The Daily Titan - February 15, 2012

February 15, 2012

Vol. 91 Issue 9

TSU feasibility study Daily Titan takes a look into the TSU feasibility study taking place. This study is the first step toward making the TSU better for future Titans.

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GRADUATION RATES

CAMPUS | Graduation

From students to alumni CSUF works to increase graduation rates among students

MEC VALLE Daily Titan

Fifty percent of Cal State Fullerton’s students graduate after five years of school, according to research by the Office of Institutional Research and Analytical Studies.

Edgar Trotter, Ph. D., vice president of Undergraduate Programs, said there is a higher retention rate of students and the dropout rate is decreasing.

Due to the Obama Administration’s push for college students to obtain their degrees, universities, specifically CSUF, have been working to increase retention rates among students, resulting in a higher graduation rate.

See GRAD, page 2

DT File Photo

Cal State Fullerton has many programs committed to enabling students to graduate. Professionals are available to help students with every step in their academic career.

EDUCATION | Business and Engineering

Online program ranked high nationally JUSTIN ENRIQUEZ Daily Titan

U.S. News & World Report released Honor Roll rankings of the top online master’s programs in the nation and Cal State Fullerton ranked high in both the colleges of business and engineering.

Two CSUF online master’s degree programs were ranked alongside more than 500 others in four categories: faculty credentials and training, student services and technology, student engagement and accreditation, and admissions selectivity.

The CSUF online master’s degree in software engineering ranked high in two categories: No. 3 in student services and technology and No. 42 in student engagement and accreditation.

Additionally, the online master’s degree in

information technology ranked high in three categories: No. 12 in student engagement and accreditation, No. 14 in admissions selectivity and No. 104 in student services and technology.

Both programs work under a cohort system where the same grouping of students all take the same courses together and eventually graduate together. The cohort system provides for a relationship with the same group of students so they can help each other through the course. It’s also a way to network with other professionals.

The online master’s degree in software engineering is offered by the College of Engineering and Computer Science. Mariko Molodowitch, an associate professor and chair of the Computer Science Department, said the curriculum itself is rigorous but helpful.

She attributes the program’s high rankings to the fact that they are aiming to take up students who are already professionals in their field.

“I think we tailor it so that a lot of the things we teach them are immediately applicable,” said Molodowitch.

Ning Chen, program coordinator and computer science professor, said that due to the economy and the budget situation, online education will continue to grow.

“Online education is the future of education and it will eventually be everywhere,” said Chen.

The online master’s degree in information technology is offered by the Information Systems and Decision Sciences Department in the Mihaylo College of Business and Economics. The program itself has been

around for about eight years. Bhushan Kapoor, chair and professor in the Information Systems and Decision Sciences Department, said it was an honor to be nationally recognized.

“It was gratifying to see that many schools, like UCLA and all of the great University of California schools, that most of them were below us,” said Kapoor.

Kapoor attributes the success of the program to many different factors like the requirement of the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) score and that they are selective when it comes to choosing students for the program. He said the high ranking is due to the fact that professors who teach the in-class master’s program do the same online.

See PROGRAM, page 2

FINANCE | Student Debt

Benefits and pitfalls of CSUF student loans Rising costs lead to more students needing school loans

VALENTINA LOPEZ For the Daily Titan

COLIN PENKOFF / Daily Titan A mural on the first floor of University Hall depicts the need for access of education and student loans that have risen help provide it.

Contact Us at dtnewsdesk@gmail.com

More than four-fifths of bankruptcy attorneys have seen an increase of potential clients with student loans in the last three to four years, according to a report published by the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys.

This year, Cal State Fullerton is giving $50 million in subsidized loans, which represents 10,757 borrowers, said Jessica Schutte, associate director of financial aid at CSUF. Unsubsidized loans add up to $41 million for 8,002 students, Schutte said.

Both types of loans correspond to the Federal Stafford Loans, which “enables students to obtain long-

term, low-interest loans through banks, credit unions and other lending institutions,” according to a Federal Stafford Loans page on CSUF’s website.

The Federal Perkins Loans are also available for undergraduates, graduates and credential candidates with a maximum loan of $4,500.

The Direct Grad PLUS Loans are for graduate students and Direct PLUS Loans are for parents. These two loans combined currently cover 264 CSUF students. There are also emergency loans and private loans.

In comparison, Pell Grants give up to $52 million to 13,200 CSUF students, Schutte said.

Around 30 percent of CSUF students find it necessary to borrow money to afford their educational costs, knowing the consequences and impact this could have in their lives.

See LOANS, page 3

SPORTS | Baseball

Despite key losses, Titans stay optimistic New Head Coach Rick Vanderhook keeps the expectations high BLAKE FOGG Daily Titan

The Cal State Fullerton baseball team lost two All-Americans, four starting pitchers, a head coach and most of the coaching staff.

With losses like that, one would think this team might take a year off to rebuild.

That’s not what the team is thinking. That’s not what the Titan fans are thinking.

Everyone is only thinking of one thing: Omaha.

The Titans start off the season Friday against No. 1 Florida.

The players all said they are ready to go for a very long and tough season.

They have big questions to answer with the new starting pitchers, the loss of a big bat, and a first-year head coach taking the reigns.

“We’re hard nosed. We don’t have the greatest talent, but we’re a solid baseball team. The camaraderie is unbelievable. I’ve never been on a team where the camaraderie is this good. We just all push each other. I just can’t wait to go to battle with these guys,” said Titan sophomore center fielder Michael Lorenzen.

After the Titans lost in the Regional last season, Dave Serrano jetted off to fill the Tennessee coaching vacancy.

That led to the hiring of former Titan Rick Vanderhook.

See BASEBALL, page 8

2

February 15, 2012

NEWS

GRAD: Official says one reason students don’t finish college is because of lack of guidance ...Continued from page 1 CSUF is currently active in programs to help improve the factors that prevent a higher retention rate and graduation rate. One of the programs is called “The Graduate Initiative.”

“Fourteen to 15 percent (of students) graduate in four years.

The next wave is approximately 30 percent that graduate in five years,” said Edward Sullivan, Ph.D., assistant vice president of Institutional Research and Analytical Studies Trotter said the university is involved in working on many contributing solutions to improve the rates.

The first solution that Trotter mentioned was advising for firsttime freshmen.

Sullivan had found a decrease in first-time freshmen enrollment for the next semester of the school year.

Trotter said they were puzzled as to why students, who were in good academic standing and had no holds, were not enrolling.

Assistant deans were sent to track down those freshmen and figure out why they were not registering.

They soon found that the

students also did not know they had to register to graduate.

Sullivan said the freshmen advisement would not only help students remember to register, but also get students enrolled in the correct classes.

“The key to this is it allows students to register for the right kind of courses for them,” Sullivan said, and this would allow students to stay on track in terms of classes.

Connection to the campus was another solution in increasing the retention and graduation rates.

Freshman Programs is one of the resources on campus available to students to help make that connection. Nancy Fernandez, Ph.D., director of Freshman Programs, said there are three parts to the final goal.

“One is academic success, you know we want our students to be academically successful … and move onto their degrees. We also want them to have campus involvement, because a college education is more than just what you learn in classes … Our third goal is community engagement,” said Fernandez.

Emphasis is put on freshmen when considering the rates for the university.

