Apr
1
The Union Programming Board Executive Committee has officially selected Microbiology/Medical Humanities major, Shreya Patel as the oustanding UPB member of the meeting.
Shreya Patel
Hometown: Watonga, OK
UPB: What do you like most about UPB?
SP: The close friendships and the diversity.
UPB: What is your favorite Hobby?
SP: Drawing!
UPB: What is your favorite animal?
SP: A tiger.
UPB: Whats something interesting about yourself?
SP: I can pop one of my ribs out of place!
Mar
21
The Union Programming Board Executive Committee has officially selected Industrial Engineering/Pre Med Freshman, Francis Phan as the oustanding UPB member of the meeting.
Francis Phan
Hometown: Mustang, OK
Class: Freshman
UPB: What is your favorite thing about UPB?
FP: The members. My first semester at OU didn’t start as well as expected. I found myself staying in my room a lot. UPB allowed me to meet all kinds of amazing people, and with that, I made many friends that have defined my college experience so far.
UPB: What’s something interesting about you?
FP: I spit mad Rhymes. What started as a joke, eventually turned into laying my flows down on some tracks. My personality is completely different that the persona portrayed in the songs.
UPB: What are your hobbies? FP: Music. I love all types of music and have a huge CD and record collection. I like going to local shows as well.
UPB: What’s your favorite animal?
FP: Cats. I plan on adopting a cat once I get my own place. Fun fact: I follow a cat on Instagram.
Mar
11
Kristy Truong
Advertising Sophomore and Enterprise Minor
Mustang, Ok
Kristy has been involved with The Union Programming Board since the beginning of the Fall 2013 semester. The entire school year, Kristy has been an invaluable member of the UPB team, helping to plan and coordinate many of our events. It is members like Kristy that make UPB what it is and we are exceedingly grateful for all she does!
We asked Kristy some questions about herself to get to know a little more about her..
UPB: What is your fav thing about UPB?
KT: I love making new friends with all types of backgrounds and that there is also no application to join.
UPB: What’s your hobbies?
KT: I Love Acting in student projects, movies, commercials. Watching movies, and enjoy eating.
UPB: Favorite Animal?
KT: Dogs, especially Chihuahuas
UPB: Favorite Music?
KT: Anything I can dance to or has fun lyrics.
UPB: What’s something funny about you?
KT: One time in high school, I was locked in the bathroom stall and could not get out. I had to crawl under the door because I would’ve been late to class and it was the smallest slit known to mankind. I don’t know how I’m alive right now. On top of that, everyone in the bathroom saw me crawl out. How embarrassing!
Feb
25
The Union Programming Board Executive Committee has officially selected public relations major, Eric Cruz as the oustanding UPB member of the meeting.
Eric Cruz
Hometown: Houston, Tx
Major: Public Relations
Class: Freshman
Eric has been involved with The Union Programming Board since the beginning of the Fall 2013 semester. The entire school year, Eric has been an invaluable member of the UPB team, helping to plan and coordinate many of our events. It is members like Eric that make UPB what it is and we are exceedingly grateful for all he does!
We asked Eric some questions about herself to get to know a little more about him..
UPB: What do you like to do for fun?
EC: In my free time I love to read, watch youtube and netflix shows, browse amazon for things I can’t afford, and currently I’m trying out this whole exercising thing
UPB: Favorite Food?
EC: I LOVE macaroni and cheese ( I’m very picky and don’t like most, but that ONE good one is so worth it)
UPB: What do you enjoy most about UPB?
EC: The people. UPB is defined by the people who make it up and they’re all, without fail, fantastic.I’m a public relations freshman.
Feb
4
The Union Programming Board Executive Committee has officially selected mechanical engineering major, Emily Scheller as the oustanding UPB member of the meeting.
Emily Scheller
Hometown: Phoenix, AZ
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Class: Sophomore (technically)
Emily has been involved with The Union Programming Board since the beginning of the Fall 2013 semester. Since the beginning of the school year, Emily has been an invaluable member of the UPB team, helping to plan and coordinate many of our events. It is members like Emily that make UPB what it is and we are exceedingly grateful for all she does!
We asked Emily some questions about herself to get to know a little more about her..
UPB: What do you like to do for fun?
ES: Watching movies with my friends and playing my favorite sports, basketball and soccer.
UPB: What is your favorite animal?
