A N AT I O N A L PA C E M A K E R AWA R D N E W S PA P E R
Out of their skulls for Dia de los Muertos. B1
Our county’s fluffiest predators. A12 Volume 58, Issue 2
theswcsun.com
October 13 - November 13, 2014
Ebola scare rattles the campus, community False alarm triggers international media coverage, widespread anxiety and fear
April Abarrondo/Staff
GOLDEN EVENING AT GOLDEN HALL— Griselda Delgado and supporters celebrate her election to the SWC Governing Board. She takes office Dec. 17.
By Anna Pryor Editor-in-Chief
Southwestern College’s Ebola scare turned out to be a lie, but the event raised questions about campus procedures for infectious disease outbreaks, emergency management by campus police and crisis communication by college leaders. Rumors of a possible case of Ebola at SWC became an international news story and attracted nearly two dozen print and broadcast news outlets from San Diego County and Baja Califoria the morning of Oct. 16 when campus police and public safety officers began to encircle the quad around the 400, 440, 450, 460 and 470 buildings with yellow caution tape. An estimated 75-100 students from several classes adjacent to the quad were quarantined for more than four hours from about 8:45 a.m. to about 1 p.m. Students in the quad were told to stay inside the area, though some students said campus police urged them to leave quickly before they were quarantined with the others. Campus officials went on alert when a student in an 8 a.m. class told her instructor she was not able to complete an assignment because of family turmoil following a flight from Wisconsin. She initially said she and a sister had traveled on the same flight as one of the two Texas-based nurses who had contracted Ebola while serving in West Africa. She said her sister was hospitalized with a high fever and flu-like symptoms. Her instructor called the campus nurse, who in turn notified campus police. At about 9 a.m. Campus Police Chief Michael Cash decided to seal the area into a quarantine zone. Campus police began to seal off nearby buildings and the quad. Cash said when he learned from San Diego County Health Services that there were no known cases of Ebola in the county, he and his officers decided to enter the faculty office where the student was being held to question her. College officials did not talk to medical personnel at County Health until about 1 p.m. “We went in, talked with her, in less than about five minutes she recanted
Delgado newest trustee By Brian del Carmen Staff Writer
UP IN SMOKE?
April Abarrondo/Staff
FLAME MAY GO OUT ON CIGARETTES — Photography major Mitzy Agraz and other smokers may be out of luck next year if the governing board votes to ban all nicotine products on campus. SWC is the only San Diego County college not to enact a ban.
SCC votes to snub out smoking on campus, governing board has the final decision By Asjia Daniels Assistant News Editor
Where there is smoking there is fire, but a new draft policy passed by the Shared Consultation Counsel is an effort to clear the air once and for all. If passed by the governing board it will formally ban all forms of smoking on the Southwestern College main campus and its satellites in National City, Otay Mesa, Coronado and San Ysidro. A previous policy, which attempted to limit smoking to four areas in or near parking lots, was nearly universally considered a failure due to lack of enforcement. Academic Senate President Patti FloresCharter said most faculty have expressed support for a ban, but not all. “When the policy was first introduced at SCC we did not have a 100 percent consensus,” she said. “Many faculty and
classified professionals smoke.” Former Academic Senate President Randy Beach said the issue has resurfaced for many reasons, but primarily because virtually every other San Diego public school system has banned smoking. “There was a resurgence in the notion of Southwestern College going smoke free,” he said. After visiting other smoke-free community colleges, the SCC directed a re-evaluation of the colleges’ practices, said Beach. “The facilities committee discussed it and there was a lot of back and forth on whether it was a facilities issue, public health issue, police enforcement issue or an employee enforcement issue,” he said. “ The facilities committee deemed that it was not addressable with the way it was presented to them. Most committees looked at it and
please see Ebola Scare, B5
“All four ASO representatives were absent that day. As important as it is for students to be involved in this conversation, they were not present for the day of the vote.” RANDY BEACH
please see Smoking, A4
Part-time instructors seek better treatment By: Abraham Gertz Staff Writer
Cindy Espinoza/Staff
PART-TIME, FULLY FRUSTRATED — Geoffery Johnson criticized the inequality between adjunct instructors and full-time professors.
All men may be created equal, but not all college instructors are treated equally. That was the message from a vo c a l g ro u p o f a d j u n c t instructors during Campus Equity Week, a nationwide initiative to draw attention to the working conditions of parttime instructors. “Faculty working conditions are student learning conditions!” announced Geoffery Johnson, an English instr uctor and Southwestern College Education Association Adjunct Representative, at an outdoor public seminar in front of the cafeteria focused on the plight of part-time professors at SWC
and across America. Campus Equity Week, he said, is part of an effort to obtain equal pay for equal work. Adjuncts, Johnson said, are paid about half what full-time professors are paid for doing the same work. Johnson asked attendees to sign a letter to Governor Jerry Brown describing the unfair treatment of adjuncts and requesting state funds to equalize pay. Equity advocates are seeking $30 million to pay part-time instructors for office hours, $50 million to erase inequalities in compensation and $100 million to hire more adjuncts as fulltime, tenure-tracked professors. Governing Board Member Humberto Peraza said he did not think it was fair that adjuncts
receive fewer benefits than fulltime professors. “They don’t get paid the same and don’t get the same subsidies on healthcare,” he said. “They don’t get paid for office hours.” Despite working at more than one campus, most struggle to make a living wage. Adjuncts make up almost 80 percent of the approximately 1,100 instructors at SWC, said Jo h n s o n s a i d A m e r i c a n higher education has become increasingly reliant on parttime instructors. Between 1976 and 2011 adjunct instructors working at American colleges and universities increased by 286 percent, he said. In the 1970s adjuncts made up 30 percent of please see Adjuncts, A2
Griselda Delgado, the principal of Hilltop Middle School, won the race for SWC Governing Board Seat #1 over former Sweetwater Union High School District Trustee Jaime Mercado and Chula Vista elementary school teacher Veronica Valdivia. Delgado received 38 percent of the vote to Mercado’s 32 percent. Valdivia tallied 30 percent despite not campaigning. “Students first” was the theme of Delgado’s campaign. please see Election, A3
Wellness Center shapes up By Jaime Pronoble News Editor
After 15 years of proposals, debates, scandal, cancellations and re-designs, the first actual building on the long-jinxed corner lot may begin in Spring 2015. An ambitious wellness center and aquatic complex is planned for the dirt field by Parking Lot O, near the corner of East H Street and Otay Lakes Road. Total footprint of the project is 75, 250 square feet, total estimated cost is more than $31 million. Prop R Bond Project Manager Mark Claussen said he hopes to start construction as early as May. The wellness center will have three levels. Level one will house the basketball court, ticket w i n d o w, event lobby and athletic locker rooms. Level two will have a fitness/ cardio HEFFERNAN exercise room, community classrooms and locker rooms and storage for the pool. Level three will host a multipurpose exercise room and faculty offices. Claussen said the wellness center should be complete by Fall 2017. Once the wellness center is finished, the existing gymnasium please see Wellness Center, A4
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Oct. 13-Nov. 13—Vol. 58, Issue 2
Jaime Pronoble, editor
NEWS
Tel: (619) 482-6368 E-mail: news@theswcsun.com
Restroom closed, police begin arson investigation By Jaime Pronoble and Nicholas Baltz Staff Writers
Smoking in the boy’s room ain’t allowed in school, and campus police are none too happy about a smoking men’s room that was damaged and closed indefinitely. They are investigating a mysterious fire in the men’s 500 building restroom as arson. Campus Police Chief Michael Cash said the restroom would be closed until further notice due to fire and smoke damage. Custodians discovered smoke coming from the facility on November 7. It has now been deemed a crime scene. Custodian Burk Romero said a young Asian man alerted him and student worker Amabelle Rishah about the blaze. “(The man) kind of pointed and said ‘There’s some smoke over here,’” said Rishah. “And when we (turned back) he just ran.” Romero said the student walked down the hallway and started running. “I don’t know if he had anything to do with it or not,” he said. Night custodian Carlos Berrios said he peeked into the restroom, but did not smell any smoke until later. He said it smelled like burning rubber or plastic. Romero said he called the police and did not see any actual flames. “I cracked the door and looked in and it was just black,” he said.
Melvin Graham/Staff
SMOKING OUT THE CAUSE — Chula Vista Fire Department personnel respond to reports of smoke coming from the men’s restroom in the 500 building. Campus police officials said they suspect arson and have opened an investigation.
Veterans Day ceremony honors POWs
Adjuncts: Part-timers advocate for more equal treatment, better pay Continued from Page A1
all higher education instructors while full-time tenure-track professors comprised 70 percent. Today, he said, adjuncts account for 75 percent. This shift began in 1966, according to Johnson, when the administration of Governor Ronald Regan decided to externalize costs of public higher education by introducing facility fees — a disguised tuition — for students and by reducing full-time faculty through the increased use of part-time instructors. Budget tightening governance models take value out of education by presenting it to the public as an economic resource to be rationed and industrially reproduced at a low operating cost. Johnson stressed how adjunct exploitation and the consequences that follow are representative of these practices. In a call to student and campus leaders, Johnson emphasized the importance of acknowledging, appreciating and supporting parttimers.
By Nick Siriphone Staff Writer
Jaime Pronoble/Staff
ALL INSTRUCTORS NOT CREATED EQUAL — English instructor Geoffery Johnson asks the governing board for equity for adjunct instructors.
When Navy Commander James Bedinger was thrown into a Hanoi POW prison in Hanoi during the Vietnam War, he came face-to-face with an imprisoned Naval aviator who had a series of questions about the outside world. “He was like ‘come on you can at least tell me who won the World Series and if the Yankees are still a dynasty’,” Bedinger said. So he and future GOP presidential candidate John McCain talked about sports, at least at first. Otherwise, life in the camp was brutal. Bedinger said McCain notified fellow prisoners of a surprise inspection by loudly insulting Vietnamese leaders. When the guards did not find any contraband they took their frustrations out on McCain, he said. “They were upset,” Bedinger said. “They put leg irons around his ankles and made them bleed, they put a chain around his neck and led him away to a little isolation cell, where they locked him to the wall... and that’s where he lived for two weeks.” Bedinger said he holds McCain in high regards. “That’s what a veteran does for his fellow veterans,” he said. “John McCain in my eyes is a hero.” Bedinger was the guest of honor at Southwestern College’s Veterans Day ceremony and gave students many reasons to appreciate the courage and sacrifice of U.S. military personnel. Bedinger, a former history teacher, said Veterans Day is celebrated on the anniversary of the World War I armistice agreement, which occurred on the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month. “President Wilson said it was a war to end all wars,” he said. “We entered the war to make the world safe for democracy.” Needless to say, World War I was not mankind’s final war. American soldiers fought World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Kuwait, Iraq, Afghanistan and others since “the war to end all wars.” “We owe a debt to veterans,” Bedinger said. “The purpose of this day is to honor all veterans for their patriotism, for their love of country, for their willingness in being so few to protect and serve so many.” President Dr. Melinda Nish thanked veterans, including the more than 2,300 veteran students and dependants of veterans that attend the college. She said the new Student Veteran Resource Center is open to any student vets. Laura Melidona of the Student Veteran Resource Center said the facility is outstanding. “We do a community service, we help the veterans and their families transition from military life to civilian life,” she said. “Whether it’s academics or a job or helping homeless vets…we are a big family and we have to help each other out.”
NEWS
The Southwestern College Sun
Oct. 13 - Nov. 13, 2014 —Vol. 58, Issue 2
A3
Jaime Pronoble/Staff
GRAND FINALE — (l-r) SWC President Dr. Melinda Nish, Trustee Humberto Peraza, Trustee Nora Vargas, Terri Valladolid, Trustee Norma Hernandez, Trustee Tim Nader and Student Trustee Sayaka Ridley.
Valladolid exits gov. board after 16 years By Asjia Daniels Assistant News Editor
After four terms spanning 16 years on the Southwestern College Governing Board, Trustee Terri Valladolid retired. Board members and staff said their goodbyes to Valladolid and welcomed Governing Board Member-Elect Griselda Delgado at the Nov. 12 meeting.
Valladolid was honored by local government officials. The City of Chula Vista and the County of San Diego declared Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2014 Terri Valladolid Day. Trustee Norma Hernandez said she appreciated Valladolid’s commitment to her job. “Her passion for empowering students,
parents and workers has been her life’s work,” she said. CSEA President Andre Harris said he hoped Valladolid is successful in her future endeavors. Valladolid said if it were not for the support she received over the years, she would not have had this “amazing opportunity.” “It was (my mom) and my dad’s
motivation and encouragement to go to college,” she said. “I was the first one from my family to go on.” Valladolid said higher education needs to be affordable. “When a labor leader asked do you believe in quality education, do you believe that every individual should have the opportunity for an affordable quality education, if the
Clubs host electronic recycling event Student Veteran Organization and Sustainable Research Alliance combine for a greener world
LED project lights the way for savings By David White Staff Writer
By Anna Pryor Editor-in-Chief
Old electronics will help make a new start for student veterans. SWC Student Veteran Organization (SVO) and the Sustainable Research Alliance (SRA) teamed up to host an electronic and paper recycling event that made $400 and built some new bonds. LinkServ is based out of San Diego and Chula Vista. Joshua Stoltz, an SWC alumnus and former SVO member coordinated the event for LinkServ. He approached SVO about hosting the event. SRA President David Sanchez said his club was grateful to help sponsor the event as recycling and going green the club’s focus. “We talk about it, we raise awareness for it and this is us actually doing it,” he said. Sanchez also said that while the event started slow in the morning, it picked up speed and soon had cars driving up full of technology to recycle. Stoltz said that it was a good turnout. SVO President Milt Ellison was glad to see the line of cars coming in to drop off waste. “I’m really glad to see so many people are conscious of recycling and we’ve gotten much more materials here than I expected and I’m very pleased with
answer is yes you should consider running for a school board,” she said. Valladolid congratulated Delgado and offered parting words of advice. “As long as we realize that every student who walks through that door will be guaranteed an affordable quality education and as long as we work together everything will be okay.”
Anna Pryor/Staff
TEAM GREEN — Student Veteran Organization and Sustainable Research Alliance partner with LinkServ to raise funds for veterans and scholarships.
that,” he said. Members of both clubs said they would like to host a similar and bigger event in the future. “Some people don’t have time to come, but we’re raising awareness and they’ll know so they can be ready for
the next time,” Sanchez said. SVO will be donating its portion to a charity that supports wounded warriors. “We’re supporting the warriors that came back from Iran and Iraq,” Ellison said. “Some of them came back with
serious disabilities. Some are missing arms, some are missing legs, some are missing both. So we do whatever we can to support them.” SRA’s funds will go to scholarships. “Our dream since we started this is to create scholarships,” Sanchez said.
Election: First-time candidate wins election to governing board Continued from Page A1
April Abarrondo/Staff
TRENDING WELL — Trustee Norma Hernandez, SWC Transfer Center Director Norma Cazares and candidate Griselda Delgado examine early poll results at Golden Hall in downtown San Diego on election night. Delgado won the three-way race with 38 percent of the vote. She assumes office in December.
“My heart is with the students and I know whatever happens, it will always be with the South Bay students and their futures,” she said. Delgado said she was thankful for the support she received. “I felt loved and now it’s time to give back,” she said. “Now the work begins.” Delgado was endorsed by the San Diego County Democratic Party, the SWC teachers union and three members of the SWC governing board. Alejandro Orozco, chair of the faculty’s political action committee, said he was “ecstatic” about Delgado’s victory. “It’s been a long day for me,” he said on election night. “I’ve been up since 6 a.m. on H Street holding up signs for Griselda.”
