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Dante Estrada
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The California Faculty Association demand different uses of the $144 million state loan obtained by the CSU, instead of the one-time employment compensation CSU is planning.
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land acknowlEdgmEnt
Here at the Long Beach Current we acknowledge that the school we report on is located on the sacred site of Puvungna, “the gathering place.” We are on the land of the Tongva/Gabrieleño and the Acjachemen/Juaneño Nations who have lived and continue to live here.
We also acknowledge the Gabrieleño/Tongva (pronounced: GABRIEL-EN-YO/TONG – VAH) and Acjachamen/Juaneño (pronounced: AH-HACH-AH-MEN/JUAN-EN-YO) as the traditional custodians of the Los Angeles region along with the Chumash (pronounced: CHOO-MOSH) to the north and west, and the Tataviam (pronounced: TAH-TAH-VEE-YUM) and Cahuilla (pronounced: KAH-WEE-YAH) Nations to the east.
We respect and value the many ways the Tongva/Acjachemen cultural heritage and beliefs continue to have significance to the living people and remind us about the sacred and spiritual relationship that has always existed here at what we now call California State University Long Beach.
Editorials: All opinions expressed in the columns, letters and cartoons in the issue are those of the writers or artists. The opinions of the Long Beach Current are expressed only in unsigned editorials and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the journalism department or the views of all staff members. All such editorials are written by the editorial board of the Long Beach Current.
lEttEr Policy: All letters and emails must bear the phone number of the writer and must be no more than 300 words. The Long Beach Current reserves the right to edit letters for publication in regard to space.
University officials reveal Pyramid name change
BY TIMOTHY HESSEN Sports Editor
Long Beach State officials formally announced the renaming of the Walter Pyramid to the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid at a press conference on Thursday, Nov. 20, after the CSU Board of Trustees voted to approve the sponsorship deal.
“This alignment of mission and values makes LBS Financial Credit Union and [LBSU] unique, natural partners in an endeavor that will secure the future of the Pyramid, which is one of the most iconic symbols that we have and a showcase for Beach excellence,” CSULB Interim President Andrew Jones said.
The 12-year, $8.5 million naming rights agreement took roughly a year to finalize and was aided by LBS Financial Credit Union’s willingness to award LBSU the entire sum upfront, according to Executive Director of Athletics Bobby Smitheran.
“The upfront money is a game changer,” Smitheran said. “You don’t really see that in these naming rights
JORGE HERNANDEZ/Long
The LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid had its name changed for the first time in over 20 years.
opportunities, so that’s where the competitiveness of [LBS Financial Credit Union] was tremendous, because it gives us flexibility to do some immediate things.”
The university’s announcement came today, coinciding with the LBSU women’s basketball team matchup against the University of San Francisco at 6 p.m., being moved to the Gold Mine due to another water leak at the Pyramid.
The roof’s susceptibility to leaks during rainy weather has been a longstanding issue for the newly-named LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid, which has now added significantly more financial resources through the naming rights deal to support LBSU Athletics.
The university underwent a study in 2021 that determined the costs of repairing the facility’s roof would be $55 million.
“As we think about the roof, that’s a bigger discussion that happens with the university,” Smitheran said. “We have a second study taking place that I don’t have the results for yet, so I want to get those results, then dive into that with campus leadership and figure out what is the long-range plan.”
According to the university, the
majority of the money from this deal will go toward student-athlete scholarships.
This scholarship money will aid LBSU in navigating the unique challenges posed by the modern Name, Image, and Likeness era of collegiate athletics, chief among them being roster retention.
For example, The Beach’s men’s basketball program, which just snapped a 312-day losing streak, returned just one player this season from its team a year ago.
“The state of college athletics is certainly requiring people in my position to look at any and all alternatives to generate revenue that we can drive back to our student athletes,” Smitheran said.
Following the CSU Board of Trustees’ official approval of the deal on Wednesday, the overwhelming student reaction online has been criticism of the new name.
However, Smitheran emphasizes that the tangible benefits of this deal are ultimately what make a difference for the campus community.
