Thursday, February 17, 2022

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Thursday, February 17, 2022

The Student Voice of California State University, Fullerton

Volume 111 Issue 3

Campus mask mandate extended to March 31 JESSICA BENDA Editor

The campus mask mandate will extend until March 31, the university told faculty on Wednesday. The announcement came on the same day the universal indoor mask mandate ended statewide. David Forgues, vice president of Human Resources, Diversity and Inclusion, cited health officials’ recommendations for public indoor masking, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Orange County

Mask dispenser inside Pollak Library. (Spencer Otte / Daily Titan)

Health Care Agency. “CSUF will continue to monitor federal, county and local guidelines along with data on cases, positivity rates, and vaccine compliance. We will provide updates to the face mask requirements when there is a change to announce,” Forgues said. Forguesnoted the “steady decline” in campus COVID-19 cases and in Orange County since the omicron variant surge. On Feb. 12, Ellen Treanor, the associate vice president of strategic communications for the university, said it was unlikely that the

mandate would be extended. “If there’s not another variant that looks like it’s going to be a serious concern, I can’t imagine that Cal State Fullerton would not lift that mandate after the 28th of February,” Treanor said. The mandate requires masks be worn indoors regardless of vaccination status, but does not apply to those outdoors. The Cal State University vaccine mandate also requires COVID-19 vaccinations for students, faculty and staff, and was updated in December to require the booster shot by Feb. 28. CSUF required its boosters by Feb. 7,

Key faculty not consulted in WoMen’s Center closure Women and Gender Studies and Political Science blindsighted by changes. JESSICA CHOI AMBER JUAREZ Editors

Departments that frequently collaborated with the WoMen’s Center, like the Department of Women and Gender Studies, were not consulted in the center’s closure, faculty members said. The Division of Student Affairs, which is responsible for the communication between the WoMen’s Center and related academic departments, never announced nor discussed the closure of the center with the Women and Gender Studies Department. “We really needed to be consulted; we should’ve been at the table. We are the number one stockholder

in the WoMen’s Center,” said Karyl Ketchum, professor and department chair of women and gender studies. The department worked closely alongside the WoMen’s Center and advocated the center as a resource for those identifying as women. “If it was some kind of this happening in administration, a budgetary thing or something, we could have finessed that instead of taking the one center that supports more than half of our student population and just getting rid of it,” Ketchum said. Following Daily Titan’s breaking story of the WoMen’s Center’s closure on Monday, the division posted on its Instagram, under the username @ csufstudents, that women’s and adult reentry services are in the process of being absorbed by other campus departments. SEE CLOSED

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Most women services are now found at Diversity Initiatives and Resouce Centers . (Spencer Otte / Daily Titan)

OC students protest mask mandate GENESIS PAVIA Staff Writer

Students ranging from elementary to high school organized a rally in Santa Ana to protest against the indoor mask mandate in public schools.

Around 20 people attended the protest that took place on Feb. 14 in front of the Orange County Healthcare Agency located on 405 W. 5th St..

Most were members of Student Mask Choice, a group formed by students at San Juan Hills High School. SEE RALLY

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Baseball returns to the plate Titan baseball opens its 48th season on Friday against Stanford at Stanford Stadium. CAYLA LUNA Staff Writer

The Cal State Fullerton’s baseball team is approaching the 2022 season after finishing last year under .400 both overall and in conference play.

SEE PITCH

Students in Santa Ana protest mask mandate inside of classrooms. (Spencer Otte/ Daily Titan)

‘The Cleaning Lady’ demands advocacy for migrants

WHAT’S INSIDE? VISIT US AT: DAILYTITAN.COM

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Five movies to watch during Black History Month

It is vital for viewers to analyze the show’s accurate depiction of labor abuse against courageous undocumented immigrants.

From Jackie Robinson to Malcolm X, these films exhibit important African American events and honored figures.

Opinion

Lifestyle

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