“Getting through the first year is most important,” said Trotter. Another

FOR THE RECORD It is Daily Titan policy to correct factual errors printed in the publication. Corrections will be published on the subsequent issue after an error is discovered and will appear on page 2. Errors on the Opinion page will be corrected on that page. Corrections will also be made to the online version of the article.

Please contact Editor-in-Chief Michelle Wiebach at 657-278-5815 or at dteditorinchief@gmail.com with issues about this policy or to report any errors.

contributing solution is socialization.

Students who have parents with a college education, and where English is their primary language, are considered to be highly probable to graduate on time.

“Our particular focus is to increase the retention and graduation rates among the underrepresented minority students.

And those are (black) students, (Latino) students and native Americans,” Trotter said.

The Six-Year Graduation Rate

by Student Type and EthnicRace analytical study shows that 41 percent of black students and 47 percent of Latino students graduated within the six-year mark.

In another study, Six-Year Graduation Rate by Student type and Parent Education Level, the students who were the first in their families to go to college graduated at a rate of 45 percent.

The students who had parents that either attended college or graduated from college graduated at rates of 50 percent and 54 percent, respectively.

Fernandez said a long-standing reason why students do not go on to complete their college education is because the lack of familiarity to navigate through higher education.

According to Trotter, tools like parent orientations are being made available to help retain those students who are the under-represented minority, and eventually have them move on to getting their degrees.

GRADstats

HALF of all CSUF students graduate after five years of school.

LESS than 15%

actually graduate in four years.

Students who had parents that either attended or graduated from college graduated at rates of

NEARLY 54%

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He also attributed CSUF’s ability to give the program the right facilities and to start teaching online before many other universities caught on to online education.

“We started a little bit ahead of many other people and while others are still struggling and still thinking.

Many of them are relatively new so we are a little bit more experienced,” Kapoor said.

Gregory Cazian, 35, current online master’s student in information technology, said he is proud of the school and thinks it’s beneficial for students who are working professionals to still find a way to get an education.

He also said a quality education can be found in this program.

“It doesn’t have the same brand name as MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) or Harvard; but the course load is extremely engaging and the faculty is top-notch,” said Cazian.

Matt Carver, 33, graduated with his master’s degree in information technology in 2010. Carver said the high rankings the program received are fantastic and great for the school and professors.

“I think it’s a win-win for everyone there at Fullerton. It’s going to add recruiting for future students and it’s going to look better on a résumé if you have high accreditation from a school with high rankings,” said Carver.

University Police keep drugs at bay Drug activity on campus investigated at least once a week JOHN SOLLITTO Daily Titan

A common myth about college campuses is they are riddled with substance abuse and alcohol consumption in massive amounts.

Many parents are afraid their child will be swept up in a college life full of parties and late-night “ragers.”

It is the job of the campus police to ensure this doesn’t happen and make sure students obey the laws of the

Olympics Will Not Be In Italy Italy officially removed itself from consideration in hosting the 2020 Olympic games Tuesday, citing economic uncertainty as the main reason for dropping out of contention.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said Italy is not financially stable enough to host the international games, which has a $12.5 billion price tag.

Rome was the front-runner for hosting the 2020 games after being heavily promoted

by Mayor Gianni Alemanno.

Alemanno disapproves of the Italian government’s decision and its unwillingness to bet on “Italy’s future.”

Despite the Roman mayor’s disappointment, Monti believes it would be irresponsible for Italy to make a bid considering the economic climate, and wouldn’t want to put the burden on the taxpayers to pick up the bill.

The Olympic International Committee will officially begin accepting bids Wednesday for hosting the games. The remaining cities include Tokyo, Madrid and Istanbul. The front-runner position has now shifted to Doha, Qatar, which isn’t plagued by financial trouble like other potential countries are facing.

The election of the hosting city is scheduled for next year.

Brief by Michael Munoz

...Continued from page 1

Editorial

DTBRIEFS

institution, as well as the laws at the state and federal level.

Lt. John Brockie is one of the University Police officers who enforces the law and works to make sure that all of the students are aware of the campus’ drug policies. He said the school takes measures to keep the students on the right side of the law.

“We, as University Police, are tasked with enforcing all applicable state and federal laws,” said Brockie.

Cal State Fullerton is treated like any other institution, and if a person breaks the law on campus, not only would the person receive the full federal and state penalties, they would also be subject to all university rules and regulations. The worst of these punishments is arrest and expulsion from the university.

Brockie said University Police investigates some kind of illegal drug activity at least once a week during the spring and fall semesters.

Those numbers are generally just the campus proper, and the number of investigations in the dorms may be different. This relates to the resident advisors’ constant patrols in addition to the work University Police does.

“Housing is very straightforward with their policies and what the consequences will be,” Brockie said. He had never heard of anyone being ignorant of the punishment they’d receive for being caught using anything illegal on campus.

University Police changes its policies with the evolving legislation on certain issues, like medicinal

marijuana, to ensure it keeps its punishments in accordance with the state’s orders. A student is subject to receive a small fine for having a small amount of marijuana in his or her possession, but carrying large amounts still results in an arrest and removal from school grounds.

Brockie said the literature posted around campus in areas like the Student Health and Counseling Center and Women’s Center keep students aware of the negative repercussions of the use of illicit substances.

Lisa Garcia, 23, a computer science major, said she can’t remember ever seeing any pamphlets in any of the buildings she’s been in. Regardless, both Brockie and Garcia agree the students on campus seem to be respectful of the law and each other in regards to using drugs, and the general population of students seem to be going along just fine without its use on campus.

“I haven’t seen anyone (using drugs) on campus, but I’ve heard of some things and know that people get away with it at certain spots,” said Lauren Gin,19, a psychology major.

Some students, when asked if they have a similar view to Gin, agreed it is possible to escape the notice of the University Police if they decide to use drugs on campus.

Despite the continued presence of drugs, Brockie said they are doing everything they can.

“Our officers are very proactive … I’d like to think that it’s students making good choices,” Brockie said.

Tentative Payroll Tax Deal Made A House-Senate committee reached a tentative agreement Tuesday evening on a measure to extend a payroll tax reduction, which will add unemployment benefits and ensure that Medicare doctors will not see a pay cut, according to The New York Times.

Negotiators are close to a broader deal one day after House Republican leaders said they would issue a bill to extend the payroll tax rollback without requiring cuts to pay for it.

Despite issuing the tentative accord, negotiators have yet to formally sign off on the agreement.

Congress is set to recess for a week on Friday, when a vote would most likely occur.

The tentative deal designates 73 weeks as the maximum number of weeks to receive unemployment benefits. The benefits extension will be paid for by the sale of radio spectrum licenses, other small producers of revenue and a change in pensions for federal workers.

Medicare doctors would be protected from huge cuts in reimbursement fees through cuts in the prevention and public health fund established by the health care law, as well as through reducing help for hospitals in bad debt and other spending cuts.

Brief by Yvette Quintero

District Mapping Suit Dismissed A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by Republicans seeking to overturn California’s new congressional district maps, according to LATimes.com. The dismissal eliminated the problem of new political lines for state and congressional offices.

U.S. District Judge Stephen V. Wilson ruled against the suit Thursday. It was brought by former Rep. George Radanovich and four others, who alleged that the commission took race into consideration when creating the new districts. The suit cited three Los Angeles County districts that were drawn to encourage the election of African-American representatives.