“Regardless of the name, it’s the money that impacts the experience for our students,” Smitheran said. “The fact that LBS Financial Credit Union is a local organization brings tremendous value to
Beach Current
[students] because of the other benefits the organization can bring.”
According to President and CEO Sean Hardeman, this partnership between LBS Financial Credit Union and LBSU was aided by their long-standing relationship.
LBS Financial Credit Union was first founded in 1935 and operated out of Wilson High School classrooms, and has historically been a major donor to the university, according to the CSU Committee on Institutional Advancement.
“If you think about the economic engine of Long Beach, this university is part of that; we feel that LBS Financial is a part of that, and our history with the university goes back to its inception,” Hardeman said.
After finalizing the name change that will hold for at least 12 years, Smitheran considers this an opportunity for a major shift in the university’s future.
“I would hope that people see this as a transformational moment in LBSU Athletics history,” Smitheran said. “I think it really matches up with what is taking place in college athletics and that we took the opportunity to do our best to meet that moment.”
CSU uses loan to pay employees, sparking faculty and union protests
BY ANNETTE QUIJADA AND JOSEPHINE ROBINSON News Editor and Contributor
CSU unionized faculty and staff assembled on Tuesday to demand the CSU use a $144 million state loan to meet their requests rather than distribute a one-time employee payment.
The CSU announced in October that it would use the loan to compensate employees, sparking disagreement among faculty who want the loan to go toward programs, college budgets, raises and more.
“We’re here to demand the chancellor, the CSU and the Board of Trustees [to] stop focusing all their time on their economic oblivion, and instead focus on our students, to invest in the classroom, invest in faculty and make college education affordable and accessible,” said Akhila Ananth, associate professor for Criminal Justice and Criminalistics at Cal State Los Angeles.
The California Faculty Association, CSU Employees Union and Teamsters Local 2010 gathered outside the Chancellor’s Office in Downtown Long Beach, holding signs and chanting, “CSU, you can’t hide, we can see your greedy side,” as they marched around the perimeter of the building.
In an email sent by Chancellor Mildred Garcia to CSU employees, she said: “This is more than a financial decision – it is well-deserved recognition for the extraordinary skill and dedication you demonstrate across our campuses every day. And it advances our priority of becoming the employer of choice in higher education, a pillar of the CSU’s new systemwide strategic plan, CSU Forward.”
According to their website, the CSU states that because the loan is non-recurring and they must pay it by July, using the funds for a one-time employee compensation “is the most responsible and values-aligned choice.”
“In contrast, addressing issues such as federal funding gaps or capital needs requires sustained, ongoing appropriations, which we continue to advocate for through the state budget process,” the website states.
We have the power, union power!" on Nov. 18 in front of the CSU Chancellor's office
CFA president Margarita Berta-Avila said the association had been pushing for the chancellor to take the loan, but the CSU initially responded with hesitation.
Berta-Avila said each union had a specific focus on what they wanted the chancellor to use the loan money for.
“We [the CFA] wanted the money to be used to rescind programs, to bring them back, to bring back folks that were teaching those jobs and our students can have access to the courses that they need and the programs they need to graduate,” Berta-Avila said.
The CFA’s demands for the use of the loan include:
• Restoration of college budgets
• Raises
• Funding to go to faculty and not
CSU administration
Funding to go to the “Future U,” without imposing student fees
“They accepted the loan, but not with the intentions we wanted,” Berta-Avila said.
Earlier this year, the CSU faced a $375 million cut in the 2025-26 state budget, which was later lowered to $144 million by Gov. Gavin Newsom. Berta-Avila said they pushed for the loan to make up for the money they lost.
“Once the loan was received, there was never any discussion with the unions as far as where this money should go,” Berta-Avila said. “We didn’t know about the chancellor taking this loan until it was announced to everyone else.”
As they head into bargaining for the CFA’s new contract, Berta-Avila said she
questions the compensation that mirrors staff bonuses and the motive behind them.
