Gresham, OregonMt. Hood Community College

by Jill-Marie GavinThe Advocate

Mt. Hood Community College is the fi rst Oregon community college to have an athletic contract with Nike, college of-fi cials said this week.

The Nike contract, signed Oct. 17, was retroactive to July 1 and will be effective until the end of the 2014 school year.

According to MHCC Bookstore Man-ager Julie Godat, Nike was the only ath-letic company that had the necessary equipment and outfi tting for every team on campus. Not even Adidas had every-thing needed, she added.

Men’s basketball coach Geoff Gibor said, “Very few schools have had the chance to be a Nike school. The only other school in the Northwest Athletic Associa-tion of Community Colleges (NWAACC) outfi tted by Nike is in Spokane, Wash.”

He said the outfi tting by Nike includes anything used by a team on game day, such as sweats, socks, practice gear and any other equipment.

Gibor also said if the teams don’t see something they want in the products of-

fered within the contract from Nike, they can go to the Nike reseller and buy a dif-ferent type of product that better suits their needs.

Gibor said the contract took effect this year and though the basketball team was wearing Nike products last season, they weren’t under the contract then.

He said this was the fi rst season for the volleyball team to use Nike gear and the other athletic teams will be coming out to games, at the beginning of their seasons, in their Nike outfi ts.

Kim Hyatt, dean of health and physi-cal education, said under the contract the school receives a 40 percent discount on all goods ordered through Nike.

MHCC bookstore merchandiser Genta Guitron said, “We’ve been taking the ath-letic department’s lead on what to sell in the bookstore and what slogans to use on the products coming in.”

She said the bookstore won’t be offer-ing any of the Nike products until spring term because they want to get input from the students on what to have printed on the products.

According to Hyatt and Gibor, the

basketball teams will have practice shirts with the slogan “Hood Pride” on them. However, Hyatt added, this slogan was deemed inappropriate by the MHCC ad-ministration for offi cial college use be-cause the college didn’t want to be mis-construed as supporting gang-related material.

Hyatt said the slogan won’t appear on anything sold in the bookstore because the Offi ce of College Advancement said the use of the word hood could have neg-ative connotations.

Director of Communications Mag-gie Huffman said MHCC always tries to avoid the use of the word hood because the college never wants to be perceived as having anything to do with gangs.

She said they always want the commu-nity to think of the college as a great place for students and a great place to work.

Hyatt said the teams chose that phrase for the practice shirts because most col-leges have some variation of their mascot with the word pride after it, citing Uni-versity of Oregon’s shirts that say “Duck Pride.” She said they already have the design ready but it can’t be released for

viewing yet.Godat said the decision to keep the

term hood off bookstore products came about last year when John Sygielski was still president.

Godat said both Sygielski and Vice President of College Advancement Cassie McVeety visited the bookstore and said they were adamant that only the term Mt. Hood Community College be used on MHCC bookstore products because use of the word hood may refl ect negatively on the college and the use of Mt. Hood alone may be too broad.

Guitron said they’re trying to focus on terms that revolve around the word Saints. She said the bookstore will hold a contest during winter term to encourage student input on what should be printed on the products.

Guitron and Godat said the back wall of the bookstore is to be turned into a sports center with all Nike products.

Godat said, “We’re very excited to have that quality of clothes in the book-store, and it will help raise awareness of our teams to students who don’t even re-alize our talent on campus. ”

New contract will out� t MHCC athletics with Nike gear

advocatetheDecember 2, 2011 Volume 47, Issue 10

www.Advocate-Online.net

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Volleyball wins NWAACC championship

Enrollment � gures drop seven percent

by Leah EmuraThe Advocate

Although enrollment for fall term 2011 has increased by 14.7 percent from fi ve years ago, ac-cording to Vice President for Student Success and Enrollment Management David Minger, MHCC is still down 7-8 percent from last year.

To some extent, the decrease has been caused by elimination of the Steps to Success program, said Minger. Steps to Success was a program de-signed to provide comprehensive educational, so-cial and employment services to equip job hunters to gain the skills and qualifi cations necessary to secure permanent jobs or transition into a new ca-reer. The Oregon State Department of Human Ser-vices (DHS), due to a budget shortfall, eliminated the program June 30.

According to the MHCC website, Steps to Suc-cess was funded entirely by Temporary Assistance to Needy Families grants from state and federal funds.

pages 4-5

“XBUS” rolls onto MHCC campus

Students playing in the “Halo: Reach” free-for-all tournament held on the XBUS in the MHCC main mall Tuesday. � e Event was sponsored by the “Vector math club.

Photo by Riley Hinds/� e Advocate

See Enrollment on Page 3

2 opinionadvocate

the

December 2, 2011

Editor-in-ChiefJill-Marie Gavin

Associate EditorsJohn Tkebuchava & Mike Mata

Sports EditorChanel Hill

Living Arts EditorDavid Gambill

Assistant Living Arts EditorKylie Rogers

Mt. Hood Community College26000 SE Stark Street

Gresham, Oregon 97030

E-mail advocatt@mhcc.edu

www.advocate-online.net

503-491-7250 (Main)

503-491-7413 (Offi ce)

503-591-6064 (Fax)

Dan Ernst

Lisa Marie Morgan

Bob Watkins

SubmissionsThe Advocate encourages readers to share their opinion by

letters to the editor and guest columns for publication. All submissions must be typed and include the writer’s name and contact information. Contact information will not be printed unless requested. Original copies will not be returned to the author. The Advocate will not print any unsigned submission.

