Homecoming Parade

Homecoming week begins at SOU

/in

It’s homecoming week at Southern Oregon University, and the events and activities go way beyond football. There are parades – two of them – along with volleyball, men’s and women’s soccer games, and an all-comers 5K run and walk. For the nostalgic, there’s even dodgeball.

“This is a week that’s intended to bring us together as a university, in our celebration of school spirit and pride in the values we embrace,” President Linda Schott said this week in a message to campus.

She encouraged all students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members to participate in homecoming activities, which begin at 7 p.m. Wednesday when the SOU volleyball team takes on Oregon Institute of Technology at the new Lithia Motors Pavilion. Intramural dodgeball will follow next-door in the new Student Recreation Center at 8:30 p.m.

The annual Homecoming Parade is Thursday’s highlight event, and the university has invited all alumni and community members to wear red and take part, either as spectators or by walking in the parade. Parade assembly will begin at 3:30 p.m. at the Lithia Park bandshell, and participants will wind through downtown and along Siskiyou Boulevard to Raider Stadium. A Raider Rally and Fair will begin at the stadium at 5 p.m., featuring family-friendly events such as a hot dog feed, bubble soccer and other games.

The President’s 5K run and walk, a benefit event for the SOU Food Pantry, will begin at 2:30 p.m. on Friday at Raider Stadium. Those who wish to participate should bring a completed entry form and one or more nonperishable food items that will be given to students in need. There will be a hospitality area for finishers and those who attend men’s and women’s soccer matches, at 4 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., against Northwest University of Washington.

The annual Rogue Valley Pride Celebration coincides this year with SOU Homecoming. SOU has a strong tradition of participation in the colorful celebration of inclusion, and members of the campus community have been encouraged to take part in the Pride Parade through downtown Ashland prior to SOU’s Homecoming football game. The Raiders – currently ranked No. 7 nationally in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics – will take on in-state rival Eastern Oregon University.

Homecoming week will wrap up with men’s and women’s soccer matches against Washington’s Evergreen State College at 5 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, followed by a homecoming dance at the Student Recreation Center.

-SOU-

SOU-Martinez-CCC

SOU’s Martinez conference player of the week in women’s soccer

/in

Misty Martinez, a standout redshirt sophomore on SOU’s women’s soccer team, picked up the Cascade Conference Red Lion Offensive Player of the Week award this week.

Currently playing the forward position, Martinez scored her third, fourth and fifth goals of the season in SOU’s two games last weekend in Portland. She tallied the game-winners with a 9-0 decision at Multnomah and a 3-0 decision at Warner Pacific.

Martinez currently has team-highs of six goals and four game-winners, including in the Raiders’ three most recent games. All were in CCC play, and she also was responsible for the Raiders’ lone goal in a recent conference draw.

Martinez has stood out both on the soccer field and academically. She graduated and was a four-year letter-winner at Casa Grande High School in Petaluma, Calif. She received the Niels and Amalia Scott Scholarship and the Robert Girabaldi Memorial Scholarship, both for academic and athletic prowess.

The health and physical education major redshirted in 2016 and made one goal and two assists last year in her first season in uniform for the Raiders.

Going into this weekend’s women’s soccer Homecoming games, SOU is 7-2-2 overall and 5-1-1 in the CCC. The games will take place at 6:30 p.m. on Friday against Northwest (Wash.) and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday against Evergreen (Wash.).

SOU Town Hall Vote

Senate District 3 town hall comes to SOU on Thursday

/in ,

(Ashland, Ore.) — Arguably Oregon’s hottest legislative race of the year will come to Southern Oregon University on Thursday, when Democrat Jeff Golden and Republican Jessica Gomez answer questions at a town hall meeting cosponsored by the university and Jefferson Public Radio.

A link to Rogue Valley Community Television’s video of the entire town hall is here.

The event, expected to last an hour, will begin at 7 p.m. on Oct. 11 at SOU’s Music Recital Hall. Questions for the Oregon Senate District 3 candidates can be submitted in advance at townhall@jeffnet.org, and will be read at the town hall meeting by moderator Geoff Riley of JPR.

Tickets are free and limited to two per person. The event is expected to reach capacity, so those interested in attending are advised to get their tickets in advance. They can be ordered in advance at SOU’s Oregon Center for the Arts Box office.

