LMC Experience Vol. 96 No. 1 - March 11, 2022

LMC Marketplace reopens for student use in a new location — Page 3

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Women’s soccer team goes undefeated this season

Professor Luis Zuniga looks outside-the-box for his classes

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Chancellor resigns amid controversy Mehdizadeh appointed to lead

By DYLAN DAVIDSON Staff Writer

Bryan Reece, the former district chancellor, resigned after the board placed placed him on paid leave for the second time.

After a little more than a year as chancellor of the Contra Costa Community College District, Bryan Reece has resigned.

An email from Governing Board President Judy Walters, the announced the board’s acceptance of Reece’s letter of resignation, effective Feb. 11.

Walters wrote that the Governing Board had also approved a contract that would make Mojdeh Mehdizadeh, the former executive vice chancellor of Education and Technology, interim chancellor from

Feb. 16 through June 30, 2024, or until a new permanent chancellor has been hired.

Reece began his career as the nineth permanent chancellor on Nov. 1, 2020, and received positive reception from staff, faculty and students alike. Since the beginning of Reece’s stint as chancellor, he has been placed on paid administrative leave twice.

He was first placed on leave after a Contra Costa Community College District Governing Board special meeting Sept. 14, 2021, where an unknown personnel matter was cited as the cause. This led to the

announcement of Mehdizadeh as the interim replacementat that time.

On Sept. 30, 2021, Reece was reinstalled after a grueling sixhour special meeting, where an open session was held. During the open session, members of the community voiced their support for Reece and he himself voiced his grievances. In a 3-2 vote, the board reinstated Reece while continuing the ongoing investigation into the personnel matter.

In another special meeting Feb. 2 Reece was once again placed on Adria Watson • Experience Archive paid administrative leave for an Mojdeh Mehdizadeh fills in as interim chacellor. undisclosed personnel matter.

WiFi now available in Lot A

New campus pass required

By MICHAEL BENEDIAN

With the return of students coming back to the LMC campuses, the Contra Costa Community College District is rolling out a new protocol to make sure the college environment remains a safe place.

Students and employees will not only need to submit their proof of vaccination and wear a mask at all times, but will also be required to take a daily health assessment to receive a campus pass if attending in-person classes or using in-person services on campus.

The campus pass is a green checkmark that students and employees receive after taking the assessment that determines whether or not it’s safe for you to be on campus. After receiving the campus pass, it will last until 11:59 p.m..

Students and employees can receive the pass through the CCCCD app which can be downloaded from the app store, but android users will have to download the apk file instead (instructions found here).

By MICHAEL BENEDIAN Staff Writer

Staff Writer

For students who park in Lot A, if they check their phones before walking onto campus, they may notice a big change.

The Los Medanos College WiFi is able to connect to devices before reaching the library, and it’s all thanks to the Contra Costa College District IT team.

The college WiFi this semester has now been extended to cover Parking Lot A, which should give students access to the internet at a further distance from campus.

Beginning in the fall of 2019, the district IT team created a three-year infrastructure project to expand on-campus WiFi. The extended coverage to Lot A is just one of the changes made from this project. Students might remember how back in 2018 signing onto the campus WiFi required a sign in everytime you came. Now, all students need to do is set up an app once every semester and See WiFi, page 7

Michael Benedian • Experience

Using the CCCD app, students must do a self-assement before entering campus.

However, if you have no access to a smartphone or computer, LMC has provided Daily Health Assessment stations located at the Pittsburg Campus. The police services lobby has one station that is open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Another can be found on the third floor of the Student Services center open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. but is closed on Fridays.

As of now, the campus pass is here to stay. Tanisha Maxwell, vice president of Student Ser vices, said the whole semester will require students and employees to have a campus pass when attending in-person. There are no plans being made on making a weekly campus pass, so remember to take your assessment before coming on campus. As for the future, Maxwell is unsure.

“It is hard to predict the future regarding what will See PASS, page 7

Brentwood bounces back after flood

By STEPHANIE ARREOLA Staff Writer

Stephanie Arreola • Experience

The front entrace of the newly refurbished Brentwood Center.

The Brentwood Center at Pioneer center is the newest addition to the Los Medanos College as of fall 2021.

It was struck with a flood last year that halted the opening of a majority of its office facilities and Library. As of Feb. 24, Building A is open and ready for faculty use.

The flood was due to water intrusion from the adjacent housing subdivision irrigation system. It left a few rooms in Building A with water damage to the flooring, drywall and furniture. The legs of the tables in the conference rooms had to be replaced due to damages.

According to Ryan Pederson, the dean of Instruction, Math and Sciences, only the faculty area can be accessed as construction is still ongoing. The only access point is through the external door between Building A and Building B. Carlos Montoya, the vice president of Business and Administrative Services, said that the legs for those certain tables were difficult to source.

There have been shipping delays on furniture and the contractors needed more time with the repairs.

Montoya said that the center is opening smoothly. He said he has a team of consultants and is close to the official opening date. With

the pressure of opening, he said he “tries not to let the frustration get in the way to get everything done.”

Virginia Richards, the manager of Disability Support Services, said the center will keep its current hours and scheduled classes throughout the spring semester.

Robert Estrada, the LMC Bookstore manager, announced the Brentwood bookstore has also opened.

The bookstore hours are Monday to Thursday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is closed Friday, Saturday and Sunday along with holidays. They offer supplies, beverages and food as well as LMC logo merchandise and textbooks for Brentwood classes.

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“We are all in this together - and we will get through this, together.”

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— Antonio Guterres

Sarina Grossi

Michael Benedian

SARINA’S VIEW

MICHAEL’S MEMOIRS

Microtrends need to be stopped

Corsets, sweater vests, Y2K and most recently “Twee” fashion — all clothing items and styles that became simultaneously popular and unpopular on Tik Tok within months. If you frequent thrift stores, you’ve probably seen quite a lot of these items on clothing racks. They have fallen into the trap of the infamous microtrend.

Microtrends have become a hot topic in fashion discourse across all platforms. Essentially, a microtrend is a clothing item or aesthetic that becomes popular for a short period of time, unlike macrotrends which usually last anywhere from 5 to 10 years. With the popularity of Tik Tok in particular, the time span of a microtrend has shrunk from a decent 2 years to a fragile 2 to 3 months.

Why don’t these trends last very long? The new democratized fashion industry where ever yday people and influencers create trends has a hand at this. While a select group of fashion designers and celebrities used to drive trends through magazines and movies decades ago, social media with quick and formulated algorithms is able to quickly push certain videos to a wide group of people.

Any influencer with a brand deal can post a large PR haul and gain millions of views and any given clothing item or style can fully saturate fashion communities with millions of videos. This oversaturation, however, makes trends grow stale fast, meaning that trends don’t last long and clothes either get donated and thrown out.

Here lies a problem: microtrends are a large benefactor of textile waste that harms the environment.

The clothing industry, according to Business Insider, contributes to 10% of carbon emissions. 85% of textiles every year are thrown into landfills, with certain synthetic fabrics pushing plastic into the ocean. The earth is suffocating from the waste fashion industries produce.

