Richland Chronicle May 10 2016

Richland

CHRONICLE Vol. XLII Issue 29 May 10, 2016

That’s a wrap, Thunderducks.

See you in the fall!

www.richlandstudentmedia.com

Richland Student Media

@RLCStudentMedia

Richland Student Media

2 CAMPUS

May 10, 2016

To our successors

MARTA PLANELLS /BLANCA REYES Editor-in-chief/Managing Editor

Many of the people who will read these lines know us. They have been, in fact, our indefatigable sparring partners during these months. We have worked hard together during the whole year so every Tuesday, the Thunderducks could read a new issue of the Chronicle.

We simply do not have the words to describe all the things that we learned from you.

We hope that you have learned a little from us and that we have passed on to you the passion that we feel for journalism. If so, we are honored and feel that our job is done.

“Every week we have been surprised by the talent of this team. You are the true editors of this newspaper.”

Sometimes it was hard for us to be the “bosses” and require the best from you guys, because we know that everybody has to make an extra effort to do your job as students and to come work on the paper. We hope that the

experience gave you strength to keep improving and amaze the world with your talent.

During these months, we have tried to convey the respect and passion that we have for journalism. We have tried to show you the toughest sides of this profession, but we have also tried to put you in situations where you will experience the sweetest moments of it.

Many of you have had hard times trying to get out of your comfort zone, sometimes struggling to understand the facts and obtain the data correctly, questioning and crossexamining as many times as necessary. But you have also experienced the satisfaction of receiving an email or a thank-you note after writing a good article. We saw the smiles on your faces.

That happiness was the engine that drove us to give our best every single moment despite illness, fatigue or other responsibilities.

We know that the path that you have walked has not been easy. We have been in that place and, actually, we have the same challenges every day. As journalists, we shouldn’t stop learning and being curious about everything.

Every week we have been surprised by the talent of this team. You are the true editors of this newspaper. Every week you have brought not only the necessary ingredients to cook a good meal but worked hard to actully turn it into a deli. Thank you for all the hard work.

You made our jobs so easy.

Actually, when we have won personal awards for our jobs at the paper, they were

File photo

Part of the Chronicle team during the National College Media Convention held in Austin.

yours, too. Without your help it wouldn’t have been possible for us. So the next time when you see one of those awards, think about them as yours, too.

We know there are some who think that they are not prepared to take the challenge or feel shy to show the world their work. Let us tell you something; everybody starts out like that and the very public way that we learn makes us more prepared for the professional world. You

guys just have to come and give your best and we promise you will be gratified by the results.

To those who are staying, we want to ask you to warn the new members of the family, who we will not have the pleasure to meet, about journalism being an incurable and addictive profession. But it is one that can become among the best things you will do in life and you will love it.

This is Part 3 of a three-part graduation series.

Emeritus kickoff previews summer, fall classes

JOYCE JACKSON Copy Editor

The Emeritus plus 50 “Back-to-School” kickoff April 14 gave students 50 and over a chance to meet some of the instructors teaching summer and fall classes.

Emeritus director Cindy Berry said this was the first time ever in the history of the Dallas County Community College District that credit classes were combined for summer and fall registration, which has been ongoing since April 19.

Berry said if emeritus students have been taking classes this spring or if they took them last fall then they would be eligible to register now for classes this summer or fall.

If students have not taken any classes at Richland for an entire year though, and they want to take a credit class, they will have to go through the entire application process all over again.

That means they would have to fill out an application, do the transcript waiver agreement and sign the form as to why they want to take credit classes, Berry said.

Emeritus classes are geared specifically for seniors, especially the office technology courses. Classes must have at least 10 students

signed up so that core instructors can get paid.

If not, then the class will be canceled.

“Seventy-five percent of all the credit students on Richland’s campus are part-time students and most of them work full time,” Berry said. “We don’t have what they call in academia, ‘traditional students.’ All of our students are nontraditional, but our credit classes are designed for anybody to take.”

For those taking credit classes, they will have to take tests and get a grade on their transcript.

“If you are 65 or over and a resident of Dallas County, then you can take six credit hours and there’s no charge for you to take those two classes,” Berry said.

As far as the noncredit classes, there is a small charge for those, Berry said, but students don’t have to fill out an application or do a transfer waiver agreement – just pay the fee.

Berry said the program is having some really low enrollment in a lot of the classes and she encouraged attendees to suggest the Emeritus website (www.richlandcollege.edu/emeritus) with a variety of classes to their friends, who may be interested in taking one this summer or fall.

Emeritus students do not have to get a meningitis shot to take classes, Berry said, but if they have grandchildren under 20 who are taking credit classes on campus, the

grandchildren will need to get a shot, unless they’re taking 100 percent online classes.

