4,000 locked out of registration See

from The Runner 4-27-22

by CSUB Runner

The Runner Staff

The Runner

California State University, Bakersfield 9001 Stockdale Highway Bakersfield, CA 93311-1099 661-654-2165 runner@csub.edu

FACULTY ADVISER Jennifer Burger jburger1@csub.edu

PUBLICATIONS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Vada Hepner vunderwood2@csub.edu

DIGITAL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ellice Richman erichman@csub.edu

ARTIST Faith Okoli

WEBSITE EDITOR Marlene Garcia

SECTION EDITORS Ernesto Leon, Xochitl Martinez, Madalyn Powers, Sydney Williams

COPY EDITORS Guadalupe Avalos, Kennadi Burke, Vanessa Hernandez, Frankie Nadal

DIGITAL TEAM Camila Arambula, Brizna Fregoso, Autumn Layton, Melisa Magana, Adriana Toledo, Claire Welch

SOCIAL MEDIA TEAM Haydee Brahona, Paige Calvin, Jessica Espinoza Diaz, Victoria Zaragoza

REPORTERS/WRITERS Graciela Aguilar, Adeli Arvizu, Fatyma Cendejas, Giselle Gamez, Joselyn Green, Carlos Hernandez, Marlene Herrera, Ambria King, Nick Lopez, Yasmin Marcelo, David Mendoza, Alexis Shofner, Ashley Soren, Kiara Zabala, Alexa Zepeda

ABOUT US The Runner is a laboratory newspaper published daily online with a biweekly PDF e-edition, in conjunction with the Department of Communications at CSU Bakersfield.

DISCLAIMERS Views and opinions expressed in The Runner are not necessarily those of the editors, staff or the Department of Communications. The staff of The Runner reserve the right to refuse or omit any advertising or material which advocates illegal activity, or which may be considered libelous, irresponsible or tasteless.

CONTACT US Send corrections requests, letters to the editor, op-ed submissions and press releases to runner@csub.edu. Send advertising inquiries to Faculty Adviser Jennifer Burger at jburger1@csub.edu.

April 27, 2022 The Runner

4,000 locked out of registration

By Graciela Aguilar Staff Writer

Over 4,000 CSU Bakersfield students were locked out of class registration on April 18 for the summer and fall semesters due to a hold on their account for not being compliant with the CSUB immunization requirements. These immunization holds are not COVID-19 related, but for traditional immunization’s such as measles, mumps, and hepatitis B according to CSUB Health Services. The immunizations have been required since the fall of 2020 but have been constantly pushed back due to the pandemics ongoing surges. In January all students were informed that the immunizations were going to be required once again and there would be no further push backs starting in February. Students not compliant with immunization records will have an immunization hold placed on your account on Feb. 25 that will prevent receiving financial aid and class registration. As of now, since the holds have prevented students from registering for classes for the summer and fall semesters there has been a gradual decrease in the number of holds says Erika Delamar Associate Director for Student Health Services at CSUB. “These immunization records have been required since the fall of 2020 but have been constantly pushed back due to COVID-19 related issues,” said Delamar. There have been several count-down emails sent specifically to students that have not uploaded the required immunization documents since the fall of 2020. Students must follow the direction on said emails to properly upload their document’s to Complio, an American DataBank, a comprehensive tool used for student screening and immunization compliance. The process for documentation approval takes up to three days. “We understand that getting said documents and information might be difficult, which is why we sent out a number of emails since the requirements were put out by the board, especially since some information might not be correct and that is another three days of waiting and getting the correct information,” says Delamar. If you have any further questions or need help uploading your document’s to Complio, seek help from CSUB’s Heath Services to remove any immunization holds and register for classes.

