Demise of SAT, ACT confuses college-bound students
By Ariana Noble Mosaic staff writer
COVID-19 has taken a big toll on students’ education and rites of passage, especially for high school students planning for college.The traditionally important SAT and ACT tests required for getting into college were cancelled in May, leaving students confused and worried about the changing application process.
Around the United States, many colleges have decided to make these tests optional. They have also eliminated the SAT essay section for all future applications.
“They partly made this decision because many students weren’t able to have access to taking these tests,” said Pam Miracle, an independent college admissions officer and affiliate consultant with Compass to College. She said this decision was made for many reasons.
“We are navigating uncharted territory,” Miracle said. Schools, especially UCs, she explained, have been moving toward the decision to eliminate SATs and ACTs for years now in order to level the playing field for all students.
Miracle said that instead of focusing on these tests, colleges will accept students based on their essays, extracurricular activities, and grade point averages.
UC Santa Cruz Associate Vice Chancellor of Enrollment Management Michelle Whittingham said UC Santa Cruz has moved to test
Affirmative action: Students see their future hanging on fall vote
By Tara Nguyen Mosaic staff writer
Hugo Marquez, a 2020 graduate of James Lick High School, is heading to college with big aspirations, hoping to become mayor of San Jose one day.
As he looks forward to starting at UC Davis this fall, he’s keeping an eye on a possible state constitutional amendment on affirmative action that he believes could open doors for people of color.
“I’m excited to some extent, because there needs to be a greater representation of people of color because, disproportionately, Latinos and African American people have been underrepresented,” Marquez said.
In November, California voters will be asked whether to repeal Proposition 209, which banned affirmative action in California more than two decades ago. Assembly Constitutional Amendment 5, known as ACA 5, was approved by the state Legislature in June. Now voters will decide if race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin may be considered in
optional for the next two years, and then it will move to test-blind, which means students may attach their scores to their applications but they will not be used to determine whether a student is accepted into the university.
One question that many wonder about is: Will submitting an SAT/ACT score with an application increase your chance of getting accepted over someone who didn’t? No, it won’t, Whittingham said. A test score would be considered as “value-added information in the selection process.”
There are 13 other points colleges consider when accepting students under comprehensive review. They include grade point average, number of AP classes a student has passed, and special achievements such as awards or internships.
In the meantime, University of California administrators are exploring creating a new test for incoming students that will reflect skills students should have mastered before attending a UC. The goal is to have this test ready by 2021 fall applications.
university admissions, public employment and contracting. Students are watching closely to see how it could affect them.
Mindy Tuong, a Vietnamese American rising junior at San Jose’s Silver Creek High School, supports a repeal of the ban on affirmative action.
“When you see Prop. 209, it makes you think that they take gender and race out of their consideration, which is a good thing,” said Mindy, who hopes to attend UC Santa Barbara.
“However, you can also see the unintended (negative) effect. It allowed people of color and women to be met with more inequality” when some race- or gender-specific programs were eliminated by public organizations, she said.
Amaris Albini, a Latina at Overfelt High School in San Jose, says that students of color often face additional hurdles beyond what affirmative action would help counter.
“Prop. 209 employed color blindness that allowed people of color to fall through the cracks,” said Amaris, a rising junior who wants to attend UCLA. “It didn’t take into account that many people of color have had the cards stacked against them their entire lives.”
Zahra Ali, a Pakistani American attending San Jose State University, said repealing Proposition 209 is just the beginning of what needs to be done to reach a level playing field.
“I wish there was more reparations to communities that were disadvantaged,” said Ali, a sophomore who’s majoring in global studies.
There are many different opinions and perspectives about the changing application requirements.
Melissa Nelson, an upcoming senior at Lincoln High School, said she sees both pros and cons of flexible test scores. One pro, she said, is that students who have test anxiety and don’t perform well on tests will have the opportunity to shine through their essays and other requirements.
One con is that students might feel added pressure to participate in extracurricular activities for their application, Nelson said.
Kassidy Moreno, an upcoming senior at Archbishop Mitty High School, feels that a huge weight has been lifted off her shoulders now that her dream schools don’t require SAT scores. “I studied for months through a paid study class with some of my classmates and I didn’t learn anything.”
Claire Kolling, a former high school teacher and SAT tutor, believes the tests give students a false sense of unworthiness.
“SAT scores don’t define a student’s intelligence,” Kolling said. She said that she has seen students have panic attacks, crying episodes, and bouts of depression over studying for the SAT. The future of college acceptance standards is still very much up in the air, and it will probably take years to work it all out. “Education is a business, and sadly, it’s not changing anytime soon,” Kolling said. Ariana Noble is a rising senior at Lincoln High School in San Jose.
