Campus News Spring 2021 Issue 11

Volume 78, Issue 23 | www.elaccampusnews.com | Wednesday, May 19, 2021 | Single copy free - additional copies 50 cents

ELAC students awarded Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Scholarships Achievement Program. In high school and college she has worked Staff Writer as a nighttime caregiver to help support herself.

Chan feels blessed to have Three East Los Angeles College won the scholarrship and said the students received scholarships from application process was a learning the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation. experience for her.

Janelle Chan, Yazmin Mata and “I told myself that even if I Ho Yan Yip were awarded the don’t get it, I’m still grateful that Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship I was able to finish the whole that includes up to $40,000 per year application because I learned more to attend an undergraduate school. about myself. I was also able to The student can pursue any area meet new mentors who guided me of study with the grant. Winners are throughout the process,” Chan said. assigned a personal adviser to assist Yazmin Mata is a first generation them with college selection and to undocumented Latina, majoring in navigate financial aid for transfer to Sociology and minoring in Political a four-year college. The goal of their Science. She is a member of the adviser is to maximize the student’s Pathway to Law Program. experience.

Mata previously interned for The Undergraduate Transfer Article 42 Tenure, AFT 1521, an Scholarship is annually awarded organization of community college to 72 top performing community students who visit with assembly c o l l e g e member’s staff to students inform them of looking to Janelle Chan, Yazmin the importance transfer to of funding Mata, and Ho Yan a four-year community college or Yip were awarded the colleges. She has university Undergraduate Transfer also been a part to complete of the Extended a bachelor ’s school scholarship that O p p o r t u n i t y degree. includes up to $40,000 P r o g r a m s a n d T h e Services at ELAC. per year to attend scholarship Going through undergraduate school. t h e c o l l e g e exists to assist high achieving navigation process students who alone has inspired can benefit Mata to use the f r o m s u p p o r t f i n a n c i a l a n d knowledge she has gained to help educational counseling. others.

It also gives the winners access “My dream is to go to law school to a community of scholars and and potentially get a master’s alumni through events, mentoring in Public Policy or a Ph.D. I programs and social media. really want to do research on the Janelle Chan is a first generation undocumented community as it student from the Philippines. She is is a community that is perceived transferring to Cornell University as through a narrative imposed on a Human Development major. Her them which only dehumanizes goal is to become a physician. them.

Chan is part of the John Delloro “What motivates me is knowing Program, Extended Opportunity that I am a mediator between my Programs and Services, Honors community and those who have Program and the Mathematics the power to influence it for better E n g i n e e r i n g S c i e n c e a n d or worse. This is why I not only see

BY TERESA ACOSTA

COURTESY OF EAST LOS ANGELES COLLEGE

SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS WITH ELAC PRESIDENT ALBERTO ROMÁN—Yazmin Mata (left), Janelle Chan and Ho Yan Yip. my education for my own personal growth and future financial stability but something I can bring back to my community and help them benefit from,” Mata said.

Ho Yan Yip is an economics major; she began her time at

ELAC in the spring of 2019. She is currently the Associated Student Union Vice President of Finance and the Region VII Treasurer for the Student Senate of California Community Colleges.

Yip loves working with diverse

groups of students as a tutor in the learning center, as a Math Supplemental Instruction Coach and as an embedded economics tutor for Professor Coson and Professor Kirby.

“Meeting students like first-

generation students, single parent students, and undocumented students has motivated me to dedicate myself in this community, providing my leadership and attaining academic justice,” Yip said.

Virtual lavender graduation celebrates LGBTQ+ students this week Save Date!

BY ALEJANDRO FLORES Staff Writer

THE

The Los Angeles Community College District

Lavender Graduation Celebration

May 17, 2021 • 4:00 p.m.

Los Angeles Community College District held its third Lavender Graduation this week.

Despite being held virtually, the ceremony was filled with cheers and applause for the graduating students of 2021.

Emcee Joshua Wentz’ vibrant personality gave extra magic to the event when he sang Lady Gaga’s “Born this way.”

The Board of Trustees congratulated the students for their hard work and dedication. Los Angeles City Mayor, Eric Garcetti spoke in a pre-recorded video message reminding the attendees that inclusion and togetherness is the way to bring one another up and succeed.