Governing Board Member Humberto Peraza said the race was close despite Mercado and Valdivia running without conducting organized campaigns. “It’s surprising,” he said. “They run no campaign at all but get votes.” Mercado said he is fond of Delgado and thankful for the positive tone of the campaign. He said he believes the new board is capable of making positive changes to SWC. “I’m very pleased with the outcome of the election,” said Mercado. “I think it is a new day and they’re going to begin the building process.” Governing Board Member Norma Hernandez said she welcomes Delgado to the team. “I’m very proud of her, but also I think she is going to be a wonderful addition to our board,” she said. “We need somebody with the perspective of the secondary school. It takes people being involved and Griselda was able to get people behind her and involved in her campaign.” Seat #1 was held for 16 years by Terri Valladolid, who said she decided to not
Let there be light! — as long as it is costeffective, energy-efficient LED light. Southwestern College has begun the process of switching off fluorescent lights and switching to light-emitting diode (LED) illumination. Classrooms in the 400 and 500 series buildings on the Chula Vista campus are lighting the way. John Brown, director of facilities, said they were placed there with longevity in mind. “These buildings were chosen because according to the Facilities Master Plan they most likely will remain in usage for the next 20-25 years,” he said. LED lights have a feature called light harvesting, said Brown, which will save energy as SWC continues to go green SWC filed a successful energy expenditure plan application with the California Energy Commission to improve energy efficiency and expand clean energy generation. It calls for the replacement of about 1,200 T8 fluorescent lights with LED. LED fixtures have many benefits over fluorescent bulbs. LED’s operate cooler, use less energy, and have light harvesting technology. It uses sensors in the light that track the amount of natural light coming into a room and dims the LED lights to an appropriate level of lighting. Anticipated energy savings from the LED upgrades are approximately 150,000 kilowatt hours and up to $20,000 per year, said Brown. LEDs are quieter than fluorescent lights and last 60,000 hours to fluorescents average of 10,000. “The light fixtures last longer and do not require maintenance, saving the district money in labor,” said Brown. run for re-election so she could spend more time with her family. “I respected her,” said Peraza. “She was consistent in her thoughts and beliefs and while we may disagree, vehemently at times, you have to give her credit for what she has done for the college.” Valladolid said she was confident the good work of the current board would continue and she spoke well of her successor. “I think she will be very good for the board,” said Valladolid. This was Delgado’s first time running for office. Dorian Delgado, 20, her eldest son and campaign treasurer, said his mother’s entrance into the political arena is just another step in her progression as an educator. “I’m not surprised in her interest to get into politics,” he said. “She’s just trying to find ways to improve the educational system around her.” Dorian Delgado is majoring in applied mathematics at SDSU. Griselda Delgado is scheduled to be sworn in on Dec. 17.
A4
Wellness Center: New gym, athletic facility is on the drawing board Continued from Page A1
and pools will be demolished to make way for a new Math Science and Engineering (MSE) building, another Prop R bond project. “We can’t do anything with that until we blow up the existing pools and the gym,” said Claussen. “The plan right now, if we can get it done right, (is to) start the demolition of the existing pools as early as February of 2016.” Schematics for the MSE building are about 90 percent complete according to documents presented by Claussen. He said a presentation to the board is scheduled in December. Architecture instructor Diana De La Torre said design for the East H Street side of the gym could be improved. She said it does not fit what Gensler, the company designing the wellness center, is known for. “That corner is so prominent and it just seems that facade seems a little conservative,” she said. “I just feel like it doesn’t really express where we want to go. I’m not sure if it’s as dynamic as we’d like it to be, because that corner is so important.” Gensler principle architect Tom Heffernan said that side of the gym is a challenge.
Jaime Pronoble, editor
NEWS
Oct. 13-Nov. 13—Vol. 58, Issue 2
Heffernan and Claussen presented three possible designs for the building to the governing board incorporating original Mayan glyphs designed by Art Historian Dr. Mark Van Stone, a Mesoamerica expert. Heffernan said their first design would have a more textile effect with the glyphs into the concrete wall. He said it is a more conservative approach to the project. The second design would increase the scale of the glyphs and would be backlit, illuminating the symbols at night. He said the second design would “step the scale of the building down” and make the size of the gym less imposing. Heffernan said the third proposed design would be more dramatic and would utilize the glyphs into the entire design of the building. He said the idea was in response to the community saying they would like to see something more dynamic that celebrates SWC. The gymnasium would be shrouded in a frosted glass screen and would be completely illuminated at night. Parking underneath the gymnasium was considered by the designers, but it would have profoundly altered the total size of the facility. “If we add parking underneath (the gym) that would (mean) a much bigger building on that corner,” said Claussen. “That’s one of the precepts of design. We’re trying to mitigate that size and that kind of monolithic building, which is the nature of big buildings like gyms.”
Tel: (619) 482-6368 E-mail: news@theswcsun.com
SUPER GYM SHAPING UP — Artist’s rendering of the proposed SWC Wellness Center shows a striking, multi-level facility that will anchor the long-jinxed corner lot.
Smoking: Nicotine ban moves forward through college SCC committee Continued from Page A1
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deemed that they were not able to classify what kind of issue the smoking policy was.” Beach said interest in a smoking ban was recharged after SDSU went smoke free. When it was reintroduced at SCC it became very heated, Beach added. SWC’s Associated Student Organization (ASO) expressed objection to going smoke free. Debate boiled down to smokers and non-smokers both claiming rights. “(Smokers argued) it is a person’s right to make this choice,” Beach said. “(Nonsmokers said they) have the right to not have to walk through a smoke cloud.” On a split vote the SCC approved the first reading of the draft, although none of the four ASO representatives who had earlier raised objections to the policy attended the SCC meeting. “All four representatives were absent that day,” said Beach. ASO President Sayaka Ridley said she did not know why the ASO representatives missed the vote. She said the ASO supports the smoking ban. Flores-Charter said SCC still needs to come to consensus about how to put teeth into the ban. “The big question is what does enforcement look like?” she said. “Other colleges, once they instituted the ban, did not use a heavy hand of reprimand, but still began to see (fewer) people smoking on campus.”
Jaime Pronoble/Staff
NO IFS, ANDS OR BUTTS — Former Academic Senate President Randy Beach said SDSU’s recent smoking ban has rekindled discussion of a ban at SWC.
Flores-Charter said she favored a community policing model. “I want students attentions to be on learning and academic discourse,” she said. “ I would hate for this to be a distraction to the business we are really about here.” Kysten Templin, 19, a biology major, said she favors the smoking ban. “When I walk down the halls of this campus, there is always at least one person smoking and not in the designated areas that were chosen for smoking,” she said. “Whether you smoke or not, it is your own choice, but I would prefer not to be on a campus where students and professors smoke wherever they would like to.”
October 13 - November 13, 2014, Volume 58, Issue 2
VIEWPOINTS
The Southwestern College Sun
A5
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The Issue: Ebola scare on campus causes near panic, not because of the disease, but because of the administration’s poor communication.
editorial
Our Position: The Great SWC Ebola Scare was a blessing in disguise and shows us we have work to do.
Administration botches Ebola scare
Southwestern College is infected, but it is not with Ebola. Our college is plagued with an inconsistent and incapable administration. Frankly, we are sick of it. During the now infamous Southwestern College Ebola scare of October 16, there was a nearly fatal communication breakdown that started at the top. At a time when we needed a leader, we got President Dr. Melinda Nish. Usually professional and poised, she turned to jello, then melted under pressure. As press conferences were held throughout the day, she only spoke a few words, providing lackluster information, ultimately serving as MC for Police Chief Michael Cash to the media. As the face of SWC, her presence – more accurately, her lack thereof – was damaging to the college’s image. We understand the stressful nature of the situation. There was panic. Those people, however, are not the leaders of our college. On Oct. 16, no one was. As Nish stood with arms crossed behind Cash, her credibility dribbled away like a melting popsicle. Despite questionable performances in previous situations, Cash actually came through as the college’s knight in shining armor. After investigation, he slayed the beast of a story that the student concocted and was calm, collected and reassuring to a crowd that needed comforting. This earthquake of an event sent tremors through the campus, community and nation. His words were heard through broadcasts and read in articles across the country. Nish should take note. At 7:58 p.m., Public Information Officer Lillian Leopold sent a summary of the day’s events via email. Buried in the update, in the very last sentence, is our leadership’s view on safety. “The safety of our students, staff and college community are paramount,” the statement read. We are unimpressed. Moreover, we are worried. SWC’s crisis communication was a circus. Emails, safety alerts and social media posts by the college were a juggling act by amateur clowns and they dropped the ball. Conflicting, inaccurate updates stoked mistrust and fear. Those being held in the quarantined area were at the mercy of information they received from the school and rumors carelessly tossed around. Vice President of Academic Affairs Kathy Tyner sent an email around 10:30 a.m. that said that the County Department of Health (CDH) had been called and was en route to come and assess the situation. CDH professionals, however, had not been
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contacted at the time of the email. They learned of the SWC situation from the news. Students being held in quarantine were told by Tyner and campus police that they would be able to leave once the CDH arrived and could examine them. These quarantined students and faculty were lied to. Their safety was potentially at risk, but college officials did not take the time to get their facts straight. College administrators took long enough to release information, the least they could do was check it for accuracy. We are not cynical enough to believe they had malicious intentions. We do not think they were purposely blasting out conflicting information. But it is not about what their intent was, it is the fact that the situation was botched. When it comes down to it, 364 days of comfortably performing their jobs means nothing if they cannot handle the one day of chaos. Although Cash was collected, some of his team performed disgracefully. Loose-lipped, flippant campus police officers created hysteria by telling students that Ebola was on our campus, that a very sick girl had vomited three times and that the Center for Disease Control was flying in from Atlanta. All complete B.S. And thank God it was B.S. If there had been an infectious disease on our campus, our men in blue would have set it loose on our district’s population of 400,000. One officer putting up caution tape told students that it would be best to leave, if they did not want to be quarantined. He actually waved a group through as if he were telling them to sneak into a baseball game or concert. Most of the local news media handled the situation poorly and in some cases even jeopardized safety by passing on unsubstantiated rumors. Students that were held in the quarantined zone said that they felt the local media was abrasive and that some, at least five, walked into the quarantined zone, then left. Again, we can thank our lucky stars there was not a dangerous infectious disease. We are very, very concerned that our administration is spinning this. Many of the bunglers have said they think they handled it pretty well. Please tell us you are joking. Had this been a real emergency it would have been an unmitigated disaster. People would have died, possibly lots of people. This could be seen as a major blessing in disguise. We are embarrassed, but alive. Our administrators who are famously cocky and shun self-examination need to take a look at this without the rosy glasses and realize they dodged a bullet. Next time we may not be so lucky.
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“A” is for asexuality. Asexual individuals lack sexual attraction to other people. But like with all things, asexuality is felt on a spectrum. Some asexuals enjoy other forms of physical intimacy like holding hands or cuddling, and can hold healthy and meaningful romantic relationships. Some asexuals have a gender preference on partners, while others do not. Unlike abstinence or celibacy which are life choices, asexuality is a not a choice, just like hetero and homosexuality. Asexuality is a sexual minority that is even less represented and advocated for than the gay and lesbian community. The week of October 26th is Asexual Awareness Week, though most would not have known. Advocacy for asexuality was a whisper in comparison to the roar of advocacy and excitement surrounding Gay and Lesbian events like Pride and National Coming Out Day. Advocacy for asexuality is vital. Asexuality is hardly ever talked about, even within the LGBT community. When people first hear the word asexuality they often will think back to biology class. Unfortunately that is often the first thing to come out of their mouth. “What, like a plant or a clam or something?” This is the usual response to asexuals speaking about their orientation to someone for the first time. This is why education and awareness is important. Some individuals have lived a significant amount of their lives not knowing there was a valid orientation for what they are, causing them to feel like there must be something wrong with them. They feel that there must be something broken in them for not feeling the way about sex and relationships like one is “supposed” to feel. In a society where sex and relationships are everywhere and are treated as a norm, it can become easy for those without a sexual desire to feel isolated. Not knowing that there is a word and orientation for what asexual individuals are feeling can make every day life lonely and distressing. Asexuals often find it even harder to find acceptance from friends and family. Most are told that in time they will change their mind, or it would just take meeting “the one” for them to become interested in intimacy. Asexual individuals are not sick. Time and finding “the one” will not make them feel differently. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders V states that an absent sexual desire is only a disorder if it causes distress to the individual. It is not a disorder if a person identifies with the asexual orientation, just like it is not wrong to be sexually active. Asexuality is not caused by a traumatic experience either. Although, as with all communities, traumatic experiences have happened to individuals inside the community, a vast majority has not had these experiences. More advocacies for asexuals can make life for them easier. The more society is aware of asexuals, the easier it will be for asexuals to reach out to friends, family and most importantly together. It takes little for individuals to educate themselves on any subject. While the concept of asexuality may be difficult for some to grasp, it is important to remember that humans are complicated creatures. Asexuality is a broad term for what some individuals are feeling. However complicated the idea, it is important to respect what individuals choose to identify themselves as. Just as it is important for gay and lesbian individuals to know that what they feel is not wrong and they are not alone, it is equally if not more important for asexuals to have a chance at feeling normal and accepted.
Alyssa may be reached at sexandthesun@theswcsun.com
VIEWPOINTS
The Southwestern College Sun
Oct. 13 - Nov. 13, 2014 — Vol. 58, Issue 2
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Extremists misrepresent religion
By Kasey Thomas and Rick Flores A Perspective
“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” —Mahatma Gandhi
Michelle Phillips/Staff
Students struggle to balance school and work By Gonzalo Quintana A Perspective
College students are the Wallendas of our age. They have to find balance or plunge into failure. Many students need longer days and longer weeks to carve out enough time for classes, study and work. Most Southwestern College students fail, often because work overwhelms their lives. Students should not need to choose between school and work. The choice should be school every time. Too many feel they do not have a choice. They help support their families by chipping in for rent, buying groceries and paying bills. Transportation is costly and public transportation to SWC is weak. Full-time students with 12 units or more likely prefer college to working, but are forced to find a job. Twelve units equals 12 hours of class per week. Professors suggest a minimum of two hours study time for every hour of class. This adds up to 36 hours of school work a week, not counting group projects and study sessions with classmates. Travel time and sleep need to be factored in. Working class students have been balancing work and school for centuries, but finding flexible employment has become increasingly difficult. Helpful services like EOPS and Financial Aid are not enough to support a full-time student for the entirety of a semester. Financial aid is a long and convoluted trek, and some
students cannot survive the wait. Although it requires effort, students must take any time they have to apply for aid. EOPS, scholarships and grants can free up a lot of time. A few hours of writing personal statements for scholarship applications can pay off big and lessen the burden of working a time-eating job. Local businesses profit greatly from SWC students and many businesses have responded in turn by hiring students. SWC also has many student workers. Working on campus is convenient and preferable. It saves commute time and usually teaches transferable skills. Hiring students benefits everyone. Employers can get intelligent people inexpensively. Our community wins when another person can stay in college. Students dropping out for a dead end job is too common and very sad. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that in 2013 31 percent of full-time students were part of the work force, compared to 73.8 for part timers. Time is precious, especially for students. Employers should hire students whenever possible and work with their schedules. When the young adults of this community earn educations and degrees, our region benefits. Working students are a reality. Everybody has a role to play. Help our community by helping our college students find the time to complete their studies and keep afloat.
