The Union Vol. 75, No. 7 March 5, 2020

The Union EL CAMINO COLLEGE

See Sports, page 8

SERVING THE COMMUNITY SINCE 1946 eccunion.com

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MARCH 5, 2020 Follow us @ECCUnion

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Concerns increase after student held at gunpoint Second crime in two months within surrounding Schauerman Library area prompts more patrol Fernando Haro

Senior News Editor @ECCUnionHaro

Duane Tada/Special to the Union El Camino College chemistry professor Troy Moore, background center, works in the lab with students in one of his organic chemistry classes on Monday, March 2. Some EC faculty are complying with current contract regulations on enrollment size per class, while 2020 faculty negotiations continue. “It’s difficult to make an overarching statement,” Moore said.

Students edged out of classes

Faculty takes action against unfair working conditions Fernando Haro

Senior News Editor @ECCUnionHaro

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s ongoing contract negotiations between El Camino College’s faculty union and school district continue, union members and allies have refused to admit students into classes that have already reached capacity, officials said.

The El Camino College Federation of Teachers is taking action towards improved working conditions, health benefits and

lab-to-lecture pay disparity as the college is not adequately meeting faculty and student need, Chemistry Professor Troy Moore said.

Moore said a lot of the issues facing professors and students are really difficult to fix in one semester but this is not a one semester problem that crept up all of a sudden.

“For a long time, kind of the default assumption is that faculty will absorb any of the extra students who are on the waitlist,” Moore said. “Generally speaking,

we’re more than happy to do that but there are a lot of negative externalities that are not super obvious.”

But the larger a classroom grows, the worse the learning environment becomes as students don’t receive enough one-on-one time with the instructor, Moore said.

Moore, who is also the Vice President of ECC’s faculty union, said he never takes students over his course’s capacity as it creates an unsafe environment along with limited lab equipment.

“It becomes increasingly difficult to do a good job when you’re not supported in your environment,” Moore said.

As demand for classes increase at ECC, students are placed in precarious positions when stuck on waitlists that have become longer over the years, Moore said.

“It is really stressful and disheartening and hard to tell students I’m sorry, I know you applied to medical school but there are 10 people ahead of you in line in your position too,” Moore said.

[See Teacher’s Union, page 4]

Following rising safety concerns regarding a robbery and petty theft, campus police are increasing patrol around El Camino College’s Schauerman Library, officials said.

An attempted larceny was reported by a female student after a man grabbed her keys off a table on the second floor of El Camino College’s Schauerman Library on Saturday, Feb. 29.

The man, described as a 25-yearold, 6’1”, black male wearing a baseball hat, black pants and a beige hooded sweatshirt, ran away after the victim managed to grab her keys back, according to a campus advisory.

This comes a little over a month after another female student reported being held at gunpoint and forced to give up her cellphone near the Schauerman Library on Saturday, Jan. 25, at about 10 a.m.

El Camino College Police Department Sgt. Ruben Lopez said his officers and cadets are taken the appropriate measures to ensure the campus and its students remain safe.

“We do our best to walk them to buildings, we do our best to deter crime but it is still definitely a concern,” Lopez said.

But with all the ongoing construction on campus, sometimes lighting is low and visibility is low, Lopez said.

And as the campus has been recently split in two due to the demolition of the old Student Services Center, Lopez said his

department spends a lot of time planning routes as well as points of entrances and exits in preparation for any emergency Lopez said both of these cases are still ongoing and being investigated with the help of surrounding law enforcement agencies.

Claudia Striepe, instruction librarian at Schauerman Library, said ECC is generally a safe campus, but crime can be expected as it is an open campus with a public library on a busy street.

“It’s harder to monitor who comes on the campus,” Striepe said.

“But like any public institution, we do expect a little bit of crime to go on [but] we really try [to] keep a safe atmosphere.”

Art major Elizabeth Arcia said she felt scared after finding out about the armed robbery at gunpoint that happened during winter session.

“That was crazy to find out about,” Arcia said. “You never see that happen at other colleges, much less [at] El Camino.”

Arcia said she has taken precaution by carrying pepper spray and a taser for when she has to stay late on campus.

“I like coming to the library a ton,” Arcia said. “But I do have to take care of myself now.”

Arcia said she feels the campus police have priorities elsewhere and should focus more on stopping larceny and robbery from happening at ECC. “I’m not saying they should have surveillance everywhere,” Arcia said. “But checking in, once in a while in places like the library would help.”

Cats on campus raise health and safety questions amid removal rumors Historical significance emphasized during meeting Omar Rashad

Editor-in-Chief @omarsrashad

and Safety Committee meeting, Turano said she wanted to go to the Board of Trustees (BOT) meeting to educate ECC administration officials of the history of cats at El Camino and what volunteers do to take care of them.

Turano also explained the role of the El Camino Cat Care Volunteers, a group comprised of about 50 people who take care of cats on campus by feeding them and also giving them necessary shots and flea treatment. They also provide trap neuter release (TNR), a program in which cats are trapped, spayed or neutered and then released back onto campus, Turano added.

She said that if cats were to be removed from the El Camino campus, we would see history repeat itself in regard to having a rodent infestation.

[See Cat Removal, page 4]

Omar Rashad/The Union A black and white cat peers out of a bush next to the Schauerman Library on Wednesday, Feb. 19. Cats at El Camino College have historically controlled the rodent and mice population on campus.

Moments

Golden Glove

El Camino College should have an LGBTQ+ center for queer students.

Construction continues at El Camino College with the demolition of the old Student Services Building splitting the campus in two for the next six months.

Step into the shoes of the man who takes care of the campus cat population.

Local artist puts together multimedia exhibit filled with photographs, mosaics, and paintings entitled “Moments,” in the Schauerman Library.

El Camino College baseball player looks to build on breakout 2018 freshman season after missing last year due to injury.

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SPORTS

Natural caretaker

ARTS

Construction updates

FEATURES

A place of belonging

NEWS

OPINION

Following rumors that officials may consider getting rid of felines on campus, a classified employee gave a presentation about cats that reside at El Camino College during public comment in a recent Board of Trustees meeting.

Debbie Turano, senior clerical assistant with the Facilities Planning and Services Department, gave a brief history of cats in the ECC community and explained how they are an integral part of the campus.

“I think it’s very important because we don’t want history to repeat itself,” Turano told The Union. “I don’t want to come into a building and open up my desk drawer and there’s rat feces inside or in my file cabinets and that’s

what’s happened in the past.”

Turano heard about a recent Workplace Health and Safety Committee meeting in which the Vice President of Administrative Services Iris Ingram talked about possibly instituting the removal of cats on campus.

However, after talking with Ingram further, Turano said that the rumors were a misunderstanding and all that was discussed was a “cat problem” which may cause a health and safety issue.

Ingram refused to comment on the matter when approached by The Union but did explain that as Vice President of Administrative Services, she directly oversees the financial and physical health of the ECC campus and her responsibilities include overseeing facilities, health and safety issues.

