Swept byGolden West

See story,page 7

GOOD GENES: LBCC Library employees host an African American genealogy workshop in honor of BlackHistory Month on Tuesday, Feb. 28. The event provided a personal experience led by Valencia Mitchell,professor and librarian emeritus of Cerritos College and Genealogist. Mitchell researched databasesfor twenty years and explained the online services that facilitate exploration of family history.

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Genealogy workshop traces roots

Studentsmarch

Cal State LB makes changes Clubs willperform atSpring Sing

Wendy Garcia/Viking

VOLUME 85, ISSUE 12 PUBLISHED SINCE 1927MARCH 1, 2012

By Liz DanielsStaff Writer

Cal State Long Beach will con-duct a hearing at LBCC onWednesday, March 7 at 2 p.m. todiscuss tentative changes to itsadmission policy.The university will conduct a

series of public hearings to discussthe tentative changes.One of the hearings will be in

the T1100 boardroom at LAC.David Dowell, vice provost for

planning and budget at Cal State,will make the presentation and lis-ten to comments from the public.Dowell also spoke to the

LBCC Board of Trustee onTuesday, Feb. 28.Dowell said,“The main goal is to give studentsa better chance of succeeding.”The Cal State Board of

Trustees is expected to cast itsvote by the end of the year. Ifapproved, the changes wouldbegin implementation in the 2013-2014 school year, and continuegradually for several years.Some of the goals of the pro-

posal would be to shorten the timefor a degree completion, improvestudents’ preparation in areas such

as engineering and sciences,enhance diversity, improve guid-ance to students and counselors inpreparing for a major, reduceunneeded classes taken and bettercourse availability.For freshmen entering college,

the major change would be theirgrades in classes such as Englishand their SAT or ACT scores oradditional classes.For transfer students, the major

criteria wouldinvolve lowerdivision cours-es and grades.L a t r i c e

Jackson, 41, anLBCC dieteticsprogram major,said she hopesto attend Cal State and said sheagrees with the school plans.She wishes she had completed

college earlier, but due to personalreasons had to attend classes spo-radically.She realizes it is more difficult

now and time is of the essence,and feels students should befocused on obtaining their degreein the most direct way,

“If I had known this before, Iwould have gone to school, gotten

my degree and be well into myarea of concentration by now.There is no time to waste. We areall adults and are making adultdecisions.”Martha Torres, 20, a business

major, said, “When I started col-lege, I was not serious and asfocused on school as I should havebeen, but now I am definitely seri-ous and focused about obtainingmy degree.

G e r a l d i n eHuizar, 18, anursing major,said, “I think stu-dents should befocused on havinga high or highergrade point aver-age.

LBCC President Eloy Oakley,said, “We want to develop path-ways that are much more efficientand get students into the CSU sys-tem as quickly as possible.”The new requirement will have

a profound effect on the partner-ship between LBCC, Cal State andthe Long Beach Unified SchoolDistrict that guarantees all unifiedschool district graduates an admis-sion to Cal State if they meet min-imum requirements.

By Clara CordeiroCo-Editor in Chief

Students from LBCC will take atrip to Sacramento to take part ofthe March in March for studentsprotecting public higher educationon Monday, March 5.Students expected to attend are

Ramon Calvillo, Lisi Baker,Carolyn Joseph, Ysela Damian,Karen Juarez, Melvin Morgan,Melissa Yepez, Tia Moeai, SharonLindsey, Ronald Williams, JuanitaThreet, Rocky Tim and Khay Uon.ASB President Ramon Calvillo

said, “Mainly, I want to go to beinformed straight from the sourceabout what’s going on and to relayinformation to students at LBCC.”The march to the capitol will

begin at 10 a.m. from SouthsidePark and end in a rally at theCapitol steps, which will begin at11 a.m.Students are demanding lower

fees, fewer loans, full-time faculty,counselors, affordable textbooksand more classes, according to thestudent-run website iwill-march.com.

By Kevin GuadamuzStaff Writer

LBCC students may now lookinto their past to see the obstaclestheir ancestors faced and allowthem to better themselves throughthese new found fruits of informa-tion gathered from the AfricanAmerican genealogy workshop.On Tuesday, Feb. 28 the LBCC

library and staff offered the work-shop where stu-dents wereinformed on howto look andchronicle theirown past.P r o f e s s o r

E m e r i t u sValencia Mitchellspoke to a room full of studentsabout the basics of doing ancestralresearch online.“It’s important to understand

who we are as a people so we canbecome more unified yet diversewith our rich backgrounds,”Anastaysia Cole, 20, an account-ing major said when talking aboutthe impact the work shop had onher. “I would be very appreciativeof all the resources LBCC is offer-ing students to look into theirbackgrounds.”Cole says she is tired of having

to pay for Internet sites to look up

her family’s background. Her sis-ter Mishalay Cole, 22, a fashionmerchandising major agreed withher sister and added, “They shouldoffer more of these workshops,many students couldn’t make itlast time due to schedule conflictsand I know”Mitchell said “Most sites you

do have to pay for but there are afew available through the library’scatalogue that are free for students

to try.”Karen Vogel,

the adjunctlibrarian said“Ancestry.comwill be avail-able for free tostudents in thelibraries cata-

logue and website until the end ofMarch. There are other free web-sites also available through thecatalogue and website.”Mitchell explains in a flyer that

“(writing) down everything youknow about yourself and familymembers” is the best way to startyour search, afterwards, “contactyour relatives (to confirm) byphone, mail or e-mail.”The information offered during

the workshop allows students toresearch and catalog their familyhistory with the use of resourcesavailable at the library.

“It is important to knowwho we are.”

Valencia MitchellProfessor and genealogist

“When I started collegeI was not serious.”

Martha TorresBusiness major

By Kevin GuadamuzStaff Writer

“Heroic Moments“ has beenselected as the theme of LBCC’s61st annual Spring Sing in the LACAuditorium on Friday, March 2 at 7p.m.The Spring Sing, organized by

the Associate Student Body, is aperforming arts event in which stu-dents and employees may partici-pate alone or in a group. Ticketswill be $7 at presale and $10 thenight of the show.Groups may earn many different

awards, from top seller of tickets tothe overall Sweepstakes winner.Paris Taylor, 20, a psychology

major, said, “The Spring Sing isalways a fun thing to do. There’s nobetter way to communicate yourideas than through a performancestage.”When talking about the perfor-

mance, Taylor said, “I don’t wantto reveal too much before the show,but let’s just say it has to do with asuperhero.”See photo on page 8

WHAT!S ONLINE:! Poll Question: How many Viking events haveyou attended this year?! Photos of the day

GGeett tthhee iinnssiiddee ssccooooppoonnlliinnee.. NNooww wwiitthh

bbrreeaakkiinngg nneewwss ssttoo--rriieess,, pphhoottooss aanndd

vviiddeeooss..

By Tanner RueggNews Editor

LBCC student NatalieGonzalez said her uncle is gettingmarried Feb. 29, Leap Day, so hewill only have to buy anniversarygifts every four years.Gonzalez, 18, an X-Ray techni-

cian major, said, “He was beingcheap.”Although adding an extra day

may seem like a waste of time, itis most assuredly not. Leap yearsin fact make up for lost time.Astronomy professor Courtney

Seligman said Monday, Feb. 27,“if we didn’t have leap days at all… within a century the seasonswould be off by a month and ahalf.” That would mean in themiddle of April, when the U.S.would normally be enjoying thewarm benefits of spring, it wouldactually be coming up on the endof winter.A year on Earth is about

365.256 days. The Earth doesn’thave quarter-sized days to fill inthe gap. So while the Earth movesalong the regular 365-day years,it’s actually losing a quarter of aday each year. So every four yearsto make up for it, an extra day isadded at the end of February.The adding of the days is not a

new occurrence. Back in ancient

times, when most people’s liveli-hood depended on the seasons forfarming, they had to add extradays to make sure the seasonscame on time to know when tostart planting and harvesting.Ancient Egypt had a 12-month

calendar of 30 days each with afew feast days at the end of theyear to make up for the unspentdays. Ancient Rome originally

had a 10-month calendar, untilJulius Caesar copied the Egyptiancalendar, but instead made thedays alternately 30 and 31 days(except for poor February) long toeven out the year.Jefferey Cisneros, 19, an

administration of justice major,was lucky. “I was almost born onLeap Day, but I was born an hourbefore.”

