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Long Beach State senior Logan Nidy attempts a tackle against UCLA sophomore forward Kara Croone in a 2-0 loss at Wallis Annenberg Stadium on Friday, Aug. 29. The Beach lost 2-0.
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New commuter dining plan offers affordable, diverse food options
BY ETHAN BROWN News Assistant
Long Beach State commuting students, faculty and staff are now able to purchase the Beach Community Meal Bundle for this academic year.
The updated plan gives campus commuters the option to choose between 10 to 75 meals.
The prices for the four-tier plan are:
• 10 meals for $110
• 25 meals for $269
• 50 meals for $495
• 75 meals for $699
The meal plan is effective the day after purchase and can be used at any time during the school year at Parkside and Hillside Dining Halls on campus, as well as Beachside Dining Hall, located five minutes from the university.
Jenny Lew, Residential Dining’s registered dietitian and associate director, said there is a variety of food options.
Dining hall menus rotate on a five-week cycle, but options available at all times include:
• A deli bar
• A salad bar
• A cereal bar
• Fresh fruit
• Homemade soups
land acknowlEdgmEnt ON THE
• Teas, coffee, fountain drinks and juices
The plans can be repurchased, providing students with the flexibility to purchase multiple meals.
Director of Residential Dining Alfredo Macias said on average, 600 students, staff and faculty sign up for the meal plan each year.
According to Macias, the Beach Community Meal Bundle reflects three key values:
• Beach: a connection to our campus identity
• Community: a sense of belonging and inclusivity
• Bundle: a fun and flexible way to enjoy meals
Along with the name revamp, previously called the Commuter Meal Plan, Macias and the Residential Dining team have adjusted the pricing to make the plan more affordable and appealing to the Beach community – without compromising quality.
Previously, the commuter meal plan was $402 for an academic year and offered 40 meals.
Macias said the updated meal plan’s structure allows users to pay ahead, making their campus experience smoother and more efficient.
Commuters should note that the Beach Community Meal Bundle is non-transferable, and sharing meal plans can result in the termination of the plan without a refund.
The commuter dining plan is valid until the participant’s CSULB Campus ID expires or the plan has been inactive for one year. The bundle is only redeemable at Residential Dining Halls.
For more information on rules and regulations required of the plan, visit the Residential Dining Guide.
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.
Monday, September 1 , 2025
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.
Dental services, housing and other major changes coming to campus
BY ANNA KUCHISON News Assistant
AI tools, a new housing complex and the hiring of five counselors are among the changes announced at Long Beach State’s recent convocation on Aug. 22.
The university hosts these annual assemblies with faculty and staff to update the campus community on new changes for the upcoming year.
Provost Karyn Scissum Gunn said this academic year marks a significant amount of change; yet, the university will continue to reaffirm its commitment to its core values.
Gunn welcomed different voices to the podium to share changes and expectations starting this semester.
Here are some highlights from each department, covering the waves of change coming to The Beach.
New AI tools
Dr. Min Yao, vice president and chief information officer of the Division of Information Technology, spoke about how CSULB intends to adapt technologically through 2030, including offering more artificial intelligence services.
DoIT is a team of 90 professionals who work behind the scenes to modernize the university’s technology infrastructures.
Yao said the university’s information technology team worked to upgrade technology infrastructure over the summer and introduced several AI tools to help support learning and campus services.
The DoIT team added AI tools, including Microsoft Copilot, ChatGPT Edu, Adobe Firefly and Zoom AI companions, free to students, faculty and staff.
DELFINO CAMACHO/Long Beach Current
Long Beach State Provost Karyn Scissum Gunn and the events American Sign Language translator greet the audience attending the Long Beach State fall 2025 Convocation on Aug. 22 at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center.
Yao said they will focus on three key areas in the upcoming academic year: enhancing technology infrastructure, maintaining a secure digital learning and working environment and implementing more AI services.
“We are striving to empower the campus community through technology,” Yao said.
Housing
Mark Zakhour, associate vice president of Beach Building Services, discussed the development of the new student housing complex La Playa, which is set to open in fall 2026. The residency hall will be 108,000 square feet with 424 new beds.
“It’s more than just numbers for us; it sets a benchmark for affordable housing in higher education,” Zakhour said.
This building will be the first of its kind, creating a supportive and budget-friendly environment that enables students to thrive.
Zakhour said they are heavily pursuing graduate, faculty, staff and family housing. They are also testing new delivery models to bring down construction costs.
Beach Building Services has delivered more than $12 million in projects to date, achieving a cost point 12% below market, Zakhour said.
Student Health Services
Damian Zavala, associate vice president of Health and Wellness, shared new developments at Student Health Services, including the hiring of five new counselors for Counseling and Psychological Services.
Zavala said the five new counselors bring the program to the highest staffing level in CSULB history, with 15 members now on staff.
Additionally, Student Health Services will now offer free dental services to students for the first time.
Students can receive these services on campus as part of their student health fee.
