IONEERPOklahoma City Community College

www.occc.edu/pioneer

• Emmys have no real focus, editorial, p. 2.• OCCC celebrates anniversary, p. 6 & 7.• Club soccer suffers loss, sports, p. 8.• BSA mentoring kids, clubs, p. 10.

This WeekInside

September 29, 2008

Vol. 37 No. 7

Former OCCC president diesBy Matt MontgomeryEditor

Retired OCCC President BobGaines died Sunday Sept. 21 inDallas. He was 78.

Gaines was president of OCCCfrom 1991 to 1995. Before that,he served as executive vice presi-dent and vice president for in-struction.

During his time as president, Gainesmade an impact on virtually everyone hewas associated with, his colleagues said.

Executive Administrative Assistant tothe President and Gaines’ former assis-tant Janice Phillips said he was well re-spected.

“He was a great role model for the stu-dents of the college — especially those whowere in need of assistance,” Phillips said.

“It was not uncommon for Dr. Gaines towant to help an underprivileged studentwith money from his own pocket.”

Although Gaines did not com-plete high school, he earned hisdoctorate degree.

“Dr. Gaines led by example,”Phillips said. “He was a kind manwho boosted college morale whenit was down.

“He valued education and wasvery committed to seeing his stu-dents succeed.”

Vice President of Enrollmentand Student Services Marion Paden saidGaines transcended his birthright andchallenging upbringing to become a highlysuccessful, well respected and trusted edu-cational leader.

“He knew, from his own experience, thateducation provided the greatest opportu-nity for personal growth and personal en-richment,” Paden said.

His other associates knew of him as aninnovator for the college.

Executive Direc-tor of Institutional

Managingstress vitalto success

Donating life

By Stephen SossamonStaff Writer

Managing stress is key to success in college and in life, said Learning Support specialist Mary

Turner.Turner said stress occurs when a person encounters

problems or events that are unexpected and outside thepattern of everyday life.

“Students usually get stressed around the third orfourth week of the semester,” she said. “It comes withtheir first tests and everything hitting them all at once.”

Turner said she deals with a lot of stress-related sub-jects with students.

She said finances are one of the biggest worries a stu-dent may face.

“Financial worries such as car and rent can have aheavy toll,” she said. “Family and relationships also havean impact.”

Even things some wouldn’t expect to be stressful canbe stressful, she said.

“Even happy things can bring stress.”Turner said there are signs that point to stress.Stress symptoms include exhaustion, loss of and in-

creased appetite, headaches, crying, sleeplessness andoversleeping, according to Study Guides and Strategies’online website www.studygs.net. Other symptoms arefeelings of alarm, frustration or apathy.

Turner said seeking escape through drugs or alcoholis a mistake some make.

“Drugs and alcohol are only temporary releases,” shesaid. “Once that high is over, you are right back whereyou started.”

Turner said she doesn’t know of any way to completelyprevent stress but said working things out naturally isbest for controlling stress.

Turner said she encourages students to go to theWellness Center to exercise if they are feeling stressed.

She also said it’s all about problem solving and takingcontrol of the situation.

“You can work the stress out or just clear your head,”she said. “You can also just walk around the campus.”

Turner said the atmosphere around students can some-times influence how they feel.

“A calm surrounding helps,” she said.A good diet and sleep will make a student less prone to

stress as well, Turner said.“Sleep is very important. Every-

one needs rest.”

Seeking help is the first step

See “Stress,” page 9

Photo by Kenny HilburnStudent Paul Cagle donates blood during the Oklahoma Blood Institute’s latest blood

drive. OBI collected more than 60 units of blood. OCCC’s next drive is Nov. 19, said OBImobile Supervisor Vanessa Palmer.

Bob Gaines

See “Gaines,” page 5

2 • PIONEER • September 29, 2008

Editorial and OpinionEditorial

The PIONEER is a publica-tion of Oklahoma City Com-munity College through theDivision of Arts and Humani-ties. It is published weeklyduring the fall and spring se-mesters and the eight-weeksummer session.

All opinions expressed arethose of the author and do notnecessarily represent those ofthe publisher.

The PIONEER welcomes let-ters to the editor and encour-ages the use of this publica-tion as a community forum.All letters must include theauthor’s name, address,phone number and signature.However, the PIONEER willwithhold the name if the re-quest is made in writing. ThePIONEER has the right to editall letters and submissionsfor length, libel and obscen-ity.

Letters to the editor can bedelivered to the PIONEER of-fice, mailed to: Pioneer Editor,7777 S. May, Oklahoma City,Oklahoma 73159 or faxed to405-682-7843.

Letters may also be e-mailedto editor@occc.edu. A phonenumber for verification mustbe included.

The PIONEER can be ac-cessed on the Internet at:www.occc.edu/pioneer.

Vol. 37 No. 7Chris Lusk............................EditorMatt Montgomery........Staff WriterMatt Bishop...................Staff WriterDillon Hart......................Staff WriterDaniel Martin................StaffWriterCameron Buchholtz......Staff WriterCynthia Praefke...........Ad ManagerBrian Stansberry..........WebmasterStephen Sossamon...Online EditorRichard Hall.............Lab AssistantRonna Austin.............Lab DirectorSue Hinton...............Faculty Adviser

Earn degree, work abroadEmmy night

lacks enthusiasm On a night when television’s entire purpose is

to celebrate itself and its shining stars, one wouldthink they would try to make the program asflawless as possible, but after watching the 2008Emmys, one can’t be too sure.

The broadcast was packed with technical diffi-culties and countless moments that just fell flat.

But that’s not to say that the winners weren’tdeserving.

Any award show that recognizes “Mad Men” asthe best television drama must be doing some-thing right. It was everything that led up to eachaward that was atrocious.

The broadcast began with the show’s five real-ity show star-hosts bantering endlessly in an in-credibly boring and unfunny fashion. Havingpeople who represent the worst in television hostsomething that supposedly celebrates its best justdoesn’t make sense. It would be like if Uwe Bollhosted the Oscars.

