SCENE THE
THE
Spring Issue 6
MAY 10, 2019
THESCENEFP.COM
heartbreaking finale
www.thescenefp.com
See page 6
Competition for Trump See page 7
St. Louis Community College at Forest Park
STLCC employee accused of stealing $5.4 million By Joshua Phelps The Scene staff The Forest Park campus has been buzzing for the past week in reaction to news that St. Louis Community College is accusing an employee of stealing $5.4 million over 10 years. The college filed a civil lawsuit on April 30 in St. Louis County Circuit Court against Donald Robison for allegedly diverting the state funds to a fictitious company, beginning in 2008. He is manager of corporate Pittman solutions for the STLCC Workforce Solutions Group, which offers “programs and services designed to advance people, businesses and communities,” according to its web page. Robison has been placed on administrative leave pending completion of an investigation, according to an STLCC news release emailed May 1. “Also, we’re seeking to freeze his accounts in an attempt to recover any money that we can for the state,” Chancellor Jeff Pittman said in a telephone
interview with The Scene. Robison has worked 27 years for the college. Pittman said another employee discovered “financial irregularities” that prompted the college to begin an investigation. “What we have discovered so far is that this was not college money,” Pittman said. “This was money that came from a state account, and for years this individual had been diverting funds into his company. We’re taking immediate actions against this.” STLCC is one of 12 colleges contracted by the state to administer the Missouri Community College New Jobs Training Program in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Economic Development. At STLCC, the contract is handled by the Workforce Solutions Group. The group is based at the Corporate College building in Bridgeton, but it has offices on individual campuses, including Forest Park. According to the lawsuit, Robison registered a fictitious company, called “MS Services,” with the state and portrayed it as a third-party vendor that was providing job training. “Donald Robison began creating and submitting requisitions to the Training Fund on behalf of MS Services for non-existent training services,” the lawsuit states. “In re-
College, union disagree on raise By Joshua Phelps The Scene staff
sponse to each requisition, the fiscal agent paid MS Services for training services, which it never performed.” The college has hired the audit firm BKD CPA & Advisors and the law firm Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale in St. Louis to help with the investigation. “We have notified local law enforcement and state authorities who have been enlisted
Adjunct faculty members at St. Louis Community College have received two 3 percent raises since they voted to form a union in 2015, and now they’re asking for a third. The college has agreed to another raise, but it’s only offering 2 percent, and the union wants 5 percent, saying it needs to make up for all the years that salaries remained flat. “I have to teach at both St. Louis Community College and at (St. Louis University) in order to earn enough to make a living,” said Russell Tallant, an adjunct who has been teaching Spanish at Forest Park since 2013. “I’m working 65 hours a week just to make one salary.” On April 25, adjunct Linda Stewart addressed the STLCC Board of Trustees at its monthly meeting. She argued that there is too much of a discrepancy between adjunct pay and the salaries of full-time faculty members. “There are more adjuncts than any other group at the college,” said Stewart, an STLCC adjunct for 25 years who now teaches English on the Florissant Valley campus. “We are the people who students see. We influence them
See Employee page 3
See Adjuncts page 3
Provided photo
Don Robison is shown speaking at the 2015 fall conference of the National Coalition of Advanced Technology Centers.
38-4 Lady Archers have an eye on a bigger goal By Timothy Bold The Scene staff
Final push
Photo by Timothy Bold
Contractors use cranes to work on the façade of the new Center for Nursing and Health Sciences building on the Forest Park campus last week. See pages 4 and 5 for a sneak preview of the inside.
