Daily Forty-Niner; February 15, 2021

weekly digital print edition

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Vol. LXXII, Issue 20

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Monday, February 15, 2021

‘LOVE THE LAND’

Inside the

Niner

Pages 4 & 5

NEWS

ARTS & LIFE

Long Beach Transit sees revenue loss

Remote internships bring new experiences

page 7

page 10

2 NEWS

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2021 | DAILY49ER.COM | @DAILY49ER | EIC@DAILY49ER.COM ON THE COVER Photo by RICHARD GRANT

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Construction takes place next to the School of Nursing at Long Beach State.

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CSULB is getting a makeover Campus renovations include updated dorms, an alumni center and new buildings.

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By Iman Palm Assistant News Editor

A

lthough not many people are currently visiting Long Beach State due to coronavirus pandemic related restrictions, the University Design and Construction Team has been working on building renovations throughout the campus.

Currently, Enrollment Services, the Anna W. Ngai Alumni Center and the Los Alamitos and Los Cerritos buildings are undergoing redevelopment.

E. James Brotman Hall has gone through three prior renovation phases, with the upgrade of Enrollment Services being its final stage. These prior renovations have addressed Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility, technological issues and expanding spaces where students and staff have face-to-face interactions.

“Over the past decade, we have had a large number of students applying to Long Beach. It’s kinda kept increasing,” said Mark Zakhour, director of construction services. “So with that volume and the number of students that need financial support or enrollment support or student support services, that increase has caused us to need to renovate Enrollment Services’ departments to meet that need.”

According to Zakhour, the first floor of Brotman Hall, where Enrollment Services is located, hasn’t been upgraded in at least 25 years.

The redesign of this department will focus on upgrading fire safety, ADA accessibility standards and office space, he said.

“Before [the renovations] it was really unwelcoming and depressing. It was just a really bad space,” Zakhour said. “The air conditioning system didn’t work, it leaked water, and it was just really bad.”

Though the renovation of Enrollment Services has been designed, it has not yet received any funding to officially begin construction.

The project cost is estimated to be $3 million and will be funded by state-deferred maintenance funds or academic affairs operational funds, which Zakhour hopes is secured next month.

If secured, construction will begin in April with an estimated completion date of October 2021.

In addition to enrollment services, the Anna W. Ngai Alumni Center will begin construction soon.

Construction workers are completing the underground work needed to start building the foundation of the building. The center is estimated to be completed by January 2022.

A new alumni center, a $10.5 million project completely funded by alumni donors, is set to replace the recently demolished Soroptimist House, which had been a student union back in 1960.

The new building will be open to alumni and will house a conference room, various event spaces, a family room and a cafe. According to Zakhour, the alumni center will also have a university memorabilia hall and will house former mascot Prospector Pete.

“It will be the new home for our alumni. There is not really a place on campus that alumni can call home,” Zakhour said.

In addition, the university’s Design and Construction Team is also working on renovations of Los Alamitos Hall and Los Cerritos Hall, which are part of Hillside College Dormitory.

These updates include fire sprinklers and new fire alert systems, which are “probably the most important part of the project,” Zakhour said. Los Alamitos is also getting an elevator installed, something that only currently exists in Los Cerritos.

“We are going into those buildings, and we are going to completely gut the buildings, taking everything from the windows to the floors,” Zakhour said. “We are going to completely update the building to modern standards.”

Both halls in Hillside College will also have community kitchens, late night dining and a counselor in-residence program for students.

The housing project is expected to be completed in August 2021 and will cost approximately $34 million.

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NEWS 3

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2021 | DAILY49ER.COM | @DAILY49ER | NEWS@DAILY49ER.COM

Students react to Biden’s actions While many are pleased with his executive orders thus far, others remain skeptical of his ability to keep his campaign promises.

By Bella Arnold Staff Writer

O

n Jan. 20, 2021, President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Vice President Kamala Harris were inaugurated, marking the first time a woman and person of color has held the office of the vice president.

Within the first few hours of his presidency, Biden ushered in a slew of executive orders.

Students at Long Beach State have expressed mixed views of the Biden administration’s actions thus far, though several have shown support for the reversal of many Trump-era policies.

