12 06 13 vol 79 13

Math reinforcements

LMC’s star wideout

Prepping for the season

The Math Lab is currently in the process of hiring a coordinator to fill the vacancy — page 3

Profile of Jermaine Sims who tallied six touchdown grabs in just eight games played — page 4

Women’s basketball prepares for the upcoming campaign — page 5

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F.Y.I. Important Dates December is Safe Toys and Gifts Awareness Month Dec. 18

Last day of instruction

Dec. 21-Jan. 2 Winter recess, college closed

PTEC offers program info

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L M C E X P E R I E N C E . C O M

Resignation clarified

Sanctions a factor in Clark stepping down

By STEVEN LUKE

sluke@lmcexperience.com

Los Medanos lost a valuable leader last week when Associated Students Treasurer Rosanna Clark resigned. Her resignation was a surprise to the AS, but she was facing possible sanctions that forced her hand.

Clark loved her position within LMCAS. She loved being a voice for the campus and helping to make LMC a better place.

She proved that when she spent six months planning and putting together a conference to raise awareness for breast cancer. This conference was cancelled, and the cancellation was a key factor in why she resigned.

It was just something that got her contemplating if she should resign or not.

“They sped up my decision,” she said.

How so? In the weekly LMCAS meeting on Nov. 4, they were discussing drafting a letter to the doctors

who expressed displeasure with the cancellation of the conference when they learned that Clark misrepresented the AS to the doctors in emails.

The reason as to why LMCAS was misrepresented in the emails to the doctors is unknown.

Under section VII of the LMCAS bylaws, under sanctions, “Misrepresentation of the LMCAS or the individual role within the LMCAS,” as a cause for sanction. This led to the AS adding possible sanctions

Up in smoke

See CLARK, page 10

ACCJC backs plans

The Process Technology Program, also known as PTEC, will hold information sessions beginning this month: Q Saturday, Dec. 7, 8 a.m. to noon Q Wednesday, Dec. 11, 6 to 8 p.m.

A degree or certificate in process technology is useful in several fields, including chemical plant operations, power generation, food processing, and many more. Stop by a meeting to learn more.

Substantive changes approved

By SEAN TONGSON

stongson@lmcexperience.com

Holiday Reception The President’s Office will hold the Annual Holiday Reception Monday, Dec. 9 from 3 to 5 p.m for all staff. Join the festivities to celebrate the end of the semester and enjoy refreshments and treats.

Cash for your books Stop by the LMC Bookstore at the Pittsburg campus to get money for your used textbooks. The dates are Thursday, Dec. 12 from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Friday, Dec. 13 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., and 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Monday, Dec 16. to Wednesday, Dec. 18. Remember to bring all CDs, DVDs and supplemental materials purchased with your textbooks. For more information go to www. lmcbookstore.net

Photo by Irvin Trigueros

A recent survey conducted by staff members of the LMC Experience found that a large percentage of students on campus did not know LMC is a nonsmoking campus. Another large percentage did not know where the designated smoking areas are. See full story, pages 6 and 7.

Possible grade range change C- may not be enough to move on to next course

By RATTANA KIM

rkim@lmcexperience.com

The question of whether a C- is an acceptable grade for pre-requisites was one of the topics asked at the Academic Senate meeting last Monday, Nov. 25.

Currently the Contra Costa Community College District does not have a plus or minus system within the grading scale. The question is should Los Medanos College, Diablo Valley College and Contra Costa College accept a C- for prerequisites courses they look to take?

Los Medanos College’s Director of Admissions, Robin

Armour, posed this question to the senators in the meeting.

The decision could go either way according to Armour.

“We don’t have many C-’s because most the schools that we accept transfers from are from community colleges that don’t have the plus and minuses,” Armour said. “What would be affective, more so, I think, would be high school transfers. So students that take Algebra 2 in the high school, they can go into Math 30 or Math 34. But if they get a D or a C+, or a C- in one of the semesters they take it, is it still suitable? Is it still acceptable?”

See MINUS, page 10

Growing program Annual LLN Conference

Honors helps prep students

The 27th Annual Conference for the Latina Leadership Newtwork of the California Community Colleges is scheduled for March 28 and 29 at the Ohlone College Newark Center in Newark.

For more information contact Maria Ramirez at (510)742-2346 or visit www.latina-leadership-network.org

By REBECA NAVARRETE

rnavarrete@lmcexperience.com

The Honors Program at Los Medanos College prepares students to transfer to top universities by providing useful resources and a supportive community of peers. It also includes an extracurricular component that adds a social and leadership dimension in the form of a club.

“It’s an exciting and dynamic

place to be for anyone that wants to push themselves intellectually and personally,” said Honors Program Co-Director Jennifer Saito.

Saito has been the program’s director on and off since it first started in 1999, and is currently sharing director responsibilities with Kasey Gardner.

The program has grown in popularity over the years.

Statistics show that in 1999 Photo by Aishling Doherty there were 51 active students.

Ricardo Black and Zinah Abraha help each other This year there are 150 active See HONOR, page 10

study in the Honors Center.

Los Medanos College recently received official notification of approval from the Accrediting Commission for Junior and Community Colleges (ACCJC). The proposed substantive changes were for the Brentwood Center and the Off-Site Police and Fire Academies.

Substantive changes must be approved by the ACCJC prior to a student being able to complete 50% or more of a program at an offsite location, or at least six months prior to an accreditation re-affirmation visit, which is slated to take place next Fall between September and October 2014.

Within the next six months, a team from the Commission will make a visit to the Brentwood Center and the Off-Site Academies. The campus will then be notified when the date of the visit is finalized in collaboration with the Off-Site locations.

“I am confirming that both proposals received ACJCC approval,” said Contra Costa Community College District Communications Director Tim Leong. “When programs are changed substantially, the college is required to notify the Commission of the changes and to ensure review of the program and services to support the students are adequate as if the program was taught on our campus. After all, the college is the accredited body, not the offsite entity teaching the program.”

Two different teams have worked diligently on developing these proposals for nearly a year. The college is required to document in these proposals how students will receive access to student services offered at the main campus. These proposals were submitted to ACCJC in mid-October, and they were ultimately approved on Nov. 14 at an ACCJC meeting.

According to Senior Dean Kiran Kamath, the proposals were composed by a couple of outstanding teams of people.

“The college is most appreciative of the following for their diligent work and contributions to each of these proposals,” said Kamath.

“Brentwood Center Substantive Change Proposal: Richard Livingston, Jill DeStefano, Kevin Horan, Sharen McLean, Sophia Ramirez, BethAnn See ACCJC, page 10

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Perspectives

FRIDAY,

DEC.

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“Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.”

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

Charles Powell

Jazmine Gordon

CORNER VIEW

EARTHTHINKER

Finding peace in the music

Being shy is okay with me

I am in a meadow of the most verdant green. There are tulips bursting with colors and the grass surrounding them rolls like the waves of the ocean as does their exploding brightness.

It is a dancing sight flowing through my mind and carrying me along. First the pace is quick with a kind of delightful fury.

The flowers are crowned with brilliances of oranges, yellows, whites, pinks and reds.

The entire scenes seems to flow rolls like the waves of the ocean carrying the splashes of the tulips like dazzling sprays of flotsam.

The beaches are stands of oak and copses of pine in the distance. Sunlight splashes gold through shadows. A lark takes its solo from the boughs of an olive tree. I hear the gurgling of water and get lost in the movements of weeping willows.

It may not be ecologically possible, but all of these things are happening as everything slows down and becomes stately more gentle.

I know a storm is coming though. It is brewing amidst the peaks of mountains some jagged others more rounded. All the clouds are white, but I know they will become an angry gray full of destructive potential. I know it is coming because I am not physically in a meadow rather I am listening to Ludwig Von Beethoven’s sixth symphony the “Pastoral” lost in waves of emotion.

I am listening to it as I try to make sense of life and get past hurdles I just wasn’t meeting on my own. I am surrendering to the music to calm the pain of obstacles I didn’t go so much over or around, but collapsed against or had fall on me.

Life can sting or malinger. Music is a cure to me. It speaks to the human condition and I believe it is part of every culture ever. It can turn a funky bad mood into something more sweet. Sometimes the listening can get you smiling without you knowing it or maybe get you to picture Snoopy with happy feet.

Other times I just want to feel like someone understands like when Queen’s Freddie Mercury sings “Under Pressure” his voice riding on the beats and mixing with the chorus bringing to life the hectic strain. I am always looking for the beauty in the lyrics. I crave hope against all odds. I need the raging joy or the longing for something more beyond the present. Sometimes I need the voices of others to help me find the faith it will be.

I often turn to the Shaded One more commonly known as Roy Orbison showing a depth of being that has awed me since I first heard him, while I lead my “Wind Surfer” life without ever getting on a board. He speaks to the yearning too prevalent where you want things out of reach. The song captures the feeling of being the romantic underdog when you just can’t turn the would be special someone’s head no matter how you try. I should have listened to the song as more of a cautionary tale as opposed to something to emulate.