The STLCC women’s softball team is on fire, winning its first Division II Region 16 tournament in dominant fashion against the Mineral Area College Cardinals while gearing up for a trip to the district tournament. Since taking over the women’s team three years ago, the wife-husband coaching team of Kristi and Joe Swiderski have led the Lady Archers to national prominence. They both come from an extensive background of select and college softball in the St. Louis region. They met as students at UMSL, she as a softball player and he as a baseball player. Before coaching at STLCC, Kristi Swiderski was a stay-at-home mom, joining her husband in helping their son battle brain cancer for 9½ years. He died in 2015. Kristi Swiderski puts a big emphasis with her players on grades and mental toughness. “You’re not going to play softball forever, and eventually you’re going to have things you don’t want to do,” she said. “It’s easy to lose focus, so you try to find a balance to keep them motivated.” The Lady Archers, who are ranked No. 6 nationally in NJCAA Division II, enter the District 24 championships May 16 with a
38-4 record and a 17-game winning streak. They’ve won 32 of their last 33 games. A victory in the regionals would send STLCC to the national tournament on May 22-25 in Clinton, Miss. The team also won the regular season title of the Missouri Community College Athletic Conference. The 8-0 regional victory May 6 over Mineral Area came from the combination of batting, fielding and pitching. Sophomore Hannah Marquardt delivered a one-hit shutout after dealing with a bout of plantar fasciitis, a heal inflammation. “When I started warming up, I was afraid of hurting myself, but I had to push through for my team,” Marquardt said. She was pitching a perfect game until Cardinals freshman Kelly McMahon drilled a pinch single through the middle with two outs in the sixth inning. “I was feeling really good today, very happy with my performance,” Marquardt said. She got support in the field, especially from sophomore shortstop Abby Lavely and freshman second baseman Breanna Potthast. Kristi Swiderski described Potthast as a “fireplug, short in stature, but has heart and the whole package.”
See Softball page 3
Choose UMSL. Open office hours for STLCC Forest Park students: Mondays and Tuesdays Walk-ins only 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Advising Center – SC-200
“I can help with all of your questions about transferring, scholarships and what it’s like to be a Triton!”
Stacey Pugh Transfer Specialist
2018142/0718/jb
askstacey@umsl.edu 314-516-5161
Serious education. Serious value.SM
CONGRATS, GRADS! Explore transfer and scholarship opportunities at Webster! Join us on Thursday, June 13 for our Transfer Information Session or schedule a personalized visit. Get started here: webster.edu/transfer For more information on transferring: WEBSTER.EDU/TRANSFER Office of Admission 314-246-7800 or 1-800-753-6765 • admit@webster.edu
R
EC-3436 WEbU_FP Scene_05_10_19.indd 1
Page 2
4/16/19 10:13 AM
The Scene
THESCENEFP.COM
May 10, 2019
News Employee
from page 1
to aid us in this investigation,” Pittman said. ison and announced that he had been placed Robison could not be reached for com- on administrative leave. ment. His attorney, Matt Fry, declined to “It is believed Robison diverted funds comment. over a period of several years in an amount Josi Nielsen, communications director not less than $5.4 million,” it stated. “After for the St. Louis County Prosecutor’s Of- notifying law enforcement authorities and fice, said no criminal charges had potentially affected state agencies, been filed against Robison as of St. Louis Community College filed May 1. No further information was a lawsuit April 30, 2019, for damavailable on Missouri Case.net as ages and injunctive relief against of Wednesday, when state offices Robison for mismanagement of were closed for Truman Day. funds.” Missouri Rep. Steven Roberts, Also on May 1, STLCC employD-St. Louis, called the alleged ees received an email with similar theft “terrible.” He serves the 77th information, as well as the followdistrict, which includes the Forest ing statement: Roberts Park campus. “By taking immediate and deci“I have a great deal of respect for sive action against damaging and Chancellor Pittman, and I’m confifraudulent actions, the College dent he’s going to figure out how will continue to show that we are this happened and take the approa trusted provider of education priate remedies,” Roberts said. and job training for the St. Louis Tommie Frison, an assistant biregion.” ology professor at Forest Park, Robison has largely disappeared said he doesn’t understand how from the Internet. A quick search someone could steal $5.4 million on Wednesday showed: without it being noticed by the • His name, email and phone numpeople who allocate funds and su- Frison ber have been removed from the pervise programs. contact page on the STLCC Work“I thought they had in place force Solutions Group website. checks and balances where every • His posts have been removed penny was accounted for,” he said. from the Workforce Development “For an individual here to manipuNews online newsletter. The only late that amount of money, and for listing is a biographical sentence the state not to be able to account that states in past tense, “Don Rofor where it went, it just seems bison served as manager, corporate fishy to me.” services; the customized training Human services major Sophia and economic unit of the workAllen, 61, said it’s a “shame” fund- Allen force solutions group of St. Louis ing was taken away from WorkCommunity College.” force Solutions Group programs, which • His name has been removed from the help students get job training. Apprenticeship Contacts page on the STLShe participated in a program that specifi- CC website. cally applied to “displaced workers.” • His LinkedIn profile has been deleted. “Thank god, I made it through,” she said. • His Twitter account has been deleted. “I graduate in May.” • His profile as a Board of Directors memThe public first heard about the investiga- ber has been removed from the website of tion on April 25 through an STLCC news the National Coalition of Advanced Techrelease that didn’t mention Robison’s name nology Centers, which is affiliated with the and provided few details. American Association of Community Col“St. Louis Community College uncov- leges. ered financial irregularities in one of its • His name and contact information are job training programs,” the release stated. still listed in a membership directory on the “Upon discovery, we immediately launched Missouri Economic Development Council an internal investigation, which resulted in website. the suspension of an employee responsible • His contact information is still listed in for oversight of the program.” the St. Louis Community College section That email was followed by another STL- on the website of Manufacturing Institute in CC news release on May 1 that named Rob- Washington, D.C.
