finals week edition

VOL. 100, NO. 75© 2014 OU Publications BoardFREE — Additional copies 25¢

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newsroundup

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graduation

regaliacomfort CUISINE

sooner sugar babies

GRADES ARE

IN

««

A lot can happen in a semester. We summarized

this semester’s top new stories so you don’t have to.

STAFF REPORTS

+ YELLOW CAb ACCUSED OF VIOLATING OU’S SAFERIDE CONTRACT

+ Video of norman police action goes viral

+ five-star recruit charged with misdemeanor

+ The Oklahoma Daily receives records after lawsuit

OU FRESHMAN COMMITS TRIPLE HOMICIDE

Freshman Alan Hruby returned to his family’s home in Duncan, Oklahoma, on Thursday, Oct. 9. He confessed that while he was there, he used a stolen handgun to murder his mother, father and seven-teen-year-old sister before fleeing the scene. Police took Hruby into custody

on Oct. 13, and he was charged with three counts of first-degree murder, all of which

he confessed to. Hruby was also charged with fraud for opening a credit card in his grand-

mother’s name, a crime for which he received three years in prison. Hruby’s next hearing will take

place on Wednesday, Dec. 17.

OCT. 15[POLICE KILLING IN FERGUSON IGNITES TENSION ACROSS

COUNTRY

Weeks of conflict and protest broke out after a white police officer shot and killed an unarmed black man Aug. 9 in Ferguson, Missouri.

A grand jury decision not to indict Darren Wilson, the officer who fatally shot the 18-year-old Michael Brown, enflamed ten-

sions and caused further demonstrations in Ferguson and around the country.

Throughout the U.S., people took to the streets to protest the grand jury’s de-

cision, often expressing anger at police brutality and systemized

racism.OU students also protest-

ed the decision. The Black Student Association held a moment of silence for Brown and his family following the decision’s announcement at 12:30 a.m. Nov. 25 in the

Oklahoma Memorial Union.During dead week, a group

of students assembled to spread information about the situa-

tion in Ferguson around campus late Thursday night and into Friday

morning. The students handed out fliers with information about the case and equal

rights and wrote messages on white boards.

AUG. 9

SUPREME COURT REJECTS GAY MARRIAGE BAN APPEALS

The Supreme Court’s rejection of appeals of gay marriage bans in the 7th and 10th Circuit Courts opened the doors to marriage for gay and lesbian Oklahomans Oct. 6.

Citizens of five states, including Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Indiana, Utah and Virginia were imme-diately affected by the Court’s orders.

The Cleveland County Courthouse began issuing marriage licenses at about 1:45 p.m. the day of the decision. By 5 p.m. that evening, the courthouse had issued marriage licenses to seven same-sex couples, according to The Daily archives.

County courthouses throughout Oklahoma also dis-tributed marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples in the hours and days following the Supreme Court’s deci-sion, according to The Daily archives.

OCT. 6

PHOTO PROVIDED

TONY RAGLE/THE DAILY

PHOTO PROVIDED

MOR

E ON

LINE Go to OUDaily.com for the full news roundup

including the following:

Design this

space!is HIRING designers.

To apply, go towww.studentmedia.ou.edu/jobs

orCopeland Hall room 149A

(and other positions too)

OU Student Media is a department within OU’s division of Student Affairs. The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution. For accommodations on the basis of a disability, call 325-2521.

Paighten Harkins, digital managing editordailynews@ou.edu • phone: 405-325-3666

oudaily.com • Twitter: @OUDaily

2 • Finals Week Edition, Fall 2014

NEWSOUDaily.com ›› Which U.S. state has only one student going to OU? Find out online.

TODAYWagner Hall open 24/7 Wagner Hall will be open at all hours throughout the week for students who need a place to study.

Therapy Dogs at Bizzell — 11 a.m. in Bizzell Memorial Library’s Lower Level 1, Room 123 Take some time to pet a dog to help relieve finals week stress.

Chair Massages at Bizzell — 2 p.m. in Bizzell Memorial Library’s Lower Level 1, Room 123 Get a free massage in the library.

Pizza at Bizzell — 8 p.m.in Bizzell Memorial Library’s Lower Level 1, Room 123 Unwind from a day of finals and grab a bite to eat in the library.

Do you want to see your organization’s campus event here? Visit OUDaily.com/events/submit to add your entry.

PAGE JONESNEWS REPORTER

@PAGEOUSM

Here’s a round up of some of the year’s passed legislation:

Sept. 30, 2014Congress appointed Taylor Petersen as chairperson of

the 2014 SGA Election Board.Congress also approved a resolution requesting a dec-

orative rope be erected around the new OU seal on the South Oval. The resolution was in response to several stu-dent concerns about people disrespecting OU by walking on the seal. Student congress members also felt that it was an affront to President David Boren and Molly Shi Boren who donated the seal.

Oct. 7, 2014Congress failed to pass a resolution regarding free

speech on campus, in response to the preachers that visit campus. The resolution would have made a declaration that Congress formally condemns these preachers and their hurtful message.

The resolution failed because members of Congress felt it was an infringement of students’ right to free speech and that the language of the resolution specifically targeted the religious aspects of “Preacher Bob.”

Congress agreed to revisit the resolution after the lan-guage was modified.

At the same meeting, congress passed a resolution ask-ing that the Chick-fil-A spicy chicken sandwich be added to the menu in Oklahoma Memorial Union. This resolu-tion was made in response to a member of congress want-ing the sandwich in the Union before he graduated.

Oct. 27, 2014Congress passed a resolution which requested the City

of Norman amend an ordinance that prevents three unre-lated people from living together. Congress’ resolution was in response to complaints by students who could not live with each other because of the ordinance.

Congress passed another resolution thanking David Boren and Molly Shi Boren for their 20 years of service to the university. This resolution was read aloud to the Borens by former SGA president Matt Epting.

Read about the congress meeting, the OU Board of Regents meeting and the 20 year anniversary of the Borens online at OUDaily.com.

Nov. 4, 2014Congress passed a resolution requesting the installation

of more WEPA printers into all buildings on campus. The resolution aimed to make printing easier for students and to encourage students to use the resource.

Congress also passed the Emergency Allocation Act #4, allocating $265 to Sooners for Israel, $400 to Oklahoma Intercollegiate Legislature, $178 to the Graduate Physics Student Interdependence and $260 to the Counseling Student’s Association.

Nov. 5, 2014Kunal Naik and Alex Byron ran unopposed for SGA pres-

ident and vice president, replacing former president Matt Epting and former vice president Sarah Cambell.

Payne Parker was elected as Interfraternity Council pres-ident with a 36 percent majority.

Students also voted on a few surveys as well as SGA can-didates. One polled students opinions on adding a bike lane running east and west on campus. The other was a survey about adding a 24/7 section to the library.

Nine hundred and six students voted on the bike lane survey, and 73 percent of those students said they would be in favor of adding a bike lane.

Jacqueline Barbee, the author of the survey and a mem-ber of Congress, said she wrote the survey in response to student complaints about dodging bikers while walking to class. Barbee said the addition of the bike lane from east to west, in addition to the one running north to south, would help decrease the risk to walking students. Barbee said she is unsure where to go next with her information, but she said she would want the new bike lane to run from Elm Street to Jenkins Avenue.

Eight hundred and seventy three students voted on the possibility of a new 24/7 section in the library. Of that, 39 percent of students said they would use the section sever-al times a week, and 59 percent said they would use it all

semester, not just during finals time.The author of the survey, Crystal Nguyen, said she want-

ed to give students a 24/7 section because she felt it was needed. Nguyen conducted the survey in collaboration with dean of libraries Richard Luce to gauge whether or not the student interest was worth the cost of adding a section.

Nguyen said since the results of the survey were so posi-tive, Luce has formed a team to predict the practicality and costs of creating such a 24/7 library section.

Read more about the new president and vice president, the former president and vice president leaving office and about the surveys online at OUDaily.com.

Other SGA business:SGA leaders voted to approve a bond of $200,000 to be

used for constructing bathrooms and water fountains for the intramural fields, according to a press release.

Epting said hundreds of games are played on the fields per year. Those students who use the fields must walk to the Huston Huffman Fitness Center to use the restroom.

SGA will be working with OU Facilities Management, and there are currently no blueprints or plans for the facilities.

Other meeting recaps:

Sept. 6, 2014Undergraduate Student Congress passes the Emergency

Allocation Act #1, allocating $412 to the Graphic Design Association and $250 to the OU Pre-Law club.

