Since 1960 Volume 85, Issue 31
Tuesday November 3, 2009
The Student Voice of California State University, Fullerton
Student jobs decline Growing decline in youth employment has politicians concerned
Commit 5+ hours per week to plan your future.
By Gilbert Gutierrez III
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Daily Titan Staff Writer news@dailytitan.com
Photo courtesy leo lopez Pictured are the smoldering remains of the photo processing lab inside Dan Black Hall. A hazmat team was called to the scene because of the possibility of chemicals in the area.
Black hall scorched By patrick cowles
Daily Titan Asst. News Editor news@dailytitan.com
Smoke triggered a fire alarm in Dan Black Hall Sunday at 11:45 p.m. University police and the fire department responded within minutes of the alarm, entering a smoky hallway headed toward room 149, a research laboratory. When responders arrived in the room, no fire awaited them, only smoke and subsequent damage to the laboratory. Brian K. Barnes, communications project coordinator with university police, described the smoke damage as “smoldering” based upon photographs indicating something was burning, but without flame. University police initially believed a Bunsen burner may have been left on inside the laboratory, but no natural gas was fed into the Dr. Peter de Lijser Photochemistry Research Laboratory, said Sue Fisher, Cal State Fullerton’s campus radiation safety officer. “I’m sure that it’s not a Bunsen burner; there is no Bunsen burner used in that part of the lab,” Fisher said. Fisher and Steven Murray, dean of the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, believe the smoke was caused due to an electrical short within a thermal-regulation tool used to gauge the temperature of a heating tool inside the lab. “Apparently a short occurred in a thermal regulation device. Some mineral oil heated up and caused some smoke,” Murray said. So far, the investigation has not determined the cause of the short since a number of reasons could lead to smoldering, Fisher said. “We are analyzing (the situation) to see how we can prevent this type of activity,” Murray said.
However “smoldering” damage is indicative of an electrical fire, Fisher added. “Those kind of things are really difficult to predict and prevent from happening,” Fisher said. A student also contacted the fire department, informing authorities that smoke had built up in the lab as the student returned to study, Murray said. Murray added that students and faculty involved with the college use the labs 24 hours a day and that safety is a priority. “We work very hard in the college to make sure we are doing everything in a safe and accurate way,” Murray said. Murray added that incidents such as this are rare. Sources indicated damage to the lab was minimal and the smoke was localized to one area of the lab. “Impact to the lab was relatively minor,” said Fisher. The surrounding container for the thermal-regulation device is fireproof, preventing any flames from further damaging the lab and its equipment, Murray said. Murray described the incident as a minor fire due to apparent equipment failure that resulted the scorching of some walls, a nearby door, and some damage to custom built glassware. A wall and the door for the lab sustained the most damage, but will only require fresh paint to restore. Murray added that ceiling tiles will also need to be repainted. Lab 149 remained closed Monday, with a single piece of yellow caution tape draped across it. “Fortunately (the fire) was very small and we got an excellent response from the campus police and the fire department,” Fisher said. (Kym Snew contributed to this article.)
An address to Congress was made on Oct. 1 about the decline of jobs available for college students. In a press release distributed by U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), many witnesses told the House Education and Labor Committee that falling youth employment is part of a much longer growing trend that needs to be addressed. “The recession has only made a bad situation worse for younger workers. Even in periods of economic stability, fewer young people do not make the transition to the workforce. They face challenges completing high school and obtaining the skills they need to succeed,” Miller said. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, at the end of September 2009, California’s unemployment rate was posted at 12.2 percent, slightly decreased from 12.3 percent in August. Paul Wessen an economist from the Employment Development Department in Sacramento said that the cause of this increase came from the housing bubble that had fueled much of the consumer spending and economic activity in the state which burst in early 2006. Problems in housing magnified over time, spilled over into the financial sector (first with sub-prime mortgage companies) and consumer sector then erupted into a global financial crisis, which forced consumers to cut back sharply on spending, later forcing businesses to stop investing, which plunged the global economy into recession, he said. “There was something of a perfect storm that hit the U.S. and California economies,” Wessen said. “The record high unemployment rates of recent months are showing just how severe and deep the current economic downturn has been.” Today’s increase of unem-
Think of your job search as a fifth course in your schedule. What are your biggest strengths and weaknesses? Practice for your interviews. Network with your friends, teachers, coaches and family. Thrive from rejection. Tell yourself, “I Just wasn’t meant to work there.” Don’t forget your resume!
