Oklahoma police officers participate in rapid response training

Ana Lastra

The Moore Monitor Media Platform

08/14/11           

            Walking into Highland West Junior High School, police officers with facemasks and military fatigues is not a common sight. Hearing the loud pops of gunfire is something you hope not to hear, yet school resource officers spent two days in an interactive training to stop threats against local public schools.

             35 police officers from Moore and surrounding cities participated in the Advance Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training, which was held at Highland West Junior High School.

            Sergeant Jeremy Lewis, community relations officer for the city of Moore, said that the training is mandatory for Moore’s school resource officers.

            “We went through a lot of classroom stuff yesterday and today we’re going into different areas of active shooter,” Lewis said.

            The rapid response program was founded after the tragedy at Columbine High School, though it was being developed prior to the event.  Since it’s development, the program is now a nationwide law enforcement training process.

            “After the events in Columbine had occurred, the mindset and the training across the country for law enforcement changed,” patrol officer Nathan Sandoval said.

            The program provides training through shooter scenarios at schools as well as classroom style teaching, according to Sandoval, the lead instructor for the program.

            “Without the ability to actually go through what is called reality based training, all the PowerPoint’s and time in a classroom in the world will not provide enough training for the actual real event,” Sandoval said.

            The police officers train in an active threat simulation at the junior high school. The officers are suited up in protective pads and helmets as they respond to threats in a school.

            “It gives the officer the feel, the sounds, the sights the smells of actually being in a combat environment which is what that has turned into especially during a on going active threat,” Sandoval said.

            Experiencing the stress of the moment teaches the school resource officers what to do and learn from any mistakes so they aren’t repeated should a dangerous situation arise in a school.

            “So they can learn their mistakes here in training and evolve from there to provide a better response, God forbid, if it actually ever happens,” Sandoval said.

            The officers use paintball style guns during their simulation to make the exercise more realistic.

            “They get actually shot at,” Lewis said,  “It’s kind of like a paintball but it stings a little more.”

            This is the second year that Moore’s school resource officers have gone through the program.  The rapid response program is being used across the nation, so instructors travel to teach officers skill sets to prevent or get ahead of a threat.

        

  

Oklahoma liquor laws face changes

Ana Lastra

The Moore Monitor Media Platform

07/31/11

            The debate on Oklahoma’s alcohol laws has created quite a controversy, not only with residents but also with producers, distributors and legislators.

            Tom Knotts, owner of Redbud Ridge Vineyard and Winery has been in the wine business since 2002 when he first bought the property back when it was easy for wine makers to run a winery.

            In 2000, Oklahoma passed state question No. 688, which allowed wineries to self distribute their product.

            “Between 2000, when there were only three wineries in the state, and 2006, when I got licensed, I was about the 50^th,” Knotts said, “That law that allowed wineries to self distribute, which made it real easy for someone like me to distribute to local restaurants and liquor stores.”

            Then in 2006 wholesale liquor distributors filed suit against the state of Oklahoma and the state question was then ruled unconstitutional because it “favored Oklahoma wineries,” Knotts said.

            It was ruled unconstitutional because it violated the commerce clause, according to Chad Alexander, representative of Oklahoma wholesaler, Central Liquors Company.

            “The Federal Courts said it was unconstitutional,” Alexander said, “they said a state cannot allow for businesses of a state to act in one way while the 49 other states have to do business another way.”

            Other laws such as Senate Bill 2205 and Senate Joint Resolution 62 have been submitted to help modernize the liquor laws in Oklahoma. These would have allowed licensing for grocery stores to sell strong beer and wine.

            “There was so much protest to that, not by the people but by the legislators, which I believe were influenced by the wholesale liquor distributors that that law was altered and now is just a study, a commission to study the affects of it,” Knotts said.

            Ben Odom, a lawyer based out of Norman, said that liquor stores are opposed to the modernization of Oklahoma’s alcohol laws because it would affect their hold on the business.

            Liquor stores use a false argument that because of their business they have an expertise in liquor, beer and wine, although this is not always the case, according to Odom.

            “You have a lot of small businesses that are locally owned, ‘mom and pop’ stations that would certainly be put in a disadvantage if it was allowed to be sold in retail outlets,” Alexander said.

            The liquor industry operates on a three-tier system: the manufacturer, the distributor and the retailer.

            “It’s called the golden rule, those with the gold make the rules and so the wholesale liquor distributors that made millions off of the three-tier system because it’s basically a state sponsored monopoly,” Knotts said.