Regardless of what was discussed at the recent Workplace Health

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EDITORIAL

2 THE UNION

MARCH 5, 2020

Jose Tobar/Special to The Union

Faculty concerns must be taken seriously College district needs to address issues regarding working conditions, pay disparity

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aculty members at El Camino College have voiced to district officials their concerns about working conditions, health benefits and pay disparities. As individuals who have a passion to educate, enlighten and aid students, their voices need to be heard.

The Union strongly recommends that the El Camino Community College District (ECCCD) should take faculty concerns seriously before current working conditions and issues under the most recently signed faculty union contract begin to erode students’ academic experiences at ECC. The Union also supports the efforts made by ECC’s faculty union, formally known as the El Camino College Federation of Teachers (ECCFT), to create a better environment for faculty at ECC, which in turn will provide a more robust academic experience for students.

The most recent contract between ECC’s faculty union and the ECCCD was effective from Jan. 1, 2017, until Dec. 31, 2019. The agreement is composed of ECC employees’ working rights, conditions, requirements, and salaries.

In preparation for the contract expiring, ECC’s faculty union has undergone contract negotiations with the district since August 2019. As negotiations prolonged, the previous contract was extended for another semester until a new contract could be signed.

As these negotiations have been taking place, ECC’s faculty union is fighting for a number of changes to make the working environment at ECC better. This includes addressing lab-to-lecture parity, as professors who teach labs are paid less than the amount they get paid for teaching lectures despite hands-on instruction time with students are the same between lectures and labs if not more.

Additionally, at ECC, adjunct instructors are not paid for having office hours with students, so if adjunct instructors do sit down with students and help them out with course material or instruction outside of class time, they essentially do it for free.

Another issue being addressed by ECC’s faculty union is the 10-month contract applied to counselors. For two months out of the academic year, counselors are not paid for meeting with students. What precedent does that set for students who are seeking academic guidance?

Other issues that ECC’s faculty union is also negotiating include addressing the need for better healthcare benefits and finding more holistic methods of gauging performance evaluations.

ECC faculty have been negotiating these issues and more for over eight months. They have also participated in job actions, a method of increasing awareness of ongoing contract negotiations by strictly abiding to the obligations of current contracts.

Some counselors did not meet with students in the month of January due to contract requirements paying them for only 10 months of work, not 12. Some counselors who did meet with students met with them knowing they would not be paid for the work they are employed for.

Furthermore, in the first two weeks of the 2020 spring semester, many professors began turning away students looking to add courses once their classes reached capacity since the current contract only obligates them to fill their classes to capacity.

Students who have been turned away when trying to add a class to their schedule have lost the opportunity to complete college transfer requirements, and fundamentally strengthen their education. Students who were unable to access counselors for the month of January have been robbed of assistance and guidance to navigating through their college experience.

These actions were not taken by faculty members to give students a difficult time at ECC. Instead, this was done to raise awareness about how the district does not pay counselors and professors to go above and beyond and provide resources to students the way they are expected to.

In doing so, it ultimately impacts students negatively because counselors and professors are then forced to decide between not getting paid and helping students— and that’s an issue that boils down to the district not creating adequate resources for both faculty members and students.

Editorials are unsigned and are written and voted upon by the editorial board.

Editorsʼ thoughts: Thumbs up, thumbs down

Vol. 75, No. 7 March 5, 2020

Thumbs up to El Camino’s faculty union negotiating for better working conditions

Thumbs down to walkways closing due to ongoing construction efforts

Thumbs up to the Warrior Pantry providing hot water for foods like oatmeal and instant ramen

Thumbs down to a new Chick-fil-A being constructed near campus, which might cause increased traffic

Contact: eccunion@gmail.com Newsroom: (310) 660-3328 Advertising: (310) 660-3329

Editor-in-Chief .......................................... Omar Rashad News Editor .............................................. Fernando Haro Features Editor .......................................... Juan Miranda Arts Editor................................................. Molly Cochran Sports Editor ............................................. Kealoha Noguchi Opinion Editor .......................................... Brianna Lopez Senior Staff Writer .................................... Oscar Macias Senior Staff Writer .................................... Matthew Sandoval Senior Staff Writer .................................... Mikayla Schwartz Staff Writer................................................ Dior Anderson Staff Writer................................................ Stephanie Choi Staff Writer................................................ Clinton Jones Staff Writer................................................ Christian Moreno Staff Writer................................................ Jorian Palos Staff Writer................................................ Daniel Pineda Staff Writer................................................ Logan Tahlier

Senior Photographer................................ Mari Inagaki Senior Photographer................................ Viridiana Flores Photographer ........................................... Cameron Klassen Photographer ........................................... Kiara Balleras Photographer ........................................... Natalee Hicks Photographer ........................................... Rachel Maldonado Photographer ........................................... Mariah Perez Photographer ........................................... Daniela Loria Photographer ........................................... Heather Guzman Photo Adviser .......................................... Luis Sinco Advertising Manager .............................. Jack Mulkey Adviser .................................................... Stefanie Frith

The Union is published on designated Thursdays by Journalism 11 and 14 students at El Camino College, 16007 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance, CA 90506, and is free to the student body and staff.

Unsigned editorials and cartoons are the opinion of the editorial board and do not necessarily reflect the views of the student body, staff or administration. Letters to the editor must be signed and must be received one week prior to publication in the Union office, Humanities Building Room 113.

Letters are subject to editing for space, libel, obscenity and disruption of the educational process. Single copies of the Union are free; multiple copies can be requested through the Union.

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OPINION

MARCH 5, 2020

THE UNION 3

Campus Viewpoints: What are you hoping for this election cycle?

Stephanie Choi Staff Writer @stephkchoi

With the recent presidential primary election results, The Union asked El Camino College students on campus about the changes they hope to see in the country.

Thea Rosemary/Special to The Union

Finding my place of belonging

El Camino College should have an LGBTQ+ resource center for queer students

Brianna Lopez

Opinion Editor @ECCUnionBree still vividly remember the profound memory of being in dance class during my freshman year of high school.

I realized I was pansexual quite some time before then, but now, something felt out of place.

Imagine waking up everyday in a body that does not make you feel adequate. I was so uncomfortable, I wanted to crawl out of myself.

I

I had not yet discovered the term body dysmorphia, so experiencing feelings of inadequacy, discomfort and anxiety for existing was flooding me with dread. I didn’t feel like a girl.

When I was a child, long before I realized I was nonbinary, I really cannot remember being conscious with identifying as a girl. I was just a kid, a person.

So, at that present moment, navigating through physical and mental development as a 14-yearold who was also discovering things about themself that they had no idea about, I felt so much inner turmoil within me.

I remained feeling absolutely out of touch with my body and sense of identity. The immense confusion and fear of being the only person to experience the emotions I had made me feel ostracized from everyone around me at school.