But the real low point was when crooner JoshGroban sang a medley of famous TV theme songs,and butchered nearly all of them. The world neverneeded to hear the theme song from “Baywatch”ever again, let alone be reminded it had words,and the addition of dancing show girls during“M.A.S.H’s” theme “Suicide Is Painless” justseemed tasteless.

But the Emmys are not the only award show tohave had problems like this. Glaring flaws con-stantly bring down nearly every major one.

And it’s all made worse by the fact that resultsappear online almost immediately, giving audi-ences almost no reason to watch.

Award show producers need to think long andhard about the way they do things and make someserious changes. The point of award shows is toshowcase and celebrate excellence, yet producersseem intent on doing so with complete medioc-rity.

If award shows continue this downhill slide, we’llall just be turning to Google the next morning inlieu of watching the broadcast.

—Cameron BuchholtzStaff Writer

Comments? Opinions?Let us know!

E-mail Matt ateditor@occc.edu

To the editor:South Korea, Hong Kong

and Australia. That’swhere I went last year andI received the opportunitysimply by earning mybachelor’s degree.

Next year I might go toSouth Korea, the GreatWall of China and probablyVietnam.

Even a passive observerwill notice that job outlooksand economic indicatorsare more than depressing.

Many students don’t seeany benefit in completingtheir degree programs.

However, studentsshouldn’t forget that a bi-ology degree doesn’t limitthem to biological re-search, nor does a politi-cal science degree limitthem to politics.

A current OCCC em-ployee used to tell mesomething like, “there ismore that you can do witha law degree besides prac-tice law.”

I wish I had listened morecarefully.

Many Asian countries arelooking for English teach-

ers and the only require-ment is often a bachelor’sdegree in any subject.Other countries only desirea bachelor’s degree and aneasily obtainable TESOLcertificate.

Countries such as SouthKorea, China and manyothers offer new graduatesan extremely low cost of liv-ing, paid housing, a goodsalary and a truly foreignexperience.

Teaching English abroadallows graduates to savemoney, vacation and havean experience that mostAmericans will never haveback at home.

It gives graduates the op-portunity to travel and ex-perience other cultures.Meanwhile, young studentsare earning good money,learning other languages,and seeing the magnificentand majestic world thatwas once thought beyondtheir grasps.

So, to access more infor-mation about teachingabroad, perform a Googlesearch for “teach English inAsia” or visit www. davesesl

cafe.com.Don’t forget that the

foggy and uncertain Ameri-can economy will turnaround and don’t forget, asmy friend advised, “there’smore you can do with a lawdegree than practice law.”

Earn your bachelor’s de-gree and look abroad.

—Cole BridgesOCCC graduate

September 29, 2008 • PIONEER • 3

Comments and Reviews

Passion driveneducation

‘Lakeview’ flops, hard

Old Crow Medicine Show’sthird release heavy on folk

Have you ever noticed how oblivious people canbe to time and environment when they are doingsomething they really enjoy? Even if the task in-volves hard work or complex skills, people seem tocomplete it without much effort if they really likewhat they are doing.

Working toward a degree is no different. Those ofyou who are fortunate enough to know what youwant to do for the next several decades have anedge over those who do not. You have found yourpassion and in turn, that passion helps drive youtoward success.

Nobody has to nag you to get out of bed and cometo school. Nobody has to remind you that a projectis due next Wednesday. Nobody has to stand on thesidelines trying to motivate you to be excited aboutlearning. You just do all those things because yourheart is in it.

For those of you who haven’t found your passion,that subject or career that pulls you out of yourchair and compels you to engage in your educa-tion, all is not lost. Most of us never realize all thepossibilities that await us in the future. We see afew occupations up close as we’re growing up andgoing about the daily task of living. We may be ex-posed to a few more each night as we surf televi-sion land looking for something captivating to helpus kill a few hours.

However, most professions are neatly tucked awayout of the realm of our consciousness. We can’t evenimagine what they are, much less envision ourselvesparticipating in them.

Some of you may have decided on something, butonly because you were told “it’s a good thing to majorin,” or “you’d be a natural at this.” Perhaps each ofthose statements is true but a decision this impor-tant really necessitates that you examine yourselfand your options and find the one that really thrillsyou. Hopefully, you wouldn’t meet someone in thefrozen food aisle one day and just ask that personto marry you on a whim. Unfortunately, you mayhave chosen your life’s work based on somethingjust as flimsy.

I encourage you to spend some time examiningcareer options and finding something that you canfall in love with. Find your passion. Commit to it.Become engaged in your learning and relish the feel-ing of reading because it excites you, of going toclass breathless for new information. Your time withus will be brief. Let it be worthwhile. Find your pas-sion and success will then find you.

—Mary TurnerLearning Support Specialist

Old Crow Medicine Showhit the nail on the headwith their third and muchanticipated album “Tennes-see Pusher,” released Tues-day, Sept. 23.

An old-mountain stringband introducing classiccountry music to a 21stcentury audience, OCMShas emerged among thenation’s top folk, countryand blue-grass artists.

This band of countrymenconsists of fiddler KetchSecor, guitjoist KevinHayes, upright bassistMorgan Jahnig, guitaristWillie Watson, and banjo-ist Critter Fuqua. Thegroup has definitely got theback-porch vibe going on.

OCMS captures the

sound of classic folk musicas played by the greatsWoody Guthrie, theRamblin’ Jack Elliot andBob Dylan. Listening to thealbum actually makes youfeel as though you are onthe south plains, the Caro-lina hills or the Gulf Coast.

Unlike a lot of today’smusic, the songs on “Ten-nessee Pusher” have greatimagery, great emotion inthe instruments and con-viction in the lyrics.

The album threw me fora loop with songs that dis-cussed dealing drugs andcorrupt cops. One wastitled “Methamphetamine,”and another “The GreatestHustler of All.”

However, the album’s

eleventh song “TennesseePusher” was my favorite.Well arranged and catchy,the song reels you in fromthe beginning.

