a student newspaper of the university of tulsa
february 13, 2017 issue 17 ~ volume 102
Michaela Flonard News Editor
The TU Sustainability Committee and students just want to get along. Yet their relationship, like many others, suffers from miscommunication and a lack of (student) effort. Despite the missed connections, the Sustainability Committee encourages students to “be true” to the recycling process.
graphic by Elias Brinkman
T
he University of Tulsa offers singlestream recycling, Terracycling and other material recycling for its students to use. Yet students do not take full advantage of the multiple programs offered by the university. Recently, the Students for Sustainability Committee did a waste audit as their first event in Recyclemania. The audit’s data was not available at time of printing. Data from 2016 Recyclemania competitions also help shed a light on recycling practices at TU. Recyclemania is an annual eight week competition between colleges and universities. Each week, participants report their recycling and trash collected and are then ranked in various categories such as cardboard and paper. In 2016, TU recycled 8.172 lbs per capita in Recyclemania, putting it 159th out of 269 schools. This data was based on cumulative recycling data from all eight weeks and is also available separated by type. For paper recycling, TU recycled 3.264 lbs per capita, putting it 41st out of 91 spots; in the cardboard category, 4.085lbs per capita was recycled, putting TU at 36th out of 97 spots. TU recycled 0.823 lbs per capita in the bottles and cans category, earning it a spot
at number 45 out of 81. During the eight weeks, 46,261 lbs of material were recycled. According to President of the Committee for Sustainability, Jason Grunin, much of the peak is from faculty participation, not necessarily increased student participation. A faulty-wide targeted email announces the competition each year, and as it occurs during spring break, employees have time to clean out. “What’s going to cause a student to accumulate a lot of stuff?” he added. Per year, Grunin estimates TU recycles about 200,000 lbs of material. This number varies per year, affected by factors like faculty cleaning out offices and student dedication. In addition, Grunin said “a lot more people are moving digital — there’s not as much paper ... That’s where we attribute it to.” According to Bobi Deere, the graduate assistant for the Committee for Sustainability, the trash company TU uses does sort for recyclables; however, “if you contaminate paper by putting it in the trash and getting stuff on it, you can’t recycle it. It’s better to recycle instead of throwing it in the trash and hoping they’ll recycle it.” The university also features Terracycling.
Tulsa recycling plant streamlines process to “feed Mr. Murph,” p 4
With locations in the Collins Fitness Center and John Mabee, the program relies on students monitoring bins where students can drop items that are often hard to recycle. At TU, Colgate oral care products, health and beauty products, e-waste, snack bags and writing utensils are collected to be sent off to the Terracycling company. This initiative is supposed to be student-led; however, participation waxes and wanes. Previously, sorority row had Terracycling, but the woman in charge graduated, Deere said, causing the program to die down in that part of campus. The locations were picked both for student interest in manning the stations and ease of student use. The gym, for instance, presented the possibility that students wouldn’t be carrying a lot off stuff and could take a used shampoo bottle with them. “I can’t have a Terracycling center a hundred places on campus, it’s just not feasible. We don’t have enough stuff,” Grunin said. Many students interviewed were not aware of this program. The committee has issues communicating programs and responsibilities to students. “We try with social media, we have student representatives on the sustainability committee, we have signs, we have posters, we have a Facebook group, we tried word of mouth, we tried getting the apartment organizations involved, because so many students live on campus,” Grunin said, but acknowledged that “really what we’ve seen being successful is word of mouth.” Deere noted that her group, the Students for Sustainability Committee, wasn’t allowed to do mass emails, and that digital signage and the event calendar often go unread. During orientation week, her group does try to train orientation leaders to discuss recycling with their groups, but she
was unsure of the success of the program. Throughout interviews with students and administration, three major issues were cited for lack of recycling: cultural norms, lack of awareness and apathy. Lindsey Boulden, president of Earth Matters, said, “It’s just something that we’ve become desensitized to to a certain extent. We live in such a consumer society, as soon as something isn’t usable anymore, we throw it away. The idea of recycling is just not something that’s ingrained in us as much as “consume and use.” To Deere, culture plays a role in the lack of awareness. “People from states that don’t recycle — Oklahoma being one of them — and people from countries that aren’t sustainable — and we have a lot of students from countries that aren’t sustainability minded — they just don’t know about it. Getting that info out to this is difficult to them as well.” Adil Hirano, an RA at John Mabee Hall, said “We just have to make them [students] more aware of the benefits of recycling and tell them, ‘hey this is a worthy cause, you don’t want to add more waste to landfills.’“ Hirano admitted the Terracycling program could be advertised better. The other major issue noted was an apathy towards recycling. Cody Brown said that “frequently around the commuter parking lot and around campus I see trash and plastic and broken beer bottles around frat row. It just gives me the impression about how full the trashcans are and how empty the recycling is that people don’t care or are somehow not aware.” To increase recycling, several students offered the idea of incentives or ease. “I think the primary contributor is laziness,” said Brown, “and the second thing is incentives. It’s easier to put it in the trash. We’re very reward based. If it wasn’t assigned as
See Recycling, p 5
Okla. voters broken-hearted; legislators not required to care? p 10
Sports
The Collegian: 2
13 February 2017
Men’s basketball struggles against Memphis and Houston
photos by Dalton Stewart
Photos from left to right: Jaleel Wheeler drives to the hoop against UCF in January. Sterling Taplin goes up for a layup against SMU two weeks ago. In the current stretch of the season, the Golden Hurricane have to take on UCF and SMU multiple times, as well as Cincinnati, Memphis and Houston. Unfortunately, the men’s team is 1–4 in their games against the top half of the conference.
The Golden Hurricane continued to struggle this week against Memphis and Houston, pushing their losing streak to four.
Tulsa’s men’s basketball team continued their fall down the American Athletic Conference standings this week, losing two games against teams in the top half of the conference. After a streak of home games, the Golden Hurricane went back on the road to play the Memphis Tigers. When Memphis was in Tulsa for the first half of the season series, Tulsa won a physical, tightly contested game. This week was a different story. None of Tulsa’s players scored in double digits, and Memphis shot an impressive 50 percent
from the field to take the win 66–44. The second game of the week pitted Tulsa against the Houston Cougars. The story of the game were the long periods of offensive difficulties for the Golden Hurricane. They turned the ball over a total of 15 times, and the turnovers came at costly times when they had been starting to gain momentum. Houston was able to take the lead to double digits on a tip in at the halftime buzzer, and it proved to be too much for the Tulsa to come back from. The Cougars took the game, 73–64. Tulsa is now 12–12 (6–6 AAC) on the season, good for the 6th-place spot in the conference standings. This week the Golden Hurricane will face two tough road games, travelling first to Orlando to play against Central Florida before going to Cincinnati for their second matchup against the Bearcats. The UCF game is on Tuesday at 6 p.m., and the Cincinnati game is on Saturday at 11 a.m.
Softball The Golden Hurricane softball team opened up their season this past weekend at the Hillenbrand Tournament hosted by the University of Arizona. It was a tough outing for the Golden Hurricane, who went 1–4 for the weekend. The win came against CSUN while the losses included No. 21 Baylor and No. 10 Arizona. This was a disappointing start to the Golden Hurricane’s 25th season. Women’s Tennis The women’s tennis team dominated Sam Houston State in a 7–0 win on Saturday. The Golden Hurricane never trailed in five out of their six singles matches and swept their doubles matches. The win put their record at 7–2 for the season. Track and Field The track and field team had splits squads this weekend with one competing in the Iowa State Classic and the other in
the 2nd Annual Indoor Gorilla Classic at Pitt State. On Friday at Iowa State, Marc Scott, Avery Culpepper and Aaliyah Birmingham all had top-three performances. Scott won the 3,000 meter run, Culpepper took second in the women’s 3,000 and Birmingham took second in both the 60-meter and 200-meter dash. The Golden Hurricane only competed in the weight throw at the Gorilla Classic and freshman Aleks Rapp won the men’s event. Sophomore Baylor Reese took third in the women’s event. On Saturday the women’s 4x400-meter relay team, comprised of Kiara Jones, Candalyn Lyons, Birmingham and Allison Bailey, finished second in their race at Iowa State. At the Gorilla Classic, Caitlin Klopfer and Amanda Heard finished second and third, respectively, in the women’s 3,000-meter race to round up the Golden Hurricane’s top-three finishes for the events.
Matt Rechtien Sports Editor
Hurricane Recap
tucollegian@tucollegian.org editor-in-chief
Hannah Kloppenburg managing editor
Giselle Willis Cuauhtle news editor
Michaela Flonard sports editor
Matt Rechtien variety editor
Trenton Gibbons commentary editor
James Whisenhunt satire editor
Sam Chott photo & graphics editor
Elias Brinkman
business & advertising manager
Paul Moses
social media manager
Kayleigh Thesenvitz web manager
Sam Chott
distribution managers
Nathan Gibbons, Adam Lux and Trenton Gibbons
@TUCollegian
The Collegian is the student newspaper of the University of Tulsa. It is distributed Mondays during the fall and spring semesters, except during holidays and final exam weeks. The University of Tulsa does not discriminate on the basis of personal status or group characteristics including but not limited to the classes protected under federal and state law. Inquiries regarding implementation of this policy may be addressed to the Office of Human Resources, 800 South Tucker Drive, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74104-9700, 918-631-2616. Requests for accommodation of disabilities may be addressed to the University’s 504 Coordinator, Dr. Tawny Taylor, 918-631-3814. To ensure availability of an interpreter, five to seven days notice is needed; 48 hours is recommended for all other accommodations. Advertising Policy: Advertising appearing in this publication does not imply approval or endorsement by the University of Tulsa or The Collegian for the products or services advertised. For advertising information, email the Collegian at advertising@tucollegian.org. The deadline for advertising is 12 pm on the Friday prior to publication. Letter Policy: Letters to the editor must be less than 500 words and can be sent to tucollegian@tucollegian, or dropped off at Oliphant Room 110. Under no circumstances will anonymous letters be published. The name of the person submitting the letter must be published with the letter. We reserve the right to edit or reject all letters. The deadline for letters is 5 pm on the Friday prior to publication. Editing Policy: The Collegian reserves the right to edit all copy submitted by all writers. This editing may take place in many forms, including grammar corrections, changes in paragraph structure or even the addition or removal of sections of content. Editorial Policy: Columnists are solely responsible for the content of their columns. Opinions expressed in columns may not represent the opinions of the entire Collegian staff, the administrative policies of the University of Tulsa, the views of the student body or our advertisers.