Adjuncts more than anybody else.” STLCC Director of Human Resources Patricia Canada, the college’s bargaining representative, declined to discuss adjunct pay and other issues related to the Service Employees International Union Local 1, which represents adjuncts. “The college is doing its part in terms of negotiations, and SEIU has reached out for us to come back to the table,” she said. “That is something our outside council is looking at.” There are discrepancies in figures provided by STLCC and the union on number of adjuncts on its campuses, as well as pay rates. STLCC Communications Manager Nez Savala said the college employs 604 adjuncts (206 at Forest Park). Nick Desideri, SEIU communications director, said the college provided a list of 820 adjuncts in the bargaining unit (322 at Forest Park). Savala released a chart that compared adjunct pay at two-year colleges in the Mis-
May 10, 2019
from page 1 souri Community College Association. The chart shows that STLCC adjunct pay ranges from $675 to $1,114 per credit hour, depending on education and experience. That means someone teaching three, three-credit classes would earn $6,075 to $10,026 in a semester. That compares to a range of $737 to $1,000 at Ozark Technical Community College in Springfield; $600 to $640 at East Central College in Union; $490 to $590 at Mineral Area College in Park Hills; and $450 to $525 at North Central Missouri College in Trenton. Desideri said STLCC adjunct pay ranges from $655 to $1,082 per credit hour and that it isn’t enough to support a family in St. Louis. Tallant said if he had known that adjunct pay was going to be so low and that he wouldn’t be able to get health insurance through his job, he probably wouldn’t have gone into education, but he has stayed at STLCC because he loves teaching.
Softball
from page 1
Photo by Timothy Bold
STLCC’s Miranda Hudson eyes a pitch in the Region 16 championship game against Mineral Area College at Meramec. Chloe Johnson takes her batting stance while on deck. Coach Kristi Swiderski, at right in the dugout, observes the action. The Lady Archers scored five runs in the first inning as all nine batters came to the plate. They finished off the Cardinals with a three-run sixth, collecting 12 hits overall and three stolen bases. Miranda Hudson was 3 for 3 with a double and three RBIs and Sidney Litviak was 3 for 3 with double and an RBI. In the semifinal game May 5, the Lady Archers squeaked by East Central College 3-1 with Lavey’s go-ahead RBI single in the third inning. Sophomore pitcher Sarah Shepard got her 11th win of the season, striking out five in 5 1/3 innings. Litviak earned her third save, allowing no hits. STLCC won all five meetings this season against East Central. The team was an offensive force, averaging almost 10 runs a game. The Lady Archers hit the 20-run mark in wins against East Central College, St. Charles Community College and Mineral Area College. The team batting average is .391, led by freshman Tori Siebum (.393, nine homers, 53 RBI) and two sophomores, catcher Kacy Bergfeld (.454, seven homers, 53 RBI) and outfielder Jennifer Luebbert (.406). Luebbert, the leadoff hitter, is 33-0 in stolen bases and leads the team with 58 runs. The team has stolen 88 bases while being caught stealing only six times all season. On hitting leadoff, Luebbert said, “I get to see the pitches first and the team follows.” In the pitching department, the team’s earned run average is 2.39, led by Mar-
quardt (12 wins, 2.33 ERA) and Shepard (11 wins, 2.37). They combined for most of the workload this season. Freshmen round out the pitching staff: Sophie Koesterer (seven wins, 3.49 ERA), Alison Klaus (four wins, 1.03 ERA) and Litviak (four wins, 2.41 ERA). Having a large pitching staff “gives us the flexibility when the other team figures it out. We can throw something else in to keep them off balance,” Kristi Swiderski said. The series that boosted the team’s confidence was against Division I archrival Jefferson College on March 28, when the Lady Archers swept the doubleheader 5-3 and 6-4. The sweep over Jefferson was the first for the Swiderskis since they’ve been coaching at STLCC. Kristi Swiderski says the Lady Archers don’t rely on one or two particular players to carry the team. “When you’re in college, you need them all, especially because of the length of the season. When one girl gets hurt, there is someone waiting in the wings.” When the season started last fall, Luebbert said she wasn’t sure how good the team would be, “but now it’s very special. In the fall it was rough. Some of our games we weren’t doing so hot. Once spring came around, we started winning and kept going. It gave us a lot of confidence.” Freshman outfielder Mariah Newby said, “We’re together as a team, mix well and get along. The season has gone great, and we’re ready for the playoffs.”
