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FEATURES: The Forgotten History of St. Patrick’s Day
EL CAMINO COLLEGE
March, 14, 2013
Tradition blossoms at annual festival
Sleep deprivation can affect more than just grades Joh’nysha Vercher Staff Writer
Kyle Borden/ Union Honored guest speaker Donald Hata gives a speech at the Nadine Ishitami Hata Memorial Cherry Blossom Festival on March 7.
Torrance, California
College can be a wonderful experience both socially and academically but also a balancing act that leads to lack of sleep for many students. Academic achievements and social existence are things that students strive to accomplishment through their collegiate journey. However, those wants and needs do not come without a price. Late night cram sessions accompanied by idle chit-chat on the phone, can cause lack of sleep resulting in the inability to succeed in school. “People procrastinate and put it off until you end up doing your homework at the last minute and that is why you get deprived of sleep. Then you get into class the next day and you’re not doing as good as you should,” Tony Galvan, 18, business major said. In an article on thehuffingtonpost.com, it said that in some studies that were done, students who were getting an average amount of sleep were receiving, on average, a full grade higher than those who weren’t. While students strive for high grades by studying into the wee
hours of the night, not only are they becoming sleep deprived but are costing themselves the grades they wanted in the first place. “Oh sure, what college student isn’t, I would say I get four hours sleep max,” Jessica Leves, 21, sociology major said. “Studying for multiple classes takes a toll on me, plus work and friends makes it difficult to get a full eight hours.” On a certain level students realize how lack of sleep can affect their academic performance but old habits are hard to break. “Yeah I dont think anyone gets the sleep they need, theres always some kind of work to do,” Richard Brown, 23, computer science major. “I know studying until you crash isn’t a good thing but you just get used to it.” Not only is lack of sleep bad for students academically but it can also lead to more dangerous health effects. Sleep deprivation in students can cause lower grades and also can be associated with serious health risks. According to an article on latimes.com, sleep deprivation can lead to health risk to those who lack the proper amount of sleep, work early in the mornings and work late at night. The same article
further stated that the genes from sleep deprived individuals were being damaged while those who slept well were producing new cells. The article also states that health risks for people who suffer from sleep deprivation include diabetes, stroke, and high blood pressure. “I wasn’t aware that not sleeping was that serious,” Leves said. “It really makes you think but people are so concerned with getting decent grades and probably wont care about the health risk.” Students have witnessed first hand what the lack of sleep can do when dealing with the stress of school work. “There was this guy last year in my class that fell asleep in his book,” Laura Ramone, 19, English major, said. “It was hard waking him up, he basically crashed from studying for his finals.” While students see sleep deprivation as an overwhelming problem, they do believe that simple remedies can take place. “I think its a problem that’s talked about but not something people try to deal with,” Ramone said. “If people manage their time more, stick to a schedule, and try not to do everything, it can be avoided.”
Ceremony celebrates the MBA opening Steven Tran Staff Writer
The doors of EC’s new Math, Business and Allied Health building have finally opened this semester with high hopes to improve the learning experience for students. “The building is just so functional: there are places to gather, wireless Internet for interaction, and more than enough room; Everything about the building is conducive to learning,” Mike Botello, professor of business, said. The construction process incorporated the latest in technology, Thomas E. Brown, irector of facilities planning and services, said. “It’s a lot like the Humanities
Building; it’s set up by the same architect and has a lot of the same features and benefits,” Brown said. “However, the computer labs are more sophisticated, and it has a Nursing department on the fourth floor,” he added. The fourth floor of the MBA building is dedicated towards an “Allied Health” program: Nursing, Respiratory Therapy, and Radiology programs are centralized into a single unit. “Last year we were on the opposite side of the campus. It was a very old building. The difference between that building and this one is night and day. It’s nice that we have new technology; Once upon a time, our newest technology was the door itself,” Nenna Olumba, 26, Nursing Major said.