A word from the interim president Toward the end of the ceremony, interim President Andrew Jones made his first appearance as acting president of CSULB. Jones said he plans to address challenges the campus faces, including state budget cuts, divisiveness over the war in Gaza and ongoing political attacks on higher education.
Jones said he has already been working to address these challenges and intends to use these strategies in his new role as interim president going forward.
“In my role as general counsel for the CSU, I’ve been working daily on these very issues. In Sacramento, in Washington, with high education colleagues across the nation, and with CSU colleagues across our campuses,” Jones said. “We have built strategies and tools to respond to these attacks and protect our students, faculty and staff, and to defend the values that make higher education strong.”
Trump bans flagburning, sparking national dispute
BY ETHAN BROWN News Assistant
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday, Aug. 25, requiring the Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute people who burn the American flag.
The order calls for Attorney General Pam Bondi to prioritize criminal and civil law enforcement against flag burning and desecration “to the fullest extent possible.”
Prosecuting those who burn the flag is now possible if the act is “likely to incite lawless action” or amount to “fighting words,” according to Trump.
The penalty announced by Trump for such actions could be up to one year in jail with no opportunity for an early release. Foreign nationals could also face deportation or have their visas, residency permits, naturalization proceedings or other immigration benefits revoked.
The executive order contradicts the 1989 Supreme Court case in Texas, in which the justices ruled 5-4 that the First Amendment protects flag burning as a legitimate form of political expression.
Antonin Scalia, the late conservative icon and Supreme Court Justice whom Trump has repeatedly praised, voted in the majority in the 1989 case.
“They called it freedom of speech. But there’s another reason, which is perhaps more important. It’s called death,” Trump said at a White House press conference on Monday.
Kevin Johnson, Communication Studies professor and First Amendment expert at Long Beach State, believes the executive order is less about the flag itself and more about playing into Trump’s conservative base, who have a deep-seated resentment toward flag desecration.
At the press conference, Trump said, “When the American flag is burned, it incites violence.”
Johnson said prosecution can only occur if burning the flag can be correlated
President Donald Trump’s executive order challenges a 1989 Supreme Court ruling, sparking debates over free speech.
to other crimes, including breaking into a store or if it ignites a wildfire.
According to Johnson, a clarification of what inciting “lawless action” is and what “fighting words” are is the only plausible way the Supreme Court ruling is likely to be reversed.
This isn’t the first time Trump has targeted flag burning.
In November 2016, Trump tweeted, “Nobody should be allowed to burn the American Flag – if they do, there must be consequences – perhaps loss of citizenship or year in jail.”
The Trump administration is expected to challenge the Supreme Court’s decision protecting the right to burn the American flag.
California to vote on temporary redistricting in November special election
BY JAYDEN SANDSTROM News Assistant
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a special election will be held on Nov. 4 to determine if the people of California will approve Proposition 50, known as the Election Rigging Response Act.
The proposition would allow the State Legislature’s congressional maps to override the California Citizens Redistricting Commission’s maps for the 2026, 2028 and 2030 elections.
The California Citizens Redistricting
Commission draws congressional lines with the intent of having fair representation across the state, with each congressional district being close to equal population.
This proposition would change the process in order to give Democrats a partisan advantage, helping them gain more congressional seats.
“California will not sit idle as Trump and his Republican lapdogs shred our country’s democracy before our very eyes. In just six months, Trump’s unchecked power has cost Americans billions and taken an ax to the greatest democracy we’ve ever known,” Newsom said in a press release. “This moment calls for urgency and action – that is what we are putting before
voters this November, a chance to fight back against his anti-American ways.”
Newsom’s office said the measure is a direct response to Texas’ mid-decade redistricting changes.
Texas is not due for redistricting until 2030; however, Texas Republicans have redrawn congressional districts to reinforce their party’s hold on the state’s congressional seats.
The Texas Senate approved the GOP congressional map and is waiting for Gov. Greg Abbott’s signature.
Newsom had further alluded to President Trump’s influence on these decisions during a press release on Aug. 8, before making the official announcement.
“Donald Trump is tipping the scales of justice toward injustice for us all – he realizes his agenda is so unpopular that he’d rather rig the next election and prevent voters from holding him accountable and provide a check on his deeply unpopular policies,” Newsom said. “California stands ready to flex its muscle to ensure the integrity of our democracy nationwide.”
On Aug. 25, President Trump threatened to sue California over the redistricting vote during a conversation in the Oval Office.
“I think I’m going to be filing a lawsuit pretty soon, and I think we’re going to be very successful in it,” Trump said. No lawsuits have been filed at this time.
DANTE ESTRADA/Long Beach Current
Here’s where to find relocated student services
BY ANNETTE QUIJADA News Editor
While the Future U Project construction is underway, student resources and services previously in the University Student Union have relocated from now through September 2028.
Associated Students Inc. Communications Manager Shannon Couey said relocations were determined based on each department or resource’s spatial needs, as well as necessary requirements, including electrical and data infrastructure.
