President Paul Sechrist

OCCC’s President’s Leadership Class will continue this fall for the fifth time, even with the upcoming presidential change, said the class’s Instructor of Record and Student Life Director Erin Logan.

The class, taught by OCCC President Paul Sechrist and Vice President for Enrollment and Student Services Marion Paden, gives students a unique opportunity to learn about leadership from other community leaders, Logan said.

“The purpose of the President’s Leadership Class is to allow a group of students the opportunity to learn leadership from not just the college leadership, but from a leadership perspective as a whole,” she said.

“They learn transferable leadership skills that allow them to be a leader in any capacity of their life … ,” she said. “They’re learning skills they can [use].

Do you have a voice like Elvis Presley? Are you pretty good with a set of drumsticks? Have you ever wanted to show a crowd how talented you are?

Here’s your chance — if you are also an OCCC student, faculty member, or alumni.

The Future Alumni Network is looking for people who have flair to perform in the second annual OCCC’s Got Talent, a scholarship fundraiser that showcases the many talents of the OCCC community, said Lisa Lasater, FAN club president

“We as students raise money from the talent show which in return goes towards scholarships at OCCC that any student can apply for,” Lasater said in an e-mail.

If you catch the scent of chili drifting around the commons area outside the Communications Lab around 11 a.m. Wednesday, March 11, you’re getting a whiff of the Chili Cook-Off and Bake Sale, a fundraiser created by the Faculty Association Scholarship Committee.

Chili and hot dogs will be available beginning at 11 a.m. and will continue to be sold until the chili runs out, said Ann Raia, librarian and co-chair of the scholarship committee.

In addition, students and faculty will have the opportunity to bid on items from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.  during a silent auction

Baked goods also will be available for purchase outside the Communications Lab.

OCCC Professor Jeremy Fineman, 38, graduated from East Carolina University in 2011 with a master’s degree in ceramics.

Now, he said, he is paying off a large amount of student loan debt.

“I have a bunch of student loans from graduate school which are accumulated to a large sum of money right now,” he said. “I’m in the midst of paying them off.

“I think it’s somewhere in the vicinity of a 30-year plan.”

On average, two-year public college students accrue $9,962 in federal student loan debt, according to the U.S. Department of Education.

Those loans carry a 3.9 percent interest rate, meaning the total cost of repaying the loan can be anywhere from $12,047 to $16,161.

Angela Leal, Financial Aid assistant director, said the average balance can take 10 years to pay off for those only able to make the minimum monthly payment. Roughly one-third of OCCC students have student loans, she said.

Leal said students need to be wise about borrowing money that has to be repaid.

“If the student chooses the loan or has to take the loan, I recommend just taking the amount that they need,” she said.

When Oklahoma legislators welcomed college students from across the state to the Capitol on Feb. 10 for Higher Ed Day, OCCC students were prepared.

Political Science Professor Nate Vanden Brook said 15 to 20 students — about half the number of students registered to travel to the Capitol — attended informational seminars prior to that day.

In those sessions, students discussed talking points with which to approach their representatives and methods for communicating their concerns.

Firearms on campus and education funding were expected popular topics, Vanden Brook said.

OCCC is on its way to reducing its energy use by 20 percent by the year 2020 — a requirement for all state facilities under Senate Bill 1096, said Energy Manager Bob Lally.

Lally said, so far, OCCC’s total savings in the current fiscal year, compared to FY 2011-’12,  is 13 percent — far above the expected 7.5 percent.

“Our November bill was the first bill that would reflect what we have done and already, we’re showing considerable savings.

“Compared to last year’s numbers — November and December last year to November and December this year — we have saved around $90,000,” he said.