Berry also said the Federal Educational Privacy Right Act law (FERPA) requires colleges to be very careful in maintaining the privacy of students’ personal information.

As a result, Berry said, when emeritus students call the office to sign up for a class, the staff will ask some identifying questions; for example, date of birth and address. Then they will have to send a confirmation email back to the office.

This summer, Senior Source and Richland have partnered to offer four lectures as part of an Enrichment Lecture Series on June 16 and 28, July 13 and 26. The cost is $25.

The lectures in the series will be held at the LeCroy Center on Richland East Drive off Walnut from 1:45 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. They are: “Scams, Fraud and Identity Theft,” “Texas Healthcare 2016: Why Changes are Needed,” “Services Available to Seniors Through the Senior Source” and “Power of Attorney Uses and Abuses.”

At the kickoff, Dara Eason, who is in charge of the Emeritus Volunteer Program, said she is looking for volunteers to help with English practice for Conversation Partners and Reading, the Tutor/Mentor Program and the Reading Enhances Academic Devel-

opment Program (R.E.A.D.).

“The students are just amazing,” she said.

“Each volunteer will have one to three students. It’s a great opportunity to really serve in the community.”

John Drezek runs the Learning Center and is looking for volunteers to do one-on-one tutoring with Richland students in math, accounting, writing, reading, history, government or science for one to two hours each in Medina Hall, Room M216.

For more information about the volunteer opportunities, contact either Eason or Drezek at 972-238-6227 or 3756.

Chris Tucker spoke at the kickoff about one of the most important classes being taught this summer. It’s titled “Supreme Court Decisions That Changed America” on Wednesdays from June 15 to July 6.

Tucker said the Supreme Court ends its term at the end of June, and there are some big decisions on big cases that will be coming down, the most important being the immigration decision, which will decide if the president has authority, on his own, to decide that millions of people living here illegally will not be deported. Tucker will also cover the history of the court and about 20 to 30 very important decisions that have made big differences in American life.

S May 10, 2016

CAMPUS/OPINION 3

Richland wins national award for being green

BLANCA REYES Managing Editor

Richland took first place in RecycleMania this year. It is a national competititon where 309 colleges and universities participated, according to Jerry Owens, assistant director of facilities and head of the recycling program.

He said the competition has different categories like organic and inorganic waste and paper among others. Richland, however, took the biggest award.

“The one we won is the grand champion.

That’s the big one,” Owens said. “That means we recycled 81.2 percent out of our trash.”

Usually, Richland takes first place in Texas, according to Owens. This award, however, is very important because Richland, being a two-year college, out -performed larger fouryear schools like the University of Texas, Baylor, University of Michigan and even

Staff photo Blanca Reyes

Jerry Owens at work in Pecos Hall.

Harvard, according to Owens.

A recycling culture, however, is not new for the Thunderducks. Owens said that since 1995, Richland has been recycling. He remembers that in those days if people wanted to recycle, they had to put a mark on their

door and people could come to get their recycled items.

Now, everybody can recycle in the special green cans located throughout campus.

Despite the success, Owens said it was not easy to win the award. The facilities services and custodial staff were the ones who did the entire job.

According to Owens, they have to go through the trash to separate the recyclable materials.

The plan for next year, however, is totally different, since some students will be helping.

“Next year, we’ll have a lot of students, our green team. They will be more out in the campus observing, telling people ‘Hey! We are RecycleMania; we want you to recycle,’” Owens said.

Owens added that everybody should recycle to try to reverse the damage that our planet has suffered through years and years of excessive pollution.

“If we don’t stop doing the thing that we are doing right now, your grandchildren will have nothing,” Owens said.

In addition to do good for the planet, Owens said, the campus receives money for recycling. That money is used to help programs at the school.

“We actually take that money for stability programs. Nothing comes out from taxpayers’ budgets,” Owens said. “It goes back to the business office.”

Although this year the school received $4,000, Owens remembers that three years ago, they earned $27,000. He said this year has been so busy for him and there were no projects. However, he hopes that next year is going to be much better with the help of the Student Green Team.

For more information about the program and how to be part of it stop by Pecos Hall, Room P157 to talk to Sonia Ford or call her at 972-238-6109.

A call to action ASHLING HAN Staff Writer

Staff photo Ashling Han

A model shows off one of Christopher Sosa’s designs made from recycled materials.

The fashion show “Main+Market” was held at El Centro College on April 29. What amazed me was one series design utilizing used clothes. I think it will be a good way to recycle cloth because the fashion industry is facing ethics problems.