            The wholesaler industry in Oklahoma is very competitive and currently there are around 13 different wholesale companies, according to Alexander.           

            According to the Beer Distributors of Oklahoma, the three-tier system is set up to have check and balances in order for consumers to purchase alcohol.

            Manufacturer’s sell to distributor, who then increases the price when they sell to liquor stores or restaurants, which then increase the prices again, according to Knotts.

            In order for wineries such as Knotts to distribute, they must purchase a permit costing several hundred dollars a year. For a small operation, the cost is too high to make it a profitable decision.

            “Oklahoma is not unique in the idea that it’s going to come, although sometimes I think we’ll have legalized marijuana before we’ll have real good liquor laws,” Knotts said.           

            For now Knotts will continue to grow his grapes, harvest them and turn them into wine solely for his winery.

            “This is the only place in the world that you can get Redbud Ridge wine,” Knotts said.

            Redbud Ridge Vineyard and Winery is located off of Highway 9 in Norman, Oklahoma. The winery is open Thursday through Sunday, 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. for wine tastings.

Architecture Students Raise Concerns On Gould Hall

           As movers begin to move new studio technology into the College of Architecture’s Gould Hall, students are apprehensive on the transition from the Main street site to the new building.

            Late nights in studios, working on projects is a major part of architecture student’s learning experience.  Many students work for several hours a day in order to complete model projects for their classes on top of class work for courses outside of the College of Architecture. A concern that the students have on the configuration of the new building is that it separates the students making it difficult for collaboration of ideas.

            Second year architecture student Ryan Williams views the layout of the building as a failure because of a disconnection between studios and students.

            “The floor plans are like, they’re separated, you know here it’s a giant tank of students and we all kind of shout across the room or walk over and see what’s going on,” Williams said, “If you want to go talk to someone in second year or first year or whatever, you’ve got to go half way around the world just to see them, versus just walking across the hall or something.”

            Dustin Blalock, a fellow second year architecture student, is concerned that the different atmosphere will change how students work together and in their studio environments.

            “Here [Arc-on-Main], we can pin up on the walls--there is a different atmosphere here than there is going to be there--I feel like, you know they are going to be very, very stickler about certain things,” Blalock said,  “It’s just so many bad decisions that were made at the school, they are going to have carpet tiles, so like here you can spill something you can clean something up pretty easily, but carpet tiles it’s not the case.”

            The Arc-on-Main site provides students with integrated studio culture and a link into the community according to second year architecture student Klaas Reimann-Philipp.

            “What’s nice about this building [Arc-on-Main], is that it is kind of more integrated into the community you know with Norman, whereas like when we move back on campus it’s kind of like, OU is kind of like an island,” Reimann-Philipp said, “Here architecture deals so much with people in general you are kind of in the community so you see different things.”
            Assistant Professor Christina Hoehn believes that classes and environment will continue to facilitate collaborative learning.
       "The building is only a footprint of space," Hoehn said, "Collaboration is not determined by the walls around people, [but] it is determined by the goals of the student work and how the professors teach."
      Despite sharing some concerns on how things will change once back on campus, architecture students are excited to be housed in a new building with new technology, according to Blalock.

            The majority of second year students have never been taught in the building, so the move back into Gould Hall this summer will be an important one for them. 

Gould Hall Renovations Nearly Complete

The University of Oklahoma’s architecture building was featured in a prominent architecture magazine earlier this month as renovations die down on Gould Hall.

Professor Christina Hoehn has taken students and others
on tours of Gould Hall throughout the development
of its construction.
Photo By: Ana Victoria Lastra

            As students from all five divisions prepare to be housed in the same building for the first time, Architect: The Magazine of the American Institute of Architects featured the University of Oklahoma’s new classroom prototype.

            Assistant Professor Christina Hoehn said that the technology being used in the renovated building sets the architecture college apart from others in the nation.           

            “We have one called the LearnLab that we prototyped from Steelcase who does commercial conference rooms like this,” Hoehn said,  “When they started branching into education, they did journalism schools and some business schools, but they had never done a school of design before.”

            Design students are often found in classrooms and studios for long periods of time, so the innovative technology accommodates students. The ceilings in the studio rooms hold cameras, which allow their work to project on monitors in popular areas.

            “We had to have something that was interactive that they could go from the drawing board to the technology and back,” Hoehn said.