Christianity was built on love, but Christian extremists give love a bad name. Society perceives Christians as hateful and intolerant. These stereotypes stem from a small portion of the Christian population. In the last 10 years the number of hate groups has more than tripled. Many of these are “Christian” organizations. Hate groups increased from 149 to 813 groups in 2008 and rose to 1,360 groups in 2012. In 2013, the U.S. Army presented a list of 17 religious hate groups that threaten U.S. military forces such as al-Qaeda, Hamas and the Ku Klux Klan. Catholics and Evangelical Christians were initially listed among these groups. More than half of Americans self identify as a member of one of the two congregations. After coming under fire, the Army removed the slide from the presentation, but the problem remains. Christian extremists, such as the Westboro Baptist Church, commit acts of hatred and bigotry against gays, soldiers and minorities. These extremists protest outside of funerals, pop culture events and military ceremonies. They tote hateful and offensive posters, fliers and signs adorned with “God hates fags” and “Thank God for IEDs.” Westboro Baptist’s unhinged website tries to justify its hatred of gays: 1. The absolute sovereignty of God in all matters whatsoever. 2. The doctrine of reprobation or God’s hate involving eternal retribution or the everlasting punishment of most of mankind in Hell forever. 3. The certainty that all impenitent sodomites. Huh? Another extremist group is the Ku Klux Klan, a Protestant group best known for violent racism. Its stated goals include establishment of “Protestant values in America by any means necessary.” This claim is reinforced by an advertisement on their website which reads, “Join one of the best
Michelle Phillips/Staff
or die with the rest!” Klansmen (and women) define themselves as “A white man’s organization,” exalting the Caucasian race and teaching the doctrine of White Supremacy. Christian civilization, they say, is meant to preserve the “white race.” Jesus preached acceptance and equality to the world. Hateful Christian organizations are contradicting and insulting the religion that they claim to represent and its visionary prophet. By doctrine, Christians are taught to love all people unconditionally. Extremists, however, do not show much love. They use their religion as a twisted excuse for hatred and violence. “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” reads Matthew 22:39. Maybe extremist Christians hate themselves. Not all Christians are hateful. Pastor Greg Laurie puts on events around the country called Harvest Crusades meant to bring people together and promote love and tolerance. Services include food assistance, minor medical services and charitable resources for attendees regardless of race or religion. Similar faith-based organizations serve in Mexico. Centro Shalom in Tijuana is a group of churches that provides essential services to the city’s poor. It operates doctors’ offices, dental services, pharmaceutical services and food assistance for those in need. Many Christian churches participate in mission ministries. Congregations leave their pews to provide humanitarian aid around the
world. Whether it is building houses in the Philippines or handing out food and water in Rio de Janeiro’s favelas, many Christians provide aid to people in need. Matthew said not to judge, an ancient message recently echoed by Pope Francis. Many modern American Christians are accepting of people regardless of their lifestyles. Although they may not agree with it due to the bible’s teachings, which says that polytheism, premarital sex and homosexuality are sins. “It is what comes out of a person that defiles,” reads the Gospel of Mark. “For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, and folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” Paul had spread the message that Jesus is accepting of all people. He wrote to the young apostle Timothy: “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.” Christian extremist groups only represent a small portion of a very large population, but they leave a scar of misrepresentation on Christianity. Extremists need to learn to follow the true meanings of Christianity instead of judging others. “Do not judge and you will not be judged,” wrote the Apostle Luke. “Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”
‘Yes Means Yes’ bill, like SWC administration, won’t protect students By Bianca Quilantan A Perspective
“No means no” is officially no longer. Sexual assault campaigns must now update their slogans as the infamous “no means no” is now the controversial “yes means yes.” Now yes could mean no and no could mean yes, which makes it difficult to understand what yes and no actually are. If you are confused, you should be. California’s legislature passed Senate Bill 967 this fall in an attempt to define consensual sex. State-supported schools, including Southwestern College, will lose funding if they do not implement policies to promote victimcentered sexual assault awareness and provide written information on where to find help. SB 967 outlines a legal consensual agreement to engage in sexual activity before the main event. Lack of resistance, silence, past history of sexual relations and even being in a relationship are not considered indicators of consent under the new law. Some may see this as a potential “mood killer.” Naysayers grumble that a current girlfriend/boyfriend/ partner could possibly claim they were assaulted if a written contract is not signed prior to sex. Actually though, the problem with the bill is that it is too weak. It is difficult to understand how the government could even attempt to regulate sex on college campuses or how these fictitious personal contracts straight out of “Fifty Shades of Grey” could be standardized to show consent. While the intention of the bill is an honorable attempt to define consensual sex, creating a confusing law and making rapists seem like someone who misjudged their partners’ consent do not help victims of sexual assault get justice. Rather, SB 967 trivializes the severity of sexual assault crimes and does not prevent perpetrators from assaulting anyone else in the future.
Campus safety is serious business. Our legislators should know that preventing sexual assault will take way more effort than something like SB 967. This legislation does not fully address the issue of campus mismanagement of sexual assault crimes and does not lay out any punishment for perpetrators. That it is left up to colleges that already have a history of mishandling sexual assault crimes. Increasingly-opaque SWC is among these colleges. Asking SWC administrators for higher safety standards is like asking Justin Bieber to grow up. Students here cannot easily file grievances, endure no-show campus police escorts and have no available records of any assaults (or crimes in general). SWC is not equipped with the resources or will needed to handle sexual assault cases. Officials, faculty and even campus police were not sufficiently trained to handle situations such as rape, harassment or any other types of assault previous to this bill. Ask our college president about sexual assault policies and she will answer, “I’ll look into that.” (She won’t.) Maybe Sacramento has SWC’s attention now. SB 967 would take away funding and financial aid from colleges that fail to comply and SWC is in the bull’s eye. Our college ought to be scrambling to retrain its officials and faculty and looking to amend its toothless policies. Unfortunately, our dean of student services, the Queen of Darkness Mia McClellan, seems more interested in rewriting the student grievance policy so that she can lock out the student news media. The Queen, as usual, is moving in the wrong direction, toward darkness rather than toward the light. Here is hoping our SCC has the courage to tell McClellan no means no. SB 967 at least has made colleges reconsider their policies, but claiming to be victim-centered is not enough. Actions speak louder than words, ex-
cept at SWC. “Student victims have the option to change their academic situation after an alleged sexual assault, if such changes are reasonably available,” reads the Campus Crime Report 2012. Sounds great, but these are hollow words at SWC where victims are often further victimized and perpetrators get hand slaps and scholarships. It is still difficult to understand why a victim of sexual assault should have to be on the same campus, let alone the same classroom, as their assaulter. Women forced to face their rapist every day on campus is too unbelievable even for Lifetime Network movie. But it happens here. “You have the right to file a civil suit for losses suffered as result of abuse,” reads the campus police website. Young women at SWC should be lawyering up. Our student newspaper alone has lost three women to verbal, psychological and physical violence on this campus recently while our police department and administration failed to protect them. Instead of advising women to hire a lawyer, SWC should support students who have been victimized by making the grievance process easier and treating the victim with sensitivity and respect. “Campus sanctions, following campus disciplinary procedures depend on the outcome of the investigation and may range from suspension to expulsion,” reads the Campus Crime Report 2012. Or a slap on the wrist, a scholarship and the tacit okay to keep on acting like a brute, bully or barbarian like some seriously-twisted male perpetrators get here at SWC. It is still difficult to understand what it actually takes to be expelled from SWC. Ebola Girl embarrassed administrators, so she is likely gone, but bullies who assault teenage women are welcomed to stay for as long as they wish. SB 967 allows colleges to sweep these situations under the rug because
Dan Cordero/Staff
it states that the college is to provide protections for the privacy of individuals involved, including confidentiality. As Queen, er, Dean McClellan has recently demonstrated, our administrators’ “interpretation” of a rule could mean we never know if a crime was punished or not. Usually not, since we literally see the bad guys strutting around on campus. SB 967 will also be difficult to uphold in court. Considering that sexual relations usually occur between two participants, there are no witnesses, no recordings, and no way to prove that anything happened without a potentially painful and humiliating physical exam that shows damage may have occurred from the complainant
resisting the act. Physical exams usually cause more trauma for the victim. Most victims are too afraid to even have the exam done or it is too late when they decide to have it done. Most cases remain a “he said, she said” argument, which the perpetrator usually wins. SB 967 is weak. It fails to outline how “yes means yes” will be enforced. It fails to explain how it will keep the colleges accountable for updating their policies. It fails to improve transparency for students. “Rape means rape” and all the cleverly-worded legislation means nothing if a college campus lacks the courage, morality and decency to protect its young women. SB 967, like Southwestern College, fails its women.
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Oct. 13 - Nov. 7, 2014 — Vol. 58, Issue 2
Kasey Thomas, editor
VIEWPOINTS
Tel: (619) 482-6368 E-mail: viewpoints@theswcsun.com
Thinking Out Loud Do you feel that college officials handled the October 16th Ebola scare well and what, if anything, could they have done differently?
Amanda Shelton, 22, Psychology “I do not think they handled it well. I think their communication should have been more clear. I think they should have made sure what they were going to say before they said it. The multiple messages were very confusing.” Andrew Malmstead, 20, Computer Science “They handled it well because they provided nutrition. Sealing off the area was a good idea and having medical personnel come over was another good idea. But the whole scare was blown out of proportion.”
Dan Cordero/Staff
Students know about Simpsons, Three Stooges, but not their rights By Abraham Gertz A Perspective
Curly, Larry and Moe are gone but not forgotten. Our three branches of government, unfortunately, have been. Only one out of l,000 young respondents, in a McCormick Tribune survey, could name all five freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment, while 22 percent could name all five of The Simpsons. This may not be a sign of the Apocalypse, but the five horsemen can be heard galloping in the distance. America’s lack of understanding over its own system of government is sad. Its lack of knowledge regarding civil rights is scary. Our Constitution provides rights to U.S. citizens and regulates the activities of government. America’s founders consciously aimed to prevent future ruling classes from establishing abusive totalitarian regimes. It may not be working. Prompted by the attack of September 11, 2001, government-fueled hype over national security has given rise to tangible examples of totalitarian militarization. America was founded as a beacon of liberty and freedom, but its becoming as a fortress. The annually-reviewed National Defense Authorization Act, a
collection of civil rights infringements, has been approved by the House of Representatives for 2015 and is up for reapproval by the Senate. This bill allocates billions of dollars for “national security” purposes. It also allows America’s militar y to indefinitely detain any person considered a possible terror suspect. It s w e e p s a s i d e C o n s t i t u t i o n a l protections against illegal search and seizure, due process, a speedy public trial and protections against cruel or unusual punishment. Ferguson, Missouri serves as an exa mple o f re c e n t au tho r i tar i an abuses. Martial law has been put into full effect in civilian areas. Speech is being censored, the press is being oppressed and, in the meantime, police armed with military-grade riot gear are conducting mass protester arrests. Ferguson police are acting as if the First Amendment does not exist. Guaranteed rights like freedom of speech, protections for the press, freedom to peacefully assemble and the right to petition against the government are being blatantly disregarded. Corporations are working with those in power and supporting the pepper spray showers. Communication giants like Verizon and AT&T are working
with arms of the U.S. government, like the National Security Agency, to conduct illegal surveillance projects under the guise of national security. They seem more concerned with corporate profits than protecting Americans’ rights. Americans should not submit to these abuses. Day-by-day the situation is worsening. People are especially vulnerable to civil rights abuses when they do not know their rights. A 2010 survey by The Robert H. Smith Center for the Constitution reported that 84 percent of respondents between the ages of 18 and 24 lacked an adequate understanding of the Constitution. Only 28 percent had read through the document. Most Americans take basic courses on American history and government in high school, suggesting that the education system is failing to emphasize the importance of civil rights. It is not too late though. People can learn about their civil rights via a simple web search. Wikipedia is better than nothing. Knowledge is power. Citizens have a responsibility to spread knowledge. Students should go about informing themselves about their civil liberties. The collective future of America, and the world, depends on it.
Alexis Corona, 21, Business “I think they handled it well. They quarantined the building and cancelled school until (1 p.m.)”
Misca Lopez, 19, Psychology
Carlos Lopez, 19, International Business
“At the beginning no, because they only had the tape around it and I said my class is right down the hall, is it okay if I go over there? They said go ahead. I go into my room and they said we had to stay here. We were now being quarantined. Why wouldn’t you have told me that this entire area was being quarantined beforehand?”
“No. They could have sent more information about it before they scared us.”
Social media has killed the nation’s attention span By Brian del Carmen A Perspective
Ebola is making millions of Americans sick though they will never contract it. More than 10,000 confirmed cases of Ebola have been reported in Africa, but only four cases in the United States. Social media is the real disease to fear. Pe o p l e h a v e l a r g e l y b e c o m e d e s e n s i t i z e d t o t h e f e a r, b u t Southwestern College’s Ebola scare shook people up because it became a (temporary) social media phenomenon. A touch of real fear breached the emotional walls people had erected around themselves. Social media rattled the cages containing people’s fears. Later that day, however, all was forgotten. Social media has altered the fabric of our society by shortening our attention spans. Direct interaction has become practically taboo. Face-to-face communication can be awkward so we retreated to phone calls. Even phone calls were too much for some folks, so now texting rules. Social media denies us the ability to connect with one another in ways that are meaningful. With social media people may be constantly connected, but always alone. There is little value in having hundreds of friends on Facebook when people have no friends to talk to in real life. Newsworthy tragedies demonstrate the evolution of social media. ISIS beheadings, Ferguson, Santa Barbara,
Gaza Strip, the atrocities in Syria, Ma l a y s i a n Fl i g h t s 3 7 0 a n d 1 7 , Sandy Hook and the Ebola outbreak in Africa have markedly different communication footprints. All of these stories were prevalent in the media. Yet these vile, realityaltering events that brought about deep outrage are fading from the American memory like a snap on Snapchat. In 1970 the shootings at Kent State were a national tragedy that drove the country’s conversation for years. Four students were killed and nine others wounded by Ohio National Guard. A nation was galvanized and the tragedy helped end the Vietnam War. How long would a Kent State-type tragedy hold national attention today? Not long. Outrage is no longer sustained. People see the events as images on a screen rather than circumstances affecting human beings. ISIS, Ferguson, Santa Barbara, Gaza Strip, Syria and the Malaysian flights flickered across our nation’s eyes then disappeared into obscurity. “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it,” wrote philosopher George Santayana. Prepare to repeat. Te c h n o l o g y h a s m a d e i t n o longer necessary to memorize most information. It has also allowed us to forget what it feels like to make genuine connections. Memorization is no longer necessary. Just forget to be afraid.
Alan Luna/Staff
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The Southwestern College Sun
Oct. 13 - Nov. 13, 2014 Volume 58, Issue 2
ARTS
‘RENT’ DELIVERED > REVIEW By Cesar Hirsch Staff Writer
e n t” c a m e i n on time and in full. It was quite a pay off. Southwestern College’s production o f “ Re n t ,” the dark but hopeful musical, resonated with big personalities with even bigger voices, all expertly guided through the Age of AIDS by Ruff Yeager against the backdrop of Professor Michael Buckley’s brilliant set. Countercultural icons from the underbelly of America’s bohemia came back to life on the stage like Reagan-era flashbacks. Actors Jeffrey Crofton, Ryan Dietrich, Ian Morton, Oscar Limon, Taylor Henderson, Wilford Paloma, Meg Monroe and Erika Osuna led a deep and spirited cast that shimmered in the darkness of an innovative and eclectic score. America’s “Love in the Time of AIDS” is sometimes hard to look at, but nearly impossible to ignore. Set in the fictional but symbolic A l p h a b e t C i t y, N . Y. , M a r k
(Dietrich) and Roger (Crofton) struggle to keep their loft warm as their former roommate, Benny (Limon), attempts to evict them and clear out a colony of homeless people huddled outside the building. A charismatic and fiery performance artist named Maureen (Osuna) has left Mark for an equally temperamental lawyer named Joanne (Henderson). For Roger things seem bleak as he mourns his girlfriend’s suicide and wrestles to write one last song before dying of AIDS. He meets erotic dancer Mimi Marquez (Monroe), who is instantly smitten by him. Meanwhile, Tom Collins (Morton) develops a tight bond with cross-dressing percussionist Angel Dumott (Paloma). Un d e r a d i m m e d l i g h t , C r o f t o n expressed his desire to write one last meaningful song in “One Song Glory” with impassioned sincerity and a powerful voice that carried emotional resonance. Ro c k i n g h i g h h e e l s , Pa l o m a w a s fabulous. Dietrich and Henderson were a fiery and delicious dynamic exhibit as they danced to “Tango: Maureen.” In “Out Tonight” Monroe filled the gritty stage with a sensual energy. Her please see Rent pg. A10
LAST TANGO—Ryan Dietrich and Taylor Henderson dance the tango during the SWC producton of “Rent.” Their dance was a sign of frustration towards another character in the production.
Rick Flores/Staff
Exhibition remembers how SWC arts faculty sparked a revolution By Gabriel Sandoval Arts Editor
For a brief, shining moment in the early 1960s, nascent and tiny Southwestern College was the focal point of a flourishing art scene that would eventually be felt around the world and produce a global superstar. In the 1960s, though, only the artists seemed to think that was a good thing. Administrators, faculty and community members often expressed outrage. Complaints were rampant. Controversies were inevitable. Today, memories of those turbulent times are gone but not quite forgotten. Oceanside’s Museum of Art has given aficionados an opportunity to finally appreciate these rebels with its exhibition, “Spitting in the Wind: Art From the End of the Line.” It features former SWC art instructors Bob Matheny, John Baldessari and Russell Baldwin, as well as local artist Richard Allen Morris. Matheny and Baldwin became regional art names, Morris an international star, Baldessari a global phenomenon – which he remains to this day. Curator Dave Hampton said the quartet produced artwork that fueled the major contemporary art of the 1960s and shaped today’s San Diego art community. Hampton said his motivation to curate the exhibition grew out of his friendships with Matheny, Morris and Photos By April Abarrondo Baldwin. He said learning about the artists created a picture of a complicated and compelling scene. “Their stories were really fascinating,” he said. “I felt like I had never heard any of this. People weren’t talking about this really interesting history.” In late 1950s the creative lives of these artists overlapped. They were regularly exhibited at the same galleries, together and in one-person shows. They formed friendships and taught at the same institutions. From 1965-66 each was profiled in San Diego and Point Magazine and had a solo exhibition at the La Jolla Museum of Art (now the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego). Matheny was hired to teach art at SWC in 1961. Later that year he established the Art Gallery at Chula Vista High School when SWC still shared its facilities. In 1964 he helped an architect design SWC’s gallery. “I asked for certain things,” he said. “Moveable walls, electrical outlets on the floor and that ceiling, where you can move panels around. Then I made sure there was a storeroom, a place to store art in the back of the gallery, in the same building.” Matheny was gallery director for more than 15 years, taught at SWC for 30 and built SWC’s art collection. Baldessari taught at SWC from 1966-68, was the first to be shown at the gallery and went on to become a reluctant, world-famous art superstar. “We had the liberty of putting on events that we thought would be fun for everybody,” he said. Baldwin and Morris were also shown at the SWC gallery in its formative years. Baldwin taught at SWC for one semester in the spring of 1965 before moving to Palomar College, where he established its art gallery Gabriel Sandoval/Staff and collection. He said in interviews he had hoped to SPITTING IN THE WIND— (top left) Richard Allen Morris’ “Self-Portrait.”(top parallel in North County what Matheny had done at please see Spitting pg. A11
right) “Untitled (Soft Ruler)” by Russell Baldwin. (above) Three pieces by Bob Matheny.