In more recent times, a tradi-tion involved Feb. 29 being theonly day that a woman could ask aman to marry her.Disneyland will be open for 24

hours from 6 a.m. Wednesday to 6a.m. Thursday.Leap Years always fall in U.S.

presidential election years and thesame year as the SummerOlympics.

By Alexander MetalisStaff Writer

Seeing some LBCC studentscrippled by apathy hurts alumnusChris O’Brien, a pain he’s ready totake action against.A proud LBCC student in the

1990s, O’Brien has retained lovefor his school.He doesn’t plan to allow the

pride of his beloved college tocrumble any more.O’Brien said he’ll propose a

comprehensive plan to the ASB inhopes of reversing what he callsthe slow deathof LBCC’s spir-it.He said he

would attend theASB cabinetmeeting onMonday, March5 at 2 p.m. in theValhalla room in the E building,where he hopes to propose hismaster plan.O’Brien, 35, outlined a piece of

his plan: “Any athlete who joinsthe Associated Men’s Students orAssociatedWomen’s Students willhave their tuitions paid for andreceive money for books.“Also, athletes who join honors

clubs will have their tuition andbooks paid for, plus cafeteria cred-it.”When O’Brien attended LBCC,

the AMS andAWS served to over-look school clubs, but they’vesince become defunct.The ASB

Student Senatenow holds respon-sibility of cluboversight, a devel-opment that mayaffect O’Brien’splea.According to

O’Brien’s plan, athletes can’t missmore than two club meetings persemester to qualify for the scholar-ships next semester.“If they’re in clubs, then

they’re connecting. Student ath-letes will feel more connected

with the school.Students willbecome moreinvolved.“Also, ath-

letes from otherteams will cometo watch theirfraternity broth-

ers and sorority sisters play.”Undeclared major Daniel

Stewart, 20, proposed the questionthat many could be wondering:“Where is that money going tocome from?”O’Brien said, “The theatre

department could put on a hauntedhouse every October and open itevery weekend.

“Members from all of the dif-ferent clubs would help sell foodand merchandise. It would gener-ate a lot of revenue for the schooland also bring together students.”O’Brien said the potential for

fundraising isn’t merely resignedto Halloweenfestivities.S t e w a r t

offered ac l a s h i n gv i ew p o i n t :“First of all,( O ’ B r i e n ’splan) favors

athletes. I don’t really care aboutbeing connected with the athletes.“Let’s just all be grown people

and go about our business.”Conversely, O’Brien captured

his desire for a friendly schoolatmosphere: “During the first fewweeks of every semester, AWSmembers dress in bikinis andshorts and throw Frisbees aroundthe quad.“The football team can put

their jerseys on and play Frisbeetoss, too. It creates a nice environ-ment.“The cheer squad could dress

up and hand out flyers for footballgames.”O’Brien’s plan faces budgetary

doubts and student cooperationmay be dicey.Facebook and Internet gaming

weren’t around when O’Brienwent to LBCC, modern adventsthat may lure students away frominteraction on campus.

2 MARCH 1, 2012lbccvikingnews.com News

Yet another leap forward

Alumnus proposal pushesfor pride and paid tuition

Author tospeak

WITH TIME TO SPARE: Courtney Seligman informs students Monday, Feb. 27 on the purpose of LeapYear based on how the earth moves around the sun. The astronomy professor explained the scince,math, history, religion and politics of Leap Day.

! Friendlier cam-pus atmosphere,club involvementrecommended.

! Students findthat Leap Yearsmake up for losttime.

“Where is that money goingto come from?.”

Daniel StewartUndeclared major

Wendy Garcia/Viking

“If theyʼre in clubs ... theyʼreconnecting. ”

Chris O’BrienLBCC liberal arts graduate

By Alexander MetalisStaff Writer

LBCC will celebrate many ofMark Twain’s prolific works inparticipation with Read AcrossAmerica, and some students areunhappy about it.Thousands of English words

start with the letter “n”, but there’sonly one “n word”, a word usedoften by Twain. LBCC’s homageto the author has some studentsconcerned.An assortment of his works

including the intro to Tom Sawyerand “Advice to Youth”, will beread by English Club members inthe Nordic Lounge at LACThursday, March 1 from 11 a.m. to1 p.m. and Dyer Hall at PCC con-currently. Fresh tea will be served.Though the severity of the “n

word” seems to have dwindleddue to its colloquial definitions(synonym for “friend” or “dude”),some believe the heat of it can’t beextinguished, and that its use iswrong.English Club President

Anthony Acero thinks differently.Acero, host of this year’s event,

retorted to moral qualms aboutTwain’s work and defended theEnglish Club’s choice:“Interestingly enough, (the “n”word) was the least of our worriesin terms of choosing Twain for thereading. Simply put, to accentuateone word as a detriment to our

event would be doing a disserviceto all of the people who will beattending and to Mark Twain him-self.“We mustn’t look to the past

with shame and degradation, butrather a nod of acceptance andtruth that we as Americans are adifferent people now.”English Professor Christiane

Woerner justified Twain’s polariz-ing word choice: “I would say thatat the time in which Twain waswriting, the “n-word” was accept-able. There’s no way for us tochange the past and modern dayeffort to condone the past for anaccepted practice is revisionisthistory.”Woerner also said it’s unfair to

let the use of a single word marTwain’s prolific career.Not everybody is as forgiving

as Woerner. Undeclared majorBrian Vieanne, 18, explained hisopinion of Read Across Campus:“It’s right after Black HistoryMonth. They should wait to do it.Those books just show Black peo-ple being treated like they’re lessthan humans. This should be amonth where Black people areespecially proud.”Computer science major Chris

Parham, 20, said, “I don’t think(Twain) was being racist in hisstories. It was just a sign of thetimes. The characters in his storiesare using that word. It’s a pettyconcern.”

The author of “Widow:Stories” will speak Friday, March2 from 3-4:30 p.m. in LAC’sMarian Sims Baughn Center forLiterary Arts as part of the writer’sreaders series.Michelle Latiolais, a U.C.

Irvine professor will lecture andsign books in the Language ArtsBuilding.Admission is free and books

will be available for sale.“The stories of ‘Widow’ con-

jure the nuances of innersensations as if hitting the notes ofa song, deftly played acrosshuman memory,” according to aflyer promoting the event.“These meditations bravely

explore the physiology of griefthrough a masterful interweavingof tender insight and unflinchingdetail.“Among these stories of loss

are interwoven other tales, as ifreflections from a different phaseof existence, creating a bridge tothe ineffable pleasures and folliesof life before the catastrophe.“As they distill the anguish,

longing, humor, and strange gracethat accompany life’s mosttransformative chapters, MichelleLatiolais’ stories remind us thatthe inner life is best understoodthrough the medium of story-telling.”Details available by calling

(562) 243-7114 or visitingwww.lbccbaughncenter.com.

! “Widow:Stories” reviewed.

Some studentsfind offense inTwain readings

3MARCH 1, 2012 facebook.com/vikingnewsNews

Radar gunsmay be usedin structure

Constitution revised twice,ASB treasurer sworn in

Incoming freshman to gainpriority registration in Fall

Education is theme forwomen’s history essay

ASB LEADERSHIP: ASB President Ramon Cavillo, left, speaks to ASB adviser Derek Oriee as they pre-pare for a meeting. Tia Moeai won as treasurer in a special student election to fill seats in the Cabinet.

