The SKYLINE View The Voice of Skyline College, San Bruno, Calif.
February 27, 2020
theskylineview.com
Issue 4
College Cancels Legal Clinic Local Artists visit Skyline College
Spotlight
Every single appointment at the legal clinic was booked last semester, Skyline College has decided not to fund the legal clinic this semester
Page 8
Skyline Women Land on No.9 seed for Playoffs Skyline College women’s
basketball team won the last conference game of the season
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Skyline men’s baseball team won 8-2 against Laney College
Focal Point Page 6
Gen Z’s approach to video on Social Media Page 5
Vine blew up in 2014, only to be shut down in 2016, but what this developed in our generation was a greater love for video content.
Profile Feature on an Army Vet
After spending time in the military, Thomas Gower came to Skyline last summer, and now finds himself to be better off than he’s ever been.
Opinions Page 4
Live TV is Dead:
Television shows have lost their reasoning of why you should tune in every week
Page 3
Is the #MeToo Movement Really Making Change Happen?
Movements have created no change in accordance with the culture going on today. We are so passionate about so many things, but what is unfortunate is that it is not enough.
News Page 2
Lockdown Drills are traumatizing:
Drills can evoke stress and produce long-lasting trauma.
Inspiration Board “You are your own teacher. Investigate yourself to find the truth — inside, not outside. Knowing yourself is most important.” - Ajahn Chah
Creative Commons
By Christian Carlo Ceguerra Staff Writer
Sports
Sowyrda Leads Skyline to Victory
Surprise visit at Skyline College from two local artists for Black History Month
Taken on Feb. 25, The Dream Center is available weekdays to answer questions and provide support for undocumented students.
By Umaima Ejaz News Editor
Last month, the Supreme Court approved a ‘public ruling’ charge to go into effect Feb. 24., which means when immigrants apply for legal status, the state will be looking for many characteristics using the public charge. Public charge is when an individual is likely to become primarily dependent on the government for subsistence. Public charge includes use of food stamps and housing vouchers. With the exception of Illinois, this rule will be implemented all across the United States. The rule is set to reshape the legal immigration procedure, thus making it difficult for lower income immigrants to obtain a legal status. Critics have called it ‘wealth test’, but for the students of Skyline College, it seems more than that. While federal financial aid (such as Pell Grants and student loans) and state-based financial aid (such as the California
Dream Act, Cal grants, institutional grants, dream loans and scholarships) are not included in the new public charge, Skyline students still are concerned. People could be affected by public charge ruling, but it is not overarching. Students have been dropping in college’s Dream Center, thinking student aid is a financial benefit and could affect their legal status. Use of any public benefit will not automatically make you a public charge. Immigration officials will look at other circumstances determining how likely you are to become or remain a public charge in future. Although every case differs from one another, consensus in the immigrant community is that undocumented people should speak with an attorney before removing themselves from any benefits they are receiving. Maria Segarra Gaudio, who was a part time instructor and a supervising attorney at Skyline College’s legal clinic, is not availContinued on Page 2
Skyline students received a surprise after two actors visited the campus and led a film discussion on Feb. 21 in Building 6, Rm. 202. In line with the Black History Month celebration, the Associated Students of Skyline (ASSC), the campus’ very own governing student body, hosted an exclusive screening of the film “The Last Black Man in San Francisco” (2019). After the film, students were surprised when two actors from the film, Isiain Lalime and Jordan Gomes, who are known by their stage names Gunna Goes Global and Stunnaman02, showed up and led a discussion regarding the elements of the film. In an exclusive interview, Gunna and Stunnaman were asked what they think the significance of celebrating the Black History Month every year is. “I believe it highlights the importance of what Africans have done in America,” Gunna said. “When you look at the economic power that that exists today, it all comes from slavery.” Gunna also said that celebrating the Black History Month allows appreciation toward black peoples’ presence and their historical significance to the fabric of this country. Stunnaman02, said that the celebration of the Black History Month is just essential. “We are put in a detrimental position to not be appreciated for
what we’ve done for the country,” Stunnaman said. “It’s essential to remind us how much we have, not to get swept under the rug, but to be brought to light.” The actors were also asked how other people of color can support inclusiveness as one community, regardless of the difference in their ethnic backgrounds? “What we can do is respect ourselves and respect others’ differences,” Gunna said. “When you talk about d i v e r s i t y, inclusion, and people helping each other, it all starts with respect.” “The reality of it i s , we should love it because it’s different,” Stunnaman02 said. “Once you do that, and get past that barrier: food, culture, language — Once you get past those barriers, we all feel like we all realize we’re the same.” Students and guests were also given the opportunity to ask the actors’ their opinions regarding present-day issues, particularly those having to do with gentrification. Psychology major Bonnie Mendoza found the movie reflective to the plight of people of color in the Bay Area. “The film was very, very insightful,” Mendoza said. “It talked a lot about gentrification, and the realities of the homelessness situation here in the Bay Area.” Continued on Page 2
Making Study Abroad Happen Without Your Parents’ Support What is the likelihood of students who don’t get financial help from their parents to do the study abroad programs they applied to and the ones that do what are the ways they got funding. By Misha Berman
Chief Copy Editor
Studying abroad is expensive, but students can make it happen without relying on their parents. There are other ways to pay for studying abroad other than having one’s parents pay for the fees. Former Skyline student, Laurel Lujan, who is currently participating in the Skyline Rennes School of Business program in France, said that there are scholarships, grants and GoFundMe. She also knows students can take out loans, but she thinks that loans should only be taken out for longer study abroad programs. “At least two semesters, because it’s a long-term commitment where the student needs to have the means to survive on their own while studying,” Lujan said. Lujan said students who need financial assistance should reach out to people they know such as professors, faculty, and the study abroad program advisers. She also said that students should not be afraid to ask if they have financial needs. Director of Special Internation-
Justin Decosta (left), Megan Mai, Zoe Gwizdak, Michelle Diaz, and Nolan Legault (right) watch the “Flight of the Angel” at Piazza San Marco in Venice, Italy on Feb. 28, 2019 Gianna Sozzi/Skyline View
al Programs Zaid Ghori said that Skyline College’s Global Learning Programs and Services sees a lot of students whose parents do not support them financially are receiving financial aid. “For those students, we specifically work with them to find outside scholarships that will really benefit them. One exam-
ple is the Gilman Scholarship program, which provides up to $5,000 for students who have very limited financial means,” Ghori said. Scholarships are very competitive and hard to get. Diablo Valley student Justin De Costa, who took part in the study abroad program in Italy, and paid for most of his fees himself, said that he worked. He said
that students should still apply for scholarships, but also try to work, budget, and save for the program. Many students that have studied abroad say that going abroad gave them experiences that they would not have gotten in a classroom, and that they learned a lot while going abroad. “We are so blind to culture sometimes, here in America,” De Costa said. “I feel like when you go abroad, you just experience it. You can watch movies, you can watch television, you can look at it on a screen, but you can never actually go and experience it. You can go to Little Italy in San Francisco, but you can never actually be in Italy.” Ghori said that when students come back from studying abroad, it helps them realize that there are other perspectives besides their own. He also said that this helps them when they are working with others who have different perspectives and come from different backgrounds. Hopefully, this will motivate students who feel that they can’t study abroad because their parents are not supporting them to get a job, start saving, apply for scholarships and financial aid, and talk to professors and advisers about their options.