The commission’s work is still in jeopardy of a potential referendum on state Senate districts. Election officials have until Feb. 24 to decide whether there are sufficient, valid signatures to address the matter before voters in November.

The state’s high court has already ruled that the commission’s new districts will be used in this year’s elections unless voters reject them.

The Citizens Redistricting Commission has attempted to stop partisan redistricting before.

Brief by Maribel Castañeda

3

February 15, 2012

NEWS

LOANS: Average student debt has risen over the years ...Continued from page 1

ANIBAL ORTIZ / Daily Titan The events hosting the meet and greet with professors will be held in the outside patio of the Gastronome where students can come join.

Strengthening faculty ties Two professors will share their expertise with attending students JOHN SOLLITTO Daily Titan

Students living on campus will have the opportunity to meet and speak with several professors as they visit the Gastronome in the upcoming months.

The series will give students the opportunity to learn what some Cal State Fullerton professors are doing outside of their teaching duties.

Susan Jacobsen, Ph.D., associate professor in the English Department, is organizing the events to meet with professors.

She is known on campus and around the dorms for her work as the head of the University Honors Program, and has office hours there to help the honors students living on campus in their wing of the dorms.

“I think this will be a really interesting first group,” said Jacobsen. “Especially with the two professors who don’t know each other. So this is a chance for colleagues to meet.”

The first event in this series is scheduled to take place on Feb. 29 at 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. at the Chef ’s Portico in the Gastronome.

Two professors will be speaking about their extracurricular projects. Jeffrey Kottler, Ph.D., a professor in the Counseling Department, will be explaining his research on human trafficking.

Kottler works with Nepali girls through a foundation he established. The girls he works with are at-risk for either early

marriage or fates in the sex-trade.

Craig McConnell, Ph. D., associate professor of liberal studies, will be at the upcoming event as well. McConnell is researching the development of modern cosmology and the place that science has in literature. He is also a student of the biographies of Albert Einstein.

Jacobsen said she was excited for this opportunity for faculty to interact with students on a personal level.

Mariann Howland, 21, a

It’s always good making friends with them (professors) — especially if it’s in a field that you’re going into.

You kind of need to know people no matter what,so it definitely gets your foot in the door Zack DeBlase Illustration Major

psychology major, also said she feels like this is a great opportunity.

“I really respect professors and educators,” said Howland.

Zack DeBlase, 21, an illustration major, lives in the dorms and is excited about the increase of events.

“There’s actually been a rise in events,” said DeBlase. “At first there weren’t very many, but then they started to pick up.”

He said he was happy to see more events coming to the dorms. “I think they’re a great opportunity, especially since there’s so many

students living in the dorms; they get to experience a lot more things a lot easier since it’s right there.”

Howland said talking to educators and professors was a very big deal to her and she enjoyed meeting them.

There are few chances for students to have this kind of access to professors outside of office hours and personal appointments.

DeBlase said it was really important to him as well to meet professors outside of the classroom.

“Talking to professors helps. It’s always good making friends with them ­— especially if it’s in a field that you’re going into. You kind of need to know people no matter what, so it definitely gets your foot in the door,” he said.

DeBlase expressed an interest in seeing more events like this since he feels they are very informative, and hopes that they will continue with more of them soon.

Some students who have lived, and are currently living, on campus have said they would like to see more events come their way since they feel CSUF is lacking in a social atmosphere.

Notifications for this event have appeared all over student housing to make the residents aware of this opportunity to rub elbows with some active professors.

All students are welcome to the event, and there is no requirement to speak to faculty members.

The dates of the other two lunches have yet to be announced, but resident students can keep an eye out in the dorms for more advertisements and notices for upcoming events.

Sara Barajas, 21, a criminal justice and business administration double major, has already taken out $13,500 in loans during her three years at CSUF; $3,500 in 2010, $4,500 in 2011 and $5,500 for 2012.

She has the Federal Direct Loan Subsidized, which means she does not have to pay interest while she is enrolled. Barajas will have to start paying back the loans six months after she graduates.

In total, Barajas estimates her debt to be around $20,000 if she decides to apply for additional loans.

“In the long run I think it was a good decision,” said Barajas. “I’m glad I didn’t get another job because it would have made me have less time to focus on school … I didn’t want to be a burden on my parents when I can receive financial aid and repay it later on in life when I have a better paying job that I managed to get because I went to school.”

Her first year’s tuition was $6,574, plus $6,500 in other expenses. She did not qualify for more grants, and student loans helped her out.

However helpful loans are, they are not to be taken lightly.

“You want to be wise. Make sure you want to invest in your loan — a loan you have to pay it back afterwards. Be a wise borrower from the beginning, only borrow the amount you need, no more,” said Schutte.

Loans at CSUF can go from $100 to $5,500 subsidized and $7,000 unsubsidized.

In California, the average debt load in 2010 was $18,113, with 48 percent of graduating seniors owing money. This year, average student debt reached a record $25,250.

According to the Project on Student Debt, 20,000 people who recently left college defaulted on a federal payment last year. Student loans are one of the few types of debts that are not discharged in bankruptcy.

At CSUF, the amount on loans have also increased to 17 percent.

This is not a surprise given the increasing tuition fees and the growing obstacles to obtain a grant or a scholarship.

Gov. Jerry Brown proposed to increase the minimum grade point average needed to qualify for the Cal Grant A and B. While the student debt and the amount of loans increased, the interest rate for some loans will also increase.

For the Subsidized Undergraduate Loan, the interest rate between July 1, 2011 and June 30, 2012 was 3.4 percent, but it will increase to 6.8 percent after July 2012.

You want to be wise. Make sure you want to invest in your loan — a loan you have to pay it back afterwards. Be a wise borrower from the beginning.

Jessica Shutte Associate Director of Financial Aid

At CSUF, the amount of the debt is difficult to be determined. One way to have an idea about student difficulties with loans is the number of declines decided by the federal government alleging past default on their loans or prior bankruptcy.

“Those numbers are so small, maybe less than a dozen a year,” Schutte said.

For those students who are struggling with their loans, she highlighted the options the Federal government offers — loan forgiveness programs and the Financial Literacy and Education Commission are some.

Options concerning the repayment, deferment and forbearance, among others, depend on each person’s situation.

She also invited the students to look at their resources and evaluate

what they can do. “Impact the congressmen and senators. Write to legislators.”

On the other hand, the bankruptcy attorney’s report listed a series of policy reforms intended to “help build a better and more equitable system for student loan borrowers who encounter financial difficulties.” The first one is to restore the bankruptcy discharge for student loans.

The second one involves private student loans. “(Loans) lack the fixed rates, consumer protections, flexible repayment options of federal student loans and generally are extended base on creditworthiness,” Schutte said.

“Student loan (issues are) a larger problem that goes beyond reaching high education in general,” said Olgalilia Ramirez, director of government relations at California State Student Association.

On behalf of the CSSA, she vigorously defends affordable quality education.

“We ran a campaign on St. Valentine’s Day (urging) legislature to re-invest in the CSU so the college costs go down,” Ramirez said.

Despite the benefits and negative outcomes that can result from loans, the decision to accept loans falls on each student.

$

Professor to voice ideas on changing the prison system Concepts include invesment in preventing crime, not punishment SHEILA DEL CID Daily Titan

Brady T. Heiner, Ph.D., assistant professor of philosophy at Cal State Fullerton, will talk about the problems with prisons in an upcoming lecture Feb. 16 that addresses incarceration alternatives. The lecture will be a part of CSUF’s Philosophy Department colloquium series.

