The Advocate, Issue 22 - April 6, 2018

Independent Student Voice of MHCC

Volume 52, Issue 22 APRIL 6, 2018 advocate-online.net

8.

Is this person a citizen of the United States?

Yes Will I be deported for answering this question?

Important registration dates PAGE 8

PAGE 3

Lisa Skari announced as president PAGE 4

No

NO CONCENSUS

Tuition hike on horizon

‘Ready Player One’: ’80s joyride PAGE 6

PAGE 2

FOLLOW US ON SPOTIFY SCAN FOR PLAYLIST

>>>>

2016 FIRST PLACE

General excellence Oregon Newspaper Publisher Association

OPINION EDITORIAL

A D V O C AT E - O N L I N E . N E T

CENSUS QUESTION COULD CHANGE HOUSE

T

hough the U.S. Census usually engenders a wide array of mildly negative responses – groans, sighs, teeth-gnashing, a general attitude of righteous indignation toward the inefficiencies of modern bureaucracy – genuine fear is one that rarely makes it to that list.

But this may soon change for millions of people in America, in the next once-every-decade exercise.

Per a U.S. Department of Justice request, the federal Census Bureau is planning on including the question, “Is this person a citizen of the United States?” in the upcoming 2020 Census.

At first glance, it seems a pretty straightforward addition. According to the Constitution, “the actual Enumeration [of the actual persons in the several states] shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct.”

The census performs several different functions, but its main purpose is to provide data so the U.S. House of Representatives can ensure that its Representative-to-constituent ratio is fairly maintained.

Many would argue that non-citizens living in America shouldn’t count towards the voting population of a state. It stands to reason that if, for example, 50 percent of the population of a given voting (congressional) district are actually French students here on educational visas,

Editor-in-Chief Matana McIntire Associate Editor/ News Editor Greg Leonov Associate News Editor & Copy Editor Bethany McCurley Arts & Entertainment Editor Ryan Moore Associate Arts & Entertainment/ Social Media Manager Cassie Wilson

PA G E 2

“

they shouldn’t be counted when divvying up political districts to ensure governmental representation.

They’re already being represented by the French government, after all.

But given the longstanding conservative trend toward anti-immigration rhetoric; the current administration’s repeated defamation of immigrant communities; the Trump voter base’s outspoken views on immigration; and ICE’s renewed vigor in enforcing the letter of the law with respect to arresting, detaining and deporting undocumented persons, this addition to the census probably doesn’t have French students in mind.

Now, regardless of your stance on immigration, it’s hard to know how to proceed on illegal immigration from a policy standpoint without hard data on the exact number of undocumented persons in the country. As most people who are eligible for deportation aren’t exactly lining up to inform government officials, most of the data the U.S. has collected on illegal immigration consists of estimates – guesswork, at best.

Yet, if getting an accurate headcount of undocumented Americans is an end goal of the census, this is a pretty poor way to go about it.

While filling out a census form is a relatively minor task for most people, for someone who’s worried about being deported to begin with, the stakes are much higher.

It’s hard to imagine someone at

risk of deportation knowingly providing their address, the names of their family members and their citizenship status (or lack thereof) to a federal agency under a president whose

is nominally a crime, but it’s a comparatively minor one, resulting in a $100-$500 fine, as opposed to jail time – assuming the culprit gets found out, tried and convicted. As such, one likely outcome of this

IF GETTING AN ACCURATE HEADCOUNT OF UNDOCUMENTED AMERICANS IS AN END GOAL OF THE CENSUS, THIS IS A PRETTY POOR WAY TO GO ABOUT IT.”

campaign kickoff speech included the lines “When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best... they’re bringing drugs, they’re bringing crime, they’re rapists.”

Indeed, lying on a census form

census addition will be a significant degree of under-reporting on the 2020 census among undocumented households.

If the whole idea of adding this is to get a more accurate picture of the

Opinion Editor Kyle Venooker

Video Team Andy Carothers

Cover design by: Matana McIntire

Sports Editor Jonathan Zacarias

Web Editor Position Open

Graphic Design Team Prisma Flores Nicole Meade Sheila Embers Nina Charkhsaz

Ad Managers Megan Phelps Twensiga Disan

Contact us!