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News
The Staff Editor-In-Chief Daniel Archuleta News Editor Umaima Ejaz
February 27, 2020
Teachers Don’t Want Lockdown Drills The traumatizing effects lockdown drills have on students change teachers’ minds When instructing students about the protocol during drills, they participate but I gain a sense of apathy towards these mandated drills. Could this apathy be a result from a society that is becoming desensitized?” Teachers across the country only want what’s best for their students, and that is to learn in a safe environment. While active shooter lockdown drills are being enacted in schools to practice safety, it also important to look at the bigger picture of gun safety and gun control. The normalization
By Chloe Trinidad Staff Writer
Focal Point Editor Milla Tivadar opinions Editor Cristian Garcia Sports Editor I-Wei Chang Chief Copy Editor Misha Berman Copy Editor Faisal Gresalfi Photo Editor Gianna Sozzi Digital Editor Calixto Reyes STaff Photographer Kevin Arias Kathryn Trefz Ama Bayar Staff writers Daniela Ossa Matthew South Arjay Pajanillo Eric Bush Chloe Trinidad Marco Milani Kimberly Brown Vitoria Da Silva Christian Carlo Ceguerra Faculty Adviser Nancy Kaplan-Biegel
Want more news? www.theskylineview.com Or maybe you have news for us? (650)738-4302 Want to yell at us? theskylineview@gmail.com Or use snail mail: The Skyline View c/o Language Arts Room 8-8110 Skyline College 3300 College Drive
San Bruno CA 94066
The Skyline View is a First Amendment Publication. The Skyline View is published bi-weekly during the spring and fall semesters by the journalism students at Skyline College. The Skyline View is a member of the Journalism Association of Community Colleges. Opinions expressed in the paper are those of the writers and should not be interpreted as the views of Skyline College, SMCCCD, the faculty, administrators or the newspaper adviser. Additionally, the paper does not endorse any of the products or services advertised. The Skyline View welcomes Letters to the Editors; letters must include full name, address, and phone number for verification. The Skyline View reserves the right to edit letters for length, libel, clarity, and taste.
Teachers’ unions have released a report saying they want to stop using shooter lockdown drills in schools. The American Federation of Teachers and the National Education Association released a report on Tuesday, Feb. 11, about the use of active shooter lockdown drills in schools. In making this report, the two unions collaborated with gun safety organization, Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund (more commonly known as Everytown). In this report, they say that active shooter lockdown drills can have a negative effect on children’s mental health. These drills, which happen to be realistic, can evoke stress and produce long-lasting trauma. The former president of the National Association of School Psychologists, Melissa Reeves, says that “[the drills] end up scaring the individuals instead of better preparing them to respond in these kinds of situations”. The American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association, and Everytown say in their report that they “do not recommend these these drills for students and believe schools should carefully consider these impacts before conducting live drills that involve students and educators”. In the past decade, there has been an increase in the amount of school shootings. From Sandy Hook to Parkland, these shootings received lots of media coverage. There have been marches, organizations, and activists trying to make a change. About 95% of schools in America participate in these active shooter lockdown drills, according to the National Center for Education Sta-
Justin Garcia experiences flashbacks from lockdown drills at Skyline College Jan. 28. Ama Bayar/Skyline View
tistics. It’s a way for schools to take precaution and practice safety for if these unfortunate events were to actually take place. With the drills, there are specific procedures to follow for their duration. While the report’s focus was on elementary and high school students, colleges also participate in these lockdown drills, including
“Do not recommend these these drills for students and believe schools should carefully consider these impacts before conducting live drills that involve students and educators”. Skyline College. There are usually announcements on the campus about the drill, as well as text messages or emails. Routinely, as the drill begins, teachers are to instruct students
to turn off the lights, lock the doors, block the entrances, and get away from the windows. Staff then goes around checking if the classroom doors are locked. This is a practice easily assessed during class, but also has the potential to trigger students. Communication studies professor, Lindsey Ayotte, contributed her thoughts on the report from Everytown and the teacher unions, as a teacher herself. “I feel conflicted,” she said. “We are in a time and space in our society where it is important to acknowledge that school shootings and mass shootings have become a part our reality. I hear two conflicting arguments around campus: Firstly, these drills are important; and secondly, they take away from instructional time in the classroom space. I cannot speak to the argument that the drills can cause panic, stress, and trauma (I imagine this is the case with younger students in K through 12) because what I have witnessed this in my classrooms on a college campus, but this could be because people don’t feel comfortable expressing their feelings and emotions outwardly.
“We are in a time and space in our society where it is important to acknowledge that school shootings and mass shootings have become a part our reality. I hear two conflicting arguments around campus: Firstly, these drills are important; and secondly, they take away from instructional time in the classroom space. of these drills is just the reality of being a student in America.
