Long Beach Current; April 27, 2026

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Rapper Big Sean performs during the Beach Bash concert at the LBS Financial Credit

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Sustainability takes center stage at CSULB’s Earth Day celebration

BY NATALY VALENCIA Contributor

Long Beach State’s Office of Sustainability hosted its 15th annual Green Generation Showcase to celebrate Earth Month and highlight student sustainability projects.

The showcase was held in the Earl B. Miller Japanese Garden on April 23, as part of the Week of Research, Scholarly and Creative Activity.

Students were encouraged to present their environmental or climate justice-focused research posters, prototypes and artwork, as well as network with local organizations and clubs attending the showcase.

Awards were presented to students who participated in their research projects.

“It’s so important to recognize young leaders and not be afraid to take up space because we are the ones that are inheriting this planet,” Vanessa Polk, fourthyear environmental science and policy major, said.

Polk won the 2026 Student Sustainability Leadership honorary award for her research on nutrition security in low-income, Black, Indigenous, people of color, queer and disabled bodies.

The main focus was the Sustainability Project Showcase, where students presented research and projects that explored the lack of environmental sustainability in California.

The projects displayed solutions to improve these

land acknowlEdgmEnt

EDDY CERMENO/Long Beach Current (From left) Recycling specialists Veronica Allen, Angelica Cruz, and Long Beach Recycles volunteer Benjamin Novida discuss the city’s recycling and waste reduction programs at the 15th Annual Green Generation Showcase at the Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden on April 23.

issues, such as zero-waste education on campus. Booths representing clubs like CSULB’s Environmental Science and Policy Club and the Thrift Club, and organizations like Long Beach’s Office of Climate and Sustainability, were also in attendance to recruit students and provide environmental sustainability solutions in Long Beach.

Click here for the full story.

Here at the Long Beach Current we acknowledge that the school we report on is located on the sacred site of Puvungna, “the gathering place.” We are on the land of the Tongva/ Gabrieleño and the Acjachemen/Juaneño Nations who have lived and continue to live here.

We also acknowledge the Gabrieleño/Tongva (pronounced: GABRIEL-EN-YO/TONG -VAH) and Acjachemen/Juaneño (pronounced: AH-HACH-AH-MEN/JUAN-EN-YO) as the traditional custodians of the Los Angeles region along with the Chumash (pronounced: CHOO-MOSH) to the north and west, and the Tataviam (pronounced: TAH-TAH-VEE-YUM) and Cahuilla (pronounced: KAH-WEE-YAH) Nations to the east.

We respect and value the many ways the Tongva/Acjachemen cultural heritage and beliefs continue to have significance to the living people and remind us about the sacred and spiritual relationship that has always existed here at what we now call California State University Long Beach.

Editorials:

Editorials: All opinions expressed in the columns, letters and cartoons in the issue are those of the writers or artists. The opinons of the Long Beach Current are expressed only in unsigned editorials and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the journalism department or the views of all staff members. All such editorials are written by the editorial board of the Long Beach Current.

lEttEr Policy

lEttEr Policy: All letters and emails must bear the phone number of the writer and must be no more than 300 words. The Long Beach Current reserves the right to edit letters for publication in regard to space.

ASI leaders reflect on past year as incoming team prepares to lead

BY NATALY VALENCIA Contributor

Anew executive board of Associated Students, Inc. leaders will be leading Long Beach State this fall, with Sonny Ciampa at the helm for his second term.

To prepare for a new term alongside his newly elected team, Ciampa shared his reflections on the past year’s accomplishments and challenges they will continue to work on.

“I think being a part of ASI opened my eyes to how [many] great things the campus has, but also things that need to be changed,” Ciampa said, referring to the challenges that followed the closure of the University Student Union.

To compensate for the loss of the USU, one of Ciampa’s initiatives this past year was bringing back “Home at the Beach,” a

homecoming event aimed at bringing students and alumni together.

Ciampa also worked on increasing campus seating. In the past year, he added 32 tables and 64 chairs, in addition to opening Rooms 108 and 100 in Peterson Hall 1 for students to lounge in.

Additionally, Ciampa hosted six “Meet Your ASI President” events to build trust with students and serve as an accessible resource on campus. He gathered feedback from more than 800 students at these events.

Looking ahead to the next term

Community and accessibility are Ciampa’s main priorities for next academic year.

As a student on the autism spectrum, Ciampa said he feels the disabled community is underlooked on campus.

Along with an ongoing effort to improve accessibility by speeding up construction

of the USU stairs, Ciampa is planning a disability student organization to build connections and spread awareness on campus.

“I think creating opportunities for students to have their services without [the] USU should be our main priority,” Ciampa said.

Reflections from the ASI executive team

ASI Vice President of Finance Kim Nguyen said her greatest achievement was distributing money through student travel funds. She gained satisfaction from knowing she helped fund travel expenses for students to do research and attend conferences.

In Februrary, Nguyen and the Business and Finance Committee awarded a $525 grant to the Black Student Union to attend the Afrikan Black Coalition Conference.

Additionally, Nguyen organized two

ASI Vice President of Finance Kim Nguyen (left) is joined by President Sonny Ciampa and Executive Vice President Shelton King Jr. to commemorate their appointment to their positions on March 13, 2025. Khoury Williams/ Long Beach Current

financial empowerment conferences to improve students’ financial literacy.

“I really would hope that [the newcomers] will implement more progressive funding guidelines and in a less conservative way,” Nguyen said, admitting that evenly dispersing funds for the fall and spring semesters was challenging.