Dusty Stiggers/Viking

By Pedro CruzStaff Writer

LBCC officials have decidedcontinuing students will bebypassed to allow new freshmento take priority registration as partof the LBCC Promise Pathways inthe Fall semester.New freshman are currently the

fifth in line when it comes to pri-ority registration after EOPS, dis-abled students, veterans and fostercare.Dewayne Sheaffer, department

chair of LAC counseling, saidcontinuing students struggle to getthrough because of the lack ofclasses. “Then you bring theseother groups and give them pre-ferred status, but they are not get-ting the full benefit of the freesemester being paid for.”Alberto Reynoso, 19, a psy-

chology major, said, “I don’t likeit, since I don’t have the priorityregistration.”After attending meetings

regarding LBCC PromisePathways, Sheaffer said manyteachers and other employeeshave shown concern. He said theydo not fully understand why theadministration is pushing forwardwith the program and limitedanswers have been provided.New students will take general-

education classes in English, writ-ing and math, raising concernamong teachers because they willhave classes consisting mainly ofinexperienced students, he said.The college does not plan to

compensate teachers and coun-selors for additional work at thistime, Sheaffer said.

Mary Martinez, a counselor atWilson High School, said, “Don’tgo to City because it’s conve-nient.” She said students should be“open minded” and to considerother smaller schools.Robert Garcia, director of pub-

lic and media relations for LBCC,said the money being used to payfor Promise Pathways comes fromthe scholarship component that isfrom the Foundation. The rest ofthe program is acombination ofgrants and gen-eral districtfunds.Garcia said

LBCC PromisePathways willcreate a co-hortmodel forincoming Long Beach UnifiedSchool District students. Severalblended courses are scheduled inPromise Pathways with nochanges to continuing students.Promise Pathways will notincrease LBCC current enroll-ment, but instead put the studentswe normally get from LBUSDinto a co-hort.In addition, teachers have been

involved in the creation ofPromise Pathways and LBCCcompensates faculty based oncontracts and agreements betweenthe district and faculty, he said.Bobbi Clarke, a counselor at

Cabrillo High School, said, “Iwholeheartedly support the LBCCPromise Pathways. This removesthe financial burden and obstaclefor so many of our students,allowing them to gain the opportu-nity that they otherwise may nothave had.”

Garcia said LBCC is in theprocess of hiring counselors andteachers for Fall 2012 to help withthe upcoming freshmen andLBCC is always striving toimprove student success.Beatrice Rivas, 17, a Wilson

High School senior, said, “Theprogram is fantastic. I believe itwould aide me in my junior col-lege journey.”Eighteen counselors, seven at

PCC and 11 atLAC, serveabout 28,000 stu-dents, with themajority of thecounselors hav-ing other dutiessuch as teaching,w o r k s h o p s ,classroom pre-

sentations and other responsibili-ties. According to the AmericanCounseling Association Code ofEthics and Standard Practice,“The median ratio of students tocounselors in the CommunityColleges in 1992 stood at over1,700 to 1.” Sheaffer said coun-selors at LBCC are 2,700 to 1.Their overall goal is to see 500students weekly, he said.However, Garcia said the ratio is1,556 to 1.When talking about why LBCC

is promising help and assistance incounseling and other departmentsto incoming freshmen when theproblems within the school can’tbe solved, Garcia said LBCC andthe counseling department arecommitted to helping both cur-rently enrolled and new studentswith their educational goals.

By Cynthia MontezStaff Writer

Radar monitors may beinstalled in the LAC parkingstructure and some parking stallsmight be removed to avoid colli-sions on the corners of the 5-storyfacility, police Lt. Julie Prior saidThursday, Feb. 23.Student parking spaces

increased, at least at LAC, butvehicular vandalism and speedingviolations also picked up whileother vehicle related incidentspersist on campus, the leader ofLBCC police told journalism stu-dents in a press conference.The new 900-space parking

structure eased parking problemsat LAC. However, with ongoingconstruction at PCC, the new pol-icy of no-student parking and no-student drop-off on residentialstreets around LAC, combinedwith students’ concerns for safetyand convenience, has createdfrayed nerves. Some students tryto transport large materials ortools across campus, such as to theK Building along Harvey Way.Arnold Papa, 28, an undeclared

major, said, “I park around theVeterans Stadium because theparking structure is full by 9 a.m.I don’t mind walking across cam-pus with all my stuff, though ashuttle would be good.”Mony Tan, 27, a nursing major,

said, “I go to the PCC only to usethe Library, even if they close ear-lier than LAC. I’m scared to usethe LAC library because it’s toofar from parking and I seldom see

police officers at night, unlikehere at PCC.”Prior said vandalism and park-

ing disputes have increased oncampus. The biggest problemLBCC is facing is still theft ofproperty.She said, “We are seeing peo-

ple going too fast in the parkingstructure, hitting each other orclipping cars parked in corners.There is an increase in vandalismdue to disputes in parking. We seean increase in violations nearVeterans Stadium on ConantStreet where people are movingfast in a 35 mph zone.”She said, “Our goal is to try to

educate students. We try to advisestudents than citing them.”Prior said the college is trying

to come up with better ways tosolve safety and parking relatedproblems, such as providing shut-tle service to and from the parkingareas, better lighting and bettercurb design.“Our main concern is the safe-

ty of students and staff,” she said.Prior said officers are assign towarn students who persist on notusing the crosswalk on CarsonStreet or crossing the street on thered “Don’t Walk” sign.

Police escorts are available, ifneeded. Prior recommends thatstudents, “Have your keys in yourhand, it can help,” she said.Students are also advised toalways check whether they have avalid parking permit, to not besurprised with a parking ticket.Students and employees need-

ing a security escort may call(562) 938-4910 at PCC and LAC.

By Kevin GuadamuzStaff Writer

The National Women’s HistoryProject has chosen “Women inEducation” as the theme for thisyear’s 8th annual women’s historyessay contest at LBCC.Students are encouraged to

write about a woman who inspiresthem or is worthy to be writteninto history.Amber Miles, 21, an undecided

major, said, “There hasn’t beentoo much interest when it comes towomen’s history. It’s nice to seestudents and faculty are taking aninitiative to include this topic.”Silvia Garcia, the administra-

tive assistant at the women andmen’s resource center who hasorganized the contest the pastseven years, said, “This is a way toget students involved withwomen’s history in a fun andenticing way.”Beginning in 2008, ESL stu-

dents received their own categoryin which to participate and Garciasaid, “Many of the ESL studentsare feeling more confident withevery essay contest they join.” Sheis happy to see many of the stu-dents are motivated to transfer cat-

egories the next year.Students compete for a chance

to win the top prize of $100,which is founded by grantsrequested from ASB.Anastaysia Cole, 20, an

accounting major, said, “It’s niceto see ESL students included inthe contest, I just feel that LBCCneeds to stop being so lax aboutthe way they celebrate women’shistory month.”According to the national pro-

ject website, “The reversal of thegender gap is a very recent phe-nomenon. The fight to learn hasbeen a valiant struggle waged bymany tenacious women in ourcountry.”Cole said, “I know it’s been a

struggle for women to get towhere we are and I would just liketo thank whoever is putting thistogether for the support they aregiving all women of LBCC.”The entry deadline is Monday,

March 5 by 5 p.m. in the StudentLife offices at PCC and LAC. Thewinners of the contest will benamed March 28 at noon in thesenior center at PCC.Students may obtain more

information by calling (562) 938-3987 or (562) 938-4552.

“I donʼt like it, since Idont have the priority

registration.”Alberto ReynosoPsychology major

By Arnold JamesCopy Editor

Tia Moeai was installed in theASB Cabinet as treasurer at PCCon Monday Feb 27.ASB President Ramon Cavillo

gave Moeai the oath of office. Shewon the election with 123 votes,with the only opposition comingin two write-in candidates whoreceived 0 votes.

Also on the ballot were twoamendments to the ASBConstitution regarding electedpositions.The old Constitution called for

students to serve at least onesemester in a term of office. Thenew revision calls for all electedexecutive board members to serveone full year in office.The second revision called for

any elected leadership office-holder to have completed two

semesters. The new amendmentnow calls for any elected leader-ship office-holder to have attend-ed LBCC for one semester.The amendments are being

added in an effort to bring greaterfluidity and structure.The Cabinet meets in the

Valhalla Room in the E Buildingat LAC on Mondays from 2-4p.m. and at PCC in MD-103 on thelast Monday of the month.