Continued from Page 1 - College Cancels Legal Clinic
Continued from Page 1 - Black History Month
able this semester. Despite the fact that every single one of her openings for appointments were booked last semester, the college has decided not to fund the legal clinic. Skyline College previously approved money for the legal clinic in tandem with her teaching work. “I believe the clinic is an ideal example of what Skyline College could be to students and the community: a place where we put our social justice values into action and where we use our resources and positions of responsibility to work on the behalf of the vulnerable and underserved.” said Jesse W. Raskin,
When asked about how she feels about films and literature depicting the struggles of people of color, she said that those are necessary, to create awareness about what is happening around us. Mendoza also said it would be beneficial if a lot of youth were more involved and more guided by the older generation. “Whatever is going on right now, whether or not it’s going to be what we want, and where we want it to be, they (the youth) are the first ones who are going to get affected by it,” she said. “So they really need to be educated and guided in order to be engaged.” On the following day, Women in Science & Engineering Represent (WISER) held an exclusive screening of the film “Hidden Figures” (2016), celebrating women of color, working in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. Other Black History Month events that have taken place include Leadership Skills Workshop with National Keynote Speaker, Ms. Raven Solomon, on Feb. 4, and the Black History Month Kick Off featuring Executive Director of the Equity Institute, Mr. Lasana Hotep, on Feb. 6. The Learning Commons also hosted several events including The Green-Book Displays, which took place on Feb. 10; Natural &
“I believe the clinic is an ideal example of what Skyline College could be to students and the community: a place where we put our social justice values into action and where we use our resources and positions of responsibility to work on the behalf of the vulnerable and underserved.” an associate professor who teaches paralegal studies at Skyline College. “I remain hopeful that the college and the district will see this too and choose to fund the clinic.” Stu-
“There is lots of funding available for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program renewals.” dents currently are being referred to Canada College’s legal clinic. Another resolution affirming the San Mateo County Community College District’s commitment to protecting undocumented students and student privacy states, “Provide opportunities for students and their families, employees and their families, and members of the community to know about and understand their legal rights and, when appropriate, provide referrals to legal services that provide such assistance.” “There is lots of funding available for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program renewals,” said Pamela Ortiz, staff assistant at the Dream center. “Students should come to us for their renewal application — application fees will be fully funded. Some of our students are considering dropping out of school as they fear they may lose their ability to work in the near future.” While the future of Dreamers lies in the hands of the Supreme Court, Skyline College is failing to protect its students.
“We are put in a detrimental position to not be appreciated for what we’ve done for the country,” Crown Act Displays, which took place on Feb. 11; Poetry Reading on Feb. 18, which honored poets from the African-American community; and the Natural Hair Discussion, which took place yesterday, Feb. 26. An event to look forward to is the Black History Legacy Into The New Decade, which will take place in building 6’s Fireside Dining Room on Feb. 27, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., the speakers being Dean of Student Equity and Support Programs, Dr. Cheryl Johnson, TRiO Director, Mr. Michael Stokes, and language arts professor, Mr. Nathan Jones.
Corrections & Amplifications
Jannett Jackson, Interim President of Skyline College was misspelled in an article Jan. 30 2020. Readers can alert The Skyline View to any errors in news article by emailing theskylineview@gmail.com
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Focal Point
February 27, 2020
How to Help Someone With an Eating Disorder Making Sense of Anorexia Nervosa (Trigger Warning)
By Gianna Sozzi
PHOTOS AND GRAPHICS EDITOR
The last week of February following into March begins eating disorder awareness week of 2020. An eating disorder is a mental health condition marked by an obsession with food or a body type, and is a leading cause of death among people who struggle with mental illnesses according to National Eating Disorders Association and National Association of ANAD. A particular form of this condition known as anorexia nervosa can be recognized as a fixation on losing weight. If you’re someone who has never struggled with body image issues or unhealthy eating habits, it can be difficult to understand the logic behind this state of mind. You may still find yourself concerned for someone and unsure of how to approach them. In order to help effectively, it’s necessary to get a sense of what happens to them internally. A person who suffers with anorexia nervosa is going to have a distorted perception of their own body. For some, to feel hunger is to feel euphoria. The hunger instinct is going to become reversed as the mind continues to receive inadequate nutrition, and starving will start to feel normal. The instinct to eat tends to shut
off if the mind stays malnourished, If not treated soon enough, this illness can reach a point where eating less becomes seriously life threatening, as this person is going to experience an unhealthy pressure on themselves to lose weight. This person is not going to be strong enough to stop losing weight on their own, so if you want to help there are ways to approach it. You may notice discomfort around eating habits along with food in general, so you want to reward any small steps in the right direction. There tends to be a difficult time with whole meals, so you want to suggest small snacks instead. It is more likely for this person to eat if offered a small quantity than a large one, but their response may still be absolute refusal. You want to encourage this person to eat even the smallest amount of food, but do not insist.
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If it reaches the point where they refuse food for days at a time, it is imperative to seek medical help. Continue to reinforce any signs of positive behavior, and keep in mind that it’s better for them to eat a little than nothing at all. With time and proper treatment, the mind will heal as the body is nourished. You want to provide the reassurance that it’s okay to eat, and for this person to understand that food is fuel rather than just something that makes you gain weight. Remind this person that restricting food will slow down the metabolism, and eating food will raise it back up, giving them more energy. Remember this person is terrified to eat, so telling them to “just eat” only causes feelings of misunderstanding. To tell someone they look healthy seems like a harmless compliment, but this can really trigger the desire to further look unhealthy and sickly. People with anorexia nervosa tend to not want to look healthy based on their ideal image of themselves.
To support someone with anorexia nervosa could simply be to avoid making any comments on appearance, food, numbers, calories, exercise–all of it. You don’t want to be forceful at all, despite their condition, because there may be the urge to throw it back up. Purging by self-induced vomiting is a common behavior among people with eating disorders. It may eventually cause issues like acid reflux, dehydration, electrolyte imbalances, and more as said by Medical News Today. The heart can be especially affected when suffering from this behavior. To approach someone with an eating disorder is going to be a challenge, as you may be met with great resistance. Even so, this person could be experiencing complications with bodily organs and systems, so you are going to want to express concern to a guardian or professional. The most dependable option is to go to urgent care when nothing else seems to be working, but always be supportive with them through their journey back to recovery. Remember there is no singular cause for the development of anorexia nervosa, so don’t blame yourself or anyone else for it.
3 FACTS ABOUT ANOREXIA NERVOSA
MEN MAKE UP 10% OF CASES
mOST PEOPLE WILL HAVE A DISTORTED BODY IMAGE
1 IN EVERY 100 YOUNG WOMEN ARE ANOREXIC
Illustration by Calixto Reyes | Digital Editor Other Images provided by Creative Commons
10:02 AM
OFFICE OF MARK CHURCH
CHIEF ELECTIONS OFFICER & ASSESSOR-COUNTY CLERK-RECORDER REGISTRATION & ELECTIONS DIVISION
March 3, 2020 Presidential Primary Election If you are not registered to vote, you can register and vote on the same day at the Vote Center. There will be a Vote Center at Skyline College, Building 19, Room PH-314. The Vote Center will be open: Saturday, February 29 – Monday, March 2 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Election Day – March 3 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Vote by Mail
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Avoid the Line, Vote Early!
