The Union Vol. 78 No. 7

ECC women awardees

See Page 3

Track star success See Page 8

SPORTS

OPINION

FEATURES

See Page 6

The Union

SCAN ME

Returning ECC student

EL CAMINO COLLEGE

SERVING THE COMMUNITY SINCE 1946

@ECCUNION

March 28, 2024

Golf class returns to El Camino

After seven-year hiatus, the course is available to students

ECCUNION.COM

Petitioners on campus spark concern for ECC students

By Joshua Flores Signature collectors have been walking around the El Camino College campus and asking students for their personal information and their stances on ballot propositions.

While their numbers have diminished since the California presidential primary on March 5, some collectors are still on campus soliciting information without being transparent with who they work for or where the information will be passed on.

One signature gatherer on campus, Paul Yosh, said he worked for a company called APC America as a “circulator.”

Students had mixed reactions to the signature gatherers.

SEE PETITION PAGE 5 →

Playfully stretching with her club around her shoulders, El Camino College golf instructor Kirsten Green looks across the Alondra Park Golf Course fairway as she poses for an environmental portrait while teaching her 8 a.m. class on Tuesday, March 26. Green is also the assistant coach of the El Camino Women’s Cross-Country team. Photo by Delfino Camacho

E

l Camino College students can now ace a class with a hole-inone since the college brought golf classes back.

The El Camino Athletics department opened a golf class in the 2024 spring semester, seven years since it was last offered to students.

The class is at the Alondra Park Golf Course, an 18-hole regulation golf course located beside campus.

“Golf is one of the most expensive sports if you want to play, you gotta buy clubs, you got to have shoes and green fees,” Dean of Health Sciences and Athletics Russell Serr said. “This class is really good for people who would never be able to afford golf because we have clubs that we loan the students and then the green fees, [the golf course] only charges them $4.”

The Athletics department loans out a set of golf clubs and a bag to students who don’t have them.

“Granted, they’re not something that a pro would use, but they’re great for a beginner,” Serr said.

The students can check the golf clubs

By Ma. Gisela Ordenes out and use them for the semester, including golf balls that are also expensive, Serr said.

“It’s a great opportunity for people who normally either couldn’t afford it, or someone who may be like, ‘Wow, I’m really interested in golf, but I can’t afford golf lessons’,” Serr said. “Can you imagine how much a lesson is?

Probably very expensive.”

Under the agreement between the college and the Alondra Park Golf Course that the Board of Trustees ratified at its Feb. 21 meeting, students will pay a discounted weekly green user fee for the 3-par, nine-hole short golf course.

This is a $12.50 discount from the golf course’s published rate. A green fee is the amount paid to play on the Alondra Park Golf Course.

Student athletes from the El Camino Golf team will pay $5 for the use of the regulation course. Both the team and the class will get a 50% discount on the E-keys that dispense the golf balls.

The contract needed ratification because the golf course changed

ownership last year and “there was a delay in receiving the contract and certification of insurance from the golf course,” according to the Board of Trustees meeting agenda.

Board of Trustees Vice President Katherine Steinbroner Maschler did not vote during the approval of contracts for both golf and badminton.

Maschler said she excused herself from voting and left the room during deliberation because she is currently taking the golf class at El Camino.

“Because I was at that point taking a golf class, I felt it was not appropriate for me to be voting on the acceptance of the contract for Alondra Park Golf Course. So I excused myself for that,” Maschler said.

She said she also didn’t vote on the contract for Manhattan Beach Badminton Club to host the college’s badminton team matches.

“I have family that are members there and have been very involved with that for 50 years. So I felt it was best for me to excuse myself since there was a family connection,” Maschler said.

SEE GOLF PAGE 4 →

Report details practices for student success

By Ethan Cohen Inclusivity, interactivity and adaptation are key teaching strategies faculty should integrate into their courses, according to a recent report presented to the Academic Senate on Tuesday, March 19.

The Institutional Learning Outcomes report revealed effective classroom practices for student success include learning students’ names, tailoring course content to their interests and incorporating hands-on activities.

“For the most part, all of us are here for the same reason,” English professor Chris Page said. “We care about education, we care about students and we want students to succeed.”

SEE MEETING PAGE 5 →

2

EDITORIAL

March 28, 2024

The Union

The Union SERVING THE COMMUNITY SINCE 1946

Vol. 78, No. 7 March 28, 2024

EDITORS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF NEWS AND MANAGING EDITOR SPORTS EDITOR

Angel Flores | Special to The Union

Who can the El Camino community call for complaints, suggestions?

By Union Editorial Board

E

l Camino College needs a better way for students to contact the administration when they have questions or concerns.

It needs to be centralized, easy to find and painless to use.

The easiest way to accomplish this is by having a suggestion and complaint box, physical and virtual, both in places that are easily accessible by everyone.

It is then the job of the college to reach out and refer the sender to the appropriate office.

Depending on the question, students have different ways of reaching out to the college.

But do they always know who they can ask?

Some resources are easier to find than others.

They can call the El Camino College Police Department if they are worried about campus safety, contact the Counseling Office for academic help and visit the Student Health Center for Mental Health Services.

What about general questions or complaints that can’t fit into one category?