Albert Einstein touched on this with his brilliance. “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”I think Marvin Gaye spoke to this with his “What’s Going On” or Arethra Franklin just demanding we “Think.”

Thought is what is truly perplexing me and has me relishing Beethoven’s storm.

I listen as I attempt to discern what needs to be let go and when it is code for letting things slide. Giving myself permission to know some things simply must be felt if a person is to be who they are. The longing of Durante “Dante” Aligheiri’s for Bice di Folco Portinari fueling the Divine Comedy.

It’s the human condition and I hope for joy and to endure what I must to find it. I do not expect my musical taste to be widely shared. I do hope you find the song, which lifts you up and helps you get where you need to be.

I recall the moment I first performed my poem in front of an audience, one year ago in acting class.

I was nervous, my hands were shaking and I was stumbling over my words.

People were watching me intently as I began.

Then I paused a bit, forgetting the next line. Then it hit me; I’m overcoming my shyness.

“Shyness is inherently uncomfortable; introversion is not. The traits do overlap, though psychologists debate to what degree,” said Susan Cain, the author of “Quiet: The Power of Introverts.”

Shyness is a trait that affects not only you, but the people around you. I know this because I am shy. It’s something that interferes with my work life and my college life. But then again, it’s something that defines me.

It’s why I am who I am today.

The terms shyness and introvert confuse people because they are similar terms. But they have a significant difference.

According to apa.org, shyness “is the tendency to feel awkward, worried or tense during social encounters, especially with unfamiliar people.”

According to psychologytoday.com, introversion is when people are “drained by social encounters and energized by solitary, often creative pursuits.” Each trait deals with social encounters.

As a shy individual, you barely speak to people and you get nervous and anxious around them.

This happens to me. Introverted individuals are more prone to let their friends do the talking.

They just say something when it is needed like in a group project.

I graduated high school thinking I had conquered my shyness, but that was not the case.

When I started at LMC, it was just like when I started high school: I was timid, scared and skeptical about what my future was going to be and the kinds of things that I was going to do.

I’m afraid of crowds and of meeting new people, and I don’t like to draw attention to myself.

But when I looked at the college catalog, I forced myself to join something to breakout of my shell.

All my life I have dealt with people saying I was too quiet, and that I was odd.

I used to think there was something wrong with me.

But truth is, there’s nothing wrong with being shy, in fact, it’s a part of human life.

According to a blog on nytimes.com, shyness “is also part of the great and glorious range of the human normal.” This means, that it is normal to be shy. Eventually, shyness subsides but that doesn’t mean that it’s gone completely.

This semester, after a year off, I decided to return to acting. I considered it a big step because it’s been two semesters since I’ve been here and I wanted to jump back into acting because it helped me break out of my shyness.

But the truth is I can’t. It’s a part of who I am. It’s what makes me, me.

My shyness, however, often affects things or makes things complicated.

For example, I never raise my hand when the professors ask for our opinions on things.Normally, I usually have something to say but I choose to address it with my classmates outside of class.

Since starting college, I have become less shy, and I am happy of the progress.

Shyness is human life. It’s a part of humanity.

It’s okay to be shy.

Cartoon by Janet Azehko

EDITORIAL

Smoking should fade away

A

walk around the Los Medanos College campus will tend to reveal an on-going problem between tobacco smokers, ex-smokers and non-smokers. The stance is clear that LMC is a non-smoking campus except for a few designated areas in parking lots.

It is not a new battle nor is it confined to the United States. In 1923 Doctor Sigmund Freud who advanced the conversation of psychology and psychiatry experienced a painful growth in his mouth from smoking cigars to the tune of about twenty a day. He puffed away to the point his entire jaw had to be removed bit by bit. Beyond this he experienced heart conditions, while smoking and although he coined the phrase oral fixation he did not get over his. Although he was aware and pioneered the notion of defense mechanisms, which perpetuate self-defeating behaviors he did not ever kick the habit. A full twenty six years before the 1964 U.S. Surgeon General Luther Terry first issued a warning about smoking there was knowledge of its painful complications.

In 1963 Brown and Williamson Addison Yeaman acknowledged in a memo nicotine was addictive therefore they were in the business of selling nicotine. Yeaman’s remarks were kept for internal company use only beyond 1994 when seven tobacco executives testified during the Waxman Congressional hearings that tobacco was not addictive. It is not until 1998 they reverse their stance before Congress after one law suit after the other including one involving second-hand smoke.

Now California has passed a law banning smoking in a car when children are present.

Walking into or out of the college can expose non-smokers to the noxious fume and scent completely destroying at times any notion of fresh air. On the ground there is frequent littering of cigarette butt, which are not only unsightly litter but pose environmental risk as well. The remaining toxins in the tar according to an experiment conducted in 1953 by Doctor Ernst L. Wynders found placing cigarette tar on the back of mice caused tumors. Although butts are smaller than whole cigarettes are larger and people are not mice making poisonous toxins bite size do not destroy their threat.

For smokers the need or extreme desire to smoke between classes is at odds with state regulations. It is easy to imagine there are withdrawal pains and frustration of having to weigh between coming back from a break on time or getting to the parking lot to take a smoke break.

For non-smokers there is a reintroduction to the smell when their classmates return from their latest bout of puffing that is horribly distracting for some students.

In addition to second-hand smoke there is evidence of something called third- hand smoke, which are the particulates and dust of ciagrettes that build up over time.

The believed in need to smoke accumulates and grows over time as well. From the physical effects of nicotine to the impaired ability to handle stress. All experts seem to agree that quiting smoking now will have multiple health benefits for an individual no matter how long they smoked. Smokers and non-smokers alike should resent companies that not only willfully lied about the effect of nicotine and harm they did, but also increased their dosage. Today the costs of an unjust industry are being born by smokers in the form of increased fees and takes on every cartoon.

Smoking should simply be abadoned by everyone. Until that happens smokers and non-smokers should do their best to co-exist. Second hand smoke is a grave health risk and although smokers are a part of the LMC community they should be considerate enough to obey the posted regulations.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

LMCAS president is misquoted DEAR EDITOR: I would first like to start off by saying how happy I am that the journalism students take an interest in LMCAS activities. You are the catalyst for our success because without proper media, our student population doesn’t always know that we are advocating for them.

That being said, I am very disappointed with your article regarding our treasurer’s resignation, “LMCAS Treasurer Resigns” Nov 21. I was misquoted when you reported that the reason that Rosanna Clark resigned was because “she had her own issues.” I simply stated, “You should ask her why she left.”

Being that it was a question directed for her and not for me, I am dismayed by the way LMCAS now appears.

Upon the many visits to our Senate meet-

Voices

ings, I’ve observed that reporters leave in the middle of our meetings and later ask “what happened?” during the meeting. In order to get a full understanding and better picture about what the Senate does, I invite the journalists to attend the entire meeting. You are all welcome to join our planning meetings for our activities to experience and learn what motivates our senators behind the various projects.

LMCAS has worked extremely hard to serve the students this semester; and we realize that it is your duty to report news. In the upcoming semester, the Senate will work closely with the accreditation team and serve as the student’s voice in the process. We hope that you can join us for all of our upcoming activities and we look forward to working with you.

— Brianna Klipp, LMCAS president

LOS MEDANOS COLLEGE

Experience

As the semester winds down, which class are you glad is over and why?

COMPILED BY KYLE AISHLING DOHERTY

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Member California Newspaper Publishers Association

“I would say microeconomics because it’s a lot of math but i’m just really happy that I got a lot of help.”

“My math class because it was overwhelming and a lot of homework and on top of other classes wasn’t a good thing.”

— Ashley Goins

— Gio Rajo

“All of my classes but, mainly my EMT class. That was my hardest.”

— Yadira Colao

“I’m glad that my RA 30 classes are going to be over this semester.”

— Jeromy Montanio

“Glad that biology class is going to be over and I don’t have to take it anymore.”

— Deborah Zlatarev

“Being a parttime professor, I only teach one class so I’m glad this class will be over.”

— Jim Olwell

“Were it left for me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.”

— Thomas Jefferson

Editor-in-Chief .................... BRENDAN CROSS Perspectives Editors......... VANESSA FLORES and JAZMINE GORDON Campus Editors .................. JOSEPH DELANO and ALEXANDRA TAGLIAMONTE Features Editors .......................RATTANA KIM and STEPHANIE PATTISON Sports Editors .......................LUKE JOHNSON and DAKOTAH ZABROSKI News Editor ....................... HILLARY HETRICK Photo Editor ....................... IRVIN TRIGUEROS Web Editor ................................. JESUS CHICO The LMC Experience is published Fridays by students in the Journalism Program. The newspaper serves both as a laboratory for journalism classes and as a First Amendment forum for campus communication. Opinions expressed in the Experience are solely those of the students and do not represent the views of the college.

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Campus

FRIDAY,

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2013

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“Computers do the calculating to allow people to transform the world.”

— Conrad Wolfram

Lipscomb programs tech success Mentor excels at digitizing LMC students

By MANLEY EVANGELISTA Experience Correspondent

It was a Friday night in 1985. LMC Computer Professor James Lipscomb remembers it clearly. He was 15 years old when he got his very first computer. He had just returned home from Best Buy in Pinole with his parents and a brand-new $1,300 Apple II computer.