Sept. 16, 2014Congress passed the Emergency Allocation Act #2, allo-

cating $210 to the Second Wind Student Group and $150 to the Soccer Enthusiasts League.

Nov. 11, 2014Congress passed the Emergency Allocation #5 and

#6. Allocation #5 went to the Community Emergency Response team and Architecture Virtuosi in a sum of $401.99.

Allocation #6 went to the Student Bar Association, an “umbrella organization” that oversees several Registered Student Organizations. The allocation for the group was $4,225.

Many members of Congress felt that since the Student Bar Association did not follow the standard allocation re-quest procedures when submitting their paperwork they did not deserve the allocation.

The act passed with a vote of 12 yes, 8 no and 6 abstain.

Page Jones page.c.jones-1@ou.edu

This year, Student Government Association’s Undergraduate Student Congress passed pieces of legislation covering an array of topics, from spicy chicken

sandwiches, to free speech and the South Oval seal.

STUDENT GOVERNMENT

SGA term in review: a look back at the fall legislation

CHRIS MICHIE/THE DAILY

The Student Government Association Election Board members spea k at a meeting earlier this semester. SGA has passed a variety of legis-lation this semester, as well as held voting for new officers.

Gowns honor students’ achievements with specified decorations and colors

DAISY CREAGERNews Reporter

While all graduating OU students wear the same black gown with crimson flannel on the front panel and sleeves, some aspects of each student’s regalia are de-termined by what level of degree they are receiving and what they studied.

“It speaks to the fact that they’re getting a higher ed-ucation degree, and that higher education is something that is steeped in a lot of tradition,” graduation office di-rector Rebecca Heeney said.

Bachelor’s degree and master’s degree gownsGowns of students receiving a bachelor’s or master’s

degree have a crimson university seal embroidered on the yoke of the gown. This symbol is to show OU pride, Heeney said.

Academic HoodsAcademic hoods are reserved for students who are

part of the Honors College or achieve academic distinc-tion in a master’s or undergraduate program, according to the OU website.

TasselsThe color of each student’s tassel is dependent upon

the college that is granting them their degree. When a new discipline is formed, the dean and faculty of that college determine the color of the tassel, Heeney said.

International business and accounting senior Tim Johnson said stu-dents should be proud o f w h a t t h e y w e a r a t graduation.

“What you’re wearing is a reflection of the college that you’re in, which is a reflection of all the thought and de-liberation that you put into picking your major,” Johnson said.

Daisy Creager Daisy.C.Creager-1@ou.edu

SEE MORE ONLINEVisit OUDaily.com a complete list of

graduation cap tassel colors based on

college.

CEREMONY

Graduate with bling on your cap and gown

NEWS Finals Week Edition, Fall 2014 • 3

DINING

Foods named for people not unusual SGA president one of many to give name to items at campus eateries

JACKIE EBY/THE DAILY

MIKE BRESTOVANSKYAssistant News Editor @BrestovanskyM

As the sun sets on this semester, so it does also on a piece of campus culture that has defined OU throughout 2014: Crossroads Restaurant’s Matt Epting Deluxe Chicken Strip Sandwich.

While the sandwich — composed of two chick-en strips, bacon, cheddar cheese, lettuce, mayo and pickles on ciabatta — will re ma i n o n C ro s s ro a d s’ menu, it will no longer bear the name of former SGA president Matt Epting.

“ The Deluxe Chicken Strip Sandwich is the great-est pride of my OU expe-rience,” Epting said in an email.

David Annis, director of OU Housing and Food, ap-proached Epting at the beginning of this semester to choose what food would be named after him, a decision he had planned since the beginning of his campaign, Epting

said. Next semester, newly elected SGA president Kunal Naik will choose an item on Crossroads’ menu to bear his name throughout his term.

Naik said that he has not yet decided what item he would prefer to be named after him, demonstrating a worrisome negligence in dealing with the university’s most critical issues. However, he expressed some enthusiasm for the Crossroads Creamery’s chocolate malt, calling it “the best chocolate shake I’ve ever tasted.”

“You go to Crossroads at like eleven o’clock at night, and there’s this grandmo-therly lady who makes these just amazing shakes,” Naik said.

SGA presidents are far from the only people on c a m p u s t o h a v e f o o d s name d after them. The Crossroads and Crossroads Creamery menus include 23 items named after various faculty members, from the Laura Tontz Bacon Panini (named after the director of the Oklahoma Memorial

Union) and the Rowdy Jenn Doughty Spicy Chicken sandwich (named after the director of Housing and Food services) to the imposing David Boren Bacon Double Cheeseburger.

CULTURE

Curator wants respect for non-western artNative art not properly contextualized in much scholarly literature, says Ahtone

STEVEN ZOELLERSpecial Projects Reporter @StevenZoeller

Heather Ahtone vivid-ly recalls a period of her life where she played hide-and-seek with her sister at the Denver Art Museum. She was 11 years old. While catching her breath, she n o t i c e d a c r a d l e b o a r d on display, the work of her great-grandmother, a well-recognized Native A m e r i c a n c r a d l e b o a rd maker.

“It was interesting to me as I read the label that was attached to that cradle-board,” Ahtone said. “That it did not discuss the cradle-board in the context that I understood it.”

The label stated the mak-er’s Kiowa heritage and re-cited the materials used to make it. There was no men-tion of its cultural signifi-cance or of how color was used to symbolize aspects of the family of the child for whom it was made — for ex-ample, its role in society and its aspirations.

Ahtone, a descendant of the Choctaw Nation and member of the Chickasaw Nation, ref lects on this childhood vignette as a for-mative moment. The dis-covery of a personal item in a museum, bereft of cul-tural context, was the first of many such discoveries that set her on the path to be-coming a curator.

“I realized that there was a real need for someone with a working knowledge of Native American cultural paradigms to supplement what was being done with Native American art collec-tions,” Ahtone said.

Decades after that game of hide-and-seek, Ahtone fills this role at the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, where she is the James T. Bialac Assistant Curator of Native American and Non-Western Art. From this po-sition, she works toward achieving her lifelong goal to place Native American and non-western art in its proper context.

Hired as an assistant cura-tor in 2012, Ahtone’s history at OU extends several years prior to that. Ahtone earned

PHOTO PROVIDED

Heather Ahtone oversees the largest collection of contemporary Native American art on the planet, all housed in the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art.

Amy Buchanan, assistant director of marketing for Housing and Food services, said that Crossroads’ tradition of naming menu items after campus leaders began sev-eral years ago. The process was intended to better tie the restaurant into the campus community.

There is no set process for naming items at Crossroads, Buchanan said; Housing and Food leadership decides upon which staff members and retirees have items named after them. The staff members chosen then decide upon their preferred dish.

There is not any statute of limitations on menu names: Laura Tontz said Crossroads’ Bacon Panini has had her name for nearly 10 years.

Housing and Food also names a food after the current SGA president, and two foods after the fraternity and so-rority with highest GPA each year — currently, Psi Kappa Sigma and Kappa Alpha Theta, respectively.

Additional menu items can be created or named de-pending on the circumstances.

“For example, the Union Programming Board requested a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with strawberry jelly, and the UPB&J was created,” Buchanan said.

Naik said if he could create a new item to bear his name, it would be a healthy garden grill platter featuring heavy guacamole, lettuce and tomatoes, but added that such a thing was highly unlikely.

Mike Brestovansky mcbrestov@gmail.com

You go to Crossroads at like eleven o’clock at night, and there’s this grandmotherly

lady who makes these just amazing shakes.”

KUNAL NAIK, SGA PRESIDENT

‘‘

her master’s degree in 2006 and also began teaching a course in 2007 cal led American Indian Women in Art. Previously, she was educated at the Institute of American Indian Arts.

The institute museum gave Ahtone the opportuni-ty to write about native art, which awoke her to the lack of literature placing native art in the context of a native tradition. She found people regularly discussed native art as if it was on the same continuum as the rest of western art history.

“ F o r i n s t a n c e , w e w e re b r i ng i ng a n e x h i -bition of Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun, and his work had been almost entirely seen as an evolution of sur-realism [and] Dalí,” Ahtone said. “It is easy to see those r e l a t i o n s h i p s , b u t t h e truth is that Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun is working in the visual vernacular that is

so closely tied to his tribal artistic vision.”

Now in a position where she could point out the uniqueness of native art, Ahtone said she feels it is incumbent on her to do so. She feels it’s a “huge dis-courtesy” to talk about na-tive artists as if they could only draw from their west-ern peers and had no origi-nal styles.