“Who made my clothes?” was a question asked around the world by Fashion Revolution, a non-profit organization on April 17-24.

This is the third year of their movement.

Many people lack awareness of the information about the supply chain of goods coming from foreign countries. The impulsive photos and video showed in my speech class by my classmates really shocked me.

I had heard about the Nike issue before, but it was still hard to imagine the true story behind a big company until I saw the photos and heard what my classmates were concerned about. It made me realize the issues must be much bigger than we think, and I need to do something about it.

Richland philosophy professor Luke Barber said some people pay more to buy fair-trade coffee. That is a moral action for them.

“The reason for that is, in ethics, one principle we can all be sure of, it is wrong to exploit other people. If you drink coffee that is not fair trade you’re exploiting other people,” he said.

One suggestion might be to pressure companies for transparency of their supply chain, being more concerned about other people and support sustainability and eco-aware movements as fashion revolution or fair trade.

Sustainability is an important topic, but, until recently, it has not captured the public’s attention in an impactful way. Think about one pair of jeans. Perhaps it would seem more

important, though, if you witnessed the truth behind the twill: cotton picking, dyeing, weaving, sewing, decorating, stone-washing, packing and transporting.

Each stage of the supply chain takes a toll on a human body. If consumers knew the worker’s names, saw their exhausted faces and realized that they work hard for our lust for fast fashion, they might just rethink their actions.

Clothing is quickly abandoned because it is old fashioned or just because people want something new. Or, just because of “buy one get one free” and other in-store sales. Shopping has become a defining characteristic of Western culture in which we assert that hard work can be rewarded by buying stuff.

But do we really need that much? Does every girl really need a Gucci bag? Based on the past, everything is getting cheaper, faster, more affordable and easier to buy. It can make us less respectful, grateful, wasting more stuff without thinking. Buying and discarding slowly becomes a habit for consumers.

Sustainability is not just respect for the worker. It is a concept for saving our planet by recycling our clothes and other things.

Student Christopher Sosa creatively designed his clothes using old jeans and tops.

They looked very useful, beautiful and fashionable. Another student, Hyoungsuk Lee, used the redecorated black rain boot as a very stylish element in his design. The arrangement of outfits and rain boots, yellow contrasting with black, made the whole design very impressive.

On April 6, the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society fashion show was held in the Richland’s Brazos Gallery. There were two big boxes of clothes that came from different students. The models in the show were asked to match the old clothes in an interesting, new, creative way and wear them in the show.

4 SPORTS/CAMPUS

May 10, 2016

Thunderducks work to overcome difficulties

BLANCA REYES Managing Editor

Richland’s baseball team suffered a temporary setback on April 30, losing a doubleheader to Brookhaven, 5-1 and 10-4.

The Thunderducks are trying to finish the season strong since, at press time, the last games of the regular season were scheduled for May 6 and 7 against Cedar Valley. At press time Richland’s record was 26-22.

“We’ve had a lot of ups and downs. We started it off slow and then we started to play really, really well,” head coach Guy Simmons said.

“Whenever we practice on the field, we give all we’ve got to be ready for a game.”

— Oscar Betancourt The season has been full of obstacles for the Thunderducks. The inclement weather and a couple of injuries contributed to a slow start.

Although the team hasn’t played at its peak in the last few games, the Thunderducks have showed impressive potential before. The only thing they have to do is put everything together, Simmons said.

“Hopefully, we can turn it around,” he said.

Second baseman Oscar Betancourt said the team is doing everything they can when the

Staff photos Blanca Reyes

Pierce Khan hits the ball during a game against Brookhaven College on April 30. Despite their efforts, Richland lost the game.

weather is favorable.

“Whenever we practice on the field, we give all we’ve got to be ready for a game,” Betancourt said.

Shortstop Pierce Khan said that despite the defeats, he feels confident the team will be prepared for the remaining games and the playoffs.

“I think it’s all on our head right now,” Khan said.

Despite the difficulties, Simmons is not worried because he knows that all the teams have had the same problem with the weather.

At this point, all the teams have the same opportunity, he said.

Also, he tries to take one game at a time and not worry excessively about the future.

“We have to win this weekend and then I will

Christian Vandergrift is out in a close play at the plate against Brookhaven.

worry for the region tournament, which will be in a couple weeks ... and if we get in, anything can happen,” Simmons said.

“I feel if we play as a team ... knowing how capable we are, definitely we have a good

chance to get to the national championship,” Betancourt said.

For more information about the results and the schedule visit www.richlandcollege.edu/athletics/ baseball.

Cinco de Mayo celebration Far Left: Dana-Tray McGrath helps a participant get ready to hit the pinata.