What if a student or staff member wanted to report a broken water fountain, a restroom that is always dirty or a lack of menstrual products? What if they wanted to give feedback on the recent updates to the MyECC Portal?

It’s challenging to contact the Board of Trustees because its webpage doesn’t provide a phone number or email address.

In comparison, the Board of Trustees pages for Pierce College, Long Beach City College and Cerritos College have published the phone numbers for their members. While Santa Monica College does not provide these numbers, it has a phone number anyone can use to call its district office.

Students can talk to the division offices because their contact information is easily available. These are faculty and staff hired by the college.

Yet, at the same time, they can’t readily contact the Board of Trustees even though its members were elected by the community.

One has to have eagle eyes to find the email of Rose Mahowald on the Board of Trustees’ BoardDocs page. She is El Camino President Brenda Thames’ executive assistant.

The Academic Senate is also hard to reach because its contact information isn’t available online.

Unlike the Board of Trustees, which publishes the names of members, the area they represent and their term expiration date on the website, there is little to no information on who is serving on the Academic Senate, their position or even a general phone line or office location to drop in for a visit.

Students can only find information about upcoming Academic Senate meetings through a link on their webpage, which takes them to a BoardDocs page. The page isn’t updated with forthcoming meeting dates; the latest entry is for the last session on March 19.

One has to read the fine print on BoardDocs to find the email and phone number of Academic Senate President Charlene Brewer-Smith.

The Associated Students Organization serves as the bridge between students and the college.

ASO encourages students to meet and sit down with its representatives during office hours.

But can we shift the burden of listening to student voices to students themselves? The ASO can only do so much to address student concerns; it is ultimately the college’s responsibility.

El Camino needs to let students and the community know they are open to questions and suggestions.

Make it easy for students to contact the administration on a platform that is visible and accessible to all. This means, at the very least, adding reliable contact information on their respective web pages.

Otherwise, how can El Camino improve campus life when the community it is supposed to serve doesn’t know whom to reach out to?

Editor’s Note: The March 7 issue was supposed to be Vol. 78, No. 6.

ARTS & FEATURES EDITOR OPINION EDITOR COPY EDITOR PHOTO EDITOR

Ma. Gisela Ordenes sablayenya@gmail.com Eddy Cermeno eddyrcermeno@gmail.com Johan Van Wier jvanwier22@gmail.com Angela Osorio angoso1638@gmail.com Nasai Rivas opinioneccunion@gmail.com Erica Lee erjalee@gmail.com Raphael Richardson eccunionphoto@gmail.com

SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR

Nick Geltz ngeltz4140@gmail.com

ASSISTANT EDITOR

Kae Takazawa kaelealani@gmail.com

STAFF Senior Staff Writers

Ethan Cohen Joseph Ramirez Joshua Flores

Staff Writers

Jaylen Morgan Olivia Sullivent Osvin Suazo Tommy Kallman

Photographers

Caleb Smith Clarence “Slihm” Davis Elsa Rosales Monroe Morrow

Intern

Rhiannon Ellis

ADVISERS STUDENT MEDIA ADVISERS PHOTO ADVISER ADVERTISING MANAGER

Stefanie Frith sfrith@elcamino.edu Kate McLaughlin kmclaughlin@elcamino.edu Nguyet Thomas nthomas@elcamino.edu Jack Mulkey elcounionads000@yahoo.com

CORRECTION POLICY: The Union takes corrections and clarifications

very seriously. If a correction is needed, email The Union at eccunion@gmail.com for all corrections and inquiries pertaining to a story.

EDITORIALS: Editorials represent the views of the The Union’s editorial

board. Columns represent the views of the writer. Neither are representations of what the newspaper staff, other students, our advisers, faculty or the administration think.

LETTERS AND GUEST COLUMN POLICY: No more than

two guest columns from the same person will be considered for publication or online use in the same semester, and 60 days must elapse before a second column is published. Guest columns should generally run 300-450 words. Letters to the editor should generally run no longer than 200 words. All columns and letters are subject to editing for length, grammar and style. They must be free of libel and in good taste. Publication or rejection of any column is at the sole discretion of the editorial board.

The Union is an award-winning, nationally recognized publication that prints on designated Thursdays by Journalism 11 and 14 students at El Camino College, Humanities 113, 16007 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance, CA 90506, and is free to the student body and staff. The Union publishes daily online at eccunion.com.

The Union

March 28, 2024

OPINION

‘My body, my choice’

3

How women’s freedoms are being restricted today

By Olivia Sullivent

O

ne’s body is one’s domain, immune to the control of others.

In a nation where freedom is cherished, thinking any man could dictate what happens to a woman’s body is unfathomable.

As a female college student, the erosion of women’s rights places unnecessary burdens on the future.

From a young age, I was taught the sky was the limit and my dreams were mine to fulfill, untouched by others.

As I get older, it is clear the control I once felt over my life is slipping away.

The Supreme Court has shown by overturning Roe v.

Wade that in a country vowing to protect our rights, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, those who can get pregnant are not part of the picture.

Roe v. Wade established the right to safe and legal abortions across the U.S., protected under federal law and implied under the 14th Amendment.

For decades, we have not experienced a society where one is forced into being a parent, until now.

The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization on June 24, 2022.