E-mail: advocatt@mhcc.edu Phone: 503-491-7250 Website: advocate-online.net Twitter: @MHCCAdvocate Facebook: facebook.com/TheAdvocateOnline Instagram: @MHCCAdvocate #MHCCAdvocate

Photo Editor Fletcher Wold Photo Team Fadi Shahin Andy Carothers Lisa Sellers

Advisers Howard Buck Dan Ernst Staff Writers Maddy Sanstrum Logan Hertner Kente Bates Lukas Brito Barry Morganti

Mt. Hood Community College 26000 SE Stark Street Gresham, Oregon 97030 Room AC1369

The Advocate encourages readers to share their opinion by letters to the editor and guest columns for publication. All submissions

number of undocumented persons in America, then, it would seem to render the whole exercise rather pointless.

Except... except that most immigrant communities, particularly undocumented ones, vote almost overwhelmingly blue.

Since the lines for voting districts are drawn based on the census and stay in place for 10 years, and assuming numerous districts which have voted reliably Democrat in the past are going to show large drops in population if undocumented individuals dodge the census, Republican lawmakers will gain a significant edge in the House for the next decade.

Additionally, this move sends a message to Trump’s anti-immigrant base that he’s stepping up to the plate and getting tough on immigration.

Democratic-leaning states (particularly those with large immigrant communities) aren’t going down without a fight, however. The attorneys general of several states, such as California, New York and Oregon, are filing a civil action lawsuit naming the federal Department of Commerce, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, and the Census Bureau as defendants.

The nation’s judicial system, then, will play a crucial role in helping shape how the federal legislative branch will function through the 2020s. Our ongoing experiment with democracy – and civics lesson – continues.

must be typed and include the writer’s name and contact information. Contact information will not be printed unless requested. Original copies will not be returned to the author. The Advocate will not print any unsigned submission.

Letters to the editor should not exceed 300 words and guest columns should not exceed 600. The decision to publish is at the discretion of the editorial board.

The Advocate reserves the right to edit for style, punctuation, grammar and length. Please bring submissions to The Advocate in Room 1369, or e-mail them to advocatt@mhcc.edu. Submissions must be received by 5 p.m. Monday the week of publication to be considered for print.

Opinions expressed in columns, letters to the editor or advertisements are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Advocate or MHCC.

NEWS

APRIL 6, 2018

MHCC BOARD APPROVES TUITION INCREASE Greg Leonov the advocate

Student tuition rates were again raised and student activity fees were increased, while several faculty members won tenure or sabbatical approval when the Mt. Hood Community College District board of education met on March 14.

Board members voted unanimously to raise tuition by $7 per credit , effective for Summer Term 2018 classes starting June 25.

They also ended the tuition pledge, which had locked the price of tuition for students to the rate they started paying upon entering MHCC. “Students that remain eligible for the pledge from (20)15-16, (20)16-17, and (20)17-18 will continue paying the tuition rate when they started. An new students that begin next year (September 2018) will not be eligible for any sort of a tuition pledge,” said Jennifer DeMent, MHCC’s chief operations officer.

The student activity fee, which funds the student government, co-curricular activities (such as The Advocate and the MHCC forensics (speech/debate) team), and athletics, was increased by 50 cents per credit.

Raising the fees involved looking at student surveys conducted by Mt. Hood’s Student Development department.

“Looking at the financial model – if we were to keep the student fee at $3.50, that would have been a very hard situation for us because we would have had to cut (student programs) a lot, so that caused us to look at a student fee increase,” said Nathan Skarphol, ASG (Associated Student Government) vice president and director of finance.

The raise will help to make sure a large enough contingency exists in order to cover funding shortfalls if enrollment ends up being lower than projected.

Even with the tuition and fee increases, the college still will not be in a positive financial standing.

ARE YOU A HARD HITTING WATCHDOG? DO YOU WANT TO UNCOVER THE TRUTH? PERHAPS YOU’RE AN ARTIST OR DESIGNER...

COME WORK FOR THE ADVOCATE – SHOWCASE YOUR TALENTS WITH US

“It brings our forecast for next year to a $500,000 shortfall,” said DeMent. “We still do have some cuts to make to have a balanced budget.”

Tenure, sabbaticals granted The board also formally approved seven instructors for tenure.