Bianca Quilantan/Staff
FLIGHT OF FANCY — (above) Mueller’s painting “Cockpit” in his exhibition “The Forgetting Factor.”(below) “Bucky,” a waxed geodesic dome.
Art inspired by math adds up to great exhibit By Gabriel Sandoval Arts Editor
For some people math inspires fear, sweaty palms and mind-numbing headaches. For others it inspires art. Math adds up for Nicholas “Nikko” Mueller, a Southwestern College assistant professor of art. Mueller’s latest exhibition, “The Forgetting Factor,” at the SWC Art Gallery, features 27 examples of his immensely elaborate and extremely logical art. One such piece is “Bucky,” a mesmerizing geodesic dome named after Buckminster Fuller, a 20th century visionary. Standing 8 feet tall with a circumference of about 50 feet, the massive dome is made from steel tubing, cheesecloth, string and melted wax. “I wanted this very rational, very futuristic space to get disrupted by something that was very different from that,” Mueller said. That disruption happened to be a human touch, a sense of time and weathering, he said. Several years ago while studying abroad in Rome, Mueller said he saw altars and shrines that were covered by ages of
layered wax. That sensibility, he said, was what he wanted for “Bucky.” Mueller and seven assistants, which included former and current SWC students, Professor of Art Marisol Rendon and her husband, Ingram Ober, assembled the dome and coated it with boiling wax over a period of four days. Mueller said the process was maddening. “I had to go in there with a blow torch,” he said. The wax was set ablaze to create the effect he wanted, Mueller said. It dripped on his face and hair. He later admitted that it hurt, but not terribly. “Fire is an amazing thing,” he said. “It’s both beautiful and intimidating, so it was an please see Mueller pg. A11
ARTS
The Southwestern College Sun
Oct. 13 - Nov. 13, 2014 Volume 58, Issue
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Jazz Café delightfully rich, thoroughly entertaining > REVIEW By Rick Flores Assistant Photo Editor
Jazz Café is a showcase and fund raiser for the Vocal Jazz Ensemble’s trip to the Reno Jazz Festival. Folks in Nevada better watch out, these people can sing. Director Tracy Burklund-Becker opened the evening singing “Autumn Serenade” by Peter DeRose and was a tough act to follow. Staff Accompanist David Castel de Oro blistered a tenor sax solo during the song’s instrumental section that set the piece on fire. They set the bar really high for the rest of the performers, but most of them soared over it. Ehryk Jimenez’ peppy performance of Van Morrison’s “Moondance” played well against the slow and bluesy song that came before it. His voice took flight and a scat solo gave a lively jump to the concert. This roaring concert had a few stumbles, but was mostly sublime. Laura Carter’s performance of “Midnight Sun” by Lionel Hampton was less than satisfactory. She lacked a little air support and struggled to keep her intonation at times. Another bump in the road was Mae Enginco’s performance of “Tell Me More” by Billie Holiday. Enginco’s singing was airy and needed more air support. Her stage presence was also lacking. Jon-Anthoni Nieves’ rendition of “Too Darn Hot” by Cole Porter gave the concert a jolt. His impressive vocals and charismatic stage presence drew the audience into his performance. He was a true showman, even removing his hat and jacket and tossing them in the audience. After many strong solo acts, the full ensemble came on and cooled things down with “Cry Me a River” by Arthur Hamilton. Keanu Hill’s solo of the opening verse brought a new and distinct tonality yet to be experienced in the concert. Once the tempo picked up, the entire group really got into the song’s groove and lifted the audience. Camila Halm delivered a phenomenal solo with the rest of the ensemble supporting her. As the night came to a close, BurklundBecker stirred a holiday favorite into the mix. With a lively Latin feel, the Jazz Vocal Ensemble delivered a spectacular rendition of “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” by Frank Loesser. Audience members were dragged into the
Photos by April Abarrondo
THEIR WAY – (above) Michelle Kaufman revives Frank Sinatra’s “September in the Rain.” (right) Keanu Hill and William Robinson perform a Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. standard.
holidays a little early but did not seem to mind. Ensemble members were full of jolly good cheer. With the vocals being very close to the original chart, the ensemble gave an original and lively song to enjoy as the night came to a close. SWC Jazz Vocal Ensemble had a terrific showcase and look to be in great shape for jazz festivals next semester. Reno, beware, Southwestern College is bringing some thunder.
Painting with words (and paint, too)
MIDDLE EASTERN DELIGHT— Louis Valenzuela jams on the oud during Dornob’s performance at SWC. Dornob played its Persian fusion style of music to a packed house and featured SWC Hall of Fame alumna Stacey Barnett.
By Andrew Perez Assistant Arts Editor
Emma Lee Whitworth lives a dual life. By day she is a soft-spoken adjunct instructor at SWC, teaching her students the wonders of proper English diction and rhetoric. By night she is a creator of exotic worlds, a painter turning blank canvases to richly-colored wonders. Fiery reds burn next to sorrowful blues, conflict finding an accommodation. While pirouetting ballerinas, basking mermaids and fuzzy creatures populate her art, the female body is front and center. “I paint almost WHITWORTH all nudes,” she said. “Nudity connotes vulnerability to me, but at the same time there is great strength in the female body. I am really interested in female agency, particularly in terms of ownership of the body.” Originally from Seattle, Whitworth made her way to San Diego County to earn her Master’s in education from SDSU in 2010. “My brother was embarking on his T.A. position as an English lecturer at Washington State University,” she said. “I helped him with some lesson plans and instantly fell in love with the prospect of teaching.” She has been an adjunct at SWC for five years and also teaches at SDSU and San Diego City College. Whitworth approaches her painting with creative resolve, yet she tends to be self-critical. “I have never thought my art was good enough,” she said, “I get frustrated every time I paint. It seems more like a psychological imperative that I paint rather than something I do for fun.” Whitworth has gone so far as to please see Whitworth pg. A10
Kasey Thomas/Staff
Persian musicians blend traditional, contemporary > REVIEW
By Evan Cintron Assistant Sports Editor
Courtesy Photo
ABSOLUTE EXPRESSION — SWC English adjunct instructor Emma Lee Whitworth explores her darkest emotions in her artwork. She prefers painting nudes.
Middle Eastern musicians could not make it out of America’s most diverse college without a slice of blue-eyed soul, a jolt of jazz and a bit of African thunder. It was a musical smoothie in SWC’s music blender and it tasted great. Dornob, a group of wizardly Middle Eastern musicians played Persian, Turkish and Arabic melodies and allowed a pair of gifted Jaguars to sit in. More fun than serious, the sextet group transformed a bland room into a musical paradise. When the first chord was struck, the room slowly slipped into a trance with the soft singing and mellow Persian instruments.
Stacey Barnett, a legendary SWC vocal music alumna and Performing Arts Hall of Famer stood out as usual, singing a sweet, soft melody like a chilly Philadelphia acapela group standing around a burning trash can on 42nd street. Barnett could probably front just about any band in the world, but fit with the Persian ensemble like an exquisite Persian tapestry on an ivory tile floor. Sweet ney flute filled the air like an ocean breeze on a hot evening. Luckily no cobras were in attendance because they would have been instantly hypnotized. Dornob showed great chemistry during “Two Lovers.” A vocal line led in the song. One-by-one each musician added their own personal touch. SWC Professor of Music Todd Caschetta lent helping hands on the drums, tambourine, suspended please see Dornob pg. A10
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Oct. 13 - Nov. 13, 2014 Volume 58, Issue 2
Gabriel Sandoval, editor
ARTS
Tel: (619) 482-6368 E-mail: arts@theswcsun.com
Dornob: Persian music recital relaxing and revitalizing
Whitworth: SWC English adjunct also very talented artist Continued from pg. A9
Continued from pg. A9
destroy her paintings, slashing at them with scissors and abandoning them in the alleyway behind where she lives. “It is cathartic to dispose of pieces of myself,” she said. “My art often represents my emotional frustrations and I enjoy symbolically destroying them.” Where Whitworth sees imperfections, her brother Nathanael sees beautiful chaos. “Emma Lee’s art is bursting with passion and conflict,” he said. “It defies all rules and boundaries of realistic representation and proportion. It can be dark, troubled and disturbing, or serene and picturesque.” Whitworth’s friend Michael Richardson agrees. “Her paintings are sad,” he said, “yet there is something so beautiful about that life within the sadness that endures for the light to pierce the veil. Her artwork captures that feeling so well.” Whitworth said her process is just as chaotic as her subjects. “I usually stretch out on the floor, close my eyes and let the paintbrush do what it wants,” she said. “I then try to make sense of it adding little by little. Often I’ll work on several pieces at the same time, because my mind hops between ideas.” The most striking of Whitworth’s paintings features a woman that looks just like her, crying at the viewer. Her large green eyes plead for asylum as thick black lines of mascara run down her pale cheeks. Her mouth is frozen mid-shout, becoming a dark void as her cries of pain go unheeded. The woman’s pale skin shines like a spectral ghost drowning in a sea of dark blue. “I express my pain and frustration through my art,” she said. “Yet expression can be very exhausting and I don’t always like what I find when letting it all out. So I often shut down and refuse to express myself.” Another painting depicts a nude couple, the man cradling the woman in his arms as they bear mournful faces. His eyes are closed as his lips lightly kiss the woman’s head, arms wrapped tightly around her waist while she looks off into the distance of the blue room, uncertain of what future the two might make. Their bed is surrounded by the black outlines of curly haired women with long, thin legs, like Dalian elephants. This painting was born out of a difficult time for Whitworth, based on a past relationship. “Quite a few paintings came out of this,” she said. “It was at a point when I was my most vulnerable. There was inevitable loss and I tried to capture that.” Her loss, say her fans, is our gain.
Photos By Lina Chankar
NEW LOOK AT ANCIENT CULTURE—(above) Artist Qais Al-Sindy creates art to spotlight struggles of Iraqi women. (below) “Southern Beauty” by Adeeb Maki with poetic Arabic writings on its sides.
Iraqi art honors suffering women By Lina Chankar Senior Staff Writer
All is fair in love and war. And art. Iraqi-born artists Adeeb Maki and Qais Al-Sindy, who lived through the sadistic Saddam Hussein regime, brought their art exhibition “Spotlight On Iraq” to Southwestern College to raise awareness about the hardships endured by Iraqi women. This is the first Iraqi art exhibition in the history of the Southwestern College Gallery, according to Silvia Lugo, SWC’s performing arts coordinator. Curator Najah Abdelkader is married to Maki. They are lost soulmates, reunited after 28 years, who brought their romance to SWC and shared it through art to make a difference in humanity. Abdelkader, an SWC philosophy instructor, said she met Maki around 1976. They were both born in Iraq and lived through the Saddam regime. They went their separate ways at a tender age and married other people. They both divorced, reunited and married. Abdelkader said the exhibit was partly inspired by Vian Dakhil, an Iraqi Parliament member who made international headlines with her moving outcry in Parliament to help Yazidis, an ancient people facing extermination at the hands of ISIS. “Mr. Speaker, 500 Yazidi boys and men have been slaughtered up to now,” Dakhil said in a trembling voice. “Mr. Speaker, our
women are being taken captive and sold on the slave market. A genocide campaign is taking place right now against the Yazidis.” Dakhil broke down in tears and fell over sobbing before she could finish her speech. Members of Parliament stood up to show respect while she continued her compelling plea. Maki said he is inspired by Iraqi Poet al-Mutanabbi (915-965). He said he drew several pieces of women to represent their soft and innocent side. Maki said he wanted to show a more positive side of Iraq. Abdelkader said the exhibition is a way to stand with victims of violence and raise awareness. Maki’s art illustrated Iraqi, Bedouin and Yazidi girls dressed in ancient jewels with Arabic poetic scripts, deep reds, purples and gold. Abdelkader said the world is mostly silent about the treatment of these women. “(I want) to give voice to the women who
were victimized and women in general who have been victims in one way or another by a variety of ways, whether verbal, physical or political abuse,” she said. “The violence that was committed in name of political, religious or ethnic agenda.” Maki said the exhibit is intended to be uplifting. “We show the peace, beauty and history of Iraq – the real Iraq – not the Iraq it is today,” he said. “For 6,000 years this was the real Iraq, not the violence it is (experiencing) today. That’s why we show our exhibition. To show that we respect women and we love them.” Maki said his job as an artist is to remind people that behind the violence there is peace and beauty in this ancient society of art and science. “That’s the language I know,” Maki said. “The political language I don’t understand.” Abdelkader is effusive when she explains how she fell in love with Maki when she first laid eyes on him. “I always thought this is the guy I want to spend my life with,” she said. “This is the guy I would love to take walks with. He is an amazing partner and a friend in every way possible. I fell in love with him immediately, you know, but it took us a long time of friendship and we finally got married 10 years ago.” In 2004 Maki came to the U.S. to marry his “sweetheart.” Together they make sweet art.
cymbal and snare drum, his African training and rock-nroll pedigree putting some bite into the entrancing groove. Segments of the concert were too busy. New instruments joined in like kids slipping into a rated R movie. There were times when the sound was jumbled and overly dense. It caused confusion as instruments fought for attention. While soothing, the music became repetitive. A meditative ambience filled the room like fog. For some this was welcomed, but others dozed off. Realizing this group leader Farhad Bahrami dropped in a pinch of New Orleans and made his band perform new material on the spot. Surprisingly, the improvised pieces popped out more than the prepared material. Musicians listened to each other and found moments to step up and avoid a disturbance in the force. Dornob was at its best when it was at its loosest. On rare instances when a musician fumbled, he would shoot a quick glance at a bandmate and smile as if almost to say, “Yeah I messed up, but I’m having too much fun to care.” Omar Lopez and Bahrami turned the tides on the calm night by ending with a friendly competition. They had a back and forth battle between the fretless bass and electronic oud, trying to one up the other. This provided much-needed energy on a rather relaxing night. Dornob opened the way into another room. An appreciative audience was happy to go in.
King of Swing reigns over a very special dance class By Andrew Perez Assistant Arts Editor
For one night only mere mortals could Dance with the Star in Dana Maue’s ballroom class. Buddy Schwimmer, the King of Swing, was in town. Long live the king! Schwimmer, the award-winning choreographer and world-renown swing dancer, was lured to SWC by Maue, the cheerful professor of dance. For SWC students, dancing with Schwimmer was like painting a mural with Amado Peña or jamming with U2. Schwimmer was all smiles as he showed his captivated audience how to properly twirl a partner and jitterbug across the stage. “Swing is an interesting dance style,” he said. “If you get real good at it you can put your own thing into it and mix it up. Whereas in waltz, say, you kind of have a
April Abbarondo/Staff
LONG LIVE THE KING—Legendary swing dancer Buddy Schwimmer glides over the floor with SWC dance instructor Dana Maue.
strict guideline.” Maue said she met Schwimmer while attending a dance workshop in Palm Springs. “I took his swing class,” she said.
“Afterwards I approached him to see if he would teach a swing class at Southwestern.” Schwimmer consented. He came to SWC to teach both East and West Coast styles of swing, and had the whole class
jumping and jiving to Buddy Holly, Bill Haley and Glenn Miller. Schwimmer was an animated teacher, making sure that everyone was having fun. “I used to freestyle dance all the time,” he said, “but with swing you dance with a partner and it’s much more fun to dance with someone else than by yourself. Especially with women.” Student Angela Reed said she loved Schwimmer’s approach to teaching. “Buddy is funny and different,” she said. “Normally we do dances like the waltz and the rumba and this is an interesting change of pace.” Maue agreed. “He motivates and challenges the class while keeping the tone light and humorous,” she said. “Dance can be very difficult to learn, but if you have a teacher that makes it enjoyable and not seem so difficult, then it makes you want to learn more!”
