universities CSA’s during that time period. College campuses are small microcosms of society. Anything that occurs in society as a whole can happen here on campus. Because our campus is smaller in comparison we can be expected to encounter much lower incidents of domestic violence.

THE CAMPUS November 3, 2021 • Volume 115, Issue 10 Editor-in-Chief: Blake Uhlig Managing Editor: Anette Barrios-Torres Photo Editor: Mackenzie Shaw Broadcast Editor: Shelby O’Brien News Editor: Ava Karas News Associate: Anna Schmidt Photographers: Annie Bragg Laura Sofia Granados

I’m not saying that our campus is immune to these types of incidents, but none were reported to us during that time period. Students have many resources at their disposal Nelson should they experience domestic or dating violence on campus, whereas the general public is limited. Students can seek support from Student Affairs, the Title IX Office, Housing, Resident Assistants, Resident Directors, Counseling Services, Police, family and friends. Q: Oklahoma State University warns that out of their “26,000 students, about 2,600 women and 800 men will experience sexual assault while here at OSU.” If you believe OCU has fewer cases of sexual assault, what makes our university different? A: OCU has fewer sexual assaults in comparison to OSU because we have fewer students. OCU has far less enrolled students and even fewer living on campus. Every college and university police department in the country is working to lower and/ or prevent sexual assaults in their jurisdiction. Sexual assaults can occurred on or off campus and have no connection at all to a college or university other than the victim was a student. Colleges and universities would have no way of knowing about a sexual assault unless it was reported to the college or university. Universities often have more resources at hand to assist victims in recovery from sexual assault. I’m not naïve enough to think sexual assaults don’t or have not occurred here at OCU, but they are seldom reported to police. That may be due to the fact victims are ashamed, didn’t think the act or incident amounted to sexual assault, or for a variety of other reasons.

Q: The total number of forcible and non-forcible sex offenses reported in the 2021 Annual Security Report on campus between 2018 and 2020 is 4. Do you believe this number accurately reflects the true number of cases of sexual offenses on campus? A: We can’t speculate on a potential number of incidents that may not have been reported, but we do know statistics have shown that a wide majority of sexual assault victims do not report incidents to law enforcement. It can be difficult for many victims of assault to step forward and report abuse, but we encourage students to report all such incidents. Full support is and will be given to those who do. There are people here on campus who will listen. Students may report incidents directly to campus police; to Joey Croslin, the university’s Title IX coordinator; to Dr. Amy Ayres, the deputy Title IX coordinator; or to Dr. Kristi Pendleton, OCU’s civil rights investigator. Any reported incident meeting the definition of crimes in accordance with the Clery Act must be included in the annual security report. Q: The total number of dating violence and domestic violence cases reported between 2018 and 2020 is 0. Do you believe this number accurately reflects the true number of cases of dating and domestic violence on campus? A: The above answer speaks to this question as well. Q: Oklahoma State University warns that out of their “26,000 students, about 2,600 women and 800 men will experience sexual assault while here at OSU.” If you believe OCU has fewer cases of sexual assault, what makes our university different?

A: Many studies estimate the prevalence of sexual assault on college campuses, and the rates vary from campus to campus. All campuses, however, share in the common Croslin understanding that sexual assault continues to be a serious issue that causes physical, mental and emotional trauma. We can’t speak to steps being implemented at other universities, but at OCU, we strive to educate the campus community about important topics related to sexual violence during new-student orientation and through programs throughout a student’s academic career. The university’s non-discrimination policy and equity resolution process describe the university’s responsibility to ensure students are aware of their rights and the university’s reporting process and resources available to students who report instances of sexual violence. Q: What advice do you have for students regarding domestic violence? A: OCU cares about our students’ well-being and success both inside and outside the classroom. If a student experiences an incident that they believe could be in violation of our Nondiscrimination Policy, or if they are in need of additional resources or safety measures, we encourage them to reach out and make a report to campus police or the Title IX office. They can make a report for themselves or on behalf of someone else at https://secure. okcu.edu/titleix, or call the Campus Conduct hotline at 866-943-5787.