“I got the older Apple II, rather than the Macintosh that they just released because I couldn’t afford it at a price tag of $2,495.”

Lipscomb opened the package carefully, gently cutting the tape with a pocketknife. He remembers the sound of Styrofoam squeaking as he removed the beige-colored computer and its accessories from the box.

He took each item out of its packaging, first the power cord, documentation and supplemental floppy disks, then the disk drive, and finally the monitor.

He inser ted the floppy disk and turned it on for the first time.

The machine started humming softly, and then the floppy drive began grinding loudly as it loaded the program from the disk.

Finally, the program itself instructed him James Lipscomb how to get started.

His interest in computers grew as he tinkered with used machines bought from flea markets — from Ataris and Apple IIs to IBM compatibles. He was intent on experimenting with a variety of platforms to determine what his next computer might be.

He overclocked a computer’s processor to make it run faster than it was designed for, specifically an Intel 486 DX2 from 66Mhz to a 120Mhz in 1994. He upgraded computer components, taking a PC with Intel 486DX2 to a Pentium Over Drive in 1995. He even made newer software work on older computers and got Windows 98, which is designed for Windows 3.0 and 3.1, to run on a 386.

He still tinkers today, mainly with PCs running Microsoft Windows and the Linux Operating System. Although he started using an Apple II, he worked his way up to PCs, when they became mainstream in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s.

“I switched to PCs rather than Macs because they are more customizable,” he said “you can choose which processor or the brain that goes in your computer. You can choose how much memory or how much room you have to work with, just like a desk. You can even choose the case or how your computer looks on the outside. Just like the body of your car.”

Photos by Irvin Trigueros

Computer Sciences Professor James Lipscomb deftly instructs gathered students in the art of technological practices.

He thinks that PCs and Macs each have their pros and cons.

“I like them both. If I have to pick one, then it would be a PC. While Macs are simple to use, you can’t customize it as much as you can do on a PC. If you buy a Mac, it’s already pre-built — you can’t choose what to put on it. You’re pretty much stuck with what the machine came with, it’s either use it or lose it,” he said. “With PCs you can build it from scratch.”

Although he had an Apple at home, he first used a PC at school.

“It was running Windows 3.0 on top of DOS which got my attention because you can control how the software works. Also to this day, I pretty much work on PCs as both an IT and as a professor.”

In addition to being a professor, he also works as an IT at Mount Diablo Elementary School in Clayton.

“I mainly manage the telephone server on campus. If there’s a problem with the telephone system on campus, such as it won’t let a call through, then I’m the one who fixes it.”

He also manages the computers there.

“I make sure the software on each of the computers are up to date. If a computer refuses to operate, I actually come in the classroom,” he said.

If he can’t fix it on site, he takes it to his office there for diagnostics. Then he tinkers with it until it’s fixed, usually, it takes about two days.

Lipscomb got his experience by repairing

“I don’t care how many jobs and responsibilities I have, as long I have a good home to go to see my happy family, then that’s all I care about.”

— James Lipscomb

computers during college. Now he fixes computers for relatives and even his friends. He started by hanging up fliers with his address and phone number. Afterward, people started calling him and showing up at his place. Even after he got his Computer Science associates degree, he’s still learning – especially when new models come out.

He explains that everyone who wants to work in the computer field has to get an A+ Certification to let employers know that they actually know how computers work, and what to do when there is a problem. Lipscomb got his certificate at Diablo Valley College right after he graduated college in 1994 at age 23.

“The most important thing about being an IT is to keep the computer running in tip top shape,” he said, “just like a doctor, you have to be ready if somebody has a problem. It’s 24/7, not just a part of the day.”

Lipscomb always loved his hobby tinkering with computers and decided he wanted to teach it. He said a friend who works in Information

Technology at DVC, told him that they needed a professor for PC repair.

“He helped me get the job by recommending me,” he said adding that he taught there from 2005 to 2012, and then he came to LMC. He currently teaches one class a semester, usually PC Repair (Software) in the fall, PC Repair (Hardware) in the spring and A+ Prep Course in summer.

“As a teacher he is really helpful especially when the students ask him a question,” said fellow staff member James Spagnol. “He is also flexible with homework. If a student misses an assignment, he gives them opportunity to make them up, which is a plus.”

When he is not working as a professor or an IT, Lipscomb is busy with this third job – parent of a 15-year-old son and an 8-year-old daughter.

But he has a partner in his wife, Linda. He and his family live in Richmond, where he grew up.

Despite the fact that “juggling between these three jobs can be stressful,” he loves what he does – especially being a dad.

“Being a parent makes me feel like a super dad because besides working two jobs to be able to provide food and shelter, I am able to watch my children grow,” he said. “I don’t care how many jobs and responsibilities I have, as long I have a good home to go to see my happy family, then that’s all I care about.”

But the simple things matter, too.

“Sometimes we just stay home and have a ‘90s movie marathon,” he said.

See JAMES, page 10

MESA speaker gifts knowledge

By MALIK LAWSON

mlawson@lmcexperience.com

Photo by Aishling Doherty

Professor Jeff Cohen and Lauren Marner go over mathematical strategies in the Mathematics Lab.

Math lab short on help, still open close the gap.

But help is on the way. LMC is in For the past few months, the math the middle of a hiring process to fill the lab tutors have been working harder vacant math lab coordinator position.

“The math faculty and student tutors than usual to help students, due to a shortage in staff at one of the most all wish we had more tutors, especially statistics tutors, but we do important positions the our best to help students,” math department has. “The math said Math Depar tment The math lab lost two Chair Julie Von Bergen. full-time coordinators in faculty and She said the department August and has been student tutors wants the best for the LMC functioning since then students and is working to with two faculty mem- all wish we make sure they receive bers putting in extra had more what they need to help time with LMC students tutors.” to cover those full-time — Julie Von Bergen further their education.

“We have two people hours that were lost.

One coordinator resigned to take a working above and beyond their duties job at another school and the other is who work 30 hours. We will have 60 on extended maternity leave. In their hours total of lab coordinator, and absence, newly appointed interim hopefully we will have the 20-hour math coordinators Clint Ryan and per week person in the spring for Seth Lavender are working hard to the total 80 hours,” said Von Bergen.

By CHARLES ALEXANDER calexander@lmcexperience.com

Lavender said that even in the absence of full-time coordinators, the math lab is still helpful to the students who are attending.

“We are trying to serve the students as much as possible, and the kind of help they receive depends on the days they come because it can be fast or slow some days,” said Lavender,.

He also said that while the student tutors who also work in the lab are new to tutoring, they are still helpful to those struggling with math.

The student tutors “are still learning but they’ve come a long way,” he added.

Despite the staffing problems some students say they are still getting the help they need to understand the material given to them in the classroom.

“The tutor was very helpful in explaining problems in different ways for me to understand,” said student Queena Ratliff.

MESA Alumni Billilee Saengchalern dropped by Room SC-227 on Monday Dec. 2 with the purpose to inspire and inform current MESA students on the opportunities that could be achieved if they put MESA resources to good use.

Saengchalern started off giving a little bit of her background. She was born in Davao City, Philippines.

When she turned 10-years-old, she moved out to southern California.

Next, she moved to Japan for 4 years then finally settled in Concord, California. The reason for her constant change of coast was that her father was in the military.

She Graduated from Mt. Diablo High School. She had originally wanted to become an artist but found out that The Art Institutes price tag was a little out of her range, so she knocked out her general education at Solano Community College in Fairfield, California.

That’s when she discovered that art might not be for her. Then she started to become a little intrigued

by Architecture and over time her interest shifted over to Civil

Photo by Dakotah Zabroski

Billilee Saengchalern speaks about her job as an engineer.

Engineering.

Later on, she transferred to UC Davis and received her Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering. Which is now her current occupation.

She was inspired to pursue Civil Engineering when her and her fellow students where on a MESA field trip and her bus passed by See MESA, page 10

Warm-up properly prior to workout Editor’s note: ‘Word to the Wise’ is an ongoing regular tip of the week in which safety statements are provided by experts in their respective fields.

WORD TO THE WISE

“When warming up for any type of activity before you exercise make sure you do a proper pre warm-up before your stretching routine. Then at the end of your warm-up go ahead and stretch as a part of your cool down. This is the best way to prevent ligament strains and muscle sprains” — Annie Martin, Athletic Trainer

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“The day you think there is no improvements to be made is a sad one for any player.”

— Lionel Messi

Big man making big catches

Photo by Luke Johnson

Los Medanos College wide receiver Jermaine Sims, aka “Optimus Prime,” poses at Linda Johnson Photography’s studio in downtown Antioch.

Mustang wide receiver works hard on and off the field

By LUKE JOHNSON

ljohnson@lmcexperience.com

Jermaine Sims is no ordinary wide receiver.

Standing a staggering at six feet, four inches and hitting 220 pounds on the scale, he has one of the most monstrous physiques at his position.