When microtrends become popular, fast fashion companies notice. These corporations, like their name states, make units quickly, usually with poor construction made through unethical labor. With this business model, the fast fashion industry is able to capitalize on microtrends, but when the trends are over and the poor quality causes items to fall apart, the textiles are thrown out adding to the mountain of waste.

An example of this is the strawberr y dress designed by independent artist Lirika Matoshi. The design had blown up to astronomical degrees on Tik Tok, with the dress originally priced at $490, something that normal teenagers and young adults could not afford. Fast fashion companies like AliExpress stole Matoshi’s design and made thousands of cheap recreations and consumers flocked to them, paying for poor quality over the original design.

The strawberry dress, though originally chic, has lost popularity and those who initially loved the dress threw it out. This is a fickle cycle that microtrends and fast fashion recreations cause, with clothes becoming popular and then becoming trash. Fast fashion is unavoidable for many people, as it is the most affordable option for many consumers. However, participating in microtrends is a conscious decision that can be avoided.

When you no longer want certain clothing items, donate rather than throw out. You can opt for sustainable brands, which usually ethically make long lasting clothing items, but if the costly prices are too much, look into shopping at local thrift stores. Building a unique personal style and overall consuming less fashion won’t solve the problem alone, but will lessen the impact microtrends have on our environment.

So next time you see a cute clothing item on Tik Tok, ask yourself, “Will I wear this in a year from now?”

New WiFi is a huge hassle to connect

Kai Arellano • Experience

Too early to lift mandates

The mask mandate is being removed in Califor- being one of the cleanest countries in the world, nia. Los Angeles County is lifting their mandate has people who will always have a mask on for for indoor public places along with other parts the main reason of stopping the spread of a of California, including the Bay Area. disease, an illness or even the common cold.

Gavin Newsom’s order to lift the mask Being vaccinated helps, but it also doesn’t mandate for vaccinated individuals started take you off the list of catching COVID-19.

Feb. 16. However, this shouldn’t be the case New variants like Omicron have infected whether you’re vaccinated people who have gotten the or not. People should keep vaccine. The vaccine isn’t their masks on whether they perfect, but getting the vacare indoors or in a setting cine does lessen the effects with a lot of people around. of the virus if you’ve tested COVID-19 cases had positive. Whether or not you spiked high in Januar y are vaccinated, you should because of the Omicron just have a mask on whenever MY TWO CENTS variant. Almost 129,000 around large groups of people citizens tested positive or indoors. at Omicron’s peak in California. The mask As those around me have gotten COVID-19, I mandate being lifted so early after we have always have a mask on. The other day someone seen a rise doesn’t seem to help the cause of I knew wasn’t around for an event we were trying to end the pandemic. planning and he said he had COVID-19. That You can also see the mask as something that person was also fully vaccinated. can prevent more than just COVID-19. Masks It goes to show how a mask, common sense prevent allergies, the common cold, the flu and and also spacial awareness can make a huge other viruses. Anything that can have some difference in stopping the spread of this virus sort of impact on the body to make someone and hopefully ending the pandemic as a whole. sickly, a mask can make a huge difference.

Things will go back to normal eventually, but In Asia, whenever someone gets sick they for the time being people should wear their wear a mask to contain the sickness. Japan, masks at all times.

Kai Arellano

Editor’s Note

This edition of the Los Medanos College student newspaper marks the return of the print edition since it went on hiatus in March 2020.

Experience Staff

Experience Policies

Editor-in-Chief .......................SARINA GROSSI

The LMC Experience is published by students in the Journalism Program. It serves both as a laboratory for journalism classes and as a First Amendment forum for campus communication. If you are interested in expressing your opinions on campus, national or world issues, email submissions to LosMedanos.Experience@ gmail.com. Opinions expressed in the Experience are solely those of the authors, and do not represent the views of the college.

Managing Editor .................DYLAN DAVIDSON Perspectives Editor ................KAI ARELLANO Campus Editor .............STEPHANIE ARREOLA Features Editor ..............MICHAEL BENEDIAN Arts & Culture Editor ........JOSEPH GIDDINGS Sports Editor .........................TREY HINCKLEY

Voices “I don’t like it...the fact that we can’t just put on some masks for people that are unable to get vaccinated...it’s our job as a society to take care of one another.”

— Denise Vega

“I don’t think there’s really a problem with it.”

— David Martija

It has been a good couple of weeks since we’ve returned to campus and gotten back into the swing of things. Seeing other people pursue their day to day college activities is nice, but there’s one tiny issue I’m having.

Since I’ve been on campus this spring semester, I have been unable to connect to the college WiFi, no matter how many times I’ve tried.

You can say this is trivial but when your course has an online google drive that everyone contributes to, emails with time sensitive information or photos that need to be uploaded, it’s important that your device is able to function with no problems. It’s especially important because some buildings at LMC make it somewhat impossible for people to use their phone’s data signal.

Not only is connectivity an issue this semester, but I’ve always thought the whole process of even trying to connect to the WiFi on campus is cumbersome.

Some students might remember back to pre-pandemic, when we used to connect to the campus WiFi and were required to login to our Insite accounts every time we came here. Since then, the District IT had made plans to change all that and expand on campus WiFi as part of a three year infrastructure project initiated in 2019. Now, students have to follow a set of instructions which is different for every device to connect to the WiFi, the bonus being that you only need to do it once every semester.

Having to only sign in once sounds great, but what’s not great are the amount of steps it takes to do so. There are a lot of hurdles that people have to jump through just to connect, like having to download a certain program or get a WiFi certificate.

One of the steps even has you connect to the WiFi network labeled “college onboard” in order to gain access to the right network made for you, and then you have to forget the college onboard network so your phone doesn’t auto connect to it; If that sounds confusing, that’s because it is.

Let’s say you manage to do all that, great!

However for some LMC students even with a proper connection to the campus WiFi, they can still face problems.

In Isabella Fleur y’s first year here at LMC, she had no idea how to connect to the WiFi so she went a whole semester without it. After figuring out how to connect, she still ran into issues with it being spotty or unreliable.

“I took a class near the daycare and it was just known that the WiFi was weak and we had one kid turn on a hotspot so we could look things up on our computers,” Fleury

See SPOTTY, page 7

How do you feel about the U.S. mask mandates being lifted?

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“Personally, I’m going to continue to wear mine for the sake of my grandma.”

— Chelsea Romero

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“Personally I will continue to wear my mask. I don’t mind other people not wearing their masks.”

— Leila Prale

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“I personally don’t think they should because it’s best to be safe and precautious.”

— Stephanie Morales

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“I’m against it because COVID is still out there.”

— Hadiza Maruna

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“I am grateful to journalism for waking me up to the realities of the world.”

— Eduardo Galeano

Associated Students seek applicants

By SARINA GROSSI Staff Writer

Behind many campus initiatives and events, you can find the Los Medanos College Associated Students. A long standing presence at the college, LMCAS aims to provide for the well being of students academically, financially and socially. This semester, they are looking for eight new student representatives to join their efforts and apply to be LMCAS senators by March 14.