A block of 150 tickets are being held for SOU students. They can pick them up from noon to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Oregon Center for the Arts Box Office or from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Stevenson Union Information Booth.

Sponsorship of this week’s town hall aligns with SOU’s mission of preparing the university’s learners to be responsible, engaged citizens in the local, state and federal democratic processes. The event also is an excellent opportunity for community members to become better acquainted with the candidates and their stands on various issues.

Professional and student staffers from SOU’s Digital Media Center will record the town hall for video playback on Rogue Valley Community Television. The Digital Media Center has also recorded 12 forums with state and local candidates. Those videos have been added to RVTV’s programing rotation and are embedded on the website of the Ashland Chamber of Commerce, which co-sponsored the series.

The Associated Students of Southern Oregon University – the student government at SOU – will host a voter registration table at the event.

-SOU-

SOU Schneider Children's Center fee

ASSOU special election would remove Schneider fee

/in

Students at Southern Oregon University may have noticed a small fee on their Fall Term bill that seemed slightly out of place. The $13 fee is for the Schneider’s Children Center and ASSOU is running an election through Wednesday to get rid of it.

In reality, the fee was assessed for Fall Term students and then automatically reversed. But the fee will be eliminated altogether if students vote to do so in the special election.

Originally, the Schneider Children’s Center fee was implemented to support the Schneider Children’s Center. The Center supported many families over the years, but experienced much financial hardship because of little to no financial support from the state.

The Schneider Children’s Center was closed on Aug. 31 because there was no viable funding solution that wouldn’t raise childcare costs for parents using the center.

The funds generated by the Schneider fee are intended to help pay the center’s annual operating costs. The fee cannot be used for anything else on campus.

A “yes” vote in the special ASSOU election is a vote to remove the Schneider Children’s Fee, effective this fall.

A “no” vote is a vote to continue charging the Schneider Children’s fee.

Follow this link to vote (you must be logged in to your SOU Student account). The online ballot will be open until Oct. 10.

Questions, comments or concerns, can be sent to ASSOU President Alexis Phillips at assoupresident@sou.edu.

Story by Bryn Mosier, SOU Marketing and Communications intern

SOU celebrates Indigenous Peoples Day

SOU observes Indigenous Peoples Day

/in

(Ashland, Ore.) — Southern Oregon University’s second annual observation of Indigenous Peoples Day – and contributions and cultural significance of Native American populations – will take place on Monday, Oct. 8, beginning with a salmon bake celebration on the Stevenson Union courtyard.

The free salmon bake will be from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and will feature drumming and a variety of speakers. SOU President Linda Schott will welcome the salmon bake participants and discuss the university’s commitment to equity and inclusion, and its respect for the cultural richness its Native American students bring to campus.

The president authorized the observance of Indigenous Peoples Day after student Lupe Sims and the Diversity and Inclusion Oversight Committee got unanimous support for the proposal from three governing boards on campus in early 2017. No classes are canceled for the now-annual observation, but the occasion is observed through special programming and events.

Monday’s salmon bake will include presentations from guest speakers Ed Little Crow, Felicia McNair, David West, Brent Florendo, Chauncey Peltier, Mark Colson, Rowena Jackson and Shaun Taylor-Corbett.

A free lecture and discussion, “Earth Protectors: Indigenous Solidarity with the Earth, North and South,” will be held from 3 to 5 p.m. in the Stevenson Union’s Rogue River Room. It will focus on indigenous peoples’ struggles against extractive industries throughout the Americas.

SOU is one of several universities, four states and about 40 U.S. cities – including Ashland, Portland, Eugene and Corvallis in Oregon – that observe Indigenous Peoples Day.

It is typically celebrated on the second Monday of October, which the U.S. has observed as the federal Columbus Day holiday since 1937.

At least 17 states, including Oregon, do not recognize Columbus Day as a holiday. Oregon observed it as a “day of commemoration” – but not a legal holiday – until the 1985 Legislature added a holiday for Martin Luther King Day, combined Washington’s and Lincoln’s birthdays as Presidents’ Day and eliminated all “days of commemoration.”

SOU offers a Native American Studies Program that seeks to educate all students about the knowledge, experiences and rich cultural heritage of indigenous people. The university also has an active Native American student population, supports SOU’s Native American Student Union and sponsors Konaway Nika Tillicum – an eight-day, on-campus residential camp for Native American youth.