Rent: College production dazzles with dark material Continued from pg. A8
HAPPY SCENE PLAYED OVER SAD SCENE — Maria King, Olajuwon Tatum, Victoria Ortiz perform “La Vie Boheme” from “Rent.”
April Abarondo/Staff
voice was high and bright, and had the thick zest of a soul singer. Osuna’s performance of Maureen’s performance art piece “Over the Moon” was the highlight of the show. Obnoxious, loud and hilarious, Osuna was a fireball of energy and conviction with a clear and supple voice. A spirited ensemble rendition of “La Vie Bohème” was a harmonious bow to Act One’s chaos. Act Two took a rather dark turn with couples arguing about drugs and fidelity, the death of Angel and the group blowing apart. “Seasons of Love,” Rent’s anthem, prevents the musical from falling into complete darkness, shining a pin light of hope over a barren landscape like a white dove gliding over a fire bombed city. This peppy, fresh new cast gave a pulsing and electrifying voice to Larson’s pleasure-seeking generational deities. Director Ruff Yeager and his cast created an incandescent production and a cautionary tale from a bleak period piece – if we are not careful, the misanthropy of the Reagan ‘80s could return.
ARTS
The Southwestern College Sun
Oct. 13 - Nov. 7, 2014 Volume 58, Issue 2
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Other Writers Guild showcases literary excellence on campus By Cesar Hirsch Staff Writer
H April Abbarondo/Staff
ON THE WRITE TRACK — Members of The Others Writers Guild – Victor Aguilar, Vice President Vito Di Stefano and President Desiree De La O – took advantage of the Halloween Costume Contest crowd to promote their club and distribute the HalloZine Edition of The Vagabond Reader at the Halloween Boo Carnival in front of Mayan Hall.
o l l y w o o d ’s Writer’s Guild is an advocacy organization for talented writers. So is The Other Writers Guild, Southwestern College’s home of poets, essayists and short story writers. Since its inception six years ago, the OWG has provided SWC writers a supportive platform to cultivate their talents. It sponsors events like the Guest Writer Series, Spring Literature Festival and Visual/Audio Monologue Performance (VAMP). It also publishes The Vagabond Reader, a literary journal of student writing every semester. Professor of English, Francisco Bustos is advisor to The Vagabond Reader. He said the journal works as an alternative narrative for students interested in creative writing. “The Vagabond focuses on student writing and provides an outlet for them,” he said. From poetry to short stories and plays, The Vagabond Reader voices the stories of an array of talented students. OWG President Desiree De La O said she finds it beautiful and liberating to have a place for young writers to
publish. “It helps a lot of us get away from reality and just soak ourselves in our passion and the community,” she said. Due out on Nov. 25, The Vagabond will be accompanied accompanied by an open mic for the selected writers to present their work, said De La O. A previous issue of The Vagabond featured “La Marioneta,” a short poem honoring the late Nobel Prize Laureate Gabriel García Márquez, and an excerpt from SWC adjunct instructor Jennifer Derilo’s memoir, “To Calm the Wave of Mismapping.” “We are always trying to get the word out as writers,” De La O said. “The more we get into the scene and put our names out there, the more writers we attract and the more we grow as a community.” Derilo said English faculty in the hopes to make The Vagabond a more polished literary journal. “We want to form a more robust community,” Derilo said. “I’m trying to drum up excitement for writing.” Derilo said students are invited to submit their work for a Nov. 20 reading. Chosen writers will collaborate with editors and coaches to perform on Nov. 20 at the Chula Vista Public Library. For information contact Derilo at jderilo.swccd.edu or Bustos at http:// www.fbustos.swccd.edu/.
Spitting: Former SWC professors are revolutionary artists Continued from pg. A8
April Abarondo/Staff
EXPOSURE — A variety of media and themes overlap in the exhibition “Spitting in the Wind.” Bob Matheny’s photography and painting piece literally mixes well.
Mueller: Colorful artwork brings fire to SWC art gallery Continued from pg. A8
interesting thing to work with.” One of Mueller’s assistants, Grisel Marquez, an artist and SWC graduate, helped apply the wax. Wearing latex gloves, she said, she felt the heat firsthand. “My hands,” she said, “they got to a point where I did not feel anything. The tips of my fingers were red and I was just like ‘Oh, where did my gloves go?’ They burned off.” Mueller’s 26 other pieces on display are paintings, both large and small scale, mostly abstract. A few are figurative. One is on a redwood burl. Bright neon and neutral colors appear in almost all the paintings, as do an array of geometric shapes. “A lot of them are coming from variations of my own riffs on these designs that were done for (math) textbooks covers,” he said. Mueller’s recent works tend to be autobiographical, he said, reflecting the environment of his childhood home, Philadelphia. “When I grew up it had already been through some really rough times,” he said. “There was a lot of urban blight.” Mueller described how in The City of Brotherly Love buildings were crumbling, factories were abandoned and whole quarters were in ruins. Yet the decay encouraged people to creatively use those spaces, he said. Similar to Philadelphia’s architecture and the ideals of its founders, Mueller’s paintings are meticulously constructed, logically formed and idealized. They also show signs of deconstruction.
In some pieces, one can see this at play. Mueller said he shot “Modern School,” a large, prominent painting of fluorescent geometric shapes on a tan canvas, with a water pistol to give it its drip effect. For “F Church,” Mueller said he projected and traced fragments of a slew of paintings by Fredric Church, Thomas Cole and Albert Bierstadt onto the canvas. He then scraped away layers with his palette knife. Those layers are visible when one looks closely at an angle. SWC Gallery Director Vallo Riberto said he loved the craftsmanship in Mueller’s work. “It shows a level of professionalism that you just don’t see everyday,” he said. Riberto said the dome came together much better than he had envisioned. “I think it’s a stunning piece,” he said. “(Mueller’s) idea was to make it look as organic as possible, and I think he achieved it.” Mueller is now in his third year at SWC. Prior to teaching at SWC he worked at several colleges in Los Angeles, beginning in 2004. Mueller said he doesn’t have any specific plans for the future of “Bucky” yet, but he has been given many suggestions, all of which make him wonder. “It’d be cool hanging from some space, a large enough space as a full sphere,” he said. “Then it would become this suspended globe of dripping candles.” “The Forgetting Factor” runs through Nov. 18. It is open to the public.
Photos By Bianca Quilantan
ADDITIONAL ART— (top) “Bucky,” a tribute to Buckminster Fuller dripping with wax. (above) “Sequential Mathematics.” “The Forgetting Factor” exhibition title comes from a story Mueller heard on the radio about mathematicians who created an equation that modeled happiness. It included a “forgetting factor” that accounted for a degrading of a positive effect over time.
SWC. When Palomar’s gallery opened in 1965, Matheny was the first artist shown there. Morris taught art classes for children at the La Jolla Museum of Art, along with Baldessari, but never taught at the college level. Matheny said Morris was a full-time artist, who worked mostly at bookstores, just scraping by. Matheny said Morris never married or learned to drive. “He would live in his studios and was like a starving artist, a bohemian in that sense of commitment,” Matheny said. “You might say he married art.” Over the past 10 years Morris has found acclaim in Europe, particularly in Germany. Baldwin died in 2008, but the other artists — all in their 80s — still create. Matheny recently said he has been busier as an artist in retirement than when he was teaching. Baldessari continues his reign as an influential art superstar who currently has an exhibit in New York at the Marian Goodman Gallery. On display at the Oceanside Museum are abstract paintings, sculptures, assemblage and collages, as well as promotional posters for their exhibitions. There is also a video of Baldessari’s now infamous “Cremation Project,” where in 1970 he burned all the paintings he made from 1953 to 1966. Hampton said their contributions to San Diego’s contemporary art community have grown foggy over time and cannot be overemphasized. “What I would love people to come away with is more of an awareness of our own amazing and rich art history,” he said, “because it has sort of been buried under the rug.” “Spitting in the Wind” references a 1994 article published in the San Diego Union Tribune, titled, “Tiny Southwestern had huge impact on ‘60s San Diego.” In it, Baldessari is quoted, saying: “But in retrospect, Southwestern College was very important, even though a lot we did was just spitting into the wind.” Hampton said Matheny and the early art faculty at SWC had something very special going on. “It’s interesting to learn about this history that took place in the very rooms, streets, campuses and museums that we kind of take for granted,” he said.
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Oct. 13, 2014 - Nov. 13, 2014 — Volume 58, Issue. 2
BACKPAGE
Call of the Wild Story and Photos by Serina Duarte
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California Wolf Center dedicated to re-establishing wild populations
umans have long had a love-hate relationship with wolves. Unfortunately, the haters are winning. Wolves were once the predator kings of the Wild West, but in recent decades many species have teetered on the brink of extinction. Like a 21 st century Noah’s Ark, The California Wolf Center in Julian is working diligently to help preserve the nearlyeradicated species through research and captive breeding. “Our mission is wolf recovery in the wild,” said Heidi Pankratz, a conservation associate at the center. “That’s why we are here and we do this in many different ways. We educate the public. NEVER CRY WOLF — Julian is home to the California Wolf Center, a sanctuary and captive We do research with our wolves and we are also in the captive breed- breeding facility for wolf species facing extinction. Earlier this year six pups were born at the center which biologists hope to release to the wild. ing program to try and bring back the wolf in California.” The wolf did return to California, but only for a few days. In December 2011, a Rocky were not successful but at the same time we are proud of our success because it is a tough time Mountain gray wolf called OR7 (or Journey) wandered into California from Oregon looking for that sub-species.” for a mate. He was the first wild wolf in California in 90 years. Pankratz said she hopes he is When a species is facing extinction, a half dozen puppies border on a miracle, Pankratz said. not the last. “These six pups raised the Mexican grey wolf population by two percent,” she said. “ Its “Wolves affect so many animals in the wild that most wouldn’t even think of in our ecosys- population is really struggling. In the wild there are only around 85 and in captivity there are tem,” said Pankratz. “That is why we call them a keystone species. If you take that keystone less than 300. That means in total there are less than 400 Mexican grey wolves.” out of the ecosystem, the whole thing can fall apart. Everything is connected to the wolf.” Breeding programs keep the mother wolves and pups away from human interaction as much As the top predator, wolves help control the hoof stock population such as elk, deer and bison. as possible. Department of Fish and Wildlife biologists will request a pup from the litter soon They also provide food for other animals. Eagles and bears benefit from wolves by feeding on to be released into the wild. Last year a young wolf was released in New Mexico. carcasses they leave behind. In Yellowstone National Park the beaver population was restored “We are really proud to have wolves released back into the wild and we will have another by the re-introduction of wolves. They keep elk on the move and prevent overgrazing in the one going again this year,” she said. streambeds, which allows grass and trees to grow in the area. That helps beavers by providing Pankratz said that wolves will enter California before too long because of the initial program food and building materials. releasing them into the wilds of Yellowstone National Park. The population has already spread California Wolf Center started in the early 1970s as the Julian Center. It began with a retired into Washington and Oregon, she said, and should eventually migrate to California. couple that wanted to educate children on the importance of the food chain. In the mid 1990s, The California Wolf Center is also home to packs of the Gray wolves, of Mexican gray wolves the Julian Center was approached by California Department of Fish and Wildlife to be a part and Rocky Mountain gray wolves. Most reside in spacious, off-exhibit enclosures that will help of the Mexican Grey Wolf species revival program. It became the California Wolf Center. them to survive if chosen for release into the wild. Pankratz said specialists at the center conduct the captive breeding program with the MexiPankratz said wolves belong in the wild and humans need to find a way to co-exist with can grey wolf. one of nature’s most fascinating creations. Julian’s genetic lifeboat has rough seas ahead, but “We are the second largest center for the Mexican grey wolf breeding in the country,” she biologists there are encouraged by the extinction-defying comeback of California condors. said. “ This year we had a litter of six pups and we are the only center in the program to have Wolves seem timeless, but extinction is forever. Julian’s wolves refuse to go gently into that a successful litter in the program. It is both sad and happy. It’s sad because so many places good night.
October 13 - November 13, 2014 — Volume 58, Issue 2
CAMPUS
The Southwestern College Sun
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A Spirited Celebration
April Abarrondo/Staff
CAMPUS THROWS A PARTY TO HONOR DEARLY DEPARTED
Alyssa Pajarillo/Staff SAINTS COME MARCHING IN — Daisy Cummings (top) is a hit in her catrina costume. (above) Ballet Folklorico outside the student center. (right) Silvia Robledo won the Catrin and Catrina contest. (far right) Spooky student art.
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Serina Duarte/Staff By Alyssa Pajarillo // Assistant Viewpoints Editor
Muertos was dead on. The deceased were the life of the party at the college’s two-day Dia de los Muertos festival, a runup to the main event on November 2. It was a spiritual affair. Dia de los Muertos is a Mexican tradition that honors friends and family who have died through the ages. Living descendants create beautiful altars that reflect the interests of lost loved ones. Altars are often covered with colorful blankets, favorite foods, drinks and hobbies of the honorees. Some altars have cigars, Tequila, baseball cards, fishing tackle, tools and other affections of these who have gone before. Most altars have candles, marigolds and religious items. Each altar is unique just as every person is unique. ia de los
“We want to share our culture with people. It really helps enrich your life. It is like traveling.”
April Abarrondo/Staff
AURENY ZAIDEN
Aureny Zaiden, a board member from Leonardo Da Vinci Charter School, said the festival helped teach her students about Mexican culture. “In our Spanish classes we teach exactly what things mean,” she said. “We teach about different cultures and to have respect for them.” Zaiden said the festival helped transport her students to Mexico. “We want to share our culture with people,” she said. “It really helps enrich your life. It is like traveling.” Makeup artist Emmy Medllin was the winner of the altar contest. Medllin’s altar was dedicated to her sister, who died in July. Though she still mourns her loss, Medllin wanted to contribute to the festival, she said. Medllin and her team also provided a makeup station for festival attendees to have their faces painted in the tradition of sugar skull Calaveras, transforming Jaguar Walk into a busy path through Mictlan, the
Aztec underwold. A catrina and catrin costume contest added color and culture to the festival. Costumed participants gathered on Jaguar Walk to show the dead doing the walk of life. Contest winner Silvia Robledo had a friend design formal gowns to create the base of her dress. Robledo then added her own touches to the costume, she said. “These are actually little icings for cakes,” she said. “I saw these at Wal-Mart and thought these were perfect. I wanted to keep everything colorful, just like the muertos.” Zombified SWC dance students performed a spooky tribute to Halloween with Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” SWC’s Ballet Folkorico also performed. Afficianados said they were already looking forward to next year. “It is such a great event,” Robledo said. “It keeps getting bigger and better every year.”
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Mason Masis, editor
CAMPUS
Oct. 13 - Nov. 13, 2014 — Vol. 58, Issue 2
Tel: (619) 482-6368 E-mail: campus@theswcsun.com
Poets Anonymous Generation Voices Club writers find freedom to get personal in their unsigned poems By Alberto Calderon Staff Writer
Alan Luna/Staff
ometimes the poetry is best left unsigned, especially if Mom is going to read it. “Authors Anonymous” was conceived and edited by SWC Professor of Communications Dr. Rachel Hastings as a way to raise money for the Generation Voices Club. Emboldened by the promise of anonymity, 40 SWC students set out to compile a 125-page book of unfiltered student thought. This resulted is an entertaining and eclectic read that candidly addresses topics like race relations to
the fear of going to hell. “Stuff I Wish I Had the Balls to Say to My Mom” is a standout piece. It reads: “Even
though it ’ s something that is going to hurt you once
you find out /
I’m
talking to the children of the woman dad left
us for / I t ’ s nothing compared to the hurt and loneliness felt from you /
B ut I
I
have
can never tell you because it ’ s not in me to
hurt you in that way ”
Hastings said pieces like “Stuff ” embody the book’s message. “You have stories where students write letters to parents who didn’t perform the way they wanted them to and they seize the opportunity to tell them what was on their mind,” she said. “Whether or not those students actually went home and told them these things, I have no idea. What I do know is that those pieces struck a chord and proved to be very therapeutic for the authors and the class.” Hastings challenged students to write about race in six words proving less is often more.