They include Amber Lamadrid, accounting instructor; Alexandra Tripp, nursing instructor; Jeanna Hunt, respiratory care instructor; David Strohl, Integrated Media adviser and instructor for photography; Deborah Saari, ESL instructor; Sean McGinty, reading and writing instructor; and Peter Cunningham, economics instructor.

All sabbatical requests for next school year were approved by the board. Eleven instructors will be taking time off from teaching in order to find new methods of instructing or to earn higher certification in their current field.

They are: Janet Campbell, political science instructor; Chris Gorsek, criminal justice instructor; Eric Tschuy, modern languages instructor; Naomi Abrahams, sociology instructor; Alison Warr, math instructor; Matt Hart, health and physical education instructor; Michele Hampton, literature and composition instructor; Susan Ball, ESL instructor; Nathan Orosco, sculpting instructor; Robert Hauss,

math instructor; and Jack Brooke, biology instructor.

Math instructors Tambi Boyle and Sara Williams explained to the board newly introduced math classes that students may take if they are pursuing non-STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) disciplines.

While STEM classes require calculus-based math, the two new non-STEM courses – Math 58 and Math 98: Quantitative Reasoning I and II – rely on statistics-based math.

The next regular board meeting is scheduled for April 18 at 7 p.m.

A budget committee meeting is scheduled at 6:30 p.m.

EOU GRESHAM eou.edu/gresham | apwilliams@eou.edu | 503.491.7248

Come see me today on the Mt. Hood campus! > Free unofficial transcript review > Learn about Fast Track Transfers > Create your educational plan to EOU

Pick your EOU major – fully accredited and online! eou.edu/online

Andrea P. Williams | Center Director, Advisor Partnering with Mt. Hood Community College 26000 SE Stark St. | AC 3308A PA G E 3

NEWS

A D V O C AT E - O N L I N E . N E T

Photo by Fletcher Wold // the Advocate

LISA SKARI IS CHOSEN AS NEW PRESIDENT Starting Summer Term 2018, Skari will take over for Derr Greg Leonov the advocate

On March 27, the MHCC District board of education met in a special session, then announced its decision of who will be the next president of Mt. Hood, succeeding five-year leader Debbie Derr, who is retiring.

Lisa Skari from Highline College in Des Moines, Washington – that’s just south of Seattle – will start during the summer. She started as an instructor at Highline college and eventually worked her way up to vice president.

She worked to transform Highline from an “elitist college” (in her description) with a majority white population to PA G E 4

a place deeply involved in its surrounding community, with a diverse staff to serve a student body that’s about 78 percent nonwhite.

During her open forum appearance (among the five finalists up for the job) at Mt. Hood before Spring Break, Skari talked a bit about her leadership style. She is collaborative and includes her staff in all deliberation processes, she said. She takes responsibility when needed and gives credit wherever it’s due, she added.

Reaction from student, faculty and staff leaders to the announcement was positive.

“I’m pleased with the choice that the board made,” said Nathan Skarphol, vice president of Mt. Hood’s ASG (Associated Student

Government). “Looking at how committed to Highline she was, I think that’s something that’s really

“

LOOKING AT HOW COMMITTED TO HIGHLINE SHE WAS... WE'LL HAVE A PRESIDENT WHO WE KNOW WILL BE COMMITTED TO THE ORGANIZATION." - Nathan Skarphol ASG VP

exciting for us because we’ll have a president who we know will be committed to the organization

and will care about what goes on at Mt. Hood.”

Marilyn Pitts, Mt. Hood’s parttime faculty association president, said that with Derr’s retirement, her successor “will have some big shoes to fill.

“I noticed that (Skari) has had some experience as an adjunct professor,” Pitts said. “Hopefully, that experience has given her some insights into the work life of a part-time instructor. I’m looking forward to working with her.”

Writing instructor Cheryl Johnson, full-time faculty association president, said that “MHCC is in need of a strong leader who will work to build consensus and support for initiatives across all the major stakeholders of the college.

“To that end, I hope that (Skari) will engage in a ‘listening tour’ when she arrives on campus and continue work to build on work that has already been started so we don’t need to reinvent the wheel,” Johnson said.

Classified Association President Kim Sharer said the new college president should start engaging with the internal college community as soon as possible.

“Start here first to get to know us and our strengths and weaknesses,” suggested Sharer.