Seeing the underfunding of public education and the mass amount of funding that continues toward punishment, Heiner was driven to question the philosophical justifications, arguments and favor of the way of the system. As he pursued the avenue and arguments of justice and favor, he found those discussions were disengaged with what he was seeing on a day to day basis on policing practices.

“Prisons are a necessary institution in order for our society to be safe and to punish those offenders who have violated the social contract or the law of the United States,” said Kevin

Meehan, Ph.D., associate professor of criminal justice.

Heiner said most people presuppose that crime is only a relationship between the offender, the victim and the state.

“They focus on that triangle in abstraction from all of the social, political and economical circumstances that influence people’s decisions,” Heiner said.

His dissatisfaction with those discussions led him to look at social theory and other considerations when thinking of issues in criminal justice.

“Most people presume that crime and punishment are fused.

If you look at the spreadsheets of corporations that are business and contracts that are in business with the prisons, you see that what leads to folks getting wrapped up in the punitive embrace of the criminal justice system has to do with the offenses that they have committed and not the structuring circumstances that surround them and the profit motivations,” Heiner said. “Crime and punishment are two words that go together like peanut butter and jelly. You say one and the next one sort of rolls off your tongue.”

Evan Murdoch, a criminal justice major, said he thinks the

lecture topic is engaging.

“The prison system is a way to help prisoners rehabilitate and come back into society peacefully.

With the problems in prison today, it’s hard to believe the government is helping them,” said Murdoch.

Part of Heiner’s philosophical project is trying to pry people’s minds apart between the relationship of crime and punishment. He wants to show what leads people to punishment include other factors like structural racism, police practices and economic considerations.

He will be making connections between the contemporary prison industrial complex and the convict league system, which is the structure of prisons of the end of the Civil War. “How could we do without prisons? They are a natural part of our lives that democracy cannot do without,” Heiner said.

“Abolitionism is trying to get us to question the institution, which looks so natural and indispensable to ask if it can be otherwise.”

The lecture is free of charge and open to the public, and will be held in the Humanities Building Room 123 at 4 p.m. For more information, contact the Philosophy Department at 657-278-3611. dailytitan.com/news

4

February 15, 2012

OPINION

Grand Canyon State in a state of ignorance HB2281 bans ethnic studies and takes away from a real America DANIEL ZAMILPA For the Daily Titan

Some may say education is one of the greatest freedoms we as Americans have.

Education allows us to build upon the work that had been done prior to us in the past thousands and thousands of years of human existence.

If it wasn’t for education, and adding to it as life goes on, we’d be back at square one in terms of moving forward.

In America especially, we’ve had the joy of being able to access information and education to nearly everything. Other parts of the world may think differently, but we have come to see this as a human right, as it ought to be.

Some of the most influential and endearing forms of education are the ones that help define where we have personally come from in years past, which can sometimes greatly help in discovering who we are as individuals.

However, some administrators and government officials in this country think otherwise, namely those currently in Arizona who have banned ethnic studies in the Tucson Unified School District, officially beginning February 1.

Some Arizona school and state officials moved in favor of making ethnic studies in kindergarten through 12th grade education illegal by adding sections and amending Arizona House Bill 2281.

According to additions to the bill under the Declaration of Policy, “The legislature finds and declares that public school pupils should be taught to treat and value each other as individuals and not be taught to resent or hate other races or classes of people (Title 1, Chapter 1, Article 1, Section 15-111).”

The bill goes on in Section 15112 discussing the “prohibited courses and classes: enforcement,” in which it bans classes that “1.

Promote the overthrow of the United States government, 2.

Promote resentment toward a race or class of people, 3. Are designed primarily for pupils of a particular ethnic group and 4. Advocate ethnic solidarity instead of the treatment of pupils as individuals.”

Later in the document are repercussions for schools that are found to be continuing these studies, which includes a withholding of up to 10 percent of the school budget given by the state.

Since 2010, there have been works to put this into action, protests and actions to prevent it and most recently, official placements of this kind of restriction in schools of the Tucson Unified School District.

This is completely outrageous.

First off, in what way does an ethnic studies course promote taking over the U.S. government or insinuate that a certain group of people is better than another?

Because if that’s the case, why do we allow American history in public education?

As far as I remember, America was always portrayed as the good

LETTER TO THE EDITOR The Daily Titan welcomes letters to the editor. All letters must include the sender’s first and last name. Students must include their majors and other writers must include their affiliation to the university, if applicable. Letters must refer to an article published within the last week. Once a letter is submitted it becomes property of the Daily Titan. Publication of letters is based on the validity of content and may be edited for length, grammar and spelling. Letters may be sent to dteditorinchief@gmail.com.

guy in the stories and everyone else was after our freedom. Isn’t that promoting “resentment toward a race or class of people?”

Now, don’t start thinking that I’m attacking American history or what our country stands for, because that’s certainly not the case. All I’m saying is that Arizona cannot put one history on a pedestal above another. It’s discriminatory and wrong to separate which histories are acceptable and which ones are illegal to teach.

Consisting of a high population of Latino students, Arizona also subliminally tells students of color that their culture and history of being is not even allowed to be taught, talked about, celebrated, contemplated, compared or anything at all within the walls of a public education building.

I’ll be honest, I wasn’t always proud of being a Latino. In fact, I resented it for most of my public education years beginning at around late elementary school.

It was not at all because of the people in my ethnic community, but because of the stigmas and stereotypes placed upon me within the public education system.

This isn’t just something that happened to me, it’s something that nearly everybody goes through.

It’s human to make judgments, especially before getting to know somebody, but that doesn’t make it OK. It wasn’t until I started taking Chicana and Chicano studies classes here at Cal State Fullerton that I began to appreciate my heritage, not abandon it. I learned about where my people came from and how, by extension, I can be sitting here writing this article.

Not only have I learned and appreciated the history and relevance of Chicana and Chicano Studies, but for some students, especially those in Arizona, classes like these are the only thing keeping them in school.

I’m not here to sit and judge the education system, but what can be wrong about tapping into what

engages a student and bringing it back to their overall learning?

In a system that can be very exclusionary and “pre-categorize” students simply based upon their stats and early year standings, educators need to keep programs that allow students to be excited about school.

It’s often stereotyped that kids, especially minority children, don’t want to learn today. That’s definitely not true. Kids don’t hate learning; kids hate school and the structure it has that obviously isn’t working.

And honestly, I don’t blame them.

The motives behind the bill specifically target the Mexican-

American studies, also known as raza (race) studies, in Arizona.

How terrible must it feel to be in a system that has already given up on you in other courses, and the one class that inspires you and makes you realize your full potential is cut and made illegal.

What kind of message is that to the leaders, game-changers and shakers of tomorrow?

Well, it tells them their history has no value; that it’s not even worth bringing up in a textbook.

If this isn’t the highest form of cutting off a whole group of people from any sense of identity and belonging in a public institution, I don’t know what is.

The amendments to HB2281 are a disgusting, racist jab at the ethnic minority-majority in Arizona. Officials claim the goal is to bring people together as one, but really all it does is continue to further segregate people based on their differences.