Then, when I felt like there was no light at the end of the tunnel, I made a new friend. That friend

introduced themself to me as identifying as gender-fluid.

Having that conversation captivated me and a whirlwind of hope swooped me up.

After learning about other genders through this illuminating conversation, I was enlightened and comforted in a way I had never felt before. Meeting someone who was not cisgender felt like a dream come true.

According to Human Rights Campaign, 41.8% of nonbinary youth confirm having attempted suicide at least once in their life.

I am so fortunate to have met a friend that helped me realized who I was all along, because now I know I was never alone, no matter how much I thought I was.

During high school, there were LGBTQ clubs on campus that gave queer folks and allies support, but seldom was there anything from my high school institution itself.

Members of the LGBTQ community at my high school,

especially the queer and transgender people of color, relied on one another to provide a sense of love and community and establish ing a safe space for each other.

It was a beautiful thing to witness, but I still felt as though my high school institution could have made us feel more welcome, to express that they were proud of us as we were.

If there had been additional resources available at the high school I attended, like a permanently established space for my community, my experience would have been entirely different.

If there was a place for me to go when I had questions and confusions about what I was feeling, I would have sought refuge there in a heartbeat.

And I cannot emphasize what a privilege it is to attend a community college that actively supports my community.

El Camino College provides a plethora of LGBTQ resources on

their website, including a map of the gender-neutral bathrooms on campus, upcoming events, health resources and even scholarship opportunities to name a few.

ECC funds the LGBTQIA+ Safe Space Training for faculty, staff, and administration to be informed and supportive of all queer students, through Student Equity and Achievement Council (SEAC).

If every incoming ECC student, regardless of age, questioned themselves and their sexuality or gender, I would want to do everything I could to prevent them from what I experienced in high school, but still, I am one of the lucky ones.

If there was an entire center or space on our ECC campus dedicated to my community, where LGBTQ students could go to seek community, or answers to the questions that make them feel so out of touch with themselves, it would be monumental.

Warrior Closet pops up and out with no info ECC needs a permanent donation initiative on campus to provide essentials for students

Oscar Macias

Senior Staff Writer @ECCUnionOscarM El Camino College offers a large amount of resources to students throughout the semester. However, many students do not actually know about these services.

I didn’t know that ECC offered a diverse range of student services, including six free therapy sessions and even free healthcare options until my second year here.

There are more free services, such as the Warrior Pantry, that help disadvantaged students who don’t have the financial means for

essentials, such as food and water.

There is also a pop-up shop called the Warrior Closet, which gives students in need clothes and shoes. However, because the closet is a pop-up shop, it doesn’t have a stationed place at ECC. ECC should make the Warrior Closet permanent, just like the Warrior Pantry. Warrior Pantry is open throughout the semester, but the Warrior Closet is only a pop-up shop with no established time or date for returning.

The Warrior Pantry is open on Mondays and Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Wednesdays from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. and Thursdays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. The pantry is open weekly throughout the semester, so why can’t ECC also have the Warrior Closet do the same?

The Warrior Closet has been present during the Harvest Festival of the 2019 fall semester, where students who needed clothing were able to obtain them. Instead of having this as a temporary event, ECC should have it as an official place on campus, like Warrior Pantry.

There might be students going to ECC that are in need of clothes, but are not able to afford them because of things like their budget, cost of transportation, or even their availability to buy clothes.

In order for the closet to stay functioning, students, faculty, and members of the local community could start donating their unneeded clothes to the Warrior Closet. It would help them get rid of clothes that aren’t in use anymore, and it would give those students a chance to acquire clothing essentials that they’re in need of.

Getting a sponsor from donation organizations, such as Goodwill and Salvation Army, would also provide the funds to keep Warrior Closet functioning. This would inform others with the knowledge of Warrior Closet and allow for more clothing donations as well.

The pantry and closet would go hand in hand for students who need extra help when it comes to getting essentials like food and clothing.

It would benefit students in need, along with ECC being able to have more student services to provide.

Erei Reyes, 21 undecided major “Better diplomatic leadership, because I don’t think our current president does a very good job at that. Better school policies and tax policies.”

Miguel Gonsalez, 21 anthropology major “Unity. It sounds cliché, but we are too divided. Hopefully whoever is elected will bring us closer and we can figure out our differences.

More representation for access to college, to create that path for low income communities to go to college.”

Saeed Al Sheyab, 20 kinesiology major “More rights for undocumented people. They should make the process of getting a green card and being documented easier.

Cheaper education. College should be the same price for local and international students.”

Juan Mendoza, 21 film major If you are a student who is interested in the Warrior Pantry, it is located in the Physics Building in Room 116. You need to submit a pantry registration form beforehand. As long as you are enrolled in ECC and have a student

Omar Rashad/The Union

ID, you can use these services.

Warrior Closet should become a staple for ECC. It would benefit students who need help getting free clothing on campus, especially for those who don’t have transportation options to go elsewhere for clothes.

“More resources for the homeless, especially those under 25 and those in college. Education shouldn’t be free, but some school debt should be forgiven, especially for community college students transferring to four-year colleges.

Low income communities need more representation.”

NEWS

4 THE UNION

MARCH 5, 2020

Task force to address potential impacts of coronavirus outbreak Fernando Haro

Senior News Editor @ECCUnionHaro A task force has been created at El Camino College in preparation of any impact the coronavirus may have on the community, according to an email by ECC’s Office of Marketing and Communiactions.

The task force, made up of campus stakeholders, was invited to its first meeting the week of Monday, March 2, to discuss plans to ensure the safety of students and employees.

While no known cases of the coronavirus have been detected at ECC, there have been 29 reported cases of COVID-19 in California as of Monday, March 2, with 1 dead, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Officials at ECC are proactively planning for a variety of scenarios while asking the community to keep calm and wash their hands, according to the email.

Chick-fil-A restaurant to open across campus, provide job opportunities

Matthew Sandoval

Senior Staff Writer @ECCUnionMatthew The fresh smell of fried chicken and waffle fries will be coming soon to the El Camino Village community, as the newly built Chick-fil-A on the corner of Crenshaw and Redondo Beach Boulevard is set to open near the end of April, according to the Chick-fil-A Customer Care Team.

The grand opening of the restaurant directly across from the Math Business Allied Health building will bring additional food options to the El Camino College community as well as job opportunities for ECC students and local residents.

Along with the grand opening, Chick-fil-A will offer a promotion to the first 100 people in line for free Chick-fil-A for an entire year, however, participants must be local residents to receive this promotion.

Student Writing Center offers free workshops throughout spring Logan Tahlier

Staff Writer @ECCUnionLTahlier Tutoring, along with help on essays and applications is available to students at the Writing Center Monday through Friday in El Camino College’s Humanities Building Room 122.

Services provided include tutoring for college applications, one-on-one assistance with college essay writing and specialized writing tasks such as cover letters.