“We also prioritized placing departments that work closely together near one another. For example, Campus Events is now located next to Student Life & Development since the two collaborate frequently, and SLD is also near the ASI business
DANTE ESTRADA/Long Beach Current
Student resources are now spread throughout campus due to the University Union Closure.
office for similar reasons,” Couey said.
More study spaces are also available to students. Couey said the USU furniture was repurposed around campus to provide additional seating.
Previous entertainment services at the USU have also found a new home off campus.
Here’s where to find the relocated services.
Peterson Hall
• Student Government – Room 100
• Campus Events Office – Room 103
• Student Life and Development –Room 107
• ASI Business Office – Room 109
• Basic Needs – Room 127
• Beach Pride Events – Room 200
• Sustain U – Room 204
• ASI Communications – Room 208
• 22 West Media – Room 210
• Interfaith Center – Room 212
• Puvunga Resource Center – Room 216
• Esports Lounge – Room 218
• Men’s Success Initiative – Room 225
New study spaces
• College of Business
• Central Plant roof
• Bookstore, second floor
• Horn Center
• Hillside Dining Hall
• Student Success Center
• University Library
• Psychology Building
• McIntosh Humanities Building
• Peterson Hall Quad food truck area
• Fine Arts 1 Quad food truck area
Other services
• ASI Beach Pantry – Student Health Services, Room 115-A
• ASI administration – Faculty Offices 5
• ASI Human Resources – Bookstore
Conference and meeting spaces can be found at The Pointe, Anna W. Ngai Alumni Center and/or Peterson Hall classrooms.
The ping pong, pool tables, shuffleboard and piano have been relocated to the Sports Basement. Students can use them for free.
Couey said all relocations are finalized except Esports, which will transition into the University Library once renovations of its temporary space are complete.
Navigating a campus under construction
Snapshots from the first week of the fall 2025 semester showcase students finding their rhythm amid detours, construction and unexpected campus challenges.
BY ETHAN COHEN Photo Assistant
The first week of the fall 2025 semester at Long Beach State brought the familiar energy of students returning to campus, but this year, it came with added challenges. Typically a central hub of activity, the University Student Union is now well underway with construction for the Future U project renovation. Fences, detours and temporary walkways cut through campus, forcing students to take new, and often longer, routes to class.
These photos capture the small adjustments students made as they navigated around the blocked-off areas. Crowds fun-
JORGE HERNANDEZ/Long Beach Current
neled through narrow paths, some pausing to figure out the fastest way across campus, others weaving past construction signs that now dominate the landscape. What once was open space for gathering and walking now feels like a maze.
Beyond the construction, parking emerged as one of the biggest hurdles of the week. Students circled campus lots for up to 45 minutes in search of an open space. For many, the parking ordeal added to the stress of the semester’s start, with long lines of cars snaking through every lot by mid-morning.
Despite the disruptions, the energy of a new academic year was unmistakable. The first week set the tone for a semester of persistence and patience, as campus life continues amid change.
Upper left: A Long Beach State student rests next to the water molecule fountain outside of Brotman Hall on Wednesday, Aug. 27. Temperatures reached to the mid-to-high 80s the first week of school. Lower left: Free balloon animals are handed out to students on a Monday morning as the first day of the fall semester begins. Above: Students walk through a detour past the University Student Union Building on Wednesday, Aug. 27, which is closed off and under construction until 2028. Below: Hundreds of cars fill the parking lots at Long Beach State on Wednesday, Aug. 27, during the first week of school. The parking lots have been full every day of this week leaving many students searching for as high as 45 minutes for a spot.
ETHAN COHEN/Long Beach Current
ETHAN COHEN/Long Beach Current
ETHAN COHEN/Long Beach Current
ARTS & LIFE
Anxiety, uncertainty, excitement: campus reacts to new semester
BY JASON GREEN Arts & Life Assistant
Anew school year has arrived, and students are experiencing different emotions about returning to or arriving at Long Beach State for the first time, with anxiety and stress being the most prominent.
A survey study by the American Council of Education found that from 2014 to 2024, anxiety among college students rose by 12%, depression rates rose by 17% and serious thoughts of suicide among college students rose by 3%.
Abel Nunez-Perez, a fourth-year marine biology major, is one student teeming with worry.
“I’m pretty nervous about how these classes are going to be,” he said. “This is college physics we are talking about.”
His worry stems from uncertainty about new classes and professors.
Other students with worries about the semester are Sophia Marie Manansala, a second-year civil engineering major, and fourth-year film student Sadie Munoz, who said they are not looking forward to the stress caused by finals.
Anila Bhagavatula, an adjunct professor of psychology, said these are common emotions for college students and that they are not alone in their concerns.
“There’s often anxiety when there’s something unpredictable,” Bhagavatula said. “But the entire nature of being a student is that literally every time you are coming to class, you’re hearing new information. When you multiply that by multiple classes, I think that adds to the sense of unpredictability.”