By Cynthia MontesStaff Writer

“The Diviners,” a play by JimLeonard Jr. and directed by HalLandon Jr. received an enthusias-tic response from mainly youngaudience for its performance onthe LBCC mainstage on Saturday,Feb. 18.“The Diviners” deals with the

subject of search. Search can lead

to answers or to more questions.“The Diviners” tells the story of arelationship between a mentallychallenged teen-age boy who can“feel” water sources undergroundand a disillusioned preacher whotries to help him. Around them arethe boy’s family and neighborswho are searching for answers totheir own personal, cultural, eco-nomic and religious doubts.Jon Vaughn, 23, a kinesiology

major, who watched the play, said,“I understand his struggle withreligion. We want to do good, butwe sometimes fail. Like Buddy,we’re afraid to try something evenif it will help us.”Arije Rabhi, 19, a psychobiolo-

gy major, said, “I like the playvery much. It affects me becauseit hits close to home. Like in theplay, with support from yourfriends and family, you can get towhere you wantto go.”Landon, an

LBCC theaterarts teacher, onhis play notes,stated, “TheD i v i n e r s ”appears to be avery simple story about the peoplein a small Indiana town during the1930’s Depression. However, likemany great plays, it is filled withreferences to themes that go

beyond its simple exterior.”The play, written in 1980, res-

onates with today’s audiencebecause it touches on “things thatparallel with what’s going on in

today’s society,”said Landon, astage, TV andmovie actor. Itdeals with unem-ployment, tech-nological change,corrupt bankersand useless

politicians. “The audience relatesto the characters of the play, thehumor and the dramatic situations.Specifically, the relationshipbetween (the preacher) and (the

boy), the strong desire to help andthe closeness of the two,” Landonsaid.Four brown planks, tilted in

different angles, and manila ropescovering the sides and hangingfrom the ceiling complete thestage. The minimalist set simu-lates the parched hills and the sub-dued blue lights, the spacious sky.“The Diviners” is one of five

annual productions of theDepartment of Theatre, Dance andFilm. Gary Scott, dean ofCreative Arts and AppliedSciences, said, “ We aim for pro-ductions that are engaging to theaudience and provide learning sit-uations to students.”

By Charles ReindorfStaff Writer

The Child DevelopmentAssociates Groups hosted theirfirst wine tasting fundraiser andattracted a sold-out crowd.Stacey Smith-Clark, the man-

ager of the child development cen-ter and lab school at the PCC said,“We never have huge expectationsat the beginning, but we sold outand had to turn away about 40 peo-ple.” The center expected a 100people to attend the night’s eventbut drew many more people’sinterest.Smith-Clark said, “This is our

first time doing something likethis. It’s by parent demand becauseparents really need a night outaway from their children.”The wine tasting event was pre-

sented at Gary King Wines at 3387Cerritos Ave in Los Alamitos onSaturday, Feb. 25 from 6 -10 p.m.Tickets for the event were priced at$25 per person.

Invitations were sent to theparents, students and collegeemployees.According to the LBCC web-

site the centers are licensed facili-ties, that offer quality pre-schoolclasses and child-care servicesfrom 7 a.m.-5:30 p.m. As well, thecenter provides a lab school settingfor early childhood education stu-dents and childhood developmentstudents.“Instead of just learning from a

textbook, they come into a realpre-school and see how childrendevelop, grow, interact with eachother and solve conflicts.”Smith-Clark, said, “The centers

have been around for over 60years. I went to the center when Iwas a child, so I have come fullcircle.”Students have priority for regis-

tration, but any family that quali-fies for the low- income subsidizedprogram qualifies for enrollment atthe centers. A $30 registration feeis charged and a $20 activity feeper child.

By Alannah JonesStaff Writer

Every third Sunday of themonth, The Long Beach AntiqueMarket comes to Vets Stadium.The Antique Market was foundedin 1982 and is one of the oldestantique markets in southernCalifornia. The Antique Marketwill have been running for 30years this year.

John Esquivel, an kinesiologymajor, 21, said “It sounds cool forsomeone who is into that sort ofthing.”J o c e l y n

Benavidez, au n d e c l a r e dmajor, said, “I’venever heard of itbut it soundsvery interesting.”Eight hundred

vendors from not just SouthernCalifornia but all over the country,even vendors from Russia showup to sell their antiques, col-lectibles and vintage clothes.Vendors can expect to pay seventyto ninety dollars for a booth at theAntique Market.

On the website, there is a list ofcelebrities in the past that havevisited, such as burlesque dancer

and MarilynManson’s exwife Dita VonTeese, actorJohnny Depp,and supermodel HeidiKlum to name afew.

Donald, who is in charge ofThe Antique Market said, “Ourshow is different from mostbecause we only permit vintageitems.”It is $5 to get into the antique

market and children under 12 getfree admission; the antique market

gives away one thousand dollars’worth of tickets to visitors whosign up for a free admission ticketon their website which they doevery month.Visitors can also sign up for

discount coupons that are worth10 percent off certain products andparking is free. Visitors that showup between 5:30-6:30 a.m., haveto pay $10 for their admissiontickets.The next Antique Market will

be held on March 18 from 5:30a.m.-2 p.m. rain or shine accord-ing to their website schedule.Students who are interested can

call 323-655-5703 orlongbeachantiquemarket.com.

By Natalie LyStaff Writer

The Be the Change CatholicClub and about 50 participantscelebrated Ash Wednesday Masson Feb. 22.Sister Su Fern Khoo played and

sang the entrance song with thechoir welcoming the Rev. BrianDoran from St. Anthony ParishChurch in Long Beach to start theMass.Doran greeted everyone, made

the cross and blessed the ashes.Two club members then took turnsto read the first and second read-ings before Doran read the gospel.Doran then explained the 40-

day Lenten period for penance. Hesaid, “Ash brings awareness toourselves, reminding us that weare far from perfect and Lent is ourjourneys to heaven. We can eithergive up something or do some-thing useful that we don’t normal-ly do in preparation for Easter.”Easter Sunday will be celebrat-

ed April 8 at the start of LBCC’sSpring Break.To save time, Doran combined

the communion and the distribu-tion of ashes together. Participantsreceived communion from Doranand ash on their forehead from anun and a minister.Talking about what one usually

does for Lent, club PresidentMiguel Chavez, 21, a computerprogramming major, said hewould attend church more often.An Egyptian international stu-

dent, Youssef Abdallah, 20, anelectrical engineering major, said,“I was really impressed. It was myfirst time celebrating the AshWednesday and take ashes on mybrow. I also like the concept that

we came from the ground and willbe back to the ground to remind usthat we are nothing.” Abdallahadded he did not celebrate AshWednesday inEgypt because hefollowed theCoptic Church,one of the twoE g y p t i a nC h r i s t i a nCatholic sects,instead of theLatin Church.Hong Duong, a finance major,

said she was touched upon enter-

ing the room, because she neverthought she could attend a Masson campus.Israel Lara, 19, a criminal jus-

tice major, said,“The event waswell organized.I see the spiritu-al side of meand I will giveup Wings Stopfor Lent.”Khoo said in

excitement, “It’s the first time weinvited the Long Beach deaf com-munity and it was beautiful to

have the students’ participation.We were so touched to have theinterpreter for the deaf communi-ty.”Club sponsor Ruben Amador

said Ash Wednesday Mass oncampus is a great opportunity forstudents and employees to attendthe service and continue to keepthe tradition of receiving ash onthat day.The club meets every Thursday

at noon in P120, and for moreinformation, contact Amador at(562) 938-4586 orramador@lbcc.edu.

4 MARCH 1, 2012twitter.com/lbccvikingnews CityStyleA 1930s play with 2012 problems

Winetastingsold out

Students attend Mass for Ash Wednesday

Vets Stadium turns into an Antique Market

Rodney Weiss/Viking

! Parents areinvited to a winetasting fundraiserfor a night out.

! A preacher hasa desire to help amentally chal-lenged boy.

! The place tobuy all thingsvintage on the 3rdSunday of month.

ASHES TO ASHES: Jaime Guerrero, 20, a nursing student, receives a cross of ashes on his forehead tosignify the first day of lent in T1200 at LAC.

“Iʼve never heard of it, butit sounds very interesting.”

Jocelyn BenavidezUndecided major

“I never thought I wouldattend a Mass on campus.”

