Campus
Thursday, March 29, 2012 •
vote: Regents to consider construction projects Continued from page A1 to current automatic-admission criteria, but they may be required “to participate in activities or utilize services designed to ensure academic success,” according to the agenda. The meeting agenda refers to the proposed changes as the Common Application or holistic process, which is now used at 456 institutions in 46 states. “Universities that have implemented holistic admissions have experienced benefits in several dimensions, including higher persistence and graduation rates,” according to the agenda. The Common Application also allows universities to design more effective intervention and assistance programs from the increased information collected and evaluated in the process, according to the agenda. If the new approach is approved, it will still be subject to a vote by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education before it is implemented, according to the agenda. In addition to the Common Application, the regents will consider an agenda item
A9
Mom’s Day
OU to open campus to Sooner mothers “Home is Where Your Mom Is” will kick off with new event mid-day Saturday Connor Sullivan Campus Reporter
Melodie Lettkeman/The Daily
Members of the OU Board of Regents listen as the OU Chant is sung at the closing of Wednesday’s Arbor Day ceremonies in David A. Burr Park.
to improve the Oklahoma Memorial Stadium’s eastside suites, Santee Lounge and Kerr McGee Stadium Club. The improvements would have a guaranteed maximum construction price of $950,000. If approved, early construction would commence this spring and be completed during the summer. The work would be undertaken at the conclusion of the 2012 home football
season and completed prior to the 2013 football season, according to the agenda. The regents also will consider the on-campus construction of a Scholars Walk and the Radar Innovations Laboratory. If approved, construction of Scholars Walk, a pedestrian mall honoring outstanding students that will run north from Lindsey Street to tie into the Brooks Pedestrian Mall, is expected to commence in early or
mid-year 2013, according to a press release. Pending the regents’ approval, the approximately 36,000 square-foot Radar Innovations Laborator y would be located on the Research Campus. It would provide space for radar researchers and create an open working space for research efforts. The regents will meet at 9:30 a.m. today in the Oklahoma Memorial Union’s Scholars Room.
The Campus Activities Council’s Mom’s Day will feature several events to welcome mothers to campus Friday through Sunday. Themed “Home is Where Your Mom Is,” Mom’s Day 2012 will feature a number of first-time events. Mom’s Day chairwoman Rachel Simpson is attempting to make the visiting moms feel welcome at OU. “We hope mothers can see how much they are loved, appreciated and respected and simply enjoy all OU has to offer,” Simpson said. The weekend is for all mothers, whether they be visiting mothers of OU students or students who are mothers, council assistant director Quy Nguyen said. This year, organizers have added a few events, including the Southern Sprinkles and the Round Up Rodeo event, both of which take place Saturday, Simpson said. During the Southern Sprinkles event, cupcakes will be made available for decorating from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Round Up Rodeo will feature games and crafts from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Both events will be in the Oklahoma Memorial Union’s Will Rogers Room. Simpson has headed the push to reach as many different students as possible this year, she said. “We have worked extra hard this year through social media sites, yard signs and other means of publicity to reach as many people as possible and let them know of our events,” Simpson said. Visit OUDaily.com for a full schedule of events
honors college
Journal to showcase undergraduate work Diverse collection of research papers will show off students’ hard work PAIGHTEN HARKINS Campus Reporter
The politics of power. Mutilation of female genitals. Cultural sensitivity in medical practices. All are broad topics that make up a small portion of the essays in this year’s “The Honors Undergraduate Research Journal,” an annual compilation of some of the best research papers written by OU honors students. The diversity of this year’s journal is what makes it interesting for students, student editor in chief Grae Rose said. “We have freshmen to seniors (publishing) and everything from zoology to literature,” Rose said. The variety in the journal is a clear representation of the “imagination and intelligence of our student body,” adviser Amanda Minks said. “Each issue is a snapshot of the “Each issue is innovative research and writing a snapshot of produced by undergraduates in the innovative the Honors College, which is really impressive,” Minks said. research and Journals like this serve to show undergraduate students that what writing produced they’re doing for classes is impor- by undergraduates tant and understood, Rose said. in the Honors “[The journal] kind of legitimizCollege.” es the efforts of undergraduate students because a lot of people look Amanda Minks, at the undergraduate programs or Adviser listen to people talk about doing research papers, and they don’t really see that as an autonomous piece of legitimate academic research,” Rose said. “It’s just a paper that they’re writing for a class.” The editorial board received more than 113 submissions and selected 12 of the best papers to publish, Rose said. Last year, the journal only received about 30 papers and published 10. The increase in submissions can be attributed to the group’s effort to gain publicity; the editorial board chalked, hung posters and spoke to honors classes about the journal. “There’s a lot more visibility, and I think people got a lot more excited than they did last year,” Rose said. The final publication should be completed in April, Rose said. Free copies will be available all over campus.
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Student PROFILE Corie White
Student PROFILE Kaitlin Warta
Student PROFILE Reagan Gill
Student PROFILE Justine Alexander
Year: Senior Major: International and area studies Class: Violence in Culture in the Developing World Topic: “Female Genital Mutilation: Two Ideologies at War” Length: 20 pages Outline: The paper focuses on motives and culture behind female genital mutilation in Africa and why eradication efforts haven’t worked. Why: “I’m always one to go for the touchy topics. They just interest me. It’s important to write about those topics because not many people do. I wanted people to actually learn about the issues, know about the issues and have the guys and girls understand it and be able to go forward having that knowledge.”
Year: Senior Major: Spanish Class: Literature in Medicine Topic: “Understanding the Hispanic Medical Perspective” Length: 15 pages Outline: The paper addresses ways doctors and health care providers can address the needs of the Hispanic population while still being sensitive to its culture. Why: “I thought it was an important topic. A lot of times the (pre-medical) course work is so focused on, ‘How does this chemical reaction work?’ or ‘How does this disease work in the body?’ or ‘What’s this equation?’ and little of it really focuses on human contact and doctor-patient relationships, which is half of being a doctor.”
Year: Junior Major: Multidisciplinary studies Class: Native American Philosophy Topic: Diabetes in the Pima Indian tribe Length: About 10 pages Outline: The paper focuses on the American Indian Pima tribe, which was once very healthy but became less so after colonization and westernization. Why: “I’m pre-med, so I wanted to write about something related to that, and this just kind of fell into place.”
Year: Freshman Major: University College Class:
X Expires on May 31, 2012
Composition II
Topic: Regulations implemented on biological research that make it harder for average people to get involved Length: 10 pages Outline: The paper focuses on the importance of citizen science, why it’s not as prevalent as it used to be and why it’s important for biological research tools to be more available. Why: “It was supposed to be a research paper over what we’re interested in, and I got really interested in it.”