“Then build upon our strengths, so we can tell that story to the external community, so they understand who we are, and that we are here to help serve our community.”

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

APRIL 6, 2018

G N I H T E VE RY !

S K C U S

NEW NETFLIX SERIES’ CHARACTERS GIVE BORING NEW LIFE Cassie Wilson the advocate

4.5 out of 5 stars

Boring, Oregon – the town in which I live and the location in which a new Netflix series, “Everything Sucks!” takes place. Set in 1996, this series explores sexuality and nontraditional family structures, and debunks many stereotypes and social norms while being centered around the lives of students at Boring High School.

As any resident of Boring would know, Boring High School does not exist. For the most part, your options may be Sam Barlow or Sandy.

When I saw the trailer (which everyone who knows where I live told me to watch), and I realized the high school would be fictional and that filming took place in Oregon City, I couldn’t help but be a little disappointed and wonder what else would be inaccurate.

I was pleasantly surprised to learn that it wasn’t so much the location that matters for “Everything” as it is the people who live there. Though I would’ve loved to see scenes actually filmed in Boring, the plot of this show is too good for me to care much in the end.

In the beginning, we’re introduced to freshman Luke O’Neil and his friends McQuaid and Tyler who all decide to join A/V club.

Another member of the club, who also happens to be the principal’s daughter, Kate Messner, leaves O’Neil lovestruck, but it’s not long before we realize Messner may have absolutely no interest in O’Neil because she has little to no interest in boys. Instead, she has her eyes on Emaline Addario, a dramatic star of the theater club.

While it’s the relationships and love triangles that reel viewers in, it is really the underlying, morecomplex issues that keep everyone watching. O’Neil has a single mother

who isn’t around often, and he doesn’t know much about his dad aside from the documentary style videotapes he finds of him. On the other hand, Messner has a single, widowed father who ends up taking a liking for O’Neil’s mother the two have a meeting in the principal’s office.

Throughout the show, the A/V club works on creating a film after the school’s scheduled play is cancelled, and all of the drama unfolds around it. We see a lot of growth in Messner as she learns

212

Boring Oregon City Graphics by Cassie Wilson// the Advocate

“Everything Sucks” is set in the ‘90s in Boring (filmed primarily in Oregon City) and is available to stream on Netflix now.

more about herself and her sexuality, and also get to watch Ms. O’Neil and Mr. Messner learn how to love again as they fool around as if they also were high school students, as well.

“Everything Sucks!” deals with topical issues in an appropriate way, given the setting and how LGBTQ folks were treated at that point in the ’90s. Although sexuality is an important piece of this show, it’s not the only takeaway, and there’s definitely a character that each and every viewer can identify with.

It’s not perfect, as it is in its first season. But, if you’re like me and enjoy simple, touching shows, then it’ll be hard to find too many negative things to say. Maybe some parts seem unrealistic, but if you’re a daydreamer and get swept up in the world of the show, then you’ll forget it even matters.

Though I felt mostly compelled to watch in order to understand future references people will make when I tell them where I’m from, it ended up being a heartwarming and captivating show and I loved watching it. Boring, honestly, is quite boring – although beautiful in real life, and “Everything Sucks!” is a great reminder that it’s the people who live here who give the town its life.

I highly recommend everyone check out this show because the more people who watch it, the more likely it will be renewed for another season.

PA G E 5

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

A D V O C AT E - O N L I N E . N E T

JUMP INTO SPIELBERG’S OASIS IN 3D ‘Ready Player One’ loaded with nostaliga Ryan Moore the advocate

Five out of five stars

It seems that a lot of modern media have been influenced by retro concepts, whether it is another remake or reboot of a hit movie from decades ago, or a familiar idea that is modernized into something fresh.

Steven Spielberg’s latest film, “Ready Player One,” is certainly filled with plenty of nostalgia, but is all framed in a dystopian future where viewers become immersed in the adventure that unfolds.

The movie takes place in 2045 and the majority of people escape reality by diving into a virtual world called the Oasis where players engage in all kinds of activities for both work and entertainment. Although the Oasis is a completely virtual space capable of sending users to anywhere imaginable, it is not a game without consequence. Many players invest their own money into the game, and there is a constant risk of getting their character killed

and losing all progressions and currencies, which reflect back to reality.