Bhagavatula, who has a doctorate in psychology, said that only focusing on the positives and ignoring the negatives is not the best way to manage anxiety and unfamiliarity.
Instead, Bhagavatula recommends that students acknowledge their negative feelings while avoiding ruminating on those thoughts.
Outside of academics, Bhagavatula said students are living in a time of unpre-
JASON GREEN/Long Beach Current
The fall 2025 semester brings excitement and concern for many first-time and returning students as they navigate a Long Beach State campus undergoing major changes.
dictability, and a sense of a lack of control could contribute to their anxiety.
“Well, funding is being pulled from research. So then you say, ‘Oh, well, I was hoping to get an internship on campus. So I could position myself better for graduate school or for a job,” Bhagavatula said. “But then you hear, ‘Oh, funding is going to be cut.’ Then the next day, you hear, ‘OK, the National Guard may come to Los Angeles again.’”
Bhagavatula suggests that in order to regulate anxiety and mental health, students should accept that they are going through something difficult while keeping
in mind that it will pass.
However, anxiety is far from the only emotion radiating across campus. Many students also shared their goals for the semester.
“After, like, seven years of studying, I’ll be able to finally accomplish what I came here for and get my diploma,” Jessica Sanchez, a history major entering her last semester, said.
Dedicated to graduating one year early, being focused on studies will be at the forefront for third-year business administration major Kayla Soriano this fall.
“This is going to be my first semester
where I’m planning to do fall, winter and spring back to back,” she said.
Soriano, 20, is also part of the Pilipino Cultural Night board, which is under the Pilipino American Coalition. PCN celebrates Filipino culture by performing skits with traditional dances, something Soriano is excited about.
PCN will host its 40th show next spring, with the date yet to be announced.
Madeline Popovich, a fourth-year communications studies major, is excited to achieve a non-academic goal.
“This semester, I am trying to be able to do a push-up,” she said.
Long Beach’s oldest LGBTQ film festival returns next weekend
What
BY DELFINO CAMACHO Arts & Life Editor
In 1993, while mainstream movies like Jurassic Park were dominating the box office, 500 people squeezed into a 200-seat makeshift theater inside the University Student Union to watch “Together Alone,” an independent film with queer themes.
Unbeknownst to those first, eager cinephiles, they were present at the birth of the Long Beach Q Film Festival.
Robert Cano, the festival’s founder and a recent Long Beach State graduate, had just returned from the April 25, 1993, “March on Washington” to honor his gay friends who had died from AIDS.
Inspired by the communal comfort of a queer film festival he attended in Washington, D.C., Cano came back to the Long Beach LGBTQ Center with an idea.
“I proposed to the board to have a film festival, and they went along with it,” Cano said. “None of the theaters would take us; they didn’t know what we were going to do. They thought maybe we’re going to show porn.”
Cano and the other organizers rented the USU space and programmed a weekend full of independent and queer-centric cinema, unsure if anyone would attend.
It was a hit.
“Right then, we knew, OK, there’s a hunger for positive gay images,” Cano said. “Back then, the AIDS pandemic was really painting us in a very negative light, so we wanted to counter that narrative with more positive images of ourselves, up on the screen.”
Now, 32 years later, Long Beach’s oldest and longest-running queer film festival is set to return Sept. 4 with a weekend full of films, running until Sept. 7.
The four-day festival features 61 individual films, including feature-length and short films. Narrative features, animation
and documentaries will all be represented.
A screening of two films will follow Thursday’s opening night reception at 5 p.m.
Directed by Soraya Simi, the documentary “Row of Life,” about Long Beach ocean rower and Paralympic medalist Angela Madsen, screens at 6 p.m., followed by a Q&A moderated by Marie Cartier and featuring Debra Madsen, Angela Madsen’s wife.
“Plainclothes,” which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, screens at 8 p.m., followed by a Q&A hosted by Cano and featuring director Carmen Emmi.
A narrative thriller, the film is inspired by an LA Times Article about the Long Beach Police Department wrongfully entrapping gay men. The Q&A will also feature Rory Moroney, one of the men
accused and his attorney Stephanie Loftin.
While the festival has historically screened all over the city, including the Carpenter Performing Arts Center, the Long Beach Museum of Art, the Museum of Latin American Art and even at the Queen Mary, it is primarily hosted at the nearby Long Beach Art Theatre.
“The LGBT center runs the festival and has historically run the festival.” Kennedy Ghaill, film programmer at the Art Theatre, said. “The theater acts as a venue, and my involvement with the festival is through volunteering for the center.”
Ghaill, who’s running her third year with the festival, said her experience as the first trans person on the festival’s committee has been positive and rewarding. Her responsibilities include reviewing the vast number of trans category submissions and making selections about what to showcase.
“The past two years, I’ve made selections for a trans feature narrative, a trans feature documentary and trans shorts. But unfortunately, only the shorts actually were able to get programmed,” Gaill said. “This year, through some adaptation and also just some really good submissions, I was able to get those two trans features back in the festival, which are ‘Just Kids,’ a documentary, and ‘She’s the He,’ a comedy.