Canva illustration by Marlene Garcia/ The Runner

Runner Nights concert returns to campus

By Adeli Arvizu Staff Writer

CSU Bakersfield held their monthly Runner Walk and Talk on Tuesday, April 19 via Zoom. The meeting highlighted commencement, the return of the Runner Nights concert and the university’s first symposium about sustainability and climate action that took place on Friday, April 22 at 9 a.m. A tree planting ceremony also occured the same day on campus at 10 a.m. “The conference will address sustainability issues that affect the valley, in particular, air quality, water, waste, and transportation,” said CSUB President Lynnette Zelezny. Both events are part of CSUB’s Earth Day celebration for the week. Commencement for graduating students was a major topic of discussion and Zelezny reminded everyone that it is only five weeks away. Some students had questions regarding more details about graduation. Senior Specialist of Commencement and Academic Affairs, Dina Ebeling, explained that currently safety protocols for graduations have not yet been established but will be decided three weeks before commencement. She went on to say that students can RSVP for commencement and that the deadline is on Tuesday, April 26. Ebeling warned students that tickets have not been made available for purchase yet and therefore they should not trust anyone who is claiming to

Photo by James Chavez/Runner File Photo Alessia Cara performs at the 2016 Runner Nights concert at CSUB.

sell graduation tickets, as it has come to her attention that students have recently been in this situation. She also emphasized that it is against the school’s policy to sell any tickets requested for guests. “We are excited to announce that we are going to host the Runner Nights concert,” said Assistant Dean of Student Integrity and Well-being, Emily Poole Callahan. “We have been on a few year hiatus but we are back.” The performing artist will not be announced until May 3 on the Student Union patio and the event will take place on May 19. A student asked if alumni are allowed to attend, in which Callahan explained that graduates from the previous two years will be contacted to participate in the event since they were not able to before. She went on to say that it is $20 dollars for students and past alumni. Students left comments attempting to guess the performing artist and expressed their excitement for the return of the event. Right before the meeting reached its end, a question was asked about whether or not future Walk and Talk meetings will continue to be held virtually for the fall semester. Zelezny responded that it will most likely be virtual since there is a favorable amount of people who join the meetings and it is easier for students and faculty to attend. The last Runner Walk and Talk of the semester will take place on Wednesday, May 11 on Zoom.

The Runner March 23, 2022 3

UC Irvine prof explains dangers of wildfires for farmworkers

By Ernesto Leon Assistant Features Editor

As wildfires have raged throughout California, there’s been too much concern over the damage to luxury crops like grapes and berries, and not enough for the farmworkers who put their life on the line, explained by Dr. Michael Mendez at the Kegley Institute of Ethics event on April 19th titled, “Tainted Grapes, Tainted Lungs: Extreme Wildfire Impacts on Undocumented Latina/o and Indigenous Migrants”. Mendez is a professor at the University of California, Irvine where he teaches environmental policy and planning. His research shows that wildfires are not isolated disasters, but they exaggerate existing inequalities. He explains that undocumented migrants are often invisible when it comes to talking about the victims of wildfires in our communities. Mendez’s research demonstrates that the effects of wildfire on the body are a lot more dangerous than originally thought. It can be more harmful than car exhaust directly inhaled by the body. Mendez even quotes a farmworker who explained that he had black saliva from breathing in the smoke from the wildfires. “Wildfires do so much more than damage property, they legitimately put farmworkers at risk,” said Mendez. Mendez’s research focuses mainly on Somana and Ventura county from 2015 to 2020. Where there are over 100,000 Hispanics/Latine individuals, with about 8% of the population estimated to be undocumented-- that’s over 38,000 people. There are also about 12,000 Indigenous Mexicans, and many do not speak English or Spanish. Common languages spoken by Indigenous folk in the area are Mixtec, Triqui, Maya, Chatino, and Zapotec. Indigenous Mexicans are not Hispanic or Latine, so this presents a huge language barrier for the community when it comes to informing them about wildfire dangers and evacuations. “Indigenous Mexicans are distinctly different from Latin immigrants and policymakers don’t understand,” explained Mendez. He continues by talking about the time Somana county, during a wildfire, didn’t provide Spanish or Indigenous translations for Latine and Native communities. There was also another wildfire in Ventura county where it took 10 days after the fire for county officials to provide a live translation. Prior to this, it was up to farmworkers and Indigenous activist groups to help migrant farmworkers, in addition to being the reason the county provided any translation at all. There was also a Q&A segment where many students got to ask him questions about his research. One student asked Mendez what to do aout changing policy revolving around undocumented individuals, since it is a highly debated topic among American politics. Mendez explained that within the last few years migration in the states from Latin America is no longer just going toward states like California or New York, but we see high migration patterns in the Midwest and south. This will help broaden ideology when it comes to putting forth beneficial policy for farmworkers throughout the country. Mendez ended his lecture with a simple saying. It’s to start thinking beyond property values.