In a unanimous vote Oct. 29, OCCC President Paul Sechrist was elected Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the College Board, a national education advocacy organization, said College Board President Gaston Caperton.

Caperton served as the 31st governor of West Virginia from 1989 to 1997.

“It is great to have a president from a community college with his reputation elected to the chairman position,” he said.

Sechrist said he believes the decision was made not about him, but about what OCCC represents.

OCCC has many creative writers and one college publication offers students an opportunity to publish their work.

The “Absolute” is a journal of fiction, non-fiction, photography, and artwork published by OCCC every spring, said English Professor Marybeth McCauley.

Students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to submit original works for publication by the deadline of Dec. 3, she said.

OCCC will offer a new scholarship in the spring in remembrance of Lea Ann Hall, late business division secretary.

Until 3 p.m. today, funds will be raised to promote the scholarship in the open lobby area of the College Union and Communications Lab.

Cookies, cake, and caramel apples are on sale for 50 cents to a dollar, and all proceeds go to the scholarship, said Kristi Fields, business assistant.

If you hear emergency alerts on campus next week, don’t fret — it’s only a test.

OCCC will hold two emergency drills from 9:10 to 9:20 a.m. and 7:50 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 16, said Safety and Security Major Keith Bourque. Both drills will end with an “all clear” message.

The drills will affect all buildings on the main OCCC campus, as well as the John Massey Center and the Family and Community Education Center.

Carson’s food service on campus has seen steady improvement in its health department inspections, from the worst in 2006 to the best — with virtually no violations — in its last report six months ago.

A look into open records dated March 2006 through May of this year found a total of 37 health code violations for Carson’s Market Fresh Café and the OCCC Coffee Shop — 31 for the café and six for the coffee shop.

Two thefts were reported the last week of October at the Wellness Center. Both occurred on Monday, Oct. 25.

The first incident happened at around 3:15 p.m. when a pair of Vans shoes, valued at $42, were reportedly taken from a locker in the Wellness area while visitor Tye Ringo, 15, was swimming in the Aquatics Center.

Tinker Air Force Base will fill 255 engineering positions, 740 maintenance positions and 152 police officer positions over the next two years, according to Tinker’s Hiring Forecast.

There also will be an increased demand for medical professionals due to the new hospital located on base that is set to open this month.

More than 60 percent of Oklahomans are obese or overweight, according to the booklet “A Guide to a Strong & Healthy Oklahoma.”

This is one reason the state is considered one of the most unhealthy in America, said Lisa Vaughan, Risk Management coordinator.

“Obesity and being overweight is an epidemic in Oklahoma and a growing issue that we need to be concerned with in adults and children,” Vaughan said.

Internationally-recognized Scottish fiddler Alasdair Fraser, along with young cellist Natalie Haas, will take the stage at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 9, in the Bruce Owen Theater.

Scott Tigert, Cultural Programs assistant, said Fraser is Scotland’s premier fiddle ambassador.

Two thefts were reported on campus recently.

On the morning of Tuesday, Oct. 19, Sports and Recreation Specialist Eric Watson reported that $25 in start up cash had been stolen from the cage area of the Recreation and Fitness Center.

Watson said the cash had likely been stolen the night before.