Drop Off Your Voted Ballot
Vote in Person at a Vote Center
Find additional Vote Center and Drop Box Locations at Call or Text: 650.312.5222 Web: www.smcvote.org @smcvote
Focal Point
February 27, 2020
Gen Z’s Approach to Video on Social Media By Milla Tivadar
Focal Point EDITOR
This generation is more than familiar with social media, but with every picture, snap, like, comment, the most amusing form of content that is growing rapidly and on the rise is video. It’s the head of the dragon leading the pack of the other types of content. One of the first apps to become famous for platforming hilarious and relatable videos was Vine. Vine blew up in 2014, only to be shut down in 2016, but what this developed in our generation was a greater love for video content. We created ephemeral content apps like Snapchat, with photos and videos to stay on the platform for only 24 hours, where a trendy format for posts that was eventually introduced to Instagram and Facebook was developed — “stories.” With our nimble thumbs, we can tap through at least 30 stories in under a minute, although, in the grand scheme of things, we probably forget every story less than five minutes after having viewed it. Ads pop up between stories and brands blast us with deals and “real customer reviews” while we’re just trying to keep up with our friends, and especially when we’re trying to keep up with influencers and other content creators. With little to gain from these short clips, it’s hard to imagine the kind of a time-wasting generation has been created. However, the relevance of video is likely to dominate — It is predicted to be the form 82% of all content takes by 2022, according to a Cisco report. TikTok, the app that we have all grown to know and love (which it seems very few of us actually have installed on our devices, despite all the talk about it), grew to over 300% revenue increase in the fourth quarter of 2019 alone, according to
Apptopia. Though it may be a growing app in many instances, it definitely caters to a younger demographic, and few college students are taking advantage of it. Skyline College student Ally Castillo said she deleted all her social media in the
beginning of the year. “It was just getting too much,” she said. “Sometimes it felt like everyone was on it for attention, and I didn’t feel like that’s who I am. Plus, it was taking up most of my time.”
The more we use these platforms, the more we encourage advertisers to invest in them, creating apps like these to become their own TV, shopping mall, AI, and other niche opportunities that make us less inclined to leave the house. These
6 apps know what we like, and the length of our attention spans, and it’s very hard to pull away from it all. With everything at our fingertips, at such a high speed, we begin losing our grip on the pace of real life. With TikTok gaining popularity among young users, who knows what other social media platforms will come up with to stay relevant? In contrast, Instagram, with their recent launch of IGTV, took out the button on the home screen for easy access, for the lack of usage this January. Are people turning to TikTok for their muse? Or perhaps YouTube is still dominating. “YouTube does a better job of catering towards various specific subjects that are more easily verifiable, whereas TikTok spreads like wildfire,” Skyline student Amrutha Natarajan said. “They’re entertaining and funny, but that’s about it.” YouTube has been part of our culture for nearly our whole lives, and it’s provided us with great content, for the most part. Sometimes it’s been as memorable as shows like “Funniest Home Videos” and “Friends.” Instagram can be too inauthentic and carefully curated to strike a real chord, and TikTok has a majority of cringe-worthy videos with little meaning — yet the demand keeps rising. Watching videos online takes up a large part of our lives, even in terms of Netflix, Disney+, and Hulu. The choices of what to watch will always be there for you to consume, but don’t forget what you stand for. If you create content, that’s awesome! And if you just consume, laugh, and engage, that’s awesome too. Take care to live your life the way you want, but know that video content is here to stay –– and conquer.
Student Profile: Thomas Gower By Milla Tivadar
Focal Point Editor
College is often the time in one’s life when they experience the highest form of transformation: coming into your own, taking initiative, and most importantly, gaining a great deal of freedom. After spending time in the military, Thomas Gower came to Skyline last summer, and now finds himself to be better off than he’s ever been.
A Texas native, he found himself moving from one city within the state to another several times. His mother raised him from the age of three, along with his two siblings, and since then, he found himself in a bit of trouble relating to the law, disconnected from his father, and never found a consistent home to reside in. Military seemed the best option after high school, and
Thomas Gower stands in front of the Veterans Resource Center
he stayed — for five years. He traveled to various corners of the globe fighting for his country, and meeting people of all backgrounds — people with stories both shocking and familiar coming together. This kind of experience will change your life, however minor or major the effect. Coming back to “reality” is not always the easiest transition — but that’s
Gianna Sozzi / The Skyline View
where Student Veterans of America steps in. This nationwide club has been around since 2008, bringing services to the vets who have gone back to school after serving our country. Its members offer services to the community, and are fully committed to give back and help any way they can. Find them in Room 2-350! This March, the SVA is partnering with the AGS Honor Society to host Saturday clean-ups in select beaches in Pacifica. Last November, they offered to help organize a Transgender Day of Remembrance commemoration, as the trans flag was first designed by a veteran. This is also the first club to partner with Sparkpoint providing a mini pantry for the students, financial aid, and more. Later this semester, they expect to throw their annual barbecue to enjoy with the rest of campus. Along with joining the SVA club, Gower recently got a position as a senator for ASSC, and hopes to remain in this position and reach higher in the future as a member of the Student Trustee for Skyline, with a minor in business. He believes Skyline was the best option in terms of the diversity of students and culture. “Vince Chandler, my communications teacher last semester, allowed us to hold a safe space to talk about our lives and get to know each other’s backgrounds,” Gower said. “Unfortunately, when you’re around the same culture, you get thrown the same ideas, so in his class I really got to experience different viewpoints that I never would have thought about otherwise.”
His sense of awareness for other people has also come with a deeper awareness of himself. After serving in the military, he was used to conforming to the many layers of the image of the ideal soldier. “Wear this. Go there. Suck it up. Follow orders.” There was little room for being yourself. In moving to California and finding a community among other Skyline students, Gower has been given the chance and the support to proceed with this upward journey to become the man who is finally able to follow his own orders. “Thomas came in here with great leadership, already developed,” said David Botello, former president of the SVA club. “He just hit the ground running as soon as he walked in, and I think we can all feel his impact here.” Gower’s faith in the school and its professors are sure to continue to be apparent in the coming year. “He continues to show up professional, clean, and on time, and I think that will really help him in the long-run,” said Skyline student and Gower’s fellow vet Kyle Curry. “I’m really glad to know him. I think he’s really nice, and he makes us all feel comfortable around here.” Gower’s poetry will be running for a spot in this year’s Talisman 50, as he is submitting a piece he wrote at the age of nine, as well as a more current piece about his own view of conforming to society. Is there nowhere Thomas can’t reach? He is flying high with ambition, and encourages his fellow students to strive to do so as well.