LMCAS serves as the voice of the student body, advocating for students at shared governance and committee meetings with faculty. In these meetings, they help provide insight to the college to encourage the improvement of student lives and stand up for student rights.

“LMCAS is vital because it allows for student representation, it allows for student voice, and it allows for student-led change,” said Luisa Velazquez, the president of LMCAS. They also demonstrate their advocacy through their support

of campus and district-wide initiatives including the LMC Library Book Reserve Program, Bookstore Textbook Loan Project, Student Scholarships, LMC Marketplace and Zero Cost Textbooks effort. By organizing and promoting these initiatives, LMCAS aspires to make the college experience manageable for all students.

“If we can provide as much assistance as possible, just to make college life a little bit easier, then that’s something we really want to accomplish,” said Velazquez.

The group also organizes social events for LMC clubs and programs, including an upcoming Club Rush Fair in March. According to the LMCAS Commissioner for Publicity and Outreach Antonio Moore, a large goal for the semester is strengthening Student Life and bringing back the college experience.

“We’re not just here to do book work and fight for change.

We’re also here to support clubs,” said Moore. “We’re

Sarina Grossi • Experience

At a meeting held on Feb.7th, the LMCAS officers discussed future events. here to fight for students.”

To qualify for a senator position, applicants are required to have a minimum GPA of 2.0 and must be enrolled in at least five units. Along with this, applicants must attend at least two scheduled LMCAS meetings before submitting their application on the 14th.

These meetings take place every Monday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. inside the Student Union second floor conference room at the Pittsburg campus. Meetings are open to the public.

After submitting an applica-

tion, candidates will be interviewed by LMCAS membership. If the candidate is given a position, they are expected as a senator to participate in an orientation, attend the weekly meetings, host on-campus office hours weekly, attend at least one LMC committee meeting and any LMCAS sponsored events.

Being a student representative is a lot of work and requires certain qualities from a person.

Moore said being driven is incredibly important to the job.

“You need to be an action-tak-

er, you can’t just sit by and watch things continue to go bad,” said Moore.

Velazquez adds that a requirement of LMCAS senators is “being able to listen, being able to express your ideas and collaborate with others.”

A common idea shared among LMCAS of ficers is that they want to see student representatives from all backgrounds and identities come together. This way, the college can hear the perspectives of all possible students and help improve LMCAS’s efforts.

“I want [students] to bring their experience,” said Arthur Pendragon, an LMCAS senator.

“I want to see this senate grow.”

If students are wondering how joining LMCAS might benefit them, officers find that the organization helps build leadership and communication skills that can help students in the future. Whether it is at the college you transfer to or the career you end up in, a senator position will teach you the necessary skills to help you thrive.

“It’s good practice to make changes you want to see. It’s good practice ar ticulating what you want to say. With every experience, you gain knowledge and this is a very knowledge-heavy organization… it’s a learning opportunity,” said Moore.

If you are interested in applying for an LMCAS senator position, check out the application page. If you have questions, please contact LMCAS Advisor Teresea Archaga tarchaga@losmedanos.edu.

London study abroad program

Application open for fall 2022

By KAI ARELLANO Staff Writer

Dylan Davidson • Experience

Jaime Salinas, a volunteer for the marketplace, demonstrates how students can “shop” when they visit.

LMC Marketplace reopens for use

By DYLAN DAVIDSON Staff Writer

The Los Medanos College Marketplace reopened its doors to students this past week, in a new location by the child research center, directly across from the bus stop.

All LMC students are welcome to visit the Marketplace and treat themselves to a plethora of food options of fered after they have shown their Contra Costa County Community College District health check assessment.

The opening of the Marketplace

in the new location was celebrated with a special Cups of Care event, where students were able to receive an LMC coffee cup.

Teresea Archaga, LMC director of Student Life, wanted the Cups of Care event to help the new location of the Marketplace stand out.

“We wanted to create an opportunity where the students would want to stop and investigate as a way of trying to find our new location,” said Archaga. “We wanted to allow for the students to come in and have a complete shopping experience while

on campus.”

The LMC Marketplace contains a wide variety of foods, and Archaga aims to make that a Marketplace precedent.

“These are staple foods that you would find at any grocery store. We give out chicken, eggs, cheese, and personal care products. It’s our way of trying to reduce the stigma on food.”

The LMC Marketplace is open from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Mondays and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursdays.

For more information, visit the LMC Marketplace page.

Los Medanos College is taking applicants to join the London Study Abroad Program for the 2022 fall semester. The trip is run by the American Institute for Foreign Study, which has been working with students for over 50 years to get the maximum enjoyment out of their time abroad.

An informational meeting was held last month to bring people up to speed on what will be happening on the trip to London. The meeting was hosted by Ken Alexander, an LMC art professor and the Contra Costa Community College District representative for the study abroad program.

Through the par tnership with AIFS, the program will be getting access to the top study abroad student service. They’ve worked with more than 50,000 students and over 98% of students recommend the AIFS program when studying abroad.

“They really manage the program in London extremely well,” said Alexander. He added that AIFS has programs going to Japan, South Africa, Spain and other places outside of London.

The program offers two options for students living. The first, Homestay, is where students live with a British family and room with another student 45 minutes to an hour from the AIFS Center. This option features weekday continental breakfast, access to laundry, bathroom, kitchen and grocery facilities, and costs $8,595.

The second option, Apartments, is in central London and costs $10,095.

Students have their own bathroom, living space, kitchen and bedroom.

Both options exclude airfare and tuition. The fee deadline is June 15, and financial aid is available.

Students in the program will receive an Oyster Card, a travel pass with unlimited use for buses and the Underground subway system to take them to and from the AIFS Center where classes are held. The center

Big Ben watches over Parliament. provides help to plan free-time travels, arrange medical appointments, obtain mail, and adjust to living in London.

The deadline to sign up for the trip is Friday, April 15 for priority applications, Friday, May 13 for general applications and Wednesday, June 15 for late applications.

Student leave the U.S. Sept. 8, and arrive in London Sept. 9. They will have an entire day to sightsee and classes begin Sept. 11. Everyone will have a break from Oct. 24 to Oct. 28 where you can go and do whatever you want throughout London. The program ends Dec. 9.

Students will be able to take a variety of transferable classes from four community college districts. while in London.

“You’ll be signed up for at least one class from your home campus,” said Alexander explaining that students will all be required to take a British Life and Culture course with weekly lectures and four field trips.

Students will be exposed to British life, visiting places like the House of Parliament and Shakespeare’s Glow, where Shakespeare would perform his plays.

Alexander will teach Medieval and Renaissance Art History, Early Modern Art History and Shakespeare’s English Kings. Professor Jacqueline McGhee from the Santa Rosa College District will offer Literature and Composition, Beginning Creative Writing, Advanced Composition and Critical Thinking. Professor Fran Keller from Los Rios College District will teach Foundations of Biology, Evolution, See STUDY, page 7

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“If my films make one more person miserable, I’ll feel I’ve done my job.”