Lynzie Hinman, a third-year communications major, admitted that Biden and Harris were not her ideal presidential candidates.

“I think I was like a lot of people my age where I was for Bernie,” Hinman said.

Sen. Bernie Sanders dropped out of the presidential race on April 8, 2020, and it became clear that Biden would become the Democratic candidate. A movement emerged amongst Sanders supporters to “Settle for Biden,” which was extremely influential given Sanders’ sway with members of Gen Z and millennials who currently account for almost 40% of eligible voters.

“So far, I’ve been really glad with all the executive orders they’ve been doing,” Hinman said. “The only thing I’m getting frustrated with is how the Trumpian politicians are giving him a hard time.”

Hinman said she hopes that the new administration will continue to advocate for gender and sexual equality.

She noted Biden’s overturning of Trump’s transgender military ban as one of the executive actions she feels grateful for.

“The past decade has changed, and we’ve become more inclusive,” Hinman said.

Aside from executive orders like instituting a federal mask mandate, Biden has made the decision for the United States to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement.

Natalie Lanhey, a fourth-year sociology major, said she hopes that the Biden-Harris administration continues to address the climate crisis.

“I’m impressed with what the administration has done and accomplished so far,” Lanhey said. “Obviously there’s room for criticism and critique, but they did come into office with so much on their plate that Trump just left for them to deal with.”

Republicans in Congress like Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene continue to advocate for the theory that the 2020 election was “stolen,” and have been vocal regarding their opposition to Biden’s executive actions.

Though things seem to be looking up at the moment, Lanhey feels concerned that Biden and Harris may not follow through with many of the plans they made while running for office.

“I just hope that they stick to their word and live up to all that they promised to do and fix during the campaign and that these first few weeks aren’t all glamorous just to go to shit in a few months,” Lanhey said.

Jemmy Monroe, a second-year double majoring in English and journalism, said while they are content that the Trump administration is no longer in office, they have their reservations about the Biden-Harris ticket.

“I’m glad that I don’t have to wake up every morning thinking ‘What’s going to be on the news today,’” Monroe said. “I can not think about the president for more than five minutes, so that’s slightly comforting.”

Monroe said they “didn’t appreciate” Biden’s comments on the campaign trail telling Black voters they weren’t Black if they voted otherwise. Yet, they feel pleased to see action being taken to focus on COVID-19.

To address the suffering economy and hunger crisis that have been exacerbated as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the president has created a legislative package that looks to provide governmental assistance to food insecure Americans and stimulus checks.

Some voters worry that this administration will be too centrist in regards to policy issues like the college debt crisis and the Green New Deal.

Currently, the Democratic Party holds the majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Monroe said they hope that Congress will create meaningful legislation and set a precedent for future congresspeople to better represent their constituents.

“If we have people in government and we have constituents who are able to put pressure on them, that’s fine,” Monroe said.

4 NEWS

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2021 | DAILY49ER.C

PROTECT PUVUNGNA

In’yoni Felix prays during Sunday’s event on Puvungna.

RICHARD GRANT | Daily Forty Nine

COM | @DAILY49ER | NEWS@DAILY49ER.COM

er

NEWS 5

Members of the local Indigenous community gather on the sacred site on Valentine’s Day to ‘love the land’ and each other.

By Julia Terbeche News Editor

W

ith the scent of burning sage permeating the air, members of the local Native community gathered on P u v u n g n a Sunday morning for a socially distanced ceremonial prayer and dance in honor of Indigenous land.

Organized by Friends of Puvungna, the event featured about 30 mask-wearing participants, a few of whom dressed in ceremonial attire, and a local hawk circling the land. A National Lawyers Guild legal observer was also present to ensure the ceremony remained peaceful.

“Today is Valentine’s Day, it’s not just to love people, it’s to love the land,” said Christopher Diaz, fire keeper, Elder and member of the Chumash people. “We are here today to pray.”

Once spanning over 500 acres, Puvungna remains a 22-acre plot of land located alongside lot G2 at Long Beach State, often frequented by the Native community for rituals like this one.

Diaz, whose mother and aunt advocated for the protection of Puvungna as sacred land 25 years ago, led the group in a prayer circle.

In’yoni Felix, who is from the Juaneno Band of Mission Indians, performed a ceremonial dance in the circle.

