Lawton Public Schools Recognized

OICA intern and journalism senior Lara Saavedra
Photo by: Motahareh Hajimirzaei

Click here to watch SoundSlides on Saavedra's experience with the program.

The Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy recognized the Lawton Public School system for it's initiative in combating childhood obesity and promoting health and wellness.

The Advocacy group visited 10 Lawton schools in order to applaud the Lawton Fit Kids program.

Lawton Fit Kids is part of the Lawton Public Schools Wellness Project. The program integrates healthy eating and physical activity as core values for the school system, Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy intern, Lara Saavedra said.

As part of the program, students are offered a variety of dining options, including healthy choices. Fryers have also been removed from all of the elementary school's kitchens. View a complete list of the programs initiatives and changes here.

Funding for the program comes mainly from grant money and donations, Saavedra said.

"When a child isn't healthy they don't learn," Saavedra said. "Children are growing entities, growing beings, you have to feed the the right thing for them to do well."

According to The National Survey of Children's Health, the percent of children who were overweight in 2007 is 15.4 percent. Governor Brad Henry recently addressed concerns regarding the obesity rate on his website. View the Governor's statement here.

To learn more about The Lawton Fit Kids program, or to donate to the cause, visit www.lawtonfitkids.org.

World Music Featured on Campus

OU students interested in music from across the globe now have the opportunity to experience it live.

The Masala Music Series is hosted by the OU School of Music, and allows fans a first hand glimpse of international music and cultural traditions. Masala is an Indian word that translates into "a mixture of spices."

"The idea that you can experience the live music is very different from reading about it, or watching a video," associate professor Paula Conlon said. "It makes the whole culture come alive and the students can watch someone doing this music, that is actually creating this sound."

The Music Series is a tradition that began in the mid nineteen nineties.

This month's concert featured artist Valerie Naranjor, showcasing world percussion. Naranjor specializes in West African keyboard music. The artist currently plays for the Saturday Night Live band, but has previously performed in the Broadway production of The Lion King.

For more information of future performances, visit the OU School of Music webpage.

Click below to view excerpts from my interview with Professor Conlon and a clip from a previous Masala concert featuring Kuniyasu and Chieko Iwazaki from Japan.

March Storm Madness

March might seem a little early for storm chasers to begin their hunt, but that is exactly what some OU students were up to yesterday afternoon.

While most students wait for a clear spring day to skip classes, students at the National Weather Center look forward to bailing during potentially severe weather like today.

Meteorology students loaded up their gear and headed south-west to begin their search for severe weather.

Students weren't the only ones taking advantage of the approaching storm, the Noah XP radar truck also tackled the storm.

"One of the new radar trucks they are building, the Noah XP, it did go to Hurricane Ike, but they have recently done some modifications to it," meteorology senior Sean Waugh said. "You know, kind of fixed some bugs they found during the hurricane. So they are going to try, hopefully, and take it out today and collect some data, make sure everything is working, get some training on it and see how it works."

According to the Storm Prediction Center, some area residents experienced severe weather yesterday, but residents can expect much milder weather today.

Parking and Transit

Parking is always a big issue on campus. Last year, parking and transit services issued more than 61,000 tickets to drivers.

Now, parking officials say drivers parking illegally in handicapped spaces is becoming a high profile issue.

Cars illegally parked in these spaces are towed rather than ticketed with the infamous yellow envelope.

However, parking officials do provide alternatives for drivers. One hundred and forty reserved parking spots are available in the Elm and Asp Avenue garages.

The spaces are sold for $889 per year and provide drivers with guaranteed parking from 6 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.

"The reserved parking has been a demand for so many years," Kristapher Glenn, parking and transit marketing and PR specialist said. "You know, anytime you get a large entity where parking, it's not limited and you don't compete for it, but maybe it's not in the close proximity that you would want. So this is a guaranteed spot in close proximity. It did arise out of demand, and it's a premium product at a premium price."

While the Elm Avenue Garage is at total capacity, drivers are still able to purchase permits for the more centrally located Asp Avenue garage.

U.S. Senate addresses federal Highway Trust Fund Solvency

The federal economic stimulus package will provide up to $79.7 million for Oklahoma bridge and highway projects.

The money will help fuel the Oklahoma Department of Transportation's eight-year construction work plan. A plan that proposes to close $4 billion worth of priority projects out of Oklahoma's $12 billion dollar backlog, according to ODOT spokesperson Terry Angier.

"Over the years, Oklahoma became the number one in the nation for putting less transportation funds in the infrastructure than any other state in the nation," Angier said. "The funding can't reverse overnight. It's a very big number, and it's a very embarrassing number. But it's in direct correlation to the fact that we spent very little money on transportation until recently."

The eight-year plan was made possible by funding hikes approved by the Oklahoma State Legislature in October of 2008. Projects include over 449 bridge replacements and $2.1 billion in major improvements to high volume highways.

The extra money provided will push ahead projects that can be prepared and ready to go in under 60 days. By pushing ahead these projects, opportunities for improvements in roadwork in the Norman city area will become a possibility.

Students set to crawl through Campus Corner

The Jägermeister Pub Crawl is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 7 from 9:30 p.m. until the bars close on Sunday, Feb. 8 on Campus Corner.

Students attending the crawl can take advantage of the Jägermeister drink specials at Louie's Too, O'Connell's, Logan's and Seven47. The evening will kick off at Louie's Too with specials of Jäger shots for $2.50 and bombs for $5.50, according to the event's Web site.

History of science and philosophy senior Sean Benton says that he would attend even though he doesn't even like Jägermeister.

"It's an inexpensive way to make oneself inebriated," Benton said. "I probably wouldn't want to go, because I don't like crowds, but the price would be the one convincing factor that would make me want to go."

The pub crawl is a promotional event for the second annual Norman Music Festival on Saturday, April 25. The festival is open to the public, and of no charge. Jägermeister will help present the festival and provide the Jägermeister Mobile Stage, one of six stages that will host artists in downtown Norman.

Students are welcome to join the crawl at any of the four stops. A complete schedule of events, including drink specials, can be found at the Jägermeister Pub Crawl event page on Facebook.com.

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It's the future.