LACCD Vice President and first openly LGBTQ+ board member David Vela, cheered on the graduates who accomplished an educational milestone during a pandemic.

Vela had the graduates take a moment to reflect on every challenge

they had to overcome to reach this goal.

Keynote Speaker of the ceremony California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said how proud he is to represent the LGBTQ+ community in any setting he finds himself in.

Lara shared how one should never have to give up their dreams and goals, “If somebody told me 20 years ago, I’d be standing here today, I would have never believed them,” Lara said.

Student Trustee and proud member LGBTQ+ community Elias Geronimo said how the Los Angeles City College District has been instrumental in his process to achieving his dreams.

Jamey Sinardi of Los Angeles Pierce College shared how she struggled with academia in the past and how Pierce College resources enabled her to persevere.

East Los Angeles College graduate Nadia Noemi Martinez shared how essential personal growth and self acceptance is to living a happy life.

The event drew over 225 attendees from across all colleges in the districts. Even without a stage,

Celebrating our Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, and Asexual Pup Edition University of Southern California Los Angeles This issue was produced (LGBTQIA+) student graduates! Transfer Welcome Lounges

News Briefs

by Journalism -101 classes.

More Information to Follow!

UCLA invites admitted transfer students to welcome lounges today at 4 p.m. and Thursday May 20 at 12:30 p.m https://bruinbound.ucla.edu/transfers

all the graduates appeared excited to be completing their community college journey.

Their faces filled with smiles and pride as they were being recognized.

Supportive messages from family and friends poured through the chat, one after another.

The experience, although different, was possibly more personal. Being able to see the graduates reactions made the experience feel more intimate than being seated 200+ feet away like in a traditional ceremony.

Another plus from the graduation taking place in a virtual setting is the fair distribution of time in between the graduates names being called.

The closed captioning at the bottom of the zoom screen even allowed for a multimodal approach of receiving the information.

The closing musical performance, a classic rise anthem “Make them hear you” interpreted by The Gay Mens Chorus Of Los Angeles, made the Zoom chat fill up with emotional messages. “The Spanish part really got to me’’ one graduate wrote.

Leadership Academy for Foster Youth LAUSD board member Monica Garcia hosts leadership academy in partnership with ELAC on May 20 at 3 p.m. https://lausd.zoom.us/J/84469354749

2

Opinion

EAST LOS ANGELES COLLEGE CAMPUS NEWS WEDNESDAY, MAY 19, 2021

Biden should stand for immigrants

BY RICARDO MARTIR Staff Writer It has been 116 days since President Biden’s inauguration.

During his campaign one of the promises he made was to revert all inhumane immigration policies made by the Trump administration.

We’ve yet to see if he has kept his promise to the immigrant community, or if it’s just empty promises from politicians as usual.

From the start of his presidency, Biden has been faced with challenging and even contradicting circumstances that make it difficult for himself and his administration to know where to begin.

Every decision President Biden makes he is likely to face backlash, regardless of whether or not the proposals are agree with the Democratic or Republican points of view.

In January, Biden began his term by writing more executive orders on imigration than any other topic, in an attempt to revert all of Trump's policies that were inhumane and plain racist.

Although his plans were with good intentions, the situation seems to have backfired.

Instead of all immigrants receiving a comfortable welcome, they were received with asylum in detention center camps that were overflowing.

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This was especially concerning with the amount of COVID-19 cases at the time.

Former President Donald Trump addressed immigration with the ideas of the far right.

This left current President Joe Biden to pick up the pieces that Trump left behind with his conservative ways.

Regardless of what is done, Biden’s actions will be criticized.

The majority of immigrants don’t come to the U.S. asking for handouts, they come to work.

This begs the question: does the resolution lie in the hands of a certain political party or is this more of a humanitarian issue?

Why do immigrants continue to leave their countries year after year and risk being stranded, killed and trafficked?

They do this with the hope to maybe one day have a life they and their future generations deserve.

That's because immigrants flee their countries to escape corruption in politics and scarce career opportunities, regardless of whether or not they have a higher education.

“Well respected” careers are reserved for the rich and their families, leaving the public with nothing but luck and hope when wanting to take their career to the next level.

They also come fleeing gang violence where it’s kill or be killed, but to an extreme in comparison to the U.S. Previous generations came fleeing literal war.

