the northeastern - january 17, 2012

8/3/2019 The Northeastern - January 17, 2012

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To err is human. To x it is TNE Policy. Corrections can be found on Page 4.To report a correction call 918.444.2890. TNE Web site: www.nsunews.com

Volume 103, Issue 18 | Tuesday, January 1 7, 2012 | Tahlequah, Okla. 74464

Centurion honors

Ten honored each yearwith Centurion awardpresentation.

See page 5

Athletes juggle

Students athletes balanceclassroom, practice andgame responsibilities

See page 7

Turner settles to take reins as NSUs 19th presidentAmy HoweTNewriTer

Dr. Steve Turner assumed the

position of president on Jan. 12,

2012. Since then many have been

complimenting him on his abilityto quickly take the reins of the

university.

Dr. Turner has already dem-

onstrated strong leadership char-

acteristics, said Laura Boren,

vice president for student affairs.

I believe he will be seen as a role

model for servant leadership.

Students are hoping President

Turner will listen to their needs

and take their opinions into ac-

count when making decisions to

better the school. David Koehn,

vice president for business and

nance, feels Turner will have

no problem connecting with stu-

dents.

I believe the students will nd

him to be very open and respon-

sive to their needs, said Koehn.

I believe Dr. Turner is a man of

integrity who has a passion for

the students and employees of theuniversity.

The new president has spent

almost 30 years in higher educa-

tion, which many believe is an

advantage during this transition.

The presidents role is very

external with alumni, boards,

city councils, you name it, said

Dr. Martin Tadlock, Provost and

Vice President for academic af-

fairs. He knows a lot of people

in Oklahoma, which is a real ad-

vantage for a new president com-ing in.

All members of faculty and

staff seem eager to assist Dr.

Turner in this massive change-

over and, in the coming months,

to achieve his goals for NSU.

I feel my role in the transition

is to help Dr. Turner be aware

of those people that he needs to

contact to answer questions that

he has, said Robin Hutchins, ex-

ecutive assistant to the President.

My ultimate goal is to make the

transition for him and his wife

Penny as seamless as possible.

Tadlock, who served as Interim

President after Dr. Don Betz left

the university, has some practical

advice for the new president.

Being a president of a univer-

sity is a lifestyle, not just a job,

said Tadlock. You have to love

that and you have to enjoy thatlifestyle. If he does, then that

makes it fun. He should enjoy

what he is doing.

Boren, who is already con-

vinced that this university will see

some of its best days under Presi-

dent Turner, is ready and willing

to partner with him in his plans

for NSU.

We share the common goal of

fostering a student centered envi-

ronment, said Boren. I plan on

working with President Turner toadvance the quality of our pro-

grams and services to help stu-

dents grow and succeed.

Koehn serves as chief nancial

ofcer for NSU and he is already

joining forces with the Turner to

begin new projects.

I partner with the president

and other leadership to support

their initiatives with sound nan-

cial plans and resources, said

Koehn. Some current examples

of this are nancing plans for the

new events center and student

housing.

With the start of this new era

for the university, everyone seems

to agree Turners inviting and

kind nature will lead to a success-

ful tenure at NSU.

He seems very easy to work

with, said Tadlock. He is col-

laborative and I think everyonereally likes him.

Dr. Turners ofce is located in

the administration building and

all are encouraged to stop by.

For more information, email

[email protected]

Pete Henshaw/University PhotographerDr. Steve Turner, NSU president, joins NSU from Eastern

Central University in Ada. Turner brings 30 years of highereducation experience to oce.


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The Northeastern

Page 2

January 17, 2012NEWS

Aman a f nal lnmisTy GrAdyTNe wriTer

Every four years, Americans

are faced with the duty of their

citizenship.

On one day, every adult

American has the opportunity to

choose the leader of our nation.

This year, that day falls on Nov.