Felix, a resident of Fresno, drove out to Puvungna to be able to participate and offer a dance.

“There’s nothing like being around trees your ancestors saw, there’s nothing like being on this land,” Felix said.

“The land heals itself.”

Felix created a viral TikTok video, which has over 500,000 views, discussing the Indigenous community’s struggle with the university over protecting the land.

A dancer for about a year, Felix said she feels ceremonial dancing is a way to “reclaim Indigenous culture.”

“It’s like we’re not people, we’re a political stance,” Felix said.

The group made its way along Earl Warren Drive to gather at the Beach Drive campus entrance, with several participants holding decorated signs that read “protect the sacred” and “hands off Puvungna.”

When conducting the prayer circle, Diaz discussed how the Indigenous community has been at odds with CSULB for decades. As someone who grew up going to Puvungna, Diaz expressed his frustration with the university’s treatment of the land, citing how ancestral remains had been unearthed in the past.

“Puvungna goes almost to the water’s edge,” Diaz said, his voice breaking. “We’ve had some presidents at the university, some cared and some did not.”

Participants included members of other local tribes, supporters of the cause to protect Puvungna and attendees of past events.

“I’m just really here to be present with my spirit and with my heart,” said Azcatl El, Mexica dancer who performed at a rally in September.

Andrew Salinas, who is of Indigenous descent, said he attended the ceremony to show support for the Tongva and Acjachemen peoples.

“I’m here to show solidarity to my brothers and sisters and protect all of our land. It’s sacred,” Salinas said.

According to a University Police Department officer who drove by Puvungna, parking lot G2 was reopened for Sunday’s event and confirmed Parking and Transportation Enforcement was not collecting payment.

Felix said she “made the trek” from Fresno with her cousins because it is important to them to protect the land.

“It feels very peaceful, I feel my ancestors here, and I feel the good vibrations of just everyone,” Felix said. “I feel also saddened that it’s come to this point and that we’re still fighting this fight because it really should be a simple moral choice, and it’s such a struggle for the university.”

JULIA TERBECHE | Daily Forty Niner

Supporters hold signs at the CSULB entrance on Beach Drive, calling on the university to leave Puvungna alone.

RICHARD GRANT | Daily Forty Niner

Signs are posted in support of protecting sacred land during a Valentine’s Day ceremony at Puvungna.

RICHARD GRANT | Daily Forty Niner

Shannon Andrea Thomas, an organizer, ignites a bundle of sage as a spiritual cleansing during a rally to protect Puvungna as sacred land.

6

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NEWS 7

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2021 | DAILY49ER.COM | @DAILY49ER | ARTS@DAILY49ER.COM

Transit takes a hit From February to June, Long Beach Transit’s fare revenue decreased by 99.9%.

By Julia Terbeche News Editor

W

hile the coronavirus pandemic has forced many sectors of society to shut down their operations, one commodity has been available throughout all the stayat-home measures — public transportation.

At Long Beach Transit, new health and safety measures have led to rear-door boarding, a decision that has resulted in a lack of bus fare enforcement and an overall revenue loss for the company.

Operating across 100 square miles spanning 14 cities in Los Angeles and Orange counties, LBT has continued providing public transportation under Centers for Disease Control regulations, free bus rides and modified routes since March 22, 2020.

Sierra Allen, a third-year international business major at Long Beach State, has been riding Long Beach buses “almost every day” since the beginning of the pandemic and said “it’s been pretty smooth sailing.”

“Everyone seems to understand that we are in the middle of a pandemic and the reason why we’re doing this is because we don’t have another choice,” Allen said. “We have to get around, we have to go grocery shopping, we have to do this, we have to do that, but we just all don’t have cars. ” According to the company’s fiscal year 2021 budget, LBT had been facing a steep decline in fare revenue since the beginning of 2020, bringing in $767,791 in February but just $432,417 in March, a decrease of 43.7%.

LBT made only $2,205 from bus fares in April, just $684 in May and $722 in June.

From February to June, LBT faced a fare revenue decrease of 99.9%.

Following the first reported cases of COVID-19 in the country, LBT implemented its preventive measures last February.