“It’s something that hap-pens to native people a lot,” Ahtone said. “That when these things come from native consciousness and get absorbed into west-ern consciousness, that history back to that native consciousness suddenly gets negated or becomes invisible.”

The problems that plague discussion of native art also challenge the popular un-derstanding of non-west-ern art generally, Ahtone said. The lack of awareness

compounds the fact many western museums lump to-gether art from diverse cul-tures under the single head-ing of “non-western.”

Alan Atkinson, a former adjunct professor of art his-tory at OU, agrees this lump-ing together of art from di-verse backgrounds is a chal-lenge. He jokingly refers to Ahtone as “the curator of everything else,” since she’s responsible for essentially every collection that doesn’t fall under the purview of other curators.

To m a n a g e t h e h u g e breadth of material she’s charged to curate, Ahtone often calls on other scholars for help. This semester she worked with Atkinson on an installation of Asian art. Ahtone opened the vaults to Atkinson and he selected pieces he believed were rep-resentative of the collection and wrote the labels.

“One of the things about

museum work that Ahtone understands very well is that it is, in all respects, a collaborative sort of envi-ronment,” Atkinson said. “Ahtone is really good at working to see that all the people involved are pulling in the same direction.”

Securing artistic repre-sentation for a non-west-ern culture in a western set-ting is a complicated task, Atkinson said. Speaking from his experience with Asian art, he said there’s always the danger of dis-respecting it by presenting it as “exotic” compared to western art, which is viewed as “normal.”

The way around this pit-fall, Atkinson said is to treat all cultures with the same seriousness.

“She believes that all art deserves our respect, that it all has something to say to us about the human con-dition if we listen careful-ly,” Atkinson said. “And she works very hard to see to it that every object on dis-play gets a fair chance to be ‘heard.’”

Ahtone believes western criticism has a long way to go before Native American and non-western art are properly understood and given their deserved re-spect, but she continues to strive toward that goal. She says it’s important because art can enlarge people’s worldviews, and diversity plays a role in that.

“I think there’s a great value in looking at these different cultural materials and art to find a better place for us as human beings in the world,” Ahtone said. “And our responsibilities to it.”

Steven Zoeller steven.v.zoeller@ou.edu

AT A GLANCEAbout the James T. Bialac CollectionThe James T. Bialac Collection is possibly the most significant collection of contemporary native art on the continent. The collection, featuring over 5,000 objects and worth an estimated $7 million, is an ongoing gift from James T. Bialac, an Arizona lawyer who has spent over 50 years privately collecting art.

President David Boren acquired the collection for OU in 2010. At that time, it included roughly 2,600 paintings and works on paper, 1,000 kachinas —miniature figurines representing spirits — and 100 pieces of jewelry. According to Ahtone, the collection has grown by about 300 objects a year since its initial donation.

4 • Finals Week Edition, Fall 2014 NEWS

Soonersseekingsugar.Women turn to unconventional dating to offset living costs

“He’s a very open guy, very outgoing,” Howard said. “He likes to have fun. He’s nice and he treats me well.”

He also happens to be a 50-year-old millionaire.

Before Howard met her sugar daddy in person, they exchanged information online. Basic stuff — hobbies, favorite au-thors and how much he would pay her to go on dates. Upon meeting, they hit it off.

“We got along well when we met for the first time,” Howard said. “There was some sort of unspoken bond. I was attracted to him as a man, as well. I’m not just there for monetary purposes.”

Howard talks about her new relation-ship with a nonchalance that masked its subversive nature. Sugar dating may come naturally to her, but it challenges deeply held beliefs about how romantic relationships are supposed to work.

A sweet dealHoward’s sugar daddy lives in North

Texas, but his business often brings him to Oklahoma City and Edmond, Oklahoma. When he’s nearby, which is two or three times a week, he’ll take Howard out to a restaurant or the theater.

Howard described these outings as tra-ditional dates, the only difference being her payment. Every time they see each other, her sugar daddy will slip her be-tween two and three hundred dollars, usually in cash.

When Howard joined the sugar dating website Seeking Arrangement in October of this year, the promise of income was the big draw.

“I’m in my senior year, and I’m going to have loans,” Howard said. “Because of my major, I don’t have time to look for a job where I have steady hours.”

Howard pays out-of-state tuition. The OU admissions office estimates the tui-tion and fees for non-residents during the 2014-2015 year to amount to $22,049. For

in-state residents, the amount is estimat-ed to be $9,275. And that’s not counting textbooks or room and board.

Given the rising cost of college, it’s per-haps unsurprising college women ac-count for over 42 percent of all sugar ba-bies with Seeking Arrangement, accord-ing to a 2013 press release.

Brook Urick, a public relations man-ager for the company, said college women stand to gain a lot from courting sugar daddies, the majority of whom are wealthy entrepreneurs in their mid-40s.

“[Sugar daddies] have the qualities of someone who’s successful as an entre-preneur, someone who can help them

advance their career, a mature man, someone who is ambitious,” Urick said. “Sugar babies are also ambitious. The largest demographic is college students. Some of these girls are looking for men-tors and sponsors to help them finance their school.”

Howard says being a sugar baby is also about being pampered and feeling val-ued. This is a common desire, Urick said.

“Women want a man who can take care of them and want to be spoiled,” Urick said. “And there’s nothing wrong with wanting your day in the sun, wanting to be a princess. A lot of girls want it, but they’re just afraid to express that.”

In return, sugar daddies want “com-panionship and youthfulness” without any firm expectations of long-term com-mitment, Urick said.

Right now, Howard and her sugar daddy are just seeing each other casual-ly. They go out. Sometimes he takes her shopping. There’s an expectation of many sugar relationships that sex will enter the equation at some point, but Howard said that hasn’t happened yet.

“I don’t know what will happen in the future,” Howard said. “We’re good friends who like to have fun together sometimes … I’m not against [sex]. Like any relation-ship, when things start moving forward, that’s how things end up happening.”

Prostitution or honest dating?

Howard borrows a phrase from the Seeking Arrangement website to describe her arrangement. She calls it a “mutually beneficial relationship.”

However, because sugar dating can in-volve a transaction of money for romantic companionship, critics have used anoth-er term: prostitution.

“People think that I’m just like selling myself,” Howard said. “Which I’m not.”

Ac c o rd i ng to Andreana P r i c h a r d , a profess or of African histo-ry at OU, sugar dating differs

from sex work in that it’s a relationship sustained over time, whereas prostitution is characterized by “one-off” encounters.

For some people, it’s the transparent-ly transactional nature of sugar dating that really bothers them. But, according to Prichard, there has always been an ex-pectation of material exchange in roman-tic relationships.

“When women are asked out on dates, the first question that their friends say when they get back is, ‘Did he pay?’” Prichard said. “So from the very first con-tact that people have, a material exchange or an economic exchange is factored into that. All the way down to wedding rings.”

Prichard teaches the Honors course Sex and Love in Africa, which explores sexual and relational customs in African countries, including sugar dating.

Sugar dating is more common and less stigmatized in that part of the world than in the United States, said Prichard. Africans view sugar dating as distinct from prostitution. Prichard said this is be-cause there’s a greater consciousness in African coun-t r i e s o f t h e transactional nature of all relationships, from church ma r r i ag e to sugar dating.

“ T h e r e i s t r a n s a c t i o n involved in romantic relationships,” Prichard said. “And we, as Americans, I think, tend to believe or want to believe in this romantic notion that it’s just feelings. But that has never been true.”

Prichard believes society unfairly shames sugar babies for not engaging in more traditional relationships. When the topic of sugar dating at OU surfaces in her class, she notices students are very often quick to shame the girl and ask why she would want to do that.

“But for her to be a first-generation col-lege student who’s coming to OU and fac-ing a large amount of student loan debt, not wanting to put in 40 hours a week in a student job and wanting to be able to per-form well at OU,” Prichard said. “These are all circumstances that inform her decision.”

Howard’s roommates know about her arrangement, as do some of her friends. They’ve been supportive and even in-trigued by it. But to avoid predictable awkwardness, Howard has not told her family.

“They’re my parents,” Howard said. “They obviously wouldn’t want their little girl doing something like this. Online dat-ing, you know? It’s silly when you think about it.”

A new kind of relationship

Howard understands traditional re-lationships. Until recently, she was en-gaged to be married this summer. Being a sugar baby is a departure from what she’s used to, but she said the experience has, in some respects, been liberating.