Masked behind twangand country, slide guitar,fiddle and banjo are somewell-written songs.

OCMS is climbing theladder to folklore success.For those who aren’t famil-iar with folk music or aslide guitar should take alisten to the Old Crow Medi-cine Show and their newalbum “Tennessee Pusher.”It will pull you out to thecountryside even if youdon’t know what it’s like.

Rating: B+—Daniel Martin

Staff Writer

Samuel L. Jackson is anoutstanding performer, buteven he could not save themovie “Lakeview Terrace”from mediocrity.

Jackson plays AbelTurner, widowed father oftwo and veteran Los Ange-les police officer.

Although a wildfire isburning close to his home,Turner is more focused onthe arrival of his new neigh-bors Chris and LisaMattson, a young interra-cial couple.

The Mattsons, played byPatrick Wilson and KerryWashington, seem to haveas many problems stem-ming from their mixed mar-riage as does Turner.

While the story idea couldhave been interesting, itwas overshadowed by over-done racial innuendo.

At a house-warmingparty for the pair, six of thecouples were in a raciallydiverse relationship. Theone white friend of theirsthat was not in a mixedmarriage remarked that hewas trying to find a blackwoman to date.

That line reminded me of“Blazing Saddles” when theblack sheriff says “where allthe white women at?” It wassolicitous, and while in acomedy it poked fun at rac-ism, in this movie it wascondescending andthoughtless.

There was no talk of be-ing married to the personone fell in love with, onlytalk of interracial problemsin relationships.

Another plot discrepancyis the way Jackson’s char-acter evolves.

The beginning portrait ofa public servant and singledad who has a problemwith interracial couplesends with this man becom-ing a raving madman benton murder.

While the small irrita-tions Turner creates to en-courage the Mattsons tomove out of Lakeview Ter-race are a nuisance, hisopen disdain for them isunsettling.

Also unsettling is thetense relationship betweenChris and Lisa. It is almostas if they don’t think they

should be together either.It is contradictory to thestory.

The repeated allusion torace and bigotry makes thismovie uncomfortable towatch.

By the time justificationfor Turner’s hatred is re-vealed, there is no longerroom for compassion. Hisacts have surpassed thereasons behind them. He isa bad guy and “LakeviewTerrace” is a bad movie.

Rating: D—Cynthia Praefke

Staff Writer

4 • PIONEER • September 29, 2008

Election Coverage ’08

OCCC plans Rock theVote week to educate

Sarah PalinJoe Biden

VS

The VP candidateson social issues

• Same-sex marriage —believes marriage is onlybetween a man and awoman; supports consti-tutional amendment toban same-sex marriages

• Abortion — stronglyanti-abortion; supportedbills to outlaw late-termabortions and to requireparental consent; mem-ber of Feminists for Life

• Stem cell research —strongly opposes all em-bryonic stem cell re-search

• Sex education — op-poses sex education inschools; supports absti-nence only education

• Gun control — avowedsupporter of the right tobear arms; member ofthe National Rifle Asso-ciation

• Same-sex marriage —opposes same-sex mar-riage but supports civilunions; supports equalbenefits for same-sexand married couples

• Abortion — supportsRoe v. Wade, but op-poses public funding forabortion; voted yes forfederal ban on partial-birth abortions

• Stem cell research —supports expanding em-bryonic stem cell re-search

• Sex education — sup-ports comprehensiveand age appropriate sexeducation

• Gun control — intro-duced bills to ban as-sualt weapons and to re-quire gun show sales torun background checks

*Sources: ontheissues.org, factcheck.org

Media critic to speak Oct. 9By Dillon HartStaff Writer

Media critic JenniferPozner will speak on medialiteracy in her presentation“Race, Gender, and Mediain the 2008 Elections”at 2p.m. Thursday, Oct. 9.

The lecture, which willtake place in the CollegeUnion, is part of OCCC’sRock the Vote week spon-sored by Student Life.

Pozner said it is impor-tant for people to educatethemselves on the politicalmethods used by the me-dia.

“I really believe that me-dia literacy is our strongesttool against propagandaand manipulation intoday’s media-saturated

culture,” she said.“We don’t teach media lit-

eracy nearly enough in thiscountry, neither to kids noradults.

“I think it’s incrediblyimportant to be criticalmedia consumers, to seebehind the headlines, be-hind the rhetoric, behindthe media biases, and tothink in more critical ways,not just about race andgender, but about cultureand public policy.”

Pozner said her lecturewill be presented in multi-media format.

The presentation is inter-spersed with video clipsand still images of the lasttwo years of coverage ofHillary Clinton, BarackObama, Michelle Obama

and most recently, SarahPalin.

Pozner is a freelance jour-nalist and the founder andexecutive director of Wo-men In Media & News, anorganization that works toincrease women’s power inmedia and politics.

She is also a former staffwriter for “Extra!” magazineand the organizer of thenational Feminist Coalitionon Public Broadcasting.

Pozner said she plans toaddress the current elec-tion process from the pri-maries until now, regardinghow the media has usedrace and gender in theircoverage.

“We’re looking at how is-sues of racial stereotypesand double standards have

often problematized newsreporting,” she said.

“[We’ll be looking at] whatthe impact is for voterswhen tons of stereotypesare allowed to permeateand distract from what wereally need, which is report-ing about policy and legis-lation, candidates’ stances,their political records, andtheir actual policy posi-tions.”

OCCC is one of severalcolleges Pozner has visitedor plans to visit on her tour.

She said college studentsare important to reach.

“Young people and collegestudents are among themost intellectually engagedpeople in the country,”Pozner said.

“I think that in the collegesetting we can really dig into some of the issues inways that we just don’thave much space for out-side of college.”

Staff Writer Dillon Hartcan be reached at StaffWriter2@occc.edu.

By Daniel MartinStaff Writer

Who is going to be thenext president of the U.S.?This question seems to bemaking national headlineson a daily basis, but do stu-dents care or do they evenknow the facts?