According to Mike Gold, LBT’s executive director and vice president of customer relations, all buses are cleaned several times per day by cleaning crews, once in the mornings and during bus returns and layovers.

Gold said that the cleaning crews mainly disinfect buses’ “high-touch areas,” like doors, panels, handrails, seats, pull cords and interior window frames. Face masks are required while aboard buses “to help protect LBT bus operators and customers.”

Allen said she hasn’t personally seen any cleaning crews while using public transit, though she feels drivers and passengers understand the importance of enforcing health regulations.

JULIA TERBECHE | Daily Forty-Niner

Masked passengers ride the bus Thursday evening after boarding from the rear.

An LBT bus driver, who asked to remain anonymous, said he has felt overwhelmed operating a bus during the pandemic, having to take several regulations into account that he didn’t have to in previous years.

“It is stressful, I can tell you that,” he said.

The driver said he was not at liberty to discuss details of his experience as a bus operator due to regulations from the company.

Manuel Aguilar, a third-year psychology major at CSULB, said his main concern with public transportation is his physical safety, though he feels drivers have “done well to make sure everyone on board has masks.”

He said he felt that social distancing is “practically non-existent” when the buses are busy.

“I try to avoid touching anything directly,” Aguilar said.

Buses don’t provide any personal protective equipment, though Allen said this doesn’t bother her since she carries her own sanitizer wherever she goes.

“I don’t really have another choice other than taking the bus to get around, but maybe if I did have a choice, having sanitizer, having stuff like that made readily available would definitely make me be like, ‘Okay, I’m not risking my life to go to McDonald’s,’” she said.

To prevent contact with the driver, LBT has had passengers board through the rear door, and front areas have chain barriers.

Travelers are also asked to “skip a seat or row,” Gold said.

“People will stand rather than take that extra seat,” Allen said. “That seems to be pretty understood.”

Allen feels that riders are conscientious of personal space and feels there is “a universal understanding of like ‘Okay, I’m not going to try to talk to her, I’m not going to sit next to her,’ even if even if there’s no seats left.”

While rear boarding remains in effect, payment will not be collected at the machines located at the front entrances. Gold said drivers are “not enforcing” bus fares, and passes like student TAP cards are not being purchased or used during this time.

“I do appreciate that they made the fare free during the pandemic, and it has been a great way to get around without having to spend money to Uber [or] Lyft,” Aguilar said.

Rear-door boarding is set to continue for the foreseeable future, though passengers

needing a ramp may enter at the front.

With a lack of revenue coming in from fares and bus passes, LBT is facing a deficit period, though Gold confirmed that all transit agencies “did receive some money from the federal government” as part of the first COVID-19 relief package last year.

“We continue to lobby, it’s not just us, it’s kind of all transit agencies, for additional assistance because of the impacts of COVID on ridership,” Gold said.

Gold said he expects LBT to be reimbursed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency since the country was in a state of emergency. The Biden administration is calling for $20 million in aid to go toward “the hardest hit public transit agencies,” according to the president’s American Rescue Plan.

“That’s a proposal that’s potentially going to Congress that would also make up for lost revenues that transit agencies nationwide have faced as a result of COVID,” Gold said.

For the 2021 fiscal year, LBT anticipates

an overall decrease of 58% in fare revenue in comparison to the previous year’s budget, estimating a total of $5.86 million.

The estimated fare revenue for 2020 was $14.26 million.

Several routes have been temporarily suspended and others have been condensed to weekday-only service since last March. Routes 52, 81, 96, 102, 131, 176 and Passport are all halted for the time being.

Currently, routes 45 and 46 are not serving CSULB, and routes 92, 93, 175 and the UCLA/Westwood Commuter Express are only operating on weekdays.

Allen maintained that despite the changes in operation, drivers have been generally running “as smooth and easy as possible” under new regulations.

“They get it, like they are on this bus all day, and they’re doing it for the same reason that we all are [who are] still working in the middle of a pandemic — they have to make a paycheck,” Allen said. “I think that they’re doing the best that they can, given the resources that they have.”

8 ARTS & LIFE

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2021 | DAILY49ER.COM | @DAILY49ER | ARTS@DAILY49ER.COM

Teaching professors new lessons CSULB faculty share how the transition to online learning was not only challenging for their students, but for them as well.

