EC Union Issue 3, September 26, 2013

Page 1

EL CAMINO COLLEGE

Union T h e

Men’s soccer team wins first game of season...Page 7

eccunion.com

September 26, 2013

Torrance, California

Winter session canceled in favor of two summer sessions

School shootings: if you see something, say something Lorenzo Gutierrez Staff Writer

Run, hide, or fight. These are the three most important things you can do in the event of a shooting on campus, EC Police Chief Michael Trevis said. “If you hear gun shots; if you see these things, if you can run, run away from it. If you cannot, hide. Do the best you can do and hide, so this person doesn’t see you,” Trevis said. “And if you cannot run and if you cannot hide, then you have the right to defend yourself and others.” In preparation for such scenarios, Trevis said the EC police, Hawthorne police, and Gardena police departments come together to run drills on campus when classes are not in session. They practice how to enter buildings and save lives. “The campus police here at El Camino Torrance and the Compton Center, both places, our officers are trained,” Trevis said. “We have the training and we have the equipment to save people’s lives - to respond to these kinds of situations, to help people if something was to happen.” Trevis advises all students and faculty to be aware of their surroundings as well as knowing where the emergency exits and police phones are located. He also recommends saving the campus police phone number in your cell phone. “I don’t think about a shooting event. I I think about people who get hurt. I think it is very sad,” Jacquelyn Gallagher, 19, communications major, said. “But I think you cannot allow yourself to think all the time because it will drive you crazy.” The FBI classification of a serial murder is when two or more people are killed, according to the official FBI website. This year there have been 17 shootings with four or more killed from January to September, the most recent of which claimed the lives of 12 victims, according to The Huffington Post. Trevis also said that every student should have a survival plan, but some students like Rina Cortez, 21, nursing major, and Seulgi Ellen Lee, 17, political science major, don’t feel ready if a shooting were to occur. “I don’t really have a plan,” Lee said. [See SHOOTING READINESS, Page 2]

Sam Tedla

Staff Writer

John Fordiani/ Union

Japanese nursing student Ayumi Katanaya uses a welding simulator during a scavenger hunt on campus Tuesday. Nursing students from Osaka, Japan took a tour of the campus, attended an emergency response seminar, and participated in a photo scavenger hunt.

International exchange Japanese nursing students explored El Camino Tuesday Jessica Martinez

F

News Editor

or the past 13 years, nursing students from Osaka, Japan have visited EC in an effort to learn about our industry and technology, just as they did on Tuesday. Forty-two students spent the day learning about the EMT program, taking a tour of the campus, and enjoying a scavenger hunt, Daniel N. Shrader, associate dean of industry and technology, said. “Thirteen years later and it (the program) is just as strong as it ever was,” Ron Way, dean emeritus, said. “The partnership between El Camino and the nursing school is just awesome.” Shrader said the event was started by Way. “I was there kind of from the beginning,” Way added. The Japanese students are from IS Nursing College in Osaka, Shrader said. Shrader said the nursing students from Japan interacted with students, faculty, and staff during their time on campus. “We have been dealing with this particular school for as long as I’ve known. It’s an annual event,” Shrader said. “They will be learning about us. Similarly, we are going to learn about them.” The program “gives our fire tech, EMT, and our nursing department international recognition,” Shrader said. Max Kimura, former newscaster, is responsible for the bond between EC and IS Nursing College. He “went into

Charles Ryder/ Union

A group of students from IS Nursing College, with their student ambassador, visit President Tom Fallo in the Board Room.

bridging gaps between schools,” Shrader said. “The leadership at our school helped Max make contacts. He was scouting and selected 10 colleges. He said EC was the best and most suited of the ones he saw,” Shrader said. “In addition, Max wants to give students from Japan a new experience and something they’re not familiar with.”

