Volume 68 | Issue 8 | April 9, 2021
@cbulancermedia cbubanner.com
Film Festival —
Remote Work —
Asian Americans —
College of Architecture, Visual Art, and Design hosts annual Film Festival.
COVID-19 changes the future of remote work.
A rise in crimes against Asian Americans rattles the country.
A & E , Pg . 1 0
B & T , Pg .12
N e w s , Pg. 2
Immigration crisis continues
BY EMILY MCGINN
years in the industry and had roles in executive leadership. Dr. Phil van Haaster, assis- He decided to enter into acatant professor of mechanical demia because of his passion engineering and department for mentoring and teaching chair of aerospace, industrial engineers he was responsible and mechanical engineering, for in his executive leadership will become the new dean of the role. As a result, he stepped into Gordon and Jill Bourns College a role as a professor at CBU. Additionally, when he became of Engineering starting July 1. To prepare for the position, department chair of aerospace, van Haaster currently meets industrial and mechanical engiwith Dr. Anthony Donaldson, neering, he learned more about founding dean of the College of working in academia and led Engineering, to discuss admin- the effort to build a new Master istrative duties and goals for the of Science and Engineering that will be available in the fall. position of dean. Van Haaster Donaldson said he believes has been the dean God has prepared since the start of him through his California Baptist past work expeUniversity’s Colrience to teach lege of Engineerengineering stuing. He plans to dents and collabremain in the facorate with and ulty as a professor. Dr. Phil van Haaster, develop a team “The beauty of that is I will have a Assistant professor of colleagues in the College of resource I can tap of mechanical Engineering as into, so it is not engineering and dean. He said it is like I am stepping in and knowledge department chair of important to analyze the content is lost,” van Haasaerospace that the College ter said. “We will of Engineering maintain that knowledge as Dr. Donaldson offers and successfully teach will remain part of the College it to students in a way that will honor God. of Engineering.” Before becoming a professor, van Haaster worked for 26 SEE NEW DEAN | PAGE 3 NEWS EDITOR
In recent months, tens of thousands of immigrants have trekked from Central America and Mexico to the southern U.S. border, even during the COVID-19 pandemic. The majority of people making the voyage to the U.S. borders are seeking safety from violence, natural disasters or poverty. Although waves of immigration are not new, stories of smugglers leaving children just over the U.S. border have been making headlines lately. Camille Mejia, a Riverside resident who came to the U.S. four years ago, originally from Honduras, said most people coming to the U.S. are focused on arriving, not what happens next. “People are more focused on getting here, or getting their children here, rather than what they will do when they get inside because they are trying to get away from something,” Mejia said. “When I came here, I decided that if I was going to be here in the United States, that I had to do so legally. I did not want there to be any reason they could send me away. My home was not a good place.” Mejia said that most of the people she has met who are not in the U.S. legally did not know the proper way to apply for citizenship or legal residency. “It is easy to overstay a visa,” Mejia said. “You do not really have to do anything, you just do not
Alex Iannone | Banner
The San Ysidro Port of Entry is located between the San Ysidro district of San Diego, Calif., and Tijuana, Mexico.
New engineering dean aims to expand program, inspire passion in students
BY MISTY SEVERI
NATIONAL EDITOR
SEE BORDER CRISIS | PAGE 3
Students and faculty reflect on one year in a pandemic BY HANNAH TUDOR
ASST. LIFESTYLE EDITOR One year ago, California Baptist University students’ spring semesters got cut short due to COVID-19. To keep families safe, students and educators around the world have had to adapt learning opportunities to a virtual or hybrid learning format. One year later, most classes are still online while some have returned to a COVID-19 safe in-person format. Dr. Victoria Brodie, department chair for the Communication Arts department,
described the grit and collaboration it took for departments to adapt to online learning. “There was a lot of collaboration because we ultimately wanted to serve our students, so we shared tools and things that we had learned,” Brodie said. “Everyone was really adaptable and flexible but it really allowed us to be able to play in that space which expands our skillset, so if we can deliver content face-to-face, we can deliver it online faceto-face, we can deliver synchronously. It just allows us to be a more robust department,
to be able to deliver the way we need to, whatever the future may hold.” Reflecting on this year, Brodie was proud of how far staff and students have come to be adaptable in an unfamiliar learning environment. “If you have a learning mindset, if you’re adaptable, you are critical, you can critically think through things, then you’re going to find your path, No matter what comes in front of you, you’re going to work to find a path,” Brodie said. Students and educators
alike, have faced challenges this last year with online learning. Ben Higgins, senior criminal justice major, struggled with finding motivation and learning in virtual format. “I don’t learn well online,” Higgins said. “I’m very easily distracted. The challenges with internet times from my professors, and also my own internet is frustrating. For so many students just having the ability to congregate outside are the difference between a good semester without any mental health
SEE A YEAR OF COVID | PAGE 6
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We will maintain that knowledge as Dr. Donaldson will remain part of the College of Engineering.
Sofia Eneqvist | Banner