“All the people in there are making big money,” said Scott Carneghi, a plumber at Cal State Northridge. “The chancellor, she gets a housing budget, a car budget, a gas budget; everything’s taken care of. It’s very frustrating because we come down here and we say speeches, but they don’t care.”
As collective bargaining discussions continue, it’s unclear when employees will receive payments and how much they will receive.
The Current reached out to the CSU for comment. Director of Media Relations and Public Affairs Amy Bentley-Smith responded with a link to the loan FAQ.
DIEGO PEREZ/Long Beach Current
BY JOSH GENTLE AND MARIANA RAMOS Contributors
Renewable energy, water conservation, and a zero-waste commitment are among the methods Long Beach State has used to advance its sustainability efforts.
The university has strived for an eco-friendly campus for decades, making progress toward a 2030 goal of carbon neutrality for operational emissions and a 2040 goal for commute-related emissions.
However, buildings and construction projects have been identified as among the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions by the UN Environment Programme. This means the Future U Project could put CSULB’s sustainability goals and accomplishments at risk.
To combat this, Beach Building Services has set standards to ensure the University Student Union renovation remains within the scope of its sustainability efforts.
Last May, the university received a STARS Silver Rating for its sustainability efforts. The STARS organization seeks to recognize and foster sustainability efforts in educational institutions, awarding them performance-based seals.
The seals are based on a range of criteria under campus operations, including, but not limited to, waste and water management, groundskeeping and energy usage.
CSULB improved by 17% from 2021’s score of 53.82 points, and by 19% from 2017’s 45.39 points.
To maintain these standards, Lisa Salgado, Capital Projects Program manager at Beach Building Services, said in an email exchange with the Current that the university is using many strategies to remain sustainable, including a low-carbon design.
“Nearly 90% of the existing building structure is being reused—an approach that avoids thousands of tons of embodied carbon typically associated with demolition and new construction,” Salgado said.
Additionally, a rooftop solar panel array on the new USU will seek to offset energy consumption as a part of their climate-responsive site design and energy stewardship, Salgado said.
CSULB is also following sustainable construction practices by monitoring disposed waste during construction.
How CSULB is navigating sustainable construction of the Future U
“At least 75% of construction and demolition waste will be recycled or salvaged, diverting materials from landfills,” Salgado said.
This regulation also aligns with the Design Standards Manual developed by Beach Building Services.
The sustainability section of the manual requires contractors to submit a sustainable waste-management plan for university approval.
Salgado said these plans have already been submitted in accordance with the Design Standards Manual and will continue to be updated throughout the construction process.
In addition to university standards, CSULB must also follow the U.S. Green Building Council’s Silver Level building standard, as mandated by the CSU policy.
The LEED standard, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, sets regulations for buildings to be considered “green.” These regulations consider energy performance, water efficiency, sustainable site development and materials selection.
According to the U.S. Green Building Council, to receive LEED certification, a building must earn points by meeting
sustainability goals and criteria.
The number of points determines the type of certification awarded. CSULB currently has 10 LEED-certified buildings.
In regards to sustainable landscaping, the university’s urban forest has not been forgotten in the construction process.
Trees, especially mature trees, reduce carbon emissions and enhance water filtration. This makes them crucial to campus sustainability. The last recorded number of trees on campus was nearly 7,000.
Salgado said that while preserving existing trees near the USU is important, the university must remove trees that have been assessed as safety hazards. Trees identified as a safety hazard are too sick to save or pose risks to people or property.
Several trees have already been removed during the renovation of the Friendship Walk Stairs. To offset the loss, Salgado said two trees will be planted for every tree cut down. This is in accordance with CSULB’s Climate Action and Adaptation Plan.
It is unclear how many trees have been cut during construction and how many will be planted, as the data is preliminary and will not be available until the design process for the Future U Project is completed, Salgado said.
As for the existing trees that will remain, the university requires an arborist to monitor the treatment of trees during construction.
The Current attempted to contact the arborist involved in USU construction, but was unable to secure an interview due to contractual agreements with the school.
