Three times a week at 9:30 in the morning, I walk across campus to Boyd Street for my Expository writing class. Expository writing is the alternative option to Composition II, and if you’ve opted out of Comp I (your default first English class) through AP tests or college credit, you’ll have the option to take an Expo class your first semester.

The difference between Expo and Comp classes is pretty straightforward. In a Comp class you’ll write several papers with unrelated prompts, while in an Expo class you research and write about several aspects of the same topic all semester. For example, I took an Expo section entitled “Presidential Dream Course: Boomer! Sooner!” I’ll tell you about the “Dream Course” part in a little bit.

In “Boomer! Sooner!” we’ve been studying the history of OU as well as different generations of students and their attitudes toward the university. The description doesn’t do justice to the class itself, which I find to be really fascinating. In the midst of freshman semester excitement, it’s easy to forget about all the history behind your school. This class definitely reminds you what a historical place you’re learning in.

My first essay for this class (and my first college paper, eek!) is due this Monday. In our paper, we’re supposed to answer the question “What is a Sooner?” and compare students from the early 1900s in OU’s first years to students in the 1960s during a racially tense period in the university’s history. I’m really excited to explore what students so far apart from each other in time have in common as students at this great school.

This course is called a Presidential Dream Course because as part of the course we have the opportunity to hear from several speakers about topics pertinent to what we’re learning. For example, for this essay, we attended a lecture given by Dr. George Henderson, the third African American faculty member at OU. Hearing his account of the university’s racial integration gave me a lot of information that will add more convincing evidence to next week’s paper. Several courses at OU are offered with this “Dream Course” bonus that really takes your education to the next level.

Expo is just one of my many classes that I have fallen in love with. There are TONS of options for you at OU and I never thought that I’d wake up for such an early class and be so enthusiastic about it!

Boomer Sooner!