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

The Advocate reserves the right to edit for style, punctuation, grammar and length.

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

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

the advocateOpinion EditorShelby Schwartz

Copy EditorsKylie Rogers & Yuca Kosugi

Photo EditorRiley Hinds

Web EditorJohn Tkebuchava

Web DesignerLogan Scott

Broc Christensen

Leah Emura

Jeff Hannig

Laura Knudson

Mario Rubio

Reporters

Editorial

The Advocate o� ers kudos to groups for campus excellence

Healthy study habits and foolproof tips for taking your � nals

Advisers

by Lawrence GiliusLearning Services Coordinator, Learning Success Center

Here are some things to keep in mind as you try to end the term with your best work:

•Strengthen your mind and body; don’t weaken them. It is rarely a good choice to miss sleep for study. Our clear mind is the basis of good understanding and memory. Research shows that trading sleep for more study time the night before a test leads to poorer results. Instead, do the reverse. If you haven’t been getting eight hours of sleep, try to do so. Similarly, get exercise. A short, fast walk for a few minutes will help defeat stress and awaken your mind. Ditto for diet. Now is the time to eat high-quality nutritious foods. This is fuel for your mind, body, and your spirit, and you’ll need it. Avoid caf-feine. Except for a little to get going in the morning, it’s counter-productive.

•Make a plan. With limited time, you need to know what you must do and when you’ll do it. Download a weekly planner from the Learning Success Center website at: http://www.mhcc.edu/StudentServices.aspx?id=403 Using this, you can plan by the hour. Set specifi c goals for each hour. Choose your targets strategically with a view to everything you need to get done between now and end of term.

•Concentrate on your weak areas fi rst. Avoid the ten-dency to go over everything lightly. Instead concentrate

fi rst on the material you are weakest on. Identify it by name. Work it up until it’s strong. Then consider again what you’re weakest on, and focus next on that. If you’re unsure what’s important to know for a test, talk to your teacher. Still, try not to spend too much time learning new material that you may have skipped earlier. Most of your study time should be spent rehearsing and review-ing what you’ve learned.

•Take frequent study breaks. We learn best in short periods of study, not longer than 45-50 minutes. Study for that period of time, and then take a 5-10 minute break. (Fast walk, anyone? Or enjoy a nutritious snack). Then return to study. It could be the same subject or a different one. But your mind is starting fresh and will focus better and remember more.

•Use “distributed study.” Instead of studying a topic for a concentrated three hours on one day in a week, try studying it for 30 minutes each day for six days. It’s the repetition over time that puts it into your memory. Also, vary the places where you study that topic. If you study the same material in different locations, for example, one time on the bus, another time at home, another time in the library, you’ll remember it better than studying it al-ways in the library (as demonstrated by recent research).

•Employ all the “modes of learning.” We can learn in many ways: by reading and writing, by speaking and listening, by looking at charts, graphs and pictures, and by building things and moving a lot. You will be more

effi cient at learning by working in several modes each day. For example, to make content from a chapter more memorable, create a chart that displays its main ideas. To memorize terms, write their defi nitions on fl ash cards and include a simple picture that represents the idea for you. Do some of your studying standing up or even pac-ing around. Pretend to teach what you’ve learning to an empty room: stand up, speak out, and use a small white board with colored markers.

•Visit the Learning Success Center. We’re fortunate to have a better learning success center than those at any of our competitor schools. Use it (mezzanine area above the library). Tutors in the drop-in area provide help in many subjects. Writing tutors can help you think through those fi nal papers. The computer lab offers great learning re-sources and monitors to help with your computer tasks. Learning specialists can help you apply the advice in this article. Student Success Seminars teach test-taking skills and other skills. (See the list at: http://www.mhcc.edu/lsc/) The LSC is open seven days a week. Online tutoring is also available through the Northwest eTutoring Con-sortium, of which MHCC is a member. On the above web link, click on the button that says, “Contact an eTutor.” Enter your MHCC ID number as both your username and password. Help is available for a great variety of subjects and for writing.

Best wishes for success without stress and for a relax-ing holiday season ahead.

In the midst of the academic and fi nancial struggles students must endure, it’s good to know there are those who standout in the large mass of diverse students at MHCC who still fi nd the time to give back to the community, excel athletically and simply make a difference on campus.

First, The Advocate congratulates MHCC’s volleyball team for winning the NWAACC cham-pionships on Nov. 20, beating the Walla Walla Warriors in the fi nal game of the tournament and winning their fi rst title since 2007.

Volleyball has always been one of the staples of MHCC athletics, but winning the NWAACC title is no simple feat, especially considering the team’s second-place fi nishes in each of the last two seasons. Great job on another fantastic year and a wonderful way to represent the school.

Recognition is also well de-served by Barney’s Pantry, the Associated Student Govern-ment-run campus food bank. The pantry has had another successful term this fall, giv-ing out 26 Thanksgiving boxes to struggling students. It’s one thing to help out strangers in need, but when you can help out your fellow students, it is truly a blessing on the campus.