“I don’t have to worry about texting someone every day or calling them every night or having to see them all the time,” Howard said. “Because that could get very stressful — feeling like you need to please the other person and their fami-ly. Traditional relationships can be very un-genuine sometimes, I feel.”

Sugar relationships are more open than

traditional relationships, Howard said, because the suitor knows ahead of time the terms of the relationship. The nature of the transaction is totally transparent.

This understanding doesn’t suck the fun out of a relationship or make it feel artificial, Howard said. In fact, Howard wishes more traditional relationships were as transparent. Howard thinks it re-lieves some of the anxiety of dating, and

it ensures everyone’s needs are met with-out prodding.

“Personally, I’ve never been one to ask for help,” Howard said. “So it’s very nice to be able to sit back and have someone help me without asking for it.”

Seeking Arrangement encourages this attitude. Urick said the growing popular-ity of sugar dating is the result of people feeling more free to choose the sorts of re-lationships they want.

“It’s not so wrong to come to the table with open and honest expectations and finding someone who can meet those,” Urick said.

However, the empowering aspects of sugar dating don’t negate the potential-ly harmful ones, Prichard said. Prichard views the popularity of sugar dating in Africa as indicative of gender inequali-ty, and that may also be true in the west, where men still control much of the wealth and are seen as providers.

Furthermore, Prichard said there’s the possibility of power being shared un-equally in relationships between a young, financially dependent person and an older, financially independent one.

“That’s one of the reasons we don’t allow dating between students and teach-ers or coaches and athletes,” Prichard said. “Because over the years, we’ve real-ized that these don’t make for the health-iest relationships because there’s not an equal power exchange.”

Prichard stopped short of calling this problem unavoidable, however. She noted this is a difficulty that can arise in many different relationships.

“Not every woman is naïve,” Prichard said. “And some know very well what they’re getting into and can handle these [relationships].”

Howard has only been a sugar baby for a month but she believes she has things under control. She said she might have become a sugar baby even if she was on solid financial footing. She’s that happy with her sugar daddy.

“I hit it good,” Howard said with a laugh. “I got lucky.”

STEVEN ZOELLERSPECIAL PROJECTS REPORTER

Months after breaking up with her fiancé of over a year, OU senior Brittany

Howard, 21, is seeing someone new. They met a few weeks ago at a Louie’s Bar & Grill in Moore.

Editor’s note: The name Brittany Howard used in this story is a pseudonym and not her real name. The Daily de-cided to allow the use of a pseudonym for Howard due to possible harassment from peers about her lifestyle choice.

Illustration by Dayton Clark/The Daily

‘‘ People think that I’m just like

selling myself, which I’m not.

‘‘Not every woman is naïve, and some know very well what they’re getting into and can handle these [relationships].

3,447sugar babies

21,738 196 144confirmed

OSU students

Numbers registered with Seeking Arrangement in Oklahoma

sugar daddies confirmed OU students

Source: Brook Urick/Seeking Arrangement

St. Thomas MoreUniversity Parish

and Student Center

Mass Schedule

- Christmas Eve -

- Christmas Day -

- New Years Day -

6pm Vigil Mass, 12 am Midnight Mass

11 am Mass

10 am Mass

Carols Begin at 11:30 pm

NEWS Finals Week Edition, Fall 2014 • 5

CAITLIN SCHACHTERNews Reporter

Editor’s Note: The Daily chose to feature Couch Restaurants because it was the on-campus establishment with the most violations up until Oct. 21. The Daily � led open records requests with the Cleveland County Health Department for detailed inspection reports for the restaurants from the last four and a half years.

Health inspectors reported seeing cockroach sightings, food kept at improper temperatures and

rodent droppings at Couch Restaurants until recently. Inspectors found no vio-lations during their most recent inspec-tion Oct. 30, according to Amy Buchanan, spokeswoman for Housing and Food and open records.

Previously, Couch Restaurants had been cited for 75 violations in 2014 alone, an increase from 7 total in 2012, according to health inspection records.

T h e i n s p e c t i o n re s u l t s c a p t u re d Housing and Food’s attention quickly, Buchanan said. She cites building main-tenance issues, reduced staffing and as changing roles for staffers as reasons for the increase in violations for Couch Restaurants.

“The number of violations recorded during 2014 are not acceptable to us,” Buchanan said. “It was a reminder that no matter what situations come up, we can-not lose focus of our core responsibilities.”

One of the recurring violations inspec-tors found were insects and rodents, ac-cording to health inspection records, with cockroaches being sighted throughout Couch Restaurants on Oct. 9 and Oct. 21. Exterminators from Terminix come to the restaurant once or twice a month to spray for insects and rodents, Buchanan said.

Buchanan said food preparation and serving guests is central to Housing and Food’s mission and the department wants to be as close to perfect as possible when carrying those out.

“Fixing these issues was a depart-ment-wide effort to maintain service in all of their operations. We were happy to see the results of this effort in the form of no violations during our last inspection at Couch Restaurants,” Buchanan said.

Student responsesJeremiah Stinnett, President of the

Housing Center Student Association and junior human relations major, said no res-idents of the general council have raised complaints about Couch Restaurants.

Freshman students had mixed feelings about eating at the restaurant despite the number of violations the restaurants ac-cumulated this year. After hearing that Couch Restaurants returned with no vio-lations on their last inspection, students still expressed mixed feelings.

Caroline Ellwood, University College freshman, said she will no longer eat at Couch Restaurants after hearing about the restaurant’s health violations.

“It is a little frightening to hear that be-cause we can never see where the food is made due to the fact it is out before we go into [Couch],” Ellwood said.

Ellwood said she gets dissatisfied with the food served at the restaurants. She eats at her sorority house twice a week, Ellwood said.

“If I am feeling adventurous I will go to [Couch] because it is either a hit or miss,” Ellwood said.

Johnny Fuchs, University College freshman, will continue to eat at Couch Restaurant because it is convenient for him since he lives in the residence halls.

“I don’t want to eat at Cane’s every day. I will also not stop going to [Couch] be-cause you have the option to eat whatever you want without having to keep paying since it’s buffet style,” Fuchs said.

Jessica Hammer, University College freshman, will continue to eat at Couch Restaurant and has faith that Housing and Food will resolve any lingering issues with the restaurant.

“I have faith that OU will do its best in keeping its students, faculty and guests’ food clean and healthy,” Hammer said.

Caitlin Schachtercaitlinschachter@yahoo.com

58 Total violations according to inspection reports

35 Priority violations, such as insects, rodents and food

kept at improper temperatures

15 Of the � rst 35 violations were priority foundation

violations, such as operators of an establishment not possessing a valid license to operate and cleanliness of hands

23 Core violations, such as prevention of food

contamination, proper use of utensils and cleanliness of premises such as sinks and toilets

Source: Kristina Milroy, an Environmental Health Supervisor for Cleveland and McClain County

BY THE NUMBERS Breakdown of Couch Restaurants violations

MORE INFOTraining TechniquesOU Housing and Food Services’ employees are taught the following food handling techniques in all of its dining operations :

Proper hygiene: Examples include hand washing and clean uniforms, according to Buchanan.

Correct food handling: Examples include using gloves, changing gloves between tasks, using different utensils for different foods, changing cutting boards between foods, and cooking, holding and serving food at correct temperatures.

ServSafe, a national food safety course: Housing and Food Services has ServSafe certi� ed almost 300 people total. 75 full-time employees are currently certi� ed.

All Housing and Food employees must have a county food handlers license.

Housing and Food conducts in-house health assessments to ensure quality. These assessments look at all facets of food safety. Housing and Food assesses Couch Restaurants on a monthly basis.

Source: OU Housing and Food Services

HEALTH

DINNER GUESTS?

Housing & Food works to correct health inspection issues showing insect sightings, improper prep

DINNER GUESTS?

Housing & Food works to correct health inspection issues showing insect sightings, improper prep

Housing Center Student Association and junior human relations major, said no res-idents of the general council have raised

Freshman students had mixed feelings about eating at the restaurant despite the number of violations the restaurants ac-cumulated this year. After hearing that Couch Restaurants returned with no vio-lations on their last inspection, students

food clean and healthy,” Hammer said.

Caitlin Schachtercaitlinschachter@yahoo.com

Examples

gloves between tasks, using different utensils for different foods, changing cutting boards between foods, and cooking, holding and serving food at

ServSafe, a national food safety Housing and Food Services

has ServSafe certi� ed almost 300 people total. 75 full-time employees

All Housing and Food employees must have a county food handlers license.