Correction / Clarification

A photo caption on Page 1 of the October 6 issue mistakenly identified its event and date. The photo portrayed the Constitution Day Roundtable on Sept. 7.

The Campus has served the Oklahoma City University community since 1907. It is published by the Student Publications staff online at MediaOCU, and printed monthly during the academic year. The Student Publications staff welcomes unsolicited material and letters to the editor. All letters must be signed and include the writer’s phone number, address, major, and classification. The staff reserves the right to edit all letters. The staff also reserves the right to refuse letters without explanation. Letters can be sent online at mediaocu.com, emailed to editor@okcu.edu or dropped off at the Newsroom in Suite 112 of Walker Center for Arts and Sciences. Submitted items may appear on MediaOCU and in the print edition. The first copy of The Campus is free. Each additional copy costs 25 cents. All contents copyright © Oklahoma City University Student Publications, 2021. All rights reserved.

November 3, 2021

arts OCU STRIPPED

Grace Knight OCU STRIPPED

The cast of “Jesus Christ Superstar” belts out the titular song of the show while recently rehearsing their version of this classic musical.

OCU Stripped returns to live performances Co-director: ‘It’s so thrilling to present that to our community’ Ava Karas

NEWS EDITOR

OCU Stripped presented Jesus Christ Superstar Oct. 29 and 30 in Petree Recital Hall. It was directed and choreographed by senior music theater majors Charlie Turner and Cooper Clack, respectively, this production is a musical/rock opera based on the Gospel’s account of Jesus’ life, highlighting his complex relationship with Judas. OCU Stripped is a student-led musical theatre organization that produces full-length musicals “stripped down” to the story-telling essentials. This means they are typically

done without sets, costumes, or a full orchestra. “Putting together this show was quite a long process,” Clack said. “We started planning the show way back in the summer. Once school started, the team got into the swing of things with how we wanted to organize the audition process, and how many people to cast.” The team found ways to gender-bend certain roles to include more female-identifying talent at OCU. “This is not a show with many female characters,” Clack said. “We knew that we wanted to gender-bend roles, but without affecting anything vocally.”

Arissa Brown, junior music theater major and ensemble member, understudies the roles of Simon and King Harod. “This cast is so talented and diverse,” Brown said. “I think the choice to have women in roles traditionally played by men adds an interesting color to the show.” According to Brown, Jesus Christ Superstar has many themes that make it relevant and important today. “Our director, Charlie Turner, conceptually liked the idea of houselessness and martyrdom to shape the plot,” Brown said. “The whole story of Jesus Christ Superstar can be used as an allegory for a movement that is cham-

pioned by the common folk, but is quashed by people in power because they cannot handle the unrest and the need to change.” Despite the magnitude of the show, OCU Stripped only had a few weeks to rehearse. “Putting together an entire show in such a short amount of time was stressful,” Brown said. “But the creative team is great about time management, and the cast is very dedicated to getting things done”. Due to the pandemic, Stripped has been unable to perform in front of a live audience for two years. Jesus Christ Superstar marks Stripped’s return to the community.

“We didn’t know if we were going to be able to have an audience by the end of this year,” Clack said. “The feeling of staging something that is going to be presented live is so freeing and overwhelming. The supportive and creative culture of Stripped made me realize that I wanted to come to OCU in the first place, and it’s so thrilling to present that to our community.” OCU Stripped will present The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee in Spring 2022. Auditions will be held in the Spring and admissions to performances are free. Donations accepted via Venmo @ocustripped.