T

he transition to virtual learning at Long Beach State has been challenging for many students, from bad internet connection to distracting households and feelings of disconnect.

But students were not the only ones having to adjust.

As spring semester continues with distance learning, CSULB professors share their experiences leading virtual classrooms amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Joshua Cotter, an associate professor in the Kinesiology Department, said he’s had a good experience exploring all the “technological advancements” and resources that have been offered to allow for “successful teaching online.”

Cotter has a background in technology, pursuing a bachelor’s degree in career technology early on as a student at Ohio State University in the late ’90s, making him comfortable around the new approach to virtual learning.

“I learned a lot and there were some hiccups along the way but overall, I think [virtual instruction] actually went very well, given the circumstances,” Cotter, who has been teaching at CSULB for six years, said.

However, Cotter said he felt that online classes limited some of the more enjoyable experiences as a professor, such as interacting with students or seeing them succeed outside of the classroom.

“That’s a lot different online than in person,” Cotter said. “You know the little meetings and discussions that we often have after class or in my office aren’t really substituted well in an online environment.”

During a regular semester, Cotter walks around his classroom as his students work in groups, discussing ideas and then coming together to express these ideas amongst the whole class.

“The challenging part preparing for this [past] semester was ‘how do I recreate that same experience in a virtual environment,’” Cotter said. “I had to look into how the technology worked a little bit more. There was a lot more trial and error in how to do that with things like Zoom breakout rooms.”

Despite the lack of interaction and never actually meeting his students face-to-face, Cotter said he was still able to connect with them, as they insisted on meeting with him one-on-one throughout the semester.

Finding the balance to create a virtual classroom that fit the needs of students and the course was something Clariza Ruiz De Castilla, a professor in the Communications Department, had to discover as well.

At first, Ruiz De Castilla said she pre-recorded lectures, trying to help her students amid the suddenness of the coronavirus pandemic. Since the start of spring semester, Ruiz De Castilla has returned to synchronous learning and feels that her students are already better understanding concepts and benefit from having the ability to ask questions live.

But one challenge for Ruiz De Castilla has been building class engagement when so many students chose to turn their cameras off.

She said she is lucky to get one student with their camera on out of a class of 25 or 27 students. So Ruiz De Castilla created class participation, incentivizing students with points to speak in the virtual classroom.

“If we were in a face-to-face [class], they’d be in circles, and they’d be talking and I wouldn’t have to say, ‘This is going to be worth points,’” Ruiz De Castilla said.

“They would just do it. They would just

BY PARIS BARRAZA

Photos courtesy of Azza Basarudin, Joshua Cotter and Clariza Ruiz De Castilla.

Azza Basarudin is a professor in the Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies Department at Long Beach State. Joshua Cotter is a professor in the Kinesiology Department at Long Beach State. Clariza Ruiz De Castilla is a professor in the Communications Department at Long Beach State.

get it whereas here, I’m forcing it more to have to participate.”

Ruiz De Castilla encourages students to be kind to themselves and to do their best in their classes, however their best may look like during this time. Likewise, she said she hopes students are aware that faculty are trying to learn how to be better online instructors.

“We teachers, we’re trying really hard to make the material engaging, to familiarize ourselves with the technological landscape,” Ruiz De Castilla said. “So if [students] would also try their best so we could have a middle ground so that we could meet halfway.”

Like Ruiz De Castilla, professor Patricia Amezcua said getting students to feel comfortable and turn on their cameras was a challenge to overcome. As a professor part of the Spanish program at CSULB, she also deals in communication.

Being able to see people when they are speaking, she said, is an important element in strong communication because people can pick up on gestures or facial expressions. Amezcua said that makes students feel more connected and puts them at ease, which was needed as Amezcua worked to create a sense of normalcy.

Amezcua created a virtual classroom for her students and encouraged her students to feel comfortable talking regardless of background noise. She also created discussion questions that were not only related to the class, but for students to share about their lives and feelings amid this time.

When students were put into breakout rooms, Amezcua gave students an extra minute for them to socialize before sending them to different breakout groups, trying to cultivate interaction between everyone enrolled.

