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A FIRST AMENDMENT PUBLICATION
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Mapping out free speech Woodland Hills, California Volume 130 - Issue 2
Wednesday, February 27, 2019
One copy free, each additional copy $1.00
Designated zones have been added around the campus BELEN HERNANDEZ Campus Life Editor @b313nh3rnand3z Pierce College has expanded its free speech zone, which is open to the public, and it added three speech areas that are specifically for students. The issue arose when Kevin Shaw, a Pierce student, filed a lawsuit. The student speech zones are by the Arts Center, in front Alder and from the Library / Learning Crossroads up to the Ginger building. The public free speech zone has been expanded along the Mall from the Mason entrance to the student drop off. The free speech zones are open from 8:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., according to Los Angeles Community College District Administrative Regulation B-38. Those not affiliated with LACCD are required to make their presence known to Student Services. They will be asked to fill out a “Los Angeles Community College District Free Speech Area Voluntary Acknowledgement Form.” Although the form is voluntary, it is used for documentation and assessing the need for security, according to Regulation B-38. There are restrictions within the free speech zone. People cannot use amplification, touch, or assault individuals, ask for donations, interfere with class, obstruct foot traffic or participate in illegal activities. Interim President Larry Buckley supports the expansion of the free speech zones. “I was kind of surprised that on a campus as big as ours, we had such a small, defined free speech area. The agreement we have, to expand it up and down the Mall and other places, is very suitable,” Buckley said. Buckley said the zones are both mandated and tradition. He said they're an important part of the
Sonia Gurrola / Roundup (L-R ) Gabrielle Castleberry-Gordon and Philosophy Professor Paul Hicks walk down the Mall at Club Rush representing the Brahma Leftists at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif.
culture within community colleges. “It's a long tradition in the history in California colleges and universities, and free speech going back to the 1950s to ensure that the faculty, staff and community have an engaging place where they can exercise their first amendment rights,” Buckley said. “Free speech
zones were created with the idea that they're in a center place where people on campus can connect to them.” Buckley said his one concern regarding the free speech is regulating the noise. “I don’t want classes disrupted,” Buckley said. “I worry a little bit
about if people can hear inside of classrooms and are disturbed. Nothing like that has happened. Knock on wood, it won’t.” Denise Robb, a political science professor, believes that this benefits students, giving them more space to exercise their first amendment right. Robb said students will have a
bigger opportunity to make their voices heard, because students will be able to differentiate between those who are students and the public. “They get to hear different opinions from different points of view,” Robb said. “They’ll be heard because they’ll be in areas where there’s more foot traffic.”
Although some people agree with the changes made to the free speech zone, some people wonder why we have one at all. Some students believe free speech should not be limited to one or more sections of the campus, rather free speech should be exercised throughout without restrictions. Manon Guijarro, a studio arts major, said designated zones for free speech contradicts freedom of speech and believes it may have a negative impact on the first amendment rights of students. “I think that hinders the whole point, sectioning people off. If you’re giving us free speech, why would you put us in a certain section,” Guijarro said. Victoria Schron, a vet tech major, said the free speech zones give students a space to express their opinions. “I think it would be good to have separate ones because then there’s twice the opportunity to make your point heard,” Schron said. Robb believes the case was made stronger with the help of the Attorney General. “I think that it was a winning case. I think that the Attorney General, maybe, joined in and it seemed to work,” Robb said The newly appointed freespech zone sections for students and the public can be found on the updated Pierce College map. “I am glad that they decided to expand the free speech zone because we have 428 acres and a tiny little free speech zone,” Robb said. Robb believes that having seperate free speech zones will not have a negative effect in students’ rights. “The first amendment was done for us, there are some countries where your hauled away in the middle of the night for speaking your mind. In this country you can even sue to get more space to speak your mind,” Robb said. bhernandez.roundupnews@gmail.com
Out of date? Let's update our classrooms
Faculty and staff explore a variety of technological products for modern curriculum JACKSON HAYANO Reporter @hayanojackson If you’ve ever taken a math or statistics class at Pierce, chances are you took it in one of the modest, lowtech classrooms on campus.w But in an age where interactive and smart technologies are becoming more and more popular, some teachers are feeling left-out because their classrooms are not up-to-date with modern technology. “Math, statistics, psychology -there are a whole bunch of disciplines
who have no technologies in the classroom at all,” said Psychology and Statistics Professor Jennifer Moses. Moses is referring specifically to the 1300, 1400 and 1500 buildings (Behavior Sciences, Math, Computer Sciences), whose only ‘technology’ involves lighting and air-conditioning. IT Coordinator and Spanish Professor Fernando Oleas shares Moses’ sentiments. “All those buildings in the math area lack technology,” Oleas said. “We need better technology that is sufficient for teaching our students.” Oleas described the classrooms as being outdated, and they are in need
of an update. And while the administration does agree with Oleas, there is still a debate over which technological products to buy for the classrooms. In order to solve this dilemma, Oleas has put together two ‘demo rooms.’ The demo rooms will be located at 1301 on Tuesday and at 1402 on Thursday. Each room will feature two different devices that faculty will be able to experiment with. “One is an interactive board called Mondopad,” Oleas said. “The other one is like a smart TV but it can connect to the internet. It functions like a smartboard.”
The goal of this demo room is for faculty to decide which technology they think is best suited for their classrooms. Faculty members can interact with the different types of technology and experience first-hand how it works. This demonstration will help faculty and staff decide whether they prefer the Mondopad or smart TV. “We want to see what works best,” Oleas said. “I will be collecting feedback. We as faculty will make a collective decision as to what is necessary for us to use.” [see TECH on pg. 3]
Nathan Chung / Roundup
Rick Burdon, a technician for Golden Star Technology, demonstrates a commercial HD T.V. screen to interested professors in classroom 1301 at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif. on Feb. 26, 2019.
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