El Camino has canceled its winter term this year to create two six-week summer sessions. Because of this, the spring 2014 semester will begin in January and end in May, as opposed to the regular mid-February start and early June end, according to the calendar on the EC website. One reason EC canceled winter was because the long break between fall and spring hindered faculty who don’t teach classes during the winter from being a part of key meetings, Chris Jeffries, athletic counselor, said. “There was too much of a break between the fall and the spring where not all faculty was on campus, so committee meetings were being suspended because faculty wasn’t around,” Jeffries added. The back-to-back six-week summer sessions would help the Full Time Equivalent Students (FTES) numbers go up which helps funding, Jeffries said. “That makes no sense,” Devyn Rochelle, 19, music major, said. “Why would they cancel winter because some faculty aren’t able to meet up for some meetings?” According to calstate.edu, students who intend on applying to CSUs to attend in the fall of 2014 are required to have completed all transfer required coursework by spring 2013. “I think it negatively affects students who are trying to transfer in an efficient amount of time, with classes already being hard to get it and needing to complete classes by the end of spring it detrementally affects students from transfering on time,” Kelsey Iino, counselor, said. The cancelation of winter session will shorten winter break from last year’s two-month gap between fall and spring, to this year’s one-month gap. Having a shorter winter vacation could be the one benefit for those who don’t usually take winter because they won’t be out of the school enviroment for so long, Jeffries said.

[See JAPANESE STUDENTS, Page 2]

[See WINTER SESSION CUT, Page 2]

Child Development Center finds bright spot Despite nearly being shut down last year, the CDC has seen improvement in enrollment

Union File Photo

NEWS LINE

The Child Development Center was almost closed down last year but has seen steady improvements both in enrollment and interest to save it.

By Sam Tedla

Eric Hsieh

Arts Editor

Since it came under new management in July, EC’s Child Development Center has worked to remedy the chronic issues causing it to run at a deficit, employees said. The CDC faced a proposal for closure last January which was struck down by the board of trustees in favor of a plan to revitalize enrollment and more fully integrate the center into the child development curriculum. “Before I started, the biggest problem would have been enrollment,” Jennifer Montgomery, interim program director at the CDC, said. “When you look at all the issues, whether it be the budget, the program itself, whatever the problem was, the root of it is that we need more families.”

Montgomery is confident that efforts undertaken to boost the center’s profile are indeed working. “We’re getting phone calls and visits almost on a daily basis,” she said. “We have, since I started, tripled our student population. Whatever we’re doing to reach out to the students seems to be working.” On top of advertising for visibility, Montgomery has made it a point to improve accessibility as well. To that end, the center works with local agencies like Connections for Children and CalWORKs. “We established a contract with Connections for Children, which is our local resource and referral agency,” Montgomery said. “They help low-income families pay for [See CDC, Page 2]

UCLA Admissions Workshop

Nursing Info Session

Resumé Writing Workshop

Careers in the Medical Field as an MD

Careers in Law as a Lawyer

UCLA will have an admissions workshop on Monday from 1 to 2 p.m. The workshop will go over GPA requirements, extracurricular activities, transfer agreement guarantee (TAG) and applying to the school. For more information, call 310-660-3593, ext. 6137.

The nursing program will have a workshop on Oct. 3 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. It will cover requirements needed to obtain an A.A. in nursing and preparing for the National Council License Examination (NCLEX). For more information, call 310-660-3593, ext. 3408.

Resumé writing skills enhancement will be on Oct. 3 from 1 to 2 p.m. The workshop will teach how to use different techniques to organize and put job experience, references and personal qualities into a resumé. For more information, call 310-660-3593, ext. 3408.

Students who are interested in the various professions that hold a medical doctor title, there will be a workshop on Oct. 3 from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. in Room 218A of the Student Services Center. For more information, call 310-660-3593, ext. 3408.

Corprate, civil, private and family are some of many careers in law that are available. There will be a workshop highlighting many others Oct. 8 from 1 to 2 p.m. For more information, call 310-6603593, ext. 3408.


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