Illustration By isa ghani/Daily Titan Multimedia Editor
ployment is just a reaction to the corrections being made to balance out the economy. “There really isn’t all that much you can do to change or alter the cycle,” Wessen said. “But what one can try to do is speed up the cycle (via stimulus) or mitigate the pain and hardship of those most in need (via targeted assistance).” “This is the realm of policy, and policy can be inherently controversial,” he said. In the address to Congress, witness Matthew Segal, founder and national co-chair of 80 Million Strong for Young American Jobs Coalition, said that the employment rate among 16 - 24 year-olds has declined by nearly
20 percent over the past decade to its lowest level since World War II. Congress recognized the history youths have faced and included as a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act an additional $1.2 billion over two years to increase youth job programs. “They tend to be at a disadvantage when entering the workforce and competing for jobs because they lack the skill sets, workplace knowledge and track record that employers seek when hiring workers,” Wessen said when describing the youth. See CAREERS, Page 2
ASEE and AB 540 Task Force unite for Titan Dream Fund By Greg lehman
Daily Titan Staff Writer news@dailytitan.com
The Alliance of Students for an Equal Education and the Cal State Fullerton AB 540 Task Force hosted author and assistant professor William Perez at the Titan Student Union Pavilion A Monday evening. The night served as a time for the ASEE and the AB 540 Task Force to raise money for the Titan Dream Fund through a silent auction and donations as well as an opportunity for Perez to speak about his book “We Are Americans: Undocumented Students Pursuing the American Dream”. Janet Perez-Molina, an academic adviser at CSUF who coordinated the event, said, “This is our kick-off event to introduce the Titan Dream Fund on campus. The Titan Dream
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Fund is pretty much an account that we established in order to get donations for scholarships for AB 540 students on campus.” Perez-Molina said of the night, “It’s a combination of a couple of items.” Silent auctions for art pieces and gift baskets would bring in money for the Titan Dream Fund. Perez would talk about his book and then the ASEE would present their effort on how they assist undocumented students at CSUF. Dr. Esiquio Uballe, chair of the Task Force, said AB 540 legislation allows people to not pay out-of-state tuition. This includes people who have moved out of state and then returned to their home state wanting to attend school there. He added that a study done by University of California found that 70 percent of AB 540 students are permanent residents. “The majority of AB 540 eligible students are citizens
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and permanent residents,” Uballe said. “There’s only a few who are undocumented.” Uballe said that it was important to remain sensitive to the needs of these undocumented students. “When you talk about these students, some of them who are undocumented, they come here and they become part of a marginalized community. Some of them live in fear of being discovered and that they could easily be deported, or their parents could be deported. “So they live with a lot of apprehension; they live with insecurity, and so those of us who work with students as counselors and administrators, we have to take that into consideration in terms of how we can help these students be successful, realizing what they have to cope with day to day,” Perez said. See AB 540, Page 2
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Photo By Lucio Villa/For the Daily Titan Students line up to get their copy of “We Are Americans” signed by the author, William Perez, at the book signing event put on by ASEE.
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CSUF host of NWCA All-Star Classic Nov. 22, Page 8
Student reaction to driving while texting DailyTitan.com/ drivebytexting
Collision survivor’s condition improves By jonathan Montgomery Daily Titan Staff Writer news@dailytitan.com
Last week, two San Bernardino women were killed in a head-on collision involving Cal State Fullerton student Jessica Shekell, 21. Shekell is currently being treated at the UCI Medical Center and a brief update on her condition has been issued by John Murray, head of media relations at UCI Medical Center. As of Friday Oct. 30, Shekell’s condition has progressed from “fair” to “good,” Murray said. Dr. Gracie-Ann Dinkins, trauma surgeon at Long Beach Memorial Center, said that “good condition” typically means the patient is responding well to interventions and surgical procedures; “stable” is the keyword, which means the patient is responding well and surgery may no longer be considered. At this time, Shekell’s family has not authorized the release of any more information. Sara Miguel was involved in the accident and admitted to UCI Medical Center for major injuries. She was discharged on Friday and is also in good condition, Murray said. Liz Raganold, trauma program director at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, said head injuries are the most lethal and devastating injuries among head-on collisions. Second, she said, are abdominal and chest trauma. An impact could also drive the steering wheel into the chest, injuring the heart, lungs and ribs, Dinkins added. Raganold said the result of deceleration in a vehicle traveling at a certain speed results in a “deceleration injury;” the abrupt stop of the vehicle sends the energy and molecules of a driver forward, then back, Raganold said. Like Jell-O, the bodily contents and brain move forward and bounce back in a similar motion, Raganold said. “The speed of the vehicles and the position the passenger is in during the impact can greatly affect the outcome,” Dinkins said. “If your legs are stiff, you have a very likely chance of those same legs being driven backwards,” Dinkins said. Victims can even be injured by their own seat belts, she continued. When there is an intense back and forth motion, the seat belt can damage the aorta, as known as the “tree trunk of circulation,” Dinkins said. Motor vehicle accidents are the number one cause of trauma in the U.S. and are very often caused by someone being under the influence, Raganold added. “(For) half of the motor vehicle accidents in LA County, either the patient or the person that caused the accident has drugs or alcohol on board,” Raganold said. Raganold added that educational programs have been implemented into high schools in California to discourage students from driving drunk. Exhaustion is another factor to consider because it makes drivers “less alert, less accurate and quick to respond,” Raganold said. She added that, overall, trauma centers in close proximity to accidents have greatly affected the outcomes of similar accidents. “One good thing about the accident is that (those involved) could be admitted to nearby trauma center,” Raganold said. There are 13 trauma centers in LA County. Raganold said designated trauma centers carry staff with certain expertise and equipment specific for trauma victims.
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Project PATHE discusses human trafficking, Page 5
Wearing dead celebrity costumes, right/wrong? Page 6
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