OCCC is taking steps tohelp inform students on thepresidential candidatesand the issues at hand.

Student Life will hostRock the Vote week Oct. 6to 10 in order to help pro-mote and entice youngpeople to vote.

Since its inception in1992, Rock the Vote hasrun innovative and suc-cessful voter registrationefforts, according to theRock the Vote website.

Their mission is to engageand build political power ofyoung people in order toachieve progressive changein our country, according tothe website.

Rock the Vote uses mu-sic, popular culture andnew technologies to influ-ence young people to regis-ter to vote.

“We tell it like it is,” thewebsite said, “and we prideourselves on being atrusted source for informa-tion on politics.”

OCCC, in conjunctionwith Rock the Vote, will setup registration tablesaround campus to give stu-dents voter informationand registration opportuni-ties.

Sophomore Kristi Mc-Allister said registering tovote is a quick process.

“I filled out a voter regis-tration card last semesterand it took me two min-utes,” she said. “Then theymailed it in for me, it wasso easy.”

Service Learning andStudent Life Programs Co-ordinator Katie Treadwellsaid she hopes every stu-dent will register and vote.

“A lot of students todaythink one vote doesn’t mat-ter,” Treadwell said. “OCCChas 13,000 students andone vote starts to add uppretty quickly.”

Oct. 10 is the deadline forvoter registration in orderto be eligible to vote in theNov. 4 presidential election.

Treadwell said Rock theVote week will have regis-tration tables, lectures andnonpartisan informationon campaign issues.

“We want to let the stu-dents know how importantit is to vote, voter historyand Rock the Vote’s na-tional objective,” she said.

Although Oct. 10 is thelast day to register, Oct. 8is the last day to register oncampus, Treadwell said.

“Since we are mailing allthe voter cards in to thestate department, we needthem filled out by Wednes-day in order to be processedin time,” she said.

Treadwell encouraged allstudents to take part in theupcoming election.

“Voting and taking actionare a big part of being a re-sponsible adult,” Treadwellsaid. “This decision will di-rectly affect all of our lives.

“How could you not wantto get involved?”

For more information,visit Rock the Vote onlineat www.rockthevote.com.

Staff Writer Daniel Martincan be reached at StaffWriter2@occc.edu.

September 29, 2008 • PIONEER • 5

“Gaines,”Cont. from page 1

Bobby Gainesdead at 78

Job Fair brings employers to campusBy Mara NelsonNews Writing Student

More than 100 employerswill be looking to hire full-time and part-time workersat the OCCC Job Fair from10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednes-day, Oct. 1, in the CollegeUnion.

“This is the largest job fairin south Oklahoma City,”said Debra Vaughn, Careerand Employment Servicesdirector.

About 70 general employ-ers will attend the fair, look-ing for workers, Vaughnsaid.

These companies includeMathis Brothers, FederalAviation Administration,AT&T, Oklahoma City Pub-lic School and Hyatt Hotels.

Thirty-five of the employ-ers will be from hospitalsand clinics across the state.

They include Midwest Re-gional Medical Center, Dea-coness Hospital, Saint An-thony Hospital, Mercy Hos-pital, Norman RegionalHospital and others.

“This is a great opportu-nity for all our health stu-dents,” Vaughn said.

Jeromy Simmons, physi-cal therapy assistant major,

said he would be attendingthe job fair.

“It gets you a good startin the health field,” he said.

“It’ll be good informationfor future jobs, and learn-ing more about your profes-sion.”

The job fair also will giveupcoming graduates a

chance to start searchingfor jobs, Simmons said.

“It helps our studentslearn how to be successful,”Vaughn said.

Heather Clinkenbeard,administrative leadershipmajor, said she would beattending the Job Fair togather more information on

the current job market.“I want to come to find

out what jobs are outthere,” Clinkenbeard said,“and to see what opportu-nities are available.”

The fair is free and opento all students, alumni andthe general public.

Vaughn encouraged any-one attending the Job Fairto dress professionally, asif it were a formal interview.

“If you became a candi-date, this would be the firstmeeting with your futureemployer,” she said.

It is also important tobring multiple copies of re-sumes because there willbe many employers, andstudents may want to talkto several, Vaughn said.

General employers will beset up to talk to candidatesfrom 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Health professionals willbe available to talk to pro-spective employees fromnoon to 6 p.m.

For more information callJudi McGee at 682-1611,ext. 7369.

Advancement Pat Berryhillsaid Gaines initiated theWeekend College conceptfor OCCC and was alwaysthinking of ways to helpothers.

“He was always assistingstudents in ways to makea difference in their lives,”Berryhill said.

She said he was not onlyan integral part of OCCCbut of the community.

“Dr. Gaines was involvedwith the South OklahomaCity Chamber of Commerceand was on the initial Over-sight Committee for the be-ginnings of the MAPSprojects,” she said.

His funeral service wasSept. 23 in Grapevine,Texas.

Editor Matt Montgomerycan be reached at editor@occc.edu.

ConvergysSchwan's Home Service, Inc

Frito-LayUS Air Force

Fox 25 & CW 34Warren CatOffice Max

Farmers InsuranceCiti Group

Oklahoma Tax CommissionTupperwareIBC Bank

City National BankOKC Police Dept

HomelandOutback Steakhouse

Chick-Fil-ASunbelt Staffing

OK National GuardMetro Library System

Fed EX ExpressAT&T

SprintDillardsBraum's

Hobby LobbyTan & Tone America

US ArmyMathis Brothers

Best BuyIsagenix International

UPSO'Reilly Auto Parts

EyemastersCox Communications

City of OKC-GovMidFirst Bank

VA Medical CenterNorman Regional Hospital

Sooner Hospice, LLCDeaconess Hospital

Hillcrest Medical CenterOU College of Pharmacy

EMSA

Employers attending Oct. 1 Job Fair

*For complete list of employers, visit www.occc.edu/pioneer

6 • PIONEER • September 29, 2008

Anniversary Week celebrates 36 years

For the final day of Anniversary Week, a balloon arch, four large chocolate and vanilla cakes, and various decorations were placed at the front of the StudentUnion. Last week marked OCCC’s 36th anniversary of its opening. The college held various events around campus in celebration.