The Writing Center is open throughout the spring semester until Friday, June 12, the final day of classes, with all services available through drop-in.

Hours of operation Monday and Thursday: 7 a.m. to 12:40 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 5:40 Tuesday and Wednesday: 7 a.m. to 12:40 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 8:40 Friday: 7 a.m. to 12:40 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 3:10

Police Beat

Police Beat was not made available to The Union.

Duane Tada/Special to the Union A construction worker provides dust control during the recent demolition of the old Student Services Building at El Camino College on Wednesday, Feb. 19. The demolition of the Student Services Building, the site will be home to the new Behavioral and Social Science Building by the summer of 2022.

Modernization of campus continues Safety emphasized by officials as construction impacts campus Fernando Haro

Senior News Editor @ECCUnionHaro

A

s part of the ongoing modernization of the campus, demolition of the old Student Services Building at El Camino College has begun with construction projects estimated to continue up until 2025, officials said.

The destruction of the old Student Services Building and Student Activities Center is scheduled to be a six-month long process that will pave way for the construction of a new Behavioral and Social Science Building by summer 2022.

Along with a new Arts Complex, ECC officials are also working on a new Bookstore Café, Music Building and the new Administration Building all within the next five years.

During the Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 19, Executive Director of Facilities and Planning Services Jorge Gutierrez presented an update on the costs and expected dates for the next several construction projects including the opening of the new Administration [Cat removal, from page 1] In 1988, ECC administration officials headed a program to remove all cats from the El Camino campus, according to The Warwhoop archives.

Two years later, the campus was overrun with a rodent infestation in which rats could be found in buildings, between walls, on telephone wires and their urine and feces were found in desk and cabinet drawers, Turano said.

Beyond preventing a rodent infestation, Turano added that the cats are a part of the El Camino community.

“There are a lot of students that find the cats as stress relievers,” Turano said. “They enjoy watching them play and there’s friendly ones on campus that I’ve seen people sitting down [with] and petting.”

Executive Director of the Facilities Planning and Services Department Jorge Guttierrez also refused to comment on the matter.

His responsibilities include overseeing custodial work and

Logan Tahlier Staff Writer @LTahlier

Building this spring.

But with the demolition of old buildings bringing light to new ones, several walkways have been closed off, forcing pedestrians to go all the way around campus to get to class.

More recently, the walkway between the old Student Services building and the North Gym was closed off Monday, March 2, cutting the campus in half until this summer.

Journalism major Maverick Marcellana said he feels cutting off parts of campus is bit much for students who are trying to get to and from class while navigating through foot traffic.

However, Gutierrez told The Union in the winter that his priority when designing the new pathways was safety.

Gutierrez said he, alongside Executive Director of Marketing and Communications Ann O’Brien, have met with stakeholders in the past and different student body committees to create the most

groundskeeping at ECC. The Union attempted to reach the office of Michael Pascual, the director of Purchasing and Risk Management and also the chair of the Workplace Health and Safety Committee, however, he was unavailable for comment since he was out of town.

“feasible path of travel.”

“We want to make sure the perimeter around the construction is safe for all students,” Gutierrez said.

Since 2008, the ECC community has witnessed the grand opening of 14 new structures including buildings, stadiums and parking lots, changing the landscape of what once used to be an institution of barrack-style structures from an old army base.

With ongoing demolition over the next several months, community members can expect the discarding of hazardous materials with oversight by an environmental consultant, Director of Public Information and Government Relations Marc Stevens told The Union.

In an effort to minimize noise pollution, front-loading machinery will be used to remove the the buildings in manageable-sized pieces, Stevens said.

Gutierrez said ECC’s Office of Marketing and Communications will continue to work on updating students and faculty about any changes surrounding construction.

For more updates, visit eccunion. Source: Facilities Bond Program Update

Upcoming construction projects

feeding cats and noted how even Facilities Planning and Services employees know him by name.

He added that none of the cats on campus are feral, have mosquitoes and fleas and are completely safe to be around. However, McCleary also said that with recent removal of bushes and other greenery, cats have a lot less space to hide and reside during the daytime.

Jun

The Union attempted to also reach the committee’s CoChair Valerie Wagner, however, she refused to comment, citing how she was told to not talk to reporters with The Union.

James McCleary, who is part of the El Camino Cat Care Volunteers and stocks 18 feeding stations for cats across campus, talked about how he visits campus twice a week for over four hours

Ueda/Special to The Union Cats on campus are cared for by members of a volunteer group, made up of cat lovers from the community.

Contact and donations For more information, including how to donate, visit the El Camino Communty Cats page on Facebook or contact Debbie Turano at 310-6603593, Ext. 5692

[Teacher’s Union, from page 1] Izack Saucedo, political science major, experienced the brunt of this when he tried adding a political philosophy class during the first week of the spring 2020 semester.

When he arrived to class, Saucedo said his professor quickly established that he would not be adding anyone on the waitlist as he did not want to go over the course capacity.

“He made it really political because he gave his reasons. He’s like ‘I’m part of the [teachers] union’ and I didn’t really understand a lot of what he said because it was very political so I was lost and a lot of other students were lost,” Saucedo said.

Because Saucedo was waitlisted, he and another student began looking for other class sections of political philosophy at ECC and visited Dean of Behavioral and Social Science Christina Gold.

“We talked to the Dean and she couldn’t do anything because the administration would not allow them to add another specialized class,” Saucedo said.

Gold proceeded to show the

students an online database where they could search for available sections at other colleges, Saucedo said.

“I also thought that was kind of weird too because as a dean at El Camino, she should be encouraging us to stay on campus but she was kind of like pushing us out,” Saucedo said. “It kind of went against the whole, ‘we want you to be successful here at El Camino.’”

The Union attempted to contact Gold but she was not immediately available for comment.

Saucedo, who is also the Associated Students Organization commissioner of academic affairs, said this situation put him at a low point as it added unwanted stress to an already hectic first week of classes.

Ultimately, Saucedo said he managed to be added into the class but considers himself lucky.

“As a student you shouldn’t be put in the middle and fight out situations like this,” Saucedo said. “Administration should be proactive to potential issues like this and try to put in some kind of resolve and solution to issues like this.”

ARTS

MARCH 5, 2020

THE UNION 5

Omar Rashad/The Union Artist Linda Detwiler Burner explains the meaning behind a picture of a Los Angeles sunset on Tuesday, Feb. 25. in the Schauerman Library. Burner took over a year to capture all the photographs used in “Moments,” an art exhibit presenting photographs, mosaics and paintings.

Local artist captures and celebrates fleeting ‘Moments’

Multimedia exhibit finds value in life’s commonly overlooked split-second realities Molly Cochran

Arts Editor @ECCUnionMolly

S

he peers through her window as she drives home from a long vacation in Morro Bay. Suddenly, she’s watching firefighters power through hot embers and flames.