Hong DuongFinance major

“I liked the play very much.It hits close to home.”

Arije RabhiPsychobiology major

5MARCH 1, 2012 lbccvikingnews.comCityStyleSOCIAL SERVICE BARBECUE

Nurses to raise funds

Fire science offered

Males battling depressionJoel Sabajan/Viking

Business major Daysean James, seated in center, and biologymajor Andy Medina, standing behind him, set up shop in the mid-dle of LAC Quad to fundraise for the Aztlan social services club.

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By Jessica De SotoStaff Writer

Michael Medina expresses thatdepression is a solitary state ofbeing an orphan to life.Medina, 21, a philosophy

major was taken hostage to themental dejection. He illustratesdepression as a room with alocked door in which, the dark-ness holds the keys. He said it isdesperation, a choking hope, and

it is the need to breathe but notbeing able to use oxygen.He said he was diagnosed with

major depressive disorder at 16. “Iused to cry, sob and weep. Tearswould fall down slower than myhopes along with dreams and aspi-rations. Sorrow consumed me,filled me up in stored crates andstorage rooms of lonely-misun-derstood solitude,” he said.He said to overcome depres-

sion he believes love will compelhim to move toward the light, a

light, a small ray of optimism, Dr.Edwardo Tellez from family andgeneral practice of the PioneerMedical Group said, male depres-sion is exceedingly severebecause the mental illness can beignored due to overlooking thedisease, suppressing or maskingthe depression with unhealthybehavior such as, abusing alcoholand drugs, controlling violent orabusive actions, embracing inap-propriate anger and risky man-ners. By Liz Daniels

Staff Writer

Unused phones and ink car-tridges are wanted by the NursingStudent Association is as afundraiser at LBCC.The event is to raise money to

send two to three students to thenational student association con-ference in Pittsburgh in April.Lisbeth Ruvalcaba, 22, a nurs-

ing student and club treasurer said,“Last semester, it was open to onlythe nursing students, but this

semester, the members of the asso-ciation decided to expand it to stu-dents and to the public.”The fundraiser will begin on

March 12 and continue until theend of the semester. Boxes will belocated in Building C for collec-tion of phones and cartridges.The date has yet to be deter-

mined. Flyers will be posted onthe bulletin board in building C.Diners may Present a flyer and 15percent of the meal cost will bedonated to the club.

By Alannah JonesStaff Writer

The Fire Science program atPCC has a lot to offer students thatare seeking a career in the fire sci-ence industry and to those whowant to be firefighters. The pro-gram has been offered at LBCCsince 1980.Nelson Victor, business mar-

keting, 20 said, “ Yeah, We needmore firefighters, we don’t valuethem enough”; when asked if hethought the program should bemore recognized.Ralph De la Ossa, the depart-

ment chair of the Public Serviceand advisor of the Association ofFuture Firefighters club, said,“The Fire Science program isoffered to allow students to earnan Associates Degree in Fire

Science in order to become morecompetitive in the applicationProcess when pursuing a Positiona s a Firefighter.”De la Ossa later added that for

every firefighting position 1000applicants apply and students whohave a degree in fire science havea higher chance of getting a inter-view with a fire department.According to De la Ossa, “Fire

science is a study of what fire isand how to control and prevent afire in the community.”

De la Ossa said, “I firststarted to teach because of mypassion for Firefighting and Iwanted to give back to the com-munity through teaching andmotivating students whom wereseriously pursuing a Firefightingposition but needed a mentor toreduce their doubts.”This semester, De la Ossa was

voted the mot, DistinguishedProfessor by many of his students.According to the fire science

curriculum guide, students whoreceive a certificate in fire sciencewill be prepared to enter a fireacademy to become a firefighterand students who receive an asso-ciates degree can expect to havecareer advancement if they arealready in the fire science indus-try.De la Ossa informs that the

current fire science that are beingheld right now are Intro to FireScience, Fire 1, Fire 2, FirePrevention, Fire 3, FirefightingEquipment Fire 4, BuildingConstruction for Firefighters, FireHazmat, Fire tools and equipment,Fire Apparatus, Fire Behavior andCombustion, Fire Companyadmin.

By Ed MahurienCo-Editor in ChiefFour in the fourth was all that

the Vikings softball team neededto secure its victory over L.A.Harbor on Thursday, Feb. 23 atLAC.Trailing 1-0 in the fourth

inning, the Vike’s first batter washit by the pitch, followed by twobunt singles to load the bases.“Harbor’s bunt defense was not

very strong. I think our coachwanted to take advantage of that,”sophomore centerfielder DanielleHannan said.Freshman Karissa Reynoso

battled for a walk to bring in thefirst run of the game for LBCC.With the bases loaded and one

out, freshman second baseman LizMelendrez stepped up and lined atriple to the left-center field gap,clearing the bases and driving inthree runs.The Vikings held the lead for

the remaining three innings withgreat defensive plays in the top ofthe seventh by freshman thirdbaseman Melyssa Rivas and fresh-man shortstop Reanna Guzman topreserve the victory.The game, mostly dominated

by pitching, was decided in a meretwo innings.Neither team collected a hit

through the first two innings. Inthe third, Harbor bats came alivecollecting three straight hits thatled to the Seahawks one and onlyrun.Harbor could have scored more

if not for a catch by Hannan, whotracked down a hard hit liner to

right-center saving two runs andlimiting the damage by theSeahawks to only one run.“It’s about being ready, know-

ing where the pitch was and antic-ipating. I got a good jump on it,”Hannan said.The Vikings took to the road

for a tough game vs. defendingconference champions Mt. SanAntonio College on Tuesday, Feb.

28 losing 3-0.With the loss the Vikings fell to

8-8 on the season and 3-2 in SouthCoast Conference play.They travel again Thursday,

March 1. to battle rival Cerritoswhich leads the conference with a.425 team batting average.They return home on March 6

vs. Pasadena City College at 3p.m.

6 MARCH 1, 2012facebook.com/vikingnews Sports

Vikings finish 5th in swimming

LBCC swimmers, consistingmainly of last season men’s andwomen’s water polo teams, com-peted in the Mt. San AntonioCollege Invitational on Friday andSaturday, Feb. 24 and 25.The Viking men took fifth

place out of 17 teams. The Vikngwomen also competed in theevent. The women finished 13thout of 18 teams.Swimmers and divers entered

their first meet of the season onFriday, Feb. 17.The South Coast Conference

pentathlon at East Los AngelesCollege was the opening meet forthe LBCC swimming and divingteams.LBCC will have 16 competi-

tions prior to the April 3 and 14SCC diving championships at ElCamino College and the April 19,20 and 21 SCC championships atPasadena College.

Women’s tennis team falls

The LBCC women’s tennisteam lost, 9-0, to El CaminoCollege at the South CoastConference opener on Tuesday,Feb. 21 at LBCC.The doubles team of Sarah

Parent and Ellisse Herrera lost toEl Camino’s Chie Young Shin andLindsay Guardado in three sets, 7-5, 4-6, 10-3.FreshmanAna Casillas fell 6-2,

4-6, 10-6 to the Warriors’ JillDineros.The Vikings also lost, 7-2, to

Cerritos on Thursday, Feb. 23 and9-0, against Palomar on Friday,Feb. 24.The next scheduled conference

games are Tuesday, March 6against El Camino and Thursday,March 8 at Cerritos at 2 p.m.LBCC continues it’s season

Tuesday, March 13 with a 2 p.m.contest against visiting Mt. SanAntonio.

CITY SPORTS

Key triple secures win

De!Anthony Phillips/VikingGUARDING THE CHARGER OFFENSE: Freshman guard Luna Amicodefends a Cypress opponent. Amico finished the night with 10points as the Chargers defeated LBCC, 65-52, on Friday, Feb 24.

! Base-clearingliner brings homethree runs.

Staff Sergeant Alonzo Martinez 562-607-1539

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PAY OFF YOUR EDUCATION

Cypress Chargerseliminate Vikings

SECURING THE WIN: LBCC freshman third-basewoman MelyssaRivas gets ready to field a ground ball hit by the offense in theVikings! 4-1 victory over Los Angeles Harbor on Thursday, Feb. 23at the LAC softball field. Vikings improve to an 8-7 overall record.