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13 February 2017
Justin Guglielmetti is…
the
bleacher creature The Miami Supah Hot Fire Their streak ended Saturday night against a Joel Embiid-less Philadelphia 76ers, but don’t let that distract you from the fact the Miami Heat somehow just won thirteen games in a row. Thirteen games! This was a team whose best players were a prematurely washed-up Goran Dragic and the posterchild for great stats-terrible team play in Hassan Whiteside. They started off the season at a dismal 1130 and looked like a sure candidate to tank the rest of the way to secure a high pick in this year’s loaded draft but now, against all odds, the Heat sit just two games out of a playoff spot in the East. There has been some talk about whether this streak is actually bad for Miami in the long run, robbing them of the opportunity to draft a potential franchise cornerstone, but I think that’s a load of crap. Newsflash everybody: tanking is no guarantee of success! The Sixers have been doing it for years and are only just now showing flashes of competitiveness; the Warriors, Celtics, Rockets and Spurs have all built contenders from developing talent and making smart trades, not placing all their eggs in the basket of a top five pick. Are you really going to bemoan the fact that this team is exciting to watch again for the first time since LeBron left, that Dragic is looking like his vintage All-NBA self again, that Dion Waiters might have been literally possessed by the spirit of Kobe Bryant? The Heat are doing what basketball is all about: getting buckets and winning games. Ball is Life UCLA point guard Lonzo Ball is turning heads this season, looking like an unholy hybrid of Steph Curry and Ben Simmons on the court and establishing himself as one of the top names in the 2017 draft class. Now what if I told you that he might not even be the best baller in his family? Ball’s youngest sibling LaMelo is straight killing it at his brother’s alma mater this season, leading Chino Hills HS to a 60-game winning streak and getting up to all sorts of video game-like shenanigans. Dude is pulling up from half court and calling his shot, scoring 92 points like it’s peanuts. And he’s only a sophomore! LaMelo is currently ranked outside the top 100 high school prospects in his class, and I can’t say that I’ve watched enough high school game film lately to adequately describe the ins and outs of his game, but if keeps this pace up, it won’t be long before he’s a household name. You Suck, Mother Nature Pitchers and catchers report for training on Tuesday and you know what that means: spring is almost here! Just a few more weeks and baseball will be back, the flowers will be blooming, the sun will be shining, and . . . what? It’s already summer in Oklahoma? I’m sorry, I’m just bitter about this. It was 86 degrees on Saturday. What? 86 degrees? Are you kidding me? It’s February, where is the snow and cold weather?? I’m a seasons traditionalist, damnit!
Monday
Sports
The Collegian: 3
Get personal politics out of sports reporting
More and more sports reporters are interjecting their own political opinions into their stories. This is making the world of sports much more politically contentious. Justin Guglielmetti Student Writer
The Bleacher Creature was a happy man this week. Not only did my Patriots pull off the most improbable comeback in Super Bowl history for their fifth franchise ring, Tom Brady got to cement his GOAT QB status, assert his dominance over Roger Goodell like a ‘50s greaser shaking down a dweeb for lunch money and silence all of his innumerable haters all in one night. And boy, were there a lot of haters out there. Tom Terrific has always been disliked outside of New England because he has been inordinately successful and almost too flawless in his demeanor and playing style. But never before did he have so many rooting against him not just because of jealousy, but due to a personal vendetta. You see, Brady (and Pats head coach Bill Belichick) supported Donald Trump for president. Can you believe they haven’t thrown these two in jail yet? I mean, supporting a political candidate whose views were popular enough that he was elected to the highest office in the land … what do these two think this is, America? In the two weeks leading up the Super Bowl, pundits reached for their torches and pitchforks and set out on the latest Patriots witch hunt; this time, a smear campaign designed to show that Brady and Belichick, in their passive support of a man who they both consider to be a personal friend, are aiding and abetting vile bigotry. This guilt by association is a deeply partisan attack that seems to only be levied against the right these days, but I’m not going to talk about that here. Why? This is a sports column. Well, I guess it’s a sports column about politics. Hopefully the last sports column about politics. As I am about to rail against the needless injection of personal politics into sports reporting, I am deeply aware of the irony of writing this piece at all. I would love to be able to focus just on recapping the big game or previewing the next free-agent class, because those are generally the things that
people come to the sports section to read. Sports are an escape from the stresses that mount in our daily lives, and as politics become ever more pervasive, we need a nonpartisan activity to bring us together more than ever. Unfortunately, the virus of political discourse just can’t seem to leave any medium untouched. Zach Lowe, a shrewdly intelligent basketball analyst who is the absolute best in the best in the business at what he does (breaking down the intricacies of the game for the casual fan), has peppered his articles with subtle jabs at the Trump administration lately. Bill Simmons’ TheRinger.com, the successor to my dear departed Grantland, is filled with entirely one-sided and insubstantial political think pieces. ESPN’s Dan LeBatard blasted the network several months ago because he wanted to spend his show discussing the Trump audio leaks
athlete himself bringing politics into the conversation and the media choosing to bring it to him. Tom Brady owns a “Make America Great Again” hat and acknowledged that he supported Donald Trump in the November election. These things are true. What’s also true is that at no point did he ever indicate that he wanted to get bogged down in a discussion of his personal politics. Simply having an opinion does not mean you think you are qualified to discuss it (Brady clearly doesn’t think he is, which is a refreshingly honest self-awareness that many Americans lack) or that you would like to do so. If the media wanted, they could accost any player about his political leanings and get all sorts of juicy gossip, even if the players aren’t particularly well-informed. I guarantee that lots of people across all
“Unfortunately, the virus of political discourse just can’t seem to leave any medium untouched” instead of, you know, sports. And baseball writer Jonah Keri recently wrote a piece for CBS Sports in which he laid out all the ways that sports have always been inextricably linked to politics, hearkening all the way back to Jackie Robinson. This is too much, and frankly I think somebody like Keri is missing the point. I understand that sports do not exist in an apolitical vacuum and that there are sometimes crossover events between entertainment and the real world. When an athlete’s actions are political (not merely when they have a political opinion, mind you), it opens the door to a broader discussion. Of course Jackie Robinson breaking Major League Baseball’s color barrier was about more than just who would be playing second base for the Dodgers that year, it was a profound statement on the civil rights of Black Americans. The same can be said for Colin Kaepernick and his taking a knee during the National Anthem. Whether you agree with his stance or not, it was addressing the hot-button issue of the day that is police brutality and discrimination. These aren’t things that I have any problem with sports writers talking about. But there is a massive difference between an
four major American sports have controversial opinions on LGBT rights, gun control, race relations, etc., but I guess because they aren’t uber-famous and don’t own a hat they aren’t given any attention. My problem with this is that it just seems to be another tool of divisiveness and polarization, taking the sacred neutral ground that is the field of play and smearing it with partisan rancor. It’s all being done in the name of virtue signalling and demonizing the other side, and if we ever hope to heal our country’s growing divide, that needs to stop. Look at me, I’m getting political; I never said it was easy to avoid this stuff. I’ll end on a positive note, something to illustrate just how much sports can bridge the great divide when politics are left out of it. Media commentators like Bill Maher would have had you root against the Patriots in the Super Bowl just because their most important player refused to say that Trump is Satan incarnate. Doesn’t matter if you just like the team, this is supposed to be “bigger than that.” Well, do you want a way to get Republicans and Democrats to agree on something? Make sure they are both from New England and then insult Tom Brady.
but the continued poor shooting in the second and third quarter put the game out of reach. Though the scoreboard showed 70–43 as time ran out, the game was not even that close. The Owls led by 39 points with under four minutes to play, and didn’t offer much resistance defensively for the rest of the game. Head Coach Matilda Mossman talked about the Golden Hurricane’s shooting after the game. “Other than Taty[ana Perez] in the last three minutes, I don’t think anyone shot better than 30 percent. It was a tough day and when one player shoots poorly that tends to feed over to other players on the team. Give Temple all the credit — they came out aggressive, and we weren’t very efficient or functional against their defense.” The 62–58 loss to UCF was a whole different story. Tulsa jumped out to an early lead, which was as high as nine going into the half, but let the Knights rally in the fourth quarter to take a four point win. Wakefield led the Golden Hurricane of-
fense for the second straight game with 15 points, and Kendrian Elliott tacked on ten, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the rally. “I am really proud of our kids for the way they battled,” Mossman said. “We guarded as well as we could except for a period at the end of the third and the beginning of the fourth quarter when we couldn’t stop Aliyah Gregory. Overall we battled. They are an aggressively rebounding team and we held our own against them. They just shot the ball better in the second half. They shot 20 percent in the first half and came back and shot 47 percent in the second half.” The Golden Hurricane couldn’t compete with the physical game that the Knights were playing. They ran into early foul trouble and senior forward Jessica Pongonis had to leave the game to get stitches. Second chance points are really what put Central Florida over the edge. The scored 15 second chance points, to Tulsa’s five which, in a game this close, makes a big difference. The women’s team play Houston the next week in the final four-game stretch to the conference tournament.
Women’s basketball falls to Temple and UCF
The women’s basketball team lost in two different ways to Temple and Central Florida, ensuring they will finish below five hundred. Matt Rechtien Sports Editor
The women’s basketball team had a tough week, losing in double-digits to Temple on the road and falling to UCF at home over the weekend. These two losses mean that the Golden Hurricane will have back-toback losing seasons for the first time since 2009–11. The women’s team struggled to shoot the ball in the loss to the Owls, making only 22 percent of their field goals, and only 60 percent from the free throw line. Shug Dickson, who had double-digit points in the last six games, only had five in the loss. Erika Wakefield led the Golden Hurricane in scoring with 11 points on ten shots. The poor shooting in the early part of the game put the Golden Hurricane in an early hole,
Tuesday 13
14
Men’s Tennis vs. UCLA 6:00 p.m.
Men’s Basketball @ UCF 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday 15
Thursday
Feb 13 – 19
16
Saturday
Friday
17
Softball
18
Track & vs. Syracuse Field @ Alex & Toledo 8:00/10:15 a.m. Wilson Invitational Men’s Basketball
Softball @ Cincinnati Women’s Basketball No Events vs. Toledo 11:00 a.m. vs. Houston 2:45 p.m. Women’s 7:00 p.m.
Softball vs. FAU 5:00 p.m.
Basketball @ SMU 2:00 p.m.
Women’s Tennis @ OU
Sunday
19
Softball vs. Savannah State 10:15 a.m.
The Collegian: 4
News
13 February 2017
Tulsa’s “Mr. Murph” recycling process demystified With Tulsa’s Material Recovery Facility, recycling is easier and more efficient than ever. Trenton Gibbons Variety Editor Excuse the ugly mascot on the side of the recycling bins dotting the campus. The image of a walking, emotive recycling bin with a face and the poor taste to put a cap on his grossly misshapen head isn’t supposed to be appealing to you, it’s just supposed to be memorable. It’s one of many ways American Waste Control’s team in Tulsa is trying to get you to recycle and, generally speaking, cut down on your production of waste. On average, an American citizen is bound to produce a literal ton of garbage each year. Mr. Murph, the nickname for Tulsa’s Material Recovery Facility (MRF), is trying to ensure it doesn’t all end up in a landfill. During a tour of the facility with Robert Pickens, VP of recycling, he gave a presentation about the plant’s innovative recycling processes. The majority of Pickens’ presentation had to do with the plant’s innovative technology for separating different materials not only from each other, but also non-recyclable contaminants. The design of MRF means it is able to process plastics, aluminum, cardboard, paper and glass, greatly diminishing the need for Northeast Oklahomans to sort their waste into different bins. This means it is a “single stream” system, though Pickens finds that confusing, given
its heterogenous nature, and instead prefers to say that it is a “mixed recyclables” system. First, the collected trash is dumped onto the tipping floor, named for the trucks’ system of tipping their hauls out. It’s then loaded into a hopper, which sends the trash through a device which meters it for consistent volume. Next, the conveyor belt runs past presorters, who pull out material that is too large or incapable of being recycled. This material will be sent to an incinerator in order to recover its energy. The recyclables next move on to a three-tier sorting system of screeners with varying gaps. These gaps mean that cardboard moves on above, three dimensional material drops one level and glass, the heaviest material, falls to the lowest level, where it shatters on impact and is loaded for transfer to the glass cleanup system. Next for the recyclables is the polisher, which separates out the newspaper. The newspaper faces another quality checkup before it is placed in bins to be bailed later. The next polisher ekes out the fiber and mixed paper before running by yet another quality check station. Once fiber and glass are removed, the MRF sets about separating aluminum, metal and plastics. A crossbelt magnet pulls the ferrous metals from the conveyor, while a later station uses an eddy current to repel the aluminum into a farther chute than the plastics. The plastics move onto optical scanning, which quickly scans plastic materials before using an air current to divide the materials be-
courtesy feedmrmurph/Youtube American Waste Control hopes the Mr. Murph mascot can help increase recycling among Tulsans.
tween a closer and farther chute. The next scanner does much the same, only it detects the color of the passing object rather than its makeup. Sorted materials are finally brought to the bailer, the final step before being shipped to manufacturers who use recycled materials. All in all, the MRF sorts between 36,000 and 38,000 lbs of recyclables per hour, though its maximum capacity is 40,000 lbs. Per month, MRF handles a million pounds of waste, but is built to handle twice that amount, though it would require many more shifts. The processed material is sold to manufacturers across the country according to the market; this stuff is still a commodity, after all. Still, Pickens says they have an easy time keeping the business local, as Tulsa has an unusually robust market for recycled
In Tulsa, the MRF system sorts between 36,000 to 38,000 pounds of recyclables per hour and about a million pounds of waste a month.
