The Collegian - Published Oct. 30, 2020

Trick-or-Treating pandemic alternatives

Proctoring services a cause of concern

The Collegian NEWS, PAGE 8

ENTERTAINMENT, PAGE 6

Issue 4 • Friday, Oct. 30, 2020 •

/deltacollegian

Aging student email system to be replaced

PRACTICES CHANGE, IMPORTANCE DOES NOT

BY DAVID VICTOR Senior Staff Writer

General Election sees differences in procedures due to COVID-19, but casting a vote still accessible

BY ITZEL ESPINOZA Staff Writer

This year has brought many challenges and has caused many things to adapt, this is not any different when it comes to voting and Election Day. Although voting by mail has always been an option to voters in California, this year there was an even greater urge to do

so by mail because of COVID-19.

Many voters were concerned about their vote not being counted because of delays in the postal service as a result of COVID-19 so they opted for early voting to ensure it would.

“I wanted to do it by mail because I wanted to make sure my ballot was delivered on time

to be counted because of the issues going on with the postal services,” said Michelle Lopez, a Stockton resident.

San Joaquin County Health and Human Services Secretary Mark Ghaly announced on Sept. 29 that San Joaquin County would be moving on to the red tier of the coronavirus pandemic, according to

sjgov.org.

Red tier signifies that more businesses will be allowed to open up and be able to operate indoors by following certain guidelines.

Although San Joaquin County has now moved onto the red tier, people still fear inperson voting.

“If it was in-person, I

See VOTE, page 8

Big issues at center of mayoral race

BY HANNAH WORKMAN Editor in Chief

With the general election nearing on Nov. 3, Stockton voters will soon have to decide who will lead the city as mayor for the next four years.

Voters have two options: Incumbent Mayor Michael Tubbs, a member of the Democratic party, or challenger Kevin Lincoln, a member of the Republican party. The mayoral race in Stockton is non-partisan. Tubbs and Lincoln moved on after earning the most votes in the March primary.

Ahead of Election Day, The Collegian reached out to Tubbs and Lincoln to allow both candidates to inform readers on their solutions to problems the city faces. Tubbs did not respond at the time of publication.

HOMELESSNESS The biggest problem Stockton is currently facing is homelessness.

Between 2017 and 2019, the number of homeless residents in Stockton nearly tripled from 311 to 921, according to a biannual census.

In an effort to combat homelessness, Tubbs launched the Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration (SEED) in 2019.

This pilot program, which received $1 million in funding by the Economic Security Project, ensured 125 residents would collect $500 per month for 24 months with no strings attached.

With the launch of SEED, Tubbs became the first mayor to launch a guaranteed monthly income program for low-income residents and inspired 17 mayors across the country to follow suit, according

LINCOLN

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TUBBS

to a 2020 article by Vox. Universal basic income is only one of Tubbs’ proposed solutions to combat homelessness.

Stockton also recently obtained $6 million from the state of California to expand emergency shelter space by 50 percent.

With these funds, Tubbs said on his official website he will implement a Housing First solution.

According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, Housing First “is a homeless assistance approach that prioritizes providing permanent housing to people experiencing homelessness, thus ending their homelessness and serving as a platform from which they can pursue personal goals and improve their quality of life.”

In September, the City of Stockton purchased a motel with part of the money received from the grant. This motel will be converted into permanent

See MAYOR, page 8

Delta College is getting ready for an email switchover to Microsoft Office 365 on Okta, a single sign-on service to replace the school’s current email platform.

A little more than a decade has passed since the email system has changed, and Director of Information Technology Chelsy Pham said the current system is obsolete and needs an upgrade.

“The current email system is 14 years old and it breaks down sometimes,” said Pham. “It goes offline and we have to manually reset it every week.”

The expected rollout date is Nov. 2.

The implementation of this new email system is designed to help students and staff in organizing their work and provide access to apps in the Microsoft Office 365 suite for everyone to use.