She plans to provide guidance on budgeting expenses to the new vice president of finance, Itzel E. Huerta.

Former ASI Executive Vice President Shelton King Jr. said his main focus during his term was alleviating parking troubles on campus.

King Jr. advocated for the university to properly display their parking policies for students to be aware of what is not permitted, including sharing parking passes or registering more than one vehicle per permit.

King Jr. hopes the ASI newcomers will focus on practical student concerns, including reducing parking fees and providing reasonably priced food options to compensate for the loss of the USU.

“You can get a lot of things done if you have enough people passionate about it, so that’s what we’ve tried to be: very passionate, very driven, very direct,” King Jr. said.

Inside CSULB’s

Title IX process: Why investigation counts remain low

BY MAIZI MERKLEIN Contributor

Title IX reports have increased by 127% at Long Beach State between 2021–2022 and 2023–2024, according to Title IX office data, which manages reports of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, sexual misconduct, sexual harassment, dating/domestic violence and stalking on campus.

From 2021 to 2022, the office received 171 reports. The number increased to 391 reports from 2023–2024.

Despite the increase, zero cases were investigated in 2021–22 and 15 in 2023–24, according to the Office of Equity and Compliance. Title IX, “prohibits sex-based discrimination in education programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance.”

Larisa Hamada, assistant vice president for Equity and Compliance, said the data between 2021–22 and 2023–24 are not comparable due to differences in reporting structures. Between the years, personnel and reporting requirements changed.

The 2021–22 number of 171 reports reflects only Title IX matters that were resolved without an investigation, while the 2023–24 number of 391 reports reflects both Title IX and Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation matters that were possible violations of the CSU’s non-discrimination policy.

University officials suggest that the gap between report and investigation counts is due to the nature of the processes required to reach that point.

“Generally speaking, many students don’t come to us immediately wanting to

file a complaint,” Hamada said. “They’re trying to get through the week or whatever they’re going through.”

Cases managed by the OEC are divided into Title IX and DHR matters. Title IX cases involve sexual misconduct and harassment, while DHR cases cover non-Title IX discrimination and harassment based on protected statuses such as race, age or religion.

Types of Cases:

• Concerns refer to matters received by the office that do not fall under the non-discrimination policy and therefore are not under Title IX/DHR jurisdiction. These cases are referred out to other university offices or resources.

• Reports refer to matters that are possibly related to the non-discrimination policy that the campus has been made aware of. Each report is assessed by the office to determine whether it falls under its jurisdiction. If the matter is found to not be a potential violation of the non-discrimination policy or outside of the office’s authority, it is considered a concern, but still included in the ‘reports’ count.

• Complaints refer to reports where the impacted party has decided to move forward with an investigation or informal resolution.

• Investigations refer to complaints that the Title IX/DHR Office decides meet the non-discrimination policy requirements and formal fact-gathering occurs.

• Complainant: The individual who is alleged to be the victim of discrimination, harassment or sexual misconduct.

EDDY CERMENO/Long Beach Currento Long Beach State students walk around the Brotman Hall/Maxson Plaza on Feb. 4. CSULB offers on campus confidential and non-confidential resources for students to report sexual harassment, sexual or domestic violence, or stalking such as the Title IX incident reporting form and the Safer program.

• Respondent: The individual who is alleged to be the perpetrator of discrimination, harassment or sexual misconduct.

The Title IX Process

Most reports the office receives come through employees, who are required to report on behalf of students under CSU’s non-discrimination policy.

For each report the office receives, they are required to send the student an email with rights and resources.

Students may then choose to end contact or move forward with communications through the Title IX office, or connect with the Safer team on campus, a separate entity to the Title IX office that provides confidential advocacy support and prevention education for students and faculty.

If the complainant chooses to move forward, the report becomes a formal complaint. From there, the Title IX office is required to conduct a review process to determine whether the case meets the non-discrimination policy set by federal and state laws.

If the matter meets these requirements, it is moved to investigations. When cases do not meet the requirements for investigation or do not fall under Title IX’s jurisdiction, the office can still refer students to the appropriate resources such as Counseling and Psychological Services or University Police.

“[It] still is annoying, stressful and disrup-

tive for that student, so we’ll still provide a written response,” Hamada said.

According to the OEC’s 2023–2024 report, 38% of reports were resolved through supportive measures, such as no-contact directives, excused absences from work or class and referrals to campus resources, like CAPS.

“Sometimes it is helpful to have an advocate present to be able to help with those pieces of clarity,” said Lead Campus Confidential Advocate Jacqueline Urtez, who acts as a direct contact for those navigating these decisions. “There is someone going through a very difficult time behind all of this, so making sure that that person is seen and that they are really the ones making the decisions.”

Urtez emphasized that everyone experiences and responds to trauma differently.

“You have a variety of different challenges that might come up and we do what we can to meet each person where they’re at,” Urtez said.

These challenges can influence whether an individual wants to move forward with a formal complaint.

“I think it’s having to relive the trauma all over again … having to put themselves back in that place,” Urtez said. “A lot of times people just want it to stop and they want to start healing from that.”

The length of investigations can also be a factor.

Click here for the full story.

Most CSU students use AI. Is the tool helping or harming them?

BY SKYLAR STOCK Video Editor

Most devices on each of CSU’s 23 campuses have at least one artificial intelligence chatbot tab open.

This was proven in a study released by San Diego State University earlier this month, where 94,000 students, faculty and staff in the system shared their opinions on AI. The results revealed comprehensive results that the three groups are increasingly using AI, with 95% having used at least one AI too, but have hesitations in embracing it.