Sims weighs more than half of Los Medanos’s tight ends and linebackers, and comes within five pounds of three of the team’s lineman. He is also the second tallest player on the team.

His wingspan is almost 100 inches, and he can touch the top of his knees without bending over.

His 4.5 second 40-yard dash, 45-inch vertical leap, 375-pound bench press and 565-pound squad press makes him arguably the most physically dominating receiver in junior college and has earned him the nickname “Optimus Prime.”

Born in Oakland in 1992, Sims moved to Jackson, Miss. with his family as a baby.

Growing up in the south, he says there was little construction in his town, and most of the landscape was nature.

Sims says the biggest difference between the south and the west coast is the respect for woman. Men have chivalrous behavior in the southern community, and are always

catering and protecting women. Around the Bay Area, women are sometimes called the “b-word.” If that were to happen in the city of Jackson, Sims says someone would most likely get beat up by an older brother or cousin, but around here he says women “just take it on the chin.”

Sims began playing Pop Warner Football in sixth grade, and started at quarterback, instead of receiver, all the way up to his freshman year at Pittsburg High School, and played defensive back as a sophomore. He did not actually start playing receiver until he was a junior while on the varsity squad.

“There was a lot more pressure playing quarterback,” Sims said. “People are out there trying to take your head.”

The team put him there because they wanted to utilize his blocking skills. Something he is an expert at now. Cornerbacks were launched off the ground when Sims came to block all season long.

Sims received multiple scholarship offers out of high school, but he turned them all down because he needed to support his family financially.

Twenty-two years ago

He joined Los Medanos Colleges’ football team and earned All-Conference honors as a freshman. Everything was looking good for Sims, until he suddenly had to put his football career on hold. He accepted a maintenance and stocking position at the Pittsburg Walmart that had him working graveyard shift hours.

Sims spent the next two years away from football. During that hiatus LMC Head Coach Chris Shipe had kept in contact with Sims, encouraging to come back.

“I’ve been on Jermaine for the past 4 years,” Shipe said. “We recr uited Jermaine out of Pittsburg High School and he played for us in 2010 where he was All-Conference as a freshman. He had some things happen over the next two years but I was always in contact with him because I knew what type of young man he was.”

He showed up to training camp in 2013 out of shape and tipping the scale at 240 pounds. He also needed to work on getting the fundamentals of the game back up to par.

During camp Sims moved to San Jose, closer to his new graveyard maintenance job at Safeway. He still continued to play for LMC because he wanted to prove his loyalty to his team.

About a month before the season opener, Sims had a leg injury and missed the first two games of the season. He had to watch his team get blown out, 41-7, by Hartnell College in the first game of the season from the sideline.

While observing that game, Sims admits it gave him doubts about his team.

Sims returned for week three’s game at College of Sequoias, but he was not fully healthy. As a full-time student with a full-time job, and also a collegiate athlete, he had little time to rehab. In fact, he barely has any time to sleep. Sims says he averages six hours of sleep a week, and that is on a good week.

On Fridays he would leave practice in the evening and go to his job, then he would work there until 8 a.m., from there he would head to LMC for that week’s game, and after the game he would shower and head back to his job.

Sims turned up his level of play the second half of the season, during conference play, and made a lot of big, circus like catches by leaping

See BIG, page 6

Doubling in size Women’s basketball full squad

By DAKOTAH ZABROSKI

dzabroski@lmcexperience.com

Photo by Irvin Trigueros

De La Salle High plays California High this Saturday for the North Coast Section Division I Championship. De La Salle has won 21 consecutive NCS Titles. The last team to beat them was Pittsburg High School in 1991. The quarterback of that team was current Los Medanos College Head Coach Chris Shipe.

BASKETBALL HOME SCHEDULE Men’s

Women’s Opponent

Date

Time

Opponent

Date

Time

Mendocino

1/2

5:30 p.m.

Mendocino

1/2

7 p.m.

Merritt

1/9

5:30 p.m.

Merritt

1/9

7 p.m.

Contra Costa

1/14

5:30 p.m

Conta Costa

1/14

7 p.m

Yuba

1/16

5:30 p.m.

Yuba

1/16

7 p.m.

Napa Valley

1/22

5:30 p.m.

Napa Valley

1/22

7 p.m.

Marin

1/31

5:30 p.m.

Marin

1/31

7 p.m.

Solano

2/7

5:30 p.m.

Solano

2/7

7 p.m.

Laney

2/19

5:30 p.m.

Alameda

2/19

7 p.m.

Although LMC will officially be on winter break the basketball teams will be working toward winning a Bay Valley Conference championship.

The Los Medanos College Mustangs women basketball team has star ted of f the season hot and look to keep up the pace.

The team is led by Head Coach Richard Villegas, who recruited more players because last year the team often played games with only seven active players. According to Villegas, the team has five returning members of the team, but the team needed more guards, so that was Villegas was looking for when he recruited.

The Mustangs were able to hit the jackpot with Guard Elsa Ross who is a top recruit from Freedom. Three games into the season, she is already averaging 22 points per game.

“I’m hoping to bring offense and a little defense,” said Ross.

Her coach is impressed with her play and looks forward to her on the court.

“She’s a complete player, she can score, she can pass on the offensive end,” said Villegas.

Photo by Cathie Lawrence

LMC’s women’s basketball during daily practice.

The team is looking at potentially having to medically red-shirt their star-returning player, Myeshia Ward, who has yet to play a game this year.

The center who averaged 15.3 PPG last year had her knee scoped and is waiting for the doctor to clear her to play.

However, Lakeshia Ward (twin of Myshia) has stepped in nicely to contribute to the team. She currently is the second leading scorer on the team with 19 PPG.

“She stepped in and she’s picking up where her sister usually would and she’s a sophomore providing leadership, scoring to the low post and giving us defense and solid rebounding,” said Villegas.

Last year the team was filled with freshmen and Villegas said that one of the biggest dif ferences between this year and last year is having sophomores on the team.

A key sophomore on the See SIZE, page 9

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FRIDAY,

DEC.

6,

2013

5

“Everything negative — pressure, challenges — is an opportunity for me to rise.”

— Kobe Bryant

Luke Johnson ATHLETIC ALMANAC

Mustangs conquer prediction One thing I learned from analyzing Los Medanos College’s football team this year is to never doubt head coach Chris Shipe’s incredible offensive ingenuity. When the Mustangs started off, 1-2, this season, it looked as if they were on the road to an unsuccessful season, but after making some adjustments, the team went on a 6-1 run and earned a Co-Bay Valley Conference Championship. Shipe also won the Conference Coach of the Year Award.

All hope had seemed lost, for the Mustangs, ensuing the departure of two-time All-Conference quarterback and two-time Team MVP Michael Behr, and after a 41-7 beating to Hartnell College in the season opener, Photo by Luke Johnson it appeared as though Shipe was in Standout goalie Kara Leffle was a leader for LMC and had a .729 save percentage which was third in the Bay Valley conference. the same predicament he was in two years ago. In that season (2011), LMC finish with a winless (0-10) record.

The passing game was atrocious against Hartnell. LMC used three different quarterbacks; Freshmen Adam Nesheim, Jorden Webster and Richard Cellini combined for 12 completions on 37 attempts for 77 yards and four interceptions without a touchdown. A Bay Valley Conference Championship seemed

By LUKE JOHNSON to play really bad.” like an impossibility at that point. ljohnson@lmcexperience.com Leffle walked out of her MVP season In week two, Nesheim won the Goalkeeper Kara Leffle has just played with a torn groin, Achilles tendinitis and starting job for his playmaking ability her final season at Los Medanos College, a dislocated collarbone. She was not sure with his feet and bulldog mentality. leaving behind a legacy as arguably the what she was going to play at all this season.

Nesheim, an Alhambra High 2011 best player at her position to come out of But she, alongside one of her closest friends graduate, spent most of his high and star-midfielder for LMC Lauren Ayers, the school. school years on the gridiron with Leffle was able accomplish the unlikely decided to battle through their injuries and Ygnacio Valley High, a school that feat of earning the Bay Valley Conference fight for their team. Together, they helped uses run first, second and last offense.

Most Valuable Player Award while on a end LMC’s record-breaking winless streak.

With Nesheim at quarterback, “It’s always exciting when one of your winless team in 2012. Her value showed LMC’s rushing attack flourished in best friends joins the team,” Leffle said. “We this year when she sat out in the beginning the spread option. Lead by Division of the season, due to a partially torn groin, connect really well. We are like magnets. I I-bound running back Shawn Vasquez, while the team was being outscored 62-3 in can punt and she goes right to it... Everyone the Stang Gang orchestrated the a 0-9-1 start. After her returned, the team looks at Lauren like she was our little good second best ground game in the state only allowed nine goals in the final eight luck charm. with 310.4 yards per game.