ES: Dog, specifically a golden retriever.
UPB: Very nice choice. What do you enjoy most about UPB?
ES: I love the environment of UPB and the people that are involved with it. I also love that all of the events are free and fun and for the students.
Mar
29
The Union Programming Board Executive Committee has officially selected freshman, Nicholle Niblett as our member of the month for March.
Nicholle Niblett
Hometown: Norman, OK
Major: Multidisciplinary Studies
Class: Freshman
Nicholle has been involved with The Union Programming Board since the beginning of her freshman year. She decided to try UPB out because there was no application and she was interested in meeting new people. She has since become an irreplaceable member of our team. In fact, she was the creative mind behind our sooner idol promotional video, which has received rave reviews. It is members like Nicholle that make UPB what it is and we are exceedingly grateful for all she does!
We asked Nicholle some questions about herself so that we could get to know a little more about her. Here are her answers:
Tell me something everyone should know about you…
I am super devoted to volunteering, especially with under privileged children.
What’s your favorite thing about UPB?
It’s easy to get involved and there are so many opportunities.
What’s your favorite food?
Chicken Alfredo
What is your biggest fear?
‘Villainous’ Clowns
What’s one embarrassing/weird hobby that you have?
I’ve been crocheting the same blanket for 2 years
Mar
11
Each year students roll out to audition for the Union Programming Board’s annual Sooner Idol competition. Ten of those students are chosen to compete. One wins. Last year, that winner was Vocal Performance major Keegan Josephson, a freshman at the time. Channeling the one and only Adam Levine for his first round song, Keegan worked the mic stand, danced, and sang his way to the top 4. His second round song took everyone back to his or her childhood. Choosing “Go the Distance” from the popular Disney movie Hercules, Keegan showcased his range and tackled notes that would make any vocal instructor proud. And he may have earned himself an admirer or twenty in the process.
Keegan has since been seen singing around campus in several different venues. From Sooner Scandals to the BYX A Capella group to performing his own song at the Mr. OU pageant last year, he has become a familiar face and friend to many of us. However, there’s one genre of music that Keegan excels at that we don’t get to hear year round. This weekend, just short of a year after winning Sooner Idol 2012, Keegan made his OU Theatre debut as Bardolfo in the comedic opera Falstaff.
I will be honest. The opera was long. Like, a solid two and a half hours long, but I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed it and found myself laughing the whole way through. The plot revolves around Sir. John Falstaff, an old, overweight knight who has eaten himself into poverty (with the help of his two followers/thieves Pistola and Bardolfo). In an effort to alleviate his monetary burdens, Falstaff writes two identical letters to two wealthy married women. Of course, the women discover his treachery and the rest of the play concerns their plans to take the overweight knight down a few notches (In measures of pride that is. Falstaff’s belt notches stay exactly where they are).
Bardolfo, played by Keegan, serves as a source of comic relief throughout the show, and the part wonderfully showcased his strong tenor voice and great acting ability. How he managed to keep singing after falling off a bed, getting thrown across a floor, being smacked with brooms, and jumping/climbing onto most of the props, I might never know. All I know is that I was rolling with laughter any time Keegan was onstage, especially during the last scene when he is disguised as the maiden Nannetta and appeared to feel a little too comfortable wearing a replica of her dress. I can’t put my finger on why I thought that, but it might have been the twirling. That’s right. He twirled. And his hair for the performance looked scarily like that of Edward Cullen in the first twilight movie, which he actually pointed out himself after the show. Fortunately for him, I let it slide and not taint my opinion of his overall performance, which was truly fantastic. The kid’s what we call a triple threat- a master of singing, dancing, and acting.
And it all started with him winning UPB’s Sooner Idol a year ago.
At least, that’s what we’re telling people.
Auditions for Sooner Idol 2013 are March 27th and 28th. We’ll have more info on our website, facebook page, and twitter soon!
-Dehra McGuire
UPB Secretary and Sooner Idol Chair
Mar
1
The Union Programming Board Executive Committee has officially selected freshman, Alex Grant as our member of the month for February.
Alex Grant
Hometown: Arlington, TX
Major: Visual Communications
Class: Freshman
Alex has been involved with The Union Programming Board since the beginning of her freshman year when she came with her boyfriend for moral support. She signed up for foam party and ended up falling in love with UPB. She is such wonderful addition to our team. She is never above any job and she puts 100 percent into everything she does. We are so lucky to have Alex as a part of our UPB family. She constantly goes above and beyond what we ask of her and we appreciate her so much!!