Victor Posadas/Viking

By De’Anthony PhillipsStaff Writer

The seventh state-rankedLBCC Vikings’ season came to ascreeching halt and they werebolted out of the playoffs by the10th state-ranked CypressChargers, 65-52, on Friday, Feb.24 in the Hall of Champions.LBCC led the game at the half,

38-33. Freshman forward KaaronKing had the hot hand for thehome team with 13 points, going5-5 from the field and 3-3 atthe free throw line. Teammates

Luna Amico and TamicaCheatham both had ninepoints at the break.Cypress’ two Orange Empire

Conference first team all-confer-ence players, sophomore MelissaJensen and freshman SloanTurner, both had four points andfour rebounds at the half.The start of the second half was

a different story.The Chargers’ ramped-up

defense forced LBCC to shoot adismal 4-38 (10.5 percent) andoutscored them, 32-14, in the sec-ond half.Cypress charged out of the

locker room with an 8-0 run, untilViking sophomore guard KalaAmico hit one of two free throws,for the first point for the Vikes inthe second half.

The damage was already doneand the Chargers had a 41-39 leadwith just under 15 minutes to playand never looked back.Cypress put the game away as

it went on another 8-0 run, puttingthe Chargers up, 60-48, with justtwo minutes remaining in thegame.The Chargers’ play in the sec-

ond half displayed why theircoach, Margaret Mohr, earned co-coach of the year honors and wonits fourth conference champi-onship, third under Mohr. Cypresssecond team all-conference fresh-man Chelsea Walton had a teamhigh of 16 points, four rebounds,four assists and four steals.Sloan Turner had the game’s

only double-double with 12 pointsand 10 rebounds.

“Kaaron King was the only one(Viking) to have a decent game,“said Viking forward ToynellWilliams.Leading scorer sophomore

Keshonda Moore finished herViking career with five points.Sophomores Tamica Cheatham

and Kala Amico also played theirfinal game for the Vikings, scoringnine and three points.The Vikings ended their season

on sour note, but many of thisyear’s freshmen are expected toreturn next season.

By Josue GalindoStaff Writer

The Vikings scored a mere fourhits against Golden West and wereshut out, 6-0, on Thursday at JoeHicks Memorial baseball field onLAC.LBCC’s season-long hitting

drought continued Thursday asViking hitters went 4 for 35 at theplate.The team batting average is

currently .239 and its sluggingpercentage is .269.The Vikings have yet to hit a

home run this season.Runs also have been hard to

come by with the team averagingjust 3.3 runs per game through 10games with 10 runs coming in arout of Southwestern on Feb. 22.The hits came from sophomore

Edwin Santiago, sophomoreDaniel Catalan, sophomore Mattde Leon and freshman StevenContursi.The Vikes stranded five run-

ners on base and grounded intothree double plays.In addition to the poor perfor-

mance at the plate, LBCC com-mitted three errors on defense thatled to three unearned runs forGolden West.In a battle of hard-throwing 6

foot 7 inch pitchers. LBCC start-ed freshman lefty Jake Angus,who took the loss in his only startof the season.Angus went four innings, giv-

ing up three hits and four runs,

touching 86 mph with his fastball.He was wild in the game how-

ever, throwing a wild pitch, walk-ing two and hitting three Rustlerbatters.Sophomore Danny Ittner came

on in relief and allowed one runthrough three innings with JavierSaenz and David Aispuro con-tributing scoreless innings indefeat.The Rustlers’ starting pitcher,

Nicholas Hanson, was the win-ning pitcher improving his recordto 3-0, pitching seven innings andallowing just three hits whilestriking out four.There were eight scouts in

attendance to watch the right-han-der Hanson, whose fastballpopped the radar guns at 92 mph.Cameron Ochoa came out of

the bullpen in relief of Hanson toclose out the game.With the win, Golden West

improved its overall record to 7-4-1 while the Vikings fell to 3-5.In the rematch Saturday Feb.

25 at Golden West, the Vikingsfell to the Rustlers, 4-1.Sophomore pitcher Omar Jimenezwent the distance for LBCC, giv-ing up four runs one earned, whilegiving up 11 hits through his eightinnings of work. His record fell to0-3 on the season.Golden West countered with

Jason Deitrich, who pitched acomplete game, spreading 12 hitsover nine innings and striking outfive for the win.

7MARCH 1, 2012 twitter.com/lbccvikingnewsSports

Up next:The Vikings willvisit Oxnard on Thursday,March 1 to face theCondors at 2 p.m.

Viking bats quiet againstGolden West in defeat

Volleyballunbeaten

Victor Posadas/Viking

! LBCC managesonly one run intwo-game sweepby Rustlers.

Victor Posadas/Viking

Matt Robinson/Viking

HERE’S THE PITCH: Freshman Jake Angus pitches against GoldenWest. He currently has a 1.38 ERA. He went four innings.

SAFE: Viking sophomore third-baseman Jeremy Ruiz, right, receives a late throw from catcher Matt De Leon in the top of the first,Thursday, Feb. 23 at Joe Hicks Memorial field. Donald Sneed who previously stole second base in the same inning and advanced safe-ly to third on a passed ball. LBCC lost, 6-0.

By Charles ReindorfStaff Writer

With an undefeated record, theLBCC men’s volleyball team isranked No.1 in the state.The Vikings are now 6-0 after

defeating their rivals, the No. 5ranked Orange Coast CollegePirates, who are now 3-3. MaxWechsung, 19, setter for the team,said, “We haven’t beat them inmatch play in three years, so it’s abig win for us to go hard and beatthem in three. So it feels realgood.”Wechsung, the 6-foot-7-inch

sophomore, is the no. 1 volleyballplayer in the state. According tocoach Matt Savila. Wechsungplayed his high school ball at St.John Bosco.Greg Utupo, the freshman out-

side hitter, said, “I wasn’t here lastyear, but the only thing I’ve heardis that we really have a brother-hood that’s really, really strong onthe team.We all hang out together,we’re all boys. So we really take itseriously. We have a lot of fun onthe court. We’re just all together.”Wechsung said, “We all come

in at the same time, we workedhard all year running on the tracksand bleachers, getting into thegym as much as we can, and anytime there is an open gym, we allhead out. We play together andthat’s what makes us so good.Coaching the Vikings are first

time co-coaches Matt Silva andJonathan Charette. Both are alum-ni’ of LBCC and played for thevolleyball team. Silva had beenthe assistant coach under coachRandy Tortorp for eight years andhas been part of the three statechampionships of 2004, 2006 and2009, and seven conference titles.Charette was also part of the

2009 team as an assistant coachand in 2010, played professionalball for Switzerland.Rob McLean, the sophomore

outside hitter, said, “They are justgreat volleyball people, they knowthe game very well and they teachus what they can.”Last year, the Vikings finished

the season with a 21-11 record,and lost to Grossmont in the statesemi-finals.The team has hopes of adding

another state championship.Utupo said, “We can win state thisyear. If we play our game we canwin state.” Savila said he stronglybelieves that this year is the yearthe Vikings will return to its for-mer glory as state champions.

SERVICE: Viking outside hitterJon Schaefer practices his jumpserve Wednesday, Feb. 29 atLAC.

FIVE, SIX, SEVEN, EIGHT!

The Tong men!s social-service club gets in gear on Tuesday, Feb. 28 for Spring Sing, which will be pre-sented Friday, March 2 in the LAC Auditorium. Each participating club will be performing its own spe-cial act. See story on page 1.

Julianna Rodriguez/Viking

IMPORTANT HOURS

CONCERTS

IMPORTANT DATES

SPECIAL EVENTS MARCH

M T W TH F SSU1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24

25 26 27 28 29 30 31

8 MARCH 1, 2012lbccvikingnews.com Calendar

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SPRING SINGLBCC is hosting the 61st annu-al Spring Sing: “HeroicMoments” at the LACAuditorium on March 2 at 7p.m.

