WEEKEND EDITION
INSIDE SCOOP
COMMENTARY
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FEBRUARY 16-17, 2008
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Volume 7 Issue 83
Santa Monica Daily Press PUDDING HEAD SEE PAGE 19
Since 2001: A news odyssey
THE REACHING OUT TO MALIBU ISSUE
SMC may be returning to Malibu BY MELODY HANATANI I Daily Press Staff Writer MALIBU After a more than 20-year-absence, Santa Monica College’s presence could once again be felt in Malibu. College officials are currently in negotiations with county officials to purchase the former sheriff ’s station at the Malibu Civic Center to serve as a satellite campus, housing anywhere between eight to 10 classrooms. The Santa Monica College Community College District encompasses the same area as the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District but there have been minimal to no programs in the city since they were discontinued in the
early 1980s because of funding shortages. The only courses offered in Malibu are through the emeritus program, which does not offer any credits, according to Don Girard, the senior director of government relations and institutional communications at SMC. Malibu and college officials have expressed a desire to bring programs back to the community, filling the junior college void that has existed there for two decades. It’s a measure that many advocates supporting the expansion believe will help lessen traffic along the Pacific Coast Highway, cutting the number of students that commute to Santa Monica from Malibu. “The two greatest inventions of civic government in the
United States in America is the supreme court and the community college,” Malibu City Councilmember Ken Kearsley said on Friday. “It’s a situation that helps the working-class children and gives people an opportunity to take night classes to be able to better themselves.” “The city of Malibu does not have all billionaires,” Kearsley, a retired Santa Monica High School teacher, said. “There’s a lot of people in this city who can’t afford to send their children or themselves to an $800 a unit university.” The acquisition of the site will be funded using Measure SEE SMC PAGE 14
Ready for the big time Samohi girl’s basketball team takes winning streak into CIF-SS Division II AA playoffs BY JON HABER Special to the Daily Press
SANTA MONICA The No. 3 seeded Ocean League champion Santa Monica High School girls basketball team (22-4, 9-1) looks to extend its season-high nine-game win streak Saturday against Redlands East Valley (16-11, 9-5) in the first round of the CIF-SS Division II AA playoffs. The Vikings head into the matchup — set to tip off at 7:30 p.m. in Redlands — with a growing confidence they’ve played with since defeating No. 9 nationally-ranked Ayala of Chino Hills 77-55 on Jan. 19. “The highlight of our season was when we beat Ayala,” Vikings head coach Marty Verdugo said Friday. “It showed me when we play well, we can play with anybody.” Verdugo knows his team has a lot of momentum heading into the playoffs, but he wants to make sure his girls don’t start looking too far ahead of themselves. Last year, Norco defeated the Vikings 67-58 in the third round of competition. “We have to take it one game at a time,” he said. “We need to play with a combination of great defense and balanced scoring.” The Vikings will rely heavily on senior shooting guard Daisy Feder, who averages over 21-points per game, to guide the team one step closer in their quest for a CIF championship. “Our team leader, no question, is Daisy Feder. She’s done everything from scoring, to defending, to rebounding. She’s pretty spectacular,” Verdugo said. However, Samohi’s success doesn’t
begin and end with Feder. The team is 365 over two seasons since inserting sophomore standout point guard Thea Lemberger into the starting lineup. Lemberger averages 11-points and seven assists per game and is the perfect distributor Verdugo says he needs on the floor.
THE HIGHLIGHT OF OUR SEASON WAS WHEN WE BEAT AYALA. IT SHOWED ME WHEN WE WHEN WE PLAY WELL, WE CAN PLAY WITH ANYBODY.” Marty Verdugo Vikings head coach
“She’s the floor leader, the one to get us into our offense,” the coach said. “She directs traffic, and we have all the pieces that go with her.” Those pieces include junior center Ellesse Brandis and senior center Katy Keating, who anchor the post play for the Vikings both offensively and defensively, as well as two guards that often play under the radar because of other stars at their position. “I’m planning on big things from SEE SAMOHI PAGE 9
winning streak into Saturday’s playoff game against Redlands East Valley High School.
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STREAKING FORWARD: Samohi’s Daisy Feder and the rest of the Vikings take a nine-game
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