— Woody Allen

Big budget action films miss mark

By ATREYU HINCKLEY Staff Writer

We have quickly approached the second month of 2022, and after the release of “Spiderman: No Way Home,” film releases have been seemingly quiet. I decided to see what films may be coming out and stumbled upon “Moonfall,” Roland Emmerich’s 20th film.

Emmerich is known for films such as “Independence Day,” “Godzilla (1998)” and “2012.”

The movie stars Patrick Wilson and Halle Berry along with a few other known actors.

I watched the movie, which was a little over two hours long, and it was one of those films that was so bad that it was good, yet after watching I was still dissatisfied.

The reason for my dissatisfaction is because throughout the past decade, we have had so many films that lean too heavily on high budget action and effects with little story to go with it. Take the “Transformers” and “Fast and the Furious” films as an example; these

Atreyu Hinckley TREY’S THOUGHTS

movies have the bare minimum of plot and writing because they all focus on the action and the money that they will make with just action alone.

But what about Emmerich’s new film? I personally did not hear anything about this movie’s development let alone its existence until I accidentally stumbled upon it on IMDb. With a projected $146 million dollar budget, this movie bombed on its first week in the box office, making only $10 million. It’s a big blow, as the estimation of the final box office tally will be around $41 million, well under

what the movie cost to produce.

With that in mind; what is the point of all of these mindless action movies continuing? If the goal was to make a movie that is considered a quick cash grab yet it fails to reach that goal, then why make the film? It is a question that goes towards the actors and crew involved, but mostly towards the screenwriters who write these films.

This question isn’t pointed at every action film. 2021 had two of the most visually stunning movies I have ever seen in “Spiderman: Far From Home” and “Dune.” The thing that makes these films work however is that they leaned on other aspects to help carry it through, like fan service and creative writing, things that a lot of action movies have been lacking.

Now Emmerich has made his fair share of silly action movies while I was growing up, but I cannot tell you how ridiculous this movie’s plot and writing was. The worst part about it is that it seems like it was trying to take itself

seriously and was even trying to make its own universe to potentially set up for sequels. With how the movie is going so far in the box office, that is an unlikely possibility.

It pains me to see films like this, it feels like a wasted opportunity for certain actors See MOON, page 7

‘Uncharted’ is a great adventure

From console to the screen

By JOSEPH GIDDINGS Staff Writer

True to its name, “Uncharted” takes you along for an action-heavy adventure that does it’s fun and thrilling video game source material and fans justice.

Based upon the video game franchise, “Uncharted” follows the origins of Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) and his partnership with Victor Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg). They hunt for hidden treasures throughout the world, all while met with threatening forces along the way, allowing growth and development for both characters throughout the story.

Whether it be jumping out of a plane or scaling a building, the action within the film, much like the video games, is often intense and at times whimsical. It portrays events and scenarios that exist outside of our own confines of reality and physics. This adds to the overall fun and entertainment experienced throughout the film.

With such respect paid towards the action of the franchise, it also brings forth many easter eggs and references from the series that fans will appreciate seeing on the big screen, as well as the portrayal of fan favorite characters such as Chloe Frazer (Sophia Ali). Therefore, fans should be on the lookout for even the subtlest of cameos and references, and be prepared, because there sure is a lot of them.

REVIEW

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Tom Holland starts as famous and beloved video game character Nathan Drake in ‘Uncharted’ (2022).

New Black Map puts them on the map

By ATREYU HINCKLEY Staff Writer

Black Map, the alternative metal band from San Francisco, returns with their third full length album. The trio consists of Ben Flanagan on bass and vocals, Mark Engles on guitar and Chris Robyn on drums. The band has toured with fellow alternative metal band Chevelle for many years and cites them as a major influence.

While the band is still looking for more airwaves and platforms, “Melodoria” may be their ticket to a growing listenership.

“Melodoria” offers a mix of a more radio friendly sound than their previous work. While there are elements of heaviness in their sound, the trio are branching into different sounds to further evolve the tone of their music.

REVIEW

Leading off the album is “Chasms,’’ which is also the lead single of the album. “Chasms” has a mixture of guitar distortions and riffs that have become a signature sound for the band, and sets the overall mood of the album. The pandemic influences the lyrics of “Chasms,” with the song telling the listener what the band has gone through these past couple of years during the pandemic metaphorically.

The tempo of the album takes things to a slower route in “Madness,” providing a catchy bass line and lighter guitar work that sounds reminiscent of being near an ocean. Things speed back up with “Witching Hour,” which offers a catchy rhythm and lyrics that are one of the highlights of the album.

The stand out for the album has to be “Burnout (Do You Mind?),” which is also lyrically inspired by the pandemic. It starts

with an acoustic intro similar to Deftones.

The song has a guitar solo midway through that sounds both enchanting yet unsettling, and this theme makes it rise among the rest of the album.

The title track “Melodoria” closes out the album and is filled with mesmerizing progression throughout with distorted guitar work that brings the album to a fitting conclusion.

Flanagan’s vocal and bass work in “Melodoria” is a major high point throughout, as he has shown progression in his vocal range as well as giving every track on the record a really good rhythm to follow with his bass lines. Engle’s guitar work and Robyn’s up tempo drumming proves strong as well. All of this together is showing that the band is starting to feel more in control of the sound that they want for their music, while not being afraid to branch out to

Despite such inclusions however, these scenes are intended for nothing more than fan-service and a good time, so the average movie-goer shouldn’t feel too discouraged by their potential lack of Uncharted knowledge.

The film’s weakest moments come from its casting choice, particularly in regard to the leads of the film.

Although charismatic in their own right, Holland and Wahlberg fail to portray the charisma and overall characters of Nathan Drake and Victor Sullivan as we have come to know and love them within the games.

Instead, it feels as though they are simply portraying their usual roles with nothing more to add than the names of these iconic characters.

Furthermore, the film’s antagonistic casting choices for Santiago Moncada (Antonio Banderas) and Braddock (Tati Gabrielle) are wasted by a weak plot and an ever-weaker conclusion, failing to leave an impression upon the film’s story and audience.

Fans of the franchise as well as the everyday-movie goers looking to experience a two-hour adventure showcasing the excitement of “Uncharted” should make sure to see the film.

However, those looking for a true character portrayal may be better off rewatching the 2018 “Uncharted” fan film starring Nathan Fillion as Nathan Drake, which can be viewed for free on Youtube.

different elements to their sound.

I highly reccomend “Melodoria” for alternative metal fans. Influences such as Deftones and Chevelle are present throughout the record when it comes to the sound. Black Map is a band that has been consistently making good music since they formed back in 2014, and if you are looking for some rock music to listen to, you won’t be disappointed.

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“So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.”

— F. Scott Fitzgerald

Sarina Grossi SARINA’S VIEW

Spotify: Money over progress

IMDb

Syndey Sweeney stars as Cassie Howard in Season 2 of HBO Max’s hit teen-drama television show “Euphoria.”

‘Euphoria’ Season 2 hit or miss

By SARINA GROSSI Editor-in-Chief

The wait for “Euphoria” Season 2 felt extremely long.

With the first season airing in 2019 and ending in an intense cliffhanger, the anticipation for the series’s return was high. Seeing that Season 2 concluded this past Sunday, was it worth the hype?