With the new email system, students and faculty will only need to login once to obtain everything they need to complete their tasks.

Students will have many tools in the Office 365 suite made available to them while at Delta.

Students will have access to app and softwarebased products.

“What you can do here is you can actually download and install copies of Microsoft Office onto your personal computer. This is nice because you can get a copy for yourself while you’re at Delta College,” said Pham.

The new email system will also provide more space for students and staff to receive attachments and graphics in their emails.

“Right now in your email box you have about 10 megabytes of space to receive emails. These days that’s less than one picture you take with your phone,” said Pham. “In the future you’ll have 50 gigabytes for your email.”

Delta College’s information technology (IT) department has planned this switch for a year, but the implementation of this new system has had some delays. The IT department has been discussing with the Associated Students of Delta College (ASDC) about when would be the best time to do the switchover.

“We’ve been collaborating with the ASDC. We actually had several meetings with them and we’ve worked on a good time to launch this,” said Pham.

IT saw implementing the new system at the beginning of the term would be inconvenient since this is when students are adding their classes.

“Can you imagine at the beginning of the term trying to get all your classes, adding courses and then getting a new email account? That’s kind of crazy,” said Pham.

Pham also sees a similar inconvenience if the system were to launch at the end of the semester when everyone is dealing with finals.

“At the end of the term that’s crazy too because you’re trying to work on finals. We tried to pick the best of the worst times to get this launched,” said Pham.

Delta College opted to launch the new system halfway through the semester in order to avoid these inconveniences. Pham said Delta College’s tech support was going through orientation for the switchover to Okta.

“Our Mustang tech support is our student help desk, and they were getting trained this entire time,” said Pham.

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RE-BRANDING THE SOCIAL NORM

Generation Z has normalized cancel culture in a toxic form for online social acceptance

BY ROBYN JONES

Opinion/Entertainment Editor

H

ow hard did we hit life when Generation Z decided canceling various people on the internet is the social norm now? YouTube stars are being trolled for past offenses and toxicity, while TikTok creators are canceled for spreading racism, misinformation, and participating in cultural appropriation.

To a certain extent cancel culture is being used to degrade people for personal attention from other viewers. Racism is another topic where canceling is appropriate, so where do we get off hurting others online unnecessarily, because we don’t agree with their taste in music or sense of fashion.

WHAT IS CANCEL CULTURE? Cancel Culture is a dangerous trend that has been around since 2014, because of the hit television series “Love & Hip Hop: New York,” according to CBSN reporter Christopher Britto.

“In 2020, there’s one c-word more politically charged than coronavirus: canceled,” said Britto.

Cancel culture has always existed in a way, but we’ve given it a name in recent years.

Nobody is safe, because of how high the sensitivity for this generation has climbed since the last generation.

The #[person]isoverparty became a trending default hashtag on Twitter where celebrities popped up daily for incriminating evidence they were being held accountable for, strictly out of boredom during quarantine.

The influence that the internet has on Gen Z has created a major divide today where if you’re not canceling people on social media, you are part of the problem. Or is this Gen Z’s influence on the Internet?

FAME OR LAME Imagine being famous one day, then waking up the next day finding out your career, and social life is hanging on by a thread, because of a mis-

take you made years before.

Popular YouTube star Shane Dawson has made his appearance on the video social channel around 2008 creating funny, but questionable content.

Dawson created skits where he would make content based around the idea of racism. He managed to create multiple personas he takes on within his skits portraying blackface, stereotyping minorities, and using racial slurs referring to the black community.

During that time many people would have considered this a part of dark humor, but as time progressed dark humor didn’t save his case.

The videos didn’t age well, particularly as society moves toward honest conversations about systematic racism.

As his videos resurfaced this year Twitter users have been fighting to get his videos demonetized, and his YouTube account banned.

His last video titled “Taking Accountability” was uploaded on June 26, 2020 addressing his offenses and racial remarks that he constructed.