Barney’s Pantry will be expanding its services with a clothing clos-et as well, which can only build on their current success. This is a great move by ASG. For students needing the services of the food pantry, it

is located in the back of the College Center.Lastly, kudos goes out to the “Something Wonderful” program, in

which people can ”adopt” struggling families by buying them pres-ents, clothing and food. The program has attracted enough donors to adopt an impressive 63 families.

Arguably one of the most successful charitable organizations on campus, “Something

Wonderful” was es-tablished in 1994. Since that time, the or-ganization has helped well over 600 fami-lies, an amazing sta-tistic to say the least. Already over a de-cade in the running, we can only hope the program operates for at least another de-cade and continues to grow.

The Advocate would like to con-gratulate the theater and music programs as well as the foren-sics team and men’s and women’s cross country teams, for a successful fall term

and a job well done and encourage you all to keep up the good work as we end fall term and enter the winter term. In addition to these aforementioned campus organizations, we would also like to extend congratulations to any campus groups we may have missed. We wish you all the best of successes as we enter 2012.

� e women’s volleyball team huddles up before their NWAACC victory against the Walla Walla Warriors on Sunday Nov. 20. � is was the women’s � rst victory at the NWAACCs in several years. In the past two years they took home second place trophies. In addition to the volleyball team we are also recognizing ASG and Something Wonderful for their hard work and dedication.

Photo courtesy of Je� Hinds

advocatethe

December 2, 2011

news 3

“For example,” said Minger, “in summer term 2010, Steps to Success generated a lot of SFTE (student full time equivalents). Yet the termination could not and did not bring in those ad-ditional SFTE for the summer 2011 term,” he added.

The SFTE enrollment is what helps calculate the state reimbursement. Only students enrolled in credit classes are counted in the SFTE algorithm.

“To view the status of the enrollments, we have some-thing that compares fall 2011 to the fall term in 2010. The comparison takes place at the same point in each term,” said Minger The problem is, Min-ger added, that the MHCC board is not getting a full pic-ture because different things can happen as the term goes on.

To help clarify this situa-tion, Minger said college offi -cials use the “prediction tool,” which is a work in progress.

“This system will let us judge enrollment numbers at any point of the quarter and will be able to show us where MHCC most likely will end up at the end of the term.”

“You can use this analogy,” Minger said. “For example, we’ve been driving in the

darkness with headlights that are dim, and we just realized that we can use brighter bulbs”

He said this would help see in the future and help with planning. Minger also said, “The prediction tool will be pretty nifty.”

In addition, Minger also said the college is working to increase enrollment and one strategy is to develop a more complete automated fi nancial aid package.

A more developed system will allow the college to pre-pare an award within a week of gathering the student’s data through the FAFSA (Free Ap-plication of Federal Student Aid).

Minger said this would be helpful because currently students that do not need to complete the task of verify-ing documents, such as tax returns, are held up in the pro-cess, taking several weeks to be completed as awards are processed by completion date.

The automated packaging will be a convenience for any student, new and returning, he said.

“We’re not held up quite as much. We want to have that group of students, that don’t need to be documented, just fl ow through pretty much au-tomatically,” said Minger.

Enrollment:

Continued from page 1

Figures down from last year Holiday photo shoot with Santa

Flute playing and the fi lm “Healing Circle” accompanied a presentation Wednes-day by Vietnam veteran Larson Kamala in the Visual Arts Theater.

After an introduction, the fi lm “Healing Circle” was shown, which is about the Veterans Family Healing Circle, an annual three-day event held on the Warm Springs, (Ore.) reservation during the last week of April.

Although most of those who attend the Healing Circle are Native Americans, Ken Smith, one of the presenters, said all are welcome.

“We invite veterans from all over the world,” said Smith, adding that it’s a good place for veterans to come and heal their spiritual and psychological wounds.

Heidi Katchia Van Vilet, who volunteers at the event and is Smith’s wife, said, “A lot of the veterans are split off. They’re not whole. We try to bring them back together.

“It’s all about coming home to yourself and doing what you need to get whole,” she said.

Smith and Vilet have attended the event for more than a decade, and Vilet said that last year nearly 50 veterans attended the event, which is run entirely by volun-teers.

For more information about the Veterans Family Healing Circle, call (503) 804-4177 or e-mail h2bears@cascadeaccess.com.

No registration is required for the event and it is free to all, though donations are welcome.

Veteran healing circle offered by Warm Springs tribe in April

BRIEF

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter at @mhccadvocate for updates and conversation-starters throughout the week.

Landon Sawyer, 4, from the Early Childhood Center, poses with Santa Claus during the Holiday Tree Lighting Monday a� er-noon in the College Center. Other activities included ornament making and a multi-holiday storybook reading.

Photo by Riley Hinds/� e Advocate

4 sportsadvocate

the

December 2, 2011

saints season proves charmed“ I w a s c o n f i d e n t a b o u t t o d a y, a n d s o w e r e t h e g i r l s . ” C h e l s i e S p e e r , S a i n t s h e a d v o l l e y b a l l c o a c h

Head volleyball coach Chelsie Speer celebrates with her team and onlookers after winning the NWAACC Volleyball Championship Nov. 20 at Mt. Hood Community College.