-SOU-

SOU OLLI murder mystery dinner play

Murder at the Cafe Noir: An audience-participation whodunnit from OLLI

/in

Members, instructors and community supporters of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at SOU are invited to three audience-participation performances next month of the comedy, “Murder at the Café Noir.” All proceeds of the events will support OLLI’s Campbell Center Renovation Fund.

The dinner play will be performed by the OLLI Improv Players from 5:30 to 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 2 and 3, and from 1 to 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 4. All performances will be in the Diversions Room on the bottom floor of SOU’s Stevenson Union.

Tickets are $55 per person and include appetizers, wine, dinner and entertainment. The meal includes vegetarian and non-vegetarian options.

Reservations may be made online before the deadline of Friday, Oct. 26. A check payable to OLLI must be received within one week of reservations to confirm seats.

Seating will be limited to 70 audience members per performance – seven people at each of 10 tables. Seating preferences will be accommodated when possible.

OLLI at SOU offers a variety of peer-taught, non-credit classes to almost 1,900 members at locations in Ashland and Medford. Membership is open to adults of any age, but the program is geared toward those who are 50-plus. More information is available on the OLLI website.

SOU Ronald E. McNair

Students sought for SOU McNair Scholars Program

/in

SOU faculty members and others are asked to help identify and nominate promising undergraduate students to become part of the legacy of Ronald E. McNair, who stood up for civil rights as a youth before becoming a physicist and astronaut. He died in the 1986 explosion of the space shuttle Challenger.

SOU’s McNair Scholars Program, which has prepared eligible undergraduate students for post-graduate education since 2003, is seeking students for its 2019 cohort of scholars. Prospective McNair Scholars should be sophomores, juniors or early seniors with academic potential and an interest in attending graduate school.

The SOU program offers one-to-one guidance from faculty mentors as it helps participants complete their undergraduate degrees, enroll in graduate school and prepare for doctoral studies. More than a dozen SOU McNair alumni have completed their doctoral programs since the program began 15 years ago.

“When asked how they heard about the McNair Program, the majority of past scholars reported that they were encouraged by SOU faculty or staff members to apply,” said Dee Southard, an associate professor and director of SOU’s McNair program. “I am again asking for help in reaching potential McNair Scholars and connecting them with the resources that the program offers.”

Student participants in the nation’s 187 currently funded McNair programs are considered “targets of recruitment” for graduate admissions officers. They are offered fully-paid visitation opportunities and often given offers of admission that include all-expenses-paid packages with stipends for living expenses.

Seminars on topics pertinent to pre-doctoral students, advising, tutoring, access to a resource library, help with graduate school applications, travel assistance and other resources are available free of charge to participants in SOU’s McNair Scholars Program.

The program is geared toward undergraduate students from underrepresented and disadvantaged segments of society, but those criteria should not be a concern for those recommending students as McNair scholars. Each nominee will be contacted and provided program details. Even those who are not eligible will be directed toward resources that are helpful for all students considering graduate-level studies.

Those wishing to recommend a student for the program should send the student’s name, email address and undergraduate major to Southard at McNair@sou.edu. The application packet for students interested in being part of the 2019 cohort is available online. The deadline for submission of completed packets to SOU’s McNair office in Susanne Homes Hall is 3 p.m. on Oct. 31.

The McNair program was initiated in 1989 by the U.S. Department of Education to increase doctoral studies by students from underrepresented and disadvantaged groups. It honors McNair, who received his doctorate in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and was the second African-American to fly in space. SOU’s McNair program serves 28 undergraduate scholars each year.

SOU football haka war cry

Southern Oregon football team brings haka war cry to the field

/in

At their practice in Ashland, Southern Oregon University football players kneel to the ground and growl, their eyes bulging, their tongues sticking out. Lineman Masi Tunoa leads the chant.

Tunoa and his family used to perform lū’aus for tourists back home in Hawaii. They also did the haka, a battle cry that originated from the indigenous people of New Zealand. It’s a powerful ritual that Polynesian cultures still perform today for ceremonies like weddings or funerals, or before a big game.

“The haka was performd by the Maori people,” Tunoa said. “It’s like a war cry. They do it to get their warriors ready for battle. I thought why not take that can get ready for a game. Get that same energy.”

Tunoa had a friend translate the haka into English so he could teach it to his team. He says each sentence has a special meaning that energizes and grounds them.