Despite the support that ACA 5 is receiving from some people of color, there are some mixed reactions among Asian Americans.
Assemblyman Kansen Chu — who represents portions of North San Jose, Milpitas, Santa Clara, Fremont and Newark — was quoted in a Chinese-language newspaper earlier this month as saying “many Hispanic and African ethnic groups are unable to compete or have the ability to continue their studies due to unresolved structural economic and educational problems.”
In response, Silicon Valley civil rights activists called for Chu’s resignation. In a written statement, Chu denied making the comments and said the English translation provided by the San Jose-Silicon Valley NAACP was inaccurate.
During the legislative debate on ACA 5, Assemblyman Evan Low of Campbell said that he had received thousands of calls from constituents and that only a fraction of them were in favor of the measure. Low said that many of those who were against it questioned his identity and said he was betraying the Asian community by voting for the measure.
“I stand you with significant mixed emotion of sadness and of conflict. It does come with political peril, but I did not run for office for self-preservation,” Low said on a YouTube clip of his Assembly remarks.. He later voted in favor of ACA 5.
Tara Nguyen is a rising junior at Silver Creek High School in San Jose.
The Mosaic
Coming out to their parents is fraught with danger for LGBTQ+
teens
By Cassandra Rosales Mosaic staff writer
Maria, 15, of San Jose is having a hard time coming out to her parents. It is a scary feeling, and she is not sure if she is ready to do it yet. Maria, who is a lesbian, has been out to her friends since the sixth grade. Now, she is waiting for the right time — if there is one — to tell her parents.
Maria says that her parents are homophobic. She fears that if she told them, they would reject her or kick her out.
For LGBTQ+ teens, coming out to their parents is fraught with danger. If they hear their parents make unpleasant remarks on the LGBTQ+ community, they struggle with the fear of being abandoned by their own families.
Even if their parents have said that they are tolerant, it confuses some teens who have also picked up conflicting signals from them.
“Teens who are coming out may fear that their loved ones will not embrace their identity or understand who they are,” said Rebecca Reed, a therapist at The LGBTQ+ Youth Space in San Jose.
Because it can be scary coming out to someone whose views you don’t know, LGBTQ+ teens confide most in other LGBTQ+ teens. Nationally, around 93% of them are out to their LGBTQ+ friends, while only 68% are
Excerpts from stories written by students in the 2020 Mosaic high school journalism program. For the complete stories and more articles, visit www.mosaicjournalism.org.
out to their parents, according to The Trevor Project’s 2019 National Survey on LGBTQ+ Mental Health.
Teens who are not out to their parents often aren’t able to talk to them about the problems they face. Only 31% of these teens say there is an adult in their family they can talk to when they’re sad, versus 63% of teens who are out to their families, according to the Human Rights Campaign’s 2012 National Coming Out Day Report.
Maria’s parents make harsh comments on the LGBTQ+ community.
“They say rude comments like ‘oh gross’ or ‘they’re not supposed to dress like that,’” Maria said.
Maria worries that if she comes out, her parents will not love her anymore.
To protect their privacy, Mosaic is not using the real names of any of the teenagers interviewed for this story.
Like Maria, Rubi, a 15-year-old pansexual from San Jose, is not out to her parents, who are Roman Catholic. Her mom has told her she would not support any of her children if they were LGBTQ+ because it goes against her religion. Rubi fears that if she is open about her sexuality, her parents will try to convert her.
Some parents may bluntly show that they are homophobic, while others give mixed signals or none at all.
Kai, a 15-year-old transgender boy from San Jose, came out to his family three weeks ago. They were talking about quarantine, friendships, and what ifs. When he started asking what if questions about changing his body and name, his parents caught on to what he was trying to say.
His parents said they were supportive of him, but they also gave mixed signals. Kai’s
mom said that she would not pay for his transition. This hurt Kai. He was a sobbing mess by this point.
His family comforted him.
“My dad hugged me and my brother and mom told me it was OK and to just breathe. They made it easier, because I felt like I was drowning in my own fear of rejection,” Kai said.
Still, Kai said he wasn’t sure how his mom or dad felt. He said his dad didn’t look at Kai. His mom had unreadable facial expressions.
“Often, parents have to go through their own grieving process due to losing who they expected their child to be,” Reed said.
Flor, a 15-year-old bisexual from San Jose, is not out to her parents because she does not know where they stand. They push gender norms on her, but they don’t insist on them. Flor’s mom tells her to wear dresses because she is a girl, but doesn’t order her.
“My parents are weird. It’s like they care but they also don’t care, which makes it harder for me to come out,” Flor said. She is out to her older sister. Her sister had assured her in the past that whether she liked guys or girls, she would be supportive. It was still scary to come out to her.