With over 300 annual submissions, the festival regularly features collections of sub-categorized shorts. Beyond the queer and trans collections, the festival will also feature blocks reserved for student, animated and Latinx shorts.
Long Beach documentarian Ted Griswold’s short documentary, “No Sleep for ICE,” will be featured during the festival’s Saturday evening Latinx shorts block.
Stylized journalistically but with a more narrative edge, the short documents local activist efforts over the summer to drive ICE–who were staying in local motels–out of the city.
“Once the ICE federal invasion started a couple of months ago, I started just kind of going to protests,” Griswold said.
Working with the online magazine Counterpunch, Griswold regularly produced short, newscast-style documentaries. When editing “No Sleep for ICE,” however, Griswold said he felt the documentary had enough narrative drive and sent it in for consideration.
“I go to the Art Theatre on Fourth Street all the time, and I like a lot of their programming. Since moving here, I’ve come to respect the Q Film Festival. It’s the best film festival in the area,” he said.
Now 62, festival founder Cano recalls being 26 when he first graduated from CSULB and the Q Film Festival began.
“It’s pretty amazing to watch these films with the queer audience, because we get those nuances that usually don’t get,” Cano said. “There’s a lot of power in telling our stories, the ones that don’t get told in the mainstream.”
DELFINO CAMACHO/Long Beach Current
The Art Theatre of Long Beach, the primary host of the Q Film Festival, is located beside the Long Beach LGBTQ Center, which runs and operates the film festival set to begin next week. Both locations are located on the historic Fourth Street or Retro Row.
JASON GREEN/Long Beach Current
In the weeks following dormatory move-in and before Thanksgiving, campuses nationwide fall into the Red Zone phenomenon: a period where more than half of campus sexual assaults occur, and new students are most vulnerable.
Navigating the fall Red Zone: The critical weeks for student safety awareness
BY JASON GREEN Arts & Life Assistant
The first few months on campus are full of new beginnings for students: new classes, professors, classmates and for many, a new campus to explore.
However, also accompanying the first few months of a fall semester on any college campus are higher rates of assault.
This national phenomenon is called the Red Zone.
The Red Zone extends from the first day of the fall semester to Thanksgiving break.
More than 50% of all assaults on campus occur during the Red Zone.
On Thursday, Aug. 28, the Women’s and Gender Equity Center hosted an event alongside other organizations to educate students about this issue, provide information on assault prevention and spread awareness about available resources on campus.
“We’re not here to fearmonger, we don’t want to scare anyone,” said Taylor Mosack, an education specialist for the Office of Equity & Compliance. “We want you to enjoy your first 6 weeks and be a great participating student in all of the wonderful activities on campus, but we also want you to be aware.”
The Office of Equity & Compliance is a campus resource that reviews and investigates allegations of discrimination, harassment and retaliation against students, faculty and third parties related to a protected
class at Long Beach State.
Some examples of protected classes include sex, race, gender expression and nationality.
OCE also reviews allegations of Title IX, a federal law that prevents discrimination based on sex.
Included in this law are issues regarding sexual harassment, sexual misconduct, dating and domestic violence, stalking and sexual exploitation.
Overlapping with OCE is the SAFER team, a confidential resource related to cases involving Title IX. The primary difference between the two organizations is that although OCE provides assistance, it does not guarantee confidentiality.
The students who are most vulnerable to the Red Zone phenomenon are generally first-year and transfer students arriving at The Beach.
“[It’s many students’] first time experiencing anything outside of their homes, different areas, completely new areas, to be honest, even as transfer students. If you don’t know the area, you’re more vulnerable to not knowing resources,” said Marlen Estrada-Tapia, a student ambassador for the Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies.
Mosack said one way to prevent sexual assault is to be aware of affirmative consent.
“We often think of [affirmative consent] being a 1-way street, but it is a 2-way street, and it is a completely reversible and ongoing conversation,” said Mosack.
The effects of sexual assault can be severe.
The Long Beach Trauma Recovery Center provides services such as evidence-based therapy for trauma survivors.
“When someone experiences any kind of sexual assault or any kind of physical assault, typically the reactions that we see is a lot of memories around the trauma incident that happened,” said Marylu Whitford, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist at the LBTRC.
Some of the effects Whitford mentioned include difficulty concentrating, hyper vigilance, avoidance of reminders of the traumatic event, self-blame, guilt and negative cognitions around the event and what happened.
“I do feel safe on campus. There’s a lot of programs here that are very inclusive, and they try their best to make sure that everyone is feeling welcomed on campus,” said Estrada-Tapia.
‘You’re gonna need a bigger drive-in’: My experience at ‘Jaws’ opening night
BY MICHAEL HEITER Arts & Life Assistant
This year marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most successful movies of all time.