“In Every R ace L ies Beauty W ithin,” read one. “H omosapien’s E volutionary C hanges in M elatonin L evels ,” commented another. “Aye Bruh, Wassup With the R acism?” asked a third. Hastings said her objective is to promote an open and lively dialogue about race. If there is an art exhibit or a spoken word event related to race on campus, she said she likely has a hand in it. “Race is something I have focused on and studied for a large part of my life,” she said. “It’s a subject people have a lot of feelings about, but don’t feel comfortable expressing them. In the U.S. the experience we have related to race is a very negative one, but it doesn’t have to be. I love talking to students about it because there is so much openness and room for growth.” Naomi Walther, 21, a civil engineering major, said Hastings’ class is a bright spot this semester. “We all describe it like a well,” she said. “You get pulled into the well and you can’t get out, but you don’t want to get out. I’ve even taken classes I don’t need to take just to be in her class and I’m not the only one.” Kyle Lord, 20, undeclared, president of the Generation Voices Club, said Hastings ignited his passion for the spoken word. “Doc is so much fun to be around,” she said. “She has a way of pulling people in to these intense and open conversations. This campus is so diverse it’s a perfect setting to talk about these issues. Before I took her class I didn’t really write. Now slam poetry is my favorite thing to do.” Inspired by “Author’s Anonymous,” Hastings said she wants to assemble another book. She said she hopes more students submit pieces for the spring publication. “The first one was an experiment,” she said. “We didn’t know what it was going to be. I’m really happy with the way it came out. Now I hope it grows. In the future I would like to do two or three (issues) to give more students a chance to contribute.” Lord said he is eager to share his stories. “It feels good to have something I created put into a book for others to read,” he said. “I hope that as more people read the book, they come check out the (Generation Voices Club) because it’s really been a fun part of my life.”
GSA celebrates National Coming Out Day By Alyssa Pajarillo Assistant Viewpoints Editor
Alyssa Pajarillo/Staff KNOCKING ON RAINBOW’S DOOR — Aaron Denham and Alyssa Carringer sign the GSA’s rainbow door in support of National Coming Out Day.
Allen Palmatier was serving honorably in the military when his career ended suddenly and irrevocably. It was not for anything he did, but for something he is. Palmatier is gay. He was fine with that, but the military was not. Palmatier spoke at Southwestern College’s National Coming Out Day event and encouraged the LGBT community to step out of hiding and share their orientation with friends and family. Palmatier, the SWC Gay Straight Alliance club treasurer, said he served in the Navy as an Electrician’s Mate Fireman from 2007 to 2009 during the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell era before its end in 2011. He said he was generally discharged after being unwillingly outed. “It was something so simple as someone looking through my phone and finding a picture of me and my husband together for me to be discharged,” said Palmatier. “I went through a very emotional time, where I felt less than human.” After being discharged Palmatier said he struggled to find the motivation to work. “I was a total mental wreck, until I decided to go to college,” he said. “I don’t think most people understand that you can still pay a rather unique price for being who you are.”
Palmatier said coming out to his friends and family was a more accepting experience. “The first people I came out to were my friends because I wasn’t sure how my family would associate with it,” he said. “Coming out isn’t just about accepting yourself. It’s about telling those you love and hoping they don’t reject you.” Though same-sex marriage is legal in 32 states, the risk of family rejection is a harsh reality. Alan Wade, the GSA’s co-advisor, said coming out has changed drastically in his lifetime. “Then, it was about survival,” Wade said. “It was important so that this stuff that is happening today could happen. So that people could get married and we could have GSA and so that people wouldn’t feel so oppressed later on.” Wade emphasized that it is important to keep up the coming out tradition. “Even though we are treating coming out as a rite of passage now,” he said. “I think it is really important to keep that momentum going and to stay visible.” Reene St. Louis, the club’s co-advisor, agreed. “It is not that hard to pretend to be cool. It is a lot harder to be honest,” she said. “Take one day to think about what it takes to be honest and what it costs. You can lose everything that has mattered to you just for being yourself.”
Jose Luis Baylon
Genetics are influenced by environment Growing up, Lorenzo Allen faced a problem. He has a serious case of math dyslexia. For whatever reason, math never took root in his mind. What if you could explain a neurological challenge such as math dyslexia with epigenetic factors? Epigenetics is when outside forces alter an individual’s genetics. Where genetics focus on the inner mechanics of genes, epigenetics examines how elements, conditions or matter on the outside of the body switch genes on or off. Human behavior and social interactions greatly affect the development of one’s life and can be variables that cause epigenetical change. Every epigenetic journey is different and such is the case with “Allen.” Allen’s parents are not descendants of Copernicus. They are middle of the spectrum, everyday people, who take no pleasure in formulating plot points or proving nuclear physics. For Allen, it is a different story. He wants to become a forensic technician, but the career requires conquering math. Allen never spent much time with math. As a child, he was barely grasping basic algebra when he hit a wall called the Pythagorean Theorem. Genes can switch on and off for many reasons, including lifestyle, environment and even vices. Anything that leaves an impact or an impression can influence genes. Even put downs and praise can influence genes. Parents deeply influence how their children develop. That is obvious. Besides inheriting the parent’s genes, the child learns how to survive outside forces. Genes make it possible to adapt and move on. Experiences can trigger activation or deactivation of certain genes, including genes that help with math. Sometimes this starts at home. Researchers at King’s College in London insist educational heritability is genetically linked with parents and offspring. Their study featured 13,000 twins of different backgrounds from across the United Kingdom. The study linked academic performances to the quality of home life, personality and motivation. For Allen it brought relief to know his struggle might be genetic. But this meant getting better at math was now entirely in his own hands. Allen is determined to overcome his issue with math. To do it requires elasticity. Fortunately for him, the human mind is very elastic. Studies from Oxford have shown that people can learn a new skill when they practice on a committed, long-term schedule. The study revealed that as a person learns a new skill in time, grey matter increases in volume. This means the cells in the brain grow as you learn. This is fundamentally human. The choice of mind comes down to Allen. He can let his birth genetics tell him who he is or fight to another perspective. Life encompasses all things and DNA seems to be listening. Anything physical, psychological or chemical can change behaviors. This is a matter of living tissue genetically accommodating itself based on what is stimulating it on the outside. Emotions grow in you. The more you learn, the more you grow. Jose Luis may be reached at plutotoplato@theswcsun.com
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The Southwestern College Sun
Oct. 13 - Nov. 13, 2014 — Vol. 58, Issue 2
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Transferring brings new challenges By Brenda Gregorio-Nieto Staff Writer
Photos Courtesy of Jose Islas ROLE MODEL — Rusty Krumm keynotes the second annual ACCESS Awards Breakfast. Krumm is a vocational specialist with a Master’s in rehabilitation counseling from SDSU.
ACCESS awards honor heroes By Nicholas Balts Sports Editor
PASSING THE TORCH — Karina Mendoza is presented the Student ACCESS Award by last year’s recipient, Joe Chavez. Mendoza was able to get three new wheelchair accessible doors at SWC.
“Personally, it warms my heart and it’s good to look back and recognize how far we’ve come.” DR. MALIA FLOOD
Tens of thousands of students roam the campus of Southwestern College every semester. Very few leave a legacy that helps generations to come. Karina Mendoza has left an impact. Mendoza was given the Student ACCESS Award at the second annual ACCESS Award Breakfast at SWC for her work to help make the campus and the world more accessible to people with disabilities. Mendoza said she noticed students with disabilities having trouble getting in and out of the restrooms, so she spoke to the governing board and got three new wheelchair accessible restroom doors at key locations on campus. She said all of her hard work paid off, but there is more to do. “It really means a lot to me,” said Mendoza. “I’ve had people come to me and say it’s the best thing that ever happened to them. There are still things that are not accessible though.” ABLE Club Advisor Robert Valerio said Mendoza leads by example. “She’s impacted these students in a big way,” he said. “I don’t see a lot of students stepping up and going to governing board meetings and asking for things that any student should be able to get.” Keynote speaker Rusty Krumm is a vocational specialist who was injured in a diving accident more than 40 years ago. Krumm said in the past boarding a city bus led to public ridicule and street curbs did not have ramps at the end of sidewalks. Society has to do a better job of implementing people with disabilities in careers
suited for their skills, he said. “We need to give opportunities,” said Kr umm. “Not internship opportunities, not low wage opportunities, opportunities to make a living and go out to eat at restaurants, not go through a social security check in a week.” SWC Librarian Tony McGee was honored with the Diane Branman Faculty/Staff Award for his contributions in making SWC a user-friendly accessible campus. The Community ACCESS Award was given to the San Diego Air Cooled Car Club for its years of support in promoting disability awareness. Dr. Malia Flood, director of Disability Support Services, said McGee is an advocate for universal design in all areas, and that he helped edit videos to include captions t h a t a re s h ow n i n c l a s s ro o m s and advocated for computers in the librar y implemented with accessible technology for students who need the screen enlarged or brail. Flood also said McGee was a real champion in helping the ABLE Club get the grant that brought the wheelchair accessible van on campus. He was also part of the team that advocated accessibility with the bathroom doors. Fl o o d s a i d i t w a s a d a y o f reflection, but also perspective. “Personally, it warms my heart and it’s good to look back and recognize how far we’ve come,” she said. “At the same time keep our eye on changes that still need to happen so that we have a truly equal opportunity society for all people.”
Miguel Camacho is fighting the odds. After three years at Southwestern College the political science major transferred to SDSU this fall, one of only a sliver of SWC students who successfully transfer. Even so, he was not in a celebratory mood. “I felt nervous about failure,” he confessed. “I didn’t feel ready.” Camacho is living the dream of two out of three SWC students. Nearly 68 percent of students here say they hope to transfer. Only 10 percent do. California Community College Chancellor’s Office reported that 299 SWC students transferred to SDSU in the 2011-12 academic years. Camacho said he knew he was in a different world when he walked onto the SDSU campus. “The main change I saw was more students, it was a little harder to adjust,” he said. “There are probably 10 times more students commuting in and out of SDSU than SWC.” SWC enrolls about 20,000 students, SDSU has 34,887. SWC alumnae Guadalupe Olguin said bigger is not always better. “One of the changes I saw was the size of the classes,” she said. “At one point I attended a class with 300 students.” Work loads also increased, Camacho said, making it hard to adjust. Olguin said SDSU classes are more rigorous. “It’s a lot more reading,” she said. “Sometimes having to read more than 20 pages per class and just combining it all together seemed impossible.” Camacho said he felt had a bit of an advantage over some of his classmates because of his SWC experiences. “A few professors helped me on a personal level and helped with the work load and strategies to enter a bigger classroom,” he said. Olguin said attending the BEST summer bridge program hosted by SDSU’s EOP program helped her transition. “(EOP) helped me feel more comfortable attending my classes,” she said. “I met people who were from my major, so it was great to see faces I recognized in a classroom filled with 60 students.” Richard O’Rourke, 20, a sociology major who transferred to UC Merced, said his university is smaller than SWC and there are not many over-sized classes. “I don’t have any classes in large auditoriums,” he said. “Two of my classes are regular-sized classrooms and two others are held in large rooms.” UCM has a just of 6,268 students this fall and is a smaller campus, but still requires hard work, said O’Rourke. Professors don’t provide guidelines for assignments, they require you to already know how to do academic work. O’Rourke said his professors are easy to reach, courteous and helpful. O’Rourke warned SWC transfers to prepare for more work, more reading and more interaction in the classroom. Olguin said that is true, and urged SWC students to use resources available them. “Learn how to manage your time,” she said. “It’s very important in order to accomplish all the deadlines. Be aware of all the resources that your university has in order to help. Do not be afraid to ask for help.”
MESA Night showcases student innovators By Ana Raymundo Staff Writer
Science students are doing more than looking to the future – they are already hard at work creating it. From a group of 23 math, science and engineering students, 10 showed faculty and family a glimpse of tomorrow at MESA Night, an annual symposium and celebration of the work of summer interns. Many of this summer’s research internships were with Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR), a U.S. Navy program. SPAWAR representative Ricardo Santoyo-Mejia said there are enormous benefits for students who work with naval scientists. “The students get the experience that would enable them to become better candidates to be employees at SPAWAR,” he said. “They gain
an important experience that would o t h e r w i s e b e n o t a va i l a b l e i n a classroom.” Many of the presenters covered improvements to pre-existing technology, including Josh Cruz’s work with Google Glass and an Android smartphone. Ma r c o R a m i r e z’s s p a c e o p t i c s communication system models a way for lasers to communicate with submarines. Caleb Henderson interned with UCSD’s Creating Scientists to Address Cancer Disparities program. His team used traditional Chinese herbal medicines to treat cancer. “Traditional Chinese medicine has had a lot of skepticism, so doing this research creates validity or credibility for traditional Chinese medicine,” he said. Dr. Raja Bakhiet, the director of the SWC MESA program, said
considerable preparation goes into the event. “First I recruit the students for the internship and then organize orientation events for them,” she said. “I also train them on presentation skills and follow up with them as they’re doing the internship, and preparing their presentations for MESA Night.” Bakhiet said she probably enjoys MESA Night most of all. “I find great satisfaction in their success,” she said. “I am fortunate in that way because this is just my nature is to be satisfied and be rewarded by students’ success and happiness. And I am also rewarded with a lot of respect and appreciation from my students. So that what makes me go the extra mile for them.” Bakhiet said MESA Night was a success. “I think it went beautifully,” she said. “I’m in seventh heaven.”
Cindy Espinoza /Staff ENGINEERING THE FUTURE — Marco Ramirez presents his space optics communications project which could revolutionize submarine communication.
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Ebola scare rattles campus False alarm attracts international media coverage, triggers high school lockdown, causes great anxiety in the community cont. from pg. A1
Rick Flores/Staff
QUARANTINED Locked-in students stayed calm during the Southwestern College Ebola Scare By Cesar Hirsch It began as a day like any other day. It ended with young, healthy students thankful for our health. Ebola has a way of putting things in perspective. Dr. Erin Browder’s anthropology class was interesting as always, punctuated on this day by a film about gorillas, lemurs, monkeys and chimpanzees as the narrator romped from South America to Africa to Asia. At 9:15 a.m. one student begins stuffing his property into his backpack. Like the primates in the video, we all follow this behavior as Dr. Browder tries to get in a few last remarks. Everyone heads to the door, her voice fades, ear-buds are in, text messages start getting answered and the door opens. That’s when the routine became the unthinkable. Yellow barricade tape hit my waist and we were confronted by a pushy campus police officer ordering us back in the classroom. A four-hour ordeal began. I began reminiscing about lockdowns in elementary school, except that now it didn’t seem as exciting and adventurous and we didn’t get to sit Indian style under our desk. My classmates begin peeking out the window. For the next 30 minutes we knew nothing. We sat patiently, making small talk and figuring out how many classes we were going to miss. That same campus police officer that didn’t let us out earlier opened the door and began to brief Dr. Browder. All we saw from the window were hand gestures and a lot of nodding, but we could only assume that whatever they were saying was terribly important. Around me I can see people gaping at their phones and muttering the word Ebola. Dr. Browder returned to the classroom and told a wide-eyed, wide-mouthed audience of anxious college kids that a student a few doors down might have been exposed to a virus that has made headlines across the globe for its brutality against humanity. West Africa’s massive outbreak of Ebola may have somehow found its way to Southwestern College. Suddenly apathetic college hipsters around me stiffened and their ironic expressions turned to angst. People begin looking up symptoms of the virus on their smartphones, palming their foreheads and massaging their throats. I hear questions like “Have you seen the movie ‘Contagion’ or how ’bout ‘Quarantine’?”
Our professor stepped outside again in search of more information. Little by little we pieced together the story. A female student said she and her family flew on a plane close to someone who had been exposed to the virus. She had been absent from school for several days now and had been hospitalized. The story would evolve many times in the next four hours. This student was now in our midst and we were to wait for the health department authorities to arrive. I was relieved to learn that we were allowed to step out to the nearest restrooms. Outside, broad-shouldered police officers lurked and a small group of students were fenced like cattle in a pen of yellow barricade tape. It was an eerie tableau. As I stared at the campus on the “free” side of the tape, I was told to go back inside. Text messages and telephone calls from scared family members and friends got phones buzzing. The room echoed with phrases like “I’m okay mom” and “Yeah, we don’t really know what’s happening.” It was getting close to lunchtime. Cereal and coffee had lost their effect, and people seemed to be more preoccupied about food than the possibly-deadly virus a couple classrooms away. We were brought funny-tasting water and an array of meaty sandwiches. Unfortunately, there were no vegan/ vegetarian or kosher options available for those with more particular dietary habits. I’m not sure if it was the food or the force bonding in a closed space, but students and staff began to relax. It was past noon and many people had given up on their class and work schedules. Authorities had informed us that they were waiting for a report from the Center of Disease Control and the San Diego County Health Department. Meanwhile, the female student’s story was evolving. We were told Ebola had never been on campus. Everyone was annoyed, but relieved. Around 1 p.m. we signed a piece of notebook paper along with our phone numbers and student ID numbers. When the yellow tape came down I saw officials giving statements to the media, saying all the right things. I saw other students trying to get into camera shots, others just standing around not knowing how to carry through their day. I saw confusion. Our campus looked better than usual, particularly on the other side of the tape.