This comes after the CSU system invested millions into AI development, sparking controversy during the timing of the CSU’s $2.3 billion budget deficit.

Ethical dilemmas, job market concerns and the loss of human cognition are all potential downsides weighted by respondents. But alongside it, AI as a tool keeps emerging.

“There is no perfect tool,” Gabriella Hancock, associate professor in the Department of Psychology and a member of the department’s AI task force, said. “The problem with AI is that many of its disadvantages are not readily apparent.”

Understanding AI

In 2025, the CSU system entered a major partnership with multiple tech companies pioneering AI. Most prominently, they partnered with OpenAI, Microsoft and other tech companies to make AI free for the entire system.

Large language models, commonly referred to as LLMs, consist of models like ChatGPT, Claude and CoPilot. They collect content from large data sets, like the internet, to generate text or analyze data. The majority of survey participant usage was through ChatGPT, with 84% of students utilizing the chatbot.

According to Daniel O’Connor, the dean of the College of Liberal Arts, many people that use AI do not properly understand the fundamentals of the software.

Nine in 10 faculty, 89% of staff and 85% of students want transparency in AI algorithms, according to the SDSU study.

“AI represents a shortcut that oftentimes, can take us down misleading pathways,”

O’Connor said. “It is critical that we at the university teach our students about AI and as much as we can.”

While he acknowledged potential time-saving benefits, he feared fundamental skills of critical thinking and cognitive skills could potentially be dulled.

Hancock cited the different ways to use AI, saying business majors would benefit from being able to study or crunch numbers using the software.

Third-year finance and marketing major Jaden Men uses Claude almost every day to improve his workflow, like drafting emails or mocking up designs.

“I make the final judgement calls and I polish it to make sure it’s what I want,” Men said.

However, when it comes to creative endeavors, Hancock said that the benefits of AI may dwindle. To her, the human mind is able to comprehend abstract ideas in a way that AI is simply not capable of yet.

Her line of thought was backed by the data, which consistently marked around 80% of students, staff and faculty concerned with AI negatively impacting human creativity.

Some faculty found the results of the study unsurprising, like Shadnaz Asgari, chair of the computer engineering and computer science department: “[It] validates the insights that we had before within the department in terms of the direction that higher education would take,” she said.

In anticipation of AI’s prominence, the department created the applied data science major, to bridge AI with real world application. To Asgari, AI is the future, no matter which degree or career.

AI in education

“Benefit [from AI training] will come about from someone understanding the nature and limitations of the tools that they’re using to do their job or to accomplish their goals,” Hancock said.

She believes that AI is here to stay, so proper training to sense its weaknesses is important. The study yielded notable results – students were the most likely in the study to take AI at face value, and least likely to be interested in formal training.

This gap in AI literacy was explored in

REHANSA KULATILLEKE/Long Beach Current

a 2025 San Jose State study that included 11 CSUs. 27% of CSU schools reported efforts for AI education as poor, 36% fair and 36% good. On the flip side, faculty and staff had the most educational resources, as more than half reported excellent and good stats, with only 9% rated poorly.

While usage is up, many students are learning through self-application rather than formal training, despite an increase in resources. Camille Wong, fourth-year computer science major and project executive of the AI Club, said that she’s noticed student gaps in AI comfortability.

“We’re [upperclassmen] not rejecting it as much as some of the freshmen and sophomores,” Wong said.

While the focus on AI is on it as a tool, job security is a looming fear for many. The common thought is adapt or get left behind, but even with adaptation, Meta laid off 10% of their workforce in favor of AI.

negatives that must be addressed.

More than 90% for each group—the highest agreement in the study – felt that regulating AI use is needed. Coming up with active regulation and a common curriculum is no easy feat.

Future of AI policy in higher education

Recommendations from the SJSU study found that institutions like governments and higher education should work together for policy, instead of “acting in isolation” with individual guidelines.

Hancock described the ever-changing AI systems as a “moving target,” one that is hard to pinpoint specific regulations.

This highlights what 69% of students feared: unstable job security in an already difficult job market.

“Speficially in my major, I don’t think AI would be helpful,” second-year psychology major Kaden Hart said.

Computer science, once marked a stable degree, has significantly changed projections. Asgari hopes that the applied data science major will set students ahead of the curve on AI education. She acknowledged that like every tool, AI has positives and

For now, students adhere to the AI CSULB Student Guidelines, which is updated regularly. In these guidelines, individual instructor policy is honored over any other entity.

The CSU conducted its first system wide survey on artificial intelligence, becoming the largest AI survey in higher education to date. Watch the video here.

This CSULB graduate delivers punchlines without punching down

BY MONICA GARCIA Arts & Life Assistant

At Girlypop Mic comedy shows, the tone is set before the laughter begins with three rules: support the bar, stay for the show and leave rape jokes off the mic.

During shows, specialty drinks, served with names like “Girlypop Glitter Bomb” and “The Long Beach Lesbian,” are illuminated by a neon-pink sign reading “Girlypop Mic.”

Funded out of pocket by show host Jenny Burnett, the merchandise wall is decorated with baby-pink and blue shirts and tote bags of her creation.

Girlypop night—hosted every Wednesday at Executive Suite—began with Burnett’s work, a Long Beach State creative writing major who received her diploma in fall 2025.

“It’s located in the gay bar,” Burnette said, “It’s called the Girlypop Mic, that deterred a

lot of the assholes… the name alone.”