She whips out her camera.

56-year-old photographer Linda Detwiler Burner has been taking photos since she was eight years old. Her exhibit presented at the Schauerman Library, “Moments,” is a culmination of her art pieces including paintings, mosaics and photographs from the last few years.

She aims to explore the passage of each moment and how quickly those moments go by.

“I liked [‘Moments’] because a photograph is capturing a memory, or what was happening at that moment. And once the moment is gone, it’s gone,” Burner said.

“Life is full of moments, you’ve got to share those moments, and photography helps capture those moments.”

Of the entire exhibit, a dozen pictures were taken at Hot N Tot Diner in Lomita, California.

Burner, who also works as a User Support Technician in El Camino College’s Financial Aid Department, wanted her lens to transcend physical barriers and let the subjects’ individual personalities shine through. “[For] one of the gals, Janice, who looks like she’s doing a ballerina dance, I had to up my

shutter speed to capture her,” Burner said. “I used a wide angle lens and she just happened to be bringing our food so I got the shot I was looking for.”

Most of Burner’s photos were taken in Los Angeles and surrounding areas, which Camila Jenkin, 30-year-old Outreach Services Librarian at the Schauerman Library, thought was an important thing to highlight, especially in a library where most of its patrons are students and teachers who live in the Los Angeles area.

“When I first saw the black and white series of the Hot n Tot Cafe, my first thought is that I’ve driven by that so many times and never even given it a second thought — and suddenly it’s a photo series,” Jenkin said. “It’s not a place I’ve ever been inside but to see it immortalized in photos was pretty cool and it meant that it was meaningful to a lot of people.”

While the process was rewarding in the end, Linda’s project took over a year.

“It was always something I wanted to do, and it was a fun project. I took over 2000 pictures,” Burner said. “It’s a year-long process and I’m very proud of it because I’m not known as a street photographer but that project gave me a street photographer feel.”

One of the teachers Burner identified as having contributed to her success is Michael Quinn, an associate adjunct professor of photography at ECC, who believes the way photographers improve is by analyzing what they’ve already

‘The Who’s TOMMY’

Omar Rashad/The Union Artist Linda Detwiler Burner (left), 56, discusses her artworks with arts major Raudel Nava and liberal arts major Lajoy Watson in the Schauerman Library on Tuesday, Feb. 25. Burner’s pieces highlight how quickly time passes. done.

“It’s not a matter of being destructive, it’s constructive. I think we hear too much positive, more than we want to hear,” Quinn said. “[Photography] 223 B is basically just a critique class so we just sit around and we talk about each other’s work the entire semester.”

As a photographer himself, Quinn has concluded that a life of

photography requires a lot of hard work and dedication, which Linda had from the beginning.

“She had a sincerity about what she was doing,” Quinn said. “She was one of those people that were wanting to learn the discipline and be very committed to improving it for herself.”

Quinn’s approach to teaching is to individualize his curriculum to each student, he said. Additionally,

‘An Afternoon of Light Classics’

Quinn said he wants students to leave his class with certain skills in order to succeed in photography like the ability to think independently and use those thoughts to create art.

In Quinn’s class, Linda said she learned many good foundations from him and appreciated his critiques and suggestions as they improved her own skills. She took photographs of moments and through those photographs

made a broader conclusion on the whirlwind passage of time.

“Life can change in an instant.

When I was working on my write-ups and doing this show, the next day was when Kobe died,” Burner said. “Take time to smell the roses and enjoy the moments because they’re here and gone. Opportunities come, and sometimes you have to just take a chance.”

‘Song Board’

The El Camino Theatre Arts Department and community members will present rock opera “The Who’s TOMMY” at the Campus Theatre.

The South Bay Children’s Choir and Friends will present choral “classics” and solos in the Haag Recital Hall.

The Jessica Fichot Quintet’s performance will include different types of music in the Marsee Auditorium.

When: March 13, 14, 20, 21, 27, and 28 at 8 p.m. and March 15, 22, and 29 at 3 p.m.

Tickets: $25 for adults, $15 for students

When: March 8 at 4 p.m.

When: March 13 at 8 p.m

Tickets: $15 for adults, $10 for children 12 and under

Tickets: $26 for adults, $10 for students, $23.40 for senior citizens

FEATURES

6 THE UNION

MARCH 5, 2020

Omar Rashad/The Union Carl Turano, a warehouse stock clerk at El Camino College, looks around for cats near a feeding station next to the Music Building on Saturday, Feb. 22. Turano has been taking care of cats on campus for approximately two decades and walks across El Camino College’s 126-acres while pulling a wagon with water and cat food.

Rescuing animals forges ‘a heart of gold’

‘You’ve gotta help where you can’: Warehouse stock clerk advocates for campus animal population Juan Miranda

Features Editor @ECCUnionJuanM

E

very Saturday, he’s up before the sun rises. He hears crickets and feels the crisp cold atmosphere of an early morning.

As Carl Turano gets closer to a water and food station, a cat emerges from the greenery around him and snuggles up near his legs.

Turano puts out a mound of dry cat food and watches another cat come out as they both eat up.

“I love this place with all my might,” Turano said. “I give my heart and soul to this place and all this is just part of it.”

Turano, who works at ECC as a warehouse stock clerk, is also part of the El Camino Cat Care Volunteers, a group of about 50 ECC community members who provide for the cat population at ECC. Turano, like many of his fellow volunteers, helps with cleaning up after the cats, providing them with proper vaccinations and flea treatment, spaying and neutering and organizing potential adoptions.

Most cats at El Camino College approach Turano, who, for a better part of two decades, has taken care of dozens of cats who reside in bushes and trees near small feeding stations.

On Saturdays, he walks all throughout ECC’s 126-acre campus with a wagon in tow, carrying water and wet and dry cat foods to stock up more than a dozen feeding stations.

At first, it was just Turano and an elderly woman who expressed a keen interest in feeding the cats at night. Over 20 years later, Turano is among the most prominent volunteers of the group.

“I stay super, super busy and most of what I do is giving,” Turano said. “I don’t take a whole lot, I give and that’s the way I feel about this campus.”

Although not as prominent as before, the volunteer group has organized a mobile spay and neuter unit to offer its services on campus.

“What we do here is really a justice,” Turano said. “I swear to God it is.”

Administrative Assistant of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Division Beverly Knapp described Turano as having a heart of gold because of his continued advocacy and empathy for the cats on campus.

“We’re lucky to have him,” Knapp, who is also a part of the El Camino Cat Care Volunteers, said.

“Without Carl we would have a lot of problems.”

Turano, who has eight cats and three dogs of his own, has also rescued other animals besides cats, including dogs, birds and even a turtle. He recalled a time when he had to go into a sewer at ECC to rescue eight ducklings after their mother duck had been killed.

“I am a rescue guy. If I come across an incident and I can help, I do,” Turano said.

