ROUNDUP UP therounduponline.net
Woodland Hills, California
A FIRST AMENDMENT PUBLICATION
Volume 114 - Issue 5
One copy free, each additional copy 50¢
March 30, 2011
Cuts made, fees raised
Moved to run towards hope Relay for Life has home base on campus
Kat Mabry/ Roundup
Sydney Grossman/ Roundup Call it scary, a dead end, or pure panic. Call it death. It is cancer and there is no cure. With 9 days left until the second annual Relay for Life of Woodland Hills kicks off, students, faculty and community members raise awareness and funds to fight for a cure. The relay will be taking place on Pierce College’s soccer fields starting April 9. With 25 teams registered and 156 participants, Relay for Life has raised more than $16,000. Currently, two members from Y’s Relay Rockstars have already raised more than $2,000 each and the team has collectively raised more than $8,000. “Fundraising online is so easy to use and donations are easier to process,” said April Vilgera, online chair for the relay. After last year’s event, more than $80,000 was raised, according to co-chair Elaine Pachecco, who hopes to see more than $80,000 donated this year. “We do have money raised, but we see a majority of what is raised come in on the day of the event,” Pachecco said. Although open to anyone, there are currently seven teams that have been created with Pierce students, clubs and sports teams. Some include the French Club, American Sign Language Club and Team Brahma. There is a one-time fee of $10 for registration and each member is asked to commit to raising a minimum of $100 each. Other relay teams include Relay Runts, the children whose parents are survivors, and Y’s Relay Rockstars, a top-fundraising team who has a 24-hour walking member. Bryce Peterson, four-year-old son of Y’s Relay Rockstars’ captain said, “no matter how tired we are, people still need us to help them, so we need to be there for them.” Breast cancer has touched the lives of more than 3.5 million people in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society. The relay has been an ongoing annual event for 26 years and takes place in 19 countries around the world. “Everyone is there because they have [in] some way been affected by cancer,” said Pachecco. “It’s a positive way to do something about cancer. People come and it’s amazing. I love the support. ” Relay for Life not only raises money and awareness for those affected, but also offers nearly a dozen events all day and night.
Joe Kukuczka / Roundup
ATTENTION TO DETAIL: Jason Cozza, one of the Fab Three works away, welding to prepare for the state competition in San Diego.
Welding a way to win No stranger to victory, students are headed to take state Victor Stephen Kamont / Roundup
SEE RELAY ON PAGE 4
The Pierce College welding team won six gold medals at the regional competition in February. Their achievements garnered them the chance to compete at the Welding State Championship competition in San Diego, California in April. “Our competitions are very challenging,” welding instructor Gary Wheeler said. “We prepare well, we come in on our off days, and Saturdays.” The atmosphere in the welding department is clean, and full of hard working students preparing for their next competition. The names of the winners are displayed on brass plates hanging on the wall. “Every student has their own style, mine works for me but not for everybody, said Wheeler. “I push the buttons and they do the work, it shows in the medals they have won.” Students praised their instructor and the freedom they have in the applications of his teachings. “We’re given the basics, then we develop our own style,” said welding student Jason Cozza. In this year’s state competition, Pierce will have a fabricating team
Joe Kukuczka / Roundup
SPARKS FLY: Protected by gloves and goggles, heat from Wheelerʼs student welders cause sparks to fly in every direction. known as the Fab Three. “I’m proud of the guys, they did it themselves, its good for my ego and it is good for theirs,” Wheeler said. The Fab Three are given a theme, a certain amount of metal, and are then required to make a blueprint developed using a Computer-aided design (CAD) program. “I learned about this program last year, this is our second year in this competition,” said Wheeler. “If we win the State, we will go to the Nationals in June.” The Fab three team includes three welders: Jason Cozza, Gregg Lindlahr, and Brian Burke.