These differences were not at all intended to break us apart, but rather bring us together to celebrate them all. America is not supposed to be a melting pot where we all come together into one mold. America is meant to be a mosaic – where together we make something so beautiful it can’t be summed up by anything more than the word “America.”

Be open to this unusual suggestion Adoption doesn’t have to be a painful, traumatic experience MEC VALLE Daily Titan

The silence has been broken.

There is no more pretending.

You have just found out you were adopted. A flood of questions comes streaming into your head: Who are my real parents?

What were they like?

Do I look like them?

Do I act like them?

What do I do now?

How do I go on living normally?

Could all this have been prevented? Yes. If you, the adoptive child, were active in an open adoption, would this scene be different? Would this scene be better? Yes. If I were adopted, I would want to know. I would want to know who my biological parents are. I would want to know the answers to all the questions aforementioned and the answers to so many more.

I would want my adoptive parents to be upfront with me from beginning to end.

A real atmosphere means a healthier environment.

The gradual system of information exposed to the adopted child at a younger age would prevent a cold awakening and provide a smoother transition.

In an open adoption there isn’t this abrupt and harsh realization because the child was not hidden in the dark, and was instead given the opportunity to know.

The article “Openness and Contact in Foster Care Adoptions: An Eight-Year Follow Up,” by Karie M. Frasch, Devon Brooks and Richard P. Barth states,

Courtesy of MCT In 2004, Katie Saunders smiles in the arms of birth parents Dustin and Kit Young after her third birthday party. Eight years later, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if she was still smiling.

“the behavior of children in open adoptions was rated more positively by adoptive parents than children in closed adoptions.”

Honesty really is the best policy.

Not only is the open adoption healthy for the child, but also for those participating in the adoption. Everyone from the birth parents to the adoptive parents will benefit.

The biological parents, typically the birth mother, experience major trauma when giving their child up for adoption. They too are left with many questions and wonder about how their child is doing.

Are they happy?

Are they okay?

Those against open adoption argue that communication needs to be cut off so that everyone can move on, but in another article, “Birthmother Perceptions of the Psychologically Present Adopted Child: Adoption Openness and Boundary Ambiguity,” by Deborah Lewis Fravel, Ruth G. McRoy and Harold D. Grotevant, it talks about the grief a birth mother goes through post-adoption.

Contrary to the beliefs of those opposed to open adoptions, the article describes the process of giving up a child similar to an amputation.

It is not something one can just

simply move on from.

What better way for the birth parents to help them cope with the feelings of post-adoption than being involved in an open one?

They too can have the answers to their longing questions.

In fact, the “Follow Up” article goes on to say that “adoptive parents had more positive impressions of their children’s biological parents when there was contact, and that the behavior of children in open adoptions was rated more positively by adoptive parents than children in closed adoptions.”

We can see here that it does not have to be this sense of competition or worrying if the child will become confused.

As long as there is light given to the reality of the adoption and there is a positive and open relationship amongst all the parents, life for everyone will be filled with more harmony. It is not just the child that is prosperous, but also the biological parents and the adoptive parents as well.

No one has to be left in the dark. And what kind of life is that, anyway? Who wants to live in a blur?

Let us help each other by giving one another the ability to have closure and peace.

There’s a cartel, there’s a way A very fine line is drawn between legalizing drugs to end violence and simply giving in to societal demands ANDREA AYALA Daily Titan

As a Mexican-American living in Southern California, the issue of drug wars hits close to home.

No doubt many Californians have experienced increased fear as the drug situation in Mexico has worsened and I, having family members in various parts of Mexico, have paid closer attention than many of my friends.

However, this is not only for the safety of my friends in Mexico, but because of the contributing factor of my friends in the U.S. According to The Telegraph, Carlos Fuentes, a revered Mexican writer, has stated that the only way to end violence in Latin America is by decriminalizing drug use in Latin America and in the U.S. It is easy to say that if the problem is drugs then drugs should be taken away to create a safer society.

But where does it stop? Is it better to just legalize one type of drug use and not another? Should all drugs be legalized altogether?

It is worth mentioning that drug use is an effect and not a cause.

Instead of paying close attention to whether drug use should be legalized or not, it is important to remember that just because something is a law, does not mean it will be followed, and that drug use will decrease.

Abortions, for example, actually decreased after their legalization in the 1970s.

What is most important then is taking a look at the causes of the drug trade. For one thing, consumption of Latin American drugs is rampant in the U.S. Contact Us at dtopinion@gmail.com

Thousands of lives would not be lost every year if the demand for drugs was not so high in the U.S. Yes, Latin American countries produce a lot of the drugs, but the U.S. people consume them, which is the greater evil?

This, of course, is assuming you consider drug use an evil.

If it was not so taboo in American society, the selling of currently illegal drugs in the U.S. would actually reap in millions of dollars a year.

Many police departments are required to spend a certain amount of money each year cracking down on drug use in the U.S., which takes time, attention and effort away from other serious situations the country faces.

If drug use was legalized and then taxed, that money could be used to fight crime in the U.S. much more.

The drug war situation is a communal problem for everyone in the two American continents. In order to fight the war on drugs we must take a look at ourselves and our communities and how we handle the drug situation.

While it is true that making drug use illegal might deter some from partaking in drug activities, it is not true for everyone. Even if the percentage of the U.S. population was as low as 5 percent, that would be a large percentage of people that would be supporting the drug cartels.

If all drugs were legalized, that 5 percent who would have bought from drug cartels would purchase their drugs from safer sources that would be government regulated.

To decrease drug-related violence it is necessary to take the drug element out of the picture. If we decrease the demand, the supply will lessen too.

If outside problems could be fixed internally, shouldn’t we then take a closer look at ourselves?

February 15, 2012

DETOUR

5

3D films are no longer a big deal Moviegoers aren’t flocking to theaters anymore for the 3D experience JAMESON STEED Daily Titan

It seems every film coming out these days has to be in 3D. What was once a gimmick used to draw back moviegoers from television has become much more common in modern cinema. But if any recent films are any indication, 3D is in a decline.

Over the last decade, several other more advanced types of 3D, such as Real-D and Digital 3D, came into existence. They were largely ignored up until the release of James Cameron’s Avatar in 2009.

The film smashed box office records and became the highest grossing movie of all time. Other studios began trying to cash in on Avatar’s success, rushing 3D onto films that were already well into production, or putting a majority of films, mostly blockbusters, in 3D at the start of production.

However, not everyone hopped on the 3D bandwagon. Freshman history major Evan Labrosse, 19, has yet to watch a film in 3D. “I guess they’re fine,” said Labrosse. “I’m not against it or anything. I think a big world would be cool in 3D.” Except now, audiences that once fully embraced the new technology are getting tired of it. This past summer had three big 3D releases all on the same week: Conan, Fright Night and Spy Kids 4: All the Time In the World not only did they underperform at the box office, none of the them won the No. 1 spot for the week. The Help beat them in its second week, and didn’t even win its

opening weekend against Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

Other critically-acclaimed 3D films failed at the box office as well.

Martin Scorsese’s Oscar nominated Hugo was praised for its 3D usage, but was virtually ignored when it was up against Twilight and The Muppets. Scorsese isn’t the only one.

Steven Spielberg’s The Adventures of Tintin was big internationally, but quickly disappeared in the holiday shuffle.

The negative response to 3D comes from movies that are postconverted into 3D. This means

They are pretty much an eyesore and are pretty much taking the real point of the film away.