The civil war in El Salvador is well known and highly documented in the Hispanic community.

Both the government military and the opposing militia forcibly recruited young children since there was no age requirement.

It didn’t matter how old they were as long as they could pick up a gun and withstand the recoil after a shot was fired.

The majority of immigrants don’t come to the U.S. asking for handouts, they come to work.

They serve the country, oftentimes working without rights because they believe they don’t have rights. This leaves them to work the most tiring jobs and in conditions where they are often exploited.

No, immigrants aren’t perfect, but they definitely provide more to the country than what they take away.

Staff Writer Gentrification has been a threat to communities of low income and people of color.

Wi t h s h i f t s o c c u r r i n g a l l throughout Los Angeles, there is an impactful change in communities of color.

Bell Hooks, an author and social activist was right when she said, “Think about the colonizing role that wealthy white gay men have played in communities of color; they’re often the first group to gentrify poor and working-class neighborhoods.”

She is right simply due to the fact that class and race have a lot to do with the displacement of people of color in Los Angeles.

Many officials in office approach gentrification as a way to beautify the streets of Los Angeles, but that does not mean that they have good intentions for the community.

The perfect example of gentrification taking place is in our neighboring community, Boyle Heights.

Boyle Heights has always been predominantly a home to people of color.

In recent years, this has changed.

When walking down East 3rd Street, you can't help but notice that the local funnel cake store has been removed and replaced with Mugs Coffee Roasters.

When a community of wealthy and predominately white people hold their power over people of color, this is the result.

The sad part about gentrification is that it has already taken so many communities out of their homes.

The placement of trendy coffee shops, clothing brands, or even restaurants like the Brooklyn Avenue on Cesar Chavez were all homes to local 99 cents stores, thrift www.ELACCampusNews.com

stores and even homes.

There have been many movements against gentrification in Los Angeles.

The drawback for these movements is that the city supports gentrification.

Many officials in office approach gentrification as a way to beautify the streets of Los Angeles, but that does not mean that they have good intentions for the community.

Most of the people who gentrify have a higher net worth. Therefore when money talks, it is easier for things to disappear.

On the bright side, people who have suffered from gentrification have used that experience as a fuel to bring awareness to it.

William Camargo, photographer and Arts advocate, documented the displacement of communities through his project “Origins & Displacements.”

This project features areas that have been both impacted by gentrification and origin stories of brown and black people in Los Angeles.

In one of his images, a person holds a sign saying, “This area will gentrify soon,” indicating a park he grew up in called La Palma Park.

Other photographs document stories of working-class people.

In another image, a person is holding a sign that says, “brown women used to pack oranges here.”

All these images showcase the endangerment that people of color face every day by people of higher status.

The fight against gentrification can be very tough.

With artists like Camargo, there needs to be more action toward the issue.

C o m m u n i t y o rg a n i z a t i o n s like East Yard Communities for Environmental Injustice also play a significant role in tackling gentrification.

In recent months, they won a fight against a developer who wanted to build a gas station next to neighborhood homes.

When steps are being made like this, there is room for hope that there will be less displacements of working-class communities.

Gentrification will not be a fear for communities of color. The more attention it gets, the more solutions will be made.

Erica Cortes MANAGING EDITOR Juan Cavillo PUP EDITION EDITORS IN CHIEF Zasha Hayes Daniella Molina FRONT EDITOR Teresa Acosta OPINION EDITOR Ricardo Martir FEATURE EDITOR Maricela Hernandez ARTS EDITOR Alejandro Flores COPY EDITORS Luis Castilla Ivan Cazares Diego Linares CARTOONIST Max Miranda

Boyle Heights, a city worth fighting for

BY NATALIA ANGELES

EDITOR IN CHIEF

PHOTOGRAPHER Elvia Ramos GRAPHICS Natalia Angeles ONLINE EDITOR Christopher Paz ART DIRECTOR Steven Adamo ADVERTISING Stefanie De La Torre ADVISER Jean Stapleton

CN/MAX MIRANDA

Online classes should stay beneficial for students

BY TERESA ACOSTA Staff Writer

Online classes with live instruction and meetings should become a permanent option for all students.

As classes are set to return on campus with in-person instruction, it is important to look back at the different ways classes have been held over the last year.

