Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2024
Volume 121, Issue 13
VISTA The
Thunder Page 6
“OUR WORDS, YOUR VOICE.”
Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022
Volume 119, Issue 19
Protestors to disrupt Stitt’s State of the State address
Governor Kevin Stitt waves to state legislators from a stand. The address is set to begin in the morning on Feb. 5. (ALONZO ADAMS/ASSOCIATED PRESS).
Sam Royka Editor-in-Chief
During a nationwide wave of youth activism reminiscent of Vietnam War-era campus protests, Oklahomans Against Occupation (OAO) plans to disrupt Gov. Kevin Stitt’s State of the State address, calling for peace and a ceasefire at the Capitol beginning 8:30 a.m. on Feb. 5. Demands include justice in Gaza, open conversation, and a plea not to be ignored. Peacefully protesting within legal rights, “we’ll be outside the gallery, chanting, marching. And then after that, we plan on hopefully being
able to talk to our senators, the state treasurer and even the Governor, if they allow us to do so,” said Yasmin Abueisheh, OAO’s vice chair of organizing, a high school activist. For students and college employees alike, universities across the United States are experiencing tension and protests. Supporting causes like the climate crisis, equality, and human rights, youth activism is at the forefront. During the beginning of her high school activist career, Abueisheh said, “being a minor did not mean that I was any less capable of doing what’s right and advocating for what’s right.” Inner strength, combined with power in num-
bers, is a compelling facet showing the power of youth activism. “Listen to Palestinian youth. They’re the voice of the movement,” she said. Activism is not easy, as shown by something called organizer fatigue, aptly described in the title of a 2022 article by The Nation, “As the World Burns, Organizers Are Burning Out .”After a worldwide pandemic, climate refugees, and a wave of protests against police brutality, organizers could be feeling tired. However, Abueisheh had a message of hope. “Don’t let people tell you that what we’re doing doesn’t work,” she said.
Continued on Page 4
Changes made by Oklahoma lawmakers put emphasis on education Jake Ramsey Managing Editor
Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters is currently facing criticism after appointing prominent social media figure Chaya Raichik to the Oklahoma library advisory committee on Jan. 23, shortly after an Executive Order signed by Governor Kevin Stitt seeks to limit DEI offices across higher education institutions. Raichik is the owner of popular right-wing social media account ‘Libs of Tik Tok,’ where she posts about an array of topics ranging from race and gender in schools to promotions of various Conservative political figures. “Chaya is on the front lines showing the world exactly what the radical left is all about,” said Wal-
ters in a recent press release. Despite Walters’ optimism towards Raichik joining the library advisory committee, many others in the Oklahoma government were not fans of the decision. “She’s no particular authority over anything, she’s a real estate agent,” said UCO professor of political science Loren Gatch. “She just happens to be running ‘Libs of Tik Tok.’” “Ryan Walters is a very performative oriented guy,” said Gatch in reference to the possible reasoning behind Walters recent decision to appoint Raichik who has no experience in education. “He’s kind of an ideological showboater,” said Gatch. After facing criticism for his decision, Walters posted a video to X, formerly known as Twitter, saying,
“We are going to continue to expose this agenda of the radical left.” While Raichik doesn’t have experience in education, she did take to X last year with an edited video that was critical of a librarian within the Tulsa Public School system. This video would ultimately lead to a string of bomb threats to the school district. Raichik’s role on the library advisory committee includes making recommendations and decisions on materials that will be offered in Oklahoma school libraries. The decision by Walters to appoint Raichik comes shortly after an Executive Order signed by Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt with the intention of eliminating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion offices on college campuses. After Stitt signed off on the order
in December, Oklahoma joined Texas and Florida in their attempts to limit DEI offices in higher education. Stitt seeks to “defund discrimination” with his new program. This order will also not allow state resources to be allocated to DEI efforts on campuses. “We’ll get a better understanding moving forward,” said UCO President Todd Lamb when discussing the reallocation of resources for DEI offices. “The deadline to comply is May, so in some respects that’s a short order. In some respects we have a lot of time.” Lamb went on to discuss the process of working with other institutions in Oklahoma, as well as working with those at UCO to navigate a path forward.
Lamb looks ahead: plans stability and ‘movement’ for UCO Jake Ramsey Managing Editor
As he starts his second semester at UCO, President Todd Lamb plans to promote campus involvement, student enrollment and PhD programs at UCO. “I love people,” said Lamb, when discussing his interactions with UCO students. “I like to hear their background and a little bit of their bios.” Lamb went on to discuss the plans for the Spring semester, which included keeping students on campus, financial stability and boosting our enrollment numbers, which, as a university, has seen an increase from Spring 2023 going into the Spring 2024 semester. “The charge I have from the regents remains the same,” said Lamb. “Financial stability, liability and sustainability on campus and morale.” “Those are all separate, but intertwined,” said Lamb. Enrollment on campus has been an issue for the past several years, but for the Spring 2024 semester UCO saw a boost of 0.5% for the
entirety of the university. While the university is up as a whole, the enrollment numbers for several colleges are still down. Particularly in the College of Liberal Arts, which is still down 1.8% in comparison to the Spring of 2023. “All of us are responsible for recruiting, for admissions, for retention,” said Lamb in reference to his cabinet and how officials at the university can work together to improve the numbers further. “Our challenge is for that retention,” said Lamb. “That’s just ongoing.” Lamb goes on to discuss how UCO can keep the retention with things such as creating a safe-campus, meeting students where they are, ensuring that UCO is accessible and affordable and making sure that there’s a good environment for students to grow. The 2023 Fall semester also saw the introduction of a PhD program within the forensic science department that would allow students to get their undergraduate, masters and PhD all at UCO. Lamb’s goal is to continue that trend for other
UCO President Todd Lamb speaks with Vista editors. (JAYDON SIMS/THE VISTA)
departments on campus. “I think that’s the momentum and the movement of UCO,” said Lamb. He went on to discuss the history of UCO, how the campus is the third largest in the state and how UCO is the only school in the metropolitan area. Lamb said that
with these monikers, once UCO has a PhD program in any discipline, it will begin to pop up in other disciplines. “That’s just a part of the conversation, and the long-term vision and goals of the University of Central Oklahoma.”