            Along with an update in technology, the hall itself has had updates that will create a more student friendly environment centered on the students.  The new spaces were renovated to show the outside what goes on within the architecture school.

Gould Hall features gallery space that can be viewed while walking through
the arched walkway, allowing for others to see what students have been
working on.
Photo By: Ana Victoria Lastra

            “We had a gallery here before, but it was like a fish tank,” Hoehn said, “It was small, one level, glassed in and people really couldn’t see what we were doing. People were always like, what are the college of architecture people doing?”

            The new gallery features moveable doors that allow for students to tack projects on to and move around to either open the space up or set up an exhibition room.  The arcade walkway runs through the center of the gallery and lets passersby to look in on projects.

            “President Boren loves to have a college living room space for his students. Students can have study areas, really nice seating areas to sit down and study, collaborate and talk with each other,” Hoehn said.

            Both President Boren and the First Lady have been involved in the construction process of Gould Hall.  Much of what was decided was student focused and that honored the history of architecture on campus.

            “He’s a fan of the former and the great architect Bruce Goff. Bruce Goff has a great history and heritage here on campus so even framing some of his original renderings and stuff to put in the architecture college, creating a meaningful space for the students, and so the people who walk in there they can say, oh this is an architecture facility,” Press Secretary and Special Assistant to the President, Chris Shilling said.

            Though Gould Hall features new additions, much of the structure remains the same. The hall was built during the Great Depression and originally it was the Geosciences building up until 1990 when the College of Architecture moved in.

            “As a student, I remember, some people even liked the building because you could do whatever you wanted to it. It was kind of a creative palette, but everyone is obviously really excited for the new renovation…it’s going to add a lot to the program I think,” Shilling said.

            Upon its completion, Gould Hall will have 108,000 gross square feet of space, which is due partly because the renovations. The building will be moved into over the summer and be fully operable by the fall semester. 

Students display work, receive scholarships

Students, faculty and family gathered in the
Lightwell Gallery to view students work.
Photo by: Ana Victoria Lastra

            University of Oklahoma art students revealed their semester’s work to the world Sunday.

            The School of Art and Art History’s 2011 capstone exhibition “Welcome to the Real World” opened its doors to dozens of spectators waiting to see the work of the school’s 56 seniors.

            The 10th annual capstone exhibition also hosted an award ceremony in which 36 scholarships were given out. Mary Jo Watson, director of the school, emceed the event.

            “It really makes me feel proud walking through the exhibits – both the vis comm [visual communications] downstairs and the art here in the Lightwell [Gallery] – because these exhibits provide an example of the depth of the creativity that we have in the art school,” Watson said to open her speech.

            Art history senior Brynnan Light, studio senior Jenna Kriegel, visual communications senior Stephanie Daniel, and media senior Sarah Engel each received Capshaw awards, a faculty-voted honor as the top graduate in their respective areas.

            Kriegel said she was grateful for the award and the money, but felt strange to be attending the event for the last time as a student.

            Awards were also given to students Mick Tresemer, Katie Baker, and Erin Shaw for their works in the college’s 97th Annual Student Exhibition earlier this spring. Tresemer’s “Watchin’ Mountains Watchin’ Me,” Baker’s “Cycle of Life,” and Shaw’s “Not By Bread Alone” were purchased by OU’s National Weather Center.

            Before presenting two awards, deputy director of the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art Gail Anderson announced the 98th Annual Student Exhibition will return to the museum next spring after the National Weather Center hosted this year’s event.

            School of Art and History professor Sohail Shehada, who had four contributing students to “Welcome to the Real World,” said he was impressed with the gallery. “It’s great. Great turnout and the artwork is really strong. You see figurative, abstract, representational, photography – all kinds actually. A variety of styles and mediums,” he said.

The "Welcome to the Real World" exhibit featured students work
in photography, sculpture and paintings in the Lightwell Gallery.
Photo by: Ana Victoria Lastra

            Visual communications senior Lisa Phan said she was happy with the finished product as well and that seeing it all together was “crazy.”

            “There’s been a good turnout, we didn’t think that a lot of people were going to come out because of the rain,” Phan said, “but obviously there’s a lot of friends and family and everybody’s been really impressed with all the seniors’ work, so it’s exciting.”

            For many, the work represented dates back much further than the spring semester, Phan said. All 18 visual communications displays group four to five pieces selected from their three-year span in the college, she said.