The setting was familiar. On home court, in front of home crowd, in the fi nal game of the season. But the fi nal dive by the opponents proved in vain, and as the heads of one cheering section dropped in disappointment, another

section, which had tasted the same defeat just one year ago, rushed the fl oor knowing it was fi nally their time.

The Saints volleyball team battled through two grind-out matches with the Walla Walla Warriors Nov. 20 to take home the NWAACC volleyball championship. The victory is the fi rst title for the program since 2007 and the fi rst championship for third-year head coach Chelsie Speer.

“It’s unbelievable,” said a water-soaked Speer following the victory, “especially after losing in the semis again (something that also happened last year). It’s unbeliev-able.”

On day one of the NWWAACC tournament in the MHCC gym, the Saints faced the Eastern region Clark Penguins. The Saints came out with heavy offensive play, jumped to an early lead and won in straight games (25-19, 25-18, 25-19).

Day two pitted the Saints against the heavy-hitting Northern Region Champions, the Shoreline Dolphins, and this match was won in non-traditional fashion. The Dol-phins took the fi rst two games (25-23, 25-22), which set up a grind-out battle in game three, with the Saints rallying to a 25-16 victory. The Saints moved on to take game four 25-22, and ultimately won game fi ve 15-10 for the match victory.

With Shoreline behind them, the Saints next played Southern Region rivals the Clackamas Cougars. The match proved to be less of a struggle, with the Saints win-ning in four games (25-17, 20-25, 25-10, 25-21), thereby advancing to the next day’s semifi nal against the Walla Walla Warriors.

Mirroring last season, the Saints had a tough battle in the semifi nal. The Warriors, who ended the regular season as second seed in the East Region, traded game victories with the Saints but won the crucial fi fth game. The loss (25-21, 22-25, 25-20, 24-26, 15-13) was the Saints’ fi rst loss in the tournament.

Because of the loss, the Saints dropped to the loser’s bracket to face the Spokane Sasquatch to determine who would advance to the championship match against the Walla Wall Warriors. This time, the Saints moved more easily past the competition, sweeping the Sasquatch in straight games (26-24, 25-22, 15-10) to stay in championship

contention. On the fi nal day of competition the Saints were out to prove a point. “We wanted

them to know they had gotten lucky with that win,” said fi rst team All-Tournament middle blocker Demi Belshe. “We told ourselves that we would go all out and hit and hit until they stopped us, and they couldn’t stop us.”

The fi rst match of the day against Walla Walla would determine if the Saints would play the Warriors again. Because of the double-elimination tournament, the Saints had to beat the undefeated Warriors once in order to saddle them with a loss and force a fi nal match. The Saints came out aggressively, dominating the fi rst game 25-15, forcing the Warriors to commit 25 attack errors to Hood’s 12.

The Warriors played to their namesake in game two, which was a back-and-forth test of wills, but it ended in a 25-20 Saints victory. It was the third game, however, that stood apart as one of the most tension-fi lled periods of the entire tournament. With a motivated offense the Saints and the Warriors took turns killing and diving for the ball, going tit-for-tat, point-by-point.

The Saints pulled away from the Warriors with a four-point lead at 24-20, but then let down. The Warriors battled back to a 25-25 deadlock, but a service error gave the Saints set-point advantage, which led to an all-out rally until the Saints squeaked out a kill en route of a 27-25 set and match victory.

Speer, along with assistant coaches Stephanie Alleman and Corey Nielson, pushed the importance of mental toughness and resilience the entire season,

“Mental toughness. Resilience. That has been our word and focus the entire sea-son,” said Speer, beaming.

The Saints, who have fought ghosts of runner-up NWAACC fi nishes (placing sec-ond in the 2009 and 2010 seasons), unforeseen setbacks, and injuries, went into the championship match with tunnel vision. All-Tournament MVP and setter Rylie Engle-son who battled an injury early in the season, had held nothing back in match one, putting up 32 assists, 14 digs and three blocks

“After last season, we’ve talked about how hard we would have to work to get here again,” said Engleson following their championship victory.

Game one saw anxious Warriors supporters and coaches on the edge of their seats, cheering with claps of encouragement, but that was not enough to overcome the Saints

After two con-secutive seasons

of second place fi nishes, the Saints

volleyball team wins the NWAACC

championship title

Photos contributed by Je� Hinds

by Chanel HillThe Advocate

advocatethe

December 2, 2011

sports 5

saints season proves charmed“ I w a s c o n f i d e n t a b o u t t o d a y, a n d s o w e r e t h e g i r l s . ” C h e l s i e S p e e r , S a i n t s h e a d v o l l e y b a l l c o a c h

2011 NWAACC Championship volleyball title

Belshe sisters playing together in their second NWAACC Championship

NWAACC tournament matches played

Head volleyball coach Chelsie Speer celebrates with her team and onlookers after winning the NWAACC Volleyball Championship Nov. 20 at Mt. Hood Community College.

Saints named to the All-Tournament team. Co-MVP Rylie Engleson, 1st team: Demi Belshe, Devan Belshe 2nd team: Natalie

Dwight, Casi Johnson

Number of kills put down by Devan Belshe in the fi nal match, including the Championship win-

ning kill

The number of hours it took the Warriors to

drive back home to Walla Walla, Wash.