Recyclemania, an annual recycling competition between colleges and universities, began in February. The following events are planned. Feb. 13 – Plastics Awareness Forum, 6-8 p.m., Student Union Alcove Enjoy food from Eloté and learn about the dangers of plastic! This plastics awareness event will educate our campus community about plastic, how it is harmful, how it is used on campus and what we can do about making ourselves healthier and our campus and more sustainable.
Feb. 23 – Green Team at the TU Men’s Basketball Game, 7 p.m., Reynolds Center During the game, the TU Green Team will pick up recyclables and interact with fans about the importance of recycling. March 1 – E-waste event, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., venue TBA Recycle your batteries, cell phones, computers and any electronics that have outlasted their usefulness. TU is teaming up with the Tulsa Metropolitan Environmental Trust for this yearly event.
courtesy feedmrmurph/Youtube
March 6-10 – Caught you Green-Handed! The Sustainability Committee will surprise TU students, faculty and staff with prizes for recycling! March 22 – “Before the Flood,” 6-8 p.m., Chapman Lecture Hall, food afterward at Blue House Watch this documentary about waste and your carbon footprint, hosted by and starring Leonardo Di Caprio.
materials to use in products such as glass bottles, sheetrock paper, tissues, towels and plastics. Despite all of this, Pickens and his peers are having a hard time getting Tulsans to recycle, at least correctly. This is for the most part a consequence of Tulsa’s only recent embrace of recycling. Since Tulsa became a recycling city so much later than larger urban areas, it skipped the days of the blue bag system and dual streams, which both required attentive sorting from recyclers. Because they started with carts, Tulsans often can’t discern a non-recyclable item from a recyclable one. Common examples are clothing, which gets wrapped around the MRF’s screeners and has to be manually cut down, and film plastics, like grocery bags (though most grocers are making an effort to collect and recycle these bags on their own). Pickens had two final instructions for college students in particular. The first is that while most pizza boxes are indeed recyclable, the recycling process is incapable of cleaning out food or liquids. In other words, don’t throw a full slice of pizza into the recycling bin and, if grease has seeped into half the box, tear off the clean part and recycle that alone. The second clarification pertained to beer bottles. The MRF is capable of recycling the bottle caps, so when you’re recycling your empty beer bottle, leave the cap on. The MRF is a seven million dollar investment, and recycling’s just a business like anything else. Only it so happens this business slows the pollution of our planet. So the next time you see that ugly Mr. Murph, try to remember that it’s simpler than ever to ensure your trash doesn’t end up in a landfill. March 31 – Recycling pledge and membership drive, noon Student Union Join our growing student group! April TBA In April, the Sustainability Committee will host an Earth Day event on Harwell Field for hundreds of local elementary students. We also will plant a 150-square-foot Monarch Way Station in mid-April. Like us on Facebook for updates on all of our activities. www.Facebook.com/TulsaUSC
AIS plans to bring a world of cultures to kids at Kendall-Whittier The new Cultural Exchange Program, spearheaded by Philanthropy Chair Sophie Htet Htet Aye, will connect KendallWhittier students with TU’s international student organizations. Hannah Kloppenburg Editor-in-Chief The Association of International Students is bringing several student multicultural groups together to share crafts, food and games with kids at Kendall-Whittier Elementary. AIS Philanthropy Chair Sophie Htet Htet Aye said that AIS plans to send a group to Kendall-Whittier every other Friday, possibly every Friday, if enough student groups want to participate. They plan to work with kids from first to fifth grade, bringing different activities like coloring books, crafts, quizzes and giveaways. “Right now we’re also planning to do like a passport-style book that we can hand out to the kids, so if we go, they can … color and we can give them stickers and stamps so that they will love it. That’s the kind of thing that we’re planning,” Aye explained. “The organizations … have to plan their own games and own activities. So that actually depends on them,” she said. As of right now, she says that Malaysian Student Association, Latin American Student Association, Angolan Student Association, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and Indonesian Student Association
are planning to participate. Indian Student Association and Chinese Student Association are also considering getting involved. Aye and a few other members of AIS came up with the idea for the Cultural Exchange program while brainstorming options for community service outreach. “One of my friends and I were talking about it, and we thought of teaching something to kids. My friend was like ‘oh, maybe
we can do … some cultural thing,’ because we’re AIS so it’s very international. We all came up with this idea and came to the agreement that we were going to start this project,” she said. AIS wanted to get the program up and running as quickly as possible, an effort which Aye directed as the newly appointed Philanthropy Chair. “It was … really urgent, and Mr. David Kobel was really up to it, and
graphic by Elias Brinkman As of now, the Malaysian Student Association, Latin American Student Association, Angolan Student Association, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and Indonesian Student Association are planning to participate in the program.
we tried to connect it with True Blue Neighbors and they were really excited about it,” she said. She said it was fairly easy to get in touch with Kendall-Whittier and set up the program. “We went there to see what the classrooms looked like and how the kids are,” she said. “The kids are really excited about it too. They’re so cute.” For Aye, the program holds a personal significance. “Back home...I really liked kids and liked teaching them. So when they first told us that idea I was like, ‘yeah! Let’s do it, let’s do it, let’s get into it,’” she smiled. She believes that the program will make a significant difference in teaching the kids at Kendall-Whittier about cultures and places outside of their own homes. “It’s really hard for another person to understand where we come from and everything that’s going on,” Aye explained. “People should know more about where we come from. We might be eating together and hanging out every day, but like sometimes … we forget that we’re kind of different but similar at the same time.” “We want to showcase our background and our culture behind it. And especially for these kids, they may not … some of them, they might not even have been to, like, other places outside of Tulsa. So we really want to introduce that part to them,” she concluded. The program kicks off next Friday. Indonesian Student Association will be the first to send a group to Kendall-Whittier. Student organizations interested in participating are encouraged to contact Sophie Htet Htet Aye at hta347@utulsa.edu.
13 February 2017
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The Collegian: 5
Congress wants to return federal land to states and private entities
TU professor Peggy Hill discussed the possible consequences of selling or leasing any federal lands to states and private entities. Nathan Gibbons Student Writer
In the last couple of months, members of Congress have begun pushing legislation that has many conservationists up in arms. The controversy started when Republicans changed one line in the rules for the House of Representatives and virtually eliminated the value of federal lands. Federal lands can now be sold to states and private entities much more easily than had been possible. Some argue it could lead to abuses by private entities and a blow to an economy which benefits from recreation and work done on national lands. Also under a spotlight is Bill 622, which is intended “to terminate the law enforcement functions of the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management and to provide block grants to States for the enforcement of Federal law on Federal land under the jurisdiction of these agencies, and for other purposes.” TU Professor of Biological Science Peggy Hill elaborated on some of the possible consequences of the Republicans’ moves. In regards to Bill 622, she said, “Aside from the national parks, I think it would be even more difficult to enforce approved, even contract-limiting, land use by those leasing property, and perhaps even to lose control of areas not being leased by any private entities … sort of the spoils being reaped by those bold enough to just take them.” She said an interesting topic in all this is “the lack of justification that local law enforcement of federal laws on federal lands would be more efficient than the current system. Would the proposed block grants be used to create an entire new class of state/ local employee, or would states simply use them to supplement their contributions to agencies that are currently underfunded and unable to maintain the level of enforcement already assigned to them? In practice, we already see cooperation among government agencies that are federal, state, local or from tribal nations when they are needed. The
Recycling, from cover homework, we wouldn’t do it.” But when pressed for specifics, students couldn’t specify what these incentives or specifics should be. Brown said it best, with “I don’t know how that could happen, but I think that’s the only thing that could be changed.” Grunin noted that while he might be able to incentivize a dorm to increase recycling, doing so throughout campus would be difficult, if not impossible. More importantly, “how could we incentivize you to do the right thing?” he added. Making recycling easier was also a theme in student responses. Becca Stang, who lives in an on-campus apartment, complained that “I don’t see that many recycling bins here, like the big ones you throw everything in. I know there’s one in my apartment complex area. I don’t know where any others are at all.” In the Norman complex area, for instance, there are a recycling bin and trash bin near the side facing Delaware St., but on
courtesy Wikimedia Commons Above: A map of all federally owned land in the United States. The various dark shades represent different owners, such as the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Bureau of Land Management and others.
concern that over-extended state enforcement officers would have to add to their duties an entirely new layer of federal laws and regulations with which they are less familiar seems justified with such an underdeveloped piece of legislation.” She clarified that different states handle conservation and enforcement with varying degrees of success.
threat to energy and agri-business corporations. People near disposal wells have been directed to pay for their own home repairs while those whose practices induced earthquakes, for example, have profited financially and with no defined responsibility to the property owners with damage claims. If the best interest of citizens is of less concern than the financial interests of corporations,
freedom and private ownership of federal lands.” He was eventually replaced, but there were many anti-government actions that went unpunished in his time. Hill clarified that it is too soon to know for sure what actions the current administration will see all the way through, but added that “based on all written and oral evidence, there is no concern for the environment, or
“We have already seen how the state government is unable to act in the interests of citizens when those are even a minor threat to energy and agri-business corporations.”
When asked if it was right to fear property development and energy development taking precedence over environmental protection, she responded, “I think that in Oklahoma there is justifiable concern for the environment and for private property rights. We have already seen how the state government is unable to act in the interests of citizens when those are even a minor
then why would we hope that the best interests of public lands, or the environment more broadly, would take precedence over corporate interests?” Hill mentioned that current events reminded her of James G. Watt, who was Secretary of the Interior in the Reagan administration and had previously been part of a “movement to increase individual economic
any science-based policies. However, written and oral evidence appear to be subject to interpretation. The only ray of sunshine is that the president’s two adult sons are on record for wantingto protect public lands because they are avid hunters. Otherwise, all appearances suggest that the federal lands should be made to turn a profit if they hold reserves of resources that we can extract.”
the side facing Evanston St. there is only a trash bin. Other students, like Saswat Das, noted that recycling bins on campus can be difficult to shove larger items into. Some of the bins have small intakes, meaning some students, like Britney Elliott, have seen others take the lids off of them to fit in particularly unwieldy items. Deere said the university is trying to make it easier to recycle. “We started taking trash cans away and adding recycling. We made sure if you can see a trash can you can also see a recycle bin.” This program has worked in most buildings, except for Helmrich and Keplinger Halls. “Kep has all that [construction] going on … we don’t know where they [the recycling bins] are,” Deere said, but “The business hall, they want it [the recycling bins] to be pretty.” Another suggestion addressed a common sight during move out day – trashed furniture. Brown said he owns “a couch because someone was trying to throw it out. I found it outside US West … people have gotten furniture, cooking utensils, pans, expensive things that people have tried to throw away.”