Lady Archers pitcher Hannah Marquardt unleashes a pitch against Mineral Area College. She retired the first 17 batters she faced and allowed one hit in the 8-0 regional tournament victory.
The Scene
THESCENEFP.COM
Photo by Timothy Bold
Page 3
Photo by Timothy Bold
Workers complete construction on the Center for Nursing and Health Sciences along Oakland Avenue.
A stairwell descends from the third flo
SNEAK PREVIEW
A second-floor student lounge will provide a place for students to relax or study between classes.
Photo by Timothy Bold
A window will allow ins Layout by
Page 4
The Scene
THESCENEFP.COM
May 10, 2019
oor to the second floor.
W
Photo by Timothy Bold
Lockers and space for benches line a third-floor hallway.
Photo by Timothy Bold
The Scene toured the new Center for Nursing and Health Sciences building on the Forest Park campus last week. Workers are painting walls, installing tile and other flooring, hooking up utilities and moving in equipment. The center is slated to open in August.
Photo by Timothy Bold
structors to observe students working in a radiology tech lab. Lulu Ali
May 10, 2019
The Scene
THESCENEFP.COM
Page 5
Opinion
‘The Avengers’ epic finale is heartbreaking Fired up
By Neftali Acosta The Scene staff “Avengers: Endgame,” the epic finale of “The Avengers” franchise, is finally here. I’ve been waiting for this moment since the release of the first Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) movie, “Iron Man,” in 2008. “Iron Man” premiered on May 2 of that year. I saw it when I was 10 years old, and I was blown away. Ever since then, I’ve looked forward to the next installments in the franchise. In the early days, nobody would’ve thought that the characters in “Iron Man,” “The Incredible Hulk” (2008), “Thor” (2011) and “Captain America: The First Avenger” (also 2011) were in the same world and part of the same story. Then in 2012, they teamed up in “The Avengers.” With the release of “Endgame” on April 26, the MCU franchise grew to include 22 movies, spanning 11 years. The 23rd will be “Spider-Man: Far From Home,” due out July 2.
“Endgame” is a culmination of all the MCU stories, so it has an incredible number of characters. Before hitting the theater, I would suggest first watching “The Avengers,” “Avengers: Age of Ultron” (2015), “Captain America: Civil War” (2016) and “Avengers: Infinity War” (2018). I would also put “Captain Marvel” on this list. Released earlier this year, it introduced a new character, Carol Danvers, also known as “Captain Marvel.” She didn’t play as big a role in “Endgame” as I would’ve liked, but her scenes were definitely impactful and some of my favorites. “Endgame” is a sequel to “Infinity War,” so they must be watched back-to-back. “Endgame” is the first MCU movie to run three hours, but you won’t even notice. “Endgame” broke box-office records by earning $1.2 billion on its opening weekend. That wasn’t only in the United States, but in other countries, including China, where “The Avengers” franchise is very popular. By the second weekend, the movie had earned $2.1 billion, breaking even more records. “Endgame” truly is an epic finale, filled with gripping scenes that are hard to watch and hilarious scenes that make you laugh out loud. There also are plenty of surprises to catch everyone off guard. “Endgame” will have you cheering and mourning, shedding tears of joy but also tears of grief as the Earth’s mightiest heroes, The Avengers, complete their cinematic run. “Endgame” is the perfect ending. The Avengers meet for a final showdown against Thanos, also known as “The Mad Titan,” the MCU’s biggest and baddest
The movie opened April 26. conqueror. He thinks of himself as a god who will save the universe from overpopulation and scarce resources. Thanos knows that civilizations on other planets, including Earth, are suffering from climate change and starvation. His plan is to wipe out half of all life and restore “balance.” I saw “Infinity War” last year at Ronnie’s theater. I expected all the MCU characters to finally team up and beat the universe’s biggest threat, end the franchise and send the Avengers to live happily ever after. But it only took a few minutes to realize that