“I was nervous, that was for sure. I felt like my face was scrunching up, but I don’t really remember. I was fiddling with my earbuds out of the nerves,” Flor said.
It was a relief to Flor that her sister was genuinely happy for her.
In the end, that’s what all LGBTQ+ teens want, Reed said.
“All people want to be accepted and loved for exactly who they are.”
Cassandra Rosales is a rising sophomore at Cristo
Rey San José Jesuit High School.
San Jose Teen Urban Journalism Workshop SUMMER 2020
LGBTQ teens often hide their identity from their parents for fear of rejection.
CASSANDRA ROSALES STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Mosaic Students
ANDREA SALDANA
Andrea Saldana, a 2020 graduate of Lincoln High School, will attend San Jose State in the fall, where she will major in journalism. Journalism gives her an outlet to become more involved with low-income Hispanic communities.
Her greatest accomplishment has been her work published in the Mercury News, a report about San Jose’s Washington community during the pandemic.
Saldana enjoys dancing. She has joined the competitive San Jose State jazz dance team, Spectrum.
She also loves to garden in her community garden plot, competes in water polo, works as a lifeguard and swim instructor for children, and loves to read. Saldana’s favorite author is Cassandra Clare, who wrote “The Mortal Instruments.”
— Litzy Paul
ARIANA NOBLE
Ariana Noble, a rising senior at Lincoln High School, loves journalism. When she’s not writing for her school newspaper, she’s going to concerts and protesting for human rights. Recently she went to a Black Lives Matter protest to fight for human rights for Black people.
In ninth grade, she switched from Campbell Christian, a private school, to Lincoln, a public school. She said that the move to public school made her more open minded. She started to be more informed on LGBTQ issues and even about different cultures.
Ariana hopes to go to college and further her knowledge in journalism.
CASSANDRA ROSALES
Cassandra Rosales is an upcoming sophomore at Cristo Rey High School. She is chasing two dreams. One is to become an art therapist. The other is journalism.
She enjoys fangirling over pop bands like Five Seconds of Summer, One Direction and BTS. She also paints still-life flowers, and watches movies and shows on Netflix.
Born in December, her favorite holidays are Christmas and New Years because her birthday makes the festivities more fun.
Cassandra is Mexican and Salvadoran. During the holidays her family makes Salvadoran food such as pupusas and pastelitos. She enjoys being cozy, comfortable and warm inside her own home
- Paola Herrera
GENEVIEVE GONZALES
Genevieve Gonzales is a rising senior at San Jose High School. Born in Zamboanga City, the Philippines, she lived in Chicago for two years, eventually moving to San Jose in 2010.
Genevieve, who loves to travel, has been to four countries, although she dislikes being on planes, boats, and other modes of transportation. Her favorite thing about California is the sunny, calm weather. Genevieve has a deep love for animals, which led her to decide to go vegan with her family earlier this year. Her dream schools are UCLA or UC Berkeley, where she is thinking of majoring in engineering.
— Sofía Pérez
JESSICA REIMANN
Born and raised in San Jose, Jessica Reimann recently graduated from Silver Creek High School and will soon begin her freshman year at San Jose State as a marine biology major.
Reimann is an avid comic book reader and collector. She is fascinated by vintage toys. She loves to bake and decorate cakes. She has recently dabbled in ink-making and becoming a penpal.
She worked as a copy editor for her school newspaper, the Raider Review, and has written an article for the state Parent Teacher Association. Her Mosaic story about how seniors are celebrating the end of high school appeared on the Mosaic and Mercury News websites.
— Vanessa Gudino
JIWOO KIM
Jiwoo Kim moved here from South Korea in her freshman year, and she is now a rising senior at Silver Creek High School. Frequent moves taught Jiwoo to value culture and diversity and to make the best of the given circumstances. Jiwoo has pursued her interests in poetry, theater, graphic design, video editing and environmental activism. She also has worked as a writer, web designer and social media lead editor for her school paper.
Jiwoo enjoys volunteering at literary organizations, participating in art projects, watching Korean films and taking walks with her dog. She wants to continue exploring the fields of English and communications in college. — Tara Nguyen
MAYLINE RUIZ
Mayline Ruiz is an upcoming junior at DCP El Primero. She is the youngest of four and considers herself an introvert.
A concert fanatic, Ruiz has gone to great lengths to see her favorite artists, from camping out overnight, to waiting in the hot sun for hours to secure a spot at the front of a line. She has realized that she enjoys reading and writing more than math and science. She enjoys voicing her opinions in her writing and having the ability to show the reality of worldwide and local situations through a story.