Long Beach State alumnus Steven Spielberg’s tale of the world’s crankiest shark, “Jaws,” became the highest-grossing movie in history until “Star Wars” beat it out in 1977.
My personal connection goes back to opening night.
My first job was as a snack bar attendant at a drive-in theater. I was part of a crack crew that worked the Sepulveda Drive-In Theater in Van Nuys.
Our capacity was 1,100 cars, one of the largest in Southern California.
The snack bar was in a large building that also hosted the projection booth. We had eight people working the counter, all of whom were veterans.
Despite the busy summer of 1974, with almost every Saturday night sold out, our crack refreshments crew could still get these large crowds in, served and out in 30 minutes.
But nothing prepared us for “Jaws.”
It started on the first night. We opened at 5:30 p.m. with “Jaws” set to premiere at 8:15 p.m.
The opening rush that night took over three hours; we were so full.
We refilled the popcorn warmers and
restocked the ice for the soda machines. I recall personally serving some people three separate times.
At the end of the night, while waiting for the post-feature rush, we heard a noise unlike anything we had ever heard before. One that scared us more than any above-water fin.
A deafening roar we couldn’t ex plain.
It turned out that when “Bruce” (the shark, whom director Steven Spielberg named after his attor ney) got blown to smithereens, everybody in the driver’s seats hit their horns simul taneously in a cacophony of celebration.
I never actually fin ished the movie that summer. My only notable encounter was when I caught “Bruce’s” first ap pearance while eat ing a sandwich and jumped about a foot, but managed to hold on to my dinner.
The 50th anniversary re lease started on Aug. 28.
I visited a theater to watch a digi
tal edition presented on an IMAX screen (but not at IMAX size).
The movie print was as clean and sharp as humanly possible, noticeably cleaner than the one we had on opening night.
Sometimes, you think you know a movie pretty well and then find out you don’t. In the case of “Jaws,” I had two revelations.
The first was in the opening credits.
The order goes to producers, stars, supporting players, score composer John Williams and master editor
Spielberg’s name is nowhere to be found, a fact that makes more sense when you realize it was the future movie maestro’s first-ever theatrical release.
The other striking similarity was to the muplayed during the cage assembly segment, which was also featured a montage in Kirk Douglas’s 1960 epic, “Spartacus.”
Five decades later, crowd reactions were also different.
Instead
of a filled-to-the-brim parking lot, there were about 15 people spread throughout a mostly empty theater. The movie still made the noises I remember, but the crowd didn’t.
I may have even seen a cell phone light or two.
After the show, audience member Derek M. said his favorite part was when the little boy died. It is the only part of the film that sticks with him.
Todd S., on the other hand, loves the editing. He believes it still stands out after 50 years.
His first encounter with the movie was at the 1975 Filmex Film Festival in Los Angeles, which featured an appearance by editor Fields discussing her experience editing the film.
When the movie was released, it was noted that interest in oceanography had increased.
Wendy Benchley, widow of “Jaws” author Peter Benchley, said that after the movie’s release, marine science applications at the University of Miami increased by 30%.
In an era where films are released at an unprecedented pace through previously unimaginable avenues, a few classics still manage to rise above the waters.
While audiences might ebb and flow, movies like “Jaws” will remain staples that will continue to play in theaters for decades to come.
And just when you thought it was safe to go back to the movies.
The front marquee of the Sepulveda Drive-In Theater as it looked in 1978.
Photo courtesy of Robert Juzefski, David Zornig and Cinema Treasures
SPORTS
DANTE ESTRADA/Long Beach Current
Ranking The Beach’s largest Big West threats
BY TIMOTHY HESSEN
Sports Editor
Last week, Long Beach State women’s volleyball head coach Natalie Reagan said her squad can“compete with the best and win the Big West.”
To climb the mountain that is the Big West Conference, The Beach will have to surprise some people, as they were ranked just fifth in the Preseason Coaches’ Poll.
On their path to the conference title, here are the top three obstacles LBSU women’s volleyball will have to topple this season.
University of Hawaii
After winning the first two Big West championship tournaments in 2023 and 2024 and the regular season conference title the three years prior, the Rainbow Wahine have established themselves as the class of the Big West.
LBSU’s first showdown with Hawaii will take place on a national stage, with the game broadcasting from the Walter Pyramid on ESPNU on Oct. 17.
Despite their status as conference favorites after finishing first in the preseason poll, the Wahine find themselves in a similar position as The Beach in building a new roster, with seven new roster additions compared to LBSU’s 10.
With the departure of big names, including Big West Player of the Year Caylen Alexander and setter of the year Kate Lang, Hawaii will rely heav-
LBSU hires first new softball coach in nearly 20 years
BY JUNIOR CONTRERAS Sports Assistant
Drawn in by tradition, community and history of success, Kendall Fearn joins The Beach as Long Beach State’s new softball head coach, making her just the third head coach in the last 42 years of the program.
Experience is a bright spot for the Southern California native. Fearn was a four-year starter in softball for the Rebels at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, under LBSU Hall of Fame head coach Pete Manarino.
ily on Eastern Washington transfer Bri Gunderson.