Top: Students sample different foods during the celebration.

Bottom: Thunderducks take turns at drawing cultural icons during the celebration.

Staff photos Jorge Gomez

May 10, 2016

CAMPUS 5

‘Boeing’: Footloose and fiancées three JOYCE JACKSON Copy Editor

An outrageous love quadrilateral and a lot of laughter overcame an audience in the Arena Theater April 30 in Richland’s last performance of “Boeing, Boeing” by Marc Camoletti.

Six Richland drama students put on a fantastic show in this two-hour French farce set in the 1960s, where all the action takes place in a young bachelor’s flat in Paris.

Director Gregory Lush told the audience before the play began how proud he and other drama faculty were of this play because everything, from the lighting to the costumes, were entirely designed by the students.

Raied Makhamreh had the delightful role of Bernard, a 20-something American architect working in Paris. Makhamreh was ideal as the tall, dark and handsome Bernard, who was lucky enough to succeed at duping three beautiful, young women into being his fiancées – all at the same time. Only problem?

They didn’t know about each other, so from the first scene, the audience knew they were in for some really good laughs.

Now, to accomplish this preposterous feat, Bernard had a unique scheme going. His fiancées, all three airline hostesses, as they were called in the ‘60s, all worked for different airlines. Beside that, the ladies were from different countries and their first names all began with the letter G: Gloria, Gabriella Staff photos Ashling Han and Gretchen. If there were any single guys Audrey Clark (Gabriella) and Raied Makhamreh (Bernard) in a scene from “Boeing, Boeing.” in the audience without a girlfriend, they were probably drooling over such a convenient scheme.

Much to Camoletti’s credit, all the characters seemed so likable, but what made this production so successful was the sharp contrast among the three actresses playing the fiancées. Not only were their outfits colorful, but their hairstyles and temperaments gave them individuality, based on the country from which they came.

Mieko Hicks played Gloria, a serious New Yorker with a really long ponytail, wearing pastel green – who demanded attention just by her appearance: tall, thin, sophisticated, soft spoken – with an emphasis on “very sexy.” She flew for TWA. Then there was the petite, but highly emotional Gabriella, a long-haired brunette played by Audrey Clark, wearing bright green outfits. She flew for Alitalia. Madison Reye portrayed Bernard’s overbearing German fiancée, Gretchen, who really stood out in bright yellow clothes and short blond hair.

She flew for Lufthansa. Their Italian and German accents added to their individuality.

All three demanded Bernard’s attention every minute they were with him.

Makhamreh was good at portrying BerThe play features Raven Lanuza-Brown as Bertha the maid and Henser Reyes as Robert. nard’s overblown ego. His routine was en-

tirely based on precision – he had the girls’ airline schedules all worked out so when one fiancée left, another arrived within minutes.

But then, Bernard’s friend from Wisconsin, Robert Lambert, came to visit and turned everything upside down.

It didn’t take long before the two of them colluded to keep the fiancées unaware of each other after Bernard explained that, “Fiancées are friendlier than wives,” and Robert found the setup rather appealing.

Henser Reyes was well cast as the softspoken Robert, the complete opposite of Bernard, both in appearance and attitude.

In one scene, Bernard proved he’s a whiz at keeping the fiancées separate by opening a cabinet on the wall where he had airline routes and timetables of each fiancée pasted.

He calls his harem “international romantic bliss.”

Raven Lanuza-Brown was convincing in her role as Bernard’s faithful maid, Bertha, as she tried to keep his lovefest working.

In contrast to the Italian and German fiancées, the audience couldn’t help but laugh as Lanuza-Brown argued throughout the play with Bernard in her broken French accent, complaining about their chaotic household of juggling women and airline timetables.

Her short, black-and-white maid outfit, complete with an apron and white heels, made her role that much more believable. By the end of the play, the audience was probably overjoyed that she got a 40 percent raise from Bernard. Lanuza-Brown was also assistant costume designer.

The second act brought on some turbulence as plot twists became a nosedive. Bernard’s game toppled when the fiancées all converged at his flat on the same time. Between Bernard and Robert, who were in a panic to keep the ladies separated, Bernard confessed, “I’m having a nervous breakdown.”

In one of the final scenes, the fiancées clashed with the two romeos in their feeble attempts to explain their way out of the chaos. The play ended with a surprise.

Gloria admitted she was really engaged to two other men in addition to Bernard, so the joke was on him. There was a guy who was waiting for her at the Acapulco Hilton in Mexico, after making his first million, and still another nameless guy in Los Angeles whom she had to dump, since the grass is greener in Mexico. She would resign her job because she wanted a married life. Gretchen fell in love with Robert – instead of Bernard – while Bernard declared his great love for Gabriella, his favorite.