6. Citizens all across the country

tune into the news and are hit

with a barrage of informationabout candidates vying for sup-

port. Not only the president is

decided on Nov. 6, but also mem-

bers of the United States Con-

gress, state representatives and

other governmental positions. In

many cases these can be more

important decisions than picking

a president.

But there are a lot of important

steps to take before that day. Ev-ery state has primary elections,

elections held before the Nov. 6

date that can decide who main

political parties, The Republican

Party and the Democratic Party,

support on Election Day.

Laws and dates for primaries

differ from state to state, which

can easily be found online. Okla-

homas primary is March 6. The

deadline registration date for vot-

ing in Oklahoma is 24 days be-

fore the election.

Registering to vote in Oklaho-

ma is easy. One can go to www.

ok.gov to request a voter registra-

tion form, ll it out and mail it

back in.Students can also receive voter

registration forms at post ofces,

tag agencies, and libraries.

Which party a voter registers

for will determine which primary,

Republican or Democratic, they

are eligible to vote in. This has no

bearing on which way a voter can

vote in the general election.

I feel like people who talk

down to our generation insteadof talking with us, they do not

communicate with us, but if they

just took time to listen to what we

are saying, they could learn from

us, said Tierney Edwards, Mem-

phis, Tenn. sophomore. People

lose sight of the personal respon-

sibility that comes with electing

someone to ofce as you trust

them with your life, nance and

future.

Students can often be dissuad-

ed from voting for several reasons.

Classes, organizations, trans-

portation issues, work or simply

apathy can prevent the future of

America from getting involved.

Many see no point to voting orbelieve their vote will not matter.

The media itself can be biased

and may disenfranchise young

voters. However, young adults

remain an important voting bloc.

I feel like Fox and CNN are

some of the biggest problems in

elections, they are completely bi-

ased, said Edwards. Fox is so

biased that it comes across as un-

biased, and CNN is more subtleabout bias but just as inaccurate

as Fox and they have too much in-

uence when it comes to politics.

NSU is located in Congressio-

nal District Two and Senate Dis-

trict Three. However, many uni-

versity students are not registered

for or eligible to register for the

county or even in the state where

they attend university. For those

students who may put off voting

because they cannot vote in per-

son, it is generally easy to receive

an absentee ballot and vote be-

fore Election Day.

Laws differ from state to state,

but to receive absentee ballots in

Oklahoma a written request to

your County Election Board is re-

quired, and it must be received by

the county election board before

7 p.m. on Nov. 6 to be counted.

President Barack Obama is

running for re-election on a Dem-

ocratic Party platform. Currently

on the Republican side are Gov.

Mitt Romney of Mass., Rep. Ron

Paul of Texas, Gov. Jon Hunts-

man of Utah, Rep. Newt Gin-

grich Miss., Sen. Rick Santorum

of Penn., and Gov. Rick Perry ofTexas.

The most important part of

the election process is gathering

information about candidates

and making an informed deci-

sion. For more information email

[email protected].

Courtesy photoAmericans must sift through all of the political jargon to de-

termine the best course of direction for the country. Political

candidates are vie for crucial votes during this election year.


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Page 3

January 17, 2012F E A T U R E

The Northeastern

Homemade freworks start new year with a bangJAmes BAGwellTNe wriTer

Homemade Fireworks improv

comedy team is preparing to blow

audiences away with laughter at

their rst show of the semester

Jan. 20.

Im expecting the team to

wow the crowd with their com-

edy, said Alyssa Buckley, Home-

made Fireworks advisor. You

dont nd live comedy in Tahle-quah except for when this team is

performing .I expect our fans to

be back for more and new faces to

be surprised that this team actu-

ally is hilarious.

Along with the new year and

new semester, a new cast member

added to the group.

I joined the group to help de-

velop myself as an actress actual-

ly, said Juliette Lloyd Tahlequah,

freshman. I am really looking

forward to my rst improv expe-

rience.

This will be Llyods debut show

with the improv team.