As of June 2023, over 1,000 Republican men and more than 50 Democratic male politicians, predominantly white, placed restrictions on abortions, as

Kim McGill | Special to The Union

referenced in The Guardian.

The Guardian also reports that 214 Republican and 11 Democratic women voted to pass abortion bans within the past year.

El Camino has many transfer students looking to continue their education at four-year institutions, myself included.

The shadow of abortion restrictions makes me anxious about the liberties I would have to give up if I moved, impacting my choice of transfering.

Banning abortions will not stop them from happening. It will only end safe terminations.

Marginalized groups dealing with systemic health disparities will have new challenges, including the financial burden

of traveling to another state for an abortion.

It’s something those with privilege don’t have to face.

El Camino has a very diverse community on campus. A 2022 student profile report from El Camino College’s website shows that 53% of students identify as Latino, 13% identify as African American and 13% identify as Asian.

Out of all students at El Camino, 54% are female.

With a predominantly female student body and a high minority rate, abortion laws in California would greatly affect our campus.

Nearly two dozen states have banned abortions. But abortion is protected in California and

safe at El Camino.

The prospect of our world California Abortion Access leaves me terrified. reports, “Under California law, Terrified that if I have an anyone in California who is unexpected pregnancy in a pregnant has a legal right to society where women’s value choose to have an abortion.” is deemed less than that of an California State Universities unborn child, I’ll be forced into and University of California a decision made for me. c o l l e g e s o ff e r m e d i c a l Te r r i f i e d t h a t f u t u r e abortions on their campuses. generations of girls will grow “El Camino does not, up learning that their futures presumably because of the have limits and that regardless limited resources available of how loud they speak, the being a community college,” voice of males is stronger.

Chris Campbell, El Camino It’s not a man’s place to family nurse practitioner and dictate and control a woman’s, CSU Long Beach assistant trans and non-binary people’s professor of nursing, said. bodily autonomy.

H o w e v e r, E l C a m i n o provides education on contraception and abortion aid To read more, visit the website at in the Health Services Building. eccunion.com

Returning to El Camino: Following my mother’s footsteps

Restarting my life in journalism

By Joseph Ramirez

The very first time I was a student at El Camino College, I never knew I would be returning years later and starting all over again.

I attended El Camino College from 2010 to 2014 studying film. I transferred to California State University Long Beach in 2014.

I was enthusiastic about the film industry and thought my life path was set.

At CSU Long Beach, I took more film classes, worked on films and graduated in December 2016.

Then I met the difficulty of finding a job in film.

In 2017, I began applying for jobs. No company hired me.

I could not get my foot in the door and realized it was b e c a u s e I d i d n ’t h a v e connections in the industry.

From 2017 to 2022 I worked at jobs I did not want to do.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, I gave up on my dreams of working in film and stopped applying for jobs.

In 2021, my mother encouraged me to go back to school and study journalism.

She thought I should leave my film dreams and try a new path in the world of journalism since I was making news videos on YouTube and blogging on WordPress.

My mother also returned to El Camino, studying briefly in the 1980s, she wanted to go into law enforcement.

She later returned to El Camino from 1999 to 2003 to study nursing and has been a

Jeremiah Dela Cruz | Special to The Union

registered nurse ever since.

At 31 years old, I was not thrilled with the idea of going back to school.

I did not want to take online classes during the pandemic.

When El Camino reopened campus and in-person classes, I went back to school and registered for the spring 2023

semester to start taking journalism classes.

I came to campus and was surprised at how much the campus changed since 2014. I felt awkward being in class with teenagers.

It still feels weird. I had to get over the feeling that my past education was for nothing.

I am restarting in life, but I have to remind myself all my film education and skills are useful in journalism and reporting too.

I hope I have much more success in journalism than I did with film.

To read more, visit the website at eccunion.com

4

NEWS

March 28, 2024

The Union

El Camino students can register for golf courses

→ GOLF FROM PAGE 1 Maschler, who said she’s “over 65 but not much over” and lives three minutes away from the course, said she’s been looking for a class to take since she became a trustee in 2021.

She said it made sense to her to take the golf class because it’s a low-impact type of exercise with a lot of walking.

“So I thought for me, at my age, that would be a good thing for me to do. And so I’ve never played golf...as learning a new skill, which is very good for the brain. So I thought it just was a plus-plus, win-win situation,” Maschler said.

Serr said only 20 students are accepted in the golf class and the college is planning on having a class every semester.

“We probably could have more sections if the golf course would allow us but when we’re playing, they’re not making the money that they usually would,” Serr said.

Kirsten Green who teaches the golf class said there was a waitlist for the class because “it’s the first time that it’s been taught in a while.”

“We have some ‘kids’ on the waiting list. I should say ‘students’ and not ‘kids’ because I’ve got an 18-year-old all the way to a 60-year-old in

Police Beat

By Rhiannon Ellis

class. So that’s kind of a fun, fun range of people,” she said.

Green said the college put a limit on the number of students for the class.

“I believe they put a cap at 20 or maybe even 20-22 on this class,” Green said. “And then I was able to add if other students wanted to add, so yes, there was a waitlist.”

Green said she wanted to get a feel for how many students she could properly teach in the current setting and how many the golf course could accommodate.