“Boeing” was just for fun. It was meant to be entertaining and provoke a lot of laughs.

That was definitely the case. In fact, it was such a great performance that the cast received a standing ovation.

6 CAMPUS

May 10, 2016

Some of our favorite pic

Staff photo Blanca Reyes

North Texas suffered devastating tornadoes at the end of 2015. Rowlett was one of the areas that suffered the most damage.

Protesters were present outside of the Ame

Staff photo Blanca Reyes

A young Clinton supporter at the candidate’s Mountain View college visit.

Staff photo Blanca Reyes

Richland College hosted Dallas Soccer Cup games again this year.

Staff pho

The championship ring that the basketball t ceived when they won the national Champi

May 10, 2016

CAMPUS 7

ctures of the school year

Staff photo Blanca Reyes

Texans both young and old enjoyed the state fair again last October.

Staff photo Blanca Reyes

erican Airlines Center when Donald Trump had held a rally there last fall.

Staff photo Blanca Reyes

oto Blanca Reyes

team reionship.

The Richland College Dance Program put on “Americana.�

Staff photo Marta Planells

Student veteran Martin Perez contemplates a tribute paid to vets on campus called The Poppy Project.

May 10, 2016

8 ENTERTAINMENT

Singing at its best PETE SHANNON Staff Writer

Photo by The Associated Press

From left: Anthony Markie, Paul Rudd, Jeremy Renner, Chris Evans, Elizabeth Olsen and Sebastian Stan in “Captain America: Civil War.”

Things to do in the dark this summer RICKY MILLER Entertainment Editor

Summertime means movie time. Here’s my must-see list: 1. “The Nice Guys” -- (May 20) Ryan Gosling’s Holland March, a City of Angels P.I. who crosses paths with Russell Crowe’s muscle-for-hire Jackson Healy, ends up pairing with him when they become allies to find Kim Basinger’s kidnapped daughter. From “Kiss, Kiss Bang” and “Lethal Weapon” writer Shane Black, who is also directing.

Looks like a lot of dumb fun.

2. “Captain America: Civil War” (Now playing) -- This is the tale of allies who become adversaries when a new law regarding superheroes is passed and set in motion.

With Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Anthony Mackie, Elizabeth Olsen and Tom Holland, who is the third incarnation of the web-slinger known as Spider-Man. (I loved it; Grade: A) 3. “Suicide Squad” (Aug. 5) -- After the saga that was “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” comes this DC tale that finds bad guys played by Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Jai Courtney and Joel Kinnaman stirring up trouble for the good guys of Metropolis.

Image courtesy digitaltrends.com

Ryan Gosling, left, and Russell Crowe in a scene from “The Nice Guys.”

4. “Warcraft” (June 10) -- Fantasy fans rejoice. This video-game-based tale looks awesome. Duncan Jones, who did a credible job with both “Moon” and the little– seen “Source Code,” is handling the directing chores on this one.

5. “X-Men: Apocalypse” (May 27) -Director Bryan Singer returns for this superhero saga that finds Oscar Isaac’s Apocalypse as one of the first mutants to make people cower on this planet. With James McAvoy, Olivia Munn, Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender, Hugh Jackman and Evan Peters.

6. “Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates” (July 8) -- Adam Devine (“Pitch Perfect”) and Zac Effron are knucklehead brothers who get hoodwinked by their dates, Aubrey Plaza and Anna Kendrick.

7. “The Neon Demon” (June 24) -Director Nicolas Winding Refn helms this tale of an aspiring model (Elle Fanning) and what she does in her disjointed life. His previous movies “Bronson,” "Drive" and “Only God Forgives” had major flaws but were still very entertaining.

8. “The Founder” (Aug. 5) -- Michael Keaton headlines this slice-of-life tale that centers on Ray Kroc, who turned McDonald’s into a nationwide success story. From John Lee Hancock, who scored big with the baseball saga “The Rookie” in 2002.

9. “Money Monster” (May 13) -George Clooney is a TV personality who gets hijacked on live TV with producer Julia Roberts watching in dismay. Directed by Jodie Foster.

10. “Independence Day: Resurgence” (June 24) -- After years of waiting and planning, the team of Jeff Goldblum and Bill Pullman return for this sequel that finds various characters and identities fighting for their lives once again. Director Roland Emmerich returns as well.

There is a major difference between professional singing and the amateurish yelling that is often mistakenly given its name.

