OU welcomes American Indians

Meaghan Collier

DAILY STAFF WRITER

OU will welcome more than 300 American Indian high school students and their families Saturday.

The 11th Annual American Indian Visitation Day, hosted by Prospective Student Services, will once again bring prospective OU students together to be involved in a day-long recruitment program, said Andy Roop, Prospective Student Services director.

Roop said the day will include many different opportunities for students to find out information about the many different academic units offered at the university.

"The students will also be able to attend different sessions in housing, financial aid, admissions and scholarships," Roop said. "They are things to help them when they're trying to decide about OU."

The students will also be able to have lunch in the cafeteria and watch the football game on the big screen in Couch Cafeteria he said.

"We wish we could take them to the ball game, but tickets are a bit hard to come by," Roop said. "They will get to see all the excitement going on though."

Lindy Waters, American Indian Student Services Assistant director, said 13 different American Indian student campus organizations will be represented at the event.

"Each organization is responsible for decorations, set up, welcoming students, campus tours, student panels and clean up," Waters said. "We're really excited because it shows the unification of the American Indian Student Association."

Current OU students receiving the American Indian Non-Resident Tuition Waiver Scholarship are required to help with the event in order to fulfill their tuition waiver requirements, Waters said.

"They will be helping to recruit incoming Native Americans," he said. "We're there to make them and their families feel welcome."

Roop said students were invited by personal and by school-wide invitation.

"This program is targeted at American Indians, but it's open to any student who wants to attend," he said. "All students are more than welcome at any recruitment program."

Roop said the current OU freshman class has 356 American Indians.

Roop said, while the university does not offer any specific scholarships based on ethnicity, many of the students are affiliated with tribes that help to support their higher education endeavors.

Recruitment Services is dedicated to incorporating diversity in the OU student population with its Diversity Enrichment Program, he said.

"We try to get as diverse a class as we can," Roop said. "These and other programs throughout the year target many other student groups to help us do that."
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