Grunin said the school does try to encourage students to donate, rather than trash, household goods on moveout day. “We do try to do that on moveout day — we have an area where students can leave stuff,” he said. However, Grunin said, “The problem we’ve had in the past is it’s not stuff the agency wants.” Donation agencies, like Goodwill or Salvation Army, want serviceable goods, and if the item doesn’t meet their standards, the university has to throw it away. Waiting till the last possible moment to move out, as many students often do, also complicates matters, as many donation centers won’t come out on a Saturday. Items left outside over the weekend can be destroyed or damaged by the exposure, especially if it rains. Katie Clary came up with a different solution to increase recycling on campus — reduce consumption. By using less, there’s less to recycle. Grunin agreed, saying “I think reducing consumption overall is a great goal. As the university continues to transform, this is a goal overall.” Direct deposit, trayless and other efficiencies were offered as examples of reducing consumption. With Recyclemania, the Stu-
dents for Sustainability Committee is working to raise awareness about the dangers of plastics and push legislation through SA that would make recommendations for the university to reduce plastic availability. As time continues, Grunin says he hopes “the entire campus can continue to look for ways to decrease consumption and increase efficiencies.” Those involved with sustainability programs on campus welcome any kind of student ideas. According to Boulden, “if students want more recycling, they’re gonna take that to administration. Then they’ll know students want it and institute it.” She used the trayless initiative at the dining center as an example, stating how petitions had caused the change. Grunin echoed her statement, saying “I would love to do something students were motivated in.” “Any kind of input that anybody would have, we welcome it,” said Deere. “We want anybody coming to TU to know what’s available, what’s responsible and have a pride when it comes to all these things, like we’re number one in the state, we’re number one in the region, we’re doing something no one else is doing.”
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13 February 2017
Upswing in pro-gun policies on campuses not felt at TU Several colleges around the US allow concealed carry on campus, but TU does not plan to be one of them. Nathan Gibbons Student Writer In 2015, a Gallup poll claimed 56 percent of Americans would feel safer if more people (who had cleared a criminal background check) carried concealed carry firearms. In 2005, only one out of every four Americans agreed with this statement. Over the years, more and more legislators have questioned whether gun laws should be tightened to counteract campus shootings. Nationally, there has been an upswing in pro-gun policies. One of the most controversial cases is in Texas, where legislation now allows concealed firearms on four-year college campuses. The Texas law states that individuals who have a concealed handgun license may carry loaded firearms in some campus buildings. Certain campus areas and buildings may be deemed sensitive by administration and continue to prohibit concealed carry. A simi-
lar law for two-year campuses will go into effect this August. Eight states now allow concealed carry on public postsecondary college campuses. These eight are Idaho, Colorado, Kansas, Mississippi, Texas, Oregon, Wisconsin and Utah. Not all these states’ gun laws are the same. In Wisconsin, no public college campuses allow firearms to be carried in campus buildings, and no private universities allow them anywhere on campus grounds. In 2016, Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, a Republican, let a bill pass that would allow public university teachers to carry concealed firearms, granted they had the correct training and permits. “I have long stated a preference for systems and institutions to be able to make their own decisions regarding security issues on campus, and I again expressed this concern throughout the legislative process this year,” he stated at the time. “Although SB 2376 does not go as far as I would like in retaining campus control, the final version of the bill included input from higher education and was shaped to accommodate some of their concerns.” Oklahoma legislation is among the strict-
courtesy Associated Press/Youtube The Texas law concerning guns in colleges was controversial, but Oklahoma law does not allow firearm possession on campus.
est in the nation. The law states that no person in possession of a gun license may carry a firearm into or on to any university, college or technology center school property. Licensed owners must leave their guns in a lawful location or in a locked car, if necessary. Nine other states have similar legislation. Serious criminal charges await anyone who breaks these laws. In response to questions regarding firearm safety on the University of Tulsa campus, director of Campus Security Joe Timmons
said “it is rare to find someone in possession of firearms on campus. In the past two years, there have been two criminal arrests for this offense. Both were non-students. Also, four students were referred for student conduct/ housing violations for having a firearm in their on-campus residences.” He also said that there has been no pressure or movement to allow conceal carry firearms on the TU campus, by students, teachers or otherwise.
Communication faculty release statement after Trump’s travel ban Department of Communication full-time faculty clarified their position in support of immigration, international relations and open communication. Raven Fawcett Student Writer During the first week of February, the University of Tulsa’s Department of Communication released a statement concerning President Donald Trump’s travel ban, which has recently complicated international travel in the United States. Trump’s executive order temporarily suspended travel for people with visas from seven countries into the United States, as well as halted the inflow of new (mostly Syrian) refugees. A federal judge voted in favor of Washington and Minnesota’s lawsuits that called for a halt in enforcement of the executive order. With all the controversy, the Department of Communication felt that it was time to start a conversation with students and the community at large. The statement was undersigned by the department’s five full-time professors: Dr. John Coward, Dr. Benjamin Peters, Dr. Joli Jensen, Dr. Justin Rawlins and Department Chair Dr. Mark Brewin. No other faculty read or participated in the writing of the statement, which was released shortly after
Trump’s executive order. Dr. Rawlins brought up the idea of releasing a statement with the Department of Communication, and the department began working on a draft shortly after President Clancy sent out an email to the student body. Clancy’s message, sent on January 29, encouraged the student body to support one another and stressed that TU stands behind its students and its work towards interna-
ment is posted in the department’s lobby in Oliphant Hall. When asked whether there was a relationship between the statement and the fact that it was voiced and signed by the full-time communication faculty, Dr. Peters agreed that there was a link between the two. “We seek to model communication as not just teachers but also practitioners of communication,” he said, going on to reference
the Feb. 9 to uphold a stay of enforcement on Trump’s executive order. While President Trump took to Twitter to announce that the legal battle was not over, for now travel has resumed. The effects of the ban are still felt, and the Department of Communication’s statement remains relevant. Dr. Peters recalled a friend of his who came to the US five years ago from a Syria that was still in the early stages of its civil
“‘In a flagship research university looking for a more international and global future, it would be irresponsible if we didn’t take proactive stances on who can come to America and why.’” tional scholarship. The department’s statement began by noting that, in light of Trump’s temporary travel restrictions, the professors would like to reaffirm their commitment to people of all walks of life, particularly people from “war-torn states such as Syria.” Next, they write that as their professions suggest, they are committed to communicating and to limiting barriers in pursuit of communication and a better world; that immigration has historically been and should continue to be the foundation of the United States; that government should make what laws they see fit to protect the state within reason, but to be mindful of the impact of those laws; and that diversity is important, and to that end, differences should spark conversation instead of anger. The full state-
James Carey, a lauded communication theorist “who thought of the practice and theory of the field as endless and generative conversations, and that’s how we want the department and nation to work as well.” He believes that the communication department’s message is applicable in light of Trump’s executive order. Executive orders bypass the democratic element of most decision-making in the US, which can cause shock and fear. He went on to contextualize the statement not just for the department, but for TU. “In a flagship research university looking for a more international and global future,” Dr. Peters explained, “it would be irresponsible if we didn’t take proactive stances on who can come to America and why.” The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals voted on
war. The friend had hoped to save enough money as a taxi driver to visit Syria and his family soon. Instead, he finds himself unsure of his ability to return should he leave the country that he loves so dearly. “His patriotism for this country no longer seems to count because he hails from a different country, and that fact hurts everyone,” Dr. Peters said of his Syrian friend, who loves Clint Eastwood and embraces his life in America wholeheartedly. Dr. Peters went on to note that not only was the executive order personal for him, but for many of the Department of Communication faculty. Dr. Peters pointed to immediacy of the issue as the drive behind the department’s statement: to create the opportunities for community and conversation among students and the Tulsa community at large.
SAVE and Advocacy Alliance present first-ever Consent Week
Two organizations teamed up to provide TU with a week of programming about on-campus violence intended to educate and empower students. Hannah Kloppenburg Editor-in-Chief
Student Alliance for Violence Education (SAVE) collaborated with Advocacy Alliance to present a week of speakers and activities intended to address the topic of sexual violence on college campuses. Whitney Cipolla, president of SAVE, said that this is the organization’s first year sponsoring an entire week of activities. However, she mentioned that “the Advocacy Alliance has sponsored a speaker from We End Violence before, and this will be SAVE’s second year in a row sponsoring a production of ‘The Vagina Monologues,’ and our third year distributing free candy bars.” Consent Week kicked off last Friday and Saturday with sold-out productions of “The Vagina Monologues,” and continues this Monday, Feb. 13 with a “lunch and learn” about the warning signs of unhealthy relationships led by Anne Sheaff. Cipolla emphasized that the lunch and learn “is a great opportunity because [Sheaff] is a professor for the Oxley College of
Health Sciences and actually offers a self defense class, and will be speaking about different warning signs to look out for that might lead to a dangerous situation.” “This event and the whole week is really about educating and empowering students.” There will be events in the Student Union on both Tuesday and Wednesday. Tuesday’s event involves passing out candy bars with
facts, statistics and resources related to violence and sexual assault, and Wednesday will feature a photo booth. On Thursday, activist and public speaker Jeff Bucholtz from We End Violence will speak on ending violence on college campuses. “The focus of this organization is engaging entire communities to be proactive and responsive to acts of violence and
courtesy Whitney Cipolla
To prepare for Consent Week, SAVE members wrapped candy bars with facts, statistics and resources related to violence and sexual assault.
sexual assault,” Cipolla said. This event will be followed up on Friday by a lunch provided by Advocacy Alliance where student leaders are invited to discuss on-campus violence with Thursday’s speaker. Cipolla says that Consent Week is primarily important because ending sexual violence is a team effort. “It is going to take a collective effort from different colleges, departments, faculty, administrators, staff, and students coming together to greatly reduce and end violence on our campus, and this week is really about inspiring action from everyone.” “If SAVE can help educate people and start a dialogue about sexual assaults on college campuses, that will show that TU as an institution is actively supporting survivors of sexual assault, starting initwiatives to better inform students, and working to make our campus community as safe, welcoming, and inclusive as possible,” she explained. Cipolla emphasized that SAVE intends for Consent Week to have a tangible effect on campus. “Awareness and education matter,” she said. “Talking about issues that are usually swept under the rug matters. If these events can teach one person something, or make a survivor of sexual assault feel supported, then all of the programming efforts will be worth it.”
Consent Week Events: Mon., Feb. 13: Unhealthy Relationship Warning Signs Workshop with Anne Sheaff, Qdoba provided by SAVE, Student Union Alcove, 12:00 p.m. Tues., Feb. 14: Passing out candy bars, Student Union Lobby, 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. Wed., Feb. 15: Photo booth, Student Union Lobby, 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. Thurs., Feb. 16: We End Violence presentation on ending campus violence with Jeff Bucholtz, Reynolds Center, 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. Fri., Feb. 17: Student Leader Lunch (provided by Advocacy Alliance) with Jeff Bucholtz from We End Violence, Collins Hall, Heritage Room, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
News
13 February 2017
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SA hopes travel funding change will be fairer and easier Next semester, SA will not distinguish between open and closed travel for funding student organizations. Brennen VanderVeen Student Writer Student Association currently distinguishes between open and closed travel. Open travel is eligible for full funding (though still limited by caps) and requires that the travel is at least theoretically open to the entire student body. In contrast, closed travel is only eligible for half of what an organization could otherwise get (or $100 per person), but it has no requirement of being open to campus as a whole. That distinction will not be present next semester, at least not formally. The default
next semester will be that all organizations that engage in travel will need to advertise at least 14 days in advance (which is the requirement for open travel). However, for those organizations that use what is currently marked as closed travel, the advertising requirement can be waived by Senate. If an organization has that requirement waived, besides obviously not needing to advertise, it will also be eligible for full funding as if it had been open. Basically, while currently organizations apply for either open or closed travel, the latter of which has a financial penalty, all travel in the new system will be basically open, but the requirements for that can be waived. The bill was primarily sponsored by Emma Stewart, who represents apartments and is Government Operations Committee (GOC) chair, and Kelly Scrivner, who represents Greek housing. The bill lists several
reasons why they believed the changes were necessary. One reason is that the Financial Appropriations guidelines already required both open and closed travel to demonstrate a benefit for students. Stewart elaborated that she thought it was unfair to fund closed travel differently than open travel when both have to demonstrate a benefit. She doesn’t think that travel being closed necessarily means that it’s less beneficial to campus and cites competitions that raise TU’s profile as examples. Further, the authors think that the current system favors large organizations. The reason is that the 50 percent cap is applied to what an organization spends. So, for a large organization, the 50 percent cap could reduce its eligible funding to what would be the normal cap anyway. Also, the authors believe that the current distinction is somewhat trivial. For instance,
a niche interest can be considered open if any student is eligible to go, even though very few students actually would have any interest in going. The bill passed with only two votes against it. One of the people who voted against it, Michael Mancini, who represents the graduate school, stated that “SA’s resources to support student programming are considerable but finite. Our priority should be directing funding toward the activities that can benefit the most students. I prefer a funding system that actively incentivizes opening travel opportunities to all students, as the previous system did. While the new system will help some organizations, I did not consider it to be the best stewardship of the SA budget.” For organizations that don’t sufficiently advertise but haven’t been given approval, the changes still allow their funding to be only partial.