Andrew Pimentel Computer Science Major

they don’t film the movie in 3D like Avatar, instead making certain scenes in 3D during post-production. This kind of 3D is rather is limiting and does not compare to the real thing.

As for audiences, they find the whole film annoying or straining.

Senior psychology major Gary Sandstrom, 22, finds 3D too taxing.

“For the most part they tend to be too high stressed on the eyes,” said Sandstrom. “The best 3D is subtle where it is used for depth, instead of jumping out at you.”

And he is not the only one who feels that way.

Sophomore computer science major Andrew Pimentel, 19, has only seen one film in 3D, and it had little effect on him. He not only doesn’t remember it, he said he will never see a film in 3D again.

“They are pretty much an eyesore

Fantastic Four flop JAMESON STEED Daily Titan

Two years ago, DC Comics published Superman: Earth One, the first in a line of original graphic novels that modernized their character’s origins and were aimed to bring in a new audience, seeing that these graphic novels could be sold at any bookstore.

Not to be outdone, Marvel has answered with their own line of graphic novels, starting with Fantastic Four: Season One, written

by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and art

by David Marquez.

Aguirre-Sacasa is no stranger to the Four, having written them in tieins to Secret Invasion. He also rewrote Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark and is currently a writer on Glee. With those credits he should at least be able to create something interesting.

Sadly, he doesn’t.

Now here’s the thing, Superman: Earth One may have been abysmal but it did something somewhat new and interesting to the character.

Its main problem was making Superman relatable to a modern Twilight audience, which made him less enjoyable to everyone else.

However, Fantastic Four: Season One is a retread to those opening issues of Fantastic Four. Nothing

new is brought here. They go into space only to collide with a cosmic storm that gives them all powers.

Reed Richards can stretch, making him Mr. Fantastic – still no attempt being made to make that name make sense, even though they have the opportunity. Sue Storm is the Invisible Girl because she can become invisible and make force fields, Ben Grimm transforms into a strong rock monster named the Thing and Johnny Storm can light himself on fire and be really annoying.

In some ways, while not bringing anything new, the series may have taken a few steps back.

None of the characters have any personalities. They are, at best, described as bland. The only one with any kind of personality at all is Johnny, but he acts like a tool.

Their reaction to finding out their new mutations is mild bewilderment.

It’s a comic, so no one ever does what anyone would actually do in that position: scream in stark terror for four hours straight. Well, Johnny does, but again, he’s a tool.

There is narration to help new readers make sense of it all. Here is the thing about narration in comics, it’s pointless. The writer has it there because he fears that somehow the artist is failing to convey something in a scene, but saying Johnny sped away on his motorcycle in a panel where he is clearly riding away on his motorcycle is overkill. It’s like having an annoying friend follow you around and announce everything you are doing out loud. Writers just need to trust that an artist knows how to tell a story through art, or, as it is more commonly known as, their job.

The motorcycle is not even the worst of it. There is one panel where it has to give back a story to explain that Johnny’s father was a huge Godzilla so we, as the reader, would know why Johnny would call a giant monster Mothra. Explaining a reference takes all the fun out of references.

The best bet for a good Fantastic Four read is Jonathan Hickman’s main series, but it isn’t reader friendly to longtime Fantastic Four readers.

Though it’s so much better than this well meaning mess.

Courtesy of MCT It appears as though 3D films may be shortly forgotten since people don’t seem as crazed over it as they once were. Another more advanced visual technology will surely replace it.

and are pretty much taking the real point of the film away because they are trying to flesh out the 3D, so they think they can give you a less acceptable plot, which is what the film is about,” said Pimentel.

That said, the only recent 3D films that did anything noteworthy are the post-converted re-releases

of beloved movies. The Lion King won the box office crown two weeks running. Beauty and the Beast may not have won at the box office, but it is showing strong for a film that came out in the early ‘90s.

The one that most will be watching is Titanic. It’s one of the biggest films of all time, and boasts

the fact that Cameron personally oversaw the post-conversion. He seems certain that he can do it better than anyone else.

The prospects do not look good when the two big 3D releases this past weekend, Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace and Journey 2, failed to make a dent in the box

office coming in fourth and third, respectfully. And there are still five more Star Wars films to be rereleased.

Judging by this year’s release schedule, 3D will be around in the foreseeable future, but if these trends continue that may not remain true.

Television

Courtesy of AMC

AMC getting down and nerdy Comic Book Men

HAILEY MORAN Daily Titan

The everyday, nerdy banter of comic book fanboys is glamorized and documented for the small screen thanks to AMC and the genius that is Kevin Smith.

The same network that captivated audiences with hits like The Walking Dead and Mad Men is bringing a whole different vibe to its lineup with the unscripted reality series, Comic Book Men – a show that follows the negotiations and conversations taking place at a comic book store in Red Bank, New Jersey. With a cast that’s lovable, hilarious and most of the

time, inappropriate, this show’s a must-see.

Jay and Silent Bob’s “Secret Stash” is the setting. The comic book store is run by Smith’s longtime friend, Walt Flanagan.

Flanagan’s the ultimate comic book and pop culture junkie. In between bargaining with people who try to sell him life-size Chucky dolls and running the store, Flanagan looks to his loyal sidekicks – or in this case, his co-workers and friends – for both help and comic relief.

One standout employee is the seemingly out-of-place Ming. A metrosexual that spends $300 on jeans isn’t what you’d expect to find at a comic book store, but here he’s the honorary punching bag. Insult after insult and joke after joke is thrown at poor Ming, but at the end of the episode you can’t help but want to make fun of him too. His

kind-hearted nature and baby face seem to be the perfect target for the rest of the sarcastic and middle-aged men who dwell there.

The meanest (and by meanest, I mean funniest) of them all is Bryan Johnson. A bearded, scraggly, homeless-looking man steals the show every time he lumbers on screen with a sharp tongue and comic reflexes that rival anyone.

Johnson, who does not work at the store, but is seemingly always there, finds the time to make any pop culture reference he can.

It’s the perfect combination of his sass, Ming’s innocence, Flanagan’s knowledge and Smith’s star power that make this show a must-see.

Fans of the View Askewniverse (the collection of movies by Kevin Smith’s production company View Askew) will not be disappointed. In fact, it’ll remind you why you love

Smith so much. Plus, keep an eye out in the background of the store for props used by the characters of Bluntman and Chronic in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, as well as the life-size and terrifyingly hilarious Buddy Christ from Dogma.

However, Smith makes up the supporting cast. While he is a part of the show, he really only appears in scenes of a round-table discussion for his SModcast Internet Radio that is interspliced with the heart of the show, which are the events that take place at the comic book store.

It’s here where we get a feel for the daily lifestyle of a fanboy. The ongoing debates, whether it be about which female heroine they would most want to hook up with, or a detailed analysis of why Christian Bale growls when he is playing Batman, plays to everyone’s inner nerd and demands the viewer’s attention. dailytitan.com/detour

7

February 15, 2012

Crossword Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle FOR RELEASE JANUARY 20, 2012

To

view our online

Edited by Rich Norrisbrought and Joyce Lewis to you by mctcampus.com

ACROSS 1 Certain lymphocytes 7 Clumsy sort 10 Kind of signal 14 Had none left 15 Ajman and Fujairah, for two 17 Adelaide altercation?

19 “Are we ready?”