OCU MAINSTAGE

OCU’s Mainstage presents Enron! Director: ‘Everyone there is bringing their best work’

Anna Schmidt

NEWS ASSOCIATE

OCU’s Mainstage Theater presented Enron! in the Burg Theatre Oct. 28-31. Enron! was written by Lucy Prebble and initially released in London in 2009. The play centers around an energy company and its financial scandal that occurred from 1992 to 2001. OCU’s production was directed by Kris Kuss, assistant professor of voice and acting. Enron! marked his first Mainstage directing experience. Kuss spoke of the rewarding experience of collaborating with the production’s creative team. Kuss said the subject matter for the play is still of great relevance, twenty years after

the scandal. This year marking the scandal’s twentieth anniversary, there are still many working in the energy industry who were affected by Enron’s fraudulent activities. The company’s base in Houston, Texas, also affected people in Oklahoma. After the production’s opening show on Oct. 28 at 8 p.m., a panel of Meinders Business School professors discussed the business practices and their perceptions of the scandal’s impact. “These professors worked in the business world, and had interactions with the company of Enron,” Kuss said. “At the time, if you were in the energy business, you couldn’t help but be in business with Enron, they were the big ones. We felt like it

was notable that there was a lot of personal connection to it.” The play contains informative depictions of the financial and business practices conducted by Enron’s leadership. In addition to academic content, it contains music, choreography, video projections, and a unique perspective into the characters of Enron leadership. Kuss described the interesting nature of the play, how it flows from factual depictions of events and company practices to surrealist depictions of growing chaos and corruption. “In some ways, the play starts out feeling very much like a documentary piece of theater, but in grand theatrical fashion, some of these

weirder concepts The creative particularly when team for OCU’s these people, these production inmen, who thought cludes scenic they could reshape designer Jason the world to suit Foreman, lightwhatever vision ing designer Andy they had,” Kuss Wilding, costume Kuss said. designer Meredith “As they do that the world England, sound designer of the play starts taking on Harley Harris, and propsort of a more surrealistic erties director Courtney bend.” Quinn. According to Kuss, En“One of the most reron! is unique in its style. warding aspects was getting “The play has this really to work alongside incredibly interesting theatrical tradi- skilled, incredibly talented tion of blending the realis- artists, and being able to tic and the surrealistic and, come into the room - beweirdly enough, the more ing in production meetings other-worldly the play gets, or in rehearsals - and know it’s actually more of an accu- without any doubt that evrate depiction of what was erybody there is bringing happening, as opposed to their best work,” Kuss said. what Enron was showing to Kuss noted one challenge the public,” Kuss said. was directing actors to por-

tray real individuals who caused the scandal. He said it was a struggle to invoke empathy from the audience. However, Kuss said the actors worked with him to find portrayals of these characters’ humanity that would go deeper than their deeds alone.

“Even though we are not trying to excuse what these men did, we are still trying to make the audience understand what motivated them - always that’s what our interest in theater is,” Kuss said.

He said his wish is for the audience’s empathy to be stimulated so they may practice it in their daily lives.

THEATREOCU

TheatreOCU is sole US partner in world fest Anna Schmidt

NEWS ASSOCIATE

Oklahoma City University’s TheatreOCU will be the sole American partner in the World Theatre Education Alliance’s (WTEA) International Theatre Festival this year. Director Lance Marsh provided information about the festival and the play he is directing for submission. Marsh said the WTEA conference is typically held in Beijing, but has moved to a virtual format this year. Participating theatrical programs submitted a 50-minute film that is focused on Shakespeare’s Macbeth. The WTEA organization includes fifteen participating theatre November 3, 2021

training programs, representing 14 different countries. In addition to Marsh, major creative contributors with TheatreOCU include the composer of the original score, Ben Rosfeld, and lighting designer Preston Hunt. Marsh said the unique approach TheatreOCU has taken to this assignment. “Rather than mount a highly edited linear version of Macbeth, I have opted to adapt the play to focus on Lady Macbeth‘s through-line and her nightmarish sleep-walking scene. “With very few exceptions, every word in this play is from Shakespeare’s text, although often radically reimagined and often reassigned with an eye to uncovering and exploring Lady Macbeth’s inner life and the corrosive effects