Serina Duarte/Staff
(top) Students in quarantine area patiently wait to be released. (bottom left) Chief Michael Cash addresses members of the media. (below) Vincent Avila–Walker was one of the students in the quarantine area that spoke to the news media about the Ebola scare. (bottom right) Misca Lopez and fellow students gather in a professor’s office after being released from quarantine.
Serina Duarte/Staff
Serina Duarte/Staff
Serina Duarte/Staff
April Abarrondo/Staff
her story,” he said. Cash said the student had missed several classes and had not done an assignment that was due that morning. She told different versions of the story throughout the day, Cash said. “Bottom line, none of it was true and there never was never any danger,” said Cash. One of the quarantined students, Vincent Avila-Walker, said that campus police had been vague with the students about the situation and that caused some alarm. Avila-Walker said that when he asked if there was a real threat to his safety, a police officer told him it would be in his best interest to leave, although he had already entered the area. “He basically said, ‘If I was you, I would leave,’” Avila-Walker said. When Avila-Walker went back to give classmates this information he entered Room 471 and a campus police officer said he would have to remain to stay under quarantine. “(The officer) said it was possibly an Ebola strain,” he said. Misca Lopez, who was is in the same class as Avila-Walker and was with him at the time, said virtually the same thing. “He (the police officer) came in and said we need to get out,” she said. “But then he eventually changed it to that we need to stay in, saying that we’re quarantined and that they believe someone might have had Ebola.” Cash said misinformation disbursed through social media added to the heightened anxiety. “There’s the facts of the incident and then there’s social media, what everyone’s just putting out there,” he said. “You’re never going to get ahead of social media and so you don’t really try to contend with it. Information just flows, whether it’s correct or incorrect.” Cash said criticism about the lack of communication during the crisis was warranted, but he also said the college’s procedures and response were correct. He said that the priority was obtaining the facts, despite pressure to release immediate information. “I always try to work to make sure that I get it out as fast as I can, but I will make sure first that it is accurate,” he said, “because once I put it out there, I can’t pull it back.” Classes in the affected area were cancelled for four hours until 1 p.m. Afternoon classes were to go on as scheduled, according to a global email from Vice President of Academic Affairs Kathy Tyner. It contradicted earlier statements by campus administrators and police that classes in the area were cancelled for the day. SWC officials provided conflicting reports on the situation throughout the day. Public Information Officer Lillian Leopold said during a televised press conference at 11 a.m. that no students or staff were held under quarantine. Cash later confirmed that students were held under the quarantine, but were released after four hours. “I think that she (Leopold) found some of the media was on one side of the (campus) and I had the other media group over here and we had different press conferences, but then we really then got that back together so we could
make sure we had one single message,” Cash said. Some campus police officers told faculty and students that the female student had vomited twice, once inside the classroom and once in the quad. One even described the vomit as “some crazy green.” Students and faculty in the classroom with the student said she never vomited. A 10:30 a.m. email from Tyner said San Diego County health officials were on their way to the college. “The Campus Police have cordoned off the 470 area,” the email read. “The County Department of Health has been called and is in transit to assess the situation.” Around 12:10 p.m., the college posted the following on its Facebook: “ N O E B O L A O N SOUTHWESTERN COLLEGE CAMPUS A student and her family had been traveling to the Midwest last week. Upon their return, the sister exhibited flu-like symptoms and has been hospitalized. The student is NOT exhibiting ANY flu like symptoms. The student contacted the instructor to inform the instructor why the student had not been in class. In an abundance of caution by some staff members, the 470 building was cordoned off. Our campus nurse has thoroughly examined the student and there IS NO EXPECTATION OF EBOLA. An earlier communication saying that the County Department of Health was on their way was incorrect.” At around 1 p.m. college officials said they were in contact with the CDH. County Department of Health officials indicate, however, that they never planned to dispatch a team to Southwestern College because it receives hundreds of false Ebola reports every week. Lopez said campus police did not give those quarantined any information on when they could leave. “They were saying ‘Just stay here, we don’t know when you’ll be released,’” she said. Lopez added that they were told that CDH had been called and would be on their way to examine them. They were told that they would be released once the CDH arrived and assessed the situation. SWC’s statement indicated that the CDH had not been called at the time the students were told this. “This entire time we were waiting for them to get here to check us out,” she said. Members of the community were also affected by the incident. Lopez, along with students Katrina Simmons and Citlali Marshburn, said the rush of mainstream media was abrasive and that some reporters did not proceed safely. Simmons said at least five television reporters crossed over the police tape into the quarantined zone and that police officers did not stop them or quarantine them. “When the media did come, they bombarded us,” Simmons said. “They were even trying to get into the quarantined zone.” Lopez, Simmons, Avila-Walker and
Marshburn all said that the incident caused them emotional trauma and agreed that the situation was not handled effectively. “Students kept coming,” Lopez said. “Teachers kept coming, trying to get in to the quarantined zone. They didn’t even realize it was being quarantined because they didn’t get the information out. There were people constantly trying to come in which made it even worse.” Virtually every media outlet in San Diego covered the incident and it soon became inter-national news. Journalism students from The Sun were contacted by the Washington Post, Arizona Republic, Los Angeles Times, the Associated Press, KNX – CBS News Radio Los Angeles, as well as San Diego and Baja California news media outlets. A news helicopter circled the campus for nearly an hour. A Mexico City newspaper reported the story, as did news outlets in Canada, South America and Europe. Surrounding community was affected as well. Across the street from the college, Bonita Vista High School went on modified lockdown. Larry McCrorey, owner of Juice Adventure, reported that sales dropped 50 percent the day of the scare and did not recover for a week. “I came to work immediately and noticed that there was nobody here and the business just flattened out,” he said. LMJ’s Fusion Grill had a sharp drop in business as well, said Chef Kevin Reyes. David Ramos, a nursing major, said communication was lacking and that the school nurse who examined the girl was not qualified to assess the situation. “The school handled the situation horribly,” he said. “Isolation protocol was not followed. A nurse with a minimum of a Bachelors’ degree shouldn’t be authorized to handle a Level Six viral infection which can produce an epidemic. The school could improve on having better information and communication in and outside the school.” Quarantined students were brought food and water by college officials, and had access to restrooms during their quarantine. The woman who said she may have been exposed to Ebola was held in the faculty office of Vivien Vaughan. Campus police took the women to the campus nurse’s office later in the afternoon. (Cash asked The Sun not to identify the woman or to publish photos of her due to safety concerns. Members of The Sun’s Editorial Board agreed to the request, for the time being.) SWC Governing Board Member Humberto Peraza said he was relieved to learn that there was no Ebola at the college, but was concerned that so much anxiety was loosed in the community. “I think there are certainly a lot of things that we can learn from this incident,” he said. “Not that this type of issue comes up every day. How can anybody be possibly prepared to handle a situation like this? There are certainly a lot of things we could have done better, but given the circumstances, the administration certainly tried its best to handle it.” Cash said of all the people involved throughout the day, the students handled the situation very well. “I’m pretty proud of our Southwestern College students,” he said.
Jose Luis Baylon What is Ebola? Ebola is a virus that causes severe hemorrhaging in the body. Hemorrhages are conditions in which bleeding is excessive. Ebola, if untreated, will persist to the fatal stages where the cardiovascular system is left alone to deal with the rupturing of blood vessels while losing support from the internal organs. What are the symptoms? Ebola has a 2 - 21 day incubation period. During this time, the virus is building copies of itself by injecting its RNA into healthy cells. Once the viral load is at a certain point, symptoms occur. Fevers, headaches, weakness or fatigue are primarily the first symptoms. As the virus progresses the symptoms include diarrhea, kidney or liver failure and vomiting. Internal and external hemorrhaging occurs once the virus has lowered the number of white blood cells in the immune system. What spreads Ebola? Exposure to bodily fluids from an infected person is considered the highest risk for transmission. Bodily fluids mean every wet substance secreted from the human body. This includes: blood, urine, saliva, vomit, semen and breast milk. A cough, a sneeze or a teardrop contain bodily fluids and they can transmit the virus if you are within direct contact of someone displaying symptoms. Having contact within three feet of a person infected with Ebola is considered to be in direct contact. Health care workers are at high risk for transmission because of their direct contact with Ebola patients. The surfaces of materials such as bedding or clothing contaminated with the fluid may also transmit the virus. The virus can remain alive on a material for several hours or even days depending if the virus has a wet environment to sustain itself in. How does Ebola enter the body? The virus enters the body if the contaminated bodily fluid flows through a rip on the skin or through the mucous membrane, which are the openings of your eyes, mouth, nostrils, inner ears, urethra, vagina or anus. Sexual secretions such as semen or vaginal discharge can carry the virus. The World Health Organization reports that men who have recovered from the disease can still transmit the virus through their semen for up to seven weeks. Is there a cure? No. There are no vaccines approved by the FDA to treat Ebola. Leaf Biopharmaceuticals, a San Diego Biotech, has received appraisal for their quicklytimed drug named ZMapp which uses three forms of antibodies to try to block the viruses “lock and key” method. The drug was quickly rushed to West Africa before individual human clinical trials could begin. It is reported that the drug is saving lives. ZMapp cannot become a licensed vaccine until the FDA approves it. Is there a treatment? Supportive care is currently the main option for any patient exhibiting Ebola. Supportive care includes the watchdog maintenance of the patient’s bodily functions as the virus passes through the body. This deems doctors to constantly rehydrate the body with fluid, monitor the function of the kidneys and other internal organs, apply medicines to lower blood pressure and the intervention of any medical support such as dialysis if deemed necessary. What’s the potential of an Ebola outbreak in the United States? The risk of outbreak is low in the United States. Several Americans have contracted the disease abroad and been brought back to the United States for treatment. Unfortunately, anyone traveling abroad to countries fighting Ebola may have the consequence of facing direct contact with the disease. For this reason, the United States has begun monitoring airports by implementing health screening at various international airports to minimize the chances of an outbreak. Health officials may ask passengers coming off flights to fill out questionnaires regarding their health. If a person exhibits symptoms, the local county will move the passenger to quarantine.
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The Southwestern College Sun
SPORTS
Cheerleaders go, fight, win respect
October 13, - November 13, 2014—Volume 58, Issue 2
Trail Blazer By Evan Cintron Assistant Sports Editor
April Abarrondo/Staff
READY? OKAY! — Savanna Rudershausen fires up the crowd at DeVore Stadium during a 46-44 victory over San Bernadino Valley College. Rudershausen is a psychology major and it is her second season on the team. By Colin Grylls Managing Editor
On Saturday nights, a tough, intensely-trained group of Southwestern College athletes put on their uniforms and get ready for action in DeVore Stadium in a dangerous sport. Their uniform, however, does not include shoulder pads, helmets or eyeblack. Instead, they don tennis shoes, skirts and make up. SWC’s cheerleaders perform from kickoff through the final whistle, at the occasional pep rally and will also grace the sidelines during men’s basketball games. Savanna Rudershausen, 20, said cheering makes the squad’s stress fade away. “We’ve all grown as a family,” she said. “We come here and we forget about everything. It’s just like our getaway.” Coach Nina Williams, who has led the Jaguar cheer squad for 14 years, said cheering is an expensive getaway. She said that while the team receives some funding from the athletic department, members have to foot most of the bills, such as uniforms and cheer camps. “They’ve paid at least $900 to be on the team,” she said. “To me that shows great dedication because no one is helping fund them to be here, they’re here truly because they want to be here.” Williams said the high cost is a hurdle some prospective members cannot jump. “In a way, that’s a positive because it really gets dedicated girls,” she said, “but, in a way, it’s a negative because it also pushes a lot of people away because they cannot afford to participate in the program.” Travel is a major expense for the Jaguars. This year they have received a bid to participate in the National Cheerleading Association’s National Championships in April. SWC’s cheer team won a string of national championships from different organizations from 2005-2009. Fundraising, however, may determine whether or not they can afford the plane tickets to Daytona Beach, Florida. Ramon Rosas, 21, said such opportunities open the door for more revenue. “I think doing competitions is going to help us out a lot,” he said. “That’s where people see us, like sponsors.” Williams said SWC has already rounded up some sponsors, although it has a long way to go. “We’ve got some up-and-coming clothing lines, so the girls are wearing their t-shirts at the games,” she said. “We have some universities we’re pairing with so they can help. We’ve planned high school clinics… where we teach (high school students) lower-level
C
ross-country coach Dr. Duro Agbede was expecting a powerhouse this season. He got one. Freshman Aminat Olowara, a Nigerian immigrant who won three gold medals in the Nigerian National Sports Festival, has finished first place in every race she has competed in for Southwestern College. She even set a new course record at the Rio Hondo Classic with a time of 16:33, coming in 1 minute 19 seconds ahead of the second place finisher, East L.A.’s Laura Aceves, last year’s state champion. After her record-breaking performance, schools became suspicious of Olowara’s eligibility. It took half of the season for her to get paperwork in order for her to race again. She then made up for lost time in the Pacific Coast Athletic Conference Championship at Woodley Park in Van Nuys. Olowora cruised to an easy victory with a time of 17:24. Even with her first place win, Olowora said she did not meet her own expectations. “My first meet I got 16 minutes, 33 seconds,” she said. “This time I got 17 minutes something seconds, so that means the improvement is not there,” she said. “I know the reason it was like that. I hadn’t gone to practice in many days because I had to get some papers together so I could run for the school, but thank God everything is okay now.” 2013 Cross Country MVP Erika Gonzalez finished second place with a time of 18:40, helping the Lady Jags run away with the conference title. SWC men were determined to finish what the women had started. A Sweetwater High School trio swept the podium. CCCAA-All American Track and Field and Team Captain George Martinez finished first with a time of 20:14. Coaches Award recipient and Athlete of the Year Bryan Alvarado took second with a time of 20:27. Metro League Champion Gerardo Marquillo’s 20:30 time was good enough for third. This was the first time since 2004 that the Jags won both the men and women conference titles. Martinez said he was happy with the overall outcome. “Coach said this was the first time in 10 years that Southwestern has won a conference title, so I’m proud to say that I was able to lead this team,” he said. “I tried my best to motivate everybody to do their best and I believe we achieved that goal.” please see Cross Country pg. B8
EAT MY DUST— Aminat Olowora crushed the competition at the PCAC Championships and the SoCal Championships. She now is now poised for a run at the state and national titles. Colin Grylls/Staff
please see Cheerleading pg. B7
Jaguar quarterback refused to be cut and is now a star By Nicholas Siriphone Staff Writer
Colin Grylls/Staff
NUMBER ONE FAN — Jaguar quarterback Luis Perez celebrates with his mother, Carla Perez, after defeating San Bernardino Valley College. Perez threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns in the 46-44 victory.