Mayor Bynum’s goals for the city affect safety, infrastructure, inequality Bynum’s unusually nonpartisan administration released goals for his term, though they lacked target numbers or strategies. Nick Rethford Student Writer Newly elected Republican Mayor G.T. Bynum may have been sworn into office a little over two months ago, but that hasn’t stopped him from already fulfilling some of his campaign promises, including putting together an unusually nonpartisan administration. Seven of the eleven positions on his team have been filled by registered Democrats, one of whom happens to be former Tulsan mayor Kathy Taylor. In addition, Bynum has released a list of eight goals he hopes to accomplish this year covering a variety of topics such as
high school graduation rate, crime rate and population growth rate, and while he hasn’t released any official target numbers or strategies, he remains confident as to how this year will play out. Many people wonder, though, whether he is focusing on the right issues and, more importantly, if he can actually fulfill his promises. Considerably younger than recent mayors, Bynum has set some very ambitious goals that have left critics skeptical as to whether he can actually accomplish his plans and bring serious change to Tulsa, or if his promises are just another case of youthful inexperience. While Bynum hasn’t set a goal for every issue plaguing Tulsa. These goals were set in hopes of having ripple effects, positively affecting other issues that fall under the same umbrella. For example, improving the high school graduation rate might also affect the state’s teen pregnan-
cy rate, and closing the life expectancy gap between north and south Tulsa residents might include handling the city’s drug problem
As to whether or not he’s up to the challenge at hand, student Abbie Cassody remains optimistic. “We collectively voted him into
office because we believe in him,” she says. “He deserves a chance to prove himself, and I definitely think he can do it.”
courtesy GT Bynum/Youtube Although considerably younger than recent mayors, G.T. Bynum has put forth a list of ambitious goals.
Mayor Bynum’s specific goals for the year are: •
Decreasing the number of traffic fatalities — the statewide fatal crash number was 590 in 2015
•
Increasing the average per capita income — the per capita income in 2015 for Tulsa was $28,121, which had been steadily rising since 2010.
• • • • • •
Improving the city’s pavement index score — Tulsa’s current score is 67, and with the highest possible score being 100, the city’s score doesn’t look too good. Reducing the disparity in life expectancy between south Tulsa and north Tulsa residents — the difference is a whopping 11 years. Improving city employees’ morale — it currently sits at 37 percent. Increasing the population growth rate
Decreasing the number of violent crimes — Tulsa’s current crime index is 3, with 100 being the safest.
Improving the city’s high school graduation rate — right now, Tulsa only has a 67 percent graduation rate.
Tulsa county jails to open “cutting-edge” mental health facility The Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office revealed details about their new mental health facility and partnership with medical provider Turn Key. Giselle Willis Managing Editor Around twenty percent of American adults have a mental illness, but in a county jail system, about two-thirds of the inmates have one. Those with mental illnesses are also more likely to return to the prison, especially if they have an addiction. Last Thursday, Feb. 9, the National Alliance on Mental HealthTulsa invited the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office to present its new approach to inmates with mental illnesses. Tulsa Sheriff Vic Regalado began with an overview of changes that he thinks allow the jail system to make “positive progress moving forward.” His office found a new medical provider, called Turn Key, and he said this was a significant change because of how collaborative they have been. Their medical professionals will be housed in the newly constructed mental health “pod” along with the inmates, detention officers who have been trained in crisis and intervention and possibly a registered nurse with a mental health background. The Sheriff’s Office also created a discharge planning position for the pod, so there will be a full-time counselor to help discharged inmates readjust to life
outside of prison. Additionally, Regalado often gets emails from family members of people in jail who are trying to explain the medical needs of their loved ones. There will soon be a 1-800 number to call between 9-5 p.m. to inform pod staff members about these needs. The pod is scheduled to open around March 1st. Chief Deputy Michelle Robinette said that the Sheriff’s Office visited many similar facilities around the country and tried to take the best aspects of all of them. Tulsa’s pod is divided into four levels. The first floor is for suicidal inmates, and since they’re supposed to be kept under watch, their cells have glass front walls and officers will take shifts keeping an eye on the inmates there. Previously, suicidal inmates were transferred to the emergency room to be kept under watch, which Chief Robinette
said was expensive and stressful for everyone involved. The second floor also has glass walls that allow inmates a view of the third floor. Robinette said the third floor is where patients who consistently take their medication and don’t cause problems can play cards and watch television. Finally, the fourth floor is a community-style dorm for those who are almost ready to move back to the main prison facility but are not ready for eight to ten hours alone with one other person overnight. Inmates are in their own rooms but can still talk to their neighbors. There are windows and the walls are “baby blue.” Chief Robinette also clarified that the pod will only house men. Tulsa county jails hold a little over 1600 inmates, and around 1300 of them are men. When Tulsa voters approved Proposition Two in 2014, the .026 cent sales tax meant
to expand the jail facilities was only about the third of the money that the Sheriff’s Office wanted. Ultimately, Robinette said, the pod has 26 beds for men and there’s room to grow, but she hopes the existence of the pod will help free up other areas, such as the medical facility, for women. Chief Robinette will have weekly meetings with staff members to determine whether Turn Key’s outcome measures indicate good results. The Sheriff’s Office is also working on programs that explore alternatives to jail for those who are homeless or have addictions. They plan to train officers on how to interact with people who have mental illnesses as well. Turn Key’s medical professionals were hopeful that the Tulsa facility could “possibly become a role model for the rest of the country.” Universities like OSU and TU will have students involved. The
medical staff includes a Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor and a couple of Licensed Professional Counselors, all of whom will also help determine whether inmates are faking illness to gain access to the new pod. Regarding treatment, the medical staff hopes to streamline the medication and doctor visit database, provide individual and group therapy and educate inmates on mental health in general. Sheriff Regalado said he doesn’t like the idea that people with mental health issues are “crazy” or that they “can’t be helped” because his experiences have convinced him otherwise. He closed with saying that his office is doing the “best [they] can” with their tight budget and that they have a need for detention officers since the turnover rate is high. Everyone who spoke encouraged the audience to sign up for tours of the new facility.
courtesy Fox23 News Tulsa/Youtube
The four floors of the new facility will be divided by patient use, with the first floor for suicidal inmates and the fourth for those almost ready to move back to the main prison facility.
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Jan. 20 1:30 p.m. University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers spoke with a non-TU affiliate who reported receiving a fraudulent check. The recipient of the check was advised to contact their local police department. The investigation is ongoing. Jan. 19 5:30 a.m. While on routine patrol University of Tulsa campus Security Officers noticed a delivery driver go up the curb in front of Kappa Delta sorority. The driver of a semi-trailer was trying to back into the ACSU dock to make a delivery. The grass area in front of Kappa Delta sorority was ripped up from the semi’s wheels. The driver was told to come back with a smaller truck to make the delivery. 8:50 p.m. University of Tulsa campus Security Officers were dispatched to check on two individuals in the McFarlin Library parking lot. A student had called because the individuals had made them feel uncomfortable. Officers made contact with the two individuals and determined they were not affiliated with the university. They were inviting students to attend a religious meeting off-campus. Officers informed them they were on private property, and must have prior authorization from administration or registered campus ministries to reach out to students. A contact card was completed and the two individuals left campus.
7:50 p.m. University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers were dispatched to the Kappa Sigma fraternity house in regards to an unknown person shining a laser out of a window. Officers arrived on scene and met with a student who claimed that they were playing with the laser. The laser pointer was impounded. The laser pointer will be stored in the property room for safe keeping. 11:20 p.m. While on routine patrol University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers heard loud music and talking coming from an apartment in Mayo Village. Upon making contact with the individuals in the apartment, it was discovered that there was underage drinking. It was determined that the resident of the apartment was of age, but there were 3 students that had been drinking who were underage. Everyone was identified before being allowed to leave. Officers searched the apartment for any remaining individuals and found 1 person hiding in a shower. Jan. 21
Nathan Gibbons Distribution Manager
Mexican woman deported amidst controversy Mexico’s foreign ministry is warning Mexican citizens living in the United States to take extra precautions after the deportation of an illegal immigrant. Guadalupe Garcia de Rayos was detained during a routine check-in with immigration officials last Wednesday, February 8. The Arizonan mother of two was taken to Nogales, Mexico by immigration officials the next morning. Seven were arrested after protesters attempted to block cars they believed to be carrying Garcia de Rayos to Mexico Wednesday night. “This is the new reality that is experienced by our community with the most severe application of immigration control measures,” responded Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials said, “Ms. Garcia’s immigration case underwent review at multiple levels of the immigration court system, including the Board of Immigration Appeals, and the judges held she did not have a legal basis to remain in the US … ICE will continue to focus on identifying and removing individuals with felony convictions who have final orders of removal issued by the nation’s immigration courts.”
Russia considers giving up Snowden Russia is considering turning Edward Snowden over to the US to gain favor with President Donald Trump, US intelligence officials said last week. The sources have analyzed sensitive intelligence reports detailing Russian deliberations and say that turning over Snowden has been considered as one of many ways to strengthen their relationship with Trump. The Department of Justice commented that it would welcome the return of the American whistleblower, who faces federal charges with a minimum of thirty years in prison. Last July, President Trump said “I think he’s a total traitor and I would deal with him harshly … And if I were president, Putin would give him over.” Former deputy national security adviser Juan Zarate warned Trump that it would be a “win-win” for Russia, who have already extracted information from Snowden and could ignite more national security and civil liberties controversy with his return. “All of that would perhaps be music to the ears of Putin,” he said.
Whales stranded in New Zealand
Last Saturday, 240 more whales beached themselves on a remote beach in New Zealand. Earlier that same day, rescuers had successfully refloated 100 of the original 400 whales that had stranded themselves at Farewell Spit last Thursday. Rescuers formed a human chain in the water but failed to stop another wave of whales from arriving. Medics and volunteers tried to keep the survivors alive by cooling them with water. It is unclear why the whales continue to strand on the beach. Herb Christophers of New Zealand’s Department of Conservation said that it was possible that they were attempting to swim around the top of the South Island and became lost. Another theory points to sharks driving the whales inland after bite marks were found on one of the whales. Beached whales send out distress signals to other whales, who in turn become stranded in low tides. Officials are hard pressed to find a good method of disposal for the whale carcasses, which may turn buoyant and float into popular bays.