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Opinions
February 27, 2020
Editorial
Adjunct Faculty Members Deserve Better Higher education institutions rely on the work of their instructors and lecturers to do the teaching in college classrooms and lecture halls. Adjunct faculty members deserve better. Students attend class, they take notes, complete homework assignments, and take exams to prove that they’ve learned the material and mastered the subject. These assignments and exams are passed on to the instructors so that they can be graded. In many cases, these part-time instructors do not get an office to work in, nor do they get paid for the hours spent grading papers. Around 70% of North America’s college professors are considered “adjunct faculty”, which means that they work part-time and are not “tenured”. This means that they do not have many job protections and or stability, and the pay may also be slightly lower than that of other faculty. Faculty are granted tenure after they have shown their commitment to teaching and providing services to the college. In their roles as tenured faculty, they are meant to protect academic freedom while
also assuring accountability. Tenured faculty are, in essence, a part of the college that will help make decisions for the college. They have some power to make changes and contribute to its academic politics. It is, however, a possibility for instructors to be “on track for tenure”, as many of the full-time positions available give that opportunity to those professors. In a recent article by The Skyline View, “Skyline College is Under Violation of the 50% Law”, it was indicated that around 70% of Skyline College faculty members are adjunct faculty. This tells us that many of them are working part-time, and may also be working at other community colleges in the Bay Area. It becomes harder for them to be able to complete their work if they are tasked with other things like filling out extra paperwork that adds to their workload. They are not appropriately compensated for all the time spent doing these things. Educators deserve better than that — They deserve to have the time to complete their work so that they can provide the most enriching level of teaching that they can to their students. The American Federation of Teachers [AFT1493] represents the San Mateo Community College faculty. Many say that they
are just fighting to be given more money, but it is more significant than that. They are negotiating the pay, but they are also focusing their attention on the workload that many faculty are being required to manage. This workload outside of teaching makes it harder for faculty to accomplish their goals in the classroom. In the end, this results in student learning outcomes not aligning with the amount of instruction they receive. It diminishes the quality of education in the classroom. Tenured professors are given job stability, but it is different for the part-time faculty, who might even have one of their classes canceled the day before the class was supposed to start. With all these pieces put together, one can understand that not only is this unfair, but it puts instructors at risk when the source of income that they use to purchase essentials such as rent and food may depend on their parttime role as an instructor. While students deserve to have a debt-free college and a quality education system, the same goes for the professors and faculty teaching at the institutions. Money should indeed be allocated for their salaries, which should increase as the demand for living increases.
Is the #MeToo Movement Really Making Change Happen? The flaws in one protest
By: KIMBERLY BROWN Staff Writer
Movements have created no change in accordance with the culture going on today. We are so passionate about so many things, but what is unfortunate is that it is not enough. We have wants and needs that we consider fundamental to continue to live and survive in the United States, but ultimately, it’s the government that can create change, and the prospects are not looking good. The #MeToo movement was created to have a safe space for people to confess that they have been a victim of sexual assault and or sexual harrassment. Culturally, this has prompted social media users to show support as an ally to these victims. When #MeToo is mentioned, the first person many people think of is Harvey Weinstein, founder of The Weinstein Company, an independent film studio. As of Feb. 24, 2020, Weinstein has been convicted of “criminal sexual assault in the first degree and rape in the third degree,” according to the New York Times. This had been an ongoing case for the past two years, and its closure may be seen as a win for the #MeToo movement. However, this is only in regards to Hollywood. I am in no way undermining
struggles of the women who were assaulted by Weinstein — However, they have the press coverage to ignite the discussion. But what about the people around us? Where is the justice for them? “Now an online survey launched in January by a nonprofit called Stop Street Harassment offers some of that missing evidence,” wrote Rhitu Chatterjee for NPR. “It found that 81 percent of women and 43 percent of men had experienced some form of sexual harassment during their lifetime.” If we take a look at the proportions of men and women who report their assaults, it is astounding. In a graphic created by the National Sexual Violence reseach center, it is stated that “43.3% heterosexual women reported sexual violence other than rape during their lifetimes… 20.8% heterosexual men reported sexual violence other than rape during their lifetimes”. There has been some improvements in the way some jobs show that there is support for men and women who report sexual misconduct to their employers. There have been opendoor policies that were implemented to show that employees and employers are an asset to one another. Unfortunately, this does not reach everyone. Culture has proven that it is hard
to confront those in charge, especially if they are men. In the workplace, men and women are scared to bring retaliation to the person in charge. This is why it took years to put Weinstein in the hot seat. This is a result of internalized fear of losing jobs and reputation. On a social level, many simply do not believe the men and women who report it. There have been multiple occasions in a row on which I have logged into Twitter, seen a post about a woman calling out her partner and showing her bruises and cuts, and then seen someone asking the questions “Why didn’t you report it?” or “Why didn’t you leave him?” We have reached a point in the age of technology at which the content we release on the internet can easily make or break a person. These tweets spread across the internet and help these women get the satisfaction they need. Something that people consider very little is the fact that destroying someone’s presence online can easily destroy their reputation in the context of day-to-day life.
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How can we have a system where not only the students, but also the teachers are failing to show up to class because they are struggling to make ends meet? A more favorable state of affairs would be one in which our passionate part-time instructors are treated with more respect by being allowed to have the time, space, and resources they need to grade papers — thereby not leaving them in a situation in which they’re forced to complete too much work outside of the classroom. This would make
it easier for instructors to be invested in teaching and in their classrooms. This will then improve students’ learning outcomes, allow them to have a better time in class, get better grades, and have a better environment in which to learn. In this case, everybody wins — and everybody deserves to win.