One year after starting the inclusive open mic night with about five inconsistent comedians, Burnett now caps the growing list of comedians to 20 a night.

Burnett spent over an hour passing out flyers a day before the April 15 show near the 4th Street and Broadway queer bars in Long Beach. Her sister Danielle Burnett, who helps with lighting and sound for the show, has become a part of her pre-show routine.

Passing out flyers is just one of the many responsibilities Burnett has taken on to amplify the voices of other comedians who share her mission of inclusivity in comedy.

“It’s important to me to have comedy that’s progressive,” Burnett said. “To show people that you can be culturally aware, you can be culturally sensitive and be funny.”

As a biracial queer comedian, Burnett has learned to adapt to spaces that historically exclude marginalized communities. She recently applied for a city grant to

fund Girlypop Mic after using her own money, time and resources for months now to promote the show.

Burnett originally wanted to be a screenwriter, but her career plans changed when her sister enrolled her in a stand-up class at The Second City in Hollywood in 2019, a famed comedy troupe. After her final showcase with the course, Burnett’s teacher inspired her to continue with stand-up.

Since then, Burnett has worked to create a space for comedy that isn’t focused on problematic jokes or centered on straight male audiences.

“Every industry changes,” Burnett said. “Comedy is just another industry. If you cannot keep up, there’s a door; get out.”

Burnett said some of the other women comedians at open mic shows told her that they were being stalked by men after their shows or were receiving unsolicited advice from other male comedians.

Danielle Burnett said her sister received

lots of pushback after setting the rules for Girlypop Mic.

“A rape joke is an oxymoron,” Danielle Burnett said. “We had some of them come and be annoyed that they don’t get laughs. And I’m like, ‘You’re not getting laughs because you’re making fun of women.’”

Burnett prioritizes comedians from marginalized backgrounds to perform at Girlypop Mic, people of color and queer communities. She said the show sprouted as a pipeline from the inclusive open mic night.

“I think it’s wonderful that they’re creating this space for everyone to feel included,” Silvia De Anda, a comedian at Girlypop, said.

As Burnette said, Girlypop Mic was created to provide comedians with a clearer path toward success in comedy.

“I think it challenges you to be more clever and not just say whatever you think is edgy but to actually be funny,” De Anda said.

Cultures shine at Golden Hour art and community market

BY JOSEPH LEE Arts & Life Assistant

Golden Hour arrived several hours early this year.

In its second year, the Golden Hour market shifted from its original 5 to 7 p.m. slot on Friendship Walk to a noon event in the Central Quad, adapting to ongoing campus construction.

On Thursday, April 23, the Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions program Project Resilience, in association with the Asian, Pacific Islander, & Desi Resource Center, and the California State University Asian American, Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander Student Achievement Program hosted Golden Hour, a market celebrating cultures across the AAPI/APID community.

The event’s festivities included local vendors that sold art, food and artisan goods alongside interactive arts-and-crafts tables, while pop music from various Asian countries played from a DJ set.

The event also featured campus and

community organization resource booths highlighting mental wellness services and student support programs.

Among the vendors emerged a name hard to ignore: Cabrón James.

Cabrón James is the art project of 30-year-old Chinese and Filipino-American alumnus Justin Chow.

Originally named after his fantasy basketball team, the project began in 2019 when Chow was still a community college student. It was “a fun name” that was easy to remember before eventually learning that in Spanish, cabrón can be translated literally to “goat.”

“Actually, I found out the real meaning of cabrón,” Chow said. “There’s a good version and a bad version. The good version is ‘goat.’ So it made too much sense not to happen.”

Through the label, Chow reimagines popular musicians as comic book heroes, villains and vintage book characters.

One print recast Frank Ocean the musician instead as a novel about “a daring expedition into the uncharted depths of the ocean,” while another framed the

band Tame Impala as “The Tame Impala,” a novel about a tribesman who rescues a time-traveling impala.

After earning his art studio degree from Long Beach State in spring 2025, Chow returned to campus as a vendor.

“I owe a lot of money in student loans,” Chow said. “It’s funny that everything I learned here, I’m putting it back into school to pay that off.”

On the other side of the vendor tables, attendees said the event created space for visibility and community.

Third-year microbiology major Stephanie Oseguera said the event highlighted AAPI/APID artists who often go underrepresented.

“It’s good for [the community] to have this space and event for them to be highlighted more,” Oseguera said. “I feel like it’s very common for minorities to be underrepresented, so it’s nice for them to be highlighted with a specific event.”

Third-year drawing & painting major and peer mentor for Project Resilience, Lucille Montelongo served the event as a student

Third-year microbiology major Stephanie Oseguera (left) and third-year psychology major Natalie Cruz visit Starflaffy, one of the vendors at Golden Hour held at the Central Quad on April 23. Starflaffy sells an array of stickers, magnets and keychains ranging from $6–$20.

REHANSA KULATILLEKE/Long Beach Current

assistant alongside several others.

“It’s really good for students to see themselves in a space like this,” Montelongo said.

“To even have a month that acknowledges where they come from, their cultures, their identities within these groups that sometimes get underrepresented as a whole, it’s just really cool to have them all come together and feel celebrated.”

Montelongo identifies as multiracial, although much of her identity searching surrounds her Palauan roots, an indigenous Micronesian population of people that belong to the Republic of Palau.

The event also connected to resources like Empowering Pacific Islander Communities, or EPIC, a national organization that advocates for social justice in Pacific Islander communities, something that Montelongo was proud to spotlight as a resource at the event.