Turano proceeded to take the ducklings to a bird sanctuary in San Pedro, where the ducks were raised and placed in zoos.

“Without that it would be an ugly place,” Turano said, when asked about the initiative he and his fellow volunteers take when aiding animals. “You’ve gotta be an ambassador, you’ve gotta help where you can.”

As concerns have grown following rumors that administration officials are considering getting rid of cats on campus, Turano said that if the cat population was to be eradicated, a vacuum effect would occur.

A vacuum effect happens when a new colony of cats replaces a former group of cats who have been trapped and killed or relocated. Cat colonies are rebuilt by breeding or when new cats come into an area with sources for food and shelter, according to FixNation, a non-profit organization that performs trap-neuter-return (TNR) procedures in the Los Angeles area.

“There’s always going to be resistance [to] the kitties,” Turano said. “There’s gonna be people that love them and people who don’t love them.”

Omar Rashad/The Union A black and white cat eats wet cat food next to a feeding station near the Schauerman Library on Saturday, Feb. 22.

Carl Turano, warehouse stock clerk, advocates for and takes care of the campus cat population.

Turano added that the campus would also face a rodent infestation if the cats were to be removed from campus.

“

I’m a rescue guy.

If I come across an incident and I can help, I do.”

Carl Turano Warehouse stock clerk

“It’s not true that [the cats] won’t trap mice if they’re fed,” Knapp said.

Turano said that ongoing construction projects and bushes on campus getting cut down have disrupted the lives of the cats, giving them a hard time.

“They are chopping down a lot of greenery in places to make it so they don’t have anywhere to hide,” Turano said. “It’s hard on [them].”

The Union attempted to get into contact with Facilities and Planning Services Department officials including Executive Director Jorge Gutierrez, Assistant Director Christopher Egnozzi, and Grounds Supervisor Gregorio Luna, but they did not respond to requests for comment.

The Facilities and Planning Services Department is dedicated to maintaining quality within campus buildings and environment.

Despite Turano’s efforts to look after the campus cat community, the threat of coyotes looms over the cats.

Over 300 felines once roamed around ECC, Turano estimated; however, as the population continued to rise, so did the sightings of coyotes and the number of attacks on the cats.

Turano said coyotes are fearless, sharp and systematic hunters. They kill their prey almost immediately,

especially cats, as they target them by biting into their necks, he added.

“The coyotes are probably the biggest threat [to the cats]. I really don’t believe they’re going to go after the people,” Turano said. “We’ve run them out of their homes, now they’re just coming back and they need somewhere to be.”

Turano recalled a female cat he rescued along with the litter she had given birth to underneath a shelf in the dirt by the Construction Technology Building. The kittens were put up for adoption and Turano brought the mother back to campus.

“I was desperately looking for somewhere for her to go,” Turano said. “She was a rubby, mushy kitty right off the bat.”

However, one day, Turano discovered her remains and knew that only a coyote could have dealt that level of damage.

“The only thing I found of that cat [was] her back leg,” he said. “That kind of stuff is heartbreaking.”

Although Turano said the

coyotes are a threat to the cats, he noted how they are also animals and they also have to survive.

“That one’s a hard one because how can I say I’m an animal person and then tell you ‘Kill those f---ing coyotes,’” Turano said. “You can’t do that.”

Turano has built strong friendships with the cats around campus, he said that if he were to return after missing a couple of days of work, they would go crazy when they finally see him again.

“It’s heartbreaking when you have them and you find them sick, you get attached to them and then they die on you,” Turano said.

“That’s the hardest part of all of this.”

Turano said he would like to work more with animals in the near future, as he feels he was meant to be helping and rescuing animals.

“Animal work is what I’m supposed to be doing,” Turano said. “It took me a long time to figure that out and it just takes me to a really peaceful place when I’m doing that.”

SPORTS

8MARCH THE UNION 5, 2020

OCT. THE 10, UNION 20197

Basketball program honored in conference awards Five ECC .basketball players named to all-conference teams

Kealoha Noguchi

Sports Editor @eccunionkealoha

F

ive players El Camino College’s basketball program were named to South Coast Conference (SCC) South Division all-teams including having the women’s Co-Freshman of the Year.

Women’s basketball team guard Taylor Hart was named the conference Co-Freshman of the year after fellow guard Ashley Nguyen won it last year making it back-to-back seasons the award has belonged to a Warrior.

“I was just ready to be prepared for whatever came my way,” Hart said. “My confidence throughout the season [grew] at the start I was timid and my mindset wasn’t right and I think just [got stronger] continuing to play.

Hart started in 23 of ECC’s 27 games and averaged 11 points, six rebounds and two assists while shooting 35 percent from the field.

“Her strength [is] being someone who can score,” Warriors coach Steve Shaw said. “[She] can put the ball on the floor, create for herself and the ability that not many people have anymore is [the] midrange game.”

Hart’s confidence grew as the season progressed and her ability to score amongst other areas of her game allowed her numbers to increase in conference play.

She improved to 12.4 points, 6.5 rebounds, shooting 41.6 percent while adding nine points to her three-point percentage. “[Creating for others, threepoint shooting and overall ability to score] are all tough factors and when you [have a player with all] three of those together, its going to be hard to able guard [them],”

Shaw said.

Women’s basketball guards Alexia Mason and Nguyen were named to the SCC South Division First-Team, Nguyen second FirstTeam nod.

“I try to make plays for everyone [but] coming into this season I had to step up,” Nguyen said. “I feel like my shooting was a lot better than last season [and] my defense was [better].”

Nguyen followed up her standout freshman season averaging 13 points, four rebounds and five assists while shooting 42 percent from the field and 35 percent from three-point line.

“It was harder for Ashley [because] teams aren’t going to let her to let your top players be the ones to beat you,” Shaw said. “So for her to have [the season she did] when teams are more aware and more determined not to allow her to [be as successful] is a credit to her development.”

Nguyen had the chance to play with her twin sister, Sara, this season and their ability to play off each other was fun to experience at the college level, Nguyen said.

“At the college level it was a little bit more intense but she was able to be more aggressive which she likes to do,” Nguyen said.

Mason played a number of different roles for The Warriors last season but her role expanded this year getting more opportunities and turned into one of the reliable leaders of the team, Shaw said.

“It’s not a guarantee that somebody will go from a role spot as a freshman to a key spot their sophomore year and elevate their game to that level but she did and put up solid numbers all year especially in scoring,” Shaw said.

Mason started in every

Jaime Solis/The Union El Camino College men’s basketball guard JaMal Howard attacks the basket against a Los Angeles Pierce College defender in the game on Wednesday, Nov. 6, at the ECC South Gym. Howard was named to the South Coast Conference First Team South Division

game for The Warriors after not starting a single game last season and up’d her points per game total by seven.

“Your second season is not as easy just because you’re a sophomore,” Mason said. “I missed a whole summer playing with [the team] so I didn’t know how everything was going to be.”