“One of the lines we say is, ‘Make us one with the lion,'” he said. “So wherever we go, whether home or away, that’s home field. No matter where we go.”

About a fifth of the SOU football players are of Polynesian descent. Head coach Charlie Hall says while the haka might get his team pumped up for a game, it has also brought them together.

“Beyond performance it’s about team culture,” he said. “It’s about sharing another people’s culture with our own team. It’s about who we are and being a better family.”

And Tunoa says that’s exactly what brought him to this team. Something about it reminded him of his family, reminded him of home.

This story is reposted from Jefferson Public Radio, and was reported by April Ehrlich

See a video of the Raiders’ haka:

Southern Oregon University Football Haka from April Ehrlich on Vimeo.

SOU Mt Ashland Volunteer

Raiders to volunteer at Mt. Ashland Ski Area

/in ,

NEWS RELEASE

(Ashland, Ore.) — As many as 200 Southern Oregon University students, employees and their families will ring in the new school year with a day of environmental stewardship. The entire SOU community was invited to volunteer on the slopes of local non-profit ski area Mt. Ashland on Saturday, Oct. 6.

Those who volunteer will include helping with erosion mitigation, trail brush trimming and removal of trash from the slopes before the snow flies.

“Volunteering at Mt. Ashland is a great way for students to kick off the new school year,” said Jill Smedstad, SOU’s environmental and community engagement coordinator. “They get to give back to their community and discover this amazing resource right in their backyard.”

“One of the goals of the Sustainability Resource Center at SOU is to inspire active citizenship, and we’re thrilled that so many students, employees and alumni are spending their Saturday volunteering together at Mt. Ashland,” she said.

This “day of service” represents SOU’s largest off-campus day of environmental service. Mt. Ashland will provide a gift certificate to each student who participates. Transportation, lunch and t-shirts will be provided by SOU for all who volunteer. Buses will arrive at the mountain at 10 a.m. and depart at 2 p.m., after a lunch catered by Mt. Ashland.

“Over the past few years the day of service has been a huge success, so we were elated that SOU wanted to come back again this fall,” said Hiram Towle, general manager at Mt. Ashland. “The students all work very hard and get an amazing amount of work accomplished. We are grateful for our partnership with the university, and we could not be happier to have them here again to take part in caring for their local ski area and the Ashland watershed.”

Mt. Ashland is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit ski area owned and operated by the Mt. Ashland Association under a special use permit from the U.S. Forest Service.

-SOU/Mt. Ashland-

SOU Drive Less Challenge

SOU and the Oregon Drive Less Challenge

/in

Members of Southern Oregon University community are invited to join the Oregon Drive Less Challenge, an initiative aimed at encouraging the use of alternative transportation modes.

The challenge began Oct. 1 and continues through Oct. 15, with both weekly prizes and grand prizes that include three $500 cash cards and a $1,000 gift card for a Bike Friday folding bicycle. Those who wish to take part in the challenge can sign up at DriveLessConnect.com.

In order to be eligible, alternate methods of transportation (such as biking, riding the bus, carpooling and telework) must be used between the Oct. 1 and 15.
Log the trips taken on DriveLessConnect.com to be eligible for prizes.

Many alternate travel options are available for the SOU community.

Those who live and commute from elsewhere in the Rogue Valley can purchase $15 student bus passes that are valid for the entire term,  rather than regular, month-long passes for $56. The student passes are accepted the week before each term and continue until the first week of the next term.

To purchase a full-term bus pass, students may download the TouchPass Transit app on their mobile devices and sign up by using their SOU email addresses. They must then go to Enrollment Services in Britt Hall and ask to apply for a student bus pass. There is a one-time subscription fee of $15, and the passes are $15 per term.

Once signed up, pass-holders may download the One Bus Away app on their mobile devices to get live departure and arrival times.

Ashland is also a bicycle-friendly town for those who live close to campus, and it is possible to rent a bike for $50 from the Student Recreation Center. Included in the bike rental fee is a bike lock, helmet and maintenance. All rented bikes must be returned at the end of the term.

If there are any questions about the Oregon Drive Less Challenge or how to use alternate methods of transportation, email ECOS, the Sustainability Resource Center at ecos@sou.edu.

Story by Bryn Mosier, SOU Marketing and Communications Intern