NWAACC tournament

rd NWAACC championshipappearance for

third-year head coach Chelsie Speer

contention. On the fi nal day of competition the Saints were out to prove a point. “We wanted

them to know they had gotten lucky with that win,” said fi rst team All-Tournament middle blocker Demi Belshe. “We told ourselves that we would go all out and hit and hit until they stopped us, and they couldn’t stop us.”

The fi rst match of the day against Walla Walla would determine if the Saints would play the Warriors again. Because of the double-elimination tournament, the Saints had to beat the undefeated Warriors once in order to saddle them with a loss and force a fi nal match. The Saints came out aggressively, dominating the fi rst game 25-15, forcing the Warriors to commit 25 attack errors to Hood’s 12.

The Warriors played to their namesake in game two, which was a back-and-forth test of wills, but it ended in a 25-20 Saints victory. It was the third game, however, that stood apart as one of the most tension-fi lled periods of the entire tournament. With a motivated offense the Saints and the Warriors took turns killing and diving for the ball, going tit-for-tat, point-by-point.

The Saints pulled away from the Warriors with a four-point lead at 24-20, but then let down. The Warriors battled back to a 25-25 deadlock, but a service error gave the Saints set-point advantage, which led to an all-out rally until the Saints squeaked out a kill en route of a 27-25 set and match victory.

Speer, along with assistant coaches Stephanie Alleman and Corey Nielson, pushed the importance of mental toughness and resilience the entire season,

“Mental toughness. Resilience. That has been our word and focus the entire sea-son,” said Speer, beaming.

The Saints, who have fought ghosts of runner-up NWAACC fi nishes (placing sec-ond in the 2009 and 2010 seasons), unforeseen setbacks, and injuries, went into the championship match with tunnel vision. All-Tournament MVP and setter Rylie Engle-son who battled an injury early in the season, had held nothing back in match one, putting up 32 assists, 14 digs and three blocks

“After last season, we’ve talked about how hard we would have to work to get here again,” said Engleson following their championship victory.

Game one saw anxious Warriors supporters and coaches on the edge of their seats, cheering with claps of encouragement, but that was not enough to overcome the Saints

home court advantage. Saints men’s basketball team members painted their chests to spell out H-O-O-D and marked every set and kill with a “SET . . . BOOM!!!” roar, and pushed the tension in the crowd and on the court to the max.

They were so rowdy that athletic director Kim Hyatt had to quiet the section sev-eral times in the match. But, Hyatt said, “It’s great to have the support within the department,” who was joined in the crowd by several Hood coaches. The fi rst game would eventually go to the Saints 25-19.

In game two, the Saints jumped to an early 15-6 lead. With each play the Saints ex-posed the Warriors’ fading focus, sucker-punching each point attempt with more ag-gression than the last. With Warrior players dropping their heads, looking around for help, and holding back tears of frus-tration, the Saints dominated from beginning to end. With a jump to the net and one last kill to end the game 25-11, and take it all, Saints staff and fans rushed the court in celebration,

“I slept really well last night,” said Speer. “I woke up confi dent. I’ve never been so confi dent, even in a league match. I was confi dent about today, and so were the girls,” said Speer.

In the Mt. Hood gymnasium, in a puddle of water that was poured on Speer in celebration, Saints mid-dle blocker Belshe splashed around, hugging fellow teammates, clapping her hands and chanting, “We did it, we did it.” Supporters, family, play-ers and fans looked at one another, smiling, realizing it was fi nally true.

by the numbers

Photos contributed by Je� Hinds

Sophomore NWAACC All-Tournament, 2nd team player Natalie Dwight celebrates after a game two Championship match point against the Walla Walla Warriors.

Sophomore fi rst team All-Tournament member Demi Belshe sheds tears of joy while hugging Speer after championship victory.

6 sportsadvocate

the

December 2, 2011

by Chanel HillThe Advocate

With only one player over six feet tall, size is not something the Saints women’s basketball team has going for them this season. But what they lack in size, they seem to be making up for with tough work ethic and heart, as evident in their fi rst regular season action at the Clackamas Thanksgiving Invitational in Oregon City over the weekend.

The Saints, who defeated the Olym-pic Rangers 58-48 in day one of com-petition, took advantage of the Rang-ers poor ball handling, converting 33 points off turnovers and scoring 16 second-chance points. With big of-fensive contributions by sophomore guard Kelsey O’Neil who had 19 points against the Rangers and sophomore point guard Emily Burch who scored 10 points. “They played really well. We are still getting our feet wet,” said head coach Jocelyn McIntire this week.

Day two of competition saw the Saints facing South Region competi-tors, the Umpqua Riverhawks, who by sheer size presented a challenge for the Saints.

“With Umpqua we were just out-matched size-wise. They’re just huge,” said McIntire, “but we stayed with them. I was really happy with their ef-forts in that game.”

Nevertheless, the Saints were un-able to pick up the win, losing 65-73 to the Riverhawks.

The fi nal day of competition saw the Saints facing another Southern Re-gion team, the Southwestern Oregon Lakers. The Saints stayed within six points of the Lakers in the fi rst half, but seemed to drop momentum in the sec-ond half, getting out-rebounded and shooting only 33 percent in the paint. “We defi nitely hit a cold spell. We hit a wall half way through the fi rst half and got tired,” said McIntire. “Sometimes it’s like you can’t buy a bucket.”