“Being multiracial, I think a lot of times I get [mistaken] for white-passing,” Montelongo said. “So being able to represent myself, what makes me whole… I just feel uplifted… to see myself in these spaces.”

Big Sean brings the ‘Blessings’ to packed Pyramid at Beach Bash

BY ELI VICE Video Assistant

Six-time Grammy award-nominated artist Big with you, but he certainly f—’s with Long Beach lining the Beach Bash campus concert on April Students excited to see Big Sean and DEV’s Friday night lined up as early as 4:30 outside the LBS Union Pyramid.

One of the students who lined up early, Link Dixon, first concert ever.

“I don’t really do anything here on campus other said. “I just figured I’d try something new.”

First-year student Jazzelle Woods, also in line, had that had grown popular among the excited students.

“You know how Justin Bieber brought him [Big Sean] Woods said. “What if he brings out Justin Bieber right

As doors opened and crowds rushed into the Pyramid, and his MC, Ray on the Mic, began turning the still dance party.

The DJ and MC played everything from classic written” by Natasha Bedingfield to Travis Scott’s 2023

A dance battle between students erupted before the competition was fierce, but after it was announced that receive free tickets to Universal Studios, participants

Artist DEV, perhaps most notably recognized as East Movement’s “Like A G6”, later hit the stage.

While some may not have been familiar with her discography, seemed to thoroughly enjoy the EDM-pop fusion, rocking foam sticks to the beat.

During their opening sets, DEV, DJ B-ROKK guided a smooth transition into Big Sean, building most notably playing Sheck Wes’s stadium anthem,

Watch the video here.

Big Sean may not f— Beach State after headApril 24.

DEV’s CSULB debut LBS Financial Credit

Dixon, said this was his other than study,” Dixon had a “guest star” theory students.

Sean] out at Coachella?” right now?” Pyramid, DJ B-ROKK still concert floor into a pop hits such as “Un2023 hit, “FE!N.” the performances. The that the winner would participants started twerking. the vocal lead on Far discography, the crowd rocking their light-up and Ray on the Mic up hype throughout, “Mo Bamba”.

Once the openers cleared the stage, it was the moment the crowd was waiting for.

Big Sean opened his set with “Paradise,” and while some were unfamiliar with the song, the energy he radiated during this extremely technical performance was palpable.

The artist had frequent spoken “interludes,” sharing quick anecdotes about his life.

“I’m from Detroit [but] I was born in Santa Monica, so I was actually born [on] the West Coast,” Sean said.

He also quickly shut down the rumors of a possible Justin Bieber surprise performance.

“He’s not here; I did talk to him recently, though,” Sean said.

Sean then played a Bieber song on which he is featured, “As Long As You Love Me,” sending the Pyramid into a frenzy.

But the crowd got the loudest during his performance of “I Don’t Fuck With You”, his 2014 hit that, for some, was almost therapeutic to sing along to.

Throughout the show, it was clear that Big Sean thrives in his features, as shown through a song with over 1 billion streams on Spotify, the 2017 summer anthem “Feels,” and “Don’t Like.1,” a popular remix of Chief Keef’s hit, “I Don’t Like,” which features Big Sean, Kanye West, Pusha T and more rappers at the top of their game.

Sean’s performance at the Pyramid was thrilling from start to finish, leaving both die-hard fans and those who only knew the hits equally impressed.

After the concert, Big Sean shared advice to students during an interview with ASI Communications and student press.

“Faith is like walking on a bridge you can’t see,” Sean said. “It’s gonna carry you to the other side as long as you believe in it; the moment you stop believing in it, you’ll fall flat.

ARTS & LIFE

Clockwise from the far left: Rapper Big Sean performs the crowd during the Beach Bash concert at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid on April 24. | Students crowd the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid during the 2026 Beach Bash. | Singer DEV points to the crowd during the Beach Bash concert.

Photos

by

ETHAN COHEN/Long

Beach Current

Annual BeachLife Festival splashes back with Duran Duran, The Chainsmokers and more

BY DANTE ESTRADA AND VALENTINA VILLARREAL Multimedia Managing Editor and Social Media Assistant

The annual BeachLife Festival returns next weekend for its seventh year, with headlining artists that include Duran Duran, The Chainsmokers, The Offspring and James Taylor taking the stage May 1 through May 3.

About half an hour away from Long Beach State, the BeachLife Festival is at 239 N Harbor Drive, Redondo Beach.

On Friday, the festival starts as early as 1:30 p.m., while on Saturday and Sunday shows start at 11:30 a.m.

Last year’s performers included headliners Lenny Kravitz, Sublime and Alanis Morissette. Other artists present were The Beach Boys, CAKE and Train.

This year will include performances from a variety of supporting artists such as Grouplove, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts and Peach Pit alongside opportunities to check out different food vendors and sponsors.

Dining options include partnerships with nearby businesses, including the California Surf Club, open to Captain Plus and full-time club members. Other meal options

range from LoZio Osteria, Wise Barbeque and Habit Burger.

The festival additionally holds options for alcoholic beverages with bar locations throughout the festival, and DAOU Vineyards as the official wine partner.

“We were lucky enough to grow up in Southern California on the beach, surfing, hanging out with sand between our toes, vibing with friends and living the beach life,” Allen Sanford, BeachLife co-founder and owner, said in a press release.

Since its launch in 2019, the Redondo Beach native festival has maintained its rich tradition of high-quality performances while remaining readily accessible to audi-

ences who do not want to venture further into the Hollywood scene for a music show.