In response to his video, popular gossip channel Hollywire commented: “How did someone not catch this?”

Many fans began unsubscribing and trolling him on twitter saying vile and unimaginable things, that no person would want to hear.

Brand deals began to cut all ties tracing back to Dawson, close celebrity friends began ghosting him, and Youtube took action demonetizing all his videos within his three channels.

Saturday Night Live (SNL) a show known for pushing boundaries along the offensive side of comedy had to also deal with it’s own cast member Shane Gillis, whom they fired after videos of him ridiculing Asians on his podcast resurfaced Mid September 2019.

Although he, “was funny enough to get on SNL,” he said. His big debut did not last long.

#TIKTOK IS OVER PARTY The form of entertainment

The Collegian The Collegian is the student newspaper of San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton, Calif. The paper is published six times a semester.

As a First Amendment newspaper we pride ourselves on a commitment to the students of Delta College while maintaining independence.

We reinvigorate the credo that the newspaper speaks for the students, checks abuses of power and stands vigilant in the protection of democracy and free speech.

The Collegian is a member of the California Newspaper Publisher’s Association and the Journalism Association of Community Colleges.

PHOTOILLUSTRATION BY ROBYN JONES

today has escalated as far as what social media app most people use.

TikTok the beloved Gen Z app was great in the beginning, but has taken a major decline once popular creators and new creators began sexualizing Disney trends, appropriating culture, and spreading racism on the platform.

Popular creator Addison Rae, also known as Addison “Raecist” has been canceled due to a live stream she conducted with a friend where she was seen whispering in his ear, “say the N-word.”

Many fans have taken screen recordings and made videos trolling her on the internet as “the racist girl from the south.”

Since then Addison has received much attention and began affiliating herself with problematic creators and celebrities such as, Tony Lopez, The Kardashians, Lil huddy, and Nikita Dragun.

Problematic creators on high platforms that have affiliated their fame with racism and drama with other popular creators on their platforms.

Tony Lopez, another popular TikTok creator was repeatedly exposed online for flirting with minors through

EDITORS

their personal DMs on Instagram and Snapchat with prior knowledge of their age.

Fans once again took to twitter #TonyLopezisoverparty with tweets saying “if you simp for tony lopez I will disrespect you,” and, “ How does tony lopez get girls to be around him like ur hanging around a pedo…”

On the rise to fame new TikTok creators have tested the waters, but have no luck shining in the limelight.

Through desperate measures they result in video collaborations with problematic stars that live in viewers’ minds rent free inviting viewers to cancel them and anyone supporting them.

A highly favored creator on the platform Duke Depp cosplays as Tim Burton’s popular character Willy Wonka.

As Willy Wonka he partakes in various trends with friends he meets across the platform for fun.

One month ago he was canceled simply for commenting “Nice hair,” on the brother of Tony Lopez’s page Ondreaz Lopez.

Now in contrast to his brother Ondreaz has not conducted any derogatory actions online that would result in

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HANNAH WORKMAN Editor in Chief/News

JAELYN MORALES Feature

DOMINIQUE WILLIAMS

Opinion/Entertainment/Photo

ROBYN JONES

MULTIMEDIA TECH

Opinion/Entertainment

him being canceled by viewers, but sadly he is canceled for associating with people who are cancel worthy.

Canceling people for their small connections to stay relevant is inconsiderate and time consuming. Who wakes up and decides “yeah i’ll make up something to get people to join me in canceling them,” said student Maria Gonzalez.

As a society we’ve dug ourselves a deep hole seeking validation from people online.

Hate has been accentuated into a whole new level where it can be seen as a form of online bullying.

We can’t cancel every celebrity that breathes the wrong air.

In other words holding people accountable to their past actions is understandable to a certain extent.

Nowadays teens and young adults have dipped their toes into dark humor that revolves around suicide, self harm, and racism within their own race as a joke.

Where is the cancellation in that? The problem is there isn’t.

So who’s really canceled?