20 Pose 21 Relay part 22 Singer’s yeshiva boy 25 Samoa’s capital 29 Joint acct. info 31 Beginning poet?

34 Jazz __ 37 Keen on 38 Pince-__ glasses 39 Fight over the last quart of milk?

42 ESP, e.g.

44 Palm starch 45 Exhaust 46 One always talking about his MacBook Air? 49 Court team: Abbr.

53 Org. at 11 Wall St. 54 Rubs the right way?

57 Big Apple subway div.

58 Sneeze, cough, etc.

61 Certain college member 63 Can’t color the sky, say?

68 Stuff in the back 69 Soaks 70 Cleaning challenge 71 Date 72 Swarms

C lassifieds , visit

DailyTitan.com

1/20/12

By Jack McInturff

8 Emma’s portrayer in “The Avengers” 9 Wins a certain card game 10 Drink listing 11 Hagen of Broadway 12 Alter, maybe 13 Fashion monogram 16 Slugger’s stat 18 Pine 23 Bridge renamed for RFK in 2008 24 Olin of “Alias” 26 Glass piece 27 Wrath 28 Wood-smoothing tool 30 Place for buoys and gulls 32 Words spoken before the Senate 33 Have-__: disadvantaged 35 Gentle slope 36 __ League 39 Market fluctuations 40 Wolf Frankenstein shoots him, in a 1939 film

DOWN 1 Gets behind 2 Things to get behind 3 Naval officer 4 Early 2000s Senate minority leader 5 Virginia’s __ Caverns 6 Life time 7 Island welcome

Thursday’s Puzzle Solved

(c)2012 Tribune Media Services, Inc.

41 Green span 42 Trash, in a way 43 Alias user 47 Landlord’s fileful 48 Mtn. stat 50 Like nobility 51 Band on the road 52 Burnout cause 55 Crayola color renamed Peach in 1962

Horoscopes

brought to you by mctcampus.com

Sudoku

Sudoku brought to you by dailysudoku.com

6 7 5 9 3 2

3 8 2 4 9 6

7 5 4 6 9 3 2 8 1 6 2 3 1 8 5 9 4 7

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) Your willingness to listen and learn is attractive. Assertiveness equals romance. You can accomplish anything you set your mind to. Add a little sweat equity.

Daily Sudoku: Thu 12-Jan-2012

9 8

5 5

6 8 6 7 1 7

2 5

3

2 5 2

(c) Daily Sudoku Ltd 2012. All rights reserved.

1 3 4

How To Play: Each row must contain the numbers 1 to 9; each column must contain the numbers 1 to 9: and each set of boxes must contain the numbers 1 to 9.

5 3 6 1 7 4

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) Complete the month with a home improvement project that makes a difference in your quality of life, no matter how small. Play for no particular reason.

Daily Sudoku: Thu 12-Jan-2012

4 9 1 7 2 8

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) You’re boiling over with ideas. Channel this energy in the right direction to get the advantage. Children or youth may play an important part.

(c) Daily Sudoku Ltd 2012. All rights reserved.

2

6 8

(c) Daily Sudoku Ltd 2012. All rights reserved.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) Old considerations could hold you back, even though a loved one is anxious to make improvements. Make adjustments to get the perfect picture. Make time for love.

3 4

5

2 5 4 6 1 3

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) You can figure out a coming trend. Employ an exotic theme. Do something that you promised for a loved one, and you’re the one who feels good about it.

1

5 2

6 7 1 7

very hard

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) Show respect and gain love. Do what you can to help, and take urgent action for a cause that’s important to you. This feeds your spirit. There’s more work coming.

5

3

3 4 2 9 7 6 8 1 5

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Your partner’s getting impatient.

Let them take charge. They have energy and enthusiasm, so enjoy the ride while they do the heavy lifting. Extra effort earns a bonus.

9 8

2 2 5

Daily Sudoku: Thu 12-Jan-2012

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) You can find a really sweet deal today. Save more than you spend, and stash more pennies into savings. Pay back a debt. Dream up a new income source. Ideas are popping.

1

7 2 3 8 4 5

Cancer (June 22-July 22) There’s some distance in the picture. Actual travel could be involved, or just an exotic meal or a cultural experience. Education can be fun.

5

1 6 7 5 8 9

2

8 1 7

9 1 8 3 6 7

Gemini (May 21-June 21) You’re getting into your studies, and, with the support of a loved one, your career zooms forward. There’s a bonus available if you move quickly.

4 6

8 4 9 2 5 1

Taurus (April 20-May 20) All turns out well, although it may not go according to plan. Adaptability and a sense of humor are where the fun comes in. Your intuition’s right on target.

http://www.dailysudoku.com/

Aries (March 21-April 19) Provide excellent service, with the finest ingredients. Stand for quality. Use resources with maximum efficiency for real satisfaction. Share a feast.

1/20/12

56 Cold War defense acronym 59 B&B 60 Fords of the past 62 Handle user, and a hint to this puzzle’s theme 63 Impede 64 Unlock, in verse 65 Mini-albums, briefly 66 Make haste 67 Fire

8

February 15, 2012

SPORTS

BASEBALL: Season begins with new faces on roster

TITANSchedule February

17 @ Florida -- Gainesville, Fla. at 4 p.m.

18 @ Florida -- Gainesville, Fla. at 1 p.m.

19 @ Florida -- Gainesville, Fla. at 10 a.m.

24 vs. TCU -- Goodwin Field at 7 p.m.

25 vs. TCU -- Goodwin Field at 6 p.m.

26 vs. TCU -- Goodwin Field at 11 a.m.

28 vs. San Diego State -- Goodwin Field at 6 p.m.

29 vs. Loyola Marymount -- Goodwin Field at 4 p.m.

March 2 vs. Utah Valley -- Goodwin Field at 7 p.m.

3 vs. Utah Valley -- Goodwin Field at 7 p.m.

4 vs. Utah Valley -- Goodwin Field at 1 p.m.

6 at USC -- Los Angeles, Calif. at 6 p.m.

9 at Texas A&M -- College Station, Tex. at 4:35 p.m.

10 at Texas A&M -- College Station, Tex. at 12:05 p.m.

11 at Texas A&M -- College Station, Tex. at 7 p.m.

13 vs. Washington State -- Goodwin Field at 6 p.m.

...Continued from page 1 Like all Titan head coaches, Vanderhook is a part of the Augie Garrido coaching tree, having served under the Hall of Fame coach as a player and assistant coach.

“I think he brought back not putting all the expectations people are putting on us … That’s all that matters,” said junior Richy Pedroza of his coach.

Coach Vanderhook brought with him experienced coaches to improve the squad with Mike Kirby and Chad Baum. Kirby is in charge of recruiting, the infield and first base coach, while Baum is in charge of catchers and third base coach.

Kirk Saarloos stayed on as an assistant coach after Serrano’s departure.

A graduate assistant coach last year, Saarloos takes over as pitching coach this season, and he’ll have a tough task ahead of him.

Last year’s pitching staff put up incredible numbers with a 2.88 ERA and averaging 8 1/2 strikeouts and 2 1/2 walks a game. Numbers like that are hard to duplicate, and that is the big question mark coming into this season.

“People say our pitching is weak, but I think it’s going to be just fine

16 vs. Long Beach State -- Goodwin Field at 7 p.m.