Cozza is in his sixth semester and won Gold in the medal inert gas (MIG) category. ”I love the atmosphere and the people in this great all-around program. That’s why I keep coming back to compete,” said Cozza. The class meets every Tuesday and Thursday at 5:45 p.m. in room 3805. “The night classes work if you have a full time job,” Cozza said. Gregg Lindlahr, one of the Fab Three, has been attending Pierce for three semesters. “I like making things on my own, working with a team, and utilizing different skill sets,” said
Lindlahr. Burke works with his dad as a tape welder and has been at Pierce for four years. “It is an honor to represent the school,” said Burke. “Last years combo-welding team took first [gold] in the regional’s.” Wheeler talked about the value of the trades, specifically welding. “They think these buildings are built magically, they don’t realize people from these classes do that stuff,” said Wheeler. “Machine shops, auto shops, CAD drawings… they don’t realize this is how our inner city is built.” Welding classes aren’t taught enough in high school or junior high school according to Wheeler. “It’s not for everyone, it’s for people that like to work with their hands and get dirty and burnt,” said Wheeler. The Pierce College Welding team is prepared and eager to put their trading and hard work to the test. The competition will be held at the Local Iron Workers of San Diego. “They have all the skills they need. They just have to be able to work under pressure,” said Wheeler.
vkamont.roundupnews@gmail. com
Summer school ambiguous at best Melody Soto/ Roundup California’s financial woes have cut back classes offered dramatically for the last few semesters. Summer school is not exempt from these changes. As of now, one session of limited classes has been scheduled for summer 2011, but classes are still susceptible to revisal depending on near future decisions. According to Barbara Anderson, dean of academic affairs, the
already reduced class options for students may be erased all together since it is in the hands of the public. “If the voters vote in support of extending the taxes that were in place, then we’re planning on going forth with offering limited summer school,” Anderson said. Some of the classes currently planned include English, math and speech. The PACE program will offer a summer quarter with some of-
ferings before the PACE program shortens its semester long quarter, according to Donna- Mae Villanueva, dean of academic affairs. “The PACE schedule is being reduced from the usual eight weeks to seven weeks in length,” said Villanueva. The BRIDGE program will offer classes in English, math, speech and personal development classes for student success, according to Anderson. Elizabeth Clemmons, 20, is a
pre-veterinary major. She doesn’t like the minimal options of classes available. “It’s frustrating. The [pre-veterinary] program takes long enough to get into,” Clemmons said. Clemmons also suggested that with the course offerings being cut, the longer it will take to complete her time in school. “It’s going to take even longer for people to get out of Pierce,” Clemmons said.
INSIDE SECTIONS
msoto.roundupnews@gmail.com
Opinion
News page 2
Photo Essay pages 3, 4
page 6
California Community College students registering for fall semester will see a significant change in their tuition as a result of a $10 per unit fee increase. Gov. Jerry Brown signed bills Thursday, March 24 that cut billions in California’s budget directly effecting the California Community College District; raising fees from $26 a unit to $36. Not all students on campus were aware of the change in fees that will be affecting them directly. “It’s crazy, I had to quit my job because it didn’t pay enough for my education,” said Noe Gomez Jr., 19, art major. Gomez receives no financial aid and is still currently unemployed. “There’s so many other ways to tax people, why choose education,” said Gomez. Brown and state legislators cut $400 million from the community college system overall. These cuts have forced students on campus to explore other options in order to fund their education. Brittney Pasion-Perez, 22, child development major received a fee waiver from the Board of Governors for spring semester. “I’m transferring next semester,” said Pasion-Perez after learning of the fee increase. “A couple years ago I would have been outraged.” Pasion-Perez plans to transfer to CSU Los Angeles. “With the prices of education I’m facing, I’m going to pay $5,000 for 12 units. I wish I was paying $36,” said Pasion-Perez. The last time community college students saw a fee increase was in 2009, when Gov. Schwarzenegger signed bills raising the per-unit fee from $20 to $26. In the past, students attending California Community Colleges did experience a time when postsecondary education was accessible, meaning free, to everyone. In 1960, California Gov. Edmund G. Brown signed a ‘Master Plan for Higher Education.’ The bill committed to ensuring higher education as a major state priority and granted “tuition-free” education, according to the University of California’s office of the president. The first bill seen that did not contain a tuition-free clause came in Sept. 1983, according to archives of the Los Angeles Times. A random poll was conducted among students around campus and the results were as follows:
83% Aware of Budget Cuts
61% Registered to Vote kmabry.roundupnews@gmail.com
Weather forecast from USA Today Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Time to study,
Election time is
Pierceʼs beauty
87 ° / 59 °
83 ° / 56 °
72 ° / 51 °
not play.
here for the ASO.
exposed.
0% chance of rain
10% chance of rain
10% chance of rain