Hog Wild Entertainment owner Chris Katcher hands PhuocLe, engineering major, a wax replica of his own hand. As part ofthe week-long celebration, OCCC hired Hog Wild Entertainmentto make wax molds on Wednesday Sept. 24. Katcher said themost common hand mold is the peace sign.

HappyHappyHappyHappyHappy BirthdayBirthdayBirthdayBirthdayBirthday

September 29, 2008 • PIONEER • 7

This week OCCC celebrated its 36th birth-day with a four-day celebration, and specialevents including everything from giant birth-day cakes to wax hand molds.

The celebration kicked off Monday with freesnow cones being handed out to students inthe union.

The Student Union was also host to a volun-teer fair on Tuesday, where more than 10 non-profit organizations worked to enlist studentvolunteers.

“We have 10 OCCC students currently en-rolled to help us," said Debbie Bell, a coordi-nator for the regional food bank.

On Wednesday, Hog Wild Entertainment cre-ated wax hand molds in front of the studentunion. Students were able to shape their handhow they please and dip it into hot wax eighttimes. After the wax cooled off, they were al-lowed to pick the colors their molds would be.

“The peace sign is the most often molded,"said Chris Katcher, owner of Hog Wild Enter-tainment.

Thursday was the final day for the festivities,and was highlighted by four giant birthdaycakes, a balloon arch, and a big balloon in theshape of the number 36.

So after 36 years, it seems like OCCC is stillgoing strong and should continue to do so farinto the future.

So happy birthday, OCCC.

One of the four giant cakes that were provided forstudents on Thursday, Sept. 25, the official anniver-sary day for OCCC.

Elizabeth Doran, psychology major, eyes a piece of vanilla birthday cake. Thursday wasthe final day of OCCC’s Anniversary Week celebration. In honor of the school’s 36th anniver-sary, four big birthday cakes were provided for students and faculty to indulge in.

Music major Cathleena Vanloan talks to AlleveHospice Representative Barbara Strickland aboutvolunteer work. Alleve takes care of terminally illsenior citizens, and they sent Strickland to OCCCto search for volunteers to provide entertainment,food and other needs to its patients.

Campus activities, birthday party held

Text and photos by Kenny Hilburn

8 • PIONEER • September 29, 2008

Sports

UPCOMING

OCCCINTRAMURALS

EVENTS

• Oct. 3: 5-on-5 co-ed intramuralbasketball is scheduled to tip off.For more information about sign-ing up, call Recreation and Fit-ness Specialist Eric Watson at405-682-1611, ext. 7786.

• Oct. 4: OCCC club soccer playsTulsa University at 1 p.m. inNorman.

• Oct. 5: OCCC club soccer playsthe University of Oklahoma-Black team at 10 a.m. in Norman.

• Oct. 8: Meeting for co-ed intra-mural dodgeball will be held at12:30 p.m. inside the WellnessCenter gymnasium. For more in-formation about signing up, callRecreation and Fitness Special-ist Eric Watson at 405-682-1611,ext. 7786.

• Oct. 9: OCCC Chance clubbasketball team tips off its inau-gural season against MidAmerica Bible College at 6 p.m.in the Wellness Center gym. Formore information about signingup, call Recreation and FitnessSpecialist Eric Watson at 405-682-1611, ext. 7786.

• Oct. 13: OCCC Chance clubbasketball team plays SouthernNazarene University at 7 p.m. inBethany.

• Oct. 20: OCCC Chance clubbasketball team plays South-western Christian University at 7p.m. in Bethany.

• Oct 24-26: The OCCC AquaticCenter will host the ChesapeakeHalloween Invitational swimmeet. For more information onAquatic Center events, callAquatic and Safety Training Spe-cialist James Hensley at 682-1611, ext. 7662.

• Nov. 2: OCCC club soccerplays the University of Okla-homa-Colsa at 11 a.m. inEdmond.

Photo by Kenny Hilburn

Business major Chris Taylorshows his ups during an afternoonat the Wellness Center gymna-sium.

The Wellness Center is free toall students with a valid student ID.

Pick-up games are commonlyplayed in the gymnasium, every-one is welcome to play.

The Wellness Center is open 6a.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Mondays,Wednesdays and Fridays; 6 a.m.to 7 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thurs-days; and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. onSaturdays.

The Wellness Center alsoprovides a weight and cardio roomwhich includes mechanical andfree weights, treadmills andbicycles.

Intramural basketball starts Oct.3 and club basketball starts Oct. 9.

For more information aboutsigning up call Recreation andFitness Specialist Eric Watson at405-682-1611, ext. 7786.

Soccer team improves, losesBy Jeff DowningNews Writing Student

The third soccer game of the sea-son showed how much better theOCCC soccer team plays together.

Despite a 7-0 loss to the Univer-sity of Central Oklahoma inEdmond on Sept. 21, the soccerteam showed many improvements.

The increased communication,the combined team efforts and thecamaraderie have developed dra-matically since the first match.

Francisco Martinez joined theteam as goalie, which made a no-ticeable impact to the team’s per-formance.

At the start of the game, therewas only a total of 10 players onthe field.

Eight minutes into the game,UCO scored the first goal by hav-

ing several players rush the net.At halftime UCO led 5-0.

OCCC’s coach, K.B. Yeboah, hada couple of things to say.

“I want you guys to keep run-ning,” Yeboah said during halftime.

“I think the more you guys run,the better it will help you with thenext games.”

Another OCCC player arrivedduring halftime, so they had a fullteam for the second half.

Having a dedicated goalie and afull roster made an improvementcompared to the first half.

Physical presence all over thefield prevented UCO from capital-izing on an under-manned teamand they could only score two goalsin the second half.