A true singer uses his or her diaphragm to force a controlled stream of air up the windpipe and through the vocal cords, while the entire chest cavity acts as an echo chamber to enhance and give the outbound sound overtones, vibrato, color and resonance. To master this technique requires the maximum exploitation of one's natural anatomy; hours of training, discipline and skill and weeks and months, if not years, of practice.

A diligent professional singer over time develops not only an expanded range easily covering two or more octaves but also an array of tones and dynamics that can smoothly transition between whisper– quiet pianissimo and triple forte. Most have studied several foreign languages and their articulation is clear and understandable.

In my opinion, the majority of today's pop singers are but disguised yellers attired in cowboy boots or tight, sequin-covered, bosom-emphasized dresses. To reach their listeners while they bellow out, they usually need to employ in their left hands a wireless microphone that seems like it's being kissed, while their right hands wave about simulating an absent director keeping errant time to some nameless beat.

In Richland’s Fannin Hall on May 3, the lunchtime recital audience was treated to an octet of true singers. Six smiling sopranos (Angel Hare, Rachel Trevino, Brittany James, Shiori Watashima, Martha Schessler and Maria Belton), a beaming baritone (Brandon Jones) and a titillating tenor (Garrett Dunaway) separately parted the maroon curtains in rapid sequence to each deliver a pair of well-rehearsed songs in a style that amply displayed their knowledge of and dedication to professional singing.

Each was artfully accompanied by one of Richland’s superb faculty pianists, Linda Irwin or Charmian Reap.

It would be difficult to state which of Richland's voice honors students excelled because all were outstanding. They were dressed for success and they enjoyed it.

Their stage presence and mannerisms were lively, expressive and appropriate. Their faces were fresh and their enthusiasm contagious. It was, in short, a melodious, sparkling concert perfectly suited for celebrating a beautiful day in early May.

CAMPUS 9

May 10, 2016

From undocumented to the Wall of Honor “I love Richland. Richland was such an amazing part of my life. When I was 18 and 19, it just opened up my life to so many amazing opportunities. Everybody was so welcoming; I was really involved in the Chronicle,” Cano said Cano’s experiences at Richland and the Chronicle are memorable ones. She was able to participate in the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association, attend journalism conferences and meet friends whom she is still close to. Cano also said her experience at the Chronicle was amazing because she was able to meet Assistant Dean Matt Hinkley, Cindy Moore, her TV adviser, Erica Edwards, also an adviser and now program coordinator of Journalism and Student Media, and Jamee Cox, then the editor-in-chief, who Cano said was like her second mother.

“It was just a really good, close group of people who just are so dedicated to motivating their students,” Cano said.

“Take advantage of all the opportunities that are provided to you. You don’t really understand how valuable time is and how valuable those opportunities are.”

— Cynthia Cano

Staff photo Jorge Gomez

Former Richland student Cynthia Cano’s story and picture are now hanging on the Wall of Honor located on the first floor at Crockett Hall.

AHLAM MARYAM AL MAHROOQ Staff Writer

The transition to college is challenging for most. Being an undocumented student doesn’t make it any easier. Cynthia Cano is a former Richland student who experienced such difficulties, but didn’t let them stop her from pursuing her dream of becoming a journalist.

Cano’s story made it to the Richland Wall of Honor and now serves as an inspiration for her fellow Thunderducks.

Cano works as a reporter for Telemundo, a division of NBC Universal. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in broadcast

journalism from the University of North Texas at Denton in 2011. Cano graduated from Richland with her associate degree in journalism in 2009.

Cano is 26 and moved to Dallas when she was 5. She was born in Mexico City. Cano didn’t think about being an undocumented immigrant or not having legal status in Dallas when she was a child, but when she enrolled in college and started the admission process, it impacted her for six months. When she graduated from high school and enrolled at Richland, she was in the process of getting a work permit and being in the U.S. legally as an authorized worker.

It was hard for her because she said Richland was trying to enroll her as an international

student, which could make her pay tuition rates that could be three times higher than U.S. residents. Cano’s mother was legalized in the country through her work. That is how Cano and her family were able to get their residency.

“It’s been great, I’ve been a resident since 2011. I’ve been able to work. I’ve been able to do everything. It just opens up, you know, the possibilities of travel,” Cano said.

Cano told how hurtful it was when she was a child watching news programs and saw the government fighting against giving the millions of people who were here illegally a chance to come out of the shadows. Cano said that she comes from a community that is resilient and always pushes forward.

Cano was awarded a scholarship from Richland. She registered in the Rising Star Program. The scholarship is designed for Hispanic students, documented or undocumented.

Hilda Della Serra, coordinator of the Rising Star Program, was the person who told Cano about the nomination.

“Take advantage of all the opportunities that are provided to you. You don’t really understand how valuable time is and how valuable those opportunities are,’’ Cano said.