Celebrities apart of the hype or the generation indulging in it?

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SUPREME COURT

A political nightmare

BY ESPERANZA HERNANDEZ-MUNOZ

T

Senior Staff Writer

he news has been filled with coverage of the Supreme Court hearings, but at this point, aren’t the hearings just a waste of time? As the public stands to learn nothing new.

After the tragic passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a seat opened on the Supreme Court and the Republicans wasted no time on selecting a nominee to take her place going against Ginsburg’s final wish.

“My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed,” was what Ginsburg said, according to her grand- The Supreme Court building in Washington D.C. PHOTO BY U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, PUBLIC DOMAIN daughter Clara Spera.

The double standard within off when she was answering any For a judge who plans to the Republicans in the Senate is questions. uphold the law and for someone astounding. In 2016, President To which senator Cornyn said: who considers themselves an Barack Obama’s Supreme Court “That’s impressive.” originalist who abides by the text nomination judge Merrick GarApparently it was something of the Constitution you would land was blocked as Republicans the public was meant to be imhope she knows all five parts to claimed it was too close to the pressed by, but it was really a sign the first amendment. election and the new president of her vague answers and lack of At this point the public should should get the nomination when sharing an opinion. not waste their time watching the election was still nine months On day three, Sen. Ben Sasse future supreme court nomination away. asked Barrett about the first hearings as every time it is the President Donald Trump, with amendment. same back and forth game.

37 days until the election, was “What are the five freedoms of The nominated judge sits there allowed to nominate judge Amy the first amendment,” he asked. and does not give their opinion Coney Barrett for the Supreme “Speech, religion, press, on any important or pivotal subCourt. assembly, speech, press, religion jects affecting all Americans.

The hearings for Amy Coney assembly I don’t know what am I All the public tunes into is a Barrett began Oct. 12. missing?,” Barrett answered. judge dodging questions.

During the hearings Barrett Ultimately, Ben Sasse said she When for the most part the described herself as an originalist. is missing “redress or protest,” public knows how they feel on “In English that means that otherwise known as the right to impacting topics due past actions I interpret the Constitution as a petition. Ironic that she forgets and statements not because they law, and that I interpret its text as that one as the country has seen give any official opinion during text, and I understand it to have a multitude of protests across the the hearings. the meaning that it had at the country.

For example the public knows time people ratified it,” she said.

This is a judge who is at the Barrett has made past remarks “So that meaning doesn’t change center of these hearings as they that indicate she opposed Roe over time and it’s not up to me to are meant to prove she is qualv. Wade, which determined the update it or infuse my own policy ified to sit at the highest court Constitution protects a woman’s views into it.” system in the country. choice to decide to have their On day two of the hearing It is one thing she could have baby or not. one of the highlights came when taken notes — as seen, her noteThere are some highlights in republican senator John Cornyn pad had some free space — but the hearings here and there, but asked, “Can you hold up what you the reason this is so important is it is mainly a nominee trying to have been referring to?” because the First Amendments say as little as possible and trying Barrett held up her notepad covers some of the basic rights of to avoid saying anything that can showing she had no notes to go citizens. possibly be used against them.

FAFSA eligibility should reflect reality

BY HANNAH WORKMAN

Y

Editor in Chief

es, I’m a 20-year-old college student. No, mommy and daddy don’t pay my tuition.

According to a 2018 study by Fidelity, 29 percent of parents plan to pay their children’s college expenses in full.

It goes without saying the overwhelming majority of college students in the United States pay for their own schooling. So why is it that the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) makes it nearly impossible for these students to receive extra financial assistance?

The FAFSA website states “the federal student aid programs are based on the concept that it is primarily your and your family’s responsibility to pay for your education,” though this is an outdated concept.

Most college students are financially independent, but FAFSA has strict criteria on who can claim independent.

If the student isn’t 24 or older by Jan. 1 of the school year in which they’re applying for aid, married, pursuing a master’s or doctorate degree, a parent, or an active duty military member, then they’re not independent, regardless of whether they live on their own and pay all of their bills.