She averaged 11 points and eight rebounds while having the highest field goal percentage on team at 47 percent.

“Being more aggressive and more confident when I’m shooting, just more confidence in my [overall] game helped me,” Mason said.

Nguyen and Mason have plans on continuing to play at the next level and hopefully at the same school together at San Fransisco State University.

“Obviously getting the opportunity to play with Lex [Mason] again is fun and we play really well together,” Nguyen said.

Warriors guard JaMal Howard was the lone representative from the men’s basketball team in all conference honors.

“This is my first time making first-team in anything since I started playing high school so it really meant a lot to me this year,” Howard said. “My brother made first team and I never made it so I knew I had to catch up to him that was one of my driving factors for the season.”

Howard wanted to establish himself as a leader and lead by example this season and he started in 27 games after starting in only 12 last year.

“I didn’t want any doubts in people’s minds on who I was as a

leader,” Howard said. “My main goal was to come in first place so everybody knew that when I talk to them it was coming out of a respect.”

He led the team in scoring at 15.6 points, four rebounds, shooting 48.5 percent from the field and 45 percent from the three-point line. “[The team] finding me and getting me the ball in opportunities where I was open shows a lot to them, skillwise and IQ of knowing the game [because] I couldn’t do anything without them,” Howard said.

Howard said he plans to continue to play at the next level and is currently in the process of what school he wants to attend to next.

“I do have two showcases coming up that I plan to get eyes [on me] and [get] in contact with,” Howard said.

Warriors women’s basketball players Jessie Hoffsmith and Alexandra Ambriz made SCC South Division Second Team.

Hoffsmith started in 25 games as a freshman and averaged 6.5 points and four rebounds per game. “[Didn’t expect] her work ethic and how much she improved over the course of the season but her ability to shoot the ball from the perimeter was key for us,” Shaw said.

Ambriz suffered a seasonending achilles injury last season and did not return until December but still a huge impact and the team was better with her, Shaw said. “[For] someone who didn’t put up a ton of points or maybe even a lot of rebounds she was really good for us on the defensive end and definitely made us a better team,” Shaw said.

Minnesota State University Softball program to host second dog rescue event to face women’s tennis team Annual ‘Bark in the Park’ fundraiser promotes adoption of fur-ever friends

Division II four-year college to play ECC Kealoha Noguchi

Sports Editor @eccunionkealoha National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) division two university visits El Camino College to play the women’s tennis team in its next match on Tuesday, March 2 at ECC tennis courts.

ECC will host Minnesota State University Moorhead, a four-year college located in Moorhead, Minnesota, at 2 p.m.

The Warriors (6-2, 2-0 in conference) try to schedule a match against a four-year university at least once a season as they’ve played Whittier College and Lake Forest College, located in Illinois, in recent years. “[The out-of-state schools are] always the ones getting a hold of us,” Warriors coach Steven Van Kanegan said. “They are usually on a spring break trip through California and they’ll try to find

teams that are competitive and our women’s team is competitive every year.”

ECC is coming off an undefeated conference season in 2019 and will play their next match on “It’s most likely going to be a different level and good test for us [because] we haven’t been tested in a few matches,” Van Kanegan said.

“I’m hoping we get pushed win or lose, it’ll be a great opportunity for our players to take a closer look at themselves.”

As the Warriors get deeper into conference and the possibility of a playoff berth, they need to continue to get stronger in playing doubles, Van Kanegan said.

“Doubles involves playing aggressively and getting more comfortably with your teammates so the more matches we play the more the each individual gets comfortable with who they are playing with,” Van Kanegan said.

Upcoming home games

3/10 vs Minnesota State University @ 2 p.m.

ECC sand courts 3/11 vs Glendale College @ 2 p.m.

ECC sand courts 3/17 vs Rio Hondo College* @ 2 p.m.

ECC sand courts *Conference game

Kealoha Noguchi

Sports Editor @eccunionkealoha

The El Camino College softball team will be hosting the second annual dog rescue event during its weekend tournament on Saturday, March 21 at the ECC softball field.

‘Bark in the Park’ will take place on the other side of the centerfield fence as where they will be selling hot dogs, candy, water, soda and raffle tickets with a chance to win dog supplies.

“I’m a major [dog] rescue person [and] I know there are dogs in the world being put to sleep every single day,” Warriors equipment attendant Patricia Miller said.

“There are so many loving dogs that are looking for homes.”

The Warriors (9-6, 5-3 in

conference) start the day against Cypress College (13-0) at 10:30 a.m. and will play Canyons College (12-4) at 12:30 p.m.

The event was inspired by the love for the entire softball program has for dogs as they raised $500 for dog rescue at last year’s event, Miller said. “ [ W e thought] let’s have a game where people can bring their dogs and any money we raise selling hot dogs and support a [dog] rescue,” Miller said. “It’s about the team the coaches and not about the rescue but about the love

for dogs.”

Warriors head coach Jessica Rapoza has a dog with a disability that could of possibly been put to rest but its getting love at ECC, Miller said.

“Blind and it doesn’t matter the dog is still having a great full life [and] just the smiles [the event has] brought to everybody has been amazing,” Miller said.

The Warriors’ next home game is on Tuesday, March 10 against Los Angeles Harbor College at 3 p.m.

Photo by Anna Podshivalova

2020 Team Stats

Record: 9-6

Batting Average: .302 Runs: 90 Hits: 124 2B: 23 HR: 8 RBI: 74 SB: 32

Women’s beach volleyball team to play Nebraskan college Wayne State College will play Warriors during its spring break west coast trip Kealoha Noguchi

Sports Editor @eccunionkealoha A Nebraska four-year college visits El Camino College to play the women’s beach volleyball team in the second game of a doubleheader on Saturday, March 13 at ECC sand courts.

ECC will host conference opponent Rio Hondo College at 10 a.m. and will cap their two-game day playing a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) division two university Wayne State College at 1 p.m.

The Warriors (6-1) occasional

match against an out-of-state college comes in the mist of conference as the Warriors would have played three.

ECC’s only loss came against California State University Northridge.

“Beach volleyball is pretty young for universities and I think they’re trying to fill their schedule with good competition when they’re out here [west coast],” Warriors head coach Le Valley Pattison said.

Conference games are important than playing division two schools because it does not help with playoffs or conference seeding,

Pattison said.

“The experience is what we’re looking for,” Pattison said. “It’s a great opportunity to see kind of everybody play against some older kids.”

ECC will begin conference play Against Mt. San Antonio College (SAC) at 10 a.m. and Desert College at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, March 6 at Mt. SAC. “We start conference this Friday so [that is] really a little more important,” Pattison said.

Both teams have one win and four losses this season.

“We can improve on a little more

aggressive serving [and] getting a few [more] points [while] serving,” Pattison said. “[Also], limiting unforced errors and keeping the ball in play when things aren’t perfect.”