That includes the Rising Star program, she said.

As far as regrets go, Cano said she has none. She has always been somebody who takes a lot of risks. She believes everything is a learning experience.

Cano is planning to continue advancing her career and hopes to be a news anchor within the next two or three years. Although being a reporter is like a dream come true for her, Cano plans to return to school and earn her master’s degree. Since Richland was a stepping stone for her career, she’s planning to become a journalism professor at a community college one day, too.

Cano said it feels amazing to be covering news in the city where she has lived since she was a little girl.

10 OPINION

May 10, 2016

Things are breaking bad

By Abraham Igene

Richland

CHRONICLE STUDENT MEDIA LEADERS Editor-in-Chief Managing Editior Entertainment Editor Copy Editor

Marta Planells Blanca Reyes Ricky Miller Joyce Jackson

ON THE COVER

Phoo illustrarion Blanca Reyes

COVER AND FONTS

Certain cover fonts are provided by the following: www.nymfont.com - www.bvfonts.com

STUDENT MEDIA STAFF Isai Diaz Abraham Igene Quan Tran Ashling Han Pete Shannon

Ahlam M. Al Mahrooq Vanessa Myron Bel Khuu Ryan Bingham Duff

STUDENT MEDIA ADVISERS Erica Edwards

Steve Noviello

Jack Fletcher

Larry Ratliff

David Goodloe

Tim Jones

Karin Matz

New independent’s day coming?

PETE SHANNON Staff Writer

As an independent voter, I am a member of the largest political faction in the country.

That's because in 2008, out of 129 million total voters in the general election, there were in excess of 72 million voters like me who didn’t vote in the primaries and only about 57 million folks who did, according realclearpolitics.com.

With the total number of eligible voters nearing 235 million, there were still another 106 million people out there who didn't bother to show up to cast ballots at all.

And no wonder!

It seems that very few citizens have the stomach to make choosing a president an 18-month process, or to put up with all the deception, exaggerated claims, petty issues, fundraising nonsense and general time-wasting that goes on during this country's quadrennial circus known as the "presidential campaign." At least in this election season there have been clear indications, especially from the political extremes, of deep and growing discontent across the land.

To bring some truly serious issues to the table, especially for independents to chew on, a group of academics, policy wonks, union and business leaders and others are engaged in The Next System Project.

They have examined where our country is compared to other advanced democracies on the planet and found us seriously deficient across more than a score of indicators of national well-being; measures of such things as relative poverty, class inequality, education,

social mobility, health, environment, militarization and more.

Instead of focusing on corporate profits and GDP growth, which are major indicators of our capitalistic success, these folks claim we need to approach our deteriorating situation as a systemic problem requiring basic transformations. Rather than trying to patch and fix the systems we now have, they want to replace many of them completely in a radical, but rational way of applying the scientific principles of systems analysis and design.

The Next System Project began in 2015 with the release of a short public statement outlining the systemic nature of our crisis and petitioning for a national discussion of systemic solutions.

Originally signed by 350 people, more than 7,000 others have added their signatures since then, and 50,000 have viewed an accompanying introductory film. In addition, the organization has sponsored a number of instructive "teach-ins" around the country at colleges and universities, including one led by some architecture graduate students at UT-Arlington only a month ago. The project also released a first report that explains its goals and thinking in greater depth. More than a dozen subsequent reports are in progress. The information can be found at www.thenextsystem.org.

As a retired career systems man myself, I can get excited about such a fresh, non-politicized approach to what we independent voters might unite behind. Rather than wrangling over all the false, party-generated issues of the day, these people seem dedicated to finding practical alternatives to fix the big stuff and calling a halt to an otherwise ongoing and endless cat fight.

My career experience, however, tells me that cooking up ideal new systems is the easiest part of the solution. Figuring out how to smoothly transition from our present systems to any new ones, especially where very large volumes of transactions and huge databases are concerned, is more daunting than living with the way things are now, bad as it may be.

Take our federal tax system, for example.

Many politicos, sensing the intense ire voters have about the IRS, have proposed going to a simplified flat-rate income tax for everybody or even abolishing the income tax entirely and substituting a federal sales tax.

It all sounds good at first, but when you consider the near-disaster of the Obamacare insurance exchange roll-out several years ago, you begin to ask just exactly how converting to a simpler nationwide revenue system would be done. Would it be switched over cold turkey (all at once) on a given date like the Europeans changed to the Euro-dollar in the early 2000s?

Would it be phased in over months the way Texas is converting and merging its auto-licensing and vehicle inspection systems? Perhaps a pilot plan might work best by using a state-bystate approach.