— Ariana Noble
Paola enjoys listening to ’70s and ’80s rock bands such as Led Zeppelin and Queen.
COVID-19 pandemic, Black Lives Matter weigh heavily on San Jose
By Jiwoo Kim Mosaic staff writer
“I feel overwhelmed. It is really hard to focus on myself because what is happening is so big in history.”
Mackenzie Moek, a 16-year-old rising junior at Silver Creek High School, is not alone in feeling the weight of current issues. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter Movement, Generation Z teenagers have grown up through a number of life-changing events.
“We were born after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, we grew up in recession, we’re facing one now, we had to face college debt, school shootings, climate change, now the pandemic and the social unrest, and we have so many worries as teenagers,” said Randy Do, an 18-year-old 2020 graduate of Silver Creek.
Vicky Vo, a 16-year-old rising senior at Silver Creek, remembers hearing about the Michael Brown and 2014 Ferguson protests vividly as a child.
“I was in elementary school and I would read news on Tumblr and Twitter, although that may not be the best thing a child should have access to,” Vicky said.
Emily Zavala, a licensed clinical social worker who works at the Student Support Center at
Pets and the pandemic
By Genevieve Gonzales Mosaic staff writer
Before the pandemic, Maggie Oyamot and her family were uneasy about adopting a pet due to their swamped schedules.
But now that the COVID-19 pandemic is leaving them with more time on their hands, they adopted Rocket, a 4-month-old pit bull Labrador mix, from the Humane Society Silicon Valley in late April.
“We’ll take him on walks, try to play fetch, work on some training, and my favorite, cuddle with him while he’s napping,” Maggie said. The Oyamot family is one of many families who have adopted a pet during the pandemic. Each family has their own experience of why they decided to adopt a pet amid the global health crisis.
Shelters remain closed, but they have been holding pet adoptions virtually. San Jose Animal Care Center is making sure there is enough time in between appointments and that appointments are staggered, said Julie St. Gregory, a spokesperson for the shelter.
The shelter staff did not notice any significant changes to the number of pet adoptions, but they saw a decrease in animals coming to the shelter.
“Less pets are coming in probably because people aren’t driving around finding lost pets,” St. Gregory said.
Silver Creek, emphasized the need for young adults to look after their mental health.
“Anxiety and depression are being diagnosed at higher rates than ever before in this generation,” she said. “I think it’s just essential that mental health is part of the conversation because so many kids are struggling with anxiety or depression or both.”
Zavala added that having to shelter in place has taken a further toll.
“Being isolated and being home with their family exacerbated mental health issues that were already present,” Zavala said.
Vicky has had an especially hard time as a self-described “full-hearted extrovert” diagnosed with bipolar disorder, anxiety, and depression.
“A lot of what I depend on is social interaction. It’s really hard to feel connected to people if they’re not in person with you and you don’t see them as constant reminders,” she said.
On top of the anxieties brought on by having to quarantine, Mackenzie said the Black Lives Matter protests across the country have led to uncomfortable confrontations with family.
“We were watching the protests on TV, and I told my sister I wanted to go and experience it, fight for what’s right,” she said. “When that turned into a whole argument, I became upset because I thought my sister would always be on the same side with me.”
But Vicky believes the moment has shown how powerful teenagers can be.
“People sometimes underestimate how much communication and awareness is spread in our generation. Just look at the protests. So many of them are started by young teenagers,” she said. “We just all have a power to do something right now.”
Zavala commends students’ activism, but also advises them to “disconnect from the media, and take some space to do things that are grounding.” She recommends guided meditation practices on smartphone apps such as Insight Timer, Calm, and Headspace. She also highlighted the 741-741 crisis line students can text to get in touch with a counselor at any hour.
“This is not something that even the adults in your life have lived through. It’s a big deal,” she said. “So don’t underestimate the feelings you are walking through.”
Students have listed various ways they spend time to take their minds off of disturbing news, including having lighter conversations with friends and family, playing games, drawing, doing cross stitch, watching Netflix, and journaling.
“It’s nice to know that there are still comforts within this chaos,” Randy said.
Jiwoo Kim is a rising senior at Silver Creek High School.
To see more work by Summer 2020 students, go to WWW.MOSAICJOURNALISM.ORG
said, adding her brother was successful.
“The family treats Remmy as another child and the family is more united,” she said. “We spoil him a lot, buy him lots of toys and clothes for different occasions, bring him everywhere literally except restaurants and stores that don’t allow animals.”
Anthony Alvarado wanted a companion for his 6-year-old cat, Coco. Anthony’s fiancé chose and reserved Tenten, a Siamese that was rescued at the San Jose Animal Care Center. On June 13, an event was held at the shelter called Kitty Palooza, and Anthony adopted Tenten, who is about 5 months old.