In some ways yes, and in some ways no. This season shares some strengths with the previous one while also having new highlights. On the other hand, new problems seem to arise, causing issues for the HBO show.

For those who have not watched “Euphoria,” it follows the complicated lives of California teens dealing with drug abuse, sexuality and manipulation. The melodrama is graphic and often unrealistic, but the emotional core of the show, the relationships between each character, hit hard.

The technical aspects of the show such as cinematography make “Euphoria” worth the watch alone. Each scene, even if difficult to watch, is pleasing to look at, utilizing

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color and imagery beautifully.

The show creates a painting with each frame, using the camera as it’s paintbrush and the editing as it’s palette.

The cast of “Euphoria” always seems to prop the show up, with Zendaya’s portrayal of the central character Rue Bennett giving the series a heart. She captures Rue’s constant struggle between mental illness, addiction and keeping her relationships with the gravity and weight of a person who has lived those experiences. Other standouts this season were Sydney Sweeney as Cassie

‘Death on the Nile’ is fun but forgettable

By JOSEPH GIDDINGS Staff Writer

Kenneth Branagh’s newest film adaptation of Agatha Christie’s mystery novel, “Death on the Nile”, takes you on a fun and thrilling ride, whilst failing to leave you with any memory of it.

The film takes place following the previous adaptation within the Poirot series, “Murder on the Orient Express”, as our returning protagonist, Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) investigates once again another murder mystery, met with reveals and surprises around every corner.

But much like its predecessor, “Death on the Nile” receives much of the same treatment.

Despite its all-star cast of wellknown Hollywood actors such as Gal Gadot, Armie Hammer, Letitia Wright and Russel Brand, the characters and storyline fail to leave an impression upon you, contributing to the film’s overall lack of satisfaction.

Within any given scene, the number of characters involved within the story can at times feel overwhelming, leaving you questioning their relationships, backstories, purpose and even to some extent their names, ultimately feeling severely underdeveloped in

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their creation and overall presence.

As a love-focused storyline and plot, the film’s message is unsuccessful at providing the necessary investment and care towards the characters, as well their own hopes and desires, leading to a conclusion that lacks both originality and intrigue.

Despite its flaws, the film’s biggest strength lends itself to its setting, a party-filled cruise along the Nile River.

Vibrant colors and grand scenery amplify the film’s cinematography, presenting you with the beauty of Egypt’s lively and desolate landscape during the post-World War 1 era. With parties that could only be rivaled by the likes of “The Great Gatsby”, the film immerses you within its atmosphere, through fast paced scenes accompanied by energetic music, flashy dance numbers and enough champagne to fill the Nile itself.

Making you feel as though you are the party’s undetected guest, loving every minute of it.

While the performances of the film’s side characters are lacking at times, Kenneth Branagh carries the film in each scene that he is in.

With his quick and witty personality, Branagh leads you along his investigation of the murder, making you suspect the guilty as much as the innocent, causing you to question

Howard, Maude Apatow as Lexi Howard and Angus Cloud as Fezco.

New character focuses were also a welcomed surprise, with more of a spotlight shown on beloved characters like Fezco and Lexi (who had a new budding romance) and more depth given to characters that felt one-note last season like Cal Jacobs (Eric Dane). Yet, this sometimes proved to be a problem, as some large players from last season seemed to be forgotten in the mix, like Jules Vaughn (Hunter Schafer) and Kat Hernandez (Barbie Ferriera),

who would have benefitted from more exploration.

This leads to the biggest issue of “Euphoria” Season 2: it feels cramped and doesn’t give it’s characters or it’s plotlines enough room to breathe.

Something that was executed extremely well in Season 1 was the structure of each episode, focusing on one character at a time. Even though the storylines were more simple, these episodes were more effective plot wise, felt more connected and left a stronger impact on the viewSee SEASON, page 7

20th Century Fox

Gal Gadot and Armie Hammer dance in “Death on the Nile.” how the film will conclude in the end.

After nearly a three-year long delay, fans of the first film, as well as the book, may find some enjoyment out of Branagh’s latest production as well as the average movie-goer wishing

to spend time with their friends on a Friday night. But for those contemplating seeing the film in theaters, you might be better off waiting for its digital release or simply watching another murder-mystery all together.

For many music listeners and podcast enjoyers, Spotify is considered the best streaming service possible. However, the billion-dollar company has recently come under fire due to their connection with Joe Rogan, the host of “The Joe Rogan Experience,” which is the top podcast on the platform.

Rogan has been a controversial figure for a few years now, recently being criticized for allegedly spreading misinformation about COVID-19, with musicians like Neil Young and Joni Mitchell pulling their music off of Spotify as a form of protest. In addition, the artist India Arie (who is also protesting the platform) shared a compilation video of Rogan on Thursday, Feb. 3, repeatedly using the N-word spanning from 2009 to 2018.

Since the video picked up traction, Rogan and the Spotify team removed over 71 episodes of the podcast, with a total of 113 episodes being removed from the streaming service. According to “The Hollywood Reporter,” the CEO of Spotify Daniel Ek responded to the video with a letter to the company, claiming that he was appalled by Rogan’s usage of the slur. Despite this disgust, Ek affirmed that the company will not drop its contract with the podcaster.

“I do not believe that silencing Joe is the answer. We should have clear lines around content and take action when they are crossed, but canceling voices is a slippery slope,” said Ek. “Looking at the issue more broadly, it’s critical thinking and open debate that powers real and necessary progress.”

This column is not about whether or not Rogan should be “canceled.”

Personally, I don’t believe cancellation is truly effective in tackling the wrongdoings of people, but this column is also not about that. This column is about accountability on Spotify’s part.

Something I question is how Ek frames the most recent controversy and the possible “cancellation” of Rogan as cutting off debate.

This sentiment makes sense for previous grievances against Rogan for his takes on vaccines and COVID-19, but what exhilarating discussions does casually saying the N-word provoke?

Rogan’s usage of the word was not criticizing it, it was not opening up insightful conversations, it was just using the word for the sake of using the word.

Spotify doesn’t believe in “silencing” Rogan, but they are ok with sanitizing his content, deleting any evidence that indicates his indiscretions. I do not understand how removing this content exactly opens conversation and debate if that is what they intend to do, and instead it seems like a backtrack due to getting caught. These episodes have been available for years, yet they only now appear to now care about their content.

Besides helping Rogan with damage control, they don’t appear to infringe any sort of punishment on him. They changed their platform rules to cover COVID-19 misinformation as a response to controversy, but have done nothing directly against Rogan, seemingly to protect their relationship with him in the process.

Not only does it seem like Spotify See SPOTIFY, page 7

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“Never forget the power of practice.”

— Mike Trout

Women’s soccer goes undefeated

No. 1 Sam Nash, the goalkeeper, goes for a save to help preseve the win and extend the Mustangs winning streak to 16 games.

LMC wins 16 in a row and BV Conference

By JOSEPH GIDDINGS Staff Writer

Coming off of their two-year absence from competition, Los Medanos College’s 2021 Women’s Soccer team took the Bay Valley Conference by storm with their undefeated season and their record of 16 straight wins.