The senior middle blocker was fifth in the nation in blocks per set last season and looks to be the centerpiece of an elite Hawaii defense.
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
After capturing the regular season conference title but falling to the Wahine in the championship game, the Mustangs are back for vengeance in 2025.
The Beach will meet with the Mustangs at home on Oct. 4 in the first matchup between the two squads after LBSU’s season was ended by Cal Poly in a 3-0 sweep in last season’s playoff tournament.
Cal Poly boasts two of the seven athletes selected to the Big West Preseason Coaches’ Team with sophomore middle blocker Chloe Leluge and redshirt senior Emme Bullis.
UC Santa Barbara
Despite finishing behind The Beach and out of the postseason last year, the Gauchos are expected to finish fourth in the conference this season, according to the Preseason Coaches’ Poll.
The biggest reason to believe in the Gauchos’ expected bounce-back is their leader and redshirt sophomore outside hitter, Eva Travis.
The Big West Freshman of the Year last season, Travis was first-team all-conference and had 16 kills and nine digs in her lone matchup against LBSU last season.
UC Santa Barbara will be LBSU’s first matchup against a team ranked higher in the preseason poll this season in a home matchup on Oct. 3.
“I’ve been exposed to the rich traditions of LBSU; a lot of it was from [Manarino],” Fearn said. “Many years ago, I developed a very strong respect and appreciation for what this program had done and was continuing to do.”
After her final season playing at UNLV, Fearn joined the Rebels’ coaching staff for two years before taking assistant coaching roles at Indiana University, Georgia Southern University, Marshall University and most recently, returning home to San Diego State, where she helped the program reach three straight NCAA tournament appearances.
Fearn knows what it takes for a team to compete at the highest level.
“We’re going to really emphasize the process of player development and focusing on culture and having competitive excellence, and whatever we have our hands in, we are doing it with excellence,” Fearn said. “We are going to be the most prepared team in the conference…our expectation and our goal is to be competing for a championship.”
Fearn is filling the shoes of 1988 LBSU Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Kim Sowder, who managed the softball team for 19 years.
During her tenure, Sowder led The Beach to five Big West Conference championships, nine NCAA tournament appearances and earned five Coach of the Year honors, all while maintaining a winning percentage above .600.
Sowder left the program in what Fearn described as a “really great place,” with a healthy and strong foundation that’s built on a rich tradition.
Fearn believes it’s her charge to continue to highlight the path of success that
Sowder created for her.
Fearn is known nationally as a tireless recruiter and has lived up to that quickly at LBSU. Fearn recruited five veteran Division I transfers just a month into her new role.
Fearn has also built a strong coaching staff, with the hiring of pitching coach Shelby Miller, who joins The Beach after four years as a pitching coach at Fresno State.
Her pitching expertise and application of data analytics helped develop back-toback Mountain West Pitcher of the Year winners for the Bulldogs.
“I want the lowest staff ERA (earned run average) in the conference, but I think honestly, it always just comes back to the individual and making them the best version that they can be,” Miller said.
Miller and Fearn share a history of competing against each other in the Mountain West Conference, which is one reason Miller joined the staff. However, it was the location of Long Beach, bringing her closer to family, and the “gritty, refuse to fail, attitude of the team” that drew her in.
“Coach Shelby is outstanding at what she does,” Fearn said. “She’s very highly respected in the pitching world, and I just spent several years competing against her in the former conference, so I know how tough her staffs are.”
Fearn and Miller acknowledge each other as fierce competitors who share a drive to win and bring success in this new era of LBSU softball.
Photo courtesy of LBSU Athletics
Missed LBSU penalty kick paves the way for UCLA women’s soccer victory
BY JUNIOR CONTRERAS Sports Assistant
Asecond-half collapse from Long Beach State (1-4) extends their losing streak to four after a 2-0 loss against No. 23 University of California, Los Angeles (2-2) on Friday, Aug. 29, at Wallis Annenberg Stadium.
As freshman forward Natelle El Mokbel stepped up to the penalty mark, performing her best Ronaldo stance impression, she took a deep breath.
The piercingly silent crowd watched as Mokbel stared down the last line of defense between a tied game and a LBSU lead against UCLA in the 35th minute.
The left-footed forward fired to the bottom right before a diving block by UCLA freshman goalkeeper Daphne Nakfoor sent the Bruin faithful into a frenzy.
“It gave us some hope and kept it at 0-0… I think that it helped push us and get us the momentum that we needed and the belief just to know that we can score and get up against Long Beach, which is a very good opponent,” Nakfoor said.
LBSU head coach Mauricio Ingrassia expressed his frustration at the missed scoring opportunity.
“We’re gonna talk about it, because we have people that are supposed to be stepping up to take that, and they didn’t step up,” Ingrassia said. “But that’s a good learned lesson, unfortunate for this game, but it’ll help us in the future.”