“Coco wasn’t happy. I went to Reno and left them with my brother. When I came back, they started to get along,” said Anthony. “When playing with Tenten, it’s a bit weird because I don’t want any jealousy. So, I treat them equally.”
She added that the pandemic has not restricted people from being able to adopt a pet and that it is never too late to adopt or foster an animal.
“Go online, write the ID number of the pet, and we will email back for appointments,” she said.
Frania Avila saw a social media post from her friend’s boyfriend about a puppy up for adoption. Then she got permission from her parents, and in mid-April, Frania and her family adopted Remmy, a 4-month-old Maltipoo. The pandemic wasn’t the only reason why they adopted a dog.
“I wanted to keep myself busy and for my brother to overcome his fear of dogs,” Frania
Anthony had an easy time with training Tenten. Even though Coco and Tenten have their differences, Anthony continues to learn Tenten’s interests, dislikes, and habits, as he did with Coco for the past six years.
After having Rocket for a month and a half, Maggie said her family had to adjust for the pandemic, which has prevented Rocket from interacting with other pets and people.
“It’s been difficult to socialize him and get him used to things he’ll see a lot more of once we can all go outside again,” Maggie said. “My family and I had to change our regular schedules to accommodate him and all his needs, but it all evens out because he is very, very cute.”
Genevieve Gonzales is a rising senior at San Jose High School.
— Mayline Ruiz
PAOLA HERRERA
Paola Herrera is a rising senior at Latino College Preparatory Academy. She is an Aquarius with a bubbly and positive attitude.
Anthony Alvarado with pet cats Coco and Tenten at his home in San Jose
Photo courtesy of Danny Alvarado
Remote learning exacts heavy toll in student attention
By Mayline Ruiz Mosaic staff writer
When Santa Clara County started sheltering in place, Krystle Khalid, a 34-year-old English teacher in San Jose, suddenly found herself meeting with her students online instead of in the classroom.
In her Zoom room, most of her students at Downtown College Prep El Primero had their cameras off and some were on mute the whole time. It was an awkward situation.
at any day at any hour. But some students didn’t have internet access at home. Others had to share their laptops with their siblings who had online classes at the same time.
Khalid saw her attendance drop to just 10 kids in each class. The school had sent a call saying that virtual Zoom meetings were not mandatory. So some students felt there was no point in attending class. Other students had to go to work to help their families pay their bills. Still others had to take care of their siblings, or they had messed up their sleep schedule and wouldn’t join the class on time.
“I felt like I was talking to a wall,” Khalid said.
And there were other challenges. She went from teaching three to four classes a day for an hour and 30 minutes to teaching one class a day for an hour.
With her instructional time cut down, when students turned in their work, there wasn’t enough time to go over common mistakes and show them how to fix it. She would have to contact each student individually.
There were students who needed more support. She did what she could but it just wasn’t the same as being able to help her students face-to-face. She knew that quarantine was going to increase the inequity that already existed in the schools. Adding to the inequities, not all students could attend online classes. DCP had Chromebooks ready to be picked up by students
Facing death on the frontline
By Paola Herrera Mosaic staff writer
Michelle Genevieve Lemus is a home care provider in Tukwila, Washington, a suburban city near Seattle. She suffers from two diseases that her body couldn’t handle if she caught COVID-19. But even with the risk of getting infected, Lemus continues to help patients.
She’s heard the stories about nurses and paramedics quitting their jobs, for various reasons, rather than face the coronavirus. Lemus said her patients are worth the risk.
“The client has to either find someone else to take care of them or go to the hospital to receive their care,” she said by telephone from home. “It’s like leaving a 2-year-old all by themselves.”
During the pandemic, everyone is trying to keep themselves safe. Keeping a 6-foot distance, wearing gloves, and a mask is required in many places.
didn’t know or trust. Not wanting other people to go through that discomfort, she wanted to give them the freedom of staying in a place of comfort and joy, their homes.
In order to keep working and protect herself and her client, Lemus wears medical masks, scrubs, and gloves. The mother and daughter team have only one patient, who lives near both of them.
She’s a middle-aged woman in Tukwila that has severe sores on her legs. Lemus and her mother wrap and place the woman’s legs into a $10,000 machine that helps with lymphedema, a disease that swells them. Each leg takes an hour and a half with a four-hour break in between.
“I usually work for seven hours but sometimes I work more hours when she needs to go to the bathroom,” Lemus said.
Paola wants to study criminal justice when she gets to college. Her dream schools include UC Santa Cruz, UC Berkeley and UC Santa Barbara.