“Our culture celebrates the power and the beauty of the ocean and coastal resources—our waves, wind, smell of sea salt, beaches, sand and wildlife that call this their home,” Sanford said in the press release.

This year’s festival will be launching the Industry Sky Deck premium ticket option, with a combination of upscale features but focuses on curating “elevated comfort.”

The majority of ticket options for this year’s BeachLife Festival remain open only for single-day tickets, with only a few threeday options left in the Captain ticket options.

Slow walkers, bad drivers top student pet peeves

BY CHRISTIAN ROBLEDO Opinions Assistant

The concept of a pet peeve is just so intriguing. If a peeve is something one finds annoying, why would you ever want to keep it close to you or comfort it like you would a pet?

Rather than being willingly cared for like pets, these annoyances function more like an infestation, forcing their way into our heads and carving out dens within the grey matter.

But if we know what annoys us, perhaps we can avoid it, forcing the painful pest that is a pet peeve out of our minds.

After surveying 50 CSULB students, it became clear that many people have pet peeves—especially those tied to life on a college campus. While some responses were unique, others were surprisingly common, offering useful insight into understanding the nature of pet peeves.

One of the biggest pet peeves shared among the students surveyed was a hatred for slow walkers. Ten percent of the respondents agreed that slow walking is unspeakably annoying. First-year chemical engineering major Ciana Gonzales was part of this 10%.

“You are just in my way,” Gonzales said. This sentiment was also shared by firstyear civil engineering major Lucas Rich, who said slow walkers are especially irritating on campus. “It’s really annoying, especially when I’m trying to get to class,” Rich said

Another pet peeve shared by our student body is bad drivers. Perhaps unsurprisingly for a commuter school, another 10% of the surveyed students shared that bad driving is what ticks them off.

From chewing gum to walking slowly every day seems to bring a new pet

grievances even worth the time we give them?

Senior computer science major John Seng specifies that his pet peeve when it comes to drivers is when someone parks poorly and forces you to adjust the way you park. “I hate being the bad guy when I’m just existing,” Seng said.

The third most annoying thing, according to CSULB, is people who chew loudly. With 4% of our 50 students agreed that chewing loudly is an annoyance capable of keeping them up at night. It seems this pet peeve, while not as common as the others, is still more common than one might think.

Citing overstimulation that leads to aggravation, third-year political science major Lizabeth Torres Ixta made it clear why she dislikes people who chew loudly. “I hate it because it’s rude, and I get overstimulated,” Torres Ixta said.

Similarly, senior sociology major Rashawn Cornett finds loud gum chewing to be just too much. “I hate the sound of chewing gum and popping it simultaneously. It drives me up a wall because it sounds similar to nails on a chalkboard or scraping the side of a styrofoam cup. It’s very aggra-

vating to my ears,” Cornett said.

Apart from these commonly shared pet peeves, the Long Beach Current Question Corner also revealed that here at CSULB, there are some nuisances that are more specific or obscure.

One example of a nuanced pet peeve was the one shared by third-year communications major Lindsey LoBue who said that her biggest irritant is when people don’t hold the door for you. “Because [they] hyper focus on their own thing. Like tunnel vision and not helping others,” LoBue said when explaining why she finds this specific act so annoying.

Another pet peeve that is rare, yet understandably infuriating, was the peeve shared by second-year civil engineering major Akbar Shaikh. “People vaping or kissing in public,” Shaikh said about his biggest pet peeve, “it just makes me feel awkward and uncomfortable.”

One last example of a less common pet peeve comes from third-year public relations major Nathaniel Therrien who said that people being hypocritical is truly maddening. “I just don’t understand when

people say they hate or are annoyed by something but still do it,” Therrien said.

With everything considered, common or niche, the concept of a pet peeve still doesn’t make sense. Harboring these annoyances and caring for them as a pet will only see these issues grow into bigger angers. However, there may be hope for a change. By critically thinking about these more common peeves and lending a listening ear to those that are slightly less prominent, we can create changes. While not changing who we are but being able to change the habits we know annoy our peers, we can all work together to avoid the consequences of raising these pet peeves into malicious monsters, acting as the best form of pest control and making a much less aggravated society - or at least college campus.

How hopeless is it to be a hopeless romantic?

Graphic by GABRIELLE LASHLEY/Long Beach Current

The fictional world of romance often makes the real world of love seem dull in comparison, making the expectations versus reality complicated.

BY SASHA MARANTZ Copy Assistant

What do you think of when you hear the word “love”?

Maybe your response is followed by a wistful sigh, backed by hopes and dreams of a happily ever after, or alternatively, a groan of despair as a result of false hopes and crushed dreams. Usually, I’m inclined to the former, but given the more recent snuffs while attempting to find a spark in my love life, my response is now the latter.

Without fail, my own experiences have left me empty and envious of other love stories. You have my deepest sympathies if you have ever been subjected to a failed talking stage or ended up in a dreaded situationship.

What is it about this generation that has led to these weird happenings in place of a real relationship? Where has the romance

gone? Where is our whimsy and yearning?

If you’re in a committed relationship, you can consider yourself lucky for being freed of these questions. For those of us on the marriage mart, these debates might be common as we search for love in different ways.

Fairy tales always paint a picture of romance with ease, setting the tone for what one’s ideal relationship should look like: you meet your true love, you get married and start a family.

Despite being a hopeless romantic, I have often found it hard to think about my future in love, especially marriage. The reality of love is never perfect, which begs the question: how do you know if the love you are in is fit to last?