Housing and Food conducts in-house

quality. These assessments look at all facets of food safety. Housing and Food assesses Couch Restaurants

Source: OU Housing and Food Services

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6 • Finals Week Edition, Fall 2014

LIFE&ARTSOUDaily.com ››Let some tech tips help you through Finals Week with study apps.

Kelly Rogers, life & arts editordailyent@ou.edu • phone: 405-325-3666

oudaily.com/life&arts • Twitter: @OUDailyArts

Bailey Chambersbaychams92@aol.com

@baichambers

LIFE & ARTS COLUMNISTFinals week should really be called Freak

Week. It’s when every-one loses their cool and nobody judges anyone for it because they, too, are letting their freak flag fly higher than nor-mal. Finals are stress-ful, and everyone knows. However, not everyone shares the same brand of cray cray. Every student is still an individual, but there are still a few cat-egories that cover most of the stress. Which one are you?

PERSONALITY

Let your freak flag flyTHE FIREBALL

THE NIGHT THINKER

You’ve got everything under control … until it’s time for sleep. Your to-do list haunts your dreams when you finally drift off. Every few hours, you wake up to write little thoughts on a bedside notepad. Everyone keeps telling you that you look tired.

You are stressed and want everyone to know. You are on a mission and will destroy anyone who upsets your perfect balance of chaos and anger. You keep imagining physically assaulting your laptop, but you know that would leave you doomed. All of your friends keep suggesting you take up yoga.

THE STRESS-EATER

You are fully stocked up with snacks, which you al-ways have on hand. When you’re studying, you keep using food to distract you. You keep asking your friends to go eat with you so you can justify your impulses. When they decline for finals week reasons, you always say, “A person’s gotta eat, though.”

THE PERFECTIONIST

You spent the entire se-mester organizing your notes in order to study per-fectly for the final, and ev-eryone asks to borrow your notes. You were destined at birth to take these finals. You’re worried that you left something out, but you se-cretly know your score will trump everyone else’s. You will tell everyone on social media when you actually beat ev-eryone’s scores.

THE WINGER

Better than anyone, you know that C’s get degrees. A night spent doing whatev-er you please is way better than spending it studying. You’re confident that every-thing will be okay but then almost die of a heart attack only an hour before the exam. You realize that you don’t even have time to cram but then you get over it because hey, it worked out last semester, right? Everyone always asks you how you don’t have more studying to do.

There’s nothing like a warm bowl of mac and cheese to re-

mind you that comfort food exists. If you’re looking for edible comforts to numb the sting of finals, signature junk foods are just a short walk away in the Oklahoma Memorial Union, Couch Express or Cate Restaurants.

De-stress during finals by enjoying these tasy treats

and eats you can only find on campus:

Cookie supreme from Couch ExpressIf neither you nor the worker at Couch Express is aware

of what this is, this little treat is any two cookies slapped together with a dollop of icing. This treat is sure going to give you a sugar rush and keep you sane during the most stressful time of the year.

Specialty chocolate chip banana pancakes from Oliver’s in Cate Restaurants

Whether it is during an early morning study session or a quick stop during the evening between cram sessions, these pancakes are sure to bring a smile to you at any time of the day.

The perfect union from The Range in Union MarketThis delectable treat made of mascarpone and Nutella

on cinnamon raisin bread lives up to its name. If you are looking for something with the “perfect union” of flavors, this will satisfy your sweet tooth.

Poutine from The Range in Union MarketWhether you have heard of this before or not, this mix

of french fries, cheese cubes and brown gravy is the ideal snack for a student that is overly stressed from finals pressure.

Gouda mac and cheese bites from CrossroadsComfort yourself with these little puffs of joy. The mini

cheese bites are sure to brighten your stress-filled mind and treat your taste buds.

Classic sundae from CrossroadsNow this one might seem a little boring, but who could

deny a delicious sundae? The familiarity and sweetness of this snack will definitely ease the pain of the finals week beating.

Cort Fishercfisher368@hotmail.com

@cort_fisher

LIFE & ARTS COLUMNIST

CULINARY COMFORTS

FOOD

If only every college experience promised Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill. During Schmidt and Jenko’s newest assignment, they go undercover at a university to stop another drug ring. The incredibly meta script mocks college football, fraternities, art students, dorm life, the Jump Street series itself and sequels in general. The movie’s self-aware but some-how moving resolution proves that you’re never too old to learn, even if everyone notices that you’re way too wrinkled to be a college freshman.

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LIFE & ARTS Finals Week Edition, Fall 2014 • 7

Brynne Frauenhoffer brynnefrau@ou.edu

LIFE & ARTS COLUMNIST

FILM

Congratulate your-self on the end

of another semester by kicking back with these school-themed favorites.

cinematic celebration

Getting ready to graduate? Terrified of adulthood? Chris Farley’s best comedy will make you feel more optimistic about your chances in the real world. After his father’s untimely death, recent college grad and total idiot Tommy Jr. attempts to save his family’s auto parts company from bankruptcy. With the begrudging assistance of exasperated salesman Richard (David Spade), he embarks on a cross-country road trip rife with total failure and immature shenanigans, while two con artists (played by Rob Lowe and Bo Derek) try to bring down the company. As a bonus, if you’re feeling insecure about holiday weight gain, Farley’s iconic “fat guy in a little coat” bit should make you feel better about yourself.

tommy boy

Want to travel further down memory lane? Indulge in your middle school daydreams by cheering on one-time Spy Kid Alexa Vega as she tries to beat the pop-ular girls at a scavenger hunt in order to secure a spot at the cool lunch table. Though it’s implausible, sac-charine sweet and naïve about the kinds of mischief actual 14-year-olds get into, I still watch “Sleepover” once a year as a nod to my inner 14-year-old who’s still waiting for cool jock Steve to kiss her in the treehouse. In between rolling your eyes during the middle parts and choker necklaces, look out for plenty of future ce-lebrities playing small roles: fans of Firefly, American Horror Story and Glee, take notice!

sleepover

Admit it — you’re still waiting on your Hogwarts acceptance letter. Leave behind the worries of real school and assure yourself that even though finals week sucks, it’s better than facing off with the Dark Lord at the end of every spring semester. Pick your favorite film in the eight-part saga, or marathon them all while wearing your Gryffindor hat/scarf combo, knocking back butterbeer and arguing with your mom over who’s the better Dumbledore. (Richard Harris all the way!)

harry potter

No synopsis can adequately describe this complex parody of slasher flicks, sci-fi, high school drama and ’90s nostalgia. The basic plot involves a slasher-movie character called Cinderhella killing off the real-life stu-dents of Grizzly Lake High School, but there’s also an abundance of adolescent humiliation, time-travel and pop culture references. The cinematography evokes a music-video vibe, and the speedy story sets up stereo-typical characters, subverts them, then throws in aliens for good measure. In spite of Josh Hutcherson and Dane Cook’s starring roles, Detention never got a wide release, but don’t miss this gem on Netflix. It will make you both glad to be done with high school and a little bummed that yours wasn’t as weird as Grizzly Lake.

detention

22 jump street

university to release OU parking ticket records and ran a front-page editorial about it. The university had denied Stipek’s previous open records requests for the parking ticket records, claiming the records were protected under the Family Educational Rights and

Privacy Act, or FERPA.We felt this was a misuse of

FERPA and joined the lawsuit because we consider the records public information under the Oklahoma Open Records Act. President David Boren agreed and announced the records would be

released after our front-page editorial ran.“Freedom of Information laws a public atrocity”At the beginning of the semester, we provided a

rundown of recent Freedom of Information issues in Oklahoma to give students insight into the depth of freedom of information violations occurring across the state. We explained that Governor Mary Fallin complied with open records request to release emails — sort of.

Nearly two years ago the Oklahoma ACLU filed a lawsuit on behalf of The Lost Ogle, an Oklahoma City news and entertainment blog, requesting emails the governor had kept secret. After months of litigation and stalling, Fallin finally released the emails with mere days left before the court-ordered due date. The timing of the release seemed more like a piece of political strategy than compliance with a simple open records request.

We also addressed the fact the Cleveland County district attorney still will not release the surveillance video showing the July 25 altercation between OU running back Joe Mixon and fellow OU student Amelia Molitor. That was in August. The video has still not been released to the public; however, the case has been settled. The Daily has made previous open records requests for the video and will contin-ue to fight for open records on behalf of OU students.

Mental and physical health

Of our four editorial pillars, mental and physical health proved to be the most difficult to consistently cover. That

being said, below are two health topics we felt strongly about, and we will contin-

ue to improve our coverage of these issues moving forward.