The CSULB Master Plan Environmental Impact Report seeks to “advance the CSULB mission, vision, and values by guiding the physical development of the campus.” It outlines specifications and controls for contractors who are involved in construction to protect these biological resources.
While there have been extensive standards set in place by the university to combat the negative impacts of a large construction project such as the Future U, it is uncertain how it will impact the overall sustainability score for CSULB until the project is complete.
The current STARS silver rating is valid through June 5. 2027. The university is hoping for a gold rating next review period and is developing a roadmap to achieve that goal, sustainability manager Holli Fajack said in a campus press release.
JOSH GENTLE/Long Beach Current
The remains of a matured tree on the site of USU construction on Oct. 21.
AIDEN REDSTEER/Long Beach Current
The above graph is the number of involuntary holds reported by the California Department of Health Care Services.
BY: AIDEN REDSTEER
Contributor
Despite the number of involuntary psychiatric hospitalizations decreasing in Los Angeles, Long Beach State has seen an increase in mental health crisis calls on campus.
“They continue to go up,” University Police Chief John Brockie said. “We’ve seen that trend from 2017.”
With 96 calls already logged through September, this year is projected to reach a similar number as 2024, suggesting a continued pattern of increased mental health crisis events on campus.
The increasing number of mental health crisis events on campus was one of the issues that led to the creation of the CSULB Campus Assessment and Stabilization Team.
CAST is composed of social workers Graciela Lopez and Donna De Loera and law enforcement, who work directly with campus police officers to respond to mental health crisis calls on campus.
CAST is similar to the psychiatric evaluation teams that work with Long Beach and Los Angeles police departments.
The team is dispatched once university police have identified a mental health crisis. When responding to calls, CAST
Surge in mental health calls increases demand for CSULB crisis unit
will attempt to de-escalate situations and assess the need for mental health stabilization at a psychiatric hospital.
CAST has been tracking an increasing number of mental health crisis calls on campus since its creation in 2022.
The rise of CSULB mental health crisis calls is incongruent with the pattern of 5150 calls in L.A. County.
5150 is a police term for an adult who has been assessed by a police department mental health professional and is found to be a danger to themselves or others.
The adult is then involuntarily placed in a mental health hospital or psychiatric ward for at least 72 hours.
Data from the California Department of Health Care Services show that the number of 5150 holds for adults declined over seven years, with the most recent data from the 2021-2022 fiscal year.
The idea is that these individuals will be stabilized and then referred out for continued care, following their stay in
the psychiatric facility. Patients can be referred to mental health outpatient level of care or, if the case is severe enough, a longer-term inpatient setting.
While CSULB’s mental health crisis calls are on the rise, LA County’s number of involuntary holds, or 5150 calls, is decreasing.
It is unclear whether LA County’s mental health crisis calls are rising or declining, as LA County does not track the number of calls.
It is also unclear how many CSULB mental health calls lead to a psychiatric hospitalization or involuntary holds, as the police department is not tracking this information.
This means that even though the mental health crisis calls on campus are on the rise, actual hospitalizations of CSULB students and staff may not be increasing.
A meta-analysis compiled by Cureus, published in 2023, shows that individuals
who have been hospitalized in psychiatric facilities have an increased chance of readmission to a similar facility within 30 days of the initial hold.
Patients who struggle with schizophrenia, personality disorders, bipolar disorders, depression and substance use have the greatest chance of a 30-day readmission.
Thoughts of suicide, self-harm behaviors and homicidal thoughts are a common pattern in these patients.
Since the criteria for a 5150 hold are a person who is a danger to themselves or others, these patients are close to meeting the required risk factors needed for an involuntary hold, even after being stabilized in a hospital for 72 hours.
Brockie explained that CAST, unlike its L.A. or Long Beach counterparts, maintains contact with students following times of mental health crisis.
Students have the opportunity to meet with Lopez and De Loera following these events. However, this team is a reaction to the existing times of crisis and not a preventative solution for mental health needs on campus.
Students looking to initiate a CAST mental health call can call 911 or the university police non-emergency line at (562) 985-4101.