The team’s potential would become clear early on within the season among its players as well as the team’s head coach Zach Sullivan.

Serving the team for over five years, Sullivan expressed his high expectations from the start of the season.

“We had a pretty good group in the summer, so we kinda knew it was going to be a good season,” said Sullivan. “We won the league the last three years, so I think this was our most talented team. So, the conference, we kinda expected to win.”

With a roster of 23, the talent on the team was unlimited this season, with the addition of 15 incoming freshmen, including the team’s

starting forward Kimberly Garcia and goalkeeper Sam Nash. Their performances would make a significant impact upon the team’s achievements this season.

The team had a total of 109 goals, putting them in first place in California this season for goals scored. Garcia would score a total of 33 goals throughout the season, earning her the title of league Most Valuable Player as well as first team-all-league. Along with the team’s streak of 14 consecutive shutout games this season, Nash would make a total of 87 saves for her team, adding up to a save percentage of 83%.

Sullivan also attributes the team’s success to the strength of its student leadership demonstrated by the team’s returning players from the 2019 season as well as members of the team that were unable to play when arriving at LMC due to the pandemic in 2020. Players on the team, like Sarah Figueroa and Ariana Chavez, had been preparing for the 2021 sea-

Staff Writer

Kai Arellano • Experience

Photos by Katherine Mustar

No. 11 Ari Chavez, midfielder, knocks the See SOCCER, page 7 ball out of the competition’s posession.

Fitness Center provides workout space

By KAI ARELLANO

Coach Derek Demenichelli works with an LMC student.

son throughout the entirety of the pandemic, gaining both skill and experience during their absence from competitive play. They would later use that to lead the incoming team of freshmen, contributing to the team’s overall victory within the conference.

Despite the expertise displayed in both practice and competition, the connections and relationships between the players would play a vital role throughout the season. The players describe the team’s atmosphere and dynamic as close and inviting, often spending time together beyond their hours at practice and in-game.

Figueroa, a returning player from the 2019 season, describes the team’s chemistry as its biggest strength, built through the two years of practicing together during the pandemic.

This chemistry would make the team better prepared going into the season, strengthening their performance and enjoyment for the game.

The Los Medanos College Fitness Center has opened up again for the 2022 spring semester. Located in the Kinesiology and Athletic Complex, students, faculty and athletes alike are welcome Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m..

Although the Fitness Center has been open since the spring of 2020, it was closed temporarily because of the pandemic.

Along with the Fitness Center, every class on campus had to be placed online. Now for the spring semester, the Fitness

Center is open for everyone.

“We’re trying to promote it to students and athletes,” said Derek Domenichelli, the men’s basketball coach at LMC. Domenichelli explained that he and others are trying to advertise the Fitness Center as much as they can.

“We’re going around campus and working with the counselors and administrators to make sure that the people know that the Fitness Center is open and available to students,” said Domenichelli.

Students can use the Fitness Center if they enroll in the courses KNACT 110, 120, 130

or 140. When joining, you will have access to everything the Fitness Center has to offer.

They have cardiovascular, strength, functional and circuit training areas.

“The equipment here is unbelievable, it’s state of the art equipment, with the cardio and the weights, and the free weights,” said Domenichelli.

Students have already made an effort to visit the center and have started using the equipment with no issues at all.

“It’s my first day here and it’s pretty nice, it’s almost complete,” said William Fuentes, a student at LMC. Fuent-

es added that he does want an abdominal machine to further complete the center and wants more people to enroll and use the Fitness Center.

“Exercising is good for everyone,” Fuentes said.

The Fitness Center did remove the fitness challenges it used to host. These were challenges that were structured for students in order to make them physically challenge themselves.

“I think it would be great if we could do more of those weekly or bi-weekly,” said John Guadamuz-Cruz, a student who See FITNESS, page 7

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become the norm. We will continue to follow CDC guidelines and align our protocols accordingly. Students who violate our policies will be held accountable via our student conduct processes,” said Maxwell. LMC students may also be asked by faculty to see their campus pass, however it is currently uncommon.

LMC students Kirti Ladhar and Gabriel Perez Cano both keep their campus pass on them but have yet been asked to show it.

“So far no one has asked,” Cano said. “I have heard that some services do ask to see it.”

Lieutenant Ryan Huddleston of Police Ser vices understands how some might feel uncomfortable sharing their campus pass. He emphasizes that these protocols to stop students are not enforced and are completely up to the staff to ask and see.

“A lot of people feel more comfortable knowing each other’s statuses,” said Huddleston.

“But we also understand and respect the privacy that everyone has when it comes to their own medical decisions.

In the end, we want to support everybody on campus.”

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time. Considering the film’s budget, it looks like its budget went towards the visual effects rather than to the actors. It sometimes makes me wonder if actors are provided the script before accepting to star in the film, because it doesn’t seem like the pay cut is worth it.

Action films unaffiliated with Marvel and DC are sometimes a hit these days, but are mostly a miss.

Could the pandemic also play a part as to why movies are not receiving viewership or awareness of their release dates?

It is a possibility, but statistics are showing that this has been going on for years.

Other films that are considered Indie or low budget have the same issues, but most of these films deser ve much more recognition.

Filmmaking is so much more than just mindless action.

Granted that we all likely go to watch movies as a means of escaping the real world for a couple of hours, but I feel that action has taken precedence over acting and writing.

With the latest addition of a failed high budget action film in “Moonfall”, these types of films need to come to an end.

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Cano said.

As a member of the Latinx club that meets in the student lounge, Cano has been to the lounge on more than one occasion, but this was his first time seeing the Reflection Room.

“I never knew about the story so I think this is definitely a great place for [students] to do prayers,” Cano said.

The Reflection Room is free to rent for 30 minutes. Students can check in with Salinas or any Student Life associate in the student lounge for more information.

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upon their own performance from the previous season with more goals, more saves and more wins for the team, hoping to reclaim their place once again as conference champions.

Sullivan hopes to increase the skill of the overall team in addition to seeing an increase in leadership demonstrated in the upcoming season by the team’s expected 15 returning players, leading to the ultimate goal of winning the state championship.

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their device will auto connect every time.

This particular project of extending WiFi cost approximately $5700 according to Technology Systems Manager Carl Chiu. This was made possible because the project was able to utilizecexisting infrastructure that already in place on Lot A. As for Lot B and C seeing WiFi coverage, there are currently no plans made as of now to extend it there.

“I am not aware of any more plans to further extend WiFi into parking lots. This will depend on funding those kinds of projects,” Chiu said.

“Each parking lot site would have variable differences in available infrastructure that would impact the cost of similar projects around the campus.”

Students attending the Brentwood campus should also not expect the parking lot to have extended WiFi. “The WiFi was already designed appropriately when the building was opened, so no, Brentwood is not part of this project,’’ said Director of Information Technology Satish Warrier.

This physical expansion should improve making connections to the Campus WiFi, but if students who connect from Parking Lot A start to feel it being spotty or not working properly, Chiu recommends getting into contact with the 4CD District help desk at (925)-229-6888.

