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A FIRST AMENDMENT PUBLICATION Woodland Hills, California Volume 135 - Issue 4
Thursday, October 14, 2021
One copy free, each additional copy $1.00
CAS-per the friendly ghost is back and ready to help Tutoring services return to in person assistance BY PAMELA KALIDASAN Reporter
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or students who struggle to focus on their online classes, studying can be just as much of a hassle. But now that the Center of Academic Success (CAS) has re-opened to provide those students with a return to face-to-face tutoring and will operate from Monday to Thursday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monique Galofaro, 55, who has been on and off campus for nine years, said that she’s had trouble in the past with online services. “I’m at an age where the technology is a little bit more difficult,” Galofaro said. “Personally, I prefer in-person tutoring, and I don’t have to deal with doing the homework on the computer and with doing additional work just to reach a tutor.” CAS Physics Tutor and Pierce student Jesus Gonzalez said that having interactions in person is a different experience than helping out online. “It’s very exciting to see students and see their faces when they understand something or are confused,”
Photo by Ginina Pulcinella Lanlan Jia (L) gets help in English by Vince Denoga (R), a multi-subject tutor who also tutors child development students, at the Center for Academic Success at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., Oct. 6, 2021.
Gonzalez said. At the CAS, there are only a few available for in-person tutoring, according to CAS Director Crystal Kiekel. “It’s a very limited number of tutors,” Kiekel said. “We only have seven tutors at the Center.” There’s only in-person tutoring for five subjects— physics, English, anatomy,
astrology and philosophy—of the 40 subjects they cover. Students are only able to get help with some of the subjects, according to Office Manager Marcos Garcia. Kiekel said that since the pandemic, CAS, like most services, had to adapt and move everything online. For now, students can schedule an one-to-one in-
Custodians demand fair wages from LACCD BY CECILIA PARADA Managing editor
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he Los Angeles Community College District is refusing to recognize hundreds of workers with fair wages, according to Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 99. Communications specialist Denae Ayala wrote in a press release that workers are demanding better treatment. “Custodians and essential workers represented by SEIU Local 99 were called heroes during this pandemic, but the district now refuses to recognize their work with fair wages and a fair contract,” Ayala wrote. The SEIU Local 99 consists of nearly 50,000 education workers in the K-12 system, early education and daycare, administration offices and community colleges across Southern California. This includes more than 300 custodians, groundskeepers and maintenance workers at the Los Angeles Community College District, according to Ayala. Ayala also wrote that after months of negotiations, the deals offered to the service workers were unacceptable,
falling below wage standards. “Workers have declared that negotiations have reached an impasse and presented an official filing with the California Public Employment Relations Board,” Ayala wrote. “This means negotiations are no longer productive and workers are calling for a neutral mediator to step in to work with the Union and the District to attempt to reach an agreement. " "If this process does not produce a settlement, SEIU Local 99 workers will have the right to strike over the District’s failure to meet their demands in negotiations.” According to the SEIU Local 99 website, COVID-19 has exposed inequities in the education system, specifically in the cleaning and maintenance of schools, because of staffing cuts and unmanageable workloads. About 38 percent of students attend schools that do not meet the minimum facility standards, according to the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC). Students attending these schools are exposed to damaged floors, walls or ceilings. Some campuses also have gas leaks, power failures and structural damage. Executive director Max Arias said that the custodians
and service workers are essential in continuously ensuring the health and safety of the schools. “Custodians have continued to disinfect schools and maintenance workers have made critical upgrades to school air filtration systems,” Arias said. “Their work is critical to ensure the full reopening of campuses and the continued safety of students and staff.” The PPIC said that improvements to ventilation systems might be necessary in addition to hiring more custodial staff and purchasing extra supplies. Los Angeles Southwest College custodian Rosa Aguirre said that she believes a wage increase is long overdue. "I have continuously worked through the pandemic in person. No questions asked,” Aguirre said. “However, like Albert Einstein said, 'The important thing is to never stop questioning.' And my question is: why can't we receive a pay increase? We are essential yet we are struggling with higher prices for food, gas, and basic needs. Inflation is high and what we earn now is not enough. We need a pay increase. We deserve a pay increase.” cparada.roundupnews@gmail.com
person appointment. Group tutoring and the writing lab are unavailable in-person, yet the space at the Center is available for students to use. “Students can come in and get face to face tutoring,” Kiekel said. “But they can also just come in, use the space and take online classes right now because it’s totally quiet.” According to Kiekel, prior
to the pandemic 90 percent of CAS tutoring was in-person and 10 percent was through online services. Kiekel said that the services did not meet student needs. Now that has changed, 90 percent of tutoring is provided online, while 10 percent of tutoring is in-person. Kiekel said that since the CAS revamped most of its services online, they have made it easier for students to access tutoring. With all these changes being done, it can be said that it has reduced equity gaps for Pierce students who utilize CAS online services. “I think it’s more accessible to be on Zoom and so I do Zoom and in-person at the same time. I do get more students on Zoom,” said Gonzalez. However, there’s an issue when it comes to students not knowing about these provided services. “In this covid world, it’s really hard to let students know that we’re here,” said Kiekel. And to combat that inequity, most of the in-person services provided for students on campus are teaching them about how to access online tutoring services. “A lot of what we do on our face to face services is
helping students get online,” said Kiekel, who added that students use the Center to access an online tutor. The CAS has 140 tutors and 20 part-time faculty staff who help carry dayto-day operations, mostly outside the Center. There are difficulties that CAS is facing, such as the lack of tutors for STEM and tutors for higher division classes. And there are policies that prevent qualified applicants from becoming tutors, according to Kiekel. “The district really limits who we can hire and for how long and for what rate,” said Kiekel. LACCD doesn’t allow tutors to work unless they take 12 units or have completed more than 10 semesters at Pierce. Kiekel that the District undercuts Pierce tutors by giving those who have transferred or come from a university a higher wage. “The district tells us once a student transfers to a university, their payscale is raised by $4,'' Kiekel said. “We have all these amazing tutors and they can’t get a raise and I have to pay them at the lower rate just because they haven’t transferred to a university.” pkalidasan.roundupnews@gmail.com
Brief: Game cancelled
Photo by Felipe Gamino A traffic message board on the Winnetka Avenue entrance of Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on Oct. 11 2021. BY FELIPE GAMINO Sports editor
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he football game scheduled for Saturday between the Pierce College Brahmas and the Glendale Community College Vaqueros was canceled. This is the second game that was canceled for the team. Their season opener against Bakersfield turned into a scrimmage after not having enough players cleared. It ended up being a forfeit loss for the Brahmas.
Brahmas get 300th win [see PHOTO ESSAY AND SOCCER on pg. 7-8]
The Acting Vice President of Student Services Juan Carlos Astorga contacted commissioner Jim Sartoris and GCC Associate Dean of Athletics Chris Cicuto to notify them of their decision. “Out of an abundance of caution for the health and safety of our student athletes, the football game scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 9 with Glendale Community College has been canceled due to a reduced roster of available players,” Interim President Aracely Aguiar wrote. “Pierce remains strongly supportive
of its athletic programs for all men and women and their safety, especially in fullcontact sports, is a top priority for Pierce. We apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to working through the remaining schedule.” The canceled game resulted in a forfeit loss for the Brahmas, dropping their record to 0-4 Football will look to get their season back on track as they travel to SBCC. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. fgamino.roundupnews@gmail.com
Opinions .................2 News..........................3 Features......................4 Campus Life..........5 Photo Essay ..........6-7 Sports..........................8