Closure for soldiers in UK Sergeant Brian Wood and his team have been cleared of allegations of war crimes after a lawyer in charge of many abuse cases was fired for misconduct and it was announced last Friday that the investigative team would be shut down this summer. The Iraq Historic Abuse Team was set up for the right reasons but “completely abused” by lawyers, according to Veterans Minister Mark Lancaster. Last Saturday, Sgt. Wood told BBC Breakfast that the allegations, which included unlawful killing, mutilation and mistreatment of prisoners of war, should have been considered in detail before a public inquiry was begun. “I can speak for me and my soldiers and what they’ve put us through for that period of time, it was damaging to a degree of careers, marriage split ups and also fuelling the fire of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and the trauma that we had seen on the battlefield,” Wood said. “Just to get these allegations thrown at you is a bitter pill to swallow.” The IHAT team began more than 3500 abuse allegations, despite little credible evidence and malpractice.
13 February 2017
2:40 a.m. University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers responded to Brown Village Apartments after an anonymous complaint of people gathering and talking loudly in the apartments breezeway. Officers spoke with the residents and discovered there was underage drinking and drug paraphernalia in the apartment. The alcohol was disposed of and the drug paraphernalia was impounded. 7:30 p.m. While on routine patrol University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers made contact with a suspicious person in the University Square West Apartments Lot. The individual was on bicycle in the back of the parking lot looking into car windows. The Communications Center confirmed that the individual had no outstanding warrants, or previous contact cards. The individual was trespass warned, and told the boundaries of the University of Tulsa property. A contact card was completed. 7:30 p.m. While on routine patrol University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers noticed Tulsa Police cars in Norman Village Apartments. Tulsa Police officers informed them they had tracked a stolen vehicle to university property. Campus Security checked the through the area for possible suspects. The owner arrived and took possession of the vehicle.
Jan. 22 8:00 a.m. While on routine patrol University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers found 2 small leaks coming from the roof on the 3rd floor commons area at Keplinger Hall. Caution signs were placed at the areas where water was dripping. The physical plant engineer was notified. 9:20 p.m. University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers were dispatched to the West Park Apartments area for a vandalism call. The vehicle owned by a University of Tulsa student had 2 shattered windows. There was nothing missing from the vehicle. The student filed a report with the Tulsa Police Department. Jan. 23 11:30 p.m. University of Tulsa Campus Security Officers met with a student whose OK driver’s license was found in the possession of another student who was using the driver’s license to appear to be of the legal age to consume alcohol. The student admitted to loaning the ID to the other student. The student was informed this was a violation of the Student Code of Conduct. Due to the student having a second OK driver’s license, the driver’s license was turned over to the Department of Motor Vehicles. The Collegian does not produce or edit the Campus Crime Watch except for content and brevity.
Thursday, February 16 at 3:30pm to 4:45pm Keplinger Hall, U2 Cybersecurity Lecture: Security and Privacy in a Hyper-Connected World The Sarah and John Graves Cybersecurity Distinguished Lecture Series presents Bruce Schneier, a fellow at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University and chief technology officer at Resilient, an IBM company. Schneier will discuss how information technology is vulnerable to new threats from users, criminals, corporations and governments – threats that can now result in physical damage and even death. His lecture will look back at what we’ve learned from past attempts to secure these systems and forward to what technologies, laws, regulations, economic incentives and social norms we need to secure them in the future. Please R.S.V.P. to barbette-veit@utulsa.edu receive a free lunch (limited quantities). Thursday, February 16 at 6:00pm Collins Fitness Center, Lobby Nutritional Supplements Information Session Dr. Gordon Purser will discuss whether supplements work, how they effect your body, if they help you lose weight and much more. Thursday, February 16 at 7:00pm Tyrrell Hall, Lecture Hall Cookbooks as Art: 7 Centuries of Visual Feasts An author of five cookbooks, Darra Goldstein will present her lecture on cookbooks as art objects. Goldstein, the Willcox B. and Harriet M. Adsit Professor of Russian at Williams College and founding editor of Gastronomica: The Journal of Food and Culture, is a world-renowned food scholar. Friday, February 17 at 7:00pm to 9:00pm Lorton Performance Center, Gussman Hall Tim Wise: Challenging the Culture of Cruelty In this speech, drawn from his newest book, Under the Affluence: Shaming the Poor, Praising the Rich and Jeopardizing the Future of America, Tim Wise examines the ways in which American politics and culture serve to rationalize inequalities on the basis of class and race. From the myth of rugged individualism to the racialized attacks on the nation’s poor, American ideology has long served to explain away inequity as a natural outcome of differential talent, effort or cultural attributes. But as Wise shows in this presentation, to believe that the poor and unemployed are to blame for their own plight or that the rich deserve their positions and wealth is to believe in a pernicious and destructive lie that threatens the very heart of democracy and true equal opportunity. By exploring the way that racism has been central to the development and perpetuation of the nation’s class system, Wise demonstrates the importance of undermining the dominant white racial narrative not solely to fight racism itself, but larger economic and social injustice as well. Friday, February 17 at 5:00pm to 7:00pm Tyrrell Hall, Ellen G. Adelson Auditorium English Department Bellwether Panel Four Bellwether award recipients from the English Department at The University of Tulsa will present their current work in a conference setting with a Q&A following the presentation. Saturday, February 18 at 10:00am to 2:00pm Student Union, Great Hall C TU Leadership Experience Join us for a TU Leadership Experience event with featured speakers Tulsa Mayor GT Bynum and university President Gerard Clancy. Upon completion of the post-event survey, participants will receive a free T-shirt! Doughnuts and coffee will be provided for breakfast, and pasta for lunch. Monday, February 20 at 6:00pm to 7:30pm Student Union, Great Hall B Local Impact of Refugee Ban Deacon Kevin Sartorious, Catholic Charities Executive Director, will talk about the local impact of the refugee ban. The Collegian does not produce all event descriptions in the Community Calendar. Contact us at news@tucollegian.org with events.
Variety
13 February 2017
the Collegian: 9
Zarrow hosts works by TU’s art school faculty Trenton Gibbons Variety Editor
Debuting with Brady Arts’ monthly First Friday, Zarrow’s current exhibition is comprised of a myriad of artworks by art school faculty. Here, one of the only uniting elements of the art, which ranged from ceramics to interactive videos, were the professions and blatant talent of their creators.
Contributing TU members included M. Teresa Valero (Design), Mark Lewis (Painting), Daniel Farnum (Photography), Aaron Higgins (Digital Media), Christina Prado (Ceramics), Michelle Martin (Printmaking) and others. Included below are various works featured in the show, at times accompanied by comments about the artists or their work to provide deeper insight.
courtesy Teresa Valero
Teresa Valero continues her photographic work about Syria. From her earlier documentary work in 2000 of both Syria and Lebanon to her most recent explorations that combine statistics on the war in Syria with typography and earlier images finally
adding her own handwriting, her desire to return to these past images is to return to a home that no longer exists combined with a feeling of loss and displacement. This new series is based on all the cities she visited while traveling in Syria and Lebanon.
courtesy Michelle Martin
In Michelle Martin’s own words, “Both monumental and intimate in scale, the historic images I re-purpose are seductive. They prompt in viewers a nostalgia for fairy tales and whimsical stories, and yet they also generate disquieting and open-ended narratives. Bird-women peer over an infirm
patient in the woods — are they caregivers or life-takers? In another, a woman and child are adrift in a stormy sea — are they fleeing an unknown horror or escaping to safety? Similar to the Social Observations series, these works recreate modern experiences, but filtered through a historical lens.”
courtesy Mark Lewis
Lewis’ research interests include a “perceptual and a fictional approach to the urban landscape.”
Assistant Professor Dan Farnum uses a view camera to take sharper images.
photo by Dan Farnum
Omani Night celebrated with food, performances Omani Night effectively demonstrated Omani culture, but issues with audio and food distribution may have hindered the experience. Michaela Flonard News Editor
Unlike previous years, the Omani Student Association did not hold Omani Night on Oman National Day, which is in November. The night started off, about forty-five minutes late, with a recording of the Omani national anthem. Everyone was asked to stand as the anthem played. From there, a student came up to read a selection from the Quran, in Arabic, without an introduction to explain what the passage was about. The president of the organization then spoke, explaining why the night was organized. He hoped the night could serve to expand diversity and inclusion. The night offered Omani students a chance to show the rest of TU their country. From there, a video played with various TU faculty discussing their experiences in Oman. Both noted the hospitality of the people when they’d traveled there for business. One even wore traditional garb he’d bought while in Oman. The students then put on a long play
about Ramadan and Eid, presented as if explaining the events to someone new to the culture. Acting and discussion was intermixed with videos and pictures of Ramadan and Eid from Oman, however, it was often difficult to hear. Once the play was finished, a short fashion show commenced. Men and women wearing various native clothing posed on the stage while an announcer described where the clothes were from and what they meant. After a quick raffle, several students played live music, but at the same time, many attendees began lining up for the food, which was finally being served. The organizers seemed determined to wait until after their entire presentation was finished to serve the food, so many students stood in line and chatted as live music played. While waiting until the end to serve food could’ve been a way to keep students interested, it seemed most became hyperfocused on when the food would arrive, and since it didn’t until around eight p.m., several left because they were hungry. Omani Night will undoubtedly be repeated in future years, offering students a chance to learn about Omani culture; however, hopefully future productions will have a better audio setup and keep the audience engaged without withholding food.
A still from “A Kind of Portrait,” a high definition video by Prof. Aaron Higgins.
courtesy Aaron Higgins
The Collegian: 10
Commentary
13 February 2017
Legislators aren’t obligated to listen to voters
Voters may be frustrated if they feel that representatives aren’t listening to them, but those issues can only be rectified in the voting booth. Justin Gugliemetti Student Writer On January 31, with the tiebreaking vote of Vice President Mike Pence, Betsy DeVos was officially confirmed by the Senate as the eleventh United States Secretary of Education. A figure of much controversy due to her her qualifications (or lack thereof) for the position, support for DeVos was a matter of strict partisanship. All but two of the 52 Republican senators voted for her approval, while the 46 Democrats and two independents combined with Republican senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski of Maine and Alaska, respectively, voted in opposition. Of course, this seemingly inevitable partisan divide did nothing to stop the American people from trying to alter the expected vote of their elected officials. Over the past several weeks, internet articles and Facebook videos abounded urging everyday
high school civics classes, politicians, pundits and the general public all like to throw out the word “democracy” when praising the beauty of the equitable balance of power in this country. Whether because of a confusion of definitions or a simple matter of convenience, everyone seems to forget that our country is run by elected officials, not the direct will of the people. You can call it a representative democracy, democratic republic or federal republic, but the United States by any correct definition of the word is not a true democracy. You might be saying at this point, “so what? Everyone knows we’re not a direct democracy, what’s the big deal with just using the term?” Well, if everyone could be in agreement that the word was a sort of political slang, I wouldn’t take any issue with it. But when people use it to develop outsized expectations of their own influence on the government, their ideology undermines our system and disguises the actual methods by which the public can bring about change (namely, using the power of the vote). Before DeVos was confirmed, protesters flocked to the offices of Oklahoma senators Jim Inhofe and James Lankford to voice their disapproval and urge the senators to reconsider their positions. That’s all very well and good. Every person has a right to their opinion and a right to peacefully assemble. But truthfully, there is very little they could have done to convince Inhofe and Lankford of anything. Obviously the first reason for this is a simple matter of numbers: fewer than 100 people combined made up the protests, and
counterintuitive, let me be clear that it is absolutely in the best interest of a senator to represent the beliefs of his state’s population as best as possible, as this is his most effective means of ensuring reelection. All I am saying is that they don’t have to do this. What’s more, I’m not describing some loophole in the system but rather the entire point of having elected officials in the first place. We elect government officials to make decisions on our behalf, not to simply tell Congress what we have decided for ourselves. Democracies are tremendously impractical for an entity the size of the United States for a couple reasons: first, it would be a lo-
“If your passionate plea does not come to fruition, do not take the opportunity to argue that there was some great injustice done.” gistical impossibility to tally the votes of every single voting-eligible citizen for all the legislation that is required to run the country; and second, the Founding Fathers were rightly skeptical of the masses’ ability to make decisions that would be in the best interest of the whole. Their trepidation towards the possibility of tyranny of the majority and mob rule was the impetus behind the creation of our bicameral congressional body, one of which — the Senate — wasn’t even designed to service individuals but rather the good of the state as a whole (hence the longer term
graphic by Elias Brinkman
Despite protests in Oklahoma senators’ offices calling for a vote against Betsy DeVos, the current legislative system does not require them to pay heed to these concerns.