In any event, the Next System Project will be tasked with not just proposing a lot of new piein-the-sky ideas, but with laying out the dirty details of conversion as well. If it succeeds at making even a dent in the thick armor of our sorry status quo, we independent voters may well rally behind it and make our grandchildren proud of our open-minded willingness to dare to try something new. After all, that's what some of our relatives did back in 1776.

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OPINION 11

May 10, 2016

Trump will turn the country around

Upcoming Events Registration for all students continues for both summer and fall.

Thursday 7:30 to 9:30 p.m.

2016 Richland Graduation Ceremony Curtis Culwell Center, Garland

Other dates May 9-12 Final exams May 30 Memorial Day. Campus closed.

Photo by The Associated Press

A Trump supporter holds the “Make America Great Again” hat autographed by Donald Trump at a rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

JOYCE JACKSON Copy Editor

I never thought I’d see the day when I would say America is going downhill, but this country is moving in that direction. I think many Americans believe, as I do, that the federal government has become corrupt under President Barack Obama and his administration.

This semester, I attended five lectures from Richland government professors on the history of presidential elections and voting in the primary and general elections. One of the main points that stood out, according to Dr. Ray Sandoval, involved a situation where the president was of one party and the legislature of another. It’s the reality of what’s happening in the federal government now. Obama is a Democrat and the House and Senate are controlled

by Republicans. The fact is, it has resulted in no compromise – it’s a stalemate between Obama and Congress.

This ongoing conflict started with Obama’s inauguration in 2008 and as time went on, we saw his arrogance and narcissism escalate, along with the number of executive orders.

Now, it has reached a breaking point. Nothing gets done. Compromise has become a thing of the past. Democrats have moved to the far left and Republicans have moved to the far right.

Some of us believe that we, the American citizens, come last on Obama’s list of priorities. It seems as if those who have crossed our borders illegally, including criminals and drug dealers, take priority. They’re invading our country only to disappear into society. Some are getting benefits, driver’s licenses and other assistances we don’t even know about. With the extreme danger of attacks from extremists

practicing radical Islam, why is our federal government allowing Syrian refugees to come here when there might be embedded terrorists with them who would be a danger to society? Isn’t a president’s main job to protect the country and its people?

While Obama glosses over these issues, the voters are now taking a stand against an overbearing federal government working against them. The radical left is taking over the country, spewing hatred, criticizing and attacking anyone who disagrees with them. Not only that, but much of a biased national media industry is on their side.

So, no one should wonder why Donald Trump is the sole remaining Republican presidential candidate. The answer is simple. The American people are completely fed up with Obama, this political correctness nonsense and the way it’s bringing down America. They feel as if their freedoms are constantly being threatened.

There used to be a time when “nice guys” like John McCain and Mitt Romney could win the presidency, but those days are gone. Nice guys can’t win anymore because we are now a nation in crisis. It’s why Jeb Bush and John Kasich didn’t get anywhere – they’re wimps, just like most of the other candidates.

What the American people want is a strong leader, someone who sees how the hard-working taxpayers are being ripped off financially by this administration – and they want someone who is going to actually do something about it. It’s why voters are supporting Trump.

When he says “we have stupid and incompetent leaders,” he is absolutely right.

What is astounding to me is why protesters are attacking Trump when he’s just acknowledging that our country is a disaster. He’s

speaking the truth. Instead, they ought to be protesting the state of our country in front of the White House. If Trump should happen to win in November, he’ll really upset the applecart in D.C. and might even prosecute a few people when he finds out how much corruption is going on, especially over the Benghazi tragedy.

I like Trump because he’s standing up for America and its citizens. When he says, “I’ll make America great again,” I believe he has the determination to do it. Trump will do no worse than any other president, and soon the Republican Party will unite around him. If he is elected president, Trump has the most to lose – his reputation. He’s the leader we need – as compared to a visionary like Obama, whose Utopian ideas for America are delusional.

Trump, at 69, has been successful his entire life in the business world and will do well in creating jobs, which is what our country really needs. He’s hired people, written paychecks and can negotiate, so he is qualified to handle large sums of money and deal with people, including world leaders. His qualifications seem ideal for our country. I don’t mind if he’s a little off-color now and then, but the fact is we need a leader who can work with Congress to get something done, like shoring up our failing infrastructure, addressing Medicare, Social Security and comprehensive immigration reform, among others.

I cannot see Hillary Clinton winning this election. She has nothing to offer except more of Obama’s far-left policies. Nothing will change. She will drive us further into debt, and we will be more overwhelmed with those coming here illegally, dishing out more entitlements, when we’re already almost $20 trillion in debt.

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May 10, 2016

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