The Bruins rode their newly found momentum out of halftime, leading to the first goal of the game by UCLA freshman forward Payten Cooper, heading in a pass soaring in from the far right side of the box by freshman forward Leena Powell in minute 49.
LBSU attempted a shot in the 50th minute from outside the box by sophomore midfielder Julie Lopez, which was punched out over the crossbar, resulting in an unsuccessful corner.
Although The Beach were down, sophomore defender Brooklyn Antonucci put on a defensive showcase, providing steals and clearances that stopped many offensive attacks from UCLA.
“I thought she was amazing. I thought she keeps getting better each and every
game,” Ingrassia said.
Turning defense into offense, the Bruins showcased their strong defense, which recorded the national-best numbers for shutouts with 16 and a goals-against average of 0.41 per game last season.
An unsuccessful LBSU corner kick allowed the Bruin defense to counterattack the scattered Beach as UCLA freshman midfielder Grace Shank received a cross in stride just outside the box before assisting junior forward Oruha Hayashi, who struck the back of the net to put the Bruins up two.
With just two shots in the second half for The Beach, they fell short on the third and final road game of their three-game road trip.
LBSU returns home for four straight home games in the month of September in hopes of ending the losing streak.
“That was three straight losses, and we came out like that. This ain’t gonna slow us down,” Ingrassia said.
Photos by ETHAN COHEN/Long Beach Current Long Beach State sophomore defender Brooklyn Antonucci tracks down the ball during a match against UCLA at Wallis Annenberg Stadium on Friday, Aug. 29. Ethan Cohen | Long Beach Current
UCLA junior transfer Oruha Hayashi scores the Bruins’ second goal against the Beach at Wallis Annenberg Stadium on Friday, Aug. 29. No. 23 UCLA defeated Long Beach State 2-0. Ethan Cohen | Long Beach Current
SPORTS
PEREZ/Long Beach Current
LBSU redshirt freshman opposite Logan King sends a shot over two Stanford defenders during the women’s volleyball season opener on Friday, Aug. 29. Despite losing to the Cardinal, King began her season with a stellar 13-kill performance.
Women’s volleyball returns to The Beach, finishes 1-1 over weekend
BY TIMOTHY HESSEN & JUNIOR CONTRERAS Sports Editor & Sports Assistant
The Beach took their first set against a ranked opponent since 2023, but ultimately suffered a 3-1 defeat to the visiting powerhouse No. 6 Stanford on Friday, Aug. 29.
“Of course, there’s frustration in places that we felt like we could have been better and really competed for the win tonight, but it’s a great start for a young team, and there’s a lot of things we’re proud of,” Long Beach State head coach Natalie Reagan said.
After missing the entire 2024 season as a medical redshirt, Elise Agi returned for her senior season debut on Friday
night—643 days after her last match.
The star outside hitter picked up right where she left off, delivering 14 kills and hitting .324.
“It feels incredible. I had a moment with my team before the match and just brought up how grateful I was,” Agi said. “Any opportunity that I get to be out on the court is extremely exciting.”
A Big West All-Freshman Team selection a year ago, sophomore setter and opposite Madi Maxwell was the orchestrator of a potent offensive start in her sophomore debut, setting up The Beach’s offensive attack with 31 assists in addition to her 10 digs and four kills.
Up 24-16 in the first, a fake set from Maxwell turned into a kill down the middle to secure LBSU’s lone set point of the night.
However, after leading 18-16 late in the second, an untimely 8-0 run given up by
The Beach shattered their chances at taking a commanding 2-0 lead and swung the tide in the Cardinal’s favor, as they eventually took the set 25-19.
Redshirt sophomore outside hitter Ipar Kurt had three of her nine kills to lead Stanford in its dominating finish of the set to tie the contest 1-1.
After finding their groove late in the previous set, the Cardinal caught fire, dominating the third and fourth sets to scores of 25-16 and 25-20 to seal the road victory.
On Sunday, Reagan led LBSU to a sweep over her alma mater, Oregon State, for the team’s first win of the season at the Walter Pyramid on Aug. 31.
“To see them on the other side of the net’s pretty special for me,” Reagan said. “It feels great; I should probably feel conflicted about it, but I’m pretty proud of this group.”
Maxwell was all over the floor for The
Beach once again on Sunday, finishing the first set with three of her seven kills and 13 of her game-high 34 assists, prompting The Beach to a 25-17 first set win.
“We talked a lot after [the loss to Stanford] about spreading the ball with our offense, because any hitter in our offense is capable of getting a kill,” Maxwell said.
A set pass from Maxwell to redshirt freshman opposite Logan King struck down the set point, giving King an astounding nine kills in the set as The Beach won the second 25-22.
“Our team gels so well, and I just kind of feed off of them,” King said. “Without them, I don’t know if I would get that energy, but I have it now.”
There was no sign of stopping King, who finished the contest with a game-high 17 kills, beginning the third set with another kill as The Beach took the set 25-16 to secure the sweep.
DIEGO