Well, surprise, FAFSA: There are some college students under the age of 24 who are working towards a bachelor’s degree, aren’t married, and would like to potentially qualify for more aid due to their already high living expenses.

These aren’t special circumstances by any means. These are normal circumstances.

In a 2018 study by Robert Kelchen, an associate professor at Seton Hall University, it was found that 56.9 percent of college students lived off campus and away from their parents.

This means most college students must pay for rent and other basic living expenses, such as food and personal care items. Those expenses, on top of tuition, mean more help from federal student aid programs would benefit students.

The assumption FAFSA makes that all parents could afford or even want to help their children pay for tuition is unreasonable.

Every year, with the cost of living rising in the U.S., more and more parents are opting not to pay for their children’s education.

In 2016, Fidelity reported 43 percent of parents said they planned to pay their children’s college expenses in full, meaning there was a 14 percent drop in a two-year period.

Parents shouldn’t be expected to bear the responsibility of paying for their children’s tuition, unless they’re outright forcing them to go to college.

So, FAFSA: Maybe it would be nice for you to help out the majority of college students in the U.S. by adjusting the dependency status criteria to ensure the students who need extra financial assistance can actually get it.

Unauthorized ballot boxes disputed, removed

BY ESPERANZA HERNANDEZ-MUNOZ

T

Senior Staff Writer

he 2020 presidential election is Tuesday, Nov. 3, and voter registration is now closed. As the day approaches, California is receiving more and more mail-in ballots.

When a voter drops off their ballot they expect it to be secure, to arrive to the right hands and, most importantly, they expect it to count. Recent incidents in the state of California have raised the question: How safe are the votes of the public?

Unauthorized ballot boxes were set up through a GOP ballot collection program in three different counties including Los Angeles, Orange and Fresno. The unofficial ballot boxes were placed in places like gun shops, churches and gas stations.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and Secretary of State Alex Padilla threatened legal action against GOP officials once they were informed of the unofficial ballot boxes.

It was thought that there may be some type of voting fraud and state officials placed a cease and desist order.

The GOP insisted it was collecting votes while abiding by California’s election law. Some of the most worrisome things about unofficial ballot boxes is that they feed into misinformation and put into question the integrity of real ballot boxes.

Voting in presidential elections is stressful as it is, as the country is deciding part of the future four years.

The addition of extra unofficial ballot boxes mess with the already established process put into play by the state.

These types of actions have put into question the integrity of the voting process. As it shows the GOP does not trust California officials to do their job honestly which is to collect and count every vote they receive.

Both the Secretary of State and AG want to make sure official ballots are not mishandled. California officials can not guarantee the security of the ballots that have been collected by the GOP, as

California officials do not have access to ballots dropped off at unofficial boxes.

“Among other things, they will not make available or condone the use of unstaffed, unsecured unofficial ballot drop boxes. This is an important step in stopping the voter confusion created by their ballot collection activities,” said Secretary of State Padilla when speaking on the reaction The GOP defended their actions in statement released on Oct. 21 via their spokesperson Hector Barajas “Sacramento Superior Court Judge Brown found that the Attorney General provided no factual basis supporting the state’s demand that we identify the voters who have entrusted us with their ballots,” Barajas said.

The unofficial ballot boxes and the secrecy around them has sparked confusion among state officials and members of the public.

But then another question arises: Did all the members of the public who turned in their ballot at these boxes know they were turning in their votes at

VOTE unofficial state ballot boxes?

“They need to trust our state in holding a fair election,” said former Delta College student Michael Watson. “I also see the opportunity for everyone to become more civically engaged as everyone can see that elections are important and have serious consequences.”

The actions taken by the GOP expose how fragile this country’s democracy truly is, one simple action like theirs can put into doubt the entire voting process.