“They may be able to advise if there is a global or campus wide issue affecting WiFi at the time,” Chiu said. “We observe this sometimes where a device issue for a few possible reasons is having difficulty with weaker signals, [and] another device right next to it can be working fine.”

A technological change like this might seem minor, but given the fact that students are now required to have a campus pass before entering, this change could not have come at a better time. Connecting to the campus WiFi from such a distance could definitely help students, should they forget to take their assessment before leaving home.

does not care about accountability, the company also issues disingenuous promises.

Ek states that Spotify has a new initiative to invest $100 million “for the licensing, development, and marketing of music (artists and songwriters) and audio content from historically marginalized groups,” adding that the company needs to elevate “all” voices including those of minorities. Although this act seems considerate at eye level, to me it feels like an incredibly deceptive act of damage control.

Rogan’s current contract with the streaming ser vice to make exclusive content is wor th $100 million. His podcast, to Spotify, is worth the same amount as this new marketing initiative to include marginalized groups. His podcast is worth more than many artists (including minority artists) on the platform who earn a maximum of $0.00437 per stream.

Spotify, a music streaming platform, gives more capital to Rogan than the musicians that the company was built off of.

For them, it’s an easy return of investment. Rogan makes Spotify money seeing that the “Joe Rogan Experience” is the top podcast on the platform and gets its own tile on the search page, attracting his listeners to the service. Why would the company do anything to get rid of or prohibit their top earner?

With the constant promotion of the Rogan’s podcast on their platform, Spotify is simultaneously claiming to uplift marginalized voices while making a large profit off a person who used demeaning words and jokes against them.

Spotify wants to elevate all voices, but mainly those that make them the most money while being controversial and giving them the most publicity.

Again, I’m not trying to tell Spotify what they should do with Rogan. Honestly, whatever decision Spotify makes will make any group of people angry.

However, the company should not disguise financial opportunities as some form of activism. Not taking action does not equate to helping those who formed the backbone of the service.

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SEASON MUSIC No. 11 Ari Chavez, midfielder, gets in position to punt the ball down the field. The team was undefeated and won the Bay Valley Conference.

The expectations, hopes and stakes for the upcoming season are higher than ever due to the conclusion of the undefeated 2021 season. Despite this, Chavez sees the future of the team as being stronger than before.

“I think that because now we know what we have talent-wise, I think we will definitely challenge ourselves a lot more and see how far we can go,” she said.

Players like Garcia and Nash have personal goals to improve

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-ers as a whole. Only a few episodes this season followed the same story structure, including the best episode “Stand Still like the Hummingbird,” focusing on Rue and her fight against drug recovery.

This season ignored the character-focused episodes, trying to fit in at least four “main” plot lines and numerous B-plots, making the overall story arc feel messy and unrefined. Trying to fit in so many storylines lead to a quantity over quality mindset, with some story beats being forgotten as the season progressed, like Rue’s tradeoff with the drugpin Laurie (Martha Kelly), and others not being fully fleshed out.

For example, Rue had gotten clean and was not admitted to a rehab center, but somehow in the next episode was not struggling with sobriety when she clearly had shown weakness earlier in the season. Because of this, whenever the show switched perspectives between characters, it felt like the last story arc felt unresolved and unconnected to the show’s general plot.

I enjoy “Euphoria.” I think it is greatly entertaining and has some amazing technical elements, characters and even uses cool music. But if the next season follows in the lead of this one, the show might become difficult to watch or even get invested in. I do recommend “Euphoria,” but be cautious; the show has a lot of issues.

label that he decided to further his career as a musician.

“I kept at it for decades,” he said, “you go from one label to the next just trying to get to a better label that actually gives you money for an advance or a studio, or at least pay for the recording.”

While he still produces some music, his focus has shifted toward the next generation of aspiring musicians and recording engineers.

In his own home studio, he now produces music for Anubian Nights and has a keyboard for when he works through analog, but most of his recording is now done digitally.

Behind his desk he has cabinets full of records, some of which he has had since he was a kid, and studio posters line the walls.

Working as a musician eventually, you “kind of hit a plateau,” he said adding that when you have done all you wanted to within the industry you can keep doing what you have done or you can move on.

When Haynes hit that “plateau” as a musician, he decided to go back to school at Los Angeles City College where he later earned an associate’s degree in film/cinema and video studies.

“When I was going to school at L.A. City College I was also a teaching assistant because I had a lot of audio knowledge,” said Haynes.

Using his background in the industry he was able to utilize those skills to help other students who were struggling.

“The department chair at L.A. City College took me aside From page 6 one day and said ‘you know I had been enrolled in the course think you do a great job as a previously last semester. teaching assistant. Have you Guadamuz-Cruz said these ever thought of becoming a fullchallenges would make those enrolled in the course work with each other to reach goals.

“It would help students From page 2 come together,” said Guadamuz-Cruz. said. “Now I only use it in the As of now the Fitness Center main buildings on campus like is almost back to normal, with the drama green room because many people coming in and out that’s where it’s strongest.” all throughout the day. Students What’s interesting is that I will still have to wear masks at personally never had a problem all times when inside. using the WiFi, it was just this The Fitness Center’s current semester alone when these count of students for all of the issues became apparent to me. I classes are 150 students. When thought it had something to do it first opened in 2020, it had with the recent WiFi expansion around 500 students enrolled made to Parking Lot A but it in the class. Instructors would was assured to me that was like it if more students enrolled. not the case; projects like that “In large part it’s because we would theoretically improve don’t have people on campus,” the connections made. said Colleen Ralston, the head It should be noted that if of the Kinesiology Department. you do have issues, there is Although she has seen that actually a number you can there are more people enrolling call (4CD District help desk due to her emails sent out to at (925)-229-6888), but it’s silly students, her goal is to have that I have to make a phone call more enrollment. to connect to a WiFi network “If we could hit 300 that when I should just be able to would be amazing. That’s connect right off the bat. doubling what we have now,” said Ralston.

People will be able to enroll in the Fitness Center through- From page 3 out the semester, they will just need to complete their hours and Marine Ecology. And at the Fitness Center when Professor Lale Yurtseven from they enroll. In order to pass, San Mateo College District will students will need to complete offer International Business, a total of 36 hours. Instructors Business Law and Intercultural are still willing to help students Relations in Global Business .

London offers day trips to exercise.

“I think if the students under- Stonehenge and Oxford. Stustand the benefits of working dents will be able to see West out, they’re more likely to End shows and sports games sign up for the course,” said including soccer and rugby.

Students can take an optional Domenichelli.

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“Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible.”

— Frank Zappa

time teacher?’” said Haynes.

Haynes decided that going into teaching would be better than “getting an entry-level job as a video editor, in my 40s.”

At the time he was mostly interested in video editing and had not thought about becoming a teacher.

He then attended San Francisco State University where he would earn his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in broadcast and media arts.

As a graduate student, he was already working as a lecturer at SFSU and was hired as a faculty lecturer after he graduated.

“I like the hands-on experience in the recording industry that Len Haynes brings to his mass communication class,” said Cindy McGrath, the Communication department at LMC. “I think it’s wonderful when students can learn from someone who has actually lived through it.”