            “I would come here at 5 [p.m.], work all the way until the morning, leave at 7 [a.m.], go home and shower and then go to sleep for four hours, then wake up and come straight back to class again,” Phan said of her time in visual communications.

            Visual communications senior Byron Towles said he is excited about his contribution, a collector’s edition album compilation of one of his favorite bands.

            “Basically what it’s for is for the fanatic Roots fan such as myself or anybody else to go out and buy this collector’s edition album ... Everything you could possibly want that’s The Roots is in that,” he said.

            Towles said he plans on speaking with the band about the project after graduation.

            The exhibition, located in the Lightwell Gallery and room 103 of the Fred Jones Art Center, will stay up through May 13.

Written by: David Tyler Dunn

           

Director of Architecture Dismissed

            The Director of Architecture was fired from the architecture division position Friday, Feb. 18 after five years of holding the job.

Professor Nick Harm discusses his position at the Starbucks
on Campus Corner. Photo By: Erin Leigh Wilson

            Assistant Professor Nick Harm has been the Director of Architecture since 2006 and despite being a well-loved administrator and instructor by students, the College of Architecture’s Dean Charles W. Graham discharged him from the position.  A statement sent out by the dean, addressed rumors as to the departure of the director, stating that Harm had resigned and not mentioning that he had been terminated.

            “I was asked to step down, there is a difference, but the net result is the same,” Harm said.

            The College of Architecture dean before Graham had asked all of the directors to step down, after becoming dean, in order to evaluate who worked well in the position and could then be reinstated as directors.
  “The process here seems to be, assessing everybody in their position and then deciding who should stay in that position and who shouldn’t stay in that position,” said Harm.

            After Dean Graham became the head of the College of Architecture three years ago, Harm had suggested that his position as director was outdated and that it was necessary for a fresher perspective.  Despite Harm’s admission that he was willing to resign, he remained in the position.

            “I’m good at stepping in and maintaining the program, but I think we need younger and fresher ideas than mine, I’ve been here for 30 years and I think that was always in the back pocket, that I’m interested in stepping down at anytime… I really stepped into the position sort of out of necessity, I was willing to do the job,” Harm said.

            Although Harm had been willing to resign from the position, some have questioned the timeliness and manner of the decision. Brenda Terhark, who was the assistant to the directors at the College of Architecture, was shocked to hear of Harm’s termination.

            “Nick had offered at different times if that is what [Dean Graham] thought would be best for the college, that he would step down and the dean had always said no…and so that was what was surprising to Nick at this time,” Terhark said.

            According to Terhark, many of the faculty and staff were just as surprised to hear of the removal of Harm as director, but Harm stated that much of the reasons for his termination were to generate new ideas and a personality more suited to the position.

            Despite no longer having the duties of director, Harm will continue to teach courses and aid with the search and responsibilities of the job until the position is filled.

            John Postic, a fifth year architecture senior, was relieved to know that Harm would continue educating architecture students.

            “I know he liked it more this way because he enjoyed teaching,” said Postic, “In recent years he’s kind of just been stuck behind a desk administrating more than he’s actually been able to teach.”

            Postic has enjoyed Harm’s presence as both administrator and professor because of his attention to the needs of his students. Harm said he has held fast to the thought that students and teaching were the most important part to a school and works hard for that belief. 

            “He’s a fantastic administrator, we always see him around the school and everybody knows him and recognizes him…he’s a really great guy,” Postic said.

The Immaculate Nathan B.

Nathan Buchanan is a 21-year-old student at the Academy of Contemporary Music (ACM) at the University of Central Oklahoma.  Music has been an important theme in his life and has become his dream for the future.

For Buchanan, performing and expressing himself lyrically through hip-hop has become an important part of his life.  As a musician in Oklahoma, Buchanan hopes to change the face of music in this state and more so to change the face of hip-hop. Buchanan's passion and drive to change the music industry makes him a critical player for change within the state of Oklahoma.

Oklahoma's hip-hop scene remains largely underground, although key artists have collaborated with mainstream artists.  Rappers such as Johnny Polygon, Big8, Jabee and Josh Sallee have collaborated with more widely known musicians. 

Recording studios in Oklahoma do not have much of a presence in the United States but they are growing. Buchanan hopes to own his own studio in the future and produce music for other bands while creating and performing his own.

Video by: Ana Lastra, Sadie Short and Erin Wilson

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