ARTISTIC LICENSE
4
Live TV is Dead Why live television is no longer important By Cristian Garcia Opinion Editor
That which is on television is no longer considered must-see with social media. Viewers could see everything on their timelines. With streaming services adding episodes all at once, the-week by-week viewing no longer exists. The Grammys, the Oscars, and the NBA all-star games are all live television events that happened recently, the main talking points of which one can gain an understanding of by simply scrolling through Twitter. Television shows have lost their reasons for viewers to tune in every week. Before the age of streaming, you’d have to wait months after a season’s finale aired to be able to purchase a DVD of the season in order to watch it all at once. Nowadays, streaming services like Hulu and Netflix release seasons all at once. As for the shows that actually air on cable television, it feels like it has been forever since the last episode aired when you have to actually wait until a particular time to see the most recent one. Over the past three decades, television has really been flipped upside down. Network television began to be at its peak in the 90s, when sitcoms like “Friends”, “Seinfeld”, and “Frasier” were what people enjoyed watching. And on the unscripted side, people were glued
to their chairs watching the O.J. Simpson trial play out. By the time the 2000s rolled around, viewers wanted something more real. Reality television came onto the scene, and shows like “American Idol” and “The Real World” were things viewers were excited about. Scripted television was not left out when cable television began to create their own television programs. Networks like FX and HBO began to take over what network television used to be. By the 2010s, we seemed to arrive at a new golden age of television. It was nothing like it once was, having so many different options viewers can have difficulty deciding what to watch. Then came Netflix, first considered the brand new Blockbuster, only used for renting movies without ever having to leave the home. Once the demand for DVDs fell, they created a new option for viewers. The era of streaming began. Now viewers can watch whatever they want, whenever they want, without having to record anything or run home to catch the new episode of show at a particular time. Take the example of “Friends”, which aired primetime on NBC for ten years. After a season would air, fans would either have to wait for reruns or for the home video edition to be released in order to re-watch or catch up on a season. When streaming came around, new seasons were added immediately after the season just aired.
Opinions
Most people rather stream than flip channels
Today, networks like The CW will add titles less than a month after airing. Next month, FX will begin to add all their new programs, as well as past seasons of old programs. Putting all their programs into one streaming app takes away the reason for paying for cable. If a viewer is watching something knowing that in a few days —maybe even hours — it will be added to Hulu or on-demand, then live television is coming to an end. Social media is also killing live television — Currently, the Democratic Presidential Debates
Living Beyond the Lens Putting down the camera and being in the moment By: Mark David Magat Editor at large
A while back, I was a part of an amazing moment while walking with a group of my friends. As the sunsets and the night got cooler, my friend Mathew took his girlfriend’s hand and got on one knee, and asked the question. Watching and being a part of such a beautiful moment was something I can never describe, but looking back and having our friends and the couple’s family asking why no one, especially having a photographer on scene, not at least take photos of the proposal. And I knew what was going to happen and Mathew and I decided to not have me take photos. And now that I think about, it’s a mindset that really needs to be emphasized; we wanted to live in the moment and not worry about capturing it. Photography is an amazing art form for many reasons and one of them is being its ability to capture moments. But with that benefit of capturing a moment in time for whatever time you have left, you have to worry about a lot of technical stuff to not go wrong. If we decided to record the proposal, I know for a fact Mathew would have worried about me not missing the moment and making sure I do my job among this very stressful situation he’s already in. Stipping these massive moments to what’s only nessesary relieves
stress and extra and unneeded complications. Stripping down the moment to what really matters really does help focus people into what’s happening in the present and can help make that moment something worth remembering without a photo or video. Leaving the camera at home or the phone in your pocket leaves just you and the beautiful thing life is presenting to you. Another point is a rather personal point to me, but no matter who
you are, put a camera for whatever reason in front of a person and they will not give a 100 percent authentic representation of themselves. Camera’s have an uncanny way of turning people into a brighter, more publicly appealing version of themselves. There’s things in this life that require a certain amount of personal and authentic connection and a camera can throw a filter on that. And I admit it can be a small change but
February 27, 2020
that’s still a layer of ungenuine acts. And my last point really applies to massive moments, maybe it’s a marriage proposal or seeing your first child for the first time, if the moment is a massive moment, you don’t really need a photo to remember it. A camera can get in the way of both enjoying the moment but can also hinder the moment’s impact. A camera can only capture so much and a feeling is one of the things a photo or video can’t replicate to the degree of living in it. One of the biggest moments of my life was becoming an uncle and the joy of seeing my newly born nephew is a joy I still can remember and I know I don’t need a photo to remember that joy becuase I barely ever see any of the photos that were taken and those photos don’t capture what I felt seeing my nephew laying in the nursery room. I am a photographer. I live to capture moments and to bring the beauty of life out in a photo, but this profession really taught me that life isn’t lived behind a lense and a screen, it’s not lived through a print or saved image, it’s lived with the people you love, it’s lived though the moments you shared, and it’s lived by living your life instead of living to remember. Live for the moments and make those moment’s worth remembering.
Photo Illustration by Mark David Magat / The Skyline View
have been taking place, and instead of sitting through and watching everything they talk about, one can simply go on Twitter and watch videos of the highlights and the main talking points of the debate. This can apply to sports as well — People are paying top money to watch the latest UFC fight, but if a person just waits for the biggest knockout that everyone is talking about, updates concerning the event are everywhere. Some would argue that watching live is far better than binging everything at once or watching the highlights on social media. The suspense of watching a program week-by-week can enhance
one’s viewing experience. Avoiding spoilers can be a big challenge for viewers today. Those who can successfully avoid them can have an experience that many don’t have enough patience to preserve. If a viewer goes channel-surfing and sees every commercial for a new show, the airdate or the option to watch on demand will be shown at the end of the ad. It has become very clear that we are approaching a new era of television in which we stream everything at our own pace, and ask our friends, “Have you checked out this new show?” rather than “Did you catch the new episode of that show?”
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February 27, 2020
Sports Feautre
7
Sports
Motorsport Deaths and The Safety Innovations that Followed By Marco Milani Staff writer
The number three sticker commemorates Dale Sr’s tragic death in Creative Commons 2001 We lost Ayrton Senna in 1994 in
San Marino. Seven years later, at the Daytona 500, we lost Dale Earnhardt Sr. A decade after that, we lost Dan Wheldon at an Indycar race at Las Vegas. Four years later, Justin Wilson also died from injuries caused by an accident in Pocono. That same year, we lost young Formula 2 driver Jules Bianchi. Then, just recently, we lost another Formula 2 driver, Anthoine Hubert. I think Joe Gibbs, former NFL Head Coach and owner of Joe Gibbs Racing in NASCAR, said it best Monday night, after apologizing for celebrating in victory lane with Denny Hamlin, when there was uncertainty that driver Ryan Newman was okay, at the finish of the Daytona 500 this year.