You don’t.

The idea itself is intimidating—building relationships that could potentially disappear. If the goal is to create something lasting, it can seem futile if it fails too often.

Despite my current pessimism, I have always loved love. I would even go as far as to say that Valentine’s Day is my favorite holiday. However hopeless a romantic I may be, it is not futile to dream of love.

Being a lover of romance means consuming the genre in media, which I think is to blame for creating these fantasies. Movies, shows and novels often create extravagant love stories that set an unrealistic standard that women often desire and men struggle to meet.

When I first watched “Gilmore Girls,” my heart ached with bittersweet yearning in response to the moment when Lorelai got sent 1,000 yellow daisies after she mentioned them being what’s included in a “proper proposal.”

Romantic gestures like this are likely what inspire people on social media to use the phrase “If he wanted to, he would,” which I was introduced to around the time

I watched the show.

However, this idea is unfair to men in real life who are being compared to actions created in works of fiction, automatically setting the tone for high standards (see also: the entire plot of “The Notebook”).

Although these instances of romance are fantastical, it does not mean that similarly heart-fluttering moments cannot exist in reality.

Realistic romantic gestures might just look a little different. They are less likely to look like a delivery of 1,000 daisies or building you your dream house, especially not in this economy.

Love is more than the sum of grand gestures one does for the other, especially since everyone gives and receives it in different ways.

To the hopeless romantics: don’t give up when it comes to looking for love—you might miss a happy ending.

Le leads wire-to-wire to win Big West Championship

BY MONICA BADOLIAN Sports Assistant

By the time Long Beach State senior women’s golfer Madison Le tapped in her final putt at the 2026 Big West Championship in Lahaina, Hawaii, she still did not know where she stood in the tournament.

No scoreboard. No phone. No updates.

“I actually had no idea what the scores were going into, even 18, the last hole. I told my coach, ‘Don’t tell me anything,’” Le said. “I refused to check my phone, the scoreboard, I didn’t want to know. I actually had no idea it was wire-to-wire until I made my last putt.”

Le had just completed one of the most difficult feats in golf, leading a tournament from start to finish on her way to capturing her first collegiate title with a 54-hole score of 208 (-8), finishing one stroke ahead of Cal State Fullerton senior and defending Big West Player of the Year Davina Xanh. Even without knowing exactly where she stood, the pressure still crept in.

“I feel like I was still nervous and anxious because it was the last few holes, and I had no idea where I was standing,” Le said. “I was trying to play as calmly as I could, but I noticed my adrenaline was so high that I was getting the shots farther. I definitely was nervous still, even though I didn’t know quite who was behind me, but I was still pretty anxious.”

Le expressed gratitude to both of her coaches, head coach Alyssa Waite and assistant coach Lexi Nielsen, who helped her stay calm without overthinking.

“It definitely helped that I had them around me because when you have your coaches there, it’s very easy to play golf because you just walk to your ball, they tell you exactly what club to hit, what number to hit, and you just do it, and then you move on,” Le said. “I think it definitely helped a lot to have them there because they didn’t let me think.”

Waite saw that transformation clearly.

“She had the tournament wire-to-wire, which is one of the hardest things to do in golf, to be the first round leader, continue to the second, and then hold it in the final round… it was honestly so impressive to see that she didn’t even look anxious,” Waite said. “She didn’t look nervous, and obviously I knew she was nervous, but you couldn’t tell based on the way she was hitting the ball, the way she was walking, the way she was acting.”

That breakthrough showed up early. She opened the first day of the tournament with a program-record nine-under par 63, fueled by a red-hot putter.

“My putts were just dropping. It honestly felt no different than any other day I played golf. It just happened like all my putts would go in, which was very convenient,” she said.

But her success was not just in the courses.

“All week, I think definitely off the tee helped me a lot because if you go into the rough on this course, it gets pretty tough… I think definitely off the tee was really good,” Le said. “I kept it in the fairway, and then from there I just went onto the green and then two-putted and got out… It was very easy golf.”

Behind that simplicity, however, was a grind few people may see.

“I feel like as student-athletes we put our bodies through a lot… for example, I do have tendinitis in both my ankles… Basically, every tournament I’ve almost ever played, I’ve had to tape it up the morning of,” Le said. “Golf is such a mental game. It gets to your head so easily. I definitely say having to get past that little… mental thing of putting, I had to get over.”

For Waite, Le’s victory represents more than her growth as a golfer but also the person she has become.

“She’s matured so much she is now a very impressive, confident young woman that is very secure with herself and the life that she wants… It’s been so enjoyable to watch her grow and learn to become the person that she wants to become,” Waite

said.

Le credits that growth to her time at LBSU, and that connection made the final moment more meaningful to her.

“Ever since the beginning of the day, I felt so grateful to be there that I was on the verge of tears… I feel like once I made the putt and coach told me I did it, that hit me again,” Le said. “I was so grateful I could cry… it’s been all four years working towards this, and it’s just crazy that it was my very last Big West.”

Le becomes the latest in a long line of LBSU champions, becoming the seventh woman in the history of the program to win the individual Big West title, and the sixth LBSU champion in the last eight tournaments.

“I think this moment means to me is that I made my family proud,” Le said. “My dad got me into golf when I was 11… my mom has always supported me… my brother has been my number one competitor… it just is

very happy knowing I made them proud.”

Le hopes that when her LBSU career is looked back on, it won’t just be for the title.