“We encourage you to be a healthy zombie this undead week”

No one literally turned into a zombie during dead week. However, we offered OU students some tips for staying sane and healthy while studying for finals, including eating wholesome food, getting enough sleep and taking constructive breaks for your brain.

“Feel good, give blood and beat OSU”OU students participated in the annual Bedlam

Blood Drive in November, and we offered students who couldn’t give blood for health or other reasons

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THE JEANNINE RAINBOLT

WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE ALL OF OUR GRADUATING STUDENTS. WE WISH YOU THE BEST OF LUCK!

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION

Je annine Rainbolt College of Education

Kaitlyn Underwood, opinion editordailyopinion@ou.edu • phone: 405-325-3666

oudaily.com/opinion • Twitter: @OUDailyOpinionOPINION

8 • Finals Week Edition, Fall 2014

The Oklahoma Daily is a public forum, the University of Oklahoma’s independent student voice and an entirely student-run publication.

Letters should concentrate on issues, not personalities, and must be fewer than 250 words, typed and signed by the author(s). Letters will be edited for accuracy, space and style. Students must list their major and classification. To submit letters, email dailyopinion@ou.edu.

Our View is the voice of the Editorial Board, which consists of nine student editors. The board meets at 2:30 p.m. Sunday and at 12:30 and 4:30 p.m. Monday to Thursday in 160 Copeland Hall. Board meetings are open to the public.

Guest columns are accepted and printed at the editor’s discretion.

Columnists’ and cartoonists’ opinions are their own and not necessarily the views or opinions of The Oklahoma Daily Editorial Board.

To advertise in The Oklahoma Daily, contact advertising manager Jamison Short by calling 405-325-8964 or emailing dailyads@ou.edu.

One free copy of The Daily is available to members of the OU community. Additional copies may be purchased for 25 cents by contacting The Daily business office at 405-325-2522.

Blayklee Buchanan Editor in ChiefPaighten Harkins Digital Managing EditorMegan Deaton Print Managing EditorArianna Pickard Online EditorJoey Stipek Special Projects EditorKaitlyn Underwood Opinion Editor

Kelly Rogers Life & Arts EditorJoe Mussatto Sports EditorTony Ragle Visual EditorJamison Short Advertising ManagerJudy Gibbs Robinson Faculty Adviser

contact us 160 Copeland Hall, 860 Van Vleet OvalNorman, OK 73019-2052

phone:405-325-3666

email:dailynews@ou.edu

OUR VIEW

Look back on fall’s biggest issuesOur View: See how The Daily’s editorial board addressed its four editorial pillars over the fall semester.

As we wrap up the fall 2014 semester, we took some time to look back at the issues we’ve felt strongly enough to editorialize about. At the be-ginning of the semester we listed our four editorial pillars: safety, freedom of information, mental and physical health, and equality and diversity. We kept those four critical subjects in mind throughout the semester, and below is a review of editorials from this semester that address those topics. As always, The Daily’s editorial board is focused and commit-ted to bringing you important, relevant and timely information.

SafetyAmong all the safety-related issues

that arose this semester, here are sum-maries of three events we felt most

strongly about:

“OU should alert students about sexual assaults”We ran several editorials addressing the nation-

al issue of sexual assault on college campuses. Just last week we advocated for OUPD to develop a separate online database for reported assaults that Sooners could receive email updates from after an OU student reported a rape on campus on Nov. 7. President David Boren and OUPD announced the next day such a crime log will be created for the OU community.

“Students should take preventative measures to combat theft on campus”

In preparation for dead week, we spoke about theft on campus and urged OU students to keep their belongings secure on campus. We believe students should be aware of any suspicious activity and speak up to keep both their and other Sooners’ items safe on campus.

“Safety first: holiday precautions”Safety issues don’t always have to be stern and

serious. We made festive suggestions for OU stu-dents to have a safe and fun Halloween this se-mester, which included drinking in moderation and avoiding offensive costumes.

Freedom of informationFreedom of information issues are

near and dear to student journalists’ hearts, so we covered this topic in

depth over the fall semester. It was hard just to pick a few issues, but here are two

of the most important freedom of information issues The Daily’s editorial board addressed this semester:

“Why The Oklahoma Daily is joining a lawsuit against OU”

In November, The Daily joined a lawsuit filed by Daily staffer and OU student Joey Stipek suing the

a few ways to help the cause without the needles. Suggestions included donating financially to the Oklahoma Blood Institute, donating time by volun-teering at blood drives and educating friends about the benefits of donating blood. It seems Sooners took our advice to heart because OU defeated OSU for the first time ever in this year’s Bedlam Blood Battle.

Equality and diversity

The Daily had several opportu-nities to speak about equality and diversity this semester, the most im-

portant of which were victories for marriage equality in Oklahoma. Below

are two topics related to equality and diversity we covered this semester:

“Replacing the fashion industry’s definition of ‘nude’”

Issues pertaining to equality and diversity often prove to be the most controversial. The Daily expe-rienced that firsthand this semester after an edito-rial was picked up and discussed by Fox News and other websites. In the Sep. 8 editorial, we encour-aged readers to actively redefine the color “nude,” as it’s commonly limited to describe the pale color of Caucasian skin.

Our editorial explained how limiting nude-col-ored bras to one color shows how the fashion in-dustry and society at large has based its ideal of nude on Caucasian people. We then commended a lingerie company called Nubian Skin for designing nude-colored clothing in different shades.

We did not write that editorial to condemn the fashion industry, manufacturers, bras, or bra-wear-ers as intentionally racist. The purpose of our edito-rial was to shed light on one aspect of society — the definition of the color “nude” — that is built upon the assumption that light skin is the norm, and every other color is the exception.

However, the message in our editorial was distort-ed by various websites that reposted it with incorrect headlines and took our words to mean “bras are rac-ist,” a falsehood we have sought to address.

“Supreme Court’s lack of action is a win for marriage equality”

In October, the Supreme Court announced it would not consider any of five cases challenging state bans on gay marriage. Essentially, the Supreme Court chose not to review the cases and give its opinion on marriage equality, but it maintained the circuit court rulings in the cases, meaning couples of all sexual orientations can now marry in Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin and Indiana. We could not be happier equality has finally come to Oklahoma and we believe the Supreme Court should take a clear stance in support of marriage equality in the near future.

Comment online at OUDaily.com

1.

2.

3.

4.

Our View is the majority opinion of The Daily’s nine-member editorial board

OUDaily.com ››Review the top three most memorable moments of the football season online. SPORTS

Finals Week Edition, Fall 2014 • 9

Joe Mussatto, sports editorCarson Williams, assistant editor

dailysports@ou.edu • phone: 405-325-3666oudaily.com/sports • Twitter: @OUDailySports

Imagine a world in which every tweet is monitored, every Facebook post is examined and any content “deemed inappropriate” must be taken down.

For student athletes at Oklahoma and dozens of other universities, it’s the world they’re living in. Whereas traditional students are free of social media restrictions, Sooner student athletes sign a contract that outlines what

they can and cannot post.Among the things that are monitored accord-ing to the social networking policy obtained

by The Daily: Pictures depicting the use of alcohol, hazing, illegal behavior and pho-tographs that place the university “in a negative light.”

Jason Leonard, OU’s compliance exec-utive director, acknowledged athletes are

held to a higher standard because the in-stitution is often viewed through the athletics

program. “It’s our responsibility to make sure student-ath-

letes understand and follow those rules,” he said. “We do our best to educate our student athletes about the dangers and pitfalls of social networking.”

Frank LoMonte, executive director of the Student Press Law Center, has seen an uptick in social media monitoring for stu-dent-athletes in the last three to four years. He believes the trend began in 2010 when a University of North Carolina football player used social media to boast about getting gifts from an agent.

The NCAA subsequently launched an in-vestigation, and the school is still suffering from sanctions. In order to not let their ath-letes make a similar mistake, LoMonte es-timates that it’s more common than not for student-athletes in revenue sports to have their social media accounts monitored.

“The athletic departments are starting to feel like it’s their job to save these athletes from themselves,” LoMonte said. “To keep them from damaging their own image in a way that might make them less marketable by blurting out some offensive thing on Twitter that they later regret.

At Oklahoma, student-athletes are educated at the be-ginning of every fall semester on dos and don’ts of social media. But despite the university’s desire to keep its athletes clean of questionable posts, the contract might overstep its boundaries.