“Another important thing is to start to

encourage [students] to see toward the future,” Amezcua said. “To understand that this was something that is happening but is not going to last forever. However, the experience and the knowledge they’re gaining is going to last them a lifetime.”

Amezcua also said that she knew colleagues at CSULB who had not taught an online class before and that for them, it was as foreign as learning a difficult language or subject. That adjustment took time, but Amezcua said she has seen her colleagues all try their best.

“Not only the students are overwhelmed and nervous and isolated and with economical pressures, we professors who are suffering exactly the same,” Amezcua said.

“And on top of that we have the responsibility to teach the next generation to continue our commitment to teach.”

Cotter, Ruiz De Castilla and Amezcua have all been part of the CSULB community.

But for professor Azza Basarudin, who joined the Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies Department in the fall 2020 semester, the first with fully distanced learning, was her introduction to CSULB. As a new member of the campus, Basarudin said she spent the summer familiarizing herself with campus resources and facilities so that she could be of assistance to her students. But she also made sure to inform her students that she was new, inviting them to share resources with her or if they could, to let her know ahead of time what they may need help with for her to better support them.

That, alongside her colleagues in the department and the College of Liberal Arts’ workshops and monthly meetings to help new faculty transition to the school, helped Basarudin as she continued the semester.

Yet Basarudin had experience teaching online classes before.

“The key to my teaching online for me, based on my feminist pedagogy, is to make sure that students understand that they’re not just a face in my class or a name in my class, right, that they are humans with life complexities and responsibilities outside the classroom,” Basarudin said.

Basarudin said she would give students points if they attend office hours so that they could share with her their personal challenges amid the coronavirus pandemic.

That allowed Basarudin to not only develop a deeper bond with each student, but helped her create a safe learning space and be mindful as to what her students were going through.

Inside the classroom, Basarudin has incorporated discussions about current events, from the Black Lives Matter movement to the coronavirus pandemic, to show how course topics can play out in reality as well as help students examine their own relationships to concepts.

That helps keep students engaged in the virtual classroom, according to Basarudin.

But Basarudin also took feedback from her students, saying that she learns from her students as well. Based off of last semester, Basarudin learned to be flexible when it comes to deadlines for assignments.

That mutual understanding served Basarudin and her students.

And understanding is something that can be extended to everyone, including faculty.

“We are also trying our best, definitely trying our best, to make sure that [students] receive the quality of education that we deploy in normal times in spite of the online learning,” Basarudin said.

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10 ARTS & LIFE

By Xochilt Andrade Assistant Arts & Life Editor

H

annah Hunter is a firstyear Master of Social Work student, who is a school mental health intern at multiple schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District.

In what ways did your virtual internship experience enhance your career goals? In what ways did it hinder, if applicable, your goals? In other words, do you feel like you would have gotten more out of your internship if the program was not socially distanced? Did you develop any new skills as a result of interning virtually?

“I am interning at an elementary school virtually and it has definitely made me more organized and creative in how I conduct sessions and get my work done. I am not getting that one-on-one in-person experience that I really need to feel like a competent social worker, unfortunately, but I know that this curveball has provided me skills for the rest of my career, especially when it comes to thinking outside the box. My internship responsibilities would not be any different if I was in person, but the overall environment and pace would have made it feel more ‘real’ if that makes any sense.”

What tips and suggestions helped you navigate through your virtual experience? What advice would you offer other students currently applying to virtual programs?

“I really cannot emphasize this enough but please, please find a tool that helps you stay organized. I played around with many different ones including Google Calendar and Asana, but the best for me has been keeping a Google Sheet of all my assignments and tasks and marking them off as I complete them. Be incredibly communicative with your supervisor, don’t be afraid to ask them questions. Connect with the other interns if there are any and be comfortable asking them for help as well. If something isn’t working for you, bring it up and offer a possible solution. Everyone is navigating this in one way or another and we’re all learning something each day about how to make this work the best way we can.”

Dominic Padilla is a third-year journalism and political science double major, who applied for a virtual internship to join the campaign for Phil Arbarro, who ran to represent California’s 22nd Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.

In what ways did your virtual internship experience enhance your career goals? In what ways did it hinder, if applicable, your goals? In other words, do you feel like you would have gotten more out of your internship if the program was not socially distanced? Did you develop any new skills as a result of interning virtually?