something was wrong. This movie was different. It wasn’t about victory, but about failure. It wasn’t uplifting like most Hollywood movies. At the end, everyone in the audience was shocked, including me. A room of a hundred people was quiet except for the whimpering and sobbing of those who had just lost their favorite characters. No one could believe what happened. It wasn’t supposed to happen. How could it? They’re the Avengers! They’re the good guys! They can’t lose! But they did lose. I wept as I watched Spider-Man, Black Panther, Star-Lord and other characters I grew up with die. In “Endgame,” the remaining Avengers team up one last time, but the “Infinity War” battle had taken its toll. Many have post-traumatic stress disorder. All fear Thanos, and most don’t want to go up against him again. They also struggle with an incredible amount of grief. They are broken. They are barely recognizable. Their usual confidence, even arrogance, and expectations of winning every battle has been obliterated. They’re also angry, and they’re ready to do anything to seek revenge for the loss of their loved ones. Thanos is a formidable adversary, willing to sacrifice everything and everyone to accomplish his goal of balance. He also wants to make sure the last of The Avengers stay broken. Prepare yourself by watching “Infinity War,” but if you think you’re ready for the endgame, you’ll be pleasantly and horrifyingly wrong. As The Mad Titan said, “The end is near.”
Scene THE
Managing editor: Timothy Bold
Business/web manager: Victor Paletta Circulation: Zacchaeus Windham Reporters/photographers: Joshua Phelps, Soroda Nasiri, Jonny Geigle, Neftali Acosta, Kevin Bailey, Bukundabababo Felicien Layout: Lulu Ali
Words with a twist
Cartoonists: Arrak Hutcherson, Cameron Kuntz
Photo by Neftali Acosta
Faculty advisers: Teri Maddox, Fred Ortlip
Counter-clockwise from lower left, respiratory technology major Harry Painter Jr., 32, nursing student Alma Orozco, 19, and nursing student Janae Anthony, 21, practice Japanese calligraphy in the Highlander Lounge. The Japanese Caligraphy Society of St. Louis held the event.
Like us on Facebook “The Scene Forest Park” Page 6
The Scene is a publication written and designed by students at St. Louis Community College at Forest Park, 5600 Oakland Ave., St. Louis, MO 63110. The office is in F Tower, Room 408. The telephone number is (314) 644-9140. The e-mail address is the_scene_fp@yahoo.com. All text, photos, graphics and other content are property of The Scene and may not be used without permission. Views expressed are not necessarily those of St. Louis Community
The Scene
THESCENEFP.COM
College, its Board of Trustees or administration. The Scene welcomes opinion pieces and letters to the editor. They should be signed and include the writer’s student or staff number. They can be mailed to the above addresses or delivered by hand. We reserve the right to edit for length and taste. The Scene will run classified ads for students free of charge. They should be submitted in the manner described above.
May 10, 2019
Opinion
‘Protect and serve’ instead of instilling fear Uncensored
By Soroda Nasiri The Scene staff It was a beautiful Thursday afternoon. I had just left school, feeling great about a test I took that morning. All the windows in my car were open, except the driver’s window, and I was listening to one of my favorite Desi songs, singing at the top of my lungs, moving one of my hands to the beat while keeping the other one on the steering wheel. My eyes were glued to the road. I checked my rearview mirror and noticed that a police car was pulling into the lane next to me, right before we reached a stoplight. With both hands free for a moment, I couldn’t help but move them to the beat, and I’m pretty sure I had the ugliest smile on my face while I was singing. After a few seconds, I realized the police officer was trying to get my attention in a frantic way. I made eye contact, and she signaled me to roll down my window. At this point, my joyous movements had stopped, and my ridiculous facial expres-
May 10, 2019
sion had faded away. I lowered my window and turned down the music so I could hear what the officer had to say. “Turn your music down,” she ordered, adding something about it being a violation of the law. I was shocked by her tone. It felt like a slap in the face. “If I can hear the music, then it’s too loud,” she said. I couldn’t help but stare. “Do you understand?” she continued, very slowly, as if I was a foreigner unable to speak English. (I emigrated from Afghanistan at age 5.) I finally nodded “yes” and rolled up my window. The light turned green, and I drove off. I completely accept that I was violating a law by playing my music too loud, and I can only imagine how annoyingly dangerous the situation looked to the police officer. My past encounters with police have always been relatively pleasant. I may have gotten a speeding ticket or warning, but the officers were cordial, and afterward, I went about my business. This time it was different. I felt so disrespected. On the way home, my music wasn’t as loud so I got lost in my thoughts. Whenever I hear about a case of police brutality, the first thing that comes to mind is, “How did it get to that point? What could have happened to cause a police officer to shoot a person, innocent or not? If the person didn’t have a weapon, why did the officer feel so threatened?” Now I think I get it. On that day in my car, if I hadn’t been able or willing to ignore disrespectful behavior from a police