OCCC still could not get anythinggoing on offense.

The fancy foot and head work of

Yemy Bolly during the second halfwas impressive, but it did not havepositive results against the moreaggressive home team.

“If they start communicatingmore and more, then they will beable to pass it around and preventthe other team from being too of-fensive,” Yeboah said after thegame.

OCCC’s team has acquired acomplete roster with solid andskilled players, but they still needmore to help battle fatigue, Yeboahsaid.

Anyone interested in joining thesoccer can do so at open practicesessions held at 6 p.m. on Tues-days and Thursday on the southfield of the campus.

With an 0-3 record for the sea-son, OCCC the University of Tulsaat 1 p.m. Oct. 4 in Norman.

The air upthere

September 29, 2008 • PIONEER • 9

Theater department hopes to raise social awarenessBy John-Printes DavisNews Writing Student

The play “In the Blood” byPulitzer Prize winnerSuzan-Lori Parks, is a mod-ern riff on “The Scarlet Let-ter,” the Puritan novelabout a woman who bearsa child out of wedlock andmust wear a red letter “A”on her dress as punish-ment. “In the Blood” will beperformed at 7:30 p.m.,Oct. 2, 3 and 4 in the Col-lege Theater.

The drama departmentwill host a food drive as partof the season’s first pro-duction.␣ Director and the-ater professor Brent Noelsaid hunger is a big part ofthe theme of the play.

“We decided it would bea natural tie-in to use thisopportunity to help raiseawareness of hunger in thearea,” he said.

In the play, a homelessand illiterate mothernamed Hester lives with herfive children on the innercity streets, struggling tomake ends meet. Hester’sfive children are played byadult actors who, in turn,portray an adult in Hester’slife that holds her back inher quest to become suc-cessful.

“Each adult representsan institution of society

designed to help her,” Noelsaid. “A doctor, a socialworker and a minister areresponsible for fatheringher children and thenblame her for being a bur-den on society.

“Because we don’t do the-ater in a vacuum, it is asocial experience,” Noelsaid, “and the theater is oneof the last places people cancome to see the truth, bothin its beauty and ugliness.”

Student Vivian Le playsHester. Hester’s childrenare played by students:Jeremy Kimbro as Jabber,Tyersa Lowery as Beauty,Philip Aken as Trouble,Roddrick Wright as Baby,and Vaneza Cabellos asBully. All performers havedouble roles, except Le.

Kimbro also plays Jab-ber’s father Chile.

“I think the play is goingto raise some eyebrows,”Kimbro said. “It’s going tobe exciting, thrilling … agood experience.”

Lowery agrees. “I thinkthe play is a very deep playand it sends a message thata lot of people need to hear.”

On Thursday, Oct 2, ad-mission is free for OCCCstudents, faculty and staff.On Friday and Saturday,admission is $5 for stu-dents with a valid ID, andgeneral admission is $10.

Each person who bringsa non-perishable food itemfor donation to the RegionalFood Bank of Oklahoma

Hester’s children cast disapproving looks at their mother who is seated on the floor. Left toright: Philip Aken, Roderick Wright, Tyresa Lowry, Vaneza Cabellos and Jeremy Kimbro playthe parts of Vivian Le’s (seated) children in the play, “In the Blood.”

Photo by Matt Bishop

Stress help is available to students

Turner said students whoencounter problems seem-

ingly too large to handleshould visit Student Sup-port Services on the firstfloor of the Main Building.

Students also can visit

will get $5 off for Friday andSaturday night perfor -mances.

“Theater should be more

than entertainment,” Noelsaid. “It should reach outto the community and raiseawareness of social issues.”

“Stress,”Cont. from page 1

www.occc.edu/support,where there are some help-ful tips to managing stressand keeping healthy.

Some students said theyjust try to stay away fromthe stress of every day life.

“I don’t focus on thestressful things,” said en-gineering major DonHawkins. “I just focus onother things.”

John Adedayo, engineer-ing major, said he tries toplan things ahead of time.

“I like to be active so Idon’t worry,” Adedayo said.“I try to just chill out.”

Students who want totalk to a counselor can callStudent Support Servicesat 405-682-7520.

For a list of outside agen-cies that can assist stu-dents in coping with stress-related issues, visit the Pio-neer Online at www.occc.edu/pioneer and clickon Help with Stress.

Staff Writer StephenSossamon can be reachedat onlineeditor@occc.edu.

10 • PIONEER • September 29, 2008

HighlightsGene Stoltzfus to speak for Advocates of Peace

Gene Stoltzfus, who started the Christian peacemakerteams during the Vietnam War, will be speaking at 1:30p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 30, in 2F3 of Arts and Humanities.Stoltzfus has been all around the world and will lectureon his experiences with hostile environments and Chris-tian peacemaker teams. This lecture is open to all stu-dents and faculty. For more information, contact StephenMorrow at 405-682-1611, ext. 7350.

Popcorn sale fundraiser for clubThe Native American Students Association will be host-

ing a popcorn sale to raise funds for the club. Thefundraiser will be from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday,Oct. 7, in the lobby area of the Main Building. For moreinformation, call publicity officer Paul Varela at 405-313-2076.

Free Speed Learning ClassesStudents wanting to learn better study skills, note tak-

ing and how to read faster can attend free Speed Learn-ing Classes from noon to 4 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 2,from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 4 or from noon to4 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 8. Classes will take place in theLibrary room 407 A&B. To register, call Corporate Learn-ing at 405-682-7562.

Brown Brag lecture seriesThe next Brown Bag lecture on budgeting will be from

12 to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 7 in College Union room 1of the Main Building. For more information, contact Stu-dent Life at 405-682-77523.

First Lecture Series of the semesterA speech on “Race, Gender and Media in the 2008

Elections,” with media critic Jennifer Pozner, will be from2 to 4 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 9, in College Union room 1.For more information, contact Student Life at 405-682-7523.