The information must be analyzed for what has worked, what has not and how that information can be used to broaden class styles offered at East Los Angeles College.

Students and faculty continue the debate over whether or not classes should remain online, but it is time to look past that argument.

The pandemic created an involuntary trial and error. This should be used to lead colleges to improvements and more variety in class options.

Previously, the main options for taking classes at ELAC were traditional in-person learning, done in a classroom, meeting multiple times a week.

Another option is online classes that provide all the information needed to complete assignments at the pace of the student, with no live lectures.

Closing the campus last spring forced classes in progress to convert to an online only format with video conferencing to replace live lectures.

There is much to research and develop about the failures and successes of these classes.

Professors and students were left with a sink-or-swim challenge when campus closed.

Online classes with live instruction are an opportunity for many to return to school after a hiatus.

Stay-at-home parents are some of the people that have taken advantage of this opportunity.

The challenge of not having reliable childcare is just one of the reasons hybrid classes can be a viable option.

Others, who have been out of school for some time, see it as an opportunity to continue their education.

Many of these are often under the pressure of being in a classroom setting where their peers are half their age, and they may not be as comfortable asking for help in this setting.

Of course, there are those classes where a hybrid model is just not possible, the classes that require hands-on learning with tools. Yet even those types of classes should have the option to attend classes both on campus and online.

Online classes with no live meetings are a useful means of learning for those who are selfdisciplined and self-motivated.

These classes can be worked into almost any schedule.

Classes following this style provide that little extra push for students to successfully complete assignments are perfect for students who need a little bit more accountability.

Those that need a space where they can ask questions in a live setting, instead of tracking down a source to answer questions.

A c c o r d i n g t o w w w. educationdata.org, in 2020, 41% of students indicated the quality of their online college-level learning experience was better than college-level classroom instruction, compared to 15% who felt it was not as good.

There is something about being able to take a college course from the comfort of your own space that just feels easier.

Campus News encourages letters to the editor relating to campus issues. Letters must be typed and double spaced.

Submitted material becomes the property of Campus News and cannot be returned. Letters should be limited to 300 words or less.

Campus News reserves the right to edit letters for grammatical errors or libelous content.

Anonymous letters will not be printed. Writers must sign submissions and print their names and a phone number where they can be reached. Letters should be addressed to the editor of Campus News. Submissions can be made at the mailroom in building E1 or the Journalism department office in the Technology Center in E7-303.

East Los Angeles College Campus News 1301 Avenida Cesar Chavez E7-303 Monterey Park, CA 91754 (323) 265-8819, Ads (323) 265-8821 Fax (323) 415-4910 The East Los Angeles College Campus News is published as a learning experience, offered under the East Los Angeles College Journalism program. The editorial and advertising materials are free from prior restraint by virtue of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

The opinions expressed are exclusively those of the writer.

Accordingly, materials published herein, including any opinions expressed, should not be interpreted as the position of the Los Angeles Community College District, East Los Angeles College, or any officer or employee thereof.

Arts 3 J. Cole reminds rapppers he paved the way EAST LOS ANGELES COLLEGE CAMPUS NEWS

WEDNESDAY, MAY 19, 2021

BY CHRISTOPHER PAZ Staff Writer J. Cole gained a reputation for albums that do well with no features.

His latest album “The Off Season” was released on May 14 on Dreamville Records, Roc Nation and Interscope Records.

Unlike his previous projects, he collaborated with seven different artists this time around. The artists ranged from Bas and 6lack to Lil Baby and 21 Savage.

The album has a runtime of only 39 minutes and has 12 tracks.

The album begins with “ 95 s o u t h” and features Cam’ron and Lil Jon. In this song, Cole speaks on the shift of the digital age.

Currently, album sales are decided by the amount of streams an album receives.

Another way album sales are calculated is with merchandise bundles. If an artist includes a digital copy of their album with merchandise they also receive a

COURTESY OF DREAMVILLE RECORDS, ROC NATION AND INTERSCOPE RECORDS

A look into the ‘Fall River’ murders

BY MAX MIRANDA Staff Writer EPIX’s new series “Fall River” might just be the docu-series that grabs viewers’ attention. It contains very graphic depictions.