“I feel [that] the virtual aspect of the internship harmed my experience. I feel like it did have an impact on [me], like I was learning or contributing to a bigger cause. I was still able to help with things such as phone banking, text banking and emailing. Because of this, I did learn how to operate these programs along with being much more comfortable coldcalling people. I do feel that if things had been in person, that the feeling of being able to rally the campaign in person, help host events for the candidate and other planning things along with being able to network would’ve helped with my career goal of working in politics in some way or another. Despite that, I do feel that the internship helped and I enjoyed the experience overall.”

What tips and suggestions helped you navigate through your virtual experience? What advice would you offer other students currently applying to virtual programs?

“Some of the best advice I could give to students planning to intern for virtual internships

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2021 | DAILY49ER.COM | @DAILY49ER | ARTS@DAILY49ER.COM

Interns gone virtual

would be that it is not going to be what you expect when you imagine a college internship. But the best thing you can do is that even though it is virtual, dive in entirely to the internship.

Ask as many questions as possible, share contact info, talk to other interns through Zoom, look for job opportunities. It’ll take much more coordination and time because of the virtual aspect, but it’ll help make the internship feel as real as you can.”

CSULB students give insight about their experiences with remote internships and share tips for their peers still on the hunt.

Crystal Kem is a fourth-year public relations major who interned for LiveNation, a live entertainment company, when the coronavirus pandemic caused the suspension of internship programs like hers. Kem stayed in contact with her supervisor at LiveNation and eventually participated in a fully virtual internship with Dig Magazine.

So how was that experience?

“I think it was a really great experience.

For me being virtual, it was as immersive as it could have been. I had weekly meetings, and I would talk to my team on a weekly basis, but other than that, it wasn’t really what I expected.”

Is there any advice that you would like to give students who are applying to virtual internships?

“It’s really hard for everyone to find an internship or a job at the moment. So I wouldn’t be so hard on yourself, because competition is just extremely high at the moment. I think I would also find other endeavors and maybe pursue personal projects or pursue different clubs and organizations if finding an internship is really difficult at the moment.”

Li’Shae Childs is a third-year psychology major who is interning as a research assistant in the Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity program at CSULB. In what ways did your virtual internship experience enhance your career goals? In what ways did it hinder, if applicable, your goals? In other words, do you feel like you would have gotten more out of your internship if the program was not socially distanced? Did you develop any new skills as a result of interning virtually?

“The virtual internship experience has enhanced my career goals. Although we are fully online, I am still able to do qualitative research through the use of Zoom, and other technological resources. The online experience has provided me with ways to network online through social media, virtual conferences and workshops. The main challenge with virtual internships is missing the in-person social side, and not having a strong sense of community. I do feel like I would have gotten more out of the internship if it was in person. I struggle with social anxiety, so in-person would have helped me challenge myself to be more sociable. I did develop new skills from an online internship.

I have learned how to properly communicate with individuals through email and Zoom. I have also learned how to use Excel. Overall, the experience has been positive.”

What tips and suggestions helped you navigate through your virtual experience? What advice would you offer other students currently applying to virtual programs?

“The tips that have helped me navigate my virtual experience is communicating with my boss if my workload is too much, creating a community within the job and taking breaks so you’re not overwhelmed by looking at the computer all day. The main advice I would offer other students is to know that you wouldn’t be in that internship if they didn’t want you.

You deserve to be there. Also talk to people in the internship that resonate with you, and that you can talk to if things are overwhelming.

Lastly make sure you set a schedule of when [or] what time you will be working, and don’t go over that. It is important to set time for self, family and friends too.”

Interested in receiving more tips and guidance for internships, resumes and more? Visit the Career Development Center’s website.

OPINIONS 11

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2021 | DAILY49ER.COM | @DAILY49ER | OPINION@DAILY49ER.

Nourishing the love we share How two restaurant workers are celebrating their relationship in the era of COVID-19.

By Joshua Villas Staff Writer

T

his Valentine’s Day, my partner and I will both be working.

We both work in the recently re-opened restaurant industry.

We get to help people enjoy their day, and maybe for a moment, feel kind of normal. After working in the industry for many years, this is the one holiday I wish we both had off.