The tandem played together at Deer Valgames, along with capturing the program’s According to multiple players on first win in nearly two years and snapping ley High School for three years on varsity. the team, Vasquez “carried the team a record-breaking 27-game winless streak. During that time, Leffle suffered her most on his back.” He was the single most “She is best we’ve had [at LMC] by far,” serious injury. important player on LMC. It wasn’t In her senior year in the midst of a hotly LMC Head Coach Mark Bryant said, who just his 153.1 rushing yards per has been in charge of the soccer program contested game against Freedom High game that caused his teammates to for over a decade. “She is probably the School, Leffle dove for a save and was accisay this, but all the time, hard work best keeper I’ve ever seen in this league.” dentally kicked in the head by a teammate, and devotion he put into this season Leffle had multiple injuries carrying over knocking her unconscious. She was airlifted motivated them to do the same. from her MVP season. Balls were constantly to John Muir Hospital in Walnut Creek, and Vasquez is naturally a quiet guy, but being pelted at her throughout the year, put into a coma for a little over 24 hours. he is an excellent leader by example.

“I didn’t know where I was,” she said. leaving Leffle beaten and battered.

When conference competition came Doctors told Leffle that she was at se“I wasn’t sure it I wanted to [play] or not, around, the passing game started to Photo by Cathie Lawrence [because] I wasn’t sure if I was capable of rious risk if she continues to play soccer, click. All-Conference wide receivers Jermaine Sims and Deion Pruitt got Leffle was two-time Bay Valley All-Conference goalie it,” she said. “[After] watching everybody and recommended that she never played play in the preseason games, I just wanted again. This caused the University of Illinois See SHIPE, page 9 and won Conference Most Valuable Player in 2012.

Taking Kara business

Los Medanos’s goal keeper is ‘best by far’

B-ball’s new look

All bent out of shape

LMC weight room begs for upgrade

By DAKOTAH ZABROSKI

dzabroski@lmcexperience.com

Photo by Cathie Lawrence

Matt Sisnieros shows off the new Mustang uniforms for the 2013-2014 season. The team is currently off to a hot 5-0 start.

They are one of four teams in California to be undefeated.

The weight room at Los Medanos College is an old and outdated facility that has been around for almost 40 years.

LMC was completed in 1974 and has been using the same weight room since then, according to former athletic director Shirley Baskin.

Currently, due to the size of the LMC football team, they use the Pittsburg High School weight room.

LMC has used the weight room for a couple of years according to Pittsburg High School Athletic Director Mike Adras. The Mustangs using Pittsburg’s weight room is not seen as an inconvenience because the two teams have figured out a way to not use the facilities at the same time according to Adras.

In fact it can even be beneficial for the students of Pittsburg High.

“I believe our students gain by seeing older students working hard on their conditioning. As long as the LMC students are positive role models then I find this to be a good situation for our youngsters to learn,” said Adras.

The two teams do interact because some of the Mustang players previously played for Pittsburg High.

Some of the players are aware of the age and condition of the weight room but do not mind it and embrace their facility.

Photo by Dakotah Zabroski

The dumbbell area in the LMC weight room shows its age.

“It’s definitely compact, but it is a new PE Complex that will replace what you put into it. Everything you the functionality of the existing PE put in, you’ll definely see the results. locker rooms and portable buildings It’s not as bad as everyone says it is,” that serve as the weight, circuit, and said specialist Javi Zaragosa. dance rooms,” said Horan.

LMC plans to improve their PE There will be upcoming meetings facilities, which would be beneficial to further discuss the improvement to the outdated weight of the facilities acroom. cording to current “If you lived in “I think it would athletic director be a productive thing an old house, Richard Villegas. and a good thing for wouldn’t you The money used the school and the to renovate the area football program,” want to live in a will not be taken said Zaragosa adding, new one?” from funds used “There was always — Richard Villegas to fuel the sports an issue with space.” programs in comThere have been plans to update pliance to Title Nine. it, LMC Vice President Kevin Horan “We do have plans to address much anticipates the project will be done needed facility upgrades in the PE no later then 2017 or 2018. area within the next few years using “We are currently in the process other funds,” said Senior Dean Gail See ROOM, page 9 of selecting an Architect to design

L O S

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Quotable

EXPERI E NCE

Campus

“

Smoking policies are so often not enforced and ignored, I feel that they are nearly pointless.

I feel as though the nonsmoking rule is not enforced. It needs to be.

THE

FRIDAY,

I know there are signs that say no smoking beyond this point, everywhere else is free.

I don’t know where the designated smoking areas are.

Secondhand smoke hurts people so I don’t think smokers should infringe their smoke on nonsmokers.

I believe that there should be limits on people’s personal freedom to smoke.

BURNING

I think smokers have rights and should fight for them.

WRITER AND EDITOR Kellie McCown RESEARCH Paul Binon, Peter Costanza, Brendan Cross, Vanessa Flores, Jazmine Gordon, Deborah Henderson, Dishan Jones, Sean Tongson and Dakotah Zabroski GRAPHICS Jesus Chico and Peter Costanza PHOTOS Peter Costanza, Cathie Lawrence and Irvin Trigeuros PAGE DESIGN Jesus Chico, Peter Costanza and Kellie McCown

T

here is a saying passed down to incoming students at colleges and universities across America: College is just like high school, except with ashtrays.

Los Medanos College does not escape this stereotype, despite it being a nonsmoking campus. Many smokers who attend LMC flock to the parking lots, or to one of two designated smoking areas on campus, to fit in a cigarette before, between or after class. However, not all students abide by the smoking restrictions set in place by LMC, or within Contra Costa County.

In 2006, the county passed the Contra Costa Secondhand Smoke Protection Ordinance after scientific studies from the California Environmental Protection Agency and the Surgeon General, conducted that same year, clearly showed that secondhand smoke is a health risk.

According to the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education “scientific evidence has firmly established that there is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke [SHS], a pollutant that causes serious illnesses in adults and children. There is also indisputable evidence that implementing 100% smoke-free enivronments is the only effective way to protect the population from the harmful effects of exposure to SHS.” This ordinance limit’s smokers to designated smoking area’s and prohibits smoking close to the entrance or exits of any public building.

Contra Costa County ordinance 2006-66 specifically states that “all areas within 20 feet of the doors, operable windows, air ducts and ventilation systems of any enclosed worksite or enclosed places open to the public, expect while

passing on the way to another destination.”

LMC, in compliance with California law, adopted it’s own smoking policy in 2006 when it officially became a nonsmoking campus, and can be found in the LMC catalogue as the following: “Smoking is not permitted within college buildings, the quad, offices, cafeteria, interior hallways or in those walkways which are not open to the air (due to a lack of air circulation). This policy prohibits smoking and other uses of tobacco products in any area designated as “no smoking” by local ordinance, fire safety, or health codes.

At LMC, smoking is allowed in parking lots only.”

The Experience staff recently surveyed 258 students and staff members about their experiences with secondhand smoke on campus. Twenty-seven percent of those surveyed identified themselves to be between the ages of 18 and 25, and considered themselves as smokers or ex-smokers, 59 percent did not know the designated smoking areas on campus are located in parking lots B and C, and 77 percent of those surveyed did not know LMC is a nonsmoking campus.

“To help ensure that all individuals comply with the policy some signage is posted throughout the campus,” said Dean of Student Success David Belman.

“If individuals are found smoking in unauthorized locations, they are typically informed by college personnel or police services members that they must stop

and can only smoke in the parking lots.

For the most part, individuals appreciate being notified, stop smoking where they are, and use only authorized locations after that point.”

While LMC has created a policy to comply with state law and protect the population from secondhand smoke, there are students who remain unsatisfied with the campus’s attempt to provide a smoke-free environment.

“They should not smoke in the areas that are busy,” said LMC student Karen Hernandez.

Hernandez, who is a cancer survivor, said when she sees fellow students smoking on campus and not in the designated areas, it bothers her.

“At lease move when you see someone coming as a courtesy to their health,” said Hernandez. “Nonsmoking areas are there for a reason.”

Bradley Dexter, an ex-smoker attending LMC, also reported encountering smoking in nonsmoking areas on campus, and said he was “irritated with the smell an had to leave the area.”

Although according to Belman students who are caught smoking outside of designated areas are asked to take their cigarettes elsewhere, Dexter claimed it is not enough.

“I would like to see heavier enforcement,” he said.

Hernandez and Dexter aren’t the only people unhappy with smokers not abiding by the designated smoking areas.

Officer Michael Hotton of Los Medanos College Police Services said that complaints of smoking in nonsmoking areas are a monthly occurrence.

“We get around two to three calls a month in regards to smokers being too close to buildings. As people become more aware of their health in general, we get calls to ask smokers to move into the parking lots,” said Hotton. “The person or persons smoking usually

don’t realize that they have to be in the parking area.”

Cigarettes smoke being harmful is not a new discovery. In 1985 the Unites States Surgeon General started issues warnings that cigarettes cause lung cancer, heart disease, emphysema, and complicates pregnancy, but that is just a short list according to Radiologist Eric Saldinger, M.D. who practices at Sutter Health Medical Center in Antioch and Walnut Creek.