The Saints, who are learning a new system under McIntire in her fi rst year as head, are having a hard time getting out of their heads and into the game, the coach said. “It’s a new system. I think right now players have to think a lot, so they don’t get to just play.”

Today the Saints will compete in the Bellevue Bulldog Classic in Bellevue, Wash., where they will face the Eastern Region Big Bend Vikings at 6 p.m.

Saints men’s basketball team o� to promising start

Small college,big opportunities.

W A R N E R P A C I F I C . E D UPORTLAND, OR

by Chanel HillThe Advocate

The Saints men’s basketball team opened their regular season play over Thanksgiving weekend by going 2-1 in the Red Devil Classic Tournament in Longview, Wash.

On Friday, the fi rst day of com-petition, the Saints came out hard against the Yakima Yaks. They scored 32 points in the fi rst half but only shot 60 percent from the free throw line and trailed by nine. The Yaks took advantage of Saints turn-overs, which led to 47 Yakima points in the game.

“The only area we really need to work on is not turning the ball over.

I think we set a record,” joked head coach Geoff Gibor Tuesday. Still, the Saints executed on defense, posting 64 game rebounds against the Yaks, who were held to 35. “We played sol-id defense and we rebounded really well all weekend,” said Gibor.

Ultimately, the Saints lost the game to the Yaks 81-73 — but it would be the sole loss of the week-end. Day two saw the Saints domi-nate the Edmonds Tritons, scoring 44 fi rst-half points. Offensive execu-tion continued in the second half, with the Saints scoring 52 points en route of a 96-64 victory. Freshman forward Colby Mitchell led the scor-ing with 18 points, while freshman guard Bradley Seehawer had 16 points.

On Sunday, the fi nal day of com-petition, the Saints faced the home team, the Lower Columbia Red Devils, again dominating with 58 re-bounds and 36 points off the bench. The Red Devils, who managed to stay within 10 points of the Saints at halftime (35-26), were no match for Saints offense in the second half, as MHCC put up 52 second-half points for a 87-61 victory.

The Saints, whose strength lies in their size and veteran leadership, are looking to run an up-tempo style this season. Still, with opposing teams converting on Saints turnovers, the players need to keep their focus. “We need to maintain defensive intensity and execute offensively,” said Gibor.

“That is something that will happen the more games we get under our belts.”

The Saints will compete in the Warrior Classic today and Saturday in Walla Walla, Wash. They will face heavy competition against the Big Bend Vikings and the home team Walla Walla Warriors, both of whom are notoriously strong competitors. “We are facing good teams. We need to get out on shooters and contain them. We can’t allow them to pen-etrate,” said Gibor.

The Saints will play two games today: the Big Bend Vikings at 4 p.m. and the Walla Walla Warriors at 8 p.m. All day two games and times are to be determined and can be found on the NWAACC website.

Sophomore Marcus Moore dribbles down the court against the Yakima Valley Yaks at the Lower Columbia Red Devil Classic Nov. 26 in Longview, Wash.

Photo contributed by Je� Hinds

“We need to maintain defensive intensity and execute offensively,”

- Geoff Gibormen’s head basketball coach

Women’s basketball team shows their strength in second defeat

advocatethe

December 2, 2011December 2, 2011

living arts 7

Dec. 5

Dec. 6

Dec. 7

Dec. 9

Dec. 8

Your weekly reason to stand up and hit the streets

“New Views of the Old Moon” will be shown in the MHCC Planetarium

Sky Theater at 7 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. The 45-minute

show is $2 for general admission and free for

MHCC students.

McMenamin’s Mission Theater, 1624 N.W. Glisan

St., Portland, presents History Talk, “A History of Northwest Portland: From the River to the Hills.” The event is a

book release and history presentation by Portland native Jane Comerford.

Admission is free for the 7 p.m. event and

minors are allowed with a guardian.

The music department will perform its “End

of Term Concert” in the College Theater at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free.

The Jazz Band will perform its “Jazz Night Concert” in the College

Theater at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free.

The Northwest Children’s Theater and School presents a musical

version of Roald Dahl’s “Willy Wonka” at the

Northwest Neighborhood Cultural Center, 1819

N.W. Everett St., Portland. Tickets range from $13 to $22. The show runs

various days throughout December. For more

information and tickets, visit www.nwcts.org.

by Kylie RogersThe Advocate

A second-year Mt. Hood music stu-dent stays busy using his skills with

several instruments while playing with four bands, including two groups on campus.

Student Kyle Lissman performs in Mt. Hood’s orchestra and jazz combos, the Port-land Youth Philharmonic (PYP) and jams in a band with his friends.

Lissman makes the daily commute from West Linn to Gresham. He decided to attend MHCC after his West Linn High School mu-sic instructor Kevin Egan pushed him to pursue a career in music.

Egan highly recommended Mt. Hood because of its “exceptional program,” said Lissman. “All faculty members are very ex-ceptional. As a musician I’ve grown to ap-preciate a variety of musical tastes. I’m not as narrow minded to what I play and listen to,” he said.

Lissman is an upright bass player in the orchestra and has been playing for years but is also capable of playing the piano, guitar, electric bass, drums, trombone and viola.