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DREAMer’s Roadmap hosts supply drive

BY JAELYN MORALES Feature Editor

When enjoying your favorite meal, making dinner for your family or simply walking into a grocery store, there is something in common all three have– the hands that grow and bring the farm-to-fork.

DREAMer’s Roadmap is an organization that helps undocumented students achieve a higher education after high school. CEO and founder Sarahi Salamanca takes pride in the work the organization has done.

Salamanca takes pride in the work the organization has done.

One such campaign is something the group calls “first of the month.”

“We raised $2.4 million in helping undocumentd and low-income families in the Bay Area to pay for their rents, mostly for families who didn’t qualify for stimulus checks or unemployment,” said Salamanca.

DREAMer’s Roadmap has extended their hands to other causes. #Supplies4FarmWorkers is a volunteer and donations lead event that supports farm workers and their families that are out in the fields working through all types of weather conditions and natural disasters to bring the farm-to-fork.

DREAMer’s Roadmap was a dream for Salamanca herself.

Being a child of immigrants, a higher education seemed almost unreachable to Salamanca after high school graduation.

DREAMer’s Roadmap is her way of giving back and giving resources to the immigrant communities that struggle to find ways to give their children a chance at a higher education.

“I’m an immigrant from Mexico. I came to this country when I was four years old. In my junior year of high school when I was trying to apply for college my counselor told me that people like me couldn’t go to college. So the inspiration for DREAMer’s Roadmap was my personal story,” said Salamanca.

The COVID-19 pandemic has also hit the communities DREAMer’s Roadmap serves.

“COVID-19 has affected our specific community on so many levels. Financially, health-wise, psychologically. I think that’s why for us as a collective community to be doing this work. Most people of color are essential workers, so we’re more prone on going out and getting COVID, and if we get

COVID we have no other avenue of getting support from the government because of our legal status,” said Salamanca If there is any way you or anyone would like to help the cause, donations or volunteering opportunities are found on their website DREAMer’s RoadMap. “Anybody from across the country, across the world can visit dreamersroadmap.org and donate directly there, you can send a check to our headquar- CEO and founder Sarahi Espinoza Salamance (middle left) helps size shoes for the children that came to the supply drive. PHOTO BY JAELYN MORALES ters,” said Salamanca.

Stockton Community Kitchen gives local chefs place to start

BY YESENIA ORTEGA Staff Writer

Rima Barkett is helping aspiring chefs find a place to start.

Barkett, co-owner of BellaVista Rooftop & Events in Stockton, started the Stockton Community Kitchen in the beginning of January 2020.

The program focuses on giving under-resourced female cooks knowledge and training in a kitchen setting called an incubator program with the resources to guide participants with mentors for the next three to five years after class graduations.

“We look for them and teach them how to make money. It’s not enough to

cook, [they] need to know accounting, costs of food, right marketing, pay taxes,” said Barkett. “Many people want to, but don’t know where to start.”

Three times a year, the program allows selected participants to use BellaVista’s commercial kitchen equipment, with bigger kitchen space and staff while also learning topics ranging from financial and marketing skills to become a restaurateur from other mentors.

The program comes to Stockton thanks to inspiration from the Bay Area.

Barkett went to San Francisco to meet with the team of La Cocina, a similar program that mentors and trains cooks in a kitchen that helps over 30 en-

trepreneurial cooks at a time according to the website. Afterwards, Stockton Community Kitchen was established.

The local program emerged from Stockton’s pandemic uncertainty, so now the previous participants have been employed and aid in making food for families and individuals who have been affected by business shutdowns and the pandemic alongside BellaVista’s staff for the Community Kitchen.

Since March, the staff help deliver daily and cook food Monday through Friday to more than 300 families and people that are affected by the unemployment and the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I felt there was a need for it, just like

many people, we try to fill it as best we can ...without a job, fear of going outside, uncertainty, and many people had a hard time feeding their families,” said Barkett. “I started alongside with A Tavola Together Foundation.”