Director and producer James Buddy Day has done work on the TV program “Catching a Serial Killer: Bruce McArthur,” and film “Manson: The Woman.”

Their first episode called “My Soul to Keep,” aired Sunday.

The docu-series is on investigations and crime and gets more interesting as you continue watching.

This four-part docu-series looks at the horrific murder of a young sex worker and the satanic cult the police uncovered as a result.

The show takes place in Fall River, Massachusetts, where it was known as the town of mills, hills, and pork pies. But the town was also known for Lizzie Bordon, who killed her father and stepmother in an axe murder in August of 1892.

The Fall River murders began in 1979 and 1980 where three women died from a homicide during a satanic ritual in the woods.

When newspapers and talk shows started talking about satanic cults, people started to get worried.

Alan Silvia, who is a former detective from the Fall River Police Department, said he remembered these homicides and the details to them.

“All of those homicides, probably 40 that I was involved with – the details of every one of those crime scenes – it would stick on to me,” Silvia said he did not like any second of it.

Silvia said that people would come up to him and say, “Would

you talk to my son, he wants to be a police officer.”

Silvia would call that job the worst job in the world.

Day said that new things came to light.

Though this crime scene happened nearly 41 years ago, they still found new evidence as new people came forward. “We didn’t really even get to the conclusion that we came to until very late in the process,” said Day. They started off this story looking at Carl Drew, who was sentenced to prison for life without the possibility of parole.

Once Drew began talking to people and more research was done, the story began to expand.

Drew’s backstory about how he came to be the person he is today, is sad. His father was an alcoholic who was verbally and physicallty abusive.

“When you really dig into their backstory and learn where they came from, there’s a lot of abuse.

A lot of darkness. And it really reframes, for me, what happened later on,” said Day. Another person who stood out from this crime scene, was Robin Murphy. Her backstory is interesting as well. Her mom wasn’t there for her and her father didn’t care for her.

She was considered a tough chick at just 17 years old and would beat anybody up.

“Robin would eat pizza and kill you right after, and it wouldn’t bother her,” said Silvia.

This first part really gives good details on what happened to these women.

A recreational cast was used to recreate the scenes of what happened in the past.

The soundtrack, setting and even the clothing was well-executed

while re-enacting a moment in the late ‘70s early ‘80s.

There is a lot more, but viewers will enjoy unpacking everything themselves.

If investigating and solving crimes is of interest to viewers, this docu-series is something they will enjoy. The next episode comes out Sunday.

COURTESY OF EPIX

number of album sales.

J. Cole has an obvious distaste for the way the industry has changed.

“Cole been goin’ plat since back when CDs was around.” “What you sold I tripled that/look how everyone claps when your 30-song album does a measly 100 thou.”

Here, he reminds the listener that he was around before the digital age and sold more than artists who release double albums do now and continues to go platinum even in the new era.

He also touches on the fact that artists now are releasing long albums and are barely crossing the hundred thousand sales mark– alluding to the fact that artists are choosing quantity over quality.

Throughout the album, J. Cole talks about his youth and growing up in North Carolina.

He talks about seeing some of his friends with potential to do great things eventually end up taking the wrong path, how they end up either in prison or dead. It’s always great when an artist allows you into

their previous life before fame and doesn’t just flaunt the life they have now achieved.

He also tries to include lessons for up-and-coming artists in his albums.

In one song, he compares how his friends eat on their own while other rappers’ friends leech off of them.

He goes on to say that rappers should show their friends how to strive for their own and provide avenues for them to prosper not just receive handouts.

Cole is considered one of the greatest rap artists of the last 10 years.

This album only seems to solidify that case. He is an excellent storyteller and never seems to sell his fans short. From the delivery or rhyme schemes to the selection of beats, he puts an immense amount of time and effort into creating each song.

The album has been receiving great reviews and many Twitter users are calling it the album of the year.

Spotify has the best deals for college students

BY RICARDO MARTIR Staff Writer With so many deals college students are offered, Spotify reigns supreme from all of the rest.

Not only do you get Spotify premium for $4.99 in comparison to the regular $9.99 plan, you also get Hulu with ads and Showtime.

Showtime regularly goes with a monthly fee of $10.99 and hulu also charges a monthly fee of $5.99 You are already saving a total of $21.97 per month, that's almost $264 per year.