officer, the situation could have turned very nasty. Her energy was so aggressive. I could have said, “Thank you for bringing this to my attention, but I find your tone disrespectful, and I don’t like how you mocked me.” Would she have made me pull over and given me a ticket? If I had shown attitude, would she have felt threatened? Would she have shot me? This is all very scary. Police officers can have bad days, but so can people who get pulled over. It’s important to note that I’m not just some clueless millennial complaining about a police officer who probably has too much on her plate to be nice or watch her words. What I’m saying is that humanity is dying. We are taught to trust
the police, but the police are taught not to trust us. I was talking to my husband, Darius, about what happened. He listened patiently as I went on a rant about how the world is falling apart, and we need to do something about it. When I finished, he smiled and explained what he feels as a black man every time he sees a police car behind him with lights flashing. “Panic mode sets in,” he said. “I check my speed, make sure my hands are visible and pull to the side of the road. When the
The Scene
THESCENEFP.COM
officer gets out of his vehicle and makes his way toward me, I feel calm at first because I’m confident that I did nothing wrong. Then, in the back of my mind, I’m taunted by a rhyme I once heard (to the tune of the Oscar Meyer weiner song): ‘Oh, I wish I was an Alabama trooper, that is what I’d truly like to be, ‘cause if I was an Alabama trooper, then I could shoot the niggers legally.” Darius then went on to point out that African American and Latino men make up 28 percent of the general U.S. population and 5 percent of its prison population; one in 35 African American men and one in 88 Latino men are serving time; the statistic is one in 214 for Caucasian men; and one in nine African American children has a parent in jail. Can you imagine if this was your thought process each time you got pulled over or even saw a police officer? The people in communities of color are suffering. Their children are suffering. Without guidance from parents, young people get caught up in the same cycle, and the justice system keeps profiting from their loss. We must become smarter and stop this now. I am a woman of action and a firm believer that education and conversation about such difficult topics can lead to change. I know there is fear and mistrust between the police and the people of St. Louis. For what it’s worth, I have contacted the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department to set up a Q&A in hopes of starting to heal the broken relationship. We have to start somewhere.
Page 7
Campus chatter Jaylen Johnson, 20, general transfer “Responsibility, respect, and most of all friendship. She’s a disciplinarian at the end of the day.”
Yooshuiaki Ishiwata, 45, nursing “She’s a good role model. She taught me the morals of right and wrong.”
Mary-Ashlyn Jones, 18, general transfer “She means everything to me. She’s the most important person in my life.”
Angela Parten, 37, human services “My mom was in the Army, which encouraged me to enlist into the Air Force. Even though we’re far from each other, we still text and talk all the time.”
Rachel Nurtin, reading professor “My mom is my best friend. She’s the most trusted and reliable person in my life. Also, she’s a wonderful grandmother.”
Alex Buechel, 23, general transfer “She gives me strength, and she’s always there, no matter what the circumstance. She has better things to do than deal with my crap all the time.”
What does your
Rose Glisson, 22, general transfer “She passed away a few years ago. I miss the way she always let me be candid.”
Mother mean to you?
Skylar Stegall, 23, culinary arts “My mom is giving and our life source. She gives me the direction to be a better man.”
By Timothy Bold
Angela Johnson, 53, counselor “My mother shows wisdom in every aspect of life. She’s very observant to everything going on around us.”
Iziyah Darrhasam, 22, ESL student “She always listens to my ups and downs. When I’m upset and sad, she makes me happy.”
Sadie Schaffner, 20, general transfer “My mother is someone I can go to for any type of support.”
Felmon Yohanes, 24, electrical engineer “She carried me for nine months and brought me into this world. She kept us clean, nourished and well-dressed.”
Layout by Lulu Ali
Page 8
The Scene
THESCENEFP.COM
May 10, 2019