“I definitely had a few students that are going to try to get [the course] next term... we can go easily to 25 or 27.”

— Kirsten Green, golf instructor “I definitely had a few students that are going to try to get [the course] next term because I wasn’t sure on numbers and I think I think we could go easily to 25 or 27,” Green said.

Golf student and business administration major Paige Hamilton, 20, said she easily

By Joshua Flores

Visit eccunion.com to read more.

he 24th Annual Cherry Blossom Festival, hosted by the Social Justice Center at the Student Services Plaza, will celebrate the contributions made by former employees of El Camino College on Tuesday, April 2 from noon to 1 p.m.

The annual festival celebrates the life and contributions of Nadine Ishitani Hata, former vice president of academic affairs at El Camino.

The festival will include a taiko or drum performance by Ryukyukoku Matsuri Daiko LA, haiku reading by students and complimentary Japanese snacks will be provided.

“As the [Social Justice Center] was being established, the students who were involved in proposing the center really wanted to create a space where different voices and identities

Thursday, March 14, 1:10 p.m.

An individual was caught trespassing in the Administration Building. They were issued a warning and was released.

Monday, March 18, 3:36 p.m.

An individual committed vandalism at the Construction Technology Building area. The case is open.

Tuesday, March 19, 1:28 p.m.

An individual stole a bicycle at the Humanities Building. The case is open.

Tuesday, March 19, 6:19 p.m.

A tool shed lock at the Construction Technology Building was vandalised. The case is open.

Wednesday, March 20, 4:40 p.m.

An individual committed grand theft of a camera at the Arts Complex. The case is open.

got in the class because she has priority registration.

“I’m part of the Honors Transfer Program, so I personally didn’t have to get off the waitlist. I just got a spot in the class,” Hamilton said.

Tyler Kawasaki, assistant general manager of Alondra Park Golf Course, said the cost of hosting El Camino’s golf class is very minimal.

“I mean, it’s not like they’re paying the junior rate, just $4, so it doesn’t hurt,” Kawasaki said.

Kawasaki said they’re not making any money from hosting the class, but will continue to host the class beyond this semester, as its value lies in getting new golfers to play the game.

“If they can come back on their own and they bring their families...they get into golf and all that stuff,” he said. “As long as you get new golfers, it’s like a lifetime sport.”

Tyler Kawasaki, Alondra Park Golf Course assistant manager, said there is value in getting new golfers. Photo by Delfino Camacho

Cherry Blossom Festival celebrates Japanese culture

The Union publishes police beats online with each newspaper release.

Tuesday, March 12, 7:16 p.m.

An individual was accused of battery in the Arts Complex. The case is closed.

Economics major Haozhe Sun, 21, perches his golf bag on his shoulder as he advances to a different hole during his Tuesday golf classes at the Alondra Park Golf Course on March 26. While El Camino College offers clubs and bags to golf students, Sun brings his own clubs to the class. The golf class is being offered to El Camino students after a seven-year hiatus. Photo by Delfino Camacho

T

were highlighted on campus and celebrated,” Coordinator for Student Equity and Achievement Village Monica Delgado said.

This led to the Social Justice Center becoming the host of the festival last year. Delgado said that the center is not the sole proprietor of the cultural heritage celebrations on campus, but they are the ones who are trying to get everyone to work together on the events.

This year’s festival will also be celebrating another former faculty member of El Camino, Gloria Miranda, who was the former dean of the behavioral and social sciences department.

The college will be hosting a memorial service for Miranda in the East Dining Room above the Bookstore on May 8 from 1 to 3 p.m.

Delgado said a scholarship fund, the “Dr. Gloria E.

View of the cherry blossom trees at the Student Services Plaza in front of the Social Justice Center on Tuesday, March 26. The 24th Annual Cherry Blossom Festival will take place at the Student Services Plaza from noon to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, April 2. Photo by Joshua Flores

Miranda Student Scholarship,” was established to honor her.

Miranda was also a former student of Nadine Hata’s husband, Donald Hata, at California State University Dominguez Hills. Donald Hata donated $10,000 to the scholarship in her honor.

“The Cherry Blossom Festival…is a way to bring honor in everyone and their

legacies together, so it’s nice that we’re continuing this event,” Delgado said. “It’s a chance not just to highlight Japanese culture,...but also have this way to highlight some of the past leaders and the work toward diversity, equity and inclusion that they brought to this campus.”

Man said derogatory and racial language toward student

Friday, March 22, 7:33 a.m.

There was graffiti discovered at the maintenance yard. The case is closed.

By Nick Geltz

Friday, March 22, 2:52 p.m.

An individual was accused of reckless driving at parking Lot L. The case is closed.

A man used derogatory terms toward a student and attempted to spit at them around 10 a.m. on Tuesday, March 26,

according to an El Camino College campus safety advisory email.

Two students were walking to the Communications Building when they heard the man riding a silver bicycle behind them say

derogatory and racially charged language toward one of them, the email said.

The advisory email described the man as white, 5 feet, 6 inches tall, 140 pounds and wearing sunglasses, a black

shirt and black pants.

The El Camino College Police Department has not disclosed any other information at the time of publication.

The Union

March 28, 2024

NEWS

5

Petitioners continue gathering information on campus → PETITION FROM PAGE 1

Adam Rangel, a 20-year-old undecided major, said Yosh approached him.