The groups goal is to reach

out to more people and to have

higher attendance at shows. To

do this, the group has employed

new tactics to involve the audi-

ence members.

This years cast, is differentthan last years in that most of

them are freshmen or sopho-

mores, said Buckley. Theyre

spunky and risk-taking, which

lends to aggressive comedy. The

group has scheduled more shows

than last years cast, and I expect

the team to break more records

with larger audiences and more

buzz on campus. I am beyond ex-

cited for this year. Im so pleased

with the cast; I think its even bet-

ter than last years cast. Look out

for this team. I dont know how

they spent the holidays, but some-

thing in that egg-nog made them

even funnier than when they left

in December.

What sets improv comedy

apart from other forms of com-

edy is that everything is made up

on the spot. What the audience

sees in any particular show willnever be seen again.

This shows theme is Face-

book, which means if youre

friends with someone on the

team, your Facebook prole

could inspire comedy on Friday

night. At the end of the show,

well choose three audience vol-

unteers and look at their Face-

book on the big screen and then

create an improvised sketch show

based on those three random au-

dience members, said Buckley.

Another thing that sets this

show apart from any other is the

Facebook theme.

Finally Facebook gets the rec-

ognition it deserves on this cam-

pus, said Ryan Combs, Inola

sophomore and president of the

group. I am ready to showcase

my skills and the teams skills be-

cause I know we are going to doawesome.

Most of the cast are just glad

to be back and refreshed from the

winter break.

Nothing says comedy ex-

plosion like a Facebook improv

show said Randall Skidmore

Tulsa, junior and the groups ad-

vertising manager..

The group has set show dates

for this semester including a trip

to perform in Oklahoma City at

the Ghostlight Theatre. For more

information

Im really excited to be back,

said Skidmore. Performing im-

prov is the only thing that keeps

me sane. If it werent for improv

I would constantly be getting into

trouble in my classes, this is what

keeps me grounded.

The family-friendly main show

will be in the Webb Auditoriumat 7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20. With

a more risky encore performance

at 9 p.m.

Tickets for the 7:30 show are

$5 and there are coupons around

campus for $1 off. The 9 p.m.

show tickets are $2 or $1 if the

previous show is attended.

For more information email

[email protected].


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Page 5

January 17, 2012F E A T U R E

The Northeastern

cnun n bw n a asTAcie GuTHrieTNe wriTer

The Centurion honor is award-

ed to individuals who are or have

been a part of the Northeastern

State University family who have

impacted the life of the nomina-

tor or even the community. The

Centurion honor goes out to an

individual who has put forth the

effort to help others and who have

made a strong and lasting legacyin the universitys history.

Being a Centurion means to

me that I had an opportunity to

be an important part to North-

eastern State University and the

things I did there counted because

it helped people and students,

said Fount Holland, president of

Questt Inc.

The Centurion honor can be

awarded to individuals living ordeceased that have made a signi-

cant difference in NSUs history.

It was quite an honor to be

inducted into the rst true 100

Centurions, said Dr. Dana Ever-

sole, professor of mass commu-

nication. I had several students

who nominated me and I was for-

tunate enough to get to read the

nominations after I was deemed a

Centurion. Im glad to know that

I have touched some students

lives.

Many of the Centurions did

different types of activities that

gave them recognition to be in-

ducted into the group. Vickie

Shefer, university archivist, has a

lot to do with the historic photos

that are posted around the cam-

pus.

Shefer also helped with the

Centennial and primarily workswith the administration to help

search the archives and bring to-

gether different types of NSUs

history together for everyone to

see.

Ive been here for almost 30

years and I have served as a li-

aison between the community

and authors, said Shefer. I

was busy for ve years before the

centennial working with Dr. Brad

Agnew on his book over the his-

tory of NSU and the community.