“It causes Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease, a condition that literally eats away at the lung, making breathing difficult,” said Saldinger, who went on to say that the cancers caused by smoking go beyond just the lung. “Cancers associated with smoking include head and neck cancers, pancreatic cancer, stomach cancer, cervical cancer, lung cancer, bladder cancer, and leukemia.”

As of July, 1,178 colleges and universities in the United States had committed their institution to being smoking free, and eliminated all indoor and outdoor smoking from their campuses, according to Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights. This upward trend is attributed to the growing awareness of the health

6,

2013

6/7

I strongly agree on nonsmoking policies due to the amount of illness it can cause.

— Author Unknown

”

TRUTH

LMC students largely uneducated about smoking policy In Spring 2013, the Experience staff researched, conducted surveys, and reached out to the community on the issue of smoking and public health as it relates to Los Medanos College.

These are our findings.

DEC.

“Your body is a temple, but how long can you live in the same house before you redecorate? ”

risks that come from tobacco use.

Salinder criticized the government’s lack of regulation on smoking.

“Smoking is responsible for one in five deaths in the U.S. In my opinion, it’s a complete travesty that the government regulates and limits food and environmental carcinogens and air an water pollution, while still allowing the sale of cigarettes.”

Besides annoyance and health concerns, smoking at LMC also affects the more aesthetic parts of campus. The tar found in cigarettes, which damages the lungs, also damages the school. When a cigarette is put out on the ground and stepped on, the tar still in the cigarette is pushed into the concrete. The tar in the concrete then as to be removed by the LMC custodial staff, who report this happens both inside and outside the designated smoking areas.

“We had to pressure wash the concrete to get it clean,” explained LMC Custodial Manager Barry Edwards, “The cigarettes leave black tar spots on the ground. There are a lot of cigarettes everywhere that have to be picked up,” said Edwards.

The knowledge that cigarette smoke is harmful for health and environmental reasons may be widespread, across the country and across LMC. Regardless, 19 percent of those surveyed report they have been victim of unwanted smoke, and 20 percent indicate they have seen smokers lighting up outside of designated smoking areas. For those who refuse to abide by smoking policies set in place

by LMC, there are consequences.

“If the person that is smoking does not comply with our request, it become a code of conduct issue with the college, and we refer the person to the dean of students for the college to deal with,” explained Hotton. “This is not a criminal issue, we prefer that the college take care of these issues administratively.”

BY THE NUMBERS The Experience researched the smoking policies of Contra Costa County and Los Medanos College, and as part of that research surveyed 289 students, staff, and faculty on their smoking habits. Here is a selection of the data by the numbers.

’06 7 77 60 20 19 37

The year Contra Costa County passed the Contra Costa Secondhand Smoke Protection Ordinance.

The number of years Los Medanos College has been a nonsmoking campus.

Percent of survey respondents who claimed they did not know LMC is a nonsmoking campus.

Percent of survey respondents who don’t know the designated smoking areas are in parking lots B and C. Percent of survey respondents who reported seeing smokers light up outside designated smoking areas.

Percent of survey respondents who claimed they have been victims of unwanted smoke at LMC. Percent of survey respondents who identified themselves as smokers and are between 18 and 25.

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Features

FRIDAY,

DEC.

6,

Album makes splash

2013

8

“Having the critics praise you is like having the hangman saying you’ve got a pretty neck.”

— Eli Wallach

MARQUEE

Music Dept. performs

Students from the Los Medanos College Music and Recording Arts departments will perform throughout the semester.

All events and concerts are scheduled in the Recital Hall, located in Room 720 of the Music/Recording Arts Building.

Q LMC Guitar Concert: Monday, Dec. 9 from 7 to 9 p.m. Free admission.

Q LMC Winter Choral Concert: Tuesday, Dec. 10, 7:30 to 9 p.m. General admission $5, students/seniors $4.

Q LMC Piano Honors Recital: Monday, Dec. 16, 7:30 to 9 p.m. Free admission.

‘Dragon’ rocks out

By STEPHANIE PATTISON spattison@lmcexperience.com

Hiimwaterdragon’s new self-titled album was released Nov. 25. This is Water Dragon’s first solo album release since he started his new band, Hiimyourmom.

I was very excited because Water Dragon has been one of my favorite musicians for years. I purchased his new album as soon as it was released on iTunes.

This album is significantly shorter than most albums, but I feel that it is perfect. The whole album goes together; there are no Photo courtesy of Jamey Blaze super upbeat songs or slow ballads. Musician Water Dragon released the new self-titled album, Hiimwaterdragon Nov. 25. He They all have the same tempo plays all the instruments on this urban, pop-rock album. and same rhythm. To me, this makes all of the songs caught in your head instead of just one song, thus All the songs on this album have amazing and all over the place. However, the chorus making you put the album on repeat. melodies and drum beats that keep you moving. of his songs are relatable, especially to people If you aren’t biased in what genre of music It’s the kind of music you can have playing who have ever been desperately in love with you prefer, this music could appeal to your through your headphones and you’re able to someone or at least have lusted after someone. ears. It’s a mix between rock and pop with walk to the beat directly.

I believe this album is perfect for college strings and an assortment of horns.

The lyrics on this album are very erratic students and has a little humor on that lifestyle.

REVIEW

Film triumphs at screening

By ALICIA ALM

aalm@lmcexperience.com

Girl Rising is a film directed by Academy Award nominee Richard E. Robbins and Anne Hathaway as a guest narrator. The film has spread a global movement featuring the powerful stories of nine girls living in nine different countries.

REVIEW

Photo courtesy of the Human Development Foundation

The movie “Girl Rising” tells the stories of nine girls from nine different countries, which shows all the heartships they have to go through.

Each girl’s story shows how being female has made it difficult to overcome certain barriers in society. The message of Girl Rising is that the power of education can change those girls’ lives and world.

The film was moving and eye-opening. Many facts that aren’t common knowledge were presented to educate

Movies Coming Soon Q “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug”— Dec.13 Rated PG-13, Genre: Action, Adventure, Adaptation, Sequel, Sci-Fi, Fantasy Q “Tyler Perry’s A Madea Christmas”— Dec. 13 Rated PG-13, Genre: Comedy, Drama Q “Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues”— Dec.20 Rated NR, Genre: Comedy, Sequel Q “American Hustle”— Dec. 20 Rated R, Genre: Crime, Drama Q “Saving Mr. Banks”— Dec. 20 Rated PG-13, Genre: Biography, Comedy, Drama, History In Theaters Q “Thor: The Dark World” Rated PG-13, Genre: Action, Adventure, Sequel Q “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” Rated PG-13, Genre: Sequel, Action, Adventure Q “Frozen” Rated PG, Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family Q “The Best Man Holiday” Rated R, Genre: Comedy, Drama Q “Homefront” Rated R, Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller Q “Delivery Man” Rated PG-13, Genre: Comedy, Drama Q “The Book Thief” Rated PG-13, Genre: Drama, War Q “Philomena” Rated PG-13, Genre: Drama — compiled by Hillary Hetrick from press releases

See MOVIE, page 10

Malala inspires many in memoir The tale of an outspoken young woman

By NADIRA ERFAN

nerfan@lmcexperience.com

‘I Am Malala’, a brave memoir of a 15-year-old Muslim girl named Malala Yousafzai, is co-written with journalist Christina Lamb. Malala is the girl who stood up for education and got shot in the face by the Taliban.

The book begins with the haunting account of the day when a gunman stopped the Khushal School bus and asked, “who is Malala?” Everyone

REVIEW

knew who she was, but no one answered.

Malala was ten years old when the dark cloud of Taliban reigned over her homeland, the beautiful Swat Valley.

Taliban is not only a threat to the historical monuments, but to the young generation of girls who are enthusiastic about pursuing their school in hopes of a better future.

On one hand, Malala is an ordinary girl who is academically competitive at school, sociable with her friends and a loving daughter to her parents.

On the other hand, her respect and admiration for her father and his work inspires her to see the importance of education in every child’s life. By age 11, Malala is an established

International advocate for girl’s education in Pakistan.

Malala credits her attributes of determination and success to her father. After her efforts, her father blames himself for her suffering and for provoking her to be outspoken, but these are the practices that can get a girl killed in countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan.

To the Taliban, accepting Non-Muslims as part of the human family is another form of “spreading secularism.”

Malala is taught by her father to understand Islam and not to conform to the ways of the extremists because Islam is the means of their aggression.

Once again, the coward, inhumane Taliban hide behind the veil of Islam as they

REVIEW CREW

‘The Hunger Games: Catching Fire’ Movie Summary: The sequel to the first movie, “The Hunger Games,” stars Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss and Josh Hutcherson as Peeta, and was released Nov. 22. Katniss and Peeta are forced to return to the arena in a special edition of the Hunger Games where they will battle in the district of Panem. The movie runs for 2 hours and 43 minutes and is rated PG-13.

claim that they shoot Malala not because she was an advocate for girls’ education, but because she was “spreading secularism.” The world learns the violent Islamists have no limit to how low they can stoop.

In her book, Malala makes some bold statements, vital and untold, because the Pashtun world is isolated and has no outlet for a form of expression with the international audience.