READ ACROSS CAMPUSStudents are welcome to join incelebrating Mark Twain at thesecond annual Read AcrossCampus on Thursday, March 1from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

CSULB TRANSFER WORKSHOPSCal State Long Beach is pre-senting transfer workshops atits campus from Feb. 29-June29. Admission is free and park-ing will be provided for free.Students may register online.

TUSKEGEE AIRMENThe PCC Cultural AffairsCouncil presents TheTuskegee Airmen. Studentsmay attend PCC Library roomLL-102 for a discussion withreal Tuskegee airmen onMarch 8 from noon-1 p.m.

ESSAY CONTESTThe Women!s and Men!sResource Center AssociationStudent Body and LBCCFoundation will host an essaywriting contest and jeopardytrivia game in honor ofWomen!s History Month onMarch 5. Students may call(562) 938-3987 for more infor-mation.

ASSESSMENT CHANGESImportant changes have beenmade to the LBCCAssessmentschedules. Students may referto the most up-to-date LAC

FINANCIAL AIDThe deadline for Cal Grant isMarch 2. Students may applyonline at lbcc.edu

PELL GRANTSSecond Pell disbursements arescheduled to arrive at HigherOne on the afternoon of March9 for students with 9 units ormore.

ASTRONOMY OPEN HOUSEAstronomy professor CourtneySeligman will present fourastronomy open housesthrough April 27. For moreinformation, students may visitevents.lbcc.edu/detail.cfm?eventid=1769

SPRING BREAKApril 9-13: no classes.

FLEX DAYLBCC classes will not meet onWednesday, March 14.

FOOD HANDLER TRAININGStudents interested in gettingthe training needed to obtain aCalifornia Food Handler Cardat LBCC may call (562) 938-5051 for more information onthe 3-hour training workshopbeginning at 10 a.m.

BRANDENBURGLBCC Concert Artist Seriesand Long Beach Bach Festivalpresent: Brandenburg: Old andNew on Saturday, March 3 at7:30 p.m. at FirstCongregational Church of LongBeach at 214 Cedar Ave.

SYMPHONY AND ORCHESTRALBCC's Department of Music,Radio & Television and theASB will present concertsthroughout the weekend in theAuditorium. Saturday, March 3at 7:30 p.m. "Marching IntoMarch." The LBCC SymphonyOrchestra will be conducted byMarshall Fulbright on Sunday,March 4 at 2 p.m.

& PCC Assessment &Orientation schedules at:http://matric.lbcc.edu/signup.cfmore>

ELECTIONSBoard of Trustees membersrepresenting Areas 2 and 4 willbe selected Tuesday, April 10by voters. Registration to votemay be completed by visitingthe Los Angeles County regis-trar of voters.

TANAKA FARMS PRODUCEOrganic Program to Continueat LBCC. The LBCC TanakaFarms Community SupportedAgriculture program will becontinuing thanks to the recentincrease in LBCC participants!Please contact Chef Pierre atext. 4627 if you have any ques-tions. To sign up for the pro-gram go to:http://www.tanakafarms.com/CSA.html

LAC LIBRARYMonday-Thursday7 a.m.-10 p.m.Friday 7 a.m.-4 p.m.Saturday 10 a.m.-4 p.m.Closed Sundays and holi-days.

PCC LIBRARYMonday-Thursday8 a.m.-9 p.m.Friday 8 a.m.-2:30 p.m.Saturday 10 a.m.-2 p.m.Closed Sundays and holi-days.

LAC VIKING EXPRESSMonday-Thursday7 a.m.-9 p.m.Friday 7 a.m.-2:30 p.m.Saturday 7 a.m.-2 p.m.Closed Sundays andholidays

LAC-PCC SHUTTLERuns every 30 minutes from7:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. Everyhour from 10:30 a.m.-2:30p.m. Then back to every 30minutes until 6 p.m. No shuttleservice on Fridays or Flexdays.

LAC CAMPUS STOREMonday-Thursday7:30 a.m.-7 p.m.Friday 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.Closed weekends.

PCC CAMPUS STOREMonday-Thursday7:30 a.m.-7 p.m.Friday 7:30 a.m.-2:00 p.m.Closed weekends.

TEXT ALERTS

EMERGENCY SERVICELBCC offers a text-basedemergency service for mobilephones. In the event of anemergency, those signed upwill be alerted in real-time viatext message. To sign up andfor more information, studentsmay visitlbcc.edu/BusinessSupport/emergencytextalerts.cfm

SPORTS

MEN’S AND WOMEN’SSWIM/DIVEFriday, March. 2 at 12:30 p.m.vs Cerritos/Mt. SAC at Cerritos

WOMEN’S TENNISThursday, March. 8 at 2 p.m.vs Cerritos.

9MARCH 1, 2012 facebook.com/vikingnewsLbcc

10 MARCH 1, 2012twitter.com/lbccvikingnews opinionEDITORIALS

16-week semester forces change

Mark Twain is scrutinized at literary gatheringRuby Campos/Viking

Last fall, the semester atLBCC began on Aug. 15. Thisupcoming fall, the semester willbegin on Aug. 27. After debatingon the subject for about 18 years,the powers that be passed thelandmark schedule reform thatwill be altered from an 18-weeksemester to a 16-week semester.Many of the other colleges in

the CSU and UC systems arealready on a 16-week semesterschedule. It’s about time wejoined them.However, following this adap-

tation, students must adapt aswell.To make up for the missing

two weeks, 10-20 minutes will betacked on to the end of classes.

That may not seem like much,but when students have jobs,other classes, and other commit-ments such as sports, clubs, vol-unteering, or even getting thingsdone around the house, those areprecious minutes to lose.That’s also two less weeks to

do homework, projects, andreports. Two less weeks for stu-dents to absorb the lessons from ateacher who has to figure out away to fit their lessons in. Plus,finals will have to be squeezedinto five days, instead of the cus-tomary seven many are used to.Don’t fret, gentle reader, cut-

ting down the semester is not alldoom and gloom.With two less weeks a semes-

ter, there’s going to be so muchtime for activities. Just imagineall that could be accomplishedwith that extra month a year youdon’t have to go to school, andwho doesn’t love time away fromschool?With the blistering pace of

knowledge being passed from

teacher to student in a shortersemester, there’s not going to bemuch room for those studentswho aren’t here to succeed. Sothat one person in class whoshows up once a month andpesters you about what theymissed won’t be a problem any-more!In today’s fast-paced environ-

ment, it would be good for stu-dents to be forced to speed up.No one ever got laid by staying athome, no one ever achieved lightspeed by staying in the slow lane,and no one ever got ahead by tak-ing it easy in school.Whether you like it or not, and

whether it succeeds or not, theseshorter semesters are going tohappen. The best way to dealwith it is to just go with the flow.Heed Bruce Lee, “put water intoa cup, it becomes the cup, youput water into a bottle, it becomesthe bottle, you put it in a teapot, itbecomes the teapot. Now watercan flow or it can crash. Bewater, my friend.”

! Shorter semesterwill make forlonger classes asLBCC falls in linewith CalState/UC.

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CSULBMAY INTERSESSION SUMMER SESSIONS2012

“TheAdventures of HuckleberryFinn” by Mark Twain is one of thegreat American novels.

However, its reputation is sur-rounded in controversy because ofthe books use of the ‘n’ word,which often makes it a prime tar-get for alteration and ban. Butbehind the perceived veil of preju-dice is a book that preaches a mes-sage of love and acceptance.So should writing the ‘n’word

into a book justify such a intensescrutiny? As a racial slur that wasmost prevalent in the post-civilwar South, it is has a deep pres-ence in the American conscience,

evoking many negative connota-tions. By itself, the ‘n’ word ishateful and derogatory, bringingto mind a history of oppression.On the other hand in a histori-

cal context, the ‘n’ word is morethan an insult because it identifiesa kind of pravitas that occurred inour history. Twain’s novel HuckFinn is one of the earliest majorAmerican works to be written inthe local vernacular of society.

It combines literature and cul-ture and presents it in a way that isboth sincere and raw. In essence,the novel is a source of literaryhistory that is reflective of societyin that era and serves as a writtensnapshot.Omitting or altering the book is

censorship. This is an injustice andstrips the novel of its originalintent. The feelings the ‘n’ wordengenders can be uncomfortable.