Other deals are simply not as good, whether it’s because they have conditions and exclusions or because sometimes not all students are taken into consideration. For example, Apple Music and Unidays do not recognize East Los Angeles College students for the discount.

Various other similar services have simply exempted ELAC students of their prices for not recognizing the school.

On the other hand, Spotify can verify you through Sheer ID in a matter of minutes.

Sheer ID is a third-party company that verifies individuals’ affiliations.

Apple Music has combined its Apple TV service for a more enticing student plan.

However, even if you were to get this bundle with Apple TV, which debuted in November of 2019– it's fair to say that this is a new service and therefore lacks variety in its available content.

On the other hand, Spotify has

partnered up with Hulu, which made its debut in 2008 and with Showtime streaming, which debuted in 2015.

That's years of service, reputation and originals created by both. Hulu offers thousands of shows and movies ranging from favorites like “This is Us,” to originals like “Solar Opposites.”

Spotify is the better service– from the user interface to its music library. Spotify has an extensive library of over 50 million songs and continues to add songs.

Certain companies also require students to maintain a 3.0 GPA, which leaves a lot of students out of eligibility.

When looking at other deals, students want something they can have access to every day of the week.

Deals like discounted movie tickets and discounted subscription prices are nice, but none are like Spotify where students can watch shows and movies or listen to music anytime and anywhere.

Sure a discount to the movies is nice, but are students going to go to the movies every day?

Even with a subscription to the local magazine– unless the students are journalists or avid readers– they’re likely to ignore their subscription until they see some interesting news they already saw on TV or social media.

Spotify with Hulu and Showtime is the ideal student discount bundle.

Whether the student needs music to study, throw a party, or if the student is simply looking to unwind and watch a few episodes of a show or that one movie over the weekend. Spotify helps students do it all.

Jorja Smith’s new music lyrics empower young women

BY NATALIA ANGELES Staff Writer R&B singer Jorja Smith puts together an experimental EP titled “Be Right Back.” In 25 minutes and 39 seconds, Smith clears the air that this in fact is not her second album.

“Be Right Back” is composed of eight songs in total. These songs are just a glimpse of Smith’s new sound. With tracks that can possibly be demos or incomplete.

Smith, being a BRIT awardwinner for her 2018 debut album “Lost and Found,” felt she needed more time for her second album.

“BRB with my second album, enjoy this for now,” said Smith on an Instagram post made the day of her EP’s release.

With the song “Addicted” being track number one, her new sound that incorporates both the piano and guitar grasps the attention of listening fans. Not only that, but her lyrics relate to the many one-sided love stories humans encounter.

“You are not addicted to me, I’m the only thing you should need,” Smith said.

Moving forward on her third track “Bussdown” featuring Shaybo, both artists help women feel empowered.

Smith implements a reggaeinfluenced sound while describing the hard working women spoiling themselves. “Diamonds, baby, bought all of them, dressed up and she just walks right in,” Smith said.

Transitioning from her Jazz-vocal sound while still keeping a title as an R&B singer, Smith’s voice brings down the barrier of traditional sounds.

With track number six “Burn,” Smith delivers a semi-live version with a conversation in the beginning. “Can you take the click off, please?” Smith proceeds to mix both her fabulous voice with her jazz influence sound. Yet, in this track Smith conveys a story of a little girl who seems to be passionate about her dreams, but falls down.

With her EP coming to an end, track number eight, “Weekend,” Smith’s voice once again blows

fans away. Transitioning from her jazz-vocal sound, while still keeping a title as an R&B singer, Smith’s voice brings down the barrier of traditional sounds. Smith foreshadows the cage R&B sounds are in. “Song is a trapped word, song is a trapped world,” Smith said.

Two of the eight tracks already have a music video. Both “Addicted” and “Buss Down” capture her experimental sounds. Although this is new from Smith, her lyrics and vocal sounds resemble some of her past work such as “Be Honest.”

In the “Addicted” music video, Smith is taking photos in different outfits in front of her Macbook.

Each outfit changes as she sings different parts of the song.

In the “Buss Down” music video, both Smith and Shaybo are shown as hard working mechanics then changing to being hot empowering women. With luxury around them, their lyrics repeat the accomplishment it is to be a woman and a hard worker.