“The funny thing is when I fi rst picked up the upright bass, I thought I would be a jazz player,” said Lissman.

As a music major, Lissman feels he is al-ways busy.

“It takes about six music classes to get about 12 or 13 credits compared to the three general ed. classes and you’ve got home-work from all of them,” Lissman said, on top of the standard three hours a day spent practicing.

“I try to maintain three hours a day,” Lissman said of his practicing schedule.

During practice he works on his orches-tra and PYP pieces as well as a bassoon con-certo that has been transcribed for bass that he plans to perform during his recital hour at the end of term.

Lissman said performing is his favorite part. Performing in front of an audience al-lows him to lose himself and become the piece he is playing, he said.

Lissman said that in orchestra he hasn’t been able to play a lot because the group is limited by the school on where they’re able to play.

The limitations are “frustrating because playing outside and playing in general at-tracts new and talented students to the school,” he said.

After Lissman is fi nished with Mt. Hood, he plans to transfer to another school and has been focusing on Portland State Univer-

sity (PSU). “Members of the Oregon Symphony

give lessons and teach at PSU,” he said. When school is fi nished, Lissman is

tossing around the idea of being a music teacher.

In his non-music free time, Lissman has picked up bouldering – rock climbing without any ropes – upon recommenda-tion from a co-worker. He said he hasn’t had time to do it lately between school and work but would like to start it up again dur-ing winter break.

by Yuca KosugiThe Advocate

Perceptions, MHCC’s liter-ary magazine, is under way this year with a bigger staff and is working on creating an online presence.

There are 12 people on staff this year, according to Megan Jones, one of the Perceptions editors, compared to the four or fi ve people that has been the norm in recent years.

“I think it’s fun. Every year I’m surprised with the work,” said Jones.

Jones has been working on Perceptions for more than a de-cade. She started when she was a work-study student in the English Department and heard about the literary magazine. From there she took the class for a few years but now she volun-teers for Perceptions and works at the tutoring center.

The student team of Jordenn Luff and Baylee Hart has been

selected out of four teams from the graphic design program to design Perceptions this year.

“Basically, they treat us like clients,” said English instruc-tor Holly DeGrow, this year’s faculty adviser for Perceptions. Both designers are second-year students and treat the work as an internship.

There are seven categories in Perceptions that people may submit their work in: art, poetry, music, fi ction, non-fi ction, short fi lm and photography. The mag-azine prints in color, but also has black and white pages. They also put together a CD and DVD for music and fi lm. Deadline for submission of work is Jan. 20, 2012.

There are about 800 submis-sions for all genres, said Jones, and about 75 are selected to go into the magazine.

There have been a lot of fi c-tion submissions so far this year, said Jones. “It’s different every year, though.” They are having

trouble getting fi lms, she added.Jones organizes the submis-

sions on Perceptions’ private blog, which is only viewable by the staff so they can review, comment, and vote on submis-sions. She also takes care of con-tacting the submitters upon ac-ceptance or rejection.

“It’s not thematic,” DeGrow said about the magazine as a whole.

Review of the submissions is blind, and work from both pro-fessionals and amateurs from on and off the campus are accepted and reviewed without bias, said DeGrow.

When the staff is putting pieces together, they do themat-ic pairings instead of by genre, said DeGrow. “The visuals go with the writing.”

Online presence is also some-thing they are working on.

DeGrow is working on cre-ating a Facebook page and said that students should “like” the Perceptions page, once she cre-

ates it.Students interested in work-

ing on Perceptions can enroll in the course Literary Publi-cation, WR247A or WR247B, which are one and two credits, respectively. Instructor permis-sion is needed, so DeGrow said students may bring the class enrollment form to her offi ce in AC2388.

The course is offered fall, winter, and spring. The staff members generally plan in the fall, review submissions and designs in the winter, and edit, organize, put together, and print and in the spring.

Perceptions comes out in May and the staff holds a release party at McMenamin’s Edge-fi eld where people read or per-form their work. The magazine is about $20 but is free to people with their work in Perceptions said DeGrow.

Submissions and questions can be sent to perceptions@mhcc.edu.

by Jeff HannigThe Advocate

The symphonic and jazz bands are scheduled to perform their End of Term Concert at the MHCC Theater, Wednesday and Thurs-day, Dec. 7 and 8. Both shows are from 7:30 to 9 p.m.

Jazz band director Susie Jones and part-time music instructor LeRoy Anderson will co-conduct the symphonic band performance.

Jones is sharing the responsibilities for the jazz performance with part-time music instructor Stan Bock.

It is customary for music students to perform an end of semester review that serves as their fi nal exam. The students shouldn’t be nervous, said Jones. “This is the culmination of all the work we’ve been doing this term,” she said.

The Symphonic Band will play 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Jazz

Night will be Thursday at 7:30 p.m. Jones will co-conduct the sym-phonic band with Anderson and lead one of the jazz bands for Jazz Night, while Bock leads the other.

Thursday night’s performance will be Jones’ last performance as an MHCC instructor. Jones said she plans to put more time into her own playing and composing.

Jones said she did not pick any of her favorite pieces for the show but admitted that she has started to feel nostalgic as the re-hearsals roll along and that the songs have provoked new emotional perspectives.