Rangel said Yosh asked him questions about issues that would appear on the ballot. He said he did not know why he signed the petitions and just wanted to be nice.

Another student, 18-year-old biology major Jasmine Antonio, said she doesn’t mind signing if the petitions are for causes she supports.

“But at the same time, I didn’t appreciate that I was just asked… that [Yosh] just came out of nowhere and I was on the phone minding my own business,” Antonio said.

Antonio said Yosh came up to her asking about signing the petitions, but she wanted to read them first.

The measures included issues such as punishments and longer sentences for those who commit violent crimes, others were about Medi-Cal coverage.

“It was like a little bit of

pressure, but I was like I do support [the measures]; but if I was in a rush, I would have been like, ‘Bye!’,” Antonio said.

Antonio and Rangel said they do not know where their information will be going, only that it has to do with ballot measures.

Yosh said a student’s information is needed to confirm if it is legitimate so it can be used by his employer to be passed on to the state.

Yosh said his company, APC America, does not sell signatories’ personal information.

Yosh refused to disclose his supervisor’s name or how to contact the company he works for, but said it is privately owned and campaigns on behalf of the state regarding propositions.

“APC America” yielded no results when looked up on the internet. Instead, the acronym “APC” was found to be associated with a Californiabased consultant firm, Arno Petition Consultants.

A petitioner, named Jay Kane, collects signatures from El Camino students during the Warrior Wellness Health Fair on Wednesday, March 27. Photo by Erica Lee

Arno Petition Consultants’ website says it is “the largest and most successful petition management firm in the country.”

It provides petition-gathering services, including ballot initiatives and state petition drives for political candidates

political candidates and parties and parties.

APC is owned and founded earn a place on state ballots.

by Michael Arno, who owns and co-founded Virginiabased consulting firm Capital To read more, visit the webAdvisors which provides the site at eccunion.com same services.

Both companies advertise themselves as being able to help

Students want more interaction with faculty More pass, no pass courses → MEETING FROM PAGE 1 could be offered in future Institutional Learning Outcomes (ILOs) are the knowledge and skills students should exhibit after their educational journey. El Camino College evaluates one of the four pillars of the ILOs each academic year to assess if it is being met by students.

A main factor highlighted in the report found faculty interaction with students helped students feel supported in the learning process.

Biology major Andrew Yousef, 19, agrees having a greater connection with other students in his classes helped foster a better environment for him to learn in.

“You kind of have that set community with people where you’re less afraid to ask questions because you’ve known these people for a long time,” Yousef said.

Yousef believes the majority of his professors care about his success, but he did mention some factors that he said made it difficult for him in some of his courses.

“I think it is dependent on the age and teaching style of the professor,” Yousef said. “Some of my younger professors are willing to change and try new things… but some of my older professors teach in a very oldfashioned way where you show up to class, take notes, no talking, just ask questions and you leave.”

By Ethan Cohen

S

English Professor Chris Page breaks down the Institutional Learning Outcomes report at the Tuesday, March 19, Academic Senate meeting. Photo by Ethan Cohen

Page, who helped put together the report, said the ILOs serve as a process for the entire college to gauge which students are accomplishing their intended educational goals and allocating resources towards areas that need improvement. “[One] big thing was just how all these teachers who were successful, really focused on student groups and interactivity during class,” Page said.

“Learning names, students working in groups and being interactive during class… those are the things that came up over and over and over.”

Co-coordinator of Guided Pathways Polly Parks said the latest ILO report contained large amounts of student and faculty feedback, marking the first time a report included such extensive data.

“This is the first time we’ve ever done ILOs this way,” Parks said. “This is the first

time we’ve ever done ILOs this way,” Parks said. “This is the first time it’s ever been super in-depth and meaningful.”

Another factor measured by the report was a set of questions sent to students by an anonymous survey. There were 51 total responses from the three courses surveyed: 56.9% from English 1A, 37.3% from Psychology 101 and 5.9% from Anatomy 32.

The most notable answer was that 100% of the respondents said their professors cared about their success.

Parks said previous reports were not as detailed as the current ones because colleges rushed to check boxes to meet state requirements.

“I think that to an instructor, the idea is, you know, a little bit of accountability,” Parks said.

“In general, you could say the report is accountability for the college.”

tudents looking to take a pass or no pass grading approach, rather than traditional letter grades, will soon be able to opt-in to an expanded number of courses offering the alternative evaluation method, according to an Academic Senate official.

In addition to the proposed increase in courses, the timeline for students to request a pass or no pass grade has been extended until the week before finals this semester.

The policy change and subsequent discussion will occur during future Academic Senate meetings. However, the practice is already in effect at El Camino College.

Darcie McClelland, the vice president of educational policies within the Academic Senate, said the change is due to the updates in Title 5 of the California Education Code regarding grading and academic symbol records.

Since the updates are a matter of state law changes, educational institutions must follow guidelines the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office set.

The Academic Senate will recommend which courses should and should not be eligible for the alternate grading approach, McClelland said.

“I think there are valid arguments on both sides,”

McClelland said. “I think that if we go to a system where we’re allowing more courses to be taken pass-no pass… we’re going to have to be very intentional about counseling students as to, ‘Do you know how this is going to affect you?’”