Even so, it is quite impossible to wait for her second album. Smith’s EP gave a glimpse to her new sound.

This incited excitement and great hopes for her upcoming work.

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4

Features

EAST LOS ANGELES COLLEGE CAMPUS NEWS WEDNESDAY, MAY May 19, 2021 WEDNESDAY,

Meditation app offers tips in stress relief

BY TERESA ACOSTA Staff Writer Daily mindfulness meditations can improve well-being and decrease distress.

In the last year, mental health awareness and mental needs have increased as a side effect of the pandemic.

Tools to help combat these issues just got easier.

Headspace is a mindfulness app that provides guided meditation, and right now you can subscribe for free.

The Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, together with Headspace is offering county residents a $69.99 annual subscription for free.

A Headspace Plus subscription includes exercises in meditation, movement, sleep and focus.

Daily tasks can be customized with your favorites or chosen for

you, and most can be completed in just a few minutes. The meditation section of the app teaches meditation techniques.

A few minutes a day can increase mindfulness.

The focus section of the app has playlists instrumental for when you need to concentrate on a task.

One study found that using the Headspace app a few times a week for eight weeks eased anxiety and depression.

“Meditation has always been difficult for me,”said Marisa Martinez, a user of the app. “ I have a hard time focusing my mind.

It wants to think about everything all at once. The Headspace App starts off with very simple and basic exercises so you can slowly train your mind to quiet little by little, and really take a breather.”

The CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, released last month, found that between

CN/ZASHA HAYES

INNER PEACE—The mental health app Headspace offers a free solution to stress

August 2020-February 2021, the percentage of adults with symptoms of an anxiety or a depressive disorder increased from 36.4% to 41.5%, and the percentage of those reporting an unmet mental health care need increased from 9.2% to 11.7%.

Increases were largest among adults aged 18-29 years and those with less than a high school education.

While this application cannot address more serious mental health issues, it can be a gateway for those who need a starting point on improving their mental health.

Please visit the following websites for more information on the app mentioned. https://www.headspace.com/ lacounty https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/ volumes/70/wr/mm7013e2. htm?s_cid=mm7013e2_w suggestedcitation

Communications instructor enlightens through his voice

BY MAX MIRANDA Staff Writer

COURTESY OF MARIA GOMEZ

DETERMINED STUDENT—Freshman Maria Gomez navigating through school virtually through help from the first year enrichment program.

Student enrichment program helps Huskies thrive

Whether good or bad, Professor David Hale will accept the work and will help you if you’re having trouble.

Professor David Hale is a professor at East Los Angeles College who works in the Communications Department.

He has been teaching at East Los Angeles College for seven years.

For someone who started doing public speaking in high school in speech and debate teams, he’s helped a lot of students improve their own public speaking.

Teaching in all levels, Hale has seen good work during the years.

Students say they have seen their work improve from the start to the end of the semester.

Hale said that he thinks that most people are very good at public speaking, they just don’t know.

And when he works with his students, he doesn’t want them to think of him as a grader. “I want them to think of me as a friend or a coach who is willing to help

them out and not just someone who grades their paper.” said Hale.

He usually has his students work individually and they should treat it like a conversation. “I want them to do their best individually and have them work on it like a convo,” he said.

For someone who has been doing public speaking since high school being on multiple speach and debate teams, Hale has helped a lot of students work on their public speaking.

As they work, he said that they should take things slowly. “Most student will view their work from a critical lens, and they think that the work is no good. I don’t want their work to be like a Martin Luther King Jr. speech. Whether the work is good or not, it’s exceptional.”

Hale wants students to learn from him so that they can boost their confidence. “I want them to learn from me because I’ve won awards doing what I do, I’ve helped people doing what I do. That’s what I tell my students in the classroom.”

And when it comes to their speeches, Hale wants them to remain calm.

“The students, when they do their speeches, at times they’ll pre-plan every word they say. I don’t want that to happen. Just go with what you know.”

Even if the speech isn’t the best, he will accept it and help you if you struggled on.

Hale also said that he wants you to speak with confidence and that if you don’t speak with confidence then you’ll think that your work is terrible.

Hale said that he has seen students get better at certain areas where they struggled with at the beginning of the semester.

“I’ve seen progression from a lot of the students from the start of the semester towards the end of the semester. Seeing something like that truly means something.”