“(In) racing, we know what can happen — We just dream it doesn’t happen”, Gibbs said in his apology, which was published in the Tampa Bay Times. What he means is crashes like what we saw with Ryan Newman — who hit the wall, went upside down, then got hit in the driver’s side in the process of flipping over — can happen — Everyone just hopes it never does. The good news is that crashes like these can be prevented — partially because of the aforementioned people who died in the sport. While tragic, they made way for new innovations in the world of motorsports. For example, in NASCAR, after Dale Sr. died in 2001, an innovation came about that protects the
neck. An interview with a driver on WFLA 8 discusses this device, which is called HANS. “The HANS device is actually made out of carbon fiber, a very strong material,” said Willie Allen Racing driver Jackson Boone. “You’ll put it around your neck, and it catches the latch and it keeps your neck from going completely forward. That way, if there’s an abrupt impact, it won’t give you whiplash or break your neck.” They even have walls that are less harmful to crash into. They are walls that are called “SAFER” barriers. They are made out of steel and foam, and, according to an ESPN article explaining them, they “absorb kinetic energy released when a racecar makes contact with the wall”. F1 also has innovations that were being made for safety. I recently watched the documentary from 2010, “Senna”, about Aryton Senna’s life and legacy, and he started something before his tragic death in 1994. Three years earlier, at the 1991 German GP, he made a proposal for a cone be placed to make a run-off area, instead of tire barriers at the chicanes, saying that it blocks the road before rejoining the track. Even today, there are large run-off areas for drivers who miss a corner, not only to prevent damage to the car, butt o also protect drivers from the impact one endures upon hitting the tire
barriers. Today, in the sport of F1, they also have Halo devices on the cockpit of the cars to protect neck injury from flying debris or tires — another great innovation. These proved their worth back in 2018, when they were first debuted. At the start of the Belgian Grand Prix, Renault driver Nico Hulkenburg’s car locked up and ran into McLaren driver Fernando Alonso, who flew into the Halo device of Charles Leclerc, who was driving for Alfa Romeo Racing at the time, protecting him from impact. A reaction from former Mercedes AMG F1 driver Nico Rosberg followed, as he said on Twitter, “We can end the HALO discussion now. It will save lives!”. Indycar followed suit from F1, with this season seeing the debut of Red Bull Racing Technology’s “Aeroscreen”, which serves the same function as the Halo. They also adopted the aforementioned SAFER barriers. At the end of “Senna”, there is a small afterword that says, “In the aftermath of his death, the FIA appointed Aryton’s friend Prof. Sid Watkins to improve safety in Formula One. There has not been a fatality in Formula One since.” That means in the 16 years after Senna died, no one else has suffered such a fate. These deaths were pivotal moments in the history of motor-
sports. We may not be able to prevent injury from these accidents, but seeing that there are actions being taken to prevent these deaths makes me feel better about watching these sports, knowing that if something does happen, we won’t see a death like Aryton Senna, Dale Sr., or Dan Wheldon again.
Sports Opinion
Aubrey Huff’s Deserved Dismissal of World Series Anniversary
Former Giant Excluded From 10 Year Anniversary of 2010 World Series Win By Mathew South Staff writer
Aubrey Huff has been unofficially announced himself as Donald Trump’s mouthpiece for the sports sector leading to the Giants management to ban him from the 10-year anniversary of the Giant’s 2010 World Series win. Former World Series champion and new Twitter troll Aubrey Huff has been banned from the 10-year reunion celebrating the Giant’s 2010 win against the Texas Rangers. I was a sophomore in high school when the 2010 World Series took place, and was infatuated with the team. I hopped on that bandwagon so hard that my rear is still recovering from the impact. I rocked a fake beard imitating Brian Wilson and acted like I was choking all day, but we still got the win, and when we did, I was in pure heaven. Flash forward to today, when the political climate has become a bit more consistent in the world of sports. Some spectators can dissociate the player’s views from the game, and others react — whether internally, or by writing 600 words a minute ranting on a Facebook post. Aubrey Huff, on the other hand, has truly been off his bloody
rocker. Huff’s tweets have been so disgusting, from him posing with a human silhouette target at the gun range with the caption, “By the way, most of the headshots were theirs,” regarding Bernie Sanders and socialists, then retweeting, “We should invade Iran and take their b******. Persian girls are hot af without the headgear and you know they know how to act right”. With his supreme insight, he added on, saying, “Let’s get a flight over and kidnap about 10 each. We can bring them here as they fan us and feed us grapes, amongst other things… (purple smiling devil emoji)”. He deleted the second tweet, and during his interview on Fox News, the interviewer even said, “You deleted that tweet, which was a good idea — It was a little edgy,” proceeding to move on to the next point and sweep it under the rug, while poor little Aubrey defended himself from the cancellation. It doesn’t end there: After the Giants hired their first female coach, he tweeted, “Couldn’t imagine taking baseball instruction from an ex female softball player (rolling eye emoji). Have fun with that”. This covers so many reasons why he
wasn’t invited to this reunion — he is literally calling out the current coach and playing the “woe is me” card. You can hold your political views any way you please, but Huff’s hitting for the cycle, posting Islamophobic, sexist, terroristic, and outright gross tweets. His main defense was, “I was always the guy that kept it loose in the locker room, that kind of sense of humor I have on Twitter…” This reminds me of a certain someone else who had the same sort of excuse to use “locker room talk”. At least Huff never claimed to grab anyone by the... uh... Nevermind. In an attempt to divert the attention from his lacking self-awareness, Huff brought up Giants CEO Larry Baer and his physical altercation with his wife, Pam. With all this drama happening with the Giants, perhaps being an Astros fan would be easier to deal with. Aubrey Huff is just eating up all of this attention, “triggering the left” or “just tellin’ it like it is”, yet aside from the tweets he retches up, when was he last relevant in the sports sector? Is he trying to be conservative Colin Kaepernick? I mean, yeah, Kaepernick’s playing on the field was so hard to watch the season of the infamous kneel that I scrubbed
Aubrey Huff played for the San Francisco Giants from 2010-2012
my Youtube search history — but at least he wasn’t threatening to shoot presidential candidates. So give yourself a pat on the back, Kap — just for the “not shooting part” — not your playing on the field, please, no.
I’ll just wait a month for Huff’s relevancy to plummet, unless he tries running for president for 2024 — and if that’s the case, well, he’d still have better chances than Biden.
The Voice of Skyline College, San Bruno, Calif.
