The Countdown Continues: 100 Days to NSU Centennial

The Countdown Continues: 100 Days to NSU Centennial

The countdown to the launch of Northeastern State University's Centennial Celebration began on Aug. 20, 2008 when students, faculty, staff and members of the community packed the Senator Herb Rozell Ballroom for the NSU Centennial Community Picnic. Founders Day, March 6, 2009, marks the official start of the Centennial Celebration.

TAHLEQUAH On Tuesday morning, as students prepared to leave campus for the Thanksgiving holiday, the Centennial Countdown clock on the wall of the Administration Building rolled to 100 days until Founders Day on March 6, 2009. Thats the official launch of the 100-year celebration at Northeastern State University.

The countdown began on August 20 at the NSU Centennial Community Picnic, which set the tone for this once-in-a-lifetime event as it drew nearly 800 celebrants to the Senator Herb Rozell Ballroom in the University Center. Since that day, momentum has been building on campus as students, faculty, and staff prepare for the 100th anniversary of Founders Day on March 6, 2009.

It was nearly a century ago that the Oklahoma legislature purchased Seminary Hall from the Cherokee tribal council to establish Northeastern State Normal School.

The significance of Founders Day is wrapped in 100 years of adherence to the educational standards established at the Cherokee National Female Seminary, which opened in 1851 at Park Hill.

NSU will officially mark the Centennial on Founders Day, when the fledgling state of Oklahoma began to use Seminary Hall as its new Normal School, said NSU President Dr. Don Betz. On March 6, we welcome everyone to join us as we honor the past, embrace the present, and envision the future together.

The dedication of Centennial Plaza, just south of Seminary Hall, is one of several events scheduled to commemorate Founders Day 2009. The area is currently being refurbished to become a gathering place for NSU students, faculty, staff, and visitors alike. The focus of this project is a statue of Sequoyah, creator of the Cherokee alphabet.

The Sequoyah statue will forever link NSU with its origins as a Normal School beginning in 1909 and as the locus for Cherokee higher education as early as the 1850s, said Dr. Betz. The Plaza and the revitalized entry to the NSU campus in Tahlequah will welcome students and visitors to the institution.

Founders Day is significant to current students because it symbolizes the commitment of those who understood the importance of education and created the institution that today is NSU. Pausing to pay tribute to those who have shaped the institution since its founding is a way of connecting students to NSUs rich educational heritage.

The Cherokee Nation was the first to educate young women and we are standing on hallowed ground in terms of Oklahoma education, Dr. Betz noted. When you think back to where it began, people werent thinking just about the moment, they were thinking about how deeply they could plant the seeds of education to make sure people would grow and that society would flourish.

The official ceremony on Founders Day will also include presentations and entertainment by special guests. Details of the event are being finalized by the Founders Day Committee, said Jerry Cook, NSU Director of Community Relations and committee co-chair.

As we are preparing to celebrate NSU Founders Day on March 6, 2009, the excitement is building, not just about the event, but about the real elevation of community and campus involvement in a truly historical experience, explained Cook. The foundation of NSU was built on Cherokee land, by Cherokee people, and this is a unique and powerful component to the story we will be sharing throughout Founders Day.

Various local and state entities are coming forward to participate in the days events, he noted.

There is a tremendous collaborative effort being forged and I cannot wait for that spring afternoon when all of us gather on the south lawn of Seminary Hall to reflect and celebrate together as a campus and as a community.

Special Centennial events that have taken place throughout the 2008 Fall Semester have brought members of the community together to join in the celebration. A performance on Beta Field by NSU alumna Carrie Underwood, a Centennial lectureship presentation by Elizabeth Eckford, member of the Little Rock Nine, and an opera performance by the renown Barbara McAlister all contributed to the momentum and excitement that continues to spread across campus.

On December 4, the annual NSU Lights On Ceremony will take place at the south entrance to Seminary Hall. During 2009 Spring Semester, Centennial lectureships will be presented by author Mark Pinsky on January 22 and Larry Coker, former head coach of the Miami Hurricanes, on April 18. The NSU Sweethearts Luncheon, celebrating those who met and married their sweethearts while students at Northeastern, is scheduled for February 13. Spring Fling, inspired by Kaleidoscope celebrations that began in the 1980s, is a full slate of activities scheduled for the week of April 20-24.

For more information about Centennial events, visit www.nsuok.edu/centennial/.

11/25/2008

Published: 2008-11-25 00:00:00