“I am proud of being a Pashtun, but sometimes I think our code of conduct has a lot to answer for, particularly where the treatment of women is concerned,” said Malala.

Photo courtesy of David Pinar The book is criticized for having a two-tone quality, Malala Yousafzai is the young Pakistani girl who was which is Malala’s personal shot in the head by the Taliban while riding on the See BOOK, page 10

school bus home for advocating education for girls.

+++++

++++

Alexandra says: Nearly perfect

Jazmine says: Awesomness!

“Catching Fire” far surpasses the first film, “The Hunger Games,” with its intensity and dark twists.

The film’s plot is very loyal to Suzanne Collins 2009 bestseller, from which the film was adapted.

It’s safe to say that if you read the book, you won’t be disappointed with this film.

The movie begins with Katniss and Peeta returning to District 12 after surviving the 74th annual Hunger Games.

It doesn’t take long before action ensues, the menacing Capitol threatening our heroine, Katniss played by Jennifer Lawrence. She rebels against every hit that is thrown towards her.

The second time Katniss and Peeta found themselves fighting for their lives, I became enraptured with the film.

Jennifer Lawrence performed incredibly in this movie, and I couldn’t help but cry more than once when her face became etched with misery as her character Katniss was put through the ringer once again.

If you’re a fan of strong character development, top-notch acting and intense action sequences this movie is for you.

— Alexandra Tagliamonte

“The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” was a great movie sequel to its predecessor.

Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) return as victors from the previous 74th Hunger Games to take on the rebellion in the districts of Panem, in which they become targeted by the capitol. Elizabeth Banks returns as Effie Trinket in her ridiculous costumes.

The start of this movie is intense and attracts the audience. The action sequences are very enticing and will make you jump. While watching the movie, I thought that some scenes should have been in 3-D. Liam Hemsworth did a remarkable job as Gale Hawthorne. Despite his small role, he proved to be significant. There were a few new faces that joined the original cast, such as Jena Malone as the fiery Johanna Mason. Her character brought the carelessness to the movie.

Overall the movie was great and it left you anticipating for the third installment.

“The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” is a movie I recommend and it’s already dominating the box office. Go see it before it’s too late.

— Jazmine Gordon

L O S

M E DA N O S

C O L L E G E

E X P E R I E N C E

FRIDAY,

DEC.

6,

2013

SHIPE From page 5

healthy, and were able to provide Nesheim with valuable targets. Nesheim stepped up, and had great performances with his arm when he needed too.

In the game against Shasta College in week seven, LMC trailed by 27 points in the second quarter. Nesheim threw for five touchdowns, and LMC quickly came within seven points halfway through the third quarter. In the following week against Mendocino College, LMC trailed by double digits for the majority of the game. Nesheim threw for 335 yards, and helped construct one of the wildest comebacks I have ever seen.

Another player that had an important roll in putting points on the board for LMC was utility man Jamal Lockett. Last year he was Pittsburg High’s star running back, but had to sit behind Vasquez when he came to LMC. Shipe didn’t want all that athleticism to go to waste, so he occasionally used Lockett as a slot receiver. Lockett finished the season as the team’s co-leader in receptions and was also state’s top kick returner.

He led in average yards per return and took more back to the house (3) than anyone

in California. He had one kick return touchdown that came in a pivotal moment in last game of the season against arch-rival Contra Costa College to help provide his team with a co-conference championship.

The biggest improvement for LMC from last year to this year, was undoubtedly the defense.

Defensive Coordinator Darrin Foreman will be the first to admit that the defense was horrific last year. They went from allowing 41 points per game in 2012 to 27.5 points per game this year.

This year the defense stuffed the College of Redwoods star-quarterback Will Hissong to only 280 passing yards and two touchdowns. That amount doesn’t sound so insignificant, but Hissong was averaging over 500 yards and threw for 16 touchdowns in the three games prior to facing LMC. The game also took place in Eureka, which is nearly 300 miles north of Pittsburg.

The defense still prospered despite the disappointment of cornerback Aaron Cole.

He was a huge playmaker as a freshman last season and shined the most during clutch opportunities, which included a game-saving interception

in one game, along with a game-saving, and pumbling, tackle in another. He went from earning All-Conference honors, receiving recognition from Division I scouts, and being the captain on defense to not even starting and seeing little playing time at nickleback. Some have suggested the reason he was successful last season was because the team’s terrible defense made him stand out.

LMC has a lot to build on heading into next season. The offensive line should improve considering most of this season’s starters were freshman.

Nesheim and Pruitt now have the entire offseason to strengthen their quarterback-receiver chemistry. What should be the most impressive next season is the defensive secondary.

They have a chance at being the best contingent in all of California. With hard-hitting safeties Frank Sturgis and Jeremy Bittle, who was named All-Conference; alongside shutdown cornerbacks Shacari Johnson, who led the team in picks, and Jamon Ward, who was also named All-Conference, it appears as though opposing of fenses will be going up against a brute force.

KARA

BIG

ROOM

This caused the University of Illinois to revoke her scholarship they had offered her. But quitting was never an option for Leffle.

“I didn’t want to stop playing,” she said. “I wanted to go to a four-year, and I knew that wasn’t going to happen if I stop playing.”

Leffle earned All-Conference honors for both her years at LMC. She was also invited to the prestigious Sophomore Bowl, this Saturday, in which only the best players in Northern California get to participate in. She already has multiple four-year colleges interested in recruiting her, and has a couple of scouts attending the Sophomore Bowl to specifically see her.

Leffle’s love for the game of soccer causes her to persevere through the obstacles that come with it. She has lived through torturing seasons to devastating injuries, but it never stops her from achieving her goal.

over multiple defenders and getting his toes in bounds. He finished with 18 catches for 341 yards and six touchdowns.

His best performance came against the Bay Valley Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year and Oregon-bound cornerback Dominique Harrison. Sims had four receptions for 61 yards and a sliding touchdown catch that came on fourth down.

“I ain’t gonna lie, I give the man credit, he’s good,” Harrison said. “He’s got the physicality fa’ sho’… He’s gotta D-1 body. I expect to see him at the next level.”

Sims is now receiving attention from multiple Division I colleges such as Washington State and the University of Iowa. Sims says his decision will be solely based on the school with best professors and will provide the best education.

When asked if he has any interest in playing in the NFL one day, he said, “I’ll take a crack at it.”

Newman.

The money for this project would come from the local Bond measure passed in 2006, which allocated about 15 million for this project according to Horan.

LMC looks to improve all P.E. facilities as well as add features that LMC does not currently have available to them.

“We will be building an approximate 24,000 square foot building that will contain new locker rooms, team meeting rooms, weight & cardio facilities, trainer facilities, dance/ yoga studio, offices and classrooms. The new building is approximately double the size of the combined square footage that we currently have in place between the locker rooms and PE portables,” said Horan.

People associated with LMC athletics are looking forward to getting updated facilities.

“If you lived in an old house, wouldn’t you want to live in a new one?” said Villegas.

From page 4

From page 5

From page 4

Villegas.

Villegas has noticed the good chemistry between his team already and that is a factor for his team’s success. Other players have high hopes for the team as well.

“We’re more in shape, we’re going to be a lot better this year,” said forward Ashawnti Bloodsaw After a 6-17 overall finish last

USF, JUST CLOSER.

From page 5

SIZE team will be Janessa Veronis who is an assisting machine, she already leads the team with 5.3 assist per game, which is way up from last year where she only averaged 1.2 assist per game.

“Janessa has been contributed with leadership as a sophomore, plying good solid defense and distributing the ball to the key players,” said

SAME

season the Mustangs look to rebound and finish the season with the same success as the 2011-2012 season, where the team was conference champs.

“Hopefully we go to the championship,” said Ross.

The team currently sits at 2-1 overall and their next tournament will be the Contra Costa College Classic, which will be from Dec. 5 to Dec. 7.

Health Care Reform and You Brought to you by Kaiser Permanente

More peace of mind for you and your family If you currently have health insurance, you may already be enjoying some of the added benefits from health care reform.

For example, the following benefit changes are in effect for some plans.* UÊ Ý«> `i`Ê V ÃÌÊ«ÀiÛi Ì ÛiÊV>Ài°ÊThis includes immunizations, diabetes and cancer screenings, counseling for smoking and alcohol abuse, and more.

UÊ Ê> Õ> Ê ÀÊ viÌ iÊ ÌÃ on essential health benefits.

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LEARN MORE

www.usfca.edu/branch

£ nää È{ä n{xÓ U à «« > ð «° À}Én{xÓ *Some of these benefit changes do not apply to “grandfathered” health plans. Your employer and your insurer should let you know if your plan is grandfathered.

SAN FR ANCISCO

S A N TA R O S A

SAN JOSE

SACR AMENTO

PLEASANTON

9

L O S

M EDAN OS

C OL L E G E

Web

E X P E R I E N C E

Back Talk

F R I D AY,

DEC.

6,

2013

The season of giving back

10

Follow the LMC Experience online at lmcexperience.com

Photos by Cathie Lawrence and Irvin Trigueros

Left, student employee Hannah Tatmon reads a name from the Angel Tree located in the Business Services hallway. The Angel Tree program collects gifts for local children whose names are written on angel ornaments on the tree.