February 27, 2020
The Skyline View
TROJAN ATHLETICS
8
Skyline Women Land No. 9 Seed For Playoffs Trojans Wins First Conference Championship In The Women’s Team’s History By I-Wei Chang
Sports Editor
The Skyline women’s basketball team won the last conference game of the season 67-29 against Ohlone College on Feb. 14. The team had a first-place finish in the Coast-North with a no. 9 seed in the CCCAA NorCal State Playoffs. This is the first conference championship in the team’s history. They will play against College of the Redwoods as playoffs’ opener on Friday, Feb. 29. This would be the first time that the two teams face off against each other in this season. On the Redwood’s roster is freshman guard Ashley Quigley, who averages 17.6 points per game along with a 38.4 percent in three-pointers. Regarding this, Chris Watters, Skyline’s head coach, pointed out the freshman guard Jalene Parangan will be an important aspect of the defensive. “I think that Jalene Paranganis is going to be an X factor defending against Redwoods’ best player,” Watters said. “They have a really good score.” As Parangan will play her first playoffs’ game in her freshman year, she believes that her defense can stop Quigley on the offensive.
“What I’ve heard is that she’s a good shooter and a driver,” Parangan said. “She’s kind of shifty. But I feel like I’m a pretty good defender myself. I think I can lock her down. I just can’t give her open opportunities to shoot. I just have to mentally focus on the game and be ready to stop her from driving.“ After Nov. 16, Trojans’ sophomore guard Kalisi Fononga was injured and didn’t play for the rest of the season. However, freshman forward Nicole Brunicardi protected inside the paints, with an average of 12.2 points 10.9 rebound for this season. “I think defensively, she’s done a good job,” Watters said. “Kalisi was great — probably our most active rebounder. And I think that Nicole stepping in has helped, keeping us a really efficient rebounding team. I think as far as rebounding efficiency and rebounding margin, we’re one of the best rebounding teams in the state. So, it was nice that we were able to maintain a high level, even after losing someone who’s potentially our most active rebounder.” When asked about stepping in for Fononga, Brunicardi spoke about how she covered the position.
“We were going to have watched players in that position, so I knew I had to step up,” she said. “And it was an easy transition because of working with my teammates, and we knew what we’re supposed to do, and we accomplished that. I think we did a really good job executing at the end of the season. So that’s a really good confidence booster to go in the playoffs.” When talking about the coming playoffs, Emilia Dougherty, freshman point guard, expressed the team chemistry has changed. “Team chemistry is way better than it was in the beginning,” she said. “We’re learning how to pass the ball look opposite. I’m learning how to drive and kick out more, but it’s way better our chemistry has gotten tighter, not even just on the court. Like outside, we’re spending more time with each other getting to know each other more. So I think that all applies to the floor.” However, regarding the coming playoffs, coach Watters explained the team’s advantage, “I feel like our advantage in the playoffs is that we do have to post players who can score inside, and typically, at our level, if you have one player who can score around the basket, teams can adjust things
Freshman Point guard Emilia Dougherty is ready for playoffs. Kevin Arias/The Skyline View
in order to defend them, like helping from the perimeter or helping with another post player,” Watters said. “But when you have two who can score from the inside, and it
changes the way teams have to defend, so I feel like our strength on Friday is going to be our ability to score from the post.”
Sowyrda Leads Skyline To Victory Over Laney
Upcoming Games Women’s Badminton
Mar. 06 at Mission College (4 p.m.) Mar. 10 vs Foothill College (3 p.m.) Mar. 14 at De Anza College Coast Conference Tournament (12 p.m.)
Baseball
Feb. 29 at Monterey Peninsula College (1 p.m.)
Cole Sowyrda pitches five innings with eight strikeouts leads trojans win the game.
Mar. 03 vs Cañada College (2 p.m.) Mar. 05 at Cañada College (2:30 p.m.) Mar. 07 vs West Valley College (1 p.m.)
Gianna Sozzi/The Skyline View
By I-Wei Chang
Sports Editor
The Skyline men’s baseball team won 8-2 against Laney College on Saturday, Feb 22. Freshman starting pitcher Cole Sowyrda pitched a 4.1 inning with no hits, with a total 5 innings with 8 strikeouts, leading the team to a six-win streak and the fifth home win of this season. “We’re not playing great, but we’re playing good enough,” said Dino Nomicos, head coach of Trojans Baseball. “The kids are playing hard. So we just have to play basic baseball. We had throw strikes and make all the places. So we did that.” Going to the bottom of first, Trey Zanhursky, starting second baseman, hit a RBI singles, leading the team ahead by one. Sophomore catcher Matt Leong hit two RBI
doubles with two outs, leading the Trojans to 3-0. As a total, in the first inning, the Trojans earned five runs with four hits, defeating Laney’s starting pitcher Grant Thomas, who pitched a 0.2 inning. “Basically, he (Thomas) is a lefthander,” said head coach Nomicos concerning the batting strategy he sets for the team. “They’d like to throw the ball out a little bit. So we just had them stay back, and be patient, and sit on one pitch, because he wasn’t getting his breaking ball over. He became almost like batting practice — We just set on his fastball.” As for the game-winning RBI by Matt Leong, Leong himself explained how important the hit was. “I think it’s really huge to just come out of the gate and get the guys all pumped up and then just really carried over throughout the rest of the game,” he said.
In addition, Nomicos points out Leong’s double was clutch for winning the game. “it’s important because any two out hit with runners in scoring position,” Nomicos said. “We haven’t done a good job in getting those runs in. We worked on it yesterday at practice, and he did a good job that was a big hit.” On the top of third, Trojans shortstop Jack Mettam made a ground ball error with one out. Then, Sowyrda threw a hit by pitch to Justin Lenhart, a freshman designated hitter from Laney. Fortunately, with two runners on base, Sowyrda did succeed to retire the next two batters without losing score. “I wasn’t too worried about the hit batter, because I had a little run support, and I knew that if I kept the pitch-by-pitch mentality,
it would help me execute pitches better, stress-free,” said Sowyrda. In the total of five innings pitched, Sowyrda only had Laney make two hits without bases on balls. When asked about his first victory of the season, Sowyrda explained the winning strategy he set for the game. “My pitching strategy, as for facing my opponent, was beating them on the outer half of the plate, to create a lot of ground ball outs,” Sowyrda said. “As for my approach, I was working pitch-bypitch, focusing on what I had to do for this pitch I was going to throw, and it helped me stay locked-in and get my job done.”
Since the beginning of the season, the team currently has received 11W-2L. Throughout February, the team has won eight games in this month. Regarding this, Leong believes that trust is part of the winning element. “I think just coming out and knowing that the only person that can beat us is ourselves, and just believing in one another, knowing that if we do something wrong, the next guy in the order on defense will pick us up, and I think that’s helped a lot,” he said