During spring football tryouts last year Coach Ed Carberry cut a former Otay Ranch wide receiver who was trying out for quarterback. He refused to go. Carberry cut him again, but Luis Perez refused to go home. A few months later Perez was the starting quarterback and passed for 248 yards in his debut at the position, a 35-10 win over East Los Angeles College. Carberry, who famously does not brook insubordination, said he is very happy Perez stuck around. “I cut him and he refused to be cut,” said Carberry. “ He kept coming back.” At 6 feet-4 inches and 220 pounds, Perez is built like a prototypical quarterback, but he did not play the position until he arrived at SWC. “I felt like I was a quarterback and I would still train with my quarterback coach. I was a quarterback at heart,” Perez said. “I felt like I had a chip on my shoulder and I came to Southwestern trying to play quarterback.” Like a tr ue quar terback under pressure, Perez has thrived under center. He earned the number two spot on the depth chart last year, then became the starter. He broke his leg, however, in a game against Compton, ending his freshman year. “That hurt,” he said. “It was a heartbreak for me.” Leg broken, heart broken, but spirit
unbroken, Perez rehabbed hard for 2014. He even changed his major to physical therapy. “The Southwestern PT program is spectacular,” said Perez, a 3.5 GPA student. “They want you to get back on the field as soon as possible and they want you to be better.” This spring started poorly for Perez, but he persevered as always. “This year, I didn’t start practicing until mid-spring due to my injury,” he said. “I was battling for the quarterback spot with Tofi (Paopao).” Paopao would go on to be named the starter for the 2014 season, but a hard hit to the chest knocked him out of the game against Pierce College. Perez found himself in familiar territory. He stepped in and passed for 218 yards and two touchdowns. Carberry said the performance might lead to bigger things in the next game. “He can play the game of football,” Carberry said with purposeful understatement. A Chula Vista native, Perez said he unwinds at the Brunswick Premier Lanes. He said he got into bowling at an early age because of his grandfather. Perez said that a football is really different compared to gripping a 15-pound bowling ball. “I feel this is where my grip, footwork and angles from bowling has helped me with football,” he said. Off-season amateur bowling leagues t a k e t h e e ve r - c o m p e t i t i ve Pe re z
throughout Southern California and clear to Las Vegas where he said he placed 12th and 7th in competitions. Perez, however, said he does not want to settle for 12 th or 7 th on the gridiron. He said he is willing to take the punishment in order to lead his team to victory. “I’ll stand in the pocket with a guy coming full speed at me and make the throw,” he said. “That’s a leadership throw.” Every Saturday this season the Luis Perez Fan Club takes over DeVore Stadium’s midfield section. His mother, Carla Perez, is a constant. “I knew from when he was younger that he wanted to play sports and I wanted to support him,” she said. “I look forward to every Saturday.” Perez’s father agreed. “I taught him to be a team player, that he has to be the first person there and the last person to leave, and if he does that, I’ll be there for him no matter what,” he said. His family and friends wear shirts with his name and jersey number. “My girlfriend made those shirts,” Perez said with a smile. “Huge support. They are my number one fans and they come to every game, no matter if I’m starting, no matter if I’m on the bench.” Perez said the best has yet to come, perhaps quarterbacking a university team. “I want to go beyond this,” he said. “I just can’t stop here.”
SPORTS
The Southwestern College Sun
Oct. 13 - Nov. 13, 2014—Vol. 58, Issue 2
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Photos By Colin Grylls
WIDE RIGHT — (above) Mt. San Jacinto College’s last-minute field goal attempt sails just right of Kylon Higgins (36) and the uprights, preserving the Jags’ 34-31 victory. (below) Sophomore defensive back Dorsey Norris crushes Mt. San Jacinto running back Eddy WIlliams for a six-yard loss.
Blocked kick opens pathway to bowl game By Colin Grylls Managing Editor
Two points. Ten yards. Less than 19 seconds. A game – a season – was on the line. Southwestern College led San Bernardino Valley College, 46-44, as Wolverine kicker Cody Madsen lined up for a 27-yard field goal on fourth-andone as the howling crowd grew louder and louder. Nervous silence, then bedlam. SWC defensive end Mike Molina surged through the line and blocked the kick to seal the Jaguar Victory and an appearance in the American Division Championship Bowl. Molina was ecstatic. “I can’t even speak right now, I’m so happy,” he said. “They put me there for a reason. Coach said, ‘Mike, we need you to go block that ball. Yes, coach.’ I just went out there and did it.” After thrashing Compton, 50-28, the next week, SWC improved its American Mountain Conference record to 6-1 (9-1 overall), but finished second to Victor Valley (10-0, 7-0 conf.). Victor Valley earned the title by slipping by the Jags, 34-31, in September. Its perfect season came to an abrupt
end, however, following a hard-fought 21-13 victory over San Diego Mesa – the obligatory post-game handshake morphed into a brawl. S o u t h e r n C a l i f o r n i a Fo o t b a l l Association Commissioner Jim Sartoris said the decorum violation resulted in a bowl-ban. “If it’s a team-wide fight, the sanction associated with that is a suspension from postseason participation,” he said. “We invoked that. That’s why Victor Valley is not able to participate this year. As a result, the second place team, which was Southwestern, was moved up to play in that American Championship Bowl.” Still, said Sartoris, the Jags did not earn their bowl berth on a technicality. “Southwestern deserved to be in a bowl game,” he said. “They were going to be able to host a bowl even if this would not have happened, it’s just they were put in a position to be the host team for the American Championship Bowl, but they had a fabulous year.” SWC has won two straight bowl games – the American Championship Bowl and last year’s Patriotic Bowl – but has never been selected three years in a row. Quarterback Luis Perez passed for 299 yards and three
touchdowns against the Wolverines. “Without this game, we wouldn’t be able to go to a bowl game,” he said. “We have a chance to make history, make three straight bowl games. That’s something special, that’s something you can tell your kids.” San Bernardino Valley and the Jaguars combined for 926 yards and 90 points in the 46-44 shootout, but defensive and special team play was pivotal for SWC. After receiver Travis Gardner’s second touchdown reception tied the game with 11:06 left in the third quarter, the Wolverines blocked the extra point and returned it for two points and a 31-29 lead. Omar Hernandez, who doubles as the soccer team’s star striker, kicked the ball into the end zone for a touchback, giving San Bernardino Valley the ball on its own 25-yard line. On first down, Wolverine quarterback Daniel Epperson tossed the ball backwards over running back Alijah Watson’s head. Jaguar linebacker Blake Wilson won the mad scramble for the ball and returned the fumble 20 yards for a touchdown, to put the Jags ahead, 36-31. After SWC forced a three-and-out on the ensuing San Bernardino drive, please see Football pg. B8
Cheerleading: Helping in the community and inspiring on the gridiron Continued from Page B6
stunting and make a certain profit off of that.” Sheila Hernandez, 19, said entertaining the crowd makes the team’s struggles worthwhile. “I like performing at games because there’s always different crowds,” she said. “We always bring out different things. The football team, they’re actually pretty good so the crowd is positive and they go along with our cheers. (The cheerleaders) all love when we go out there and there’s a lot of people. The more people the better.” Williams said the cheerleaders are a boon to the campus and Chula Vista as a whole, and also said she lives to help the team reach their potential. “It’s a great thing for Southwestern,” she said. “It’s a great way to get their name out there, it’s a great way to let (the community) know what the school has to offer and the programs it has. Individually, there’s not even one word to describe it. To watch them from the beginning of the year to the end of the year, that’s why I do what I do.” For more information about SWC Cheerleading or to make a donation, contact coach Nina Williams at nwilliams@swccd.edu or (619) 370-2505.
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Nicholas Baltz, editor
SPORTS
Oct. 13 - Nov. 13, 2014—Vol. 58, Issue 2
Tel: (619) 482-6368 E-mail: sports@theswcsun.com
PCAC tri-fecta for SWC men’s soccer team By Rudee Amaral Staff Writer
Omar Hernandez owns November. With help from the brilliant twosport star, the Southwestern College football team is going to its third straight bowl game and the soccer team is hoisting its third consecutive Pacific Coast Athletic Conference Championship Trophy. A few days after his placekicking helped the football team to a 46-44 victory over San Bernardino Valley College, the star striker scored the first goal in a 3-1 victory against Palomar College in the conference finale. With the win the Jaguars earned a spot in the playoffs against El Camino College (9-1-10, 7-1-6 South Coast Conference). SWC outscored its opponents 18-3 in its final four games with two clean sheets.
Title hopes hung in the balance when the Jags and Palomar entered the locker room scoreless at halftime. SWC’s hungry defense attacked the ball allowing only two harmless shots on goal. Hernandez finally broke the scoring open in the 52nd minute for a 1-0 lead. Sophomores Jonathan and Stephen Martinez sealed the deal with late goals. PCAC Coach of the Year Cem Tont was all smiles. “In the second half we showed up,” he said. “ We looked like a championship-caliber team.” Midfielder Edgar Vibreros said the team came together. “Chemistry improved a lot,” he said. “We started out not being able to finish, then tying, now winning.” Only Cuyamaca College spoiled
Football: Special teams lead Jaguars to special season Continued from Page B6
Madsen punted the ball to Malik Kimbrough. Kimbrough received the punt and started sprinting to his left before spotting a crease and cutting up field. He ran 46 yards, untouched, into the end zone to increase SWC’s lead to 43-31. San Bernardino Valley roared back behind the power of its offensive line. Two Wolverine running backs cleared the 100-yard benchmark, Watson (100 rushing yards) and Kendrick Dorn (113). Carberry said the Wolverines were the first team this season to truly exploit the Jags’ undersized defense. “Tonight they put about six guys butt to butt and they said, ‘We’re bigger than you, we’re going to lean on you,’” he said. “We’ve got a big back who’s going to run you over.” Carberry said size and strength are not mutually exclusive. “You can win with guys that are tough and strong,” he said. “We don’t care if you’re tall or short, it doesn’t matter… The guy who made the big play tonight, Mike Molina, he’s 6-foot, 270 (pounds). He squats 600 pounds, benches 385. He knocked that guy out of the way.” Molina’s block was the latest in a long line of lastminute heroics for the Jags this season. They have won three consecutive games by one score or less. Two weeks earlier, SWC traveled to Mt. San Jacinto College and narrowly escaped with a 34-31 victory. Trailing 24-14 at halftime, the Jags clawed back but were still behind 31-27 in the fourth quarter when they faced fourth-and-goal from the Eagles 10-yard line. Perez threw a quick pass to Kimbrough, who danced his way towards the end zone. Kimbrough stretched the ball towards the goal line as he was brought down, but the ball was inches short. Mt. San Jacinto defenders started jumping for joy, but were grounded when they saw a flash of yellow in the corner of their eyes. Defensive holding was called by the referees and breathed new life into the Jags. The Eagles, however, were not ready to roll over. First-and-goal turned into another fourth down, this time from the seven-yard line. Perez rolled right and spotted slot receiver Kevin Mills open in the flat. Still on the run, Perez fired the ball to Mills for the touchdown and a 34-31 lead with 4:45 remaining in the game. SWC’s defense, however, struggled to get the Eagles off the field. Mt. San Jacinto took four minutes and ten seconds off the clock before the Jags finally forced a fourth down on their own 15-yard line. Eagle kicker Brett Cronenwett needed to convert the 32-yard field goal attempt to force overtime. Carberry called a timeout with 35 seconds left on
the Jags’ perfect record with a 4-3 win. Frustrated and trailing late 3-2, Hernandez tied the game on a volley from Martinez and frenzied the oncediscouraged home crowd. SWC’s faithful fans, though, could not propel their team to victory. With five minutes left, Coyote striker Brett Schmidt scored the goahead goal after a pass ricocheted and left him with an open net for his second goal. Cuyamaca did not have long to gloat. SWC got revenge on the road with a 7-2 spanking. SWC opens the playoffs November 22 at El Camino. Hernandez will have to choose which kicking shoes to wear – the football team plays its bowl game at home on the same day – but whether the ball is round or oblong, he has points to score.
Nicholas Baltz/Staff
PERFECT PITCH — Jaguar freshman Julio Arrerola wins the ball in a 3-1 victory over Palomar College. SWC won its third straight league title.
the clock to let the gravity of the moment sink in, hoping the nerves would get to the Eagles’ field goal unit. Cronenwett’s kick travelled right of the outstretched arms of Jaguar special teamers Gregory Blackshear and Kylon Higgins. Fans on both sidelines held their breath as the ball sailed wide right. SWC’s sideline exploded when the referees signaled that the kick was no good. Offensive lineman John Boyd said fear of losing their shot at history propelled the Jags’ comeback. “We told each other we need to focus,” he said. “We felt like we underestimated them a little bit, so the coaches really talked to us and told us to get it together or we’re in jeopardy of losing a bowl game. If we lose this game we might not go to a bowl game at the end of the season.” College of the Desert nearly shocked SWC the next week in a 41-33 thriller. At halftime the Jags held a 34-0 lead, but the Roadrunners scored 26 unanswered points to pull within eight with 12:47 left in the fourth quarter. On third-and-7, quarterback Israel “Tofi” Paopao lined up in the shotgun. Paopao and Perez have been splitting snaps at quarterback, rotating every two series. He rolled right to escape Desert’s pass rush, but was forced to turn back to his left. Roadrunner defensive back Corey Dalton spotted him breaking containment and made a mad dash towards the line of scrimmage. Paopao, however, had yet to cross and threw a strike to wide-open Kylon Higgins for a 55-yard touchdown and a 41-26 lead. Carberry said having both Paopao and Perez is a luxury that makes the Jags difficult to defend. “If you can throw the ball, you always have a chance,” he said. “It’s like in the heavyweight Colin Grylls/Staff fighting game. The heavyweight always has one punch to knock somebody out. The other guy BLOCK PARTY — San Bernardino Valley’s game-clinching field goal attempt is blocked by Mike Molina. can win 12 rounds and then in the 13th he can For the first time in school history, Southwestern College has appeared in three consecutive bowls. be knocked out.” Desert, however, went the distance. With 58 Roadrunners’ comeback and compared the Jags’ really close games, and with the exception of the seconds remaining, it gained possession on its own performance to Greek mythology. one, we’ve won them all.” 29-yard line down by just eight points. After an “It’s like that guy Sisyphus,” he said. “He was SWC will look to continue its winning streak incomplete pass, quarterback Trey Casaus sprinted charged with pushing the rock up the hill and the against Santa Monica College in the bowl game. to his left and rifled the ball towards the home rock would roll back down… He was charged to do Earlier in the season, the Jags trounced the Corsairs, sideline. He missed his target and it appeared that that for eternity. That’s what we were doing today, 52-27. the pass would be incomplete. we were trying to push that rock back up the hill. Wilson, after the San Bernardino game, said the Linebacker Laasaga “Rocky” Fuga had other plans. No pun intended, Rocky Fuga made the key play close wins have galvanized the Jags and he looks He dove towards the sideline and tapped both toes at the end and that finished them.” forward to the postseason. in bounds as he made the game-clinching catch for Still, Carberry said, he was proud of his team’s “I love this team, man,” he said. “This team the Jags. fortitude. is like family and you don’t really get that at the “I tell coach all the time, put me at running back “Winners win,” he said. “We’ve got some guys (community college) level because it’s guys from all or receiver and I’ll make the catch,” he said. “I came from winning (high school) programs that are different places. I love these guys with all my heart out today and got the catch.” stepping up and making the key play. That’s been and I’ll go to war with them any day. I’m so excited Carberry said he was disappointed with the the story of the season, we’ve played two or three we’re in a bowl game.”
Cross Country: Olowora runs away with Southern California Regional title Continued from Page B6
Colin Grylls/Staff
FOLLOW THE LEADER — Aminat Olowora keeps pace with reigning state champion Laura Aceves (87) of East L.A. College before pulling away during the SoCal Regionals.
The Lady Jags performed strong in the So Cal Championships, finishing fifth out of 27 schools. Olowora purposely kept pace with rival Aceves for the first half of the race. “I was just trying to slow my pace down to follow her,” she said. “Then once I knew where to go, I just went off on my own.” Olowora took first place with a time of 17:31, 26.1 seconds ahead of Aceves. Gonzalez crossed the finish line in 18:36, for a sixth. “It was an easy course, but it was just really hot and humid,” she said. “It kind of got to me, but I think I did really well.” SWC men had less success, finishing sixth overall. After getting squeezed into the middle of 197 runners, SWC could not gain enough ground to reach the top spots. Martinez finished 8th in 20:25 and Marquillo finished 24th in 20:52. Alvarado finished in 30th place with a time of 20:59.
“I was just trying to slow my pace down to follow her. Then once I knew where to go, I just went off on my own.” AMINAT OLOWORA, SWC STUDENT & CROSS COUNTRY RUNNER
Agbede said he was not pleased. “We ran, we didn’t compete,” he said. “We could have been top three easy, but they finished in sixth place. “We haven’t built them to the old level of Southwestern competitiveness. We lost to teams that we beat last week in the conference.” Martinez said he could have done more. “ My p e r f o r m a n c e w a s a l i t t l e disappointing, but I did what I could,” he said. “I try to stay positive, so I’m happy that I got top 10. I wanted to get the win, but I just wasn’t feeling it today. I was a little dehydrated and the heat really got to me, but I just have to move on and do better.” Alvarado said there was a reason for the disappointing performance. “The start was awful, really awful,” he said. “We are use to taking off fast, but I don’t know what happened this time. We would have done a lot better if we had taken off faster. Just had a little bit of bad luck.” SWC still has an opportunity to win big at the State Championships in Fresno on November 22. Agbede said the powerhouse still has its foundation.