She highlighted that implementing a new procedure could enhance efforts toward student equity, a goal strongly endorsed by many faculty members who advocate for expanding the availability of courses with the pass or no pass grading option.

McClelland points out the necessity for faculty senators to discuss courses that should not be eligible for a pass or no pass grading option.

“Personally, at least in the STEM fields, I think that students should only be allowed to take courses pass-no pass as [long as] it’s not a major requirement,” McClelland said. “Students need to think about not just how ‘Does this affect me three months from now?’ but ‘How does this affect me four or five years from now when I’m thinking about my plans for after I get my degree?’”

Newsletter

The Union releases the newsletter every Thursday of the semester.

6

FEATURES

March 28, 2024

WO The Union

Di s t i n gu i s h e d

College honors diversity, equity and inclusion

By Angela Osorio, Elliott Bullock II, Kinzie Malony, Monroe Morrow and Rhiannon Ellis

E

very year, the El Camino College Women’s History Month Committee selects community candidates to receive the Distinguished Women Award. This year’s theme is “women who advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion.” The votes are in, and six women will receive the award.

The awardees will have their portraits placed on the

El Camino College Distinguished Women’s Wall of Fame in the Schauerman Library. The reception, scheduled to take place March 27, will honor the awardees at the East Dining Room at 1 p.m., during which certificates of recognition will be handed out.

Jackie LaBouff, former preschool teacher for Torrance Unified School District, will recieve the award in memoriam, as she died last February.

LaBouff was a member on the City of Torrance’s League of Women Voters and the Human Services Committee. She was also the president and founder of the Widow Friendship Group and started a charity called Human Touch, which assists pregnant teens.

The Union asked each awardee questions to better understand their roles in the community and what led to their nominations.

Argelia Andrade Argelia Andrade is a Spanish and dance professor who has worked at El Camino for nine years. She is part of the Mi Casa committee, which is dedicated to creating a campus space for Hispanic students, faculty and staff. Mi Casa will open this semester.

Q: What is your role in the El Camino community and what are some of your responsibilities?

ANDRADE: I am a professor of Spanish, in the Humanities Division. In addition, I teach in the dance department. I am currently Col. Mia Walsh, Distinguished Women Award recipient, poses in front of Space Base Delta 3 at the Los Angeles Air Force Base in El Segundo on Friday, teaching a social Latin dance March 22. Walsh joined the base in 2022 and will be leaving in May to work at the Pentagon. Photo by Osvin Suazo class. I hope to teach Mexican women do, in my career.

Walsh, who does community very inclusive of women. I dance and/or Spanish dance However, I have also found outreach on behalf of the base, think that the services as a there, too. My goal is to “I choose to focus on many allies and supporters along was invited to speak at the whole have grown a lot. I know expose students to as many where I am today the way. My experience has been Onizuka Space Science Day at that, you know, my dad was in disciplines as I can so that uplifting and positive for the El Camino College last year. the Navy, and when he was in and am grateful for they have a diverse experience most part. I can talk about the Walsh joined the Air Force in the Navy I don’t think that at El Camino College . all the women who hiccups, of course, but I choose 1998 and progressed throughout females were treated the same Q: What is it like being a to focus on where I am today and her military career from as they were coming up to came before me.” woman in your field, and am grateful for all the women lieutenant to captain to major leadership positions. The other how has that affected your - Argelia Andrade who came before me. commanders in the local area and eventually colonel. experience as a professor? are all female and when we talk Walsh will leave Space Base ANDRADE: The field of We still have work to do, of Col. Mia Walsh about it, it hasn’t hurt us any to Delta 3 in May and return to the education is more diverse than course. In my opinion, Pentagon as director of current be female. It hasn’t hurt me or other fields. Professorship for educators are some of the most Col. Mia Walsh is the helped me any. I think the women has become more open-hearted and open-minded commander for Space Base operations for the space force. military is very agnostic to Q: What is your role in the attainable over time, thanks to people in the workforce. I have Delta 3 at the Los Angeles Air whether you’re male or female, El Camino community and all those early pioneers. found many hiccups, like all Force Base in El Segundo. what are some of your and it’s more about the mission, and I think that’s great. responsibilities?

WALSH: I just try to be out there as much as possible and “I’m a big believer work in the community. I’m a community big believer in community i n service, not just as a person, but service, not just as also as a military member. I think the community does a lot a person, but also of support for the base so I think a s a military it’s always important for the people who live on that base to member.” not only be out in the - Col. Mia Walsh community as far as bolstering the local economy, but it’s also about community service and giving back to the community that supports you.

Q: What is it like being a woman in your field, and how has that affected your Argelia Andrade, Spanish professor and Distinguished Women Award recipient, poses in the Humanities experience as a commander? To read more, visit the Building on Friday, March 22. Andrade is part of the Mi Casa committee, a group of people working on opening WALSH: I think the military is website at eccunion.com a space for Hispanic students, faculty and staff on campus. Photo by Caleb Smith

OMEN The Union

March 28, 2024

FEATURES

7

of 2024

Professor, coach and Distinguished Women Award recipient Rachel Pittock demonstrates a combination of punches to her boxing class on Thursday, March 21. Photo by Monroe Morrow

Rachel Pittock Rachel Pittock is a part-time professor in the health science and athletic department, adviser of the Boxing Club and assistant coach for the El Camino Women’s Beach Volleyball team.