Cohort project provides close mentorship

BY NATALIA ANGELES Staff Writer

ELAC trains future health care workers

BY ELVIA RAMOS Staff Writer E L A C ’s R e s p i r a t o r y T h e r a p y Professor Bunnarith Chhun prepares his class with safety supplies like latex gloves, hand sanitizer and proper masks.

In a briefing afterwards he highlights the safety protocols to remember while on campus and around others.

The program’s main objectives are to maintain a patient records and to communicate information with people.

Students also learn how to maintain patient’s airway including the care of artificial airways and achieving satisfactory respiratory support.

The program is currently accepting applications for fall.

For more information contact program director Kevin M. Booth at boothkm@ elac.edu.

CN/ELVIA RAMOS

www.ELACCampusNews.com

SAFETY FIRST—ELAC Respiratory Therapy students, Denise Lopez left, Fei Li, Kylie, Christina Melgoza, Maria Orguna and Professor Bunnarith Chhun.

CN/ELVIA RAMOS

With the pandemic almost coming to an end and schools reopening, it is fundamental to enlighten the issues of first-year and first-generation students.

Maria Evelyn Romero Gomez, 18, found it hard to stay connected with campus. “The first semester I struggled,” Gomez said.

With school being remote for her first year in college, she did not know who to look to for help.

“I got very little help from counselors,” said Gomez.

Not only did she find it hard to look for help, but she found it hard to get involved.

“I did not know how to navigate ELAC’s website,” said Gomez.

Clubs were remote as well, so Gomez had no clue where to look for Zoom meetings or club leader’s emails.

“I did not want to join a club through a computer,” Gomez said.

Gomez felt she was not going to gain any knowledge through her kitchen table.

The First-Year Center, a program that Gomez joined, has helped relieve some stress.

“I got paired up with a counselor through the first-year center that sort of helped,” Gomez said. The FYE was a good resource for students like Gomez.

Gomez found time-scheduling hard. “The First-Year center had a club fair but none of those days worked for me,” Gomez said.

With students working and having personal issues, it can be very challenging to want to join clubs.

Gomez related to many students

who have family responsibilities.

Through centers like these, “I am the oldest daughter, I take Gomez still has strong hopes that care of my two-year-old brother,” she can connect with her campus.

Gomez said.

Overall, Gomez is very fond This adds to her discouragement of the benefits ELAC has offered to join clubs that ELAC offers. students like herself. “ELAC Gomez suggested that clubs hold has been helpful in many ways, informational meetings of their financially and adjusting to college club information for a week. life. I would just push them to work “They should record their Zoom on supporting students more,” meetings, or hold meetings for a Gomez said. week. Students have such busy She found it smart to attend schedules,” Gomez said.

ELAC first and transfer to her dream Gomez believes that the best way school UCLA in order to find her to stay connected is if clubs were true calling. active on social media.

Apart from her student life, “I have seen other club Instagram Gomez continues to look for ways pages and to stay in extra they have not curriculars. posted since Gomez has the beginning been a part of quarantine,” a program The First-Year Center, of Gomez said. called Las Fotos Clubs posting a program that Gomez Project. on their social Throughout joined, has helped media can help the pandemic, students who she held two relieve some stress. know how to workshops on navigate apps to photojournalism join. at the Korean Gomez’s To w n Yo u t h experience Plus Center and as a first-generation student has an English Class at Cal State LA. challenged her even more during “It was cool to do the research, the pandemic. “I sometimes do not and talk to people about the topic, want to go to college,” Gomez said. especially some kids my age,” Gomez finds it challenging to Gomez said. speak about her opinion to her To look for ways to stay connected family. She feels that her family to the ELAC campus, you can visit would be disappointed. their website: “Filling out the financial aid https://www.elac.edu/Academics/ package was so scary,” Gomez said. Departments/English/StudentWhen financial aid opened, Gomez Clubs found it useful to pay a visit to the Or you can also go to the student Dream Resource Center. activities website to learn more “I reached out to the Dream about different events: Resource Center for my Dream Act https://www.elac.edu/Studentapplication. They helped,” Gomez Services/Student-Activities said.

STEADY HAND—Instructor Wynne Virginia observes Xi Chen as she practices injecting into a silicon sponge.