However, in a way that uncom-fortable feeling is good, because itallows us to open a constructivedialogue.While it is true that excluding a

loaded word like the ‘n’ wordremoves it from the public spec-trum, it also removes it from pub-lic discourse.Removing the ‘n’ word or ban-

ning the book not only imposes onfree speech, it also refuses toacknowledge the racism thatTwain deals with in a very directand purposeful way.Erasing literary history because

it scares you does not promote tol-erance; rather, it promotes willfulignorance.Watch any gansta-rap video

and Twain’s Huckleberry Finnwould be like attending a churchsocial being hosted by the pope.The main premise behind

“Huckleberry Finn” is the youngHuck’s belief in the right thing todo, though most believed that hewas wrong.Ernest Hemingway once said

of the book, “If you read it, youmust stop where the n-Jim isstolen from the boys. That is thereal end. The rest is just cheating.”Twain was a staunch supporter ofabolition and emancipation, evenas going so far to say, “Lincoln’sProclamation, not only set theBlack slaves free, but set the whiteman free also.”

That does not sound like thewords of a prejudiced man and Ithink history has proven the pointby the way he is beloved by allraces, Black or White.Twain paid for at least one

black person to attend YaleUniversity Law School and foranother black person to attend a

southern university to become aminister. That doesn’t seem likemuch now, but in post-Civil WarAmerica, it meant a lot.He would also campaign for

women’s rights and the Chineselaborers who were being used asslaves in the building of the Trans-Continental railroad.The problem we have with

Mark Twain’s stories and words isthey are one and the same.We have to go beyond the

words and take a good hard look atourselves and sometimes we don’tlike what we see.We cannot change history nor

should we ignore it.Twain was born Nov 30,1835

in Florida, Missouri, the year ofHalley’s comet.He died of a heart attack on

April 21. 1910 in Redding, Conn,one day after the comet’s return.

! The novelist’swords cast a darkshadow over“Huck Finn.”

Sean Simon, 22Fine arts major

Elizabeth Hernandez, 22Nursing major

MARCH 1, 2012 Opinion lbccvikingnews.com 11

CITY VIEWS

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

WELCOME BACK FEB. 29

Financial aid staff does its best in economic hardship

Cynthia Montes/Viking

The deadline for news, advertise-ments and letters to the editor is theThursday before publication.The Viking will be published March

15 and 29, April 26 and May 10.The Viking will be published by the

Journalism 80 and 85 students of theLong Beach City College EnglishDepartment, with funding from theAssociated Student Body.The views expressed in the Viking

do not necessarily reflect the views ofthe advisers, administration or ASB.The Viking newsroom is located at

LBCC, 4901 E. Carson St., LongBeach, Calif., 90808, Room P125,

Language Arts Building. Telephone938-4285 or 938-4284 or e-mailvikingnews@lbcc.edu.The Viking is a member of the

Journalism Association of CommunityColleges, the California NewspaperPublishers Association, UnityJournalists of Color and the CaliforniaFirst Amendment Coalition.The Viking reserves the right to

deny any advertising space.Printed by Beach CommunityPublishing.Delivery Staff: PCC Student Life

staff and Thane men!s honor society.

VIKING STAFFlbccvikingnews.com facebook.com/vikingnews

twitter.com/lbccvikingnews

Editors in chief: Edward Mahurien and Clara CordeiroCopy editors: Benjamin Diaz, Arnold James and Vann MosierFront page editor: Amber BobadillaNews page editors: Michael Chhu and Tanner RueggCityStyle page editors: Victoria Norfleet and Joel SabajanSports page editors: Konkin Evans and Omar MejiaOpinion page editor: John OdomPhoto editor: Wendy GarciaImages page editor: Ruby CamposVideo editor: Dusty StiggersCalendar editor: Julianna RodriguezOnline editors: Alex Campbell and Jesus HernandezPage editors: Matt Robinson, Danielle Williams and Grace OrozcoAdvertising manager: Kori FilipekAdvisers: Patrick McKean and Jim Truitt

Peter ClarkPedro CruzLiz Daniels

Jessica De SotoJosue GalindoKevin Guadamuz

StaffAlannah JonesNatalie LyAlex Metalis

Cynthia MontesTyler Parker-Hawkins

De!Anthony PhillipsCharles Reindorf

JeremiahRosboroughRodney Weiss

Vladimir Flamenco, 18Undecided major

“Students should nothave to be enrolled inclasses to use theswimming pool and

gym.”

Christopher Rodriguez, 22Dance major

“LBCC should havemore campus security

guards at nightbecause I feel this col-lege does not haveenough protection.”

Tytus Larue, 21Musical theater major

“The dance programneeds more dance

studios.”

“Cutting classes,raising fees and only40 students wereaccepted into theRN program instead

of 60.”

“I feel that the dancedepartment shouldhave more recyclingbins near the dance

studios.”

What issuesdo you thinkLBCC shouldaddress?

Compiled byJessica De Soto atthe LAC on Feb. 28

This letter is in response to nursingmajor Jocelyn Vice's letter printed in theOct. 20, 2011 edition of the Viking. In herletter she criticized the Financial Aidoffice on various issues she thought need-ed changing to a streamline the FinancialAid process.Simply put, can the Financial Aid

process be streamlined? Of course, any-thing can be streamlined when it is feasi-ble to do so. I do recommend that theASB president should be the one to askthe right questions. The students whocomplain about the present process mayindeed have a legitimate reason to do so,

but it's not a reason that applies to all stu-dents since every student has differentneeds and expectations.This also brings to mind the need to

remind all students that the present coun-trywide economic crisis has placed anincreased burden on the resources of thiscollege including the Financial Aiddepartment. But this office does its bestwith its resources, staff members and stu-dent workers to create a smooth flow toits operations.

Steven Stolle, 54Business major

The dance program hosted its annualfundraiser at the LAC on Saturday, Feb. 25 instudios 110 and 113 in Building Q from 10 a.m-3 p.m.About 30 LBCC students and guests regis-

tered for dance classes, but five students tookeach class. They participated in hip-hop dance,which has a wide range of styles from break-dancing to locking and popping.Particpants also learned Zumba, which is a

popular fitness program inspired by Latin dance.The word Zumba comes from a Colombianword that means move fast and have fun.Dancers also took jazz, tap and musical the-

ater, which is a combination of dance styles thatcomplement each other in origin.Also offered were Pilates and ballet, which is

an artistic dance exercise of structure and disci-pline. Lauren Thompson Hall, Joy Liana,Stephanie Powell, Grace Maxwell, FelixMarchany and Tracey Bonner taught the classes.The purpose for the event was for dancers to

take a class and explore different styles of

dance. Christina Hernandez, 21, a dance major,said, “It was very beneficial to me because I wasable to dance for the whole day, as well asreceive helpful tips on how I could better myselfas a dancer.”Although Hernandez enjoyed Barre fit and

Pilates, hip-hop class was her favorite because itwas enjoyable and challenging, she said.Elizabeth Hernandez, 22, a nursing major,

said, “The hip-hop class was exhilarating inevery way. It was something new and I reallyenjoyed it.”Hernandez said she thought the amount of

LBCC students and guests was low. She saidthe fundraiser drew a great turnout and itimpacted a lot of experienced and new artists indifferent styles of dance.The Fine Arts Association collaborated with

the artistic director of the dance program,Stephanie Powell, to organize the fundraiser.

12 MARCH 1, 2012facebook.com/vikingnews Images

Story and photosby Jessica De Soto

LBCC students stand in formation to prepare for the next eight counts ofchoreography. LBCC student, Elizabeth Hernandez,back right, a registerednursing major, said, "The hip-hop class was amazing."

Dancing for a better tomorrow

The dance fundraiser included a groovy hip-hop class con-ducted by Joy Liani Hallman

Joy Liani Hallman teaches a hip-hop class to LBCC students for the dancefundraiser in Building Q, studio 113.

Professor Sheree King, chair of theater, dance and film,gets in the groove for the next dynamic turn in the hip-hopchoreography on Saturday, Feb. 25 at LAC.