College Poets and Writers meetingThe College Poets and Writers will meet from 1 to 1:50

p.m. on Wednesdays, in room 1C3 of Arts and Humani-ties. For more information, contact Chris Verschage at405-682-1611, ext. 7140.

Native American club meetingsThe Native American Student Association will hold its

club meetings from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. every Tuesday inroom 2N7 of the Main Building. NASA is an excellent placefor Native Americans to meet other Native Americans andcreate life long friendships. For more information, con-tact NASA publicity officer Paul Varela at 405-313-2076.

Black Student Association meetingsThe Black Student association will meet from 1 to 2

p.m. every Friday in room 1X5 of Arts and Humanities.The goal of the club is to help the black community tosucceed in college. The club is open to and welcomes allcomers. For more information, contact club presidentWilliam Booker at 405-248-1886.

Highlights are due by 5 p.m. each Tuesday forpublication in the next issue of the Pioneer.

Students can submit any club event, or otherfunction, into the Highlights section.

Journalism major Lauren Purdy presents a piece of writing to the College Poets andWriters club for feedback as club sponsor and English Cmposition professor ChrisVerschage listens. The club meets from 1 to 1:50 p.m. every Wednesday in room 1C3 ofArts and Humanities.

Black Student Associationto mentor young studentsBy Michael HendricksNews Writing Student

Six members of thecollege’s Black Student As-sociation have signed up tomentor at-risk students atWestern Oaks elementaryand middle schools in thePutnam City school district.

These schools are locatedon N.W. 23 and Rockwell inwest Oklahoma City.

The goal of this serviceproject is to prevent stu-dents who may be prone toturn to gangs, drugs andviolence from doing so, saidWilliam Booker, BSA presi-dent.

BSA member ShareeDemby, 22, has met withthe student she ismentoring.

The student is a 10-year-old girl who is in the fourthgrade.

Demby will meet with thestudent once a week untilthe end of the school year.

“It was easy to get to knowthe student,” said Demby.“We shared bits and pieces

Photo by Kenny Hilburn

Getting feedback

about each other.”Each week Demby will

spend an hour with herstudent.

In this hour, they readand Demby helps the stu-dent with her homework.

The mentoring sessionstake place at the WesternOaks schools.

There may be timeswhere the mentors go onfield trips with their stu-dent, Demby said.

The mentors are pairedby gender. The women arematched with younger girlsand the men are pairedwith younger boys.

“We are in dire need ofmore African Americanmales to mentor young Af-rican American boys,”Demby said.

BSA students also wantto show these youngstersthat college is an option forthem, Booker said.

“It is best when studentsare helping other stu-dents,” he said.

BSA was inspired to dothis project because they

wanted to show childrenthat people who look likethem can succeed, Bookersaid.

Michele Goar, admissionsadviser and sponsor ofBSA, said the club has al-ways been interested inreaching out to the commu-nity but never knew how.

When Western Oaks con-tacted BSA about thisproject, it sparked an inter-est in them to take part inmentoring, Goar said.

All of the members andsponsors showed their sup-port for this project.

BSA hopes to get morecollege students involved tomaybe one day expand thementoring to other stu-dents in Oklahoma City inthe future.

Any student interested inbeing a mentor can e-mailBooker at BSA@email.occc.edu or come to theBSA general meetings, from1 to 2 p.m. every Friday inroom 1X5 of the MainBuilding.

BSA welcomes all comers.

September 29, 2008 • PIONEER • 11

Pioneer Classified Advertisingis free to all enrolled OCCC stu-dents and employees for anypersonal classified ad. Adsmust be submitted in writingwith IDs supplied or work areaand college extension in-cluded. Deadline for advertis-ing is 5 p.m. Tuesday prior tothe publication date. For moreinformation, call 405-682-1611,ext. 7674, or adman@occc.edu

Class ifi eds

FOR SALE: ’04 white FordMustang, Mach 40th edition.Tinted windows. 86K miles.$6,500 OBO. Call: 405-863-5720.

FOR SALE: ’00 ChevroletCamaro. ABS, A/C, bucket seats,CD, rear defrost, tinted glass.Very good condition. Black. V6,25MPG, XM ready. $6,000 nego-tiable. Call Steve 405-417-7999,e-mail: tray_5_7@hotmail.com.

FOR SALE: 1997 Honda Ac-cord, V6, Black, 4 door. $4,000,OBO. Contact: 918-361-8277.

FOR SALE: 1996 ChevyBlazer 4x4. Great condtion. Looksand runs excellent. 2 door, pw/pl.Asking $3,000 OBO. Call Lana at405-436-0400.

NINJA FOR SALE: 2007Kawasaki Ninja, 650R, red, 5,000miles, Leo Vince exhaust, Targasolo cap, frame sliders, fendereliminator, LED signals, stainlessbars and pro-grip grips. $5,800.Call Jacob at 405-205-2753.

DIGITAL CAMERA FORSALE: Sony CD Mavica MVC-CD400 4.OMP. Has official Sonymini bag, larger camcorder-stylebag, power supply/battery char-ger, USB cable, spare battery, onemini CD-RW and several mini CD-Rs. Can write both CD-R and CD-RW media. $250. Call Drew at405-745-3266 e-mail: drew.stone@gmail.com

FOR SALE: Opened BoxArchos GMini 4GB MP3, WMAplayer and picture-viewer.$75.New Compaq laptop 15.4”IntelPent. DualCore 80Gb-HD1Gb-RAM. $470. New LogitechVX Revolution Cordless Mouse.$40.Call Kevin at: 501-442-8260or e-mail me at: littleox06_vn@yahoo.com.

TV FOR SALE: 2004, 13-inchSanyo with remote. Working con-dition. Caption capable. $20 cashand carry. Call: 405-682-1611,ext.7225.

ROOMMATE NEEDED:Share house on North May Ave.Month to month basis. $500 in-cludes internet, cable, electric,gas, washer and dryer use. $100security deposit required. Lailadabbakeh@hotmail.com.