“I want them to remember me as just being a nice and kind person… I don’t care if I get dead last or first place,” Le said. “As long as they remember me as being a kind person, then I won.”

With the win, Le earns an automatic berth into the NCAA postseason, where she plans to keep things simple.

“I think my goal is still fairways and greens, two-putt… I like to play very basic golf, very simple golf because it takes everything bad out of the equation,” Le said.

Le will find out her destination during the NCAA Selection Show, which airs live on the Golf Channel at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, April 29.

Above all, she wants to stay present.

“I want to enjoy it… I don’t want to think too far ahead into the future and just miss everything.”

The Beach rallies to stun Hawai’i in five-set war to claim Big West Championship

BY BRIANNA APODACA Sports Assistant

IRVINE - Fighting to be the best in the Big West, No. 3 Long Beach State men’s volleyball faced No. 1 Hawai’i in a five-set battle.

The Beach delivered back-to-back clutch service aces to force a fifth set comeback and beat the Rainbow Warriors 3–2 to claim the Big West Championship title on Saturday night at the Bren Events Center.

The Rainbow Warriors (27–5) controlled the opening set before The Beach responded in the second. That didn’t cause the Rainbow Warriors to let off the gas, as they regained momentum in the third after dropping the second. The fourth set was tightly contested, with The Beach continuing to fight and ultimately pushing the match to a fifth set, in which LBSU clinched its third Big West title in program history.

The Beach (24–4) struggled to find their rhythm, hitting just .160 in the first set as

the Rainbow Warriors opened with a 25–20 win behind a .294 attack percentage.

The Beach were able to adjust in the second set, raising their hitting percentage to .351.

The Rainbow Warriors regained control in the third set, putting together their most efficient offensive stretch of the night. Hawai’i hit .379 in the frame and used balanced scoring to secure a 25–22 win and a 2–1 set lead.

With the game and the conference title on the line, LBSU responded with its most composed stretch of the match in the fourth. The Beach hit .351 and sided out a match-best 78%, trading points with the Rainbow Warriors deep into extra points before closing out the set on back-to-back service aces from freshmen middle blocker Jackson Cryst to force a fifth.

REHANSA KULATILLEKE/Long Beach Current

The LBSU men’s volleyball team poses for a photo after being named the winner of the Big West Championship at the Bren Events Center. LBSU won its title after defeating Hawai’i on April 25.

“We were down 23–21, which isn’t where you want to be,” LBSU freshman outside hitter Wojciech Gajek said. “But we stayed consistent with our job, found a way to win the set and then carried that into the fifth.”

The Beach kept their momentum into the deciding fifth set and took control early, never letting the Rainbow Warriors regain their footing.

“When you get to a fifth set, it’s a game of momentum,” LBSU head coach Nick MacRae said. “We got out early, took advantage, and they weren’t able to come back.”

Click here for the full story.

Catching the Wave: Ranking the most thrilling games of the spring semester

BY TIMOTHY HESSEN Sports Editor

As the spring semester at Long Beach State comes to a close and the final game at the Pyramid has come and gone, it’s a sentimental time to be an LBSU sports fan.

Writing about the state of LBSU and college sports as a whole in the Long Beach Current’s weekly sports column has been an incredibly rewarding experience. With just three editions left, the home stretch of Catching The Wave will take a look back at the biggest moments and most impressive seasons of this year in LBSU Athletics, before taking a look at what’s next to come. First, here are the top three games of the spring semester at The Beach.

1: Women’s water polo celebrates senior night in sudden-death fashion

No. 8 LBSU women’s water polo commemorated the careers of its seniors on April 2 against rival No. 10 UC Irvine.

But as the Anteaters stood on the doorstep of spoil-

ing the final home games for The Beach’s all-time leading scorer, Elisa Portillo and Cutino Award Watch List selection Lucy Miszewski, it was junior utility Chiara Amoroso who saved the day.

After four quarters and two overtimes were not enough to separate these two storied rivals, Amoroso found the back of the net for her career-high sixth goal of the day in sudden death to put a stamp on a thrilling senior night.

2. Beach volleyball’s top-flight duo makes history

No. 10 LBSU beach volleyball’s victory over Pepperdine University on Feb. 28 was a standard affair without much of a back-and-forth, as The Beach rolled over the Waves 4-1.

However, the reason this game makes the list is for the major milestone that may never be repeated at The Beach.

The star senior top-flight duo of Taylor Hagenah/Malia Gementera were already the all-time winningest pair in the program’s history heading into their senior season, but reached their 100th victory against Pepperdine in the sixth game of the season.

Playing together since their freshman seasons and being dominant from the beginning made it possible for the

pair to become the fourth duo ever in NCAA women’s beach volleyball to reach 100 wins.

3: LBSU’s five-set thriller with UCLA in battle of the top two teams in the nation

The result was a sour one for The Beach, but it cannot spoil what was the most electric atmosphere in LBSU sports all year, when the then-top-two-ranked teams in the country matched up at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid.

On Feb. 6, 4,252 fans filled a sold-out Pyramid to watch the next chapter of the greatest rivalry in NCAA volleyball, as The Beach and Bruins have been the last two teams standing in both of the last two NCAA Championships.

The matchup delivered with an exciting five-set finish, as The Beach went up 2-0 just to drop three straight sets, as UCLA senior outside hitter Zach Rama’s 21 kills powered the Bruins to the reverse sweep.

The Beach will hope to see the No. 1-ranked Bruins for a third time this season at the NCAA Tournament, hosted by UCLA in Pauley Pavilion.