City moves to reduce underage drinking

A sign outside of Thunderbird Liquors in Norman
warns people that they will be carded.

Police move to crack down on underage drinking

Local law enforcement is cracking down on underage drinking in Norman and more students are being caught with fake IDs.

Bars, clubs, and restaurants on Campus Corner alike were contacted by the city over winter break and told that the venues would be watched more intently on their acceptance of fake IDs.

Jeff Stewart, manager of O'Connell's, said his bar is taking up anywhere from 10-15 fake IDs a weekend now and he noticed more officers doing nightly inspections than before.

"I catch several kids a week," said Joey Andrews, the night manager at Thunderbird Liquors. "It isn't anything personal, it's just there are more cops sitting outside now and it isn't worth losing my job over."

According to Lt. Bruce Chan of OUPD, law enforcement plans to continue taking the matter seriously. Students should watch out because if they are caught, they will be cited and possibly could receive a felony charge, he said.

Middle Eastern-inspired major soon to be available

The OU Board of Regents approved the creation of the Middle Eastern studies major within the School of International and Area Studies in their meeting on Wednesday.

The new major has been in the works for nine years. The school has secured $1.5 million in federal funding to begin the program, but the university will
have to support the program itself in two or three years.

Students will be required to study one of several different languages, including Hebrew and Arabic, take classes on the history, culture and politics of the
region, and will be required to study abroad in a Middle Eastern country.

"We wanted to see how students reacted to Middle Eastern studies, and they came flocking," said Joshua Landis, international
area studies professor. "So few people can speak Middle Eastern languages fluently, and there are a lot of job opportunities in this field."

Student will be able to enroll in the major once the School of International and Area Studiea finalizes the degree plan of the major. In the meantime, a new
summer study abroad program in Turkey will be available in 2010.