Americans to call their senators and voice their opinions, often employing some variation of the slogan “it makes a difference!” In the end, it didn’t. Frankly, there’s no real reason why it should in our political system. Perhaps the single greatest misconception of American politics is that we have a democratic system. Despite learning our country’s basic governmental structure in
seeing as Oklahoma is consistently one of the reddest states in the Union, it is common sense to infer that the majority of the state approves of DeVos for the position. However, even acknowledging that the protestors lacked popular support may actually undermine my argument: that senators are under no obligation to acquiesce to the every whim of their constituents. If this seems
make terrible judgments could still be elected to Congress by the people. Still, the checks and balances of term limits and divided governmental power somewhat mitigate these concerns, at the very least more so than if we were to function as a simple democracy. If there were some legal obligation for the House and the Senate to govern precisely as the majority of their constituents wanted, we might as well do away with the bodies entirely. There are probably a great many readers who remain unconvinced of my position because it sounds so undemocratic, but I don’t even believe that my stance is particularly controversial ethically. Hardliners on both
limits compared to representatives and the ability to be appointed by the governor). Obviously there are some logical inconsistencies behind the good intentions of the founders; those selected to speak for the masses are not necessarily more informed than them and almost certainly not more so than the experts in fields relating to specific policies, and an unqualified stooge poised to
sides of the aisle love when a politician has the integrity to stand up for something they believe in, even if it goes against the interests of their party. Remember when Republicans lauded Kim Davis for taking a stand against gay marriage even though by doing so she failed to perform her duties as a government employee? Or how about when Democrats briefly thought they had gained an ally in Ted Cruz when he urged voters to “vote their conscience” in the upcoming election, despite previously having pledged to support the Republican candidate? Is either situation really that different from an elected official deciding to act against the opinions of his voters because he believe that he is right and they are wrong? The truth of the matter is that most people only want strict political accountability if their opinion happens to be the majority. You won’t see too many right-wingers in Massachusetts telling their senator he must push for harsher gun laws or leftists in Wyoming agreeing that abortion is a moral abomination. In either case, each side would hope for their representative to make the subjective “correct” decision. So what is there to do when we have strong feelings concerning hot-button topics of the day? By all means, contact your senators and congresspeople and let them know what you think; taking in differing opinions can all be a part of the decision-making process for those in power. But if your passionate plea doesn’t come to fruition, do not take the opportunity to argue that there was some great injustice done. Instead, remember what happened, take stock of how much it affects your perception of the politician as a whole, and then vote when you have the opportunity based on your informed opinion of the candidate’s readiness for the job! In this way you can actually make your voice heard without threatening the underlying system, but if you still don’t get your way, that’s just the way things are. This is a “democracy,” after all.
Governor Fallin proposes costly tax reforms
Governor Fallin’s proposals during the State of the State Address are shortsighted fixes to large state issues. Nick Rethford Student Writer Governor Mary Fallin kicked off February in Oklahoma City with her annual State of the State Address. This marks the seventh time she’s given the speech in front of the Oklahoma Legislature, and it seems to be her boldest call for reform to date. Her
reforms seem too good to be true and will likely cost taxpayers more money. Her first proposed reform aims to update the current tax system. “As the economy in the United States has shifted from a manufacturing-based economy to a servicesbased economy,” she explains, “the way we impose taxes and collect revenue no longer reflects the current economy.” Her proposed fix is to expand the sales tax base, which means that she wants to widen the pool of sales-related assets and revenues that the government can tax from. Basically, she wants more tax on more types of income. This would imply that Oklahoma has high levels of income and could handle more tax, but the state’s overall poverty rate in 2016 was 16.1 percent, ranking 14 in the nation. Furthermore, Fallin calls for an increase in gas and diesel tax, stating that the increased revenue stream will go towards roads and bridges. She plans to raise gas tax by 7 cents per gallon and diesel tax by 10 cents. This would bring the tax up to 23 cents per gallon for gas and 24 cents per gal-
“The problem with Fallin’s proposed reform is that it focuses on the whole, not the individual...” proposal includes reforms that will tackle Oklahoma’s need for tax modernization. While some aspects of her speech do have the potential to bring about positive change in Oklahoma, the majority of her proposed
lon for diesel, all of which will go to fixing the state’s roads and bridges. Judging from the already present construction that is slowing traffic in half of Oklahoma, the state is doing just fine in that department, and be-
yond that, where would all this extra money go? Construction projects on the other half of Oklahoma? Plus, for example, people who work in downtown Tulsa but live outside of the city will now have to pay more to get to work everyday. It’s actually kind of ironic: the extra cost of gas will go towards construction projects that slow traffic and waste even more gas, which will cause citizens to spend money at the gas pump. A vicious cycle. Fallin’s proposed tax reform isn’t all bad, though. It does have some positive side effects, but the problem is that the benefits fail miserably in comparison to the annoyance this reform will cause. To begin with, the plan eliminates the sales tax on groceries. “Eliminating the state sales tax on groceries is expected to result in annual savings of between $350 to $676 for a family of four,” she states. Now, this benefit might seem all high and mighty at first, but it loses all merit when the fact that those additional savings will be spent across the street at QuikTrip to pay for the increased gas tax is taken into consideration. Fallin’s reform also eliminates the corporate sales tax, which might benefit small businesses but won’t even have any effect on the individual customer. Businesses aren’t going to take the eliminated corporate sales tax and turn around and lower the prices of their products. That’s not how businesses work. The goal is to make a profit, so of course the business is going to leave the prices as they are and just pocket the extra money that was saved.
All in all, the problem with Fallin’s proposed reform is that it focuses on the whole, not the individual. These plans aren’t going
courtesy Wikimedia Commons
Despite good intentions and some positive changes, Governor Fallin’s proposal isn’t enough to help struggling Oklahomans.
to help a sales representative who commutes from out of city or a family on the brink of poverty who can barely afford to pay sales tax as it is. Nobody waters the branches of a tree; they water the roots. True reform lies with the individual, and when focus is shifted to them, everything else will fall into place.
13 February 2017
Commentary
The Collegian: 11
State Question changes disrespect voters’ will
Despite voters approving State Questions 780 and 781 in November, legislators are attempting to alter or reverse the bills’ major tenents to align with their personal beliefs. Michaela Flonard News Editor Last November, Oklahoma voters approved State Questions 780 and 781 with 58.23 percent and 56.22 percent support, respectively. The bills will go into effect this July. Yet this spring, Oklahoma legislators are putting forth four bills to alter the measures voters approved. SB 512, SB 256, HB 1482 and SB 398 all alter the State Questions 780 and 781 to differing degrees. SB 512, proposed by Senator Ralph Shortey (R-Oklahoma City), would most drastically affect the state. State Question 780 made the possession of illegal drugs a misdemeanor and, in addition, those breaking the law pay a fine to the Trauma Care Assistance Revolving Fund. Shortey’s bill, however, would make the possession of any Schedule I or II substance, except marijuana or a substance included in the bill, a felony, with increasing maximum sentences and fines, according to the number of crimes. Schedule I substances include, but are not limited to, LSD, marijuana and ecstasy, while Schedule II includes morphine, opium and codeine. Only the possession of “Schedule III, IV or V substance, marijuana, a substance included in subsection D of Section 2-206 of this title, or any preparation excepted from the provisions of the Uniform Controlled Dangerous Substances Act” would be considered a misdemeanor. Products like Vicodin, suboxone and depo-testosterone are considered schedule III substances, while Klonopin, Xanax and valium are considered schedule IV substances. Schedule V drugs include Robitussin AC and phenergan with codeine. In addition, if one possessed any
or deferred judgment, it would be a felony. Additionally, anyone possessing or purchasing a controlled substance within 1,000 feet of a “public or private elementary or secondary school, public vocational school, public or private college or university, or other institution of higher education, recreation center or public park, including state parks and recreation areas, or in the presence of any child under twelve (12) years of age” would be guilty of a felony. The bill also affects some of the other propositions related to property crime. Shortey’s bill basically revokes any changes the Oklahoma people decided were necessary to the criminal justice system. SB 256, authored by Senator Michael Bergstrom (R-District 1), while similar to SB 512, does not make comparably severe reversals to the felony/misdemeanor charges. Possession of a controlled substance would only result in a felony conviction if the person had prior convictions under the Uniform Controlled Dangerous Substances Act or a misdemeanor regarding Schedule I or II substance, except marijuana or a substance. In addition, this bill would lower the “safe zone” around certain public property to 500 feet. Anyone found guilty would be forced to participate in a drug substance abuse evaluation and assessment program, without the use of state funds. Representative Biggs’ (R-Chickasha) HB 1482 would only affect possession near certain areas, the same as those listed in Shortey’s bill. Breaking the law would result in either imprisonment or a fine. Authored by Darcy Jech (R-Kingfisher), SB 398 would make the third and subsequent possession of a drug a felony. The legislators argue these changes are necessary because voters were unaware of the consequences of their vote. Biggs reported that “I believe there is a large group of voters that didn’t understand that this state question would essentially decriminalize drugs in schools, parks and playgrounds.” Shortey, going even further, said “Nowhere in the state question did it mention what some of those changes were, or the effect of them … People basically did not know exactly how much of the statutes were being changed.” With these statements, legislators are basically confirming they believe any decision made that disagrees with their philosophy was made in ignorance. Yes, it is more than likely some people did not fully understand the bill or didn’t take the time to read it all the way through, but this situation is not
“Legislators are basically confirming they believe any decision made that disagrees with their philosophy was made in ignorance.” of the misdemeanor drugs during the probationary period or within ten years of the completion of the execution of the sentence
unique to 780/781. Instead, what’s unique is the legislators’ feelings on the subject. Yes, there are most likely kinks in State Questions 780 and 781 that will need to be
amended in the future. For instance, should repeat offenders eventually warrant a felony conviction for their possession of drugs? These should be addressed after implementing the bill so its consequences can be fully realized. The proposed changes, Shortey’s especially, extremely alter the text of the bill to something the voters didn’t vote on. Some might argue that by changing the bills now, the legislators are preemptively acting to prevent any negative consequences they foresee. However, the election season provides legislators and opponents ample time to convince voters the bills were
Voters weren’t alone in their support of the State Questions. Governor Mary Fallin, in last year’s State of the State address, supported changes to the justice system such as those proposed in State Question 780. She noted the state’s large prison population and budget issues, as well as highlighting a need for increased rehabilitation efforts. The four legislators proposing these bills have exposed themselves as behind the times. Completely ignoring the will of voters cannot lead to desirable consequences. Shortey’s defense of his bill — that voters didn’t understand the question — could be
graphic by Madeline Woods
Changes to State Questions 780 and 781 are likely motivated by legislators’ personal opinions rather than legitimate concerns about the clarity of the bill.
flawed. The issue of drugs near schools, which is what many seem to be concerned about, could’ve easily been blown up into a fighting point. If the legislators believe they can predict the bill’s flaws before it goes into effect, then surely they could have predicted them before the bill was voted on. And then, if the Oklahoma people were actually concerned with these issues, they would’ve voted no and demanded a rewriting of the bill. But Oklahoma’s previous methods have not worked. Assigning every drug conviction as a felony has helped the state have the second highest incarceration rate in the country. Oklahoma consistently ranks high in incarceration of women, specifically. This high incarceration rate has led to prison overcrowding and funding issues.
extended into other factions of government as well quite easily, weakening the claim that the United States is a representative democracy. If questions are put up to the voters, then their will should be respected. 38 states have limits on how legislators can tamper with initiatives after they’ve been passed. Oklahoma is not one of those states, but it could be. Some states prevent altering an initiative until a certain amount of time has passed or only with the vote of a supermajority in both houses of the legislature. While legislators are unlikely to propose or pass such bills by themselves, having such bills in place would ensure the will of the Oklahoma people is respected. The people could either put enough pressure on legislators to consider such bills or propose a State Question on the topic.