of guilt on relationships and individuals.” Marsh said the production’s original score was created by OCU graduate student Ben Rosfeld and described it as “something like a horror movie played live.” In this take, BFA Acting Senior Madison Polozola plays Lady Macbeth. Polozola described this production as different from her previous OCU shows, and an opportunity that is both challenging and fulfilling. When asked what made Polozola want to participate in this production, she said “Shakespeare created so many incredible female characters during his career and being able to dive more into Lady Macbeth’s individual story and give her the mi-

crophone has been very exciting. I can’t wait for people who are fans of the play all ready to see this story in such a different light.” Polozola also said she did extensive research and preparation for the role, including studying Macbeth in its entirety for context and watching interviews and films which shed light on themes of the play. “Lady Macbeth is such an iconic and historic role, and there’s always that worry that you won’t be able to ‘live up to the hype. I really just wanted to make sure that I was bringing myself to the character and focused on giving her all my love.” Polozola said. The role of Macbeth is performed by Karam Alkhatib. Polozola said the duo has worked together to limit the vil-

lainous perception of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. “[Karam and I have] been working to create two very special people together, and really focusing on their humanity and love.” The production was filmed by students and faculty in the OCU Mass Communications program Oct. 9 and was streamed with the WTEA festival on the weekend of Oct. 29. Marsh said creating a play on film is a unique challenge, but also held many rewards. “Working with this talented group of student actors working in such an unusual fashion has been greatly rewarding. “Seeing our collective, weird ideas take shape in the rehearsal room has been incredibly rewarding,” Marsh said. 3

sports ESPORTS

‘... it’s the teamwork ...’

OKC Public Schools Oklahoma City University Esports hosted at OKC Public Schools Esports tournament Oct. 25. Nearly 70 students attended the event.

OCU Esports hosts public school tourney Blake Uhlig

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

On Oct. 25, Oklahoma City University Esports hosted an OKC public schools Esports tournament. Seventy students from 12 schools participated in the event. Public schools that are part of the OKCPS program include Capitol Hill, Classen SAS, Douglass, Emerson North, Emerson South, John Marshall, Northwest Classen, Putnam Heights, Southeast, Star Spencer, and U.S. Grant. Each school sent a team of

6 students to compete in Super Smash Brothers and Rocket League. OKCPS recently announced the expansion of its Esports program to every OKCPS high school. “Esports supports developmental growth in students, including communication and leadership skills. Participation in Esports can also help students handle stress, make tough decisions, commit to a process, and work collaboratively,” according to OKCPS statement. “I don’t know if it’s the future of sports, but it’s definitely an up and coming field and will prob-

ably compete very well with the popularity of physical sports,” said Drake Brown, a sophomore Film major and the off support for the Overwatch team. “My favorite aspect is absolutely the teamwork,” said Edward Bennett, a sophomore who serves as DPS on the Overwatch team. “Being able to work together with a group of people, and achieve things that you can’t working solo, makes everything so much more rewarding. “The community of not only my team, but of Esports in general, is so welcoming and heartwarming.

MEN’S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

A majority of the computers in the Starcade come from the gaming computer company Legion, which is a branch of Lenovo. The system build of the Legion computers is Core I7, 2060 GPU, 16gbs ram, and a 1TB SD. Each computer is accompanied by a 240hz Alienware monitor. “I really like them, I think they’re really good. They’ve had some problems in the past, but they do pretty good,” said Cole Fairchild, sophomore film production major and the Main-Tank of the Overwatch team. “We currently have some new

machines with 3070s coming from Asus waiting in the port of LA.” said Esports Director Patrick McClung. The new systems will arrive on campus soon, he said. “Our current upgrade path is 3-5 years.”

OCU Esports conducts Rocket League and Overwatch matches every Monday at 6 pm. “Everyone is welcome to come cheer on the teams in person, or watch our Twitch stream at tv/ oklahomacityuniversity,” said McClung.

INTRAMURALS

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

Join a winning team ...

OCU Student Publications THE CAMPUS / mediaOCU.com To apply, email: editor@okcu.edu Blake Uhlig Student Publications

November 3, 2021