Working as an instructor at three colleges —LMC, SFSU and Santa Rosa Junior College — does not leave Haynes much time to work on his own music.

He finds the most time he can dedicate to creating his own music is during summer and winter breaks.

“My music career takes a back seat to my teaching career,” he said.

Without the heavy time constraints that come with a label, and being able to work on his sound when he wants, Haynes has been finding more enjoyment in music than before.

“Now it’s more fun,” said Haynes. “When I feel like I’m in the mood I’ll get the keyboards out and open up the software and start working on songs.”

If you would like to learn more about Leonard Haynes you can visit his website and if you would like to learn more about his music career, visit his Discogs page.

I’m not here to offer solutions and I’m not badmouthing the District IT either; they didn’t have to do this but they took us into consideration and created this plan to make our campus WiFi better for us. In fact when the WiFi works, it works seamlessly and being able to just walk into the College Complex and just auto connect is nice.

However that doesn’t mean I can’t point out the flaws these plans bring, like an overcomplicated set of instructions tailored specifically for different devices.

Security is an important matter and I understand why we need to do this, but if that’s the case I would rather sign in manually every time using my Insite account rather than face another problem like this next semester.

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trip to Scotland, featuring Loch Ness, the Isle of Skye and the Highlands.

“One of the most stunning places, I can’t possibly imagine not telling you to go,” said Alexander.

For more information contact Alexander at kalexander@ losmedanos.edu or program assistant Harue Takanashi at htakanashi@4cd.edu.

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Joseph Giddings • Experience

Professor Luis Zuniga instructs his UMOJA and Honors music class.

The professor behind the music Staff Writer

The music industry may seem welcoming, but it is difficult to grow past just being a small-time band with a few friends. Many aspiring musicians learn the reality quickly, but those who stick it out have a chance of making a name for themselves. One Los Medanos College professor has turned his dream of working in the music industry into a reality.

Artist and sound engineer Leonard Haynes now teaches mass communications, a GE course that discusses the development of the recording industry.

“Just going and seeing a band play on stage and buying records,”

said Haynes, “really inspired me to become a musician.”

When he started his first band, Anubian Lights, no one in the band knew how to properly record a professional demo. So he took it upon himself to learn, first through books then by taking classes at Los Angeles City College.

“They had a full recording path in courses very much like Los Medanos does,” he said.

Those classes led to an internship at Studio 56 Productions and he was later hired by the company as a second engineer. Hands-on learning also helped his own music, as he was trying to get his band off the ground.

His job involved “setting up the

— Bono

Luis Zuniga takes classes out to the quad

By JOSEPH GIDDINGS

By CHASE WHEELER

“Music can change the world because it can change people.”

sessions, setting up the mics, working with the talent and artists who would come in with their own first engineer,” explained Haynes. “That really helped me learn. When you’re actually kind of thrown in the fire, you have to learn.”

Through his classes and on-thejob training, he was able to become a successful sound engineer and could apply those skills to improve the quality of his band’s music.

A career as an artist in the music industry is anything but stable, but with Haynes’s background in sound engineering, he always had something he could fall back on. It wasn’t until his first band was signed to a record See MUSIC, page 7

Amid a nearly two year absence from in-person, Los Medanos College students are returning back to campus, hoping to regain a sense of normalcy and education, similar to the experiences they had prior to the pandemic. One professor works to fulfill the needs of his students, through unconventional means.

For his UMOJA and Honors music course, Professor Luis Zuniga takes his teaching outdoors, as a way of promoting both safety and comfort, due to the current circumstances.

“I decided to teach this course outside, in an attempt to have all the students together in a ventilated area, in order to provide some peace of mind for the students,” said Zuniga.

Despite the potential risk of the surging Omicron variant, Zuniga believes that students want to return to in-person instruction based upon his own surveys and experiences with students throughout the previous semester. With a class roster of 45, students are quick to interact and engage with Zuniga throughout his 1 hour and 25 minute lecture. The class is held on Mondays outside of the LMC music department building.

“They are really excited that the class is back in-person,” said Zuniga.

Ritci Dicomong, a student in Zuniga’s class, describes how she looks forward to attending the course due to its outdoor setting and Zuniga’s fun style of teaching. She is interested in the world of music, with Zuniga’s class providing a new and interesting experience to the in-person setting.

Zuniga teaches his students about the

history of music as we know it today as well as the underlying function and elements of music as a whole, all the while doing so in a safe and protected manner.

Although such enthusiasm and participation has been demonstrated by his students throughout his courses, Zuniga feels that there may be students who simply prefer to learn through online teaching, leaving the state of learning to be forever changed.

“Staff members need to be aware that different modalities work for certain types of students…we must make the adjustments to provide the classes in the ways that students are more comfortable with taking these courses,” said Zuniga. Ultimately, Zuniga feels that students must evaluate what works best for them.

In addition, Zuniga urges responsibility, accountability and communication among teachers and students regarding their health as a means of ensuring safety for both the students and staff. Through quarantining, vaccinations, social distancing and frequent health checkups, Zungia believes that the safe environment required in order to teach in-person will be maintained.

Throughout the remainder of the semester, as well as the rest of the pandemic, Zungia reminds us to be mindful of the thoughts and feelings of others, as we’re all getting through these difficult times together.

“Everybody is in this pandemic, and this has affected people in many different ways, so being patient and being understanding of other people is key.”

Photo courtesy of Leonard Haynes

Leonard Haynes poses in his studio with his musical equipment

The Reflection Room hidden in the lounge

By MICHAEL BENEDIAN Staff Writer

Michael Benedian • Experience

The Reflection Room features a sink for students to do their prayers and plentiful space for meditation and yoga

The Student Lounge provides a place to hang out and relax after a hard day of college courses, but located inside is a special room that helps others feel more at home. On the second floor of the Student Union building, there is a room hidden in the corner that was made for students to engage in prayer or meditation while they are on campus. This Reflection Room, also known as the Wudu Room, is an example of how LMC’s Student

Life department is striving to make everyone feel welcome.

Wudu is a cleansing ritual key to purity in Islam, which is performed before starting prayer. It’s a process that involves washing hands, mouth, nostrils, arms, face, ears, hair and feet. The Reflection Room provides the necessary washing facilities for this routine, however the room is open for all students of all religions.

Before COVID-19, Student Life took notice of students who would engage in prayers underneath staircases and

wanted to create a room for them to help them feel more included.

Teresea Archaga, director of Student Life, said that if it weren’t for their advocacy, this room wouldn’t exist.

During the construction of the Student Union building, Student Life requested the inclusion of a room to give students the privacy they need when praying or meditating.

Jaime Salinas, a Student Life associate, was originally tasked with getting the word out about the Reflection Room.

About three students per week now come in and ask to use the room, who Salinas considers as regulars.

“It’s getting a little more popular,” he said.

This spring semester, Salinas believes that Student Life associates will see more students come into the student lounge and use the room.

For the students currently on campus, they may not know it’s there.

“I didn’t even know this room existed,” Gabriel Perez See WUDU, page 7