“The contract seems to rely on legally unsound circu-lar reasoning,” Adam Goldstein, attorney advocate for the Student Press Law Center, said. “That violating a ‘reason-able’ rule equates to a ‘material and substantial disruption of the educational process.’

“While there may be portions of this that are lawful, it certainly purports to reach speech that is protected by the First Amendment and infringes on the rights of athletes,” he

added. Joey Senat, an Oklahoma

State University professor in the School of Media and Strategic Communications, posed a ques-tion after looking through the document.

“So a student-athlete could be punished for criticizing the op-eration of the university, which is a government agency?” he asked.

The possible punishments are bolded in all capital letters in the social networking poli-cy. Loss of playing eligibility, loss of potential employment opportunities and the possi-bility of jeopardizing person-al safety are all included.

“If they’re actually threat-ening someone’s scholar-ship, housing or attendance in college, then they’re

triggering the first amendment,” LoMonte said. “They’re taking away intangible benefits for no other reason than the opinion the person expressed.”

But despite the restrictions, all athletes agree to sign the contract before they begin play. They’re aware of what they can and cannot do.

Lauren Chamberlain, a senior softball player, said that she knows the university views everything she posts on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Despite being careful, Chamberlain has been asked to take down posts a few times.

“One of them was from a couple years back when a curse word was used,” she said. “The other two happened when I was spreading the word about a fundraiser and it was por-trayed as me advertising a company.”

Sooner sophomore cornerback Zack Sanchez took to Twitter to express his frustration over social media restrictions.

“Lol I guess freedom of speech or expression is for every-body else but athletes…” he tweeted Oct. 23.

Traditional students have sole authority of managing their social networking sites — student-athletes do not. It’s a different world, but some athletes like senior tennis player

Abbi Melrose don’t seem to mind. “I know members of compliance monitor

our social media sites, but that is purely for the protection of the student-athletes and acts entirely in their best interests,” she said in an email.

LoMonte disagrees with the sentiment. “The idea that you have to regulate and

punish a person’s speech in order to save them from their own mistakes is a really weak constitutional justification,” he said. “The government doesn’t exist to save you from yourself.”

Because there are hundreds of student-athletes to monitor, the OU compliance office can’t do it all.

The university has a contract with Varsity Monitor — a company creat-ed to help schools manage their stu-dent-athletes’ social media activity, ac-cording to the company’s website.

The compliance office uses the company’s software to identify “key words” it’s looking for in a post, Leonard said. The company charges per student, and Leonard said the university pays for every football, baseball, men’s basketball and women’s basketball player to be monitored.

“They are more in the public eye than our other sports,” Leonard said. “We also monitor our other student-athletes, but not necessarily through Varsity Monitor because of costs.”

Despite the possible First Amendment infringements, dif-ferent states have different laws, and Leonard said his office is aware of what they can do in Oklahoma.

Even with Varsity Monitor and a full-time staffer whose primary job is to sift through social media accounts, the compliance office realizes it can’t catch everything.

But in a time when nothing goes unnoticed, the office is confident that their student-athletes will make the right de-cisions based off the training they receive.

“Their Twitter is like a 140-character press conference,” Leonard said. “Everyone in the world is out there to see it.”

Each time a student-athlete takes the field sporting the school’s colors and slogan, they’re a visible representa-tive of that university. Until the same student-athletes start pushing back against the binding social media policies, no change will be initiated, LoMonte said.

Restraining student-athletes’ freedom of speech is con-stitutionally questionable, but the topic hasn’t been legally answered because athletes haven’t taken the case through the court system.

No player is going to want to fight his or her coach or athletic director while still on the team.

“Some athlete is going to have to suffer the ultimate punishment and be kicked out of school,” LoMonte said. “Once he is kicked out of school, he’ll have nothing to lose anymore.”

SOCIAL MEDIA

Student athletes face heavy restrictions on the web, dictating what they can and cannot post

JOE MUSSATTO | SPORTS EDITOR | @JOE_MUSSATTO

Lol I guess freedom of speech or

expression is for everybody else but

athletes…” (Tweeted Oct. 23.)

ZACK SANCHEZ, SOPHOMORE CORNERBACK

‘‘

LOCKDOWN

1111

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CLASSIFIEDS

Instructions:Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9. That means that no number is repeated in any row, column or box.

Previous Solution

Monday- Very EasyTuesday-EasyWednesday- EasyThursday- MediumFriday - Hard

ACROSS 1 “Over the

hill” in the military

5 Iron hooks used for fishing

10 Vividly colored aquarium fish

14 “Give that ___ cigar!”

15 Gown part 16 “Clair

de ___” (Debussy)

17 Knuckleball catcher

18 BP merger mate

19 Erupter of 1971

20 “None of the above”

22 Affecting human infants

24 Anti-ship missile

27 Indian prince

28 Cutting tool was backward?

30 Sticking place

31 2000 Summer Olympics city

34 The Roaring Twenties, for one

35 Former NYC mayor Ed

36 Musical sign 37 Participate in

a democracy 39 “Deal”

partner

42 Racer Ricky 43 Touch up,

as text 45 And others

(Abbr.) 47 Part of E.A.P. 48 Crack inves-

tigators? 50 Guitar

relative 51 It makes

its point 52 Like many

samples 53 Become

extinct 55 Sebring

maker, once 58 Clear plastic

wrap 61 Roller-

coaster thrill 62 “J’accuse!”

author Zola 65 1996

campaign name

66 Has no life 67 Type of war 68 Space-going

chimp 69 Teachers’

favorites 70 Forest flora 71 “Don’t

expunge that!”

DOWN 1 Pistol pellets 2 Remain

in line 3 1954 Oscar-

winner 4 Rubber tree

sap 5 Federal

procurement org.

6 Machine used daily

7 Feature of many automobiles

8 It’s behind the mask

9 Animal tracks

10 Poisonous evergreen shrub

11 Hiding one’s true feelings

12 “___ Karenina”

13 Make better 21 ___ of

Gibraltar 23 Thumbs-

down votes 25 Shortest-

distance flier?

26 To ___ his own

28 Dice-roller’s winner or loser

29 Cooking evidence

32 Fund

33 Swiss song 38 Renders

unreadable, as data

40 Fancy holder for needles

41 After the deadline

44 Female rabbits

46 Durocher and the Lion

49 Make a pick 54 Grows dim 55 Movie

preview 56 Water-

transporting tube

57 Arabian VIP 59 Ingredient

in some lotions

60 Bird’s abode 63 Utter a fib 64 Chi-town

trains

Universal CrosswordEdited by Timothy E. Parker December 8, 2014

PREVIOUS PUZZLE ANSWER

© 2014 Universal Uclickwww.upuzzles.com

NOT BACK YET By Janice K. Klute12/8

12/7

PREVIOUS PUZZLE ANSWER

© 2014 Universal Uclickwww.upuzzles.com

12/5

HOROSCOPE By Eugenia Last

Copyright 2014, Newspaper Enterprise Assn.

MONDAY, December 8, 2014

Change can be a good thing if you are adaptable. The growth you will experience this year should be embraced and allowed to unfold naturally. Welcome whatever comes your way and be open to the opportunities that adversity can offer. Take control and make things happen.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) -- Look for a challenge that stimulates your senses and motivates you to do your best. Regardless of what path you take, patience and hard work will be required.

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) -- Ask pertinent questions, or someone will offer you a false impression. Choose a reliable friend or relative to give you an honest assessment of your current situation.

ARIES (March 21-April 19) -- Donʼt be a pushover. Stick to your plan and donʼt let anyone talk you out of doing something you have your heart set on. Missed opportunities will lead to regrets.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) -- An increase in professional commitments will keep you busier than usual. Undue stress will cause minor health problems. Itʼs OK to ask for help if you feel overwhelmed or if you fall behind.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) -- Dealing with relatives may try your patience. Pick your battles. If you turn a minor disagreement into a major confrontation, everyone will be upset and no one will come out a winner.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) -- Try not to get too frazzled about the changes going on around you. Jumping to conclusions before all the facts are in will add to your distress.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) -- If you are feeling pressured by someone, cozy up to fun, optimistic friends. Avoid sharing your disappointments with others, and keep your focus positive.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) -- Your patience will be tested. Your peers may feel that they have all the answers. Get your point across without alienating the people you deal with daily if you want to avoid repercussions.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) -- Youʼll receive mixed signals from a colleague today. If you are not sure what is expected of you, ask. Speculation on your part will only add to the confusion.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) -- Today is about making money and getting ahead. Take control of your situation. Attend business courses, go for interviews and fi nd a market for your ideas and skills.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) -- Slow down and make critical decisions based on facts. Think matters through and ferret out information that can help you make a wise choice. Itʼs better to be safe than sorry.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) -- Donʼt jeopardize your reputation. Stay away from anyone whose ethics or morals are in question. Others will judge you by the company you keep. Choose your friends wisely.