Valentine’s Day is commercialized, oversexualized and is always portrayed as super luxurious. Personally, I try to focus on the love I share with my boo, as well as my family and friends.

We are all aware of the risks that restaurant workers are taking this year to serve in-house Valentine’s Day dinner. Although restaurants can sanitize and enforce social distancing, this option may not be ideal for some. Ordering take-out is a great way to support local businesses. Then maybe have a spot prepared to enjoy the food—a backyard, a park with a view or somewhere along the coast.

To celebrate our love, this year we will be cooking together which has become special to us. We have lived together for three years and our recent unemployment status has increased the frequency of our pantry pastas, leftover smorgasbords and ramen noodle nights. We have

enjoyed these and other delicious meals with family members and friends for Zoom happy hour.

There is some power in being able to cook a nice meal for yourself and your loved ones. If your partner lives far away maybe cook a meal together on Zoom. It could be like a cooking show with the challenge of you both trying to make something edible.

I am grateful to be in love during this pandemic.

I am grateful that I have not lost any loved ones during all of this as well. In our relationship we have been together through a lot, even before COVID-19.

I believe this pandemic is yet another test to our commitment and adoration.

Our date nights have included car parties, picnics, backyard bonanzas, road trips for some outdoor dining and sinking deeper into the couch with each episode of a show we are binging together.

Dating safely is super important if you live in separate households. I can imagine how challenging it is to get together hoping that neither of you were exposed. If spending time with your partner who lives in a different household is important, your lifestyle should be grounded. Every time you go out should be taken into consideration, especially if you spend time with a loved one.

Some people have moved back home with their parents and now their love is long distance. Other relationships have not been able to survive. Nourish the love and connections you have with your partner, family and friends—because we all need it.

It is amazing to have so much love in a time of so much fear and separation. Love always wins.

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12 OPINIONS I’m single, but I’m still celebrating Valentine’s Day

By Peter Villafane Special Projects Editor

M

y niece, 3, received a Christmas card with a heart on it.

Though she is unable to read, she recognized the shape. She immediately held the card close to her tiny body and gave it a hug.

“Valentine’s Day,” she said.

Now, she still plays with the card and won’t let her mom put it away.

That’s the magic of a holiday dedicated to love.

The concept elicits childlike wonder and warmth.

That’s why I love Valentine’s Day. When I see shelves at retail stores lined with pink and red, overflowing with teddy bears and chocolates, I feel like my niece: enamored with a loving feeling. I think about the people in my life who deserve those gifts, myself included.

I love the holiday even when I’m single because love doesn’t have to be romantic.

Remember going around and giving your entire class treats on Valentine’s Day? We paused the lessons just to hand out little cards and candies.

We can still keep this energy as adults. We can pause our busy, sometimes monotonous, academic and professional lives to just treat ourselves and our loved ones.

MONDAY FEBRUARY 15, 2021 | DAILY49ER.COM | @DAILY49ER | OPINION@DAILY49ER.COM

Every Valentine’s Day, I buy my mom a bouquet of flowers. One year, I got her a stuffed elephant which she now keeps in her car. My niece loves that toy too, and steals it from my mom constantly.

Life can be enjoyable when you find little pockets of joy among the sadness, frustration and loneliness. Of course, celebrating Valentine’s Day isn’t going to solve those issues, but it can provide a bit of an escape. It’s a little distraction from the madness.

Take one day off or just one moment to celebrate love. Don’t shame yourself for being single or feel bad about not getting a gift. Be the love that you want to receive.

The holiday can be what you make it.

It’s Galentine’s Day, where you can treat the best women in your life. It’s a self care day, where you take time to reflect and find things you love about yourself. It’s another day where you can give your family, blood-related or found and chosen, gifts to remind them you care.

Even the day after Valentine’s Day is a treat, with all the candy and chocolate going on sale.

You don’t have to make a grand romantic gesture or be in a relationship to enjoy the holiday.

Sure, it’s a cheesy, probably made up holiday, but this is America. Groundhogs predict the weather and turkeys get pardoned.

If anything, the holiday can serve as a reminder of this fact: You are loved.

PETER VILLAFANE | Daily Forty-Niner

Kelsea Villafane, 3, holds her beloved heart card from her grandfather.

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