Top, an LMC student puts money into the “Penny Wars” jar in the bookstore for Philippine Disaster Relief put on by the Alpha Gamma Sigma club. Every donation, even a penny, helps make a difference. Money collected goes to Doctors Without Borders.

MINUS

MESA

HONOR

Prerequisites are established so students are more successful in the classes. The question is does C- indicate efficiency in that prerequisite course?

The origin of the question came from the meetings with the other Directors of Admissions from DVC and CCC. Being a part of Admissions and Records, they are the ones that do the coursework of other colleges. After a student’s coursework has been evaluated, Admission and Records handles the official evaluations and works “really closely with faculty” according to Armour.

The CCCCD treats a C as a C regardless of the actual grade percentage. However, a C- is not actually a 2.0 GPA. To calculate a student’s GPA, an A is four points, a B is three points, a C is two points, a D is one point and then it is multiplied by the number of units. The GPA of a C- is a 1.7.

For an example, Armour explained, “So if you have a plus and minus grading system, for a minus you would take like four. Let’s say I had a C+, which is 2.0 and I would add .3 so it would be 2.3 times the number of units. If I had a B-, I would take to a 3.0 and subtract .3 and I would have a 2.7 so a C+ is not the same as a C-.”

Although this is a question being posed, Armour stresses that it is “not even close to being a decision.” The senators of the Academic Senate are the ones that need to take the question to the department and discuss it. From then, they decide whether they want to take a vote on it or not. If they do want to vote on it, it would be put on the agenda for the future meetings in the spring semester. Also, they could be silent on the matter if they don’t have an opinion and would like it to stay the same way.

“It’s not that we’re not going to accept it or going to make a change in the policy,” Armour said. “It’s just a question and what they think, like I said, it’s an academic professional matter so they’re the ones that have to decide.”

the Carquinez Bridge outside of Vallejo while it was being constructed. Watching the bridge’s construction really gave her a view into what her future major could be, and from the looks of things that view really stuck with her.

“Knowing that success is obtainable and if you just keep at it then you’ll eventually get to your goals, don’t give up,” inspirational words from Saengchalern that really stuck with the MESA students that where present.

Gale, a student who attended the event, said that, “I think it was instructive, its good to have information about the career your planning to go and its good to know what’s out there and to see people who have been in the same place as you who were able accomplish their goals is really inspiring.”

Billilee now works with the Contra Costa County Public Works Department and with them she has worked on several projects throughout the county. She was able to work on the early construction of the Pleasant Hill BART. She also created the entire Preliminar y Layout for the railroad in the Byron. Right now, she is currently working the Pacifica Avenue Sidewalk in Mission Vallejo.

She tells students to the importance of networking, really getting your résumé out there to important people, interning is also very helpful.

With her Internship she was actually able to get paid for her services, earn 3 units for school and she found a mentor that lead her into the path that she walks today.

Saengchalern really went for her went for her objective, to inspire and enlighten the minds of various young people and let them know that with dedication they can all be leaders.

students, and 34 medal graduate honors scholars.

High-achieving students who combine academic excellence with extracurricular activities are those most likely to be admitted to universities and win scholarship awards.

This advantage is one of the many reasons students should consider joining the Honors Program, which requires LMC students to challenge themselves academically and actively participate when they can on campus.

In addition, LMC’s Honors Program is the only East Bay member of the UCLA Transfer Alliance Program (TAP) and cer tified honors students may be eligible for a special admission to UCLA. According to the Honors Program Student Handbook 2013-2014, honors courses are meant to emphasize creativity and collaborative learning.

They also emphasize advanced topics and deeper understanding of course material.

“Students don’t get assigned more work but dif ferent work. The courses are more intellectual and students are more involved in class topics,” said Honors Administrative Assistant Marleen Willhoite.

For example, the regular Philosophy 2 class requires three seven-page papers, and so does the Honors version.

But the paper topics may be more challenging.

The Honors Program offers a selection of a half-dozen courses each semester, including an ethics seminar, open only to Honors students.

This spring there are courses in economics, math, humanities and philosophy, and the program is currently accepting applications. But Honors isn’t just an academic program, it

From page 1

BOOK From page 8

Taliban, corruption within the government of Pakistan, U.S. foreign policy and international views on Muslim women status to the readers.

However, it’s the informative element brought by Lamb that gives Malala’s voice a stable base to be understood by the international audience.

It brings a deeper understanding of many intelligent Muslim families that strive for a better opportunity for their children. Lamb’s voice adds a deeper sense of understanding the complex Muslim world that Malala lives in, the longing for freedom. The crippling effects of poverty, religious and political oppression that plagues a society, is best explained

by Lamb, it gives excellent platform for the heartfelt and exhilarating story of Malala.

From page 3

MOVIE From page 8

viewers on female global issues.

It is presented that if more girls could get an education, female global issues would decline.

This is a film that will broaden the viewer’s perspective and allow them to see education in a new light.

I recommend Girl Rising to all students no matter what type of genre they prefer. The film spreads awareness on an issue that people can easily relate to. Even though Girl Rising is educational, it was entertaining and I consistently wanted to learn more. This is a must see movie for someone with a thirst for knowledge and a passion for joining movements.

JAMES From page 3

Family favorites include Home Alone 2 and Beethoven’s 2nd.

“We watch the movie together with pop-corn – without it our movie marathon won’t be complete.”

Family time might also involve trips around California and taking in a Giants baseball game.

ACCJC

From page 1

From page 1

also promotes getting involved on campus, making friends, and having fun. Ever y fall a group of honors students and faculty spend a weekend on retreat, recently at Camp Tuolumne Trails, not far from the Yosemite Park entrance, and Camp Lodestar near Calaveras Big Trees.

“It has been a life-changing experience. When I first started college I didn’t care too much about my grades.

I went to an Honors retreat for the first time and that event changed my attitude.

I liked the experience and I was motivated to be the best I can be,” said Honors Club President Ashley Curry.

Curr y has been actively involved in Honors for almost three years now, and said she will be transferring to UCLA after this spring.

Honors provides a community of similarly high achieving students who create bonds and support each other, not only because they are involved in the same Honors classes but because this program is also one of the most active groups on campus and organizes lots of fun, stimulating events.

“Students receive a level of comfort here. We all help and encourage each other.

I’ve made good friends,” said Honors student Amber Woods.

For more information, or to download a program application, visit the Honors Transfer Program online at http://www.losmedanos.edu/ honors/default.asp You can also contact Jennifer Saito at 439-2181 ext. 3369 or send an email to jsaito@losmedanos. edu. Or, you can just stop by the Honors Center and check it out for yourself. It is located in the portable outside of Level 1 of the main College Complex.

Sophia Ramirez, BethAnn Robertson, and Peter Garcia.

Public Safety Programs: Fire Academy and Police Academy, Dave Wahl, Mike Grillo, Natalie Hannum, Richard Livingston, Robin Armour, Shirley Baskin, Sandi Schmidt, and BethAnn Robertson.”

In addition, with LMC’s commitment and enrollment growth in the Brentwood Center, the number of classes offered to students have increased. The Brentwood Center has also recently received official Center Status from the Chancellor’s Office.

“Since students may now be able to complete 50% or more of a degree at Brentwood, we began the process to apply for Substantive Change about a year ago,” said Kamath.

Students in the Fire and Police Academies also take classes that are principally off-site. The Fire Academy is located in the Fire Training Center in Concord, whereas

CLARK

the Police Academy is offered in collaboration with the Sheriff’s office in Pittsburg.

After students complete their pre-requisite courses at the campuses in Pittsburg and/or Brentwood, they are eligible to apply for the Fire Academy program. The first week of class takes place on campus, while their hands-on training takes place at the Fire Training Center in Concord.

“Par t of the process to apply for Substantive Change includes documenting how the college supports students at these off-site locations, how student services are accessible to these students so that these students can succeed in their education,” said Kamath.

Leong further added that the approval is good news for the college and students.

“The approval is good news for the students in the programs so they can be assured they are meeting the college’s standards.”

From page 1

for Clark as an agenda item for the following meeting.

In that meeting, during her senator reports, Clark calmly handed in her resignation to the surprise of every member of the AS. LMCAS President Brianna Klipp felt that the sanctions were a factor in Clark’s sudden resignation.

“It probably had something to do with it but she violated our bylaws,” Klipp said.

It wasn’t the only reason, though, the conference cancellation still weighed on her.

“I hate that this was a learning opportunity that the students and community missed out on,” she said.

The sanctions are what

tipped the scales as she was only contemplating resignation before the sanctions were brought up.

“There are parts that I’ll miss,” she said. “I wish them luck.”

As much as she’ll miss it, it was just time for her to go.

“It became an unhealthy environment,” she said. It is tough to continue with something, even something you love to do, when you feel that way.

Clark will continue her work to raise awareness for breast cancer. She is set on finding a new venue for the conference she planned, but for now is enjoying the free time with her family.