Education bill offers insufficient teacher incentives
A proposed bill to pay off teachers’ student loans is not enough to significantly decrease attrition in Oklahoma.
and science professors, as there was an especially desperate need for educators in those fields. Nevertheless, the significant expansion of this plan necessitates inquiry. First, how would the state pay for this? Dollens hypothesizes that the student loans can be paid off using the money saved from lowering attrition rates. I presume this money to have been otherwise spent on funding programs for recruiting, training and retaining teachers.
Trenton Gibbons Variety Editor Oklahoma representative Mickey Dollens plans to propose a bill he believes will lower teacher attrition rates in the state. Attrition rate, here, refers to the rate at which teachers are leaving, or in this case fleeing, the Sooner State in search of greener pastures and brighter financial opportunities. Not that anyone can blame them: the average salary for Oklahoma teachers has in years past fallen under the national average by approximately $10,000. Representative Dollens means to improve teachers’ incentives for staying in Oklahoma by passing a bill which would pay off any teachers’ student debt — if they stay in Oklahoma for at least seven years, that is. A plan like this already exists for math
courtesy utulsa.edu
Professor Matthew Hendricks suggests raising teacher salaries as a more effective method of reducing teacher attrition.
This assumes a collection of low student debts amongst eligible teachers, which could be plausible, or perhaps even likely, but this assumption leads directly into my next question.
comes from the higher mobility of younger teachers, half of whom will leave within five years of teaching at a school. Not only does it make sense to raise their pay to ground them at their institution, it might match
“Higher salaries are the kind of incentives Oklahoma legislators should be talking about ...” Is this really enough to motivate teachers to stay? The utility a teacher is bound to receive will vary greatly depending on the teacher’s debt. Assuming the debts are as affordable as Dollens supposes, this utility will be very low. For the utility to be high enough to legitimately convince anyone to stay in the state, the debt would be sizable, creating problems with Dollens’ solution. It would be wrong of me, just as it would be the state legislature, to dismiss his solution and not provide an alternative, as Oklahoma’s education system is unquestionably a problem that needs addressing. To help me understand one of these alternatives, I spoke with economics professor Matt Hendricks. Professor Hendricks has spoken in the past of significantly reshaping the salary schedule for teachers. Currently, most of the money made by teachers is at the back end, with extra pay for more experienced teachers. Hendricks instead advocates for moving this extra pay to the front end, rerouting it to younger teachers, who are more sensitive to their salary. This disparity in sensitivity
their efforts to improve. Studies, like one by Professor Hendricks himself, have shown that there is a steep learning curve in the teaching profession, as most improve more in their first five years than they will in the remainder of their careers. When Hendricks informs others of this plan, it is often to superintendents whom he admits are “probably more focused on keeping people happy than doing their job.” This means appeasing older faculty, whose pay might be cut to bolster the salaries of the younger teachers. To remedy this, the government could, at some considerable cost but for some considerable long-term gain, maintain the current backend leaning pay plan for older faculty and simply implement the new front-end pay plan for new hires. Higher salaries are the kind of incentives Oklahoma legislators should be talking about when they discuss keeping teachers in the state, not the paying off of debts which might appear large but amount to a minimal dilution of funds over the years.
13 February 2017
The State-Run Media
the
State-Run media We fact-checked that Valentine you got. Mostly false.
A comprehensive comparison of chat apps
If you want to keep in touch with your friends, or you need to talk to everyone working on your group project, you’ll start a group chat. But everyone has at least five different chat apps on their phones, and there aren’t any that everyone can agree on using. To help you decide which to use, the State-Run Media’s millenial experts have compiled a list of the pros and cons of the chat apps that your friends will most likely recommend.
Sam Beckmann Keeps sending GIFs unrelated to the conversation That one app that Kevin keeps insisting everyone use but no one has heard of
Texting Can it send messages to your friends?
Most of the time
Does everyone have it on their phone?
Yes
Defining feature
Yes. Even when you don’t want it to
Yes*
Yes
Yes, regretfully
Getting messages hours late
Kicking people from your group
Will it keep your data secure from evil corporations?
No
Probably not
Changing other people’s names for them
No? Why would I have a business app?
Hell no
Will there be drama?
Yes
Yes
Yes
Over 100
About 50
How many messages Who knows? You’ll never get them will I miss if I turn my phone off for an anyway hour
Most of the time
Can I convince No. Despite everyone Probably. Kevin everyone to use this? having in on their won’t join, but he’s phone, no one will weird anyway use it
Does it have stickers?
Will it allow me to communicate effectively with my friends?
Yes
No
No
Mad prophet preaches about margarita machine at the Hut A student has been spotted in ACAC preaching about the possibility of The Hut getting a margarita machine. Adam Lux Tired of low-point beer A strange character has been seen roaming around ACAC late at night these past few weeks and he apparently has a message for the student body. Sightings began around two weeks ago. “I first noticed he was unusual because of his clothes,” explained Sandra Costello, a frequent Hurricane Hut patron. “He was wearing a brown bath robe with black slacks and penny loafers. But the weirdest thing of all was that he was carrying a
huge margarita glass, like the thing had to be 120oz.” Sandra heard the man babbling but did not get close enough to make out any of the words. The State-Run was able to make contact with this individual late one night. He was wearing exactly the same outfit as was mentioned before. When asked what he was doing here, the man replied, “The end is near. The battle is almost over.” After being questioned further, he elaborated, “The machine of margaritas, soon to reach the promised land. The land of HUT. Make good with your God for paradise is nearly upon us. The true believers will be rewarded.” At this time the State-Run Media is unable to confirm or deny any rumors of a margarita machine coming to the Hut. courtesy Wikimedia Commons
Until the prophet’s rants are heeded, his margarita glass will remain empty.
*Subject to terms and conditions
What the hell is a “telegram” and how does encryption help me talk about dinner plans? Wait, it this thing even an app?
Spreading your messages out across 20 different channels
I don’t know, I didn’t download it
327, but most will be telling people they posted in the wrong channel and emoji reactions
0. No one understands this thing
No one really knows? Definitely. And if you forget your 25 character password, it keeps your data safe from you too Yes Yes
You can start the chat, but there will be two people that are better than everyone else because they don’t use Facebook, so they won’t know what’s going on
Wait, this thing requires an email address? For a chat app?
It’s easy! So first you set up your two-factor authentication and recovery questions, followed by your master password...
Yes. Too many.
From the FAQ: “Slack uses ‘reacji’...” So no
I can’t tell. Its product page just keeps talking about “end to end encryption”
No
No
No
Valentine’s Day special:
[Your Name Here], will you marry me? If you’re reading this, I am currently willing to marry you. Note that this offer is extended on a first-come, first-serve basis. Sam Chott Already rented the ring I know what you’re thinking. I’m supposed to make the proposal a big thing, not ask you to marry me in a college newspaper. The thing is, I’m kind of low on cash right now, so I couldn’t afford a carriage ride or skywriting, and also I don’t really know who you are. Here’s the way I see it: I’ve been writing for this paper for a while now. If you’re reading this, you’ve probably seen my name around. You’ve probably enjoyed some of the articles I’ve written, like that Nicolas Cage smut review, or the
time I ranked all of the “Fast & Furious” movies by fastness and furiousness. You might feel like you know me, after all the time you’ve spent reading my articles. So why shouldn’t we get married? Look, you know that I’m funny, since I’m the satire editor at a paper that has been called, “the best four-year college newspaper in the Kendall-Whittier area,” and I know that you think that I’m funny, since you’re still reading this article. I have 3/4 of a bachelor’s degree and a half-finished resume, so you know that I can support you, and I know that you can read, which is really the only thing I look for in a partner at this point. Not everyone thinks that this plan is a good idea. My mom told me not to do this, and the other editors at the paper refused to run this proposal on the cover. Even the clerk at city hall who I got the marriage certificate from said that this seemed, and I quote, “poorly
thought-out.” Some people have even said I’m feeling sad and desperate because I was alone on Valentine’s Day, which is ridiculous! I’m doing this right before Valentine’s day so that you’ll feel sad and desperate, and be more likely to marry a grown-ass man who constantly uses the word “Kafkaesque” without knowing what it means. People have asked me why I don’t just find someone on Tinder, and I tell them that it’s because I’m shy and don’t have any flattering pictures of myself, but more importantly, because it’s not romantic enough. So if you’re looking for someone who enjoys candlelit dinners and Kafkaesque walks on the beach, and don’t mind constantly agreeing with me and never challenging me in any way, then meet me at The Hut tonight. I’ll be the one holding a ring, wearing a tuxedo t-shirt.
13 February 2017
The Collegian: 13
COMFORT
CONNECTION
CONVENIENCE
Hey Freshmen! Log on to CaneLink and sign up before the deadline. Freshmen must sign up for campus housing or complete a housing exemption form in order to enroll for fall classes. CHECK OUT YOUR OPTIONS FOR HOUSING NEXT YEAR. n
Keep your current space, if available to retain.
n
Enter the housing lottery and select any available housing space.
n
Live on Sorority Row.
Deadline to enter the lottery or retain is Feb. 22.
Roommate Event with FREE PIZZA If you are still looking for a roommate for next year, come out and meet other students who are also looking. Pat Case Dining Center Garage Monday, Feb. 20 at 9 p.m.
@TUCampusHousing
Housing Office: 918-631-2516
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13 February 2017
The Collegian: 14
Housing Selection Watch a video about how housing selection works at canelink.utulsa.edu.
CONNECTION
COMFORT
CONVENIENCE
Residence Hall Living Options JOHN MABEE & LOTTIE JANE MABEE HALL
HARDESTY HALL
n Standard double rooms
n Double rooms (with semi-private bath shared with another double room)
n Standard single rooms n Double suite room (a double room with an extra room attached) n Single suite (a single room with an extra room attached, John Mabee only) n Triple suites (double room attached to a single room where both rooms have a window)
WEST SUITES n More private living options with all rooms offered as single rooms during the selection process. LAFORTUNE HOUSE n Double rooms (4 or 6 persons suites)
For more information about room designations and housing rates for next year, visit
utulsa.edu/housing.
@TUCampusHousing
General Information Session There will be information booths in the Union Food Court and Pat Case Dining Center on Tuesday and Wednesday at noon from February 14-22. Please stop by and ask any questions.
Live Chat Available on Canelink Sunday through Thursday, February 12-22, chat live with a housing professional from 5 p.m.-10 p.m. To start a live chat, click on the “Apply for Housing” link within Canelink and look for the tab at the bottom.
Priority Parking Each student who completes a license and makes a selection will qualify for priority parking registration.
It’s so easy to make friends on campus, either through Greek life or campus events. Hurricane Thursdays are really good for that. - Clarissa Dunn
Housing Office: 918-631-2516
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