Paola has struggled with her body image, but she has grown from it. Now she is more confident, and she loves who she is. She keeps a small circle of friends who she can relate to and who can make her happy.
—
Cassandra Rosales
SOFÍA PÉREZ
Sofía Pérez, an incoming junior at Summit Tahoma, was timid until she discovered her passion for writing and storytelling, which pushed her out of her comfort zone and made her more outgoing. She has been in the student council for several years and has published a variety of stories. She was a member of a Women Empowerment Club that she feels deeply connected with.
In Sofía’s spare time, she bakes cinnamon rolls, watches movies on Netflix, and de-stresses by painting. She is family-oriented, and cares about her community.
Sofía hopes to attend college and eventually law school in order to pursue being a good representative for undocumented people.
— Genevieve Gonzales
TARA NGUYEN
Toward the end of the school year, her sophomores started reading parts of Anne Frank’s diary and the “Freedom Writers Diary.” She couldn’t pass the books out in class, so she used Open Source texts and uploaded them on Google Classroom. She had no training in Zoom. She found herself struggling with it because she wasn’t familiar with the app and how to use it to help other students. Teachers such as Tyler Pham, a math teacher, were helping teachers out by making videos on how to use specific apps. Khalid was disappointed that her students would not be able to receive a full education. But she understood that we are living in unknown times. She just wanted to make things work the best she could to help all of her students.
Mayline Ruiz is a rising junior at Downtown College Prep El Primero in San Jose.
Lemus has to be extra cautious when it comes to looking after her health. Since she doesn’t have an immune system strong enough to fight back illnesses and diseases such as COVID, she was left with few choices. She must stay home and collect unemployment benefits, or continue working with extra health precautions.
She has neuromyelitis optica, or NMO, a rare autoimmune disease similar to multiple sclerosis that affects primarily the nerves in the eyes and spinal cord. She also suffers from an unusual form of Marfan syndrome, a genetic disease that affects the body’s tissues and cells and stunts growth. She is 4 feet, 11 inches tall. She has been temporarily paralyzed twice and blinded once, but recovered.
Lemus works with her mother, Ann Lemus, also a credentialed home care provider. Michelle Lemus chose to work in-home care after spending countless hours in a hospital not feeling comfortable with people she
When she isn’t working, her family and fiance try their best to avoid bringing COVID-19 and even ordinary germs into the home.
Lemus shares a one-bedroom apartment with her fiance, Gustavo Herrera, and their female chihuahua-Yorkie dog, Autumn.
“Anybody in health is deemed essential but the reason why I decided not to quit is, one, I had to take a lot of classes to get certified,” Lemus said.
A construction carpenter, Gustavo removes his clothes and puts them in a basket just for him.. Then he takes a shower. After showering, he washes his work clothes and helps Lemus sanitize the apartment.
Before shelter-in-place orders, they had planned to marry in April.
“And if I were to collect unemployment, my client wouldn’t have the freedom to be comfortable in their home.”
Paola Herrera is a rising senior at Latino College Preparatory Academy in San Jose.
With a growing passion for journalism, Tara Nguyen is a rising junior at Silver Creek High School. Tara is often seen as attentive, quiet, or even intimidating before you get to know her, but she describes herself as easy-going and opinionated when given the chance.
Tara is involved in Model UN and Animal Allies club activities at her school. Her hobbies include rock climbing, reading nonfiction books by former journalists, and watching dark comedy and crime movies. Despite being very focused on her future endeavors, Tara always juggles those ambitions with trying her best to live in the present moment. She aspires to pursue writing and studying law.
VANESSA GUDINO
Vanessa Gudino, an incoming senior at Cristo Rey San Jose Jesuit High School, applied to Mosaic after participating in her school’s photography course as a portrait photographer. She is a member of Cristo Rey’s speech and debate team and has competed with the Silicon Valley Urban Debate League at a variety of universities and high schools.
Vanessa lives in San Jose with her parents, two older sisters and her dog. When not practicing her speeches or taking photos, she enjoys catching up on shows, browsing the internet, or listening to bands such as 5 Seconds of Summer. She hopes to study media and theater in college.
— Jessica Reimann
The annual Mosaic journalism summer program offers high school students a two-week intensive course in reporting, writing, blogging and photojournalism. Current and former journalists teach and mentor students in the program, this year run entirely virtually. Find their blogs, links to their complete stories and archives of our previous 26 years at:
www.mosaicjournalism.org
Sponsors:
— Jiwoo Kim
English teacher Krystle Khalid gets used to teaching her students online
PHOTO COURTESY OF KRYSTLE KHALID
COVID-19 complicates struggle to shelter San Jose’s homeless population
By Andrea Saldana Mosaic staff writer
Desarea Richardson wakes up every day around 7 a.m. in her one-room apartment and walks to the restroom with one thing on her mind: She needs to find a job.
