USAO Welcomes Students Back Aug. 27 for Fall Term

CHICKASHA –The end of Freshman Orientation brings the beginning of a new school year at the University of Science and Arts. Fall classes begin Aug. 27 at Oklahoma’s public liberal arts college. Enrollment continues through Aug. 31.

The University welcomed first-year students during its annual Freshman Orientation week Aug. 20-23. With students back on campus, several events are planned for Welcome Week, including live music, a comedian and several other activities Aug. 27-31.

In addition to offering more than 300 classes in 23 fields of study, USAO’s fall calendar is filled with a number of musical and theatrical events. Scheduled events include the fall production, “Death of a Salesman,” in October and fall concerts through October and November. A special Johann Sebastian Bach festival is scheduled Oct. 22-26 which features live music, film and guest speakers.

A full listing of the fall performing arts calendar is available online at www.usao.edu/news.

The ever-popular Davis-Waldorf Performing Arts Series hits the stage Sept. 18 at 7:30 p.m. with the Byron Berline Band, a raucous, rockin’ bluegrass band from Guthrie. More information is online at www.usao.edu/dwpas.

Drover soccer kicks into high gear with eight home games in September and October. Both teams are coming off record performances in 2006 and look to capture a Sooner Athletic Conference title. Scores, stats and stories from Drover soccer games are available online at www.usao.edu/usao-sports.

A fall class schedule is available from the USAO Admissions Office by phone at (405) 574-1357 or on the Internet at www.usao.edu/schedules.

USAO’s newly designed website also offers a full course catalog, events calendars, sports news and sections on art shows and fine arts events. Persons who wish to get e-mail updates about USAO news, events and sports can sign up for the Alumni News Hotline at www.usao.edu/alumni/getmorenews.htm.

Beginning Aug. 29, the USAO Art Gallery will display the works of international exhibitor and award-winning artist Tim Sullivan. A special opening reception featuring the artist is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Aug. 29. The gallery is free and open to public weekdays 8:30-4:30. On Nov. 3, the USAO Gallery will host the Seven-State Biennial exhibit in collaboration with the Leslie Powell Gallery in Lawton.

A full schedule of art shows is available at www.usao.edu/gallery.

Through Sept. 22, the Davis Hall Third Floor Art Gallery is home to “Departures,” an exhibit displaying works by eight USAO bachelor of fine arts seniors. Gallery hours are 8:30-4:30, Monday through Friday.

Moving to the top of the exclusive “Great Schools, Great Prices” list in U.S.News & World Report’s America’s Best Colleges guide, USAO took the No. 1 spot recently among all baccalaureate colleges in the western United States ranked for both academic quality and reasonable cost.

Under its ambitious Mission Enhancement Plan, USAO has aggressively raised academic standards while keeping costs much lower than national competitors.  For the seventh year in a row, USAO remains the highest-ranked public college in Oklahoma in the annual rankings by America’s Best Colleges. The 2008 edition hit newsstands on Aug. 17.

USAO offers courses in 23 fields of study and seven non-degree, pre-professional fields to choose from. Fields of study available at USAO are American Indian studies, art, biology, business (with concentrations in accounting, business administration and management), chemistry, communication, computer science, deaf education, drama, early childhood education, economics, elementary education, English, history, mathematics, music, natural science, physical education, physics, political science, psychology, sociology and speech pathology.

The University welcomes new students and non-traditional, older students who wish to continue or finish their degrees. The enrollment process takes about an hour, according to the admissions office.

USAO’s website is www.usao.edu. 

 

PHOTO CUTLINE

A “drove” of freshmen – who this year rank among the highest, academically, in university history – try to untangle themselves during Freshman Orientation at USAO. Fall classes begin Aug. 27, with enrollment continuing through Aug. 31.

NEWS RELEASE August 24, 2007
UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND ARTS OF OKLAHOMA - CHICKASHA
CONTACT MICHAEL BENDURE, News Bureau, 405-574-1362, mbendure@usao.edu
RANDY TALLEY: Public Relations, 405-574-1337, rtalley@usao.edu
FAX: 405-574-1377