Students who are unsure what resources they need can use HelpCompass to find the right ones.
ARTS & LIFE
CSULB professor’s new book on exiled Chilean filmakers draws big turnout
BY VIOLETA ZARATE Contributor
When Long Beach State film historian José Miguel Palacios arrived at the University Library for his book launch on Nov. 6, he was met with a packed room of students, faculty and community members.
“I wasn’t expecting such a good turnout,” he said. “It was very lovely, and it was quite moving for me.”
One of his closest colleagues, Associate Cinematic Arts Professor Seunghoon Jeong, described the event even more emphatically. “I have never seen such a big academic event on campus–so many people came.”
The excitement reflects Palacios’ own regarding his newly published book, “Transnational Cinema Solidarity: Chilean Exile Film and Video after 1973.”
The project follows the global history of Chilean filmmakers who were forced into exile during the Augusto Pinochet dictatorship, which lasted from 1973 to 1990.
His book is the first comprehensive study of that specific Latin American film movement, focusing on the network of solidarity that kept Chilean cinema alive across borders.
The project began during Palacios’ doctoral research.
“The writing of the book kept me busy for the past five years, but the project began 15 years ago,” he said. “There was still not much knowledge about this phenomenon.”
His book follows Chilean filmmakers who were exiled to Canada, Sweden, Mozambique, Venezuela, the United States and beyond.
Because their stories were dispersed across continents, much of the research required digging through personal and institutional archives from different countries.
“A lot of these materials have been forgotten or silenced,” he said.
Jeong noted the significance of this recovery for the Latin American film field.
“Chilean cinema has not been well-advertised or promoted in the world of cinema studies,” Jeong said. “Even within Latin American cinema, the major references were Argentinian, Brazilian, Bolivian, not Chilean.”
CHARLOTTE LOCICERO/Long Beach Current
Jose Miguel Palacios, assistant professor in the Department of Cinematic Arts at CSULB, on Nov. 19.
Jeong emphasized that the information in Palacios’ book extends beyond national cinema, as many of the filmmakers featured in the book worked outside Chile and contributed to film collections in other countries.
“What is the concept of nation in this case? This is at the borderline between national cinema and transnational cinema,” Jeong said. “[The work is] very sensitive to the danger of nationalism… even though he wants to write a book about Chilean cinema. That’s the dilemma.”
At CSULB, Palacios teaches transnational cinemas and Latin American film, among other subjects, but students say his impact extends beyond his courses.
Jimena Meza Gonzales, a film production major, credits Jeong with helping shape her academic confidence. Even though she’s not in his class this semester, she said Palacios still checks in on her.
“I had him for Film History 1 [CINE
201], but I felt I learned more from him than the actual class,” Gonzales said. “He was really a support system for me, and helped me find resources.”
Gonzales said seeing his book published only reinforced her admiration.
“I think he’s accomplished as an academic, and he really cares about his students,” she said.
For Palacios, studying exile cinema meant examining how artists pushed past borders to create political and artistic alliances.
“Solidarity creates these bonds despite our linguistic, cultural [and] national differences,” he said. “It enables us to have a more global history.”
He argues that the history of exile did not end with the fall of the dictatorship. Many artists never returned to Chile, and their children and grandchildren continue exploring themes of displacement to this day.
“We live in a world ruled by social explosion and displacement,” Palacios said.
“Newer generations have found value in these histories of solidarity.”
Palacios brings this global and political approach to the university through courses such as Cinemas of Rebellion and Resistance. “Everything I do is connected to a more politicized understanding of filmmaking,” he said.
Jeong said his presence strengthens the department. “He has been my best colleague and friend.”
Palacipos will present his research at Tulane University this December and travel to Barcelona for a retrospective on two filmmakers featured in his book.
He plans new archival research centered on exile and displacement, and seeing the campus respond so strongly to his book renewed his motivation.
For students like Gonzales, the excitement is contagious.
“He’s accomplished,” she said. “But also, he’s just a really good professor.”