The book is totally online and free

and searchable word for word on

the librarys web page under digi-

tal library,

Helping students is a big part

of why most Centurions are in

the elite group. Delores Sumner,

special collections librarian, is an

example of someone who has

went the extra mile for students

that wanted to learn information

on Native American tribes. Sum-

ner was hired with NSU in 1982

and almost 30 years later, con-

tinues to help students work with

Native American organizations.For 20 years I was coach for the

symposium American Indian,

said Sumner. We did a weeklong

program where we brought in

Native American artists, authors

and dignitaries. We had a group

of Native American students that

we would take on trips to differ-

ent organizations and museums.

We would take them to universi-

ties that had Native American

organizations. There were inter-

actions where students would be

aware of other Native America

organizations. Its called AISES,

American Indian Science Engi-

neering Society.

Throughout NSUs history,

there was not an exact way in-

dividuals were awarded for their

work with the university. They

had awards for the current pro-

fessors not really for those who

participated with NSUs historyin other ways.

The Centurion award is

something that was initiated by

President Betz, said Dr. David

K. Scott, professor of commu-

nication studies. He was trying

to establish a broader range of

honorees that have made contri-

butions to NSUs history. When

President Betz introduced the

Centurion award it was for any-one who had made a contribution

to NSU in the rst 100 years. We

had all sorts of historical gures

that had never formally been rec-

ognized that had nally been rec-

ognized, may have which for the

rst time.

The award helps many learn

about NSUs rich history like in-

dividuals that attend NSU, those

who are part of the community

and even those who just want to

know more about the university.

Historically, the Centurion

award has had an impact for

those professors that havent been

here for very long, said Dr. Dan-

iel Fuller. Its a good way to lookback and see who was here and

what we did.

Centurions are inducted annu-

ally at NSUs Founders Day. Any

one is able to submit a nomina-

tion for an individual they would

like to see inducted into the now

current group of Centurions.

The university adds ten names

each year to NSUs list of Centu-

rions. The deadline to submit isFeb. 1 at midnight. The applica-

tion form is at www.nsuok.edu/

CenturionNomination.


[email protected].

Eric Davis/Contributing PhotographerThe rst 100 Centurions were named during the Founders

Day celebration on NSUs Tahlequah campus. Ten more Centu-rions are added to the list each year.


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Page 6

January 17, 2012A & E

The Northeastern

NSU Theatre Company line up begins FebruaryJordyN JorGeNsoNTNe wriTer

The spring semester has ar-

rived, and the NSU Theatre

Company is ready for a season

full of entertainment. They have

put on popular productions in the

past, such as Hansel and Gretel

and The Cripple of Inishmaan

this last fall.

There will be two productions

this spring, said Robyn Pursley,theatre coordinator since 2005.

One show is Bird and Fish,

written and directed by NSU pro-

fessor Christopher Miller, and the

other is You Cant Take It WithYou, which is a classic comedy

written in the 1930s.

Both of these plays are based

on different situations, but the

cast is excited about them.

The rst play is about a couple

that lives in a Spanish country,

said Knickel Sloan, Pawhuska

junior. They are two people of

different races and have trouble

with their relationship because ofthis.

The other play is based on a

dysfunctional family during the

Great Depression.

All of the characters are reallyweird, and the most normal in

the family is a daughter who will

marry a well-off character from a

snooty family, said Lindsey Mor-

row, Okmulgee senior.

The shows will also showcase

various students.

Bird and Fish only showcases

Charlotte Figgins, Juliet Lloyd,

and Stanley Swain, while You

Cant Take It With You has overtwenty actors cast.

Some cast members like Sarah

Elizabeth, Tulsa freshman, are

looking forward to the second

play.I play the part of Olga the

Duchess, said Elizabeth. Well

actually, she is a waitress that be-

lieves she is a duchess. I am really

excited about this part because I

am only a freshman and am cast

in this play.

However students are not the

only ones making an appearance

in You Cant Take It With You.

A couple of roles have been givento special guests such as Charlie

Seat, retired head director of the

program, and Danna Agagee

from Student Affairs. Both have

even had years of professional

theater experience.