Richardson, 27, grew up in the foster-care system and was homeless and sleeping in her car until April. That’s when HomeFirst, a San Jose-based nonprofit that works to prevent homelessness, provided Richardson with transitional housing for six weeks, and she’s been in permanent housing for the past five weeks.
But during the COVID-19 shelter in place, Richardson spends every day applying for jobs and watching television. She isn’t receiving financial support from unemployment and depends on food stamps.
“I like being at work and that’s why it sucks,” Richardson said. “Because of the pandemic, I’m home all day, like there’s nothing to do.”
This has been a strange and terrifying time for unhoused, and recently housed, residents. However, organizations such as HomeFirst are working closely with them to make the process easier. They also have been working closely with the city of San Jose and Santa Clara County during the pandemic to provide homeless people safety and health assistance. But it hasn’t been easy for them either. HomeFirst made many accommodations be-
Libraries shift focus under COVID-19
By Sofía Pérez Mosaic staff writer
For more than a decade, Aracely Garcia’s work days have been filled with books, library patrons and co-workers. That changed overnight with the shelter-in-place order.
“We closed the building but we still were responsible for doing work at home,” said Garcia, a library assistant at the San Jose Public Library’s Santa Teresa branch. Working at home meant attending staff meetings, taking online training and completing performance reviews instead of overseeing employees and processing materials for patrons.
Garcia, 46, returned to work June 15, but it’s not business as usual. The library isn’t open to the public yet, but Garcia and her co-workers have been processing returns, and sorting and shelving books.
However, Garcia, who has worked for the library for 14 years, is concerned about health and safety. “Working in a public building, you get everyone, any walk of life in that building,” the San Jose resident said. “I was nervous just going into work.”
Meanwhile, the library is continuing to offer public services such as its summer reading
cause of COVID-19 regulations. That included reducing its number of beds, cleaning facilities seven to eight times a day, and installing expensive UV sanitizing lights.
According to HomeFirst CEO Andrea Urton, the county has screened more than 3,000 homeless individuals and has placed 1,550 of them in shelters.
“When they walk into a home they feel more warm and respected and are more likely to stay.”
Hotels and motels are being used as shelters, and HomeFirst has also opened new shelters at South Hall, the big tent at the convention center; Parkside Hall adjacent to the Tech Interactive; and Camden Community Center.
When someone moves into permanent housing an effort is made to make them feel welcome. The Annex Ladies of HomeFirst, a volunteer group of 10 women and one man, take care of new apartment kits. A case manager emails them the client’s information and interests, and from there the Annex Ladies create the kits and furnish the home with pots, pans, bed sheets and other household essentials.
“This way, we want people to come into a home and not a house,” Urton said.
Linda Mock, who recently turned 66, has been sheltered by HomeFirst for almost two years. She and her 42-year-old son were left
to fend for themselves after their landlord sold the apartment they rented. An attempt to make a deal with a different landlord through Craigslist ended up being a scam that cost the mother and son $5,000.
Mock stayed one night at a time at HomeFirst’s Boccardo Reception Center, until she became a volunteer who cleaned the reception center’s lobby. That earned her a bed every night until she was directed to permanent housing by HomeFirst’s Rapid Rehousing Program.
“They have helped me quite consistently considerably trying to get my life back together again,” said Mock, who lives in a home with five other people. As house manager, she maintains the peace within the household and provides help in any way that she can.
And for job-seekers like Richardson, COVID-19 has made things even more difficult.
“Even places like Amazon are doing on the spot interviews, but it’s so far,” she said.
Richardson wants steady income from a job so she can pay her portion of the rent. And once she is settled in her new apartment for 60 days, she plans to file for joint custody of her 8-year-old daughter.
“It breaks my heart, but I got to keep strong,” said Richardson, her eyes beginning to water, “I have faith and I’m not going to give up and I’m going to get her back.”
Andrea Saldana is a 2020 graduate of Abraham Lincoln High School and will be a freshman at San Jose State University in the fall.
program, online storytimes, and online arts and crafts classes.
One big change is that the library is using its equipment in a new way to help during the pandemic.
“We have 3D printers at each branch,” Garcia said. “What the staff did was they created a 3D printer farm at one of the branches and they created face shields with the 3D printers and they created face shields and face masks.”
South Bay students find supportive community in local debate league
By Vanessa Guidino Mosaic staff writer
On the surface, the Silicon Valley Urban Debate League is an organization that teaches students about public speaking, leadership and political affairs. But beneath the official training and activities there are many other benefits, including providing mentorship, emotional support and a sense of community to many lower-income South Bay students.
