OU students and the Norman community celebrate OU's traditional homecoming parade on Oct. 20 VIDEO: Cassi Toney, 1:58

A main performer in the London Olympics Opening Ceremony studies as an exchange student at the University of Oklahoma VIDEO: Cassi Toney, 2:08

An exchange student at the University of Oklahoma with no dance training performed as a lead dancer in the 2012 London Olympics Opening Ceremony.

 Dhruv Rupapara, originally from India, auditioned for the ceremony with friends in London, but he said he never believed he could pass the auditions with no formal dance training.

Rupapara performed as one of the 10 men performers in the Thanks Tim Family section of the ceremony, which included tributes to British popular music from the 1960s to 1980s. At the end of the segment, Tim Berners-Lee is thanked for creating the World Wide Web for everyone.

Danny Boyle, an Academy Award-winning director, served as the artistic director for the opening ceremonies. As a lead dancer, Rupapara was able to work directly with Boyle. Rupapara said Boyle was always friendly and personal even though he was busy directing about 1,400 performers.

Most of the 7,500 perfomers at the opening ceremony were volunteers in order to make the ceremony feel more authentic and save money on the budget, according to Rupapara. He said although he did not receive any money, the production team treated the performers like celebrities.

Rupapara first auditioned in fall 2011 and began practices in February. According to the official website of the 2012 London Olympics, the average adult volunteer performer practiced for 150 hours. 

Rupapara said the team he practiced with became a family. He said he and the team wanted the experience to never end. He said the experience has made him much more confident as a performer and excited to live life to the fullest.

Because Rupapara came to OU before the Olympics were finished, he said he was not able to experience the Olympic excitement in London as long as the other performers.

Rupapara said the experience changed him in many ways, but it mostly made him fall in love with London even more.

A home in the Fairmount Historic District in Fort Worth, Texas is full of interesting surprises and unique structures Friday, August 12. VIDEO: CASSI TONEY RUNS 1:59

International student on campus adjusts to OU’s lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender and queer community

CASSI TONEY

Oct. 8, 2012

Atiba Williams, an OU international student who identifies as a queer male, traveled the world and experienced varying levels of acceptance as a member of the queer community.

Williams, a music composition senior, said when he tells people he is queer, there is a spectrum of responses from apathy to disgust.

“When I came out to people as a queer man, they would either be like, ‘Cool, you’re gay.  What’s for dinner?’ or ‘Let me think about this for three months to see if I still want to be your friend,’” Williams said.

Willams said there are differing of responses to the queer community at the University of Oklahoma.  He said many OU students are conservative, but college towns and metro areas tend to be more receptive of the queer community.

A report by the Daily Beast says six out of seven same-sex couples live in non-rural areas.

“At OU, many students from rural communities do not have exposure to the queer community, so their responses vary,” Wiliams said.

Williams grew up in Trinidad and Tobago, a Caribbean island.  He said he knew he was gay from a young age, but did not say anything because his culture did not allow same-sex relationships.

“There was no such thing being queer in Trinidad,” Williams said.  “There is no sophisticated view of sexuality.  People in Trinidad don’t even acknowledge that gay people exist.”

Williams said he wanted to move out of Trinidad and Tobago into a more accepting community.   He won an international scholarship to study at an Italian high school and at OU.

Williams is constantly looking for ways to improve his experience in life at OU with passion and enthusiasm, according to his friend Parker Manek, history senior.

“He has made life better by his sense of realistic optimism and positivism,” said Manek, president of the OU club for gays, lesbians, bi-sexuals, transgender and friends.

Williams said he defends other people in his community by standing against those who speak hurtful words or act offensively.

Atiba Williams holds a candle at a candlelight vigil on the South Oval on Wednesday, Oct. 3.  The Sooner Allies hosted the candlelight vigil to show unity and support for gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, transgender and queer OU students.

“I call people out on things because some things are just not OK to say in certain situations,” Williams said.  “I have a thick skin so most comments don’t bother me, but I try to protect other people in the audience who might be more sensitive and will be hurt more deeply.”

Williams’ friend and former roommate Robert Wild, said, Williams is a great representative for the queer community because of his honesty and strength.

“If somebody says or does anything that is out of line, he quickly lets them know that what they've done is hurtful and wrong,” Williams said. “He doesn't tell them that it's just wrong, he tells them why it's wrong.”

Atiba Williams, member of OU's LGBTQ community, speaks about his experience in his home country, Thursday, Oct. 4. AUDIO: CASSI TONEY RUNS :32

OU introduces coed floor for freshmen

OU introduces coed floor for freshmen
CASSI TONEY

The University of Oklahoma’s first freshmen coed floor this year will determine expansion of coed floors in the residence halls.

Fifty freshmen live on a coed floor in Walker Tower with separate suites for male and female students to test the success of the pilot program while 400 students are on a waiting list.

Amy Buchanan, housing and food assistant director in community experience, said different student groups, such as the Housing Center Student Association submitted proposals to President Boren and met with him this summer to decide to offer a pilot coed floor option for the 4,300 freshmen living on campus.

“Offering coed freshmen floors involved a lot more people than housing and food because President Boren made the ultimate decision to give the option of coed housing,” Buchanan said. “The decision came from higher up than us, but we were obviously very supportive of the president’s decision.”

Buchanan said OU’s housing and food services wants to offer the best options for students. She said there are not yet plans for the future of coed halls because the program started one month ago, but President Boren will make the ultimate decision.

Students spend time together in a dorm room on a coed floor in Adams Tower, Thursday Sept. 27, 2012. Each suite of two rooms with a shared bathroom has only one gender on the coed floors

“Our staff is always available for any issues the students bring to us, so we can provide housing options that make students feel more comfortable and safer in the environment,” Buchanan said.

Bracken Marburger, aviation management freshman, said OU should continue to offer coed floors because of the long waiting list and good community experience.

“I thought living on the coed floor would be cool,” Marburger said. “It’s not that big of deal to live next door to a girl. It’s real world stuff, just like you would be living next to girls on your street or in an apartment complex.”

Meghan Gallagher and Justin Dutchover talk on a coed floor in the Adams Tower on Thursday, Sept. 27, 2012. Male student suites and female student suites are located next door and across the hall from each other.

 Marburger said he liked everything about living on the coed floor.

“It’s pretty chill and easygoing,” Marburger said. “I like that there are no visiting hours. In high school, everything is so structured and strict, and I think college should be more lenient.”

Buchanan said all the staff in housing and food wants the students to connect with someone in their community.

Residents on the coed floor talk, relax and study in the social lounge in Adams Tower, Thursday, Sept. 27, 2012. The residents share a study room in addition to a large social lounge area.

“The community on the freshmen floor seems to be very close,” said Buchanan. “They’ll all be hanging out in the social lounge and people have their doors open. It seems they are connecting and getting a positive experience for everyone of the floor”

The university introduced the option for upperclassmen coed floors in fall 2010. Fifty upperclassmen students live on the coed floors in the Johnson wing of Adams Tower, according to Buchanan.

According to the Journal of American College Health, 90 percent of American college dorms are coed.

OU Housing and Food Assistant Director in Community Experience, Amy Buchanan, talks about possible controversies of the freshmen coed floor, Thursday, Sept. 27, 2012. AUDIO: CASSI TONEY RUNS :40