We think its exciting that we

can give the students the opportu-

nity to work with more seasoned

and experienced actors in our

productions whenever possible,said Pursley.

According to Morrow, there

is a lot of preparation when it

comes to an NSU Theatre Com-

pany production.

The set crews take at least a

month and a half to two monthspreparation along with the cos-

tume and lighting for a show,

said Morrow. A lot of times the

actors have about a month to

memorize their part, but it just

depends on the size of the cast.

It takes a dedicated individual

to be a part of an NSU Theatre

production. While most students

spent their Christmas break re-

laxing and spending time withtheir families, the members of

these productions were memoriz-

ing their parts to make these pro-

ductions a success.

The cast has been very dedi-

cated to their parts, said Purs-

ley. They have been working on

their parts for each of these plays

even during their free time over

the break.

Bird and Fish will show Feb.22 through 25, and You Cant

Take it With You will show April

18 through 21.


[email protected].


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Page 7

January 17, 2012S P O R T S

The Northeastern

cllg al v n lam, n gamKirA coKerTNe wriTer

Practice makes perfect for

some student athletes at NSU.

Over half of the student athletes

received a 3.0 GPA or higher dur-

ing the fall 2011 semester.

There were 24 student ath-

letes on the Presidents Honor

Roll, said Bill Nowlin, assistant

athletic director. And 48 on the

Deans Honor Roll.Some athletes were stressed

about the fall semester, having to

balance athletics and school.

I think its going to help me

when I go to graduate school,

said Ashley Dolezel, Heiden-

heimer, Texas senior. I will be

able to manage both school and

work.

Athletes are still accountable

for making up missed work whenthey are at away games.

We were gone every other

class at the beginning of the se-

mester, said Dolezel. It was aw-

ful and making up the work was

the hardest part.

Jasmine Wright, Dallas senior,

said she helped manage her time

by doing homework on the road.

I was involved in Basketball,

the Northeastern, a sports anchor

for Northeastern News Network,and an internship, said Wright,

who made the deans honor roll.

Socializing was not a big part

of their lives over the fall semes-

ter, but learning to keep things in

order really helped for future jobs

or semesters.

I was taking 17 hours and it

taught me how to keep my priori-

ties straight, said Dolezel. All I

could do was school and soccer,there was really no social life.

Beau Beathard, Houston se-

nior, knew what he was signing up

for when he was signing in high

school.

Playing a sport in college is a

big competent, said Beathard.

Youre worn out when you get

home, but you have to do your

homework.

Student athletes also have to

base their schedule off what the

practice times are for that team

sport.

Its difcult making a school

schedule, said Beathard. Be-

cause I could not have classes be-

tween 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Balancing activities not only

helps with time management but

can also help with real life job ex-

periences.

We have to work as a team

to win, said Beathard. Thats

what you will have to do with

your job.

Being on time and being able

to take orders is a big part of be-

ing a student athlete.

You cannot be late for a gameor there is consequences, said

Beathard. How hard you work

is going to reect the outcome of

your job.

Even though times got hard

and athletes were stressing out

it was worth it in the end to be

able to make the grade and play

a sport they love.Advice for future student ath-

letes is keep working at it, said

Dolezel. I wish I would have

know that it was all going to level

out.

Pete Henshaw/Contributing photographerZach Jones, Memphis junior, drives for two in an exhibition

game against University of Oklahoma. College athletes mustfocus in the classroom to compete on the court.

Pete Henshaw/Contributing photographerJasmine Wright, Dallas senior, is erce on and of the court.

The responsibilities of a student athlete take dedication aswell as determination.

Beathard said it is hard work to

juggle sports and school but tons

of athletes have done it.

There have been a lot of peo-

ple before me that have done it,

and will be a lot of people after

me will do it, said Beathard.

For more information email

[email protected].


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the northeastern - january 17, 2012

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