“It has the environment of an actual hospital as far as oxygen, headboards and all the things of that nature, it looks like a regular hospital,” Brown said. The building contains ecofriendly features which meet and exceed energy conservation concerns, also known as Title 24, Brown added. “The roofing has a white coating for refection, and the glazing is high-energy efficient: what we call E-rated. Also, the mechanical devices are economized to minimize the amount of energy we have to use: there are sensors which shut off when students are not in there,” Brown said. However, the MBA building is not “perfect” and there have been a number of issues that we have
expierienced with the building since the beginning of this semester, Olumba said. One of our teachers had trouble getting in the building, with her own code over the weekend but she wasn’t able to do so; she contacted the EC Police to try to help and the policemen were not able to get in either,” Olumba added. Though there have been a few glitches, it’s important to consider that the building is new and there is a continuing effort to fix malfunctions, Brown added. “Everything has its problems, and we are just ironing out the kinks, and trying to get used to a building that we are not really used to,” Olumba said.
Phil Prins/ Union Board of trustees vice president Ken Brown and visitors tour the fourth floor of the MBA building during its grand opening ceremony on March 6.
Rise in breast cancer rates among young women heightens student awareness Philip Prins
Staff Writer
NEWS LINE
Breast-cancer rates in women ages 25 to 39 have almost doubled during the past 34 years, according to a recently released report by The Journal of the American Medical Association. The increase spans all ethnicities with no “similar increase” in other age groups and no root causes have been identified, according to the same report, which characterized the increase as “small
By Emerson Keenan
but statistically significant.” Debbie Conover, student health services coordinator, said younger women on campus shouldn’t let the report scare them. “I think the thing is, you don’t want to get alarmed,” Conover said. “You want to get proactive rather than reactive. Knowledge is power.” Deborah Herzik, a certified family nurse practitioner at the Student Health Center, said female students should talk to their doctors if they have a family history
of breast cancer, conduct monthly self breast exams and take their health seriously. “We always encourage any person on campus to eat a healthy low fat diet; lean protein rich in fiber and antioxidants, fresh fruits and vegetables, get plenty of rest,” Herzik said. “Water is really, really important. It’s important to stay well hydrated and exercise.” Conover said that the Student Health Center offers free physical exams and
that students that have any questions or concerns about breast cancer are always welcome. One faculty member with first-hand knowledge of the disease is Debra Breckheimer, 53, English professor, who was diagnosed with stage-three breast cancer in February of 2012 and is still in the recovery process. She said that her diagnosis had taken her completely off guard because there had been no physical symptoms such as lumps, odd sensa-
tions or unusual levels of fatigue. “I was in utter shock,” Breckheimer said. “I felt like I was the healthiest person in the world when I walked in for my routine mammogram.” She said another reason she hadn’t expected the diagnoses was due to a shift in her lifestyle 8 years ago that included eating healthy foods and exercising routinely. She cautioned younger women not to feel invincible
because of their age. “I didn’t think it could happen to me because I took to good a care of myself, but I think there were to many years where I didn’t,” Breckheimer said. “My message to them (younger women) would be that you have to start very early taking good care of yourself and being mindful of what you put into your body and what it does.” Although some of the younger female students may not yet be considering the possibility of getting
Financial aid workshop
San Diego State tour
Nursing info workshop
University fair on lawn
On Tuesday from 2 to 4 p.m. there will be a Financial Aid Workshop in SSC 204-G. The workshop will cover information about Financial Aid and provide assistance in completing the online financial aid application. For more information contact the Financial Aid Office 310-660-3493.
March 23, the Transfer Center will be hosting a tour of San Diego State University. A $5 refundable deposit is required upon signing up. For more information or to sign up, contact the Transfer Center at 310-660-3593 ext. 6137.
Interested in becoming a nursing major? On March 26 from 1 to 3 p.m. in the Distance Education Room, there will be a nursing information workshop. For more information about this event call 310-660-3593 ext. 3404 or visit the Counseling Center.
On March 28 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. there will be a University Fair on the Library Lawn featuring dozens of representatives from colleges all over California. For more information call 310-6603593 ext. 6137 or visit the Career and Transfer Center
breast cancer, Mayra Acevedo, 20, nursing major, said the thought had crossed her mind. “It’s scary and I do try to check myself regularly,” she said. Acevedo said her peers should be vigilant as well. “They definitely have to think about it because sometimes when you actually find out about it, it’s too late and you’re regretting it so you do have to keep up with yourself,” she said. “It’s very simple, so just go for it.”
Undecided majors workshop Undecided major workshop from 1 to 3 p.m. on March 28. The workshop will be taking place in SSC room 207. This workshop is designed to help students find a major. For more information call 310-660-3593 ext. 6137 or visit the Career and Transfer Center.