The returning players for ECC have helped tremendously as the team has continued to improve as the season goes on, Pattison said.

‘The experience [of playing older competition] is what we’re looking for,” Pattison said. “[We’re] lucky to have six coaches out here that are high level athletes themselves so [the team] always [gets] challenged in practice.

For more sports coverage on El Camino College’s teams and updated scores, visit eccunion.com

SPORTS

8 THE UNION

MARCH OCT. 10, 5, 2020 2019

Kealoha Noguchi/The Union El Camino College baseball infielder Diego Alarcon intends on repeating success found in his freshman campaign. Alarcon won the Rawlings Gold Glove for being the best defender at second base during the 2018 season. “The biggest goal [for me] is moving on to a D1 school and continuing to play baseball for as long as I can,” Alarcon said.

Back in the swing of things

Baseball player returns to action after missing previous season due to knee injury Kealoha Noguchi

Sports Editor @eccunionkealoha

T

he alarm clock rings at 5 a.m. signaling it is time to wake up and get the day started. He puts on an El Camino College baseball t-shirt and shorts before loading his baseball bag and school backpack into his silver Chevy Colorado.

After a month of 6 a.m. conditioning workouts and driving to school in dark blue, he is ready to get back into the swing of being a student-athlete.

Standing at 6-foot 1-inch and

225 pounds, Diego Alarcon, 20, undecided major, is a baseball student-athlete at ECC. He began playing baseball when he was 3 years old. Having two older brothers involved in the sport made it all the easier choice to start playing.

Warriors head coach Nate Fernley said he knew he was getting a freshman who was a solid defender with great hands, a nice swing and a great baseball IQ in Alarcon.

“We knew we were getting a player that can make an impact right away and he did by winning a gold glove at second base for us,”

Fernley said.

Alarcon resides in Lennox but was born in Long Beach and attended Robert A. Millikan High School.

He enrolled at El Camino College for the 2017-2018 school year after electing to leave Golden West College after one semester.

Growing up Alarcon played a number of different sports including soccer and basketball but baseball became his favorite because of the enjoyment he had in training and competing in games.

“You don’t have to be the most talented but you could most definitely be the most hard working

2018 Stats 2020 Stats (Played in 47 games)

(Through 16 games)

Avg: .328

Avg: .388

Hits: 67

Hits: 26

Runs: 46

Runs: 10

2B: 13

2B:

6

HR: 5

HR:

2

RBI: 37

RBI: 14

Kealoha Noguchi/The Union

and many athletes around [ECC] share that characteristic,” Alarcon said.

After having numerous Division-2 and other community college baseball offers during his senior year of high school, Alarcon’s desire to play for a Division-1 baseball program drove his decision to stay home and attend the local ECC. “The biggest goal [for me] is moving on to a D1 school and continuing to play baseball for as long as I can,” Alarcon said. “The biggest thing for myself is being able to be the first to graduate from a university in my family and [I’d] love to use baseball to achieve that.”

Alarcon is coming off a knee injury that kept him out the whole 2019 season after having one of the more memorable freshman seasons in recent memories.

“Just to show you the kind of impact he had, a team [intentionally] walked Diego to face [Warriors Spencer Palmer] the leading hitter in conference and [best] offensive hitter Fernley said. “Just shows the amount respect teams had for him as a freshman.”

2018 Gold Glove

Alarcon won the first American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) and Rawlings Pacific Association Division Gold Glove in ECC baseball program history.

He was involved in 26 double plays while committing five errors in 212 chances and one error in 101 chances in conference. “[When pitching] it’s always [great] to have that gold glove [defender behind you],” Warriors pitcher and designated hitter Aaron Orozco said. “I just trust him whenever a ball is hit and I know he’s going to make the play.”

Warriors freshman infielder Benny Casillas said he heard a lot about Alarcon due to his huge freshman season.

“Coming in I didn’t know what to expect but he’s provided so much for the offense,” Casillas said. “He’s been our best hitter so far, a great leader and as a fellow infielder; one of the guys I look up to.”

As a freshman, Alarcon played in all 47 games for ECC as he posted a .328 batting average totaling 67 hits including 13 doubles, five home runs, 37 runs batted in (RBI) and 46 runs scored.

“That guy’s a beast,” Orozco said. “He’s been picking up our team whenever our team’s been down.”

All this success came to a halt in 2019 when Alarcon decided to sit the year out to make sure he could get as healthy as he could.

He strained his right knee going after a ball in the 2018 playoffs and took a bad step that resulted in the injury.

Although surgery wasn’t needed, rest was a big option and sitting out became an opportunity to grow and learn more about himself.

2019 Post-Injury

During the time he was away from baseball, Alarcon took up a job at Beach Cities Baseball Academy in El Segundo as a coach to help youth baseball players improve their skills and educate them about the game.

“Working with kids and their baseball development while I was away really made me into a better baseball player and even better person,” Alarcon said. “My drive for the game [has grown] being around [the kids] and my coworkers that played professional and college baseball.”

Players like Ken Woods who was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in 1992 MLB Draft and Alberto Concepcion who originally was selected in the second round of the 1999 MLB draft by the San Diego Padres out of El Segundo High School are just a few of Alarcon’s inspirations at his job.

“These are all baseball freaks and guys I could just pick their brains about baseball and wouldn’t mind me doing so,” Alarcon said.

Their dedication to wanting to always help Alarcon expand his baseball knowledge and work on his bat-to-ball skills have given him more confidence to trust in his ability.

“They’re always working to get me better from hitting with me late

hours after very long days at work, to just sitting down and talking about their careers,” Alarcon said.

“That’s one of the reasons [why] I decided to come back.”

When he was eleven years old, Alarcon began playing for Team Phenom, a travel ball team that was composed of players from all over the nation that came together to play in tournaments across the United States.

“It was a great experience [and] something that I will always be grateful for,” Alarcon said. “One of the best groups of guys both on and off the field that I’ve ever been around to this day.”

From 2012-2014 Team Phenom was consistently in the talks of being a top five travel team in the nation. Prior, Alarcon said he was playing on a travel team in San Diego when a teammate was joining and asked if he’d like to be a part of it.

“I played with so many great athletes and watched a lot of my teammates and friends develop into D1 athletes,” Alarcon said. “I knew that there was improvement for me to be done and I have yet to reach my potential but I can definitely feel myself on track [to be a Division-1 athlete].”

2020 Aspirations

The hardest obstacle Alarcon faced coming back from his injury was trying to get back into baseball shape while balancing everything else in life.

“Balancing out your schedule is tough but once you realize that this is only temporary you get through it,” Alarcon said.

The next step for the Warriors is completing the unfinished business prior teams left behind and capturing the state championship.

“We owe to it [coach] Fernley to get him what he deserves and doing it for the teams and players that left their blood and sweat for the [ECC] baseball program” Alarcon said. “I really do believe we have the team to do it [because] a lot of young guys are hungry and ready to go.”