When the creator of the Oasis, James Halliday, dies, the hunt begins for several hidden clues needed to claim the ultimate prize of Halliday’s fortune as well as control of the entire Oasis.

Seeing trailers for Ready Player One painted a clear picture of just how many cameos and references were made throughout the film from a wide range of video games and movies spanning multiple generations. This included seeing characters such as King Kong and the Iron Giant, just to name a few. I was pleased that there were still a few surprise appearances left when I finally sat down to watch the movie.

With all of the callbacks to pop culture of the

1980s, the soundtrack was incredibly appropriate, especially as the film opened with the dazzling synth from “Jump” by Van Halen.

A lot of the movie’s visual details were best shown in the Oasis and thankfully there was a lot to be seen. This was only enhanced by the fact that I watched Ready Player One in 3D and I would highly recommend others to do the same because this was easily the most impressive 3D movie I have

ever seen. Full of colors, lights, and some fastpaced sequences, the movie becomes a thrill ride for your senses at times.

Spielberg casts a wide net with this film, attempting to capture the attention of those both young and old – those who have connections with video games from the past and present – so there are likely some viewers that may show more appreciation than others. This can also be said about anyone who has read the 2011 novel of the same name, written by Ernest Cline.

In either case, Ready Player One is a lively adventure full of lighthearted moments that celebrate the love of games and pop culture, and also reminds us that reality is still the most important thing at the end of the day.

Web Photos

UPCOMING EVENTS AT MHCC

• 4/10: Disney Trivia event Student Union 1 - 2 pm 4/12: Peace and Justice from the Heart Conference Student Union 8:30 am - 5 pm • 4/14: Gresham Saturday Market MHCC W parking lot 8:30 am - 2:30 pm PA G E 6

SPORTS

APRIL 6, 2018

MOUNT HOOD SAINTS SPRING SPORTS UPDATE SAINTS SOFTBALL

South Region

SAINTS BASEBALL

PCT

Conf.

PCT

Overall

Mt. Hood

0.818

9-2

0.696

16-7

Lower Columbia

0.800

8-2

0.727

SW Oregon

0.727

8-3

Centralia

0.583

Clackamas

PCT

Conf.

PCT

Overall

Lane

1.000

1-0

0.412

7-10

16-6

Linn-Benton

0.833

5-1

0.889

16-2

0.667

18-9

Clark

0.667

4-2

0.684

13-6

7-5

0.520

13-12

Clackamas

0.500

3-3

0.444

8-10

0.400

4-6

0.450

9-11

SW Oregon

0.400

2-3

0.211

4-15

Clark

0.364

4-7

0.333

6-12

Chemeketa

0.111

1-8

0.095

2-19

Chemeketa

0.333

2-4

0.313

5-11

Grays Harbor

0.083

1-11

0.083

2-22

Mt. Hood

0.167

1-5

0.188

3-13

NEXT HOME GAME: Saturday, April 7th against Chemeketa Community College

South Region

NEXT HOME GAME: Friday, April 6th against Lane Community College at 4 p.m.

at noon.

OUTSTANDING PLAYERS DURING SPRING BREAK

McKenize Pierce Year: Freshman Position: P/IF

Kai Delap Year: Freshman Position: R/R

Ramontre’ Williams Year: Freshman Event: Jumps

Grace Buchanan Year: Freshman Event: Throws PA G E 7

STUDENT LIFE

A D V O C AT E - O N L I N E . N E T

Photo by Fadi Shahin // the Advocate

RIVERVIEW CAFE OPENS COFFEE SHOP ON NORTH END OF GRESHAM CAMPUS: Over spring break, Junki and Linda Yoshida, longtime donors of Mt. Hood Community College, set up the Riverview Barista for business. It replaces the former St. Helens Bistro. Interior decor was designed by Linda and much of the food is an extension of the Riverview Cafe in the dining services. They serve locally produced Mt. Hood Roasters coffee.

- Matana McIntire

>>> IMPORTANT DATES FOR SPRING TERM April 11

May 18

Federal Aid is disbursed

Last day to withdraw from individual classes

April 8

April 13

Last day to drop classes with a refund

Last day to set up tuition payment plan

PA G E 8

June 16 Commencement ceremony

May 28

June 11-15

Memorial Day (campus closed)

Finals Week