Q: What is your role in the El Camino community and what are some of your responsibilities?

PITTOCK: I am currently an adjunct professor so I teach four boxing classes at the college.

I’m also the adviser of the ECC Boxing Club; we started the club last spring, so we will be finishing our first year as a club.

I’m also a volunteer assistant coach for the El Camino Women’s Beach Volleyball team.

Q: What is it like being a

woman in your field, and how has that affected your experience as a boxing professsor, coach and adviser?

PITTOCK: It’s different, you don’t see a lot of women boxing. Here at El Camino, both the leading boxing instructors are women, which, I think, is awesome.When people email me it’s always, ‘Hi Mr. Pittock, can I join your class?’ every time. People walk into the classroom and ask ‘Is this boxing, are you the teacher?’ To me, I like it. I find it as an opportunity to show people that,‘Yeah I am the teacher.’ I can teach you how to box properly. My gender, my size, it doesn’t matter. So I think being a woman in that field, for me, I see it as an opportunity.

Mele Makalo, student success coordinator for MANA and Distinguished Women Award recipient, poses at her office on Thursday, March 21.

MANA is a program dedicated to helping Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students succeed. Photo by Caleb Smith

Mele Makalo Mele Makalo is a student success coordinator for MANA, a campus program that helps Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students succeed in education while integrating their culture. Makalo has been working at the college since 2016 to help students and staff within the program.

Q: What is your role in the El Camino community and what are some of your responsibilities?

MAKALO: My responsibility is to ensure that our program is aligning with the goals of the student equity and achievement department, as well as the college as a whole. So for example, increasing the number of degrees completed at El Camino College, closing equity gaps and supporting students by ensuring their pathways. My objectives on a week-to-week basis is to make sure that everybody is clear on our priorities for the week and that we are meeting our deliverables as a team. Since I am the only full-timer on the team and everybody else only does parttime, a lot of times I’m navigating and working through everyone’s roles.

Q: What is it like being a woman in your field, and how has that affected your experience as a MANA student

also contributed to volunteer success coordinator?

MAKALO: I think that being work in art museums.

Q: What is your role in the a woman affects every aspect of m y e x i s t e n c e . I t h i n k El Camino community and particularly being a Tongan what are some of your American woman, there are a responsibilities?

PAULA: Continue to be lot of expectations placed upon Tongan women within our active with worthy causes, get culture, not just within the involved, and be supportive. household but within the As a member of the Torrance workspace and even within the Artists Guild, I exhibited at community to make sure that James Armstrong Theatre, we are supporting all those Katy Geissert [Civic Center] around us. So I think that that Library and at the Torrance standard that is set forth for me City Clerk’s Office. As a as a Tongan woman is charter volunteer with the something that has allowed me Torrance Art Museum and the to be able to support folks as To r r a n c e A r t M u s e u m authentically as I can and meet Advocates, you get help to spread cultural awareness. people where they are.

Also as a member of Local “Being a woman 1117, I participate in rallies for the rights of city workers. affects every aspect Q: What is it like being a woman in your field, and of my existence.” how has that affected your experience as a singer, - Mele Makalo musician and artist?

PAULA: Music is one of my interests and passions. I was Candy Paula raised to put in the foundational Candy Higgins-Di Meo is training for whatever might an artist, singer and musician interest me. My family who goes by Candy Paula. She [members] were professional performs folk classics and musicians. This encouraged inspirational songs on her me. This included numerous guitar in local venues around relatives who could read and write music as composers and the South Bay. Paula has performed at music teachers. They are my community holiday events, original influencers.

Editor’s Note: This story employee fundraisers and art r e c e p t i o n s . S h e h a s was edited for readability.

8

SPORTS

March 28, 2024

The Union

First in the family, ahead of the pack

Women’s cross-country runner negates nerves and goes for gold

By Tommy Kallman

H

alfway through the state championship, Ami Jacobson had one thing in mind: “Drive those arms and pump those knees.”

The night before, Jacobson was knocking on her crosscountry coach’s door and telling her that she was extremely nervous.

Coach Kirsten Green had two words for her: “Don’t be.”

Green said she knew Jacobson worked very hard to get there, and all she had to do was just go out there and race.

Shooting for a top-10 finish, the 19-year-old kinesiology major knew what it would take to get to the finish line. “[Jacobson] is a coach’s dream,” Green said. “She does every little thing she’s asked to do, and you know that when you turn your back, she’s still going to put in the work.”

An extra push from teammate Sequoia Gonzales and cheers from her coaches helped Jacobson finish fourth in the 3C2A State Championships for cross-country on Nov. 18, 2023 at Woodword Park in Fresno, earning her a new personal record of 18:12.0.

Before Jacobson found herself running at an advanced level, she was a high school student looking for a new sport.

Her focus was on swimming, but she needed a sport to play in the fall and landed on the crosscountry team.

“I didn’t make the volleyball team, so I told my mom I’ll join running because they didn’t have tryouts... I thought it would get me into shape, and that’s how I got into it,” Jacobson said.