Founded in 2014, SVUDL comprises12 high schools with a total of 500 students. Silver Creek, Downtown College Prep El Primero, and Yerba Buena high schools are all members of the league. SVUDL is one of 21 leagues in the country that are part of the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues.
Each school has its own club and coach. Clubs meet weekly to discuss the year’s debate topic, write speeches and practice delivering them in front of the group. Students get to show off their debate skills in multiple tournaments hosted by nearby high schools and colleges throughout the year.
Rachel Stattion, a recent graduate of Cristo Rey San Jose Jesuit High School, said that before she joined her school’s debate team, she looked for ways to improve her social skills. When faced with public speaking and presenting herself, she said she always felt an immense anxiety bubble up inside of her.
Through SVUDL, Stattion has met many people and experienced many different social interactions, which she said made her feel more at ease and improved her speaking skills.
“I love my team,” she said with a smile. “Everyone’s great, we have friends from every school who come together and talk.”
This sense of community doesn’t stop with the students. Lucia Hernandez, who joined SVUDL last year as head coach, connects with her students outside of debate functions and tries to be there for them as people.
Recently, Hernandez went on a picnic in a local park with some members of her team. She also marched alongside some of them in the Black Lives Matter protest in downtown San Jose.
“I do benefit as much as the students,” Hernandez said. “It’s great seeing students grow, find their voice, think critically and contribute to their community.”
Friendships and community are just one aspect of the debate league’s benefits. Students also develop professional skills and expand their interests through field trips to such organizations as the Tesla factory in Fremont and the Law Foundation of Silicon Valley.
Jude Gadingan, a rising senior at Silver Creek High School, shared how much he has
grown during his time as part of SVUDL.
“I’ve become more of an activist than I ever have in my life,” Gadingan said. “It wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for SVUDL teaching me how to engage in politics properly.”
Gadingan said he is grateful for these experiences because not only was he able to get a taste of what it is like to be in law, but he was also able to polish his professional presence. After spending a whole year learning about the nuts and bolts of debate, educating themselves about this year’s topic of gun reform and getting the chance to debate the topic in public, debaters are now starting to prepare for the 2020-21 season.
The first tournament of the school year, which will focus on the topic of criminal justice reform, will take place in September. Students are already gearing up to create the most impactful cases they can.
Vanessa Guidino is a rising senior at Cristo Rey San José Jesuit High School.
SJSU engineering student frustrated by job search during COVID-19
By Jessica Reimann Mosaic staff writer
look for a job, the entire market seemed to fall apart in front of him.
The library donated thousands of masks and face shields to a number of hospitals and nursing homes in San Jose.
Garcia said the library is still making a difference and serving the community.
“Even though we were closed, they were able to utilize library equipment to benefit other people,” she said proudly.
Sofía Pérez is a rising junior at Summit Tahoma High School in San Jose.
Asif Maner, a 26-year-old San Jose State student set to graduate with a master’s degree in engineering in December, pulls up his browser each day and clicks on a few familiar websites. He checks online hiring databases such as Indeed or Glassdoor for new open positions in business analysis, his preferred field, as any student might during a break between semesters.
This has been his routine since before the coronavirus pandemic caused countrywide lockdowns, but being quarantined has led to new complications in the job-searching landscape. After Maner just seriously started to
One challenge is that people such as Maner entering the job market have to compete with workers freshly laid off during quarantine.
He said the few companies that respond to job-seekers often forgo follow-up interviews.
“Everyone’s opportunities are cancelled right now,” Maner said. “I called this company back for an interview, and they told me they were closing down.”
While Maner is financially stable, he is still frustrated by the unexpected difficulty in his search. Connections on LinkedIn or Handshake, a job-hunting site for college students, only go so far, though getting in contact with alumni is extremely useful for finding opportu-
nities, he said. The problem is that some companies can’t decide whether they even want to hire new employees — and it is rarely clear from the applicant’s side of the screen.
“Many of these websites have listings that are fake,” Maner said. “There are jobs listed as open, but they don’t call back. They’re from before lockdowns or layoffs, and they won’t respond to being contacted.”
But despite the fake listings, dropped interviews, and suddenly closed businesses, Maner continues his search — while hiking and swimming in between — during the summer months.
Jessica Reimann recently graduated from Silver Creek High School and will
attend San Jose State University as a marine biology major.
Aracely Garcia stays busy with many tasks, including reshelving returned books.
PHOTO COURTESY OF ARACELY GARCIA
Members of SVUDL pose during a training camp, summer 2019