Orchestra director Marshall Tuttle will be conducting the orches-tra and choir director Solveig Nyberg will lead the choir.

•A feature story on Jones and a look at her time at MHCC will appear in

the Dec. 9 issue of The Advocate.

On Campus Feature

On Campus

On Campus

Kyle Lissman playing the upright bass as if it were an electric in the band room at MHCC last year.

Photo provided by Kyle Lissman

Music student puts practice before performance

MHCC Perceptions Magazine is taking submissions for seven categories

‘End of Term Concert’ to feature multiple campus groups

8 advocate

the

December 2, 2011

APPLY EARLY — get money on time

If you need financial aid by the start of the

academic terms:

File the FAFSA by these dates:

You must also complete all MHCC paperwork by the following deadlines:

Summer Term As soon after Jan. 1 as possible April 1

Fall Term April 1 — earlier if possible July 1

Winter Term July 1 — earlier if possible October 1

Spring Term Nov. 1 — earlier if possible February 1

1. File your FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Aid) online for faster processing (fafsa.edu.gov). 2. Check My MHCC regularly for your application status and turn in required documents promptly. 3. If you missed deadlines, financial aid usually cannot reach you until after the start of the term. 4. Students are served first-come, first-served for fairness - do not ask for exceptions unless the College made a clear error in your file completion date. This will help us serve you and all students faster!

Remember: It can take up to 12 weeks for your financial aid to be ready after you file your FAFSA!

TIPS:

CA

1581

by Jeff HannigThe Advocate

Kaye Cushing, adviser in the MHCC Disability Service Offi ce (DSO), has come a long way from the kid who used to sneak up to scare her blind grandmother. Cushing laughs as she tells the story, explaining that her grand-mother used to think it was fun-ny, too.

Cushing is part of the DSO staff who works to ensure that students with disabilities can access their education and to prepare students with the tools necessary to excel and reach the standards of their classes.

Cushing said she had no choice in her job selection; high scores on the Strong Interest Inventory Test she took in high school had her pegged to help people.

“I originally wanted to go to school for graphic design,” Cush-ing said.

Cushing has a bachelor’s de-gree in psychology and a master’s degree in special education with an emphasis in rehabilitation for the blind. When she worked for the Nebraska Commission for the Blind, she would tell her pa-tients, “If plan A doesn’t work,

then we’ll go to plan B — and if we have to, we’ll go to Plan C.”

She said she is dedicated to as-sisting new students become ac-climated to MHCC.

“I go home at night and feel good about what I do every day,” said Cushing.

The most common issue DSO staff is dealing with this year is students with learning dis-abilities, said Cushing. Services for students with a documented learning disability include: extra time or separate classrooms for tests; printouts of lecture notes; and the opportunity to work with a learning disability specialist.

A less known disability is the one that veterans deal with — post traumatic stress disorder — said Liz Johnson, counselor and coordinator of the Disability Services Offi ce. PTSD can affect a student in many ways, Johnson said, including things you might take for granted, like sitting with your back to the door, a car back-fi ring, or that certain topics of conversation can trigger a reac-tion from the student.

Johnson said many of the stu-dents who come to the Disabil-ity Services Offi ce have had cur-riculum modifi ed for them their

whole lives. She has noticed how this can make students with dis-abilities lack confi dence in the

classroom. “Our philosophy is for stu-

dents to grow and feel empow-

ered, so they graduate feeling they have done the work and feel confi dent to go on,” said John-son. “The majority of individuals don’t want standards reduced. They want to earn their degree and to be marketable.”

Johnson was a freshman in college studying psychology and law when her father suf-fered a debilitating stroke. That experience led her to further her education on how she could help families who were going through similar situations.

When the federal Rehabilita-tion Act of 1973, was enacted it made it illegal for public agencies and schools to exclude any per-son based on a disability.

Johnson explained that when she was going to school in the 1970s, there weren’t many pro-grams specifi cally focusing on disabilities or on vocational reha-bilitation; students were either on track for psychology or sociology.

In 1977 Johnson worked in vocational rehabilitation before going back to school where she received her master’s degree as a mental health therapist.

As DSO coordinator, Johnson is responsible for the overall op-eration of the offi ce.

Johnson, like Cushing, smiles a lot when she talks about what she does for a living.

“I like to fi nd the middle ground of reducing barriers, but also upholding the standards of the curriculum,” said Johnson.

Johnson and the faculty strive to do just that. She said a past stu-dent who was partially blind en-rolled into the nursing program without disclosing her disability. Students are not required to do so, but may be recommended not to enroll if the instructors feel the student’s limitations won’t allow them to succeed in the program.

“If she was completely blind, it might not have been possible,” said Johnson.

Fortunately, Johnson said, the nursing faculty was up to the challenge. She said they were more than willing to work with the student who was determined to become a nurse.

Johnson said the nursing in-structors really thought “out of the box” in that case.

The lack of knowledge that people have about disabilities creates stereotypes, said Johnson. She encouraged “each one of us to ask ourselves if there is another way we could look at a situation.”

Disability Services sta� share their enthusiasm for students

Dec. 3 is International Day of Persons with Disabilities

Coordinator for Disability Services Liz Johnson

Disability Services adviserKaye Cushing