10 • Finals Week Edition, Fall 2014 SPORTS

Transfer adopts OU traditionTaShawn Thomas leaves Houston to become Oklahoma team leaderJOHN WALKERSports Reporter

Throughout his coaching career, coach Lon Kruger has val-ued patience as a key virtue, and it has been a component to Oklahoma basketball’s rise to prominence. This season, the coach inherited a player who shares the same principle.

TaShawn Thomas began his college career at Houston. The Killeen, Texas, native averaged over 14 points and eight rebounds per game in his three-year career as a member of the Cougars. During his final year in Houston, Thomas led the Cougars in points, rebounds, blocks and field goal percentage.

In April, Thomas was granted release from Houston after the program underwent a coaching change. The release was made with the stipulation that Thomas could not transfer to another school in the state of Texas, moving him out of his hometown and away from his family.

Regardless of the release’s conditions, Thomas had to make a decision on his next destination, and Oklahoma contacted him early in the process.

“Once he got his release, he was a huge priority to us,” Kruger said.

Patience and persistence paid off as Thomas committed to spend his final year in Norman. In May, he was formally intro-duced as a member of the Oklahoma basketball team.

“He was hopeful of an earlier answer but he stayed patient,” Kruger said.

For Thomas, one of the more alluring factors when making the decision to come to OU was the longstanding tradition, both in athletics and as a university.

“When I first think of OU I think of the tradition,” Thomas said. “I love that it is a pure college town.”

But while the benefits of the campus’ minimal traffic and own collegiately certified federal credit union were enticing factors for Thomas, getting acclimated to life on campus was more of a process.

“When I first started going out, people were like, ‘Who are you?’ ‘Do you play football or basketball?’” Thomas said. “I would just introduce myself as ‘the transfer from Houston.’ ‘That’s all I kept saying.”

While he attempted to re-establish his prominence and continue to build relationships in Norman, the senior also endured the lingering effects of his critical transfer decision.

Thomas and the team waited around six months for a deci-sion by the NCAA on the senior’s eligibility status. The uncer-tainty weighed heavy on Thomas as his practices ranged from playing with the first team to the scout team without know-ing his fate. The possibility of sitting out the entire season had crossed his mind.

“It was hard, but my teammates always helped keeping me positive,” Thomas said. “My family was helping me out and keeping my head on.”

Despite his wavering playing status and the stress coupled with it, Thomas still made it a priority to make an immediate impact in practice. Thomas knew that his teammates needed to see his ability before they believed the hype.

“They had to see me play,” he said. “When we played open gym, that’s when I got everyone’s attention.”

He credits Kruger for providing an atmosphere that allowed

BASKETBALL

CHRISTOPHER MICHIE / THE DAILY

Senior forward TaShawn Thomas presses a Lion defender during the Nov. 16 home opener against Southeastern Louisiana at the Lloyd Noble Center. The Sooners defeated the Lions 78-53.

an easy transition onto the team. During the offseason, Thomas created a bond with his teammates and coaches in which the newcomer now refers to them as family.

“He’s one of my brothers,” sophomore guard Frank Booker said. “I love being around him.”

As the start of the basketball season approached, it wasn’t long before the man known as “the transfer from Houston” became a fan favorite. Fans and media outlets alike pushed the #GetTaeCleared hashtag on social media.

On the night prior to the Sooners’ season opener against Southeast Louisiana, Thomas received a call from his coach.

“[Coach Kruger] called me and was like, ‘I hope you’re going to get a good night sleep,’” Thomas said, recalling the 9 p.m. phone call. “I said, ‘For what?’ and he said, ‘You got cleared.’”

Thomas received a waiver from the NCAA to allow him to play for the 2014-15 season and he promptly donned the crimson and cream uniform the following afternoon.

While Thomas is playing his first year at OU, the 6-foot 8 -inch forward has already established himself as one of the leaders on the team.

“When he comes out of the game, he talks about what we can do better, what needs to be done,” Booker said. “He definitely gives us a veteran type of feel to the game.”

Time will tell if Thomas will be the final piece of the puz-zle in OU’s quest to make a run in the final days of March. But for now, he looks to make the most of his year-long opportunity by playing as a two-way forward in the post, providing the veteran leadership and graduating on time at Oklahoma with a degree in administrative leadership.

“Getting a degree from this school would be a big honor and make my family happy,” Thomas said. “I’ll be a part of this school for the rest of my life.”

John Walker john.t.walker-1@ou.edu

4.25"

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small step no. 34

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SPORTS Finals Week Edition, Fall 2014 • 11

QUARTERBACK: C+Okay, so maybe all that hype surrounding Trevor

Knight at the beginning of the season was too much. People may have put too much into one big win against Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. Knight performed adequately through the team’s first four games but began to regress during the TCU game and never re-ally got things going again (with the exception of his performance in the loss to Kansas State). Then the in-jury against Baylor knocked him out for the final three games. Cody Thomas didn’t exactly get to play in the best weather scenarios but did see improvements from each start. Oklahoma will have an interesting storyline at quarterback in the spring.

RUNNING BACKS: ANot many people predicted the running game to per-

form the way it did this year. Keith Ford was the No. 1 back and played like it for the first three games, until he was sidelined for six weeks with a fractured foot. In that time span, freshman Samaje Perine — the No. 4 guy on the depth chart during the summer — emerged as the leader of the offense with his breakout perfor-mance against West Virginia and his record setting per-formance against Kansas, notching an FBS record 427 rushing yards. Since then, it’s been all Perine, and de-servedly so. The Sooners have a special player at run-ning back. Don’t be surprised if he is a Heisman Trophy candidate for years to come.

WIDE RECEIVERS: BThe receiving group was the most interesting posi-

tion coming into the season due to the fact that outside of Sterling Shepard and Durron Neal, no one had seen any significant playing time. Shepard exceeded expec-tations for the first half of the season, until suffering a groin injury on the first play of the Iowa State game that has lingered with him ever since. The passing game has suffered because of it and because of Knight’s in-jury as well. But in Shepard’s absence, younger guys have had the opportunity to gain valuable Big 12 expe-rience that will assuredly carry over next season.

OFFENSIVE LINE: B+This group has been largely overshadowed by the

incredible season Perine has had, but if it weren’t for the big guys up front, that wouldn’t even be a discus-sion. The offensive line has only allowed six sacks all year, which leads the nation. So often this season, the offensive line provided holes for the running backs and they were rewarded for it, even if not nationally, but internally. Oftentimes this year, the offensive line was being compared to those in the NFL in terms of size. The unit will lose three starters, but younger play-ers will step in just fine as has been the case in previous years.

DEFENSIVE LINE: AThe defensive front has been a good barometer for

OU’s defensive performance this season. When they have been able to put pressure on the opposing quar-terback, the results have been positive for the crim-son and cream. But in games like their blowout loss to Baylor, the other team’s signal caller had plenty of time to find an open receiver. Much of the blame has landed on defensive coordinator Mike Stoops and his shift away from the aggressive play-calling that worked so well for the Sooners earlier in the year. Sophomore tackle Jordan Phillips has been one of OU’s most con-sistent players this season and has seen his potential NFL draft stock rise considerably. Oklahoma was sec-ond in the Big 12 in rushing defense heading into the game against Oklahoma State.

SPECIAL TEAMS: C+Special teams were a distinct advantage for OU to

start the season. Sophomore Alex Ross had key kick returns for touchdowns against West Virginia and Texas, and senior kicker Michael Hunnicutt was as re-liable as they come. Hunnicutt has since had a night-mare game in the loss to Kansas State, and teams have found different ways to avoid putting the ball in Ross’ hands. Combine that with injuries that kept junior wide receiver Sterling Shepard from ever developing a rhythm in the punt return game, and any advantage the Sooners had on special teams has effectively been neutralized. The potential for big plays is still there, but they have been unable to produce down the stretch.

FOOTBALL

GRADES

ARE INDILLION HOLLINGSWORTH

SPORTS REPORTERJACKIE EBY/THE DAILY

OU’s offensive team runs the ball during OU’s home game against OSU Saturday.

See how the Sooners stacked up this fall

See the full report card online at OUDaily.com

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