17 vs. Long Beach State -- Goodwin Field at 6 p.m.

18 vs. Long Beach State -- Goodwin Field at 1 p.m.

22 vs. Oral Roberts -- Goodwin Field at 6 p.m.

23 vs. Oral Roberts -- Goodwin Field at 7 p.m.

24 vs. Oral Roberts -- Goodwin Field at 6 p.m.

27 at Arizona State -- Tempe, Ariz. at 6:30 p.m.

28 at Arizona State -- Tempe, Ariz. at 6:30 p.m.

30 vs. Cal State Northridge* -- Goodwin Field at 7 p.m.

31 vs. Cal State Northridge* -- Goodwin Field at 6 p.m.

April 1 vs. Cal State Northridge* -- Goodwin Field at 1 p.m.

TITAN LEGEND * - Conference Event

this year. I mean, they are young.

They’ve stepped up a lot this fall and learned a lot,” said junior pitcher Dylan Floro.

He will be the Friday starter for the Titans this season. Floro only started four games and pitched in 25 games, posting a 4.23 ERA, last season.

Redshirt freshman Grahamm Weist will be the Saturday starter. It will be his first season pitching for the Titans, but the players are very impressed with the young pitcher.

“Grahamm Weist is a completely different person from last year,” said sophomore Michael Lorenzen. “Last year he was a freshman, young. He had to learn – and he did learn – and this year he’s unbelievable. This fall he’s been really good.”

After Floro and Weist is where the questions are raised.

The Titans can pick from a few pitchers with Kenny Mathews, Koby Gauna and Jose Cardona.

Cardona suffered an injury in the fall session, but looks to be healthy after throwing an inning in the alumni game. We’ll see who will be on the hill for Sunday’s game against Florida.

Dimitri DeLaFuente, a converted pitcher, will provide innings in relief this season. Lorenzen will come out of centerfield to close out

games if needed.

The Titans have one of the marquee outfields in the conference.

The outfield is lightning fast, led

by Lorenzen in centerfield. Austin Kingsolver will start in left field and Ivory Thomas, if healthy, will be in right.

These three will limit extra base hits and chase down fly balls the average outfielder couldn’t reach.

Greg Velasquez and Anthony Hutting will rotate in between the three this season.

Last year’s infield made some uncharacteristic errors.

A lot of it can be attributed to injuries, which in turn disrupted on-field chemistry.

This season, Head Coach Vanderhook wants a solid unit playing together to build chemistry and cut down on errors.

The two infield staples will be Pedroza at third and Carlos Lopez at first. Pedroza is small for his position, but has one of the best gloves in the infield. Lopez takes over full-time duties at first base after Nick Ramirez left last season.

J.D. Davis will fill in at first if needed and provide an extra bat or an inning in relief.

Second base position is split between Derek Legg and Matt Orloff. Legg transferred from Long

CAMILLE TARAZON / Daily Titan Lead batter, and centerfielder, Michael Lorenzen starts the game with a bunt off an alumni pitcher Saturday at the Titan Baseball Alumni game. The Titans will begin their season against No 1. ranked Florida this weekend on the road.

Beach State last season.

Anthony Trajano was out injured for part of last year and even in the fall. This has led to a position battle between him and freshman Matt Chapman at shortstop.

Chapman hit very well in the fall, but Trajano started in the alumni game.

The Titans face a tough test to begin the season against Florida.

And looking down the schedule it gets just a tad bit easier.

The Titans will play against

three other current top 25 teams: No. 6 Texas A&M (away), No. 11 TCU and two games against No. 18 UCLA. A non-conference schedule like that makes it one of the hardest in the country. The Titan players aren’t worried at all.

“It’s a tough schedule, but it’s exciting because it really gets you ready for Omaha. You’re not going to be facing easy teams when you get to Omaha or a Regional of Super Regional; you’re going to be facing top quality teams,”

Lorenzen said.

The Titans are picked to finish first in the Big West in the Preseason Coaches Poll and are ranked No. 18 nationally. UC Irvine is really the only threat in the Big West this season.

Long Beach State is a year older and are getting back to past glory days, but this conference is still a two-team race.

The Titans’ first home series is against No. 11 TCU beginning on Feb. 24 at Goodwin Field.

WOMEN’S HOOPS | GAME PREVIEW

Titans look to end skid GREG WOODSON

TITANStandings

Daily Titan

With the Big West Tournament approaching, it’s going to be important for the Cal State Fullerton women’s basketball team (9-15, 2-10) to win Thursday’s game at Titan Gym against Cal State Bakersfield (4-21).

The Titans have only four conference games left in the season.

A win against the Roadrunners in a non-conference game Thursday could really help the Titans get back on track as they have lost their last four games in the season, with the most recent loss at Cal Poly Feb. 11.

With this being a nonconference game, it can really do the Titans some justice.

The Titans were victorious Jan. 14 in their first matchup with the Roadrunners as they defeated them 67-58.

Redshirt sophomore forward Mya Olivier went for 21 points and 17 rebounds in the first matchup, and the Titans could really use another big game from her the second time around.

CSUF also had three other players score in double digits in that game with redshirt senior guard Lauren Chow’s 15 points being the next highest total.

CSUF will need to win the battle on the boards again as well. The Titans dominated the rebound battle 56-23 in the first match, and it’s important they do it again.

Second chance points were big in the first game and will be a factor once again.

It will also be important for the Titans to shoot at least 40 percent from the field, which is exactly what they shot in the first victory over the Roadrunners.

The Titans have shot under 40 percent in each of their last four losses, which is a big reason why they have not been able to end the Contact Us at dtsportsdesk@gmail.com

Big West Conference 2011-2012 (as of Saturday) W L 3 8 Cal State Northridge

Pct. .727

Cal Poly

7

3

.700

UC Davis

7

4

.636

Pacific

7

4

.636

UC Irvine

7

5

.583

Long Beach State

5

6

.455

UC Santa Barbara

4

6

.400

UC Riverside

3

9

.250

Cal State Fullerton

2

10

.167

recent losing streak.

The Titans will also need senior guard Megan Richardson to get back to her high level of play.

Richardson has only scored a total of 10 points in the last two games, including a season-low two points against Cal Poly Feb. 11.

Cal State Bakersfield is also on a losing streak as of late, losing their last three games they’ve played.

This looks to be a highly competitive game between the two who are both hungry for a win.

Roadrunner junior guard Ciarra Ford scored 17 points to lead her team in the first matchup with the Titans, and is one of the top four

scorers on the team.

It will be important for CSUF to get defensive pressure on Ford.

Overall, if the Titans get out to a strong start, shoot well, win the rebound battle and play consistent tough defense they should be able to come away with a victory against the Roadrunners Thursday.

Hopefully, a victory could build some confidence going into the final stretch of conference play.

The Titans’ remaining games are against UC Irvine, UC Riverside, Long Beach State and Cal State Northridge.

The game against CSU Bakersfield will begin at 7 p.m. at Titan Gym on Thursday.

CORRECTION For the Record: Brandon Heethuis and Kyle Levindofske’s names were misspelled in Tuesday’s story, “Hockey completes up, down season.” Furthermore, it was written that the Titans played and lost against UNLV on Saturday, neither of which are correct. Also, it was not clearly noted that the Titans defeated the LMU Lions 6-5 in overtime Sunday. The teams final record for the season was 13 wins, 17 losses and 1 tie.