Jacobson was adopted when she was very young by Brent and Chizuko Jacobson. She said that she is the first runner in the family, which allows her to make her own pathways.

Her mother noticed that she had an elite running ability when Ami Jacobson was just a sophomore in high school.

Spring Sports Calendar

Baseball March 28, 6 p.m., vs. Merced @ Elks Baseball Field March 29, 2:30 p.m., @ Allan Hancock April 2, 2 p.m., @ Rio Hondo April 4, 2 p.m., vs. Rio Hondo April 6, noon, @ Rio Hondo April 9, 2 p.m., vs. LA Harbor April 11, 2 p.m., @ LA Harbor April 13, noon, vs. LA Harbor April 18, 1 p.m., @ Sierra April 19, 1 p.m., @ Sierra April 23, 2 p.m., vs. Mt. SAC April 25, 2 p.m., @ Mt. SAC

Ami Jacobson goes through her agility ladder drills during a track and field practice at Murdock Stadium on Monday, March 25. Jacobson is fifth all-time in ECC history with her time of 38.58.60 in the 10,000-meter race. Photos by Monroe Morrow

“[COVID-19] gave me an opportunity to realize that I Ami Jacobson’s Awards actually do love the sport for -All-South Coast Conference First Team what it is,” Ami Jacobson said.

-32CA First Team All“I noticed that running is American accessible and the environment -32CA Southern California is very enjoyable.”

Regionals - 10th place Ami Jacobson knew she -SCC Championships would attend El Camino Fourth place College right out of high school.

-32CA State Championships ECC cross-country coach Dean Fourth overall, personal Lofgren had already been best watching her compete in high “[We] are not athletic at all,” school and said that he was very her mother Chizuko Jacobson pleased to hear when she said. “Her choosing cross- decided to commit to running at country was a surprise to us, but El Camino. she’s a hard worker and never “She was a qualifier out of misses a practice, which helps high school, so she could have her succeed.” gone right to a four-year,” Ami Jacobson ran cross- Lofgren said. “She felt it was country all four years at El best in her athletic development Segundo High School, where to come over with us for two she was named cross-country seasons and then transfer.”

MVP as a junior and set the The decision paid off, as Ami girls’ 5K school record in track Jacobson is now a highly during her senior year. decorated athlete within ECC’s The pandemic cut her running program. sophomore year in high school Ami Jacobson trains when short. The isolation guided her she’s away from the team. She down cross-country’s path, sees the importance of Ami Jacobson said. stretching to keep herself fully

healthy when it’s time to compete and runs an average of 50 to 55 miles a week to stay in running shape.

Even though she runs at the top of her class, Ami Jacobson values her academic work just as much as athletics.

“I’m an athlete, but I’m also a student at the same time,” Ami Jacobson said. “I’m going to school for academics because I know athletics always come second.”

The running star has plans to continue her running career at a university and has been recently

involved in recruiting talks. She gets calls from the California State Universities and has been looking into some of their programs to continue running after El Camino.

Jacobson does not see herself running in a professional setting but aspires to compete in the near future.

“I know that I have more to give to this sport,” Ami Jacobson said. “I want to be able to come out of my experience of college and say that I ran my hardest and did everything that I could do.”

April 26, 2 p.m., vs. Mt. SAC Softball March 28, 3 p.m., vs. Cerritos March 29, 1 p.m., @ LA Harbor April 2, 3 p.m. @ Compton April 4, 2:30 p.m. @ Pasadena City April 5, 1 p.m., vs. Long Beach April 6, noon, vs. Bakersfield April 6, 2 p.m., vs. Bakersfield April 9, 3 p.m., vs. East Los Angeles April 12, 1 p.m., Mt. SAC April 18, 3 p.m., vs. Cerritos

April 12, 10 a.m., vs. Mt. SAC, location TBA Swimming and Diving March 29, 10 a.m., vs.

Pasadena, location TBA March 29, 10 a.m., vs. East Los Angeles, location TBA April 5, all day, Pasadena Invitational April 6, all day, Pasadena Invitational Track and Field March 30, TBA, Dave Shannon Invitational, @ El Camino April 2, TBA, SoCal Multi-

Event Championships, @ Mt. SAC April 3, TBA, SoCal MultiEvent Championships, @ Mt. SAC A p r i l 5 , T B A , Tr i t o n Invitational, @ UC San Diego A p r i l 6 , T B A , Tr i t o n Invitational, @ UC San Diego Badminton April 5, 2 p.m., vs. San Diego City @ Manhattan Beach Badminton Club April 17, 2 p.m., vs. San Diego Mesa @ Manhattan Beach Badminton Club

April 19, 1 p.m., vs. LA Harbor April 20, 1 p.m., vs. Fullerton April 22, 2:30 p.m., vs Citrus Men’s Volleyball March 29, 6 p.m., vs. Santa Barbara April 3, 6 p.m., vs. Moorpark April 5, 6 p.m., vs. Long Beach April 12, 6 p.m. vs. Santa Monica Beach Volleyball March 29, 10 a.m., vs. Desert April 5, 10 a.m., @ Cerritos April 12, 10 a.m., @ Long Beach

Ami Jacobson smiles for an environmental portrait inside El Camino College’s Murdock Stadium during a track and field practice on Monday, March 25.