We asked Alex some questions about herself so that we could get to know a little more about her. Here are her answers:
Tell me something interesting about yourself…
I love Disney movies, not being serious, and coloring. I’m definitely a kid at heart.
What’s your favorite thing about UPB?
The inclusiveness
What else are you involved in on campus?
Campus Activities Council, Scandals, and I am a designer for the yearbook staff
What’s your favorite food?
Chocolate chip ice cream!!
What is your biggest fear?
Bugs. Ew.
What’s one embarrassing/weird hobby that you have?
When I eat Lucky Charms, I have to eat the marshmallows in a certain order…
Feb
26
Free food, foam party, Sasquatch petitions, and potatotini bars. Any OU student can readily associate these things with the Union Programming Board, but not many students know that our purpose goes much deeper than entertainment and giveaways.
For every event and aesthetically pleasing poster we plan, UPB has a specific audience and outcome in mind that we are trying to reach. Most obviously, our executive committee aspires for there to be “always something” for the general student body and campus guests to do with their time at our Union. This is the side of UPB that most students encounter on a daily basis.
However, the presence of a second, and possibly more important, audience influences our planning as well: our general members. A general member is defined as any student who has attended a UPB meeting or assisted with an event, even if only on one occasion. These members, although many of them may only pass through, are the heart of UPB. Only by their time and dedication are we able to serve the student body, and as a result, their development is one of our top priorities.
We’re not in the business of using our members as manpower at our events; rather, we aim to empower these students to take ownership of these events and the positive impact they make on campus. Sometimes it only takes giving someone the permission to be a leader for them to step forward and fulfill the role.
We operate by the Three E’s: Engage students, encourage leaders, and enrich lives. We engage students by giving them quality ways to spend their down time. We encourage leaders by providing an environment where students can grow at their own pace. Finally, we enrich lives by letting these two groups interact together to create the magic of Union programming that results in great things like free food and foam parties. Interested? http://www.ou.edu/content/upb/Join.html
Feb
22
Top 5 James Bond Themes Songs. The theme song of each film is comparable to the film itself as far as hype goes. It sets the tone for each film and let’s us, as the audience, know what we are in for. Not to mention, with a couple of exceptions, each song fits the title of the film in the lyrics. Overall, there are 22 “title” tracks from each film. I chose 5 of my favorites
1. A View to a Kill performed by Duran Duran (1985)
Listen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fp4CR2HcHLQ
The only James Bond song to reach #1 on the U.S. Billboard charts, “A View to a Kill” is one of Duran Duran’s finest. The other Bond songs of this time were riddled with bad melodies and lyrics, yet this song soared to become one of the series’ best. “Dance into the fire, that fatal kiss is all we need!” It doesn’t get much more Bond than that.
2. Nobody Does It Better by Carly Simon (1977)
Listen Here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wy-c8aAntWA
It is definitely likely that Adele was influenced by this song when she wrote “Skyfall”. The title track to the Spy Who Loved Me reflects the internal dialogue of a Bond girl and honestly professes “baby you’re the best”.
3. Live and Let Die by Paul McCartney & Wings (1973)
Listen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JK2hKzZss5Y
You’ve probably heard this song if you listen to any “Classic Rock” radio station and may have not even realized that it was a Bond song. Let’s just forget the Guns N’ Roses cover..
4. Thunderball by Tom Jones (1965)
Listen Here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLYW2UgSJq8
This song is a more traditional Bond song, whereas the others on my list evoke a more “pop” feeling, this song has the sweeping orchestration, horns, and Tom Jones’ rich voice.
5. Diamonds Are Forever by Shirley Bassey (1971)
Listen Here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80A6MtPwj-Q
Shirley Bassey has three Bond songs to her name, so I really felt obligated to put her on the list. Also, Kanye sampled this track in his 2005 song “Diamonds from Sierra Leone”, so that’s something. But really, the end of this song when the beat comes in is great.
Bonus. Skyfall by Adele (2012)
Listen Here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-gLRp5bSpw
I have to include this song. Adele killed it. I’m not a presentist, but this song is just way too good and I have to recognize it.
-P. Vaughn
Always Something
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