FEMALE ROOMMATE: Rent$250 per month and 1/2 bills. Onepet allowed. $125 deposit. Call:918-409-7122.

NEW BOOTS FOR SALE:Size 13.5 D.Belleville Intermedi-ate cold/wet weather. Leatherupper, Vibran soles, Goretex, newin the box. Two pair of lliners.Retail price is $180. Will sell for$75. Call 405-816-5824.

7405 S. Drexel Ave. Across the street from OCCC.Two bedroom updated home.Storage building in back yard. $87,000. Open house everySunday 2 to 4 p.m. Call Deby

at 405-414-8742 .

PioneerPioneerPioneerPioneer

You could advertisehere locally for $16a week, nationally

for $20 a week.Call 682-1611,

ext. 7674, for moreinformation about ourlow advertising rates!

Classified Ads

FREEFREEFREEFREEFREE to students,

faculty,

& staff. Fill out a

classified form

Pioneer office

(2M6) and

by 5 p.m. Tuesday

for the next issue.

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Minutes from the OCCCcampus.Call today and

mention this ad to receive$200 off at move in with

your student ID.405-717-0594.

NEED SOME DOUGH?Big Sky Bread Company is

looking for an energetic,reliable person to helpcustomers, slice bread

and bag granola.\Apply in person at

6606 N. Western Ave.

OPEN AUDITIONS: Auditionsfor the OCCC production of MossHart and George S. Kaufmans’“You Can’t Take it With You” willbe held in the OCCC theater on:Thursday, Sept. 25, 6 p.m. to 8p.m., Friday, Sept. 26, from 4 p.m.to 6 p.m. and Saturday, Sept. 27,10 a.m. to noon.

FOR SALEOne bedroom condo.

Totally renovated with newtile, stove, refrigerator,

dishwasher and laminatefloors.Gated community.All appliances stay with

full offer of $35,000.Call: 405-431-9001

IT PAYS TOADVERTISE INTHE PIONEERCALL 682-1611,

ext. 7674,or

e-mailADMAN@occc.eduFOR RATES AND

DEADLINESAsk for Cynthia

FREEOCCC JOB BOARD

www.collegecentral.com/occc

More information is available at:OCCC Employment Services

First Floor, Main Building405-682-7519

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Voice your opinion.

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Write the editor at editor@occc.edu

For ad rates, call Cynthiaat 405-682-1611, ext. 7674

12 • PIONEER • September 29, 2008

Muslim students miss Ramadan celebration

Hit and run, false alarm reportedBy Stephen SossamonStaff Writer

A hit-and-run accidentand false alarm had the at-tention of Safety and Secu-rity this week.

On Sept. 16, security of-ficer William Busby made areport on a hit-and-run ac-cident that possibly oc-curred Monday, Sept. 15,at the college, according toan incident report.

Busby met with KaitlynVandaver who said she ar-rived on campus Monday,Sept. 15, around 12:30p.m. and left around 7 p.m.

Vandaver said the nextday she noticed damage tothe rear driver’s side of hercar.

Major Keith Bourque re-viewed video footage fromthe assumed time of theaccident and saw a largetwo-door white car pull intothe space next to Vandaver,according to the incidentreport.

Bourque said he saw aman get out of the vehicle,look at Vandaver’s carwhere the damage was re-ported to be, leave the park-ing space and head towardthe college, according to theincident report.

In another incident Sept.19 at 4:46 p.m., securityofficer Jacob Roby re-sponded to a fire alarm inthe Main Building, nearentry 1, according to thereport.

Roby said he noticed twojuveniles standing next tothe alarm, playing with

light switches, according tothe report.

Roby found the mother ofthe juveniles and asked herto keep her children with

By Austin StrolleNews Writing Student

Muslim students in theU.S. find themselves miss-ing home during this timeof year. The last weekend inSeptember marked the endof a month of fasting andprayer for Muslims aroundthe world, and ushered ina three-day celebrationcalled “Eid-El-Fitar.”

OCCC student MohamedHarroudi, a political sci-ence major from Morocco,explained the ending of

Ramadan.“On the night of Sept. 26,

we pray all night until theearly morning arounddawn.”

It is during this time thatMuslims recite large por-tions of the Quran andspend much time in prayer.The end of Ramadan is amajor holiday in many Is-lamic countries, but it goesunnoticed by most Ameri-cans.

Harroudi said he missesthe big celebration in hishome country.

“I remember going to themosque back home forprayers with my family andfriends,” Harroudi said.“Everyone in the townwould go to the mosqueand we would have a bigcelebration for the end ofRamadan.”

During the entire monthof Ramadan, which beganSept. 1, Muslims were re-quired to stop five times aday for prayer and readingfrom the Quran.

“This is somewhat diffi-cult in America,” Harroudi

said. “Back home, every-thing is centered aroundour religion.

“When it is time forprayers, you have to closeyour business until youhave finished your prayers,then you can go back towork.

“But here in America, ev-erything does not centeraround religion, butaround business, so it ishard to follow Ramadan,and Islam itself, as closelyhere.”

Throughout Ramadan,Muslims are to abstainfrom eating or drinking

from sunrise to sunset ev-ery day.

“The reason is to under-stand how people who arestarving feel, to know whatthey are going through,”Harroudi said.

“Refraining from food anddrink is not the only prac-tice during this holy period.It is also about stayingaway from fleshly desiresand sins. It is an entirechange to get closer toGod.”

For more information onRamadan and other reli-gious holidays, go to www.holidays.net.

her at all times, accordingto the report.

Staff Writer StephenSossamon can be reachedat onlineeditor@occc.edu.

Thursday, Oct. 9, 7:30 p.m., AMC Quail Springs 24

YOU AND A FRIEND ARE INVITEDTO ATTEND A SPECIAL SCREENING

Supplies are limited. Complimentary passes are available in thePioneer office 2M6 MB on a first-come, first-serve basis. One

admit-two pass per person with a valid OCCC ID and proof of age.No purchase necessary.

Rated R for bloody violence anddisturbing content, terror and

language