After month-to-month of financially investing into the program along with the restaurant shutdown, the Community Kitchen was awarded a grant from California’s government to assist the program financially until the end of the year.

“It’s not just me, I have the space and desire, but I couldn’t do it myself. All of my friends offered to deliver food.

Family support, it takes everybody. It’s a community thing,” said Barkett.

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Sharing the spirit of Halloween in Ripon

Community costume closet helps connect a small town and brings the spirit of giving to the spookiest holiday season of the year

BY DOMINIQUE WILLIAMS

S

Photo Editor

omething about the air just feels different when the calendar turns to October 1.

There’s a certain crispness, a sense of excitement, your mind thinks one thing: Halloween.

In my small community of Ripon, every holiday is a reason for the whole town to come together to celebrate in some form.

Scrolling through Facebook one afternoon in October last year, I came across a post in the Ripon community group page posted by one of my neighbors down the street.

Tonya Bentulan started a community costume closet for children, teenagers, adults, Ripon residents and surrounding residents to have the opportunity to save money by not buying new Halloween costumes.

Neighbors came and chose costumes she had collected, but they also donated costumes they had taking up space in storage bins and even donated money to purchase more costumes when inventory ran low.

Early this year, back on Facebook, I saw a post from Bentulan again regarding the same subject, except this time, she was looking for someone to take the costumes because she was moving out of town.

She suggested the idea that if said person found the closet to be too much to manage, it could be passed around from house to house each year.

I looked to my husband.

“We’re doing this,” I said.

Sighing, he agreed to help me load the inventory and store it in our studio room until we decided how much of the responsibility we wanted to accept.

I, however, knew in my mind that we would carry on the tradition until we moved out of Ripon ourselves if we ever did.

The last week in September, I finally lugged out the many boxes and bags of costumes and accessories.

Two days later, with help, all of the

The Community Costume Closet gives kids the chance to get into the spooky spirit and gives parents the chance to save.

PHOTOS BY DOMINIQUE WILLIAMS

costumes were hung up, stacked on shelves, and accessories were organized in bins.

Then I made my own post in the Facebook group. I received an overwhelming response.

Like a kid on Christmas morning waking up to check if Santa ate their

cookies, I go out each day excited to see what’s been chosen and what new things have been left.

With the pandemic putting restrictions on Halloween celebrations, it feels particularly rewarding to be able to offer my community some semblance of normalcy by being able

to shop for costumes for the family without spending the money.

October 1 now has a heightened feeling for me.

The air is even more crisp, I’m that much more excited, my mind immediately reverts to Halloween mode, and I pull out my bins.

Stockton celebrates LGTB history month

BY JESUS HERNANDEZ Staff Writer

Throughout the month of October, the country celebrates the history of the LGBT movement.

We look back at some of the most pivotal, influential and important figures to lead these movements for equality and representation amongst people who identify as lesbian, gay, queer, bisexual or transgender.

Offering a local perspective of one’s upbringing identifying as LGBT in Stockton, Mariah Brown, a full-time college student and Stockton native who identifies as bisexual, gave her perspectives on coming out and the LGBT community.

“My upbringing was a

pretty unique one to say the least. My parents separated when I was 3 and I spent my childhood going back and forth between my mom’s family and my dads for long periods of time. I grew accustomed to the split lives I lived and realized I was surrounded by various people who all came from different backgrounds and cultures. I had family members who came out as LGBTQ and were accepted and loved regardless,” said Brown.

It wasn’t until sixth grade when she began to become conflicted with her own identity and how she really felt.

“While the girls figured out what boys they liked, and the boys figured out what girls liked them, I was stuck

figuring out who I liked more.

Boys or girls,” said Brown.

It wasn’t until a friend of hers had confided in her that she felt the same way, such an idea of being “bisexual” was something entirely new to Brown, especially growing up in a family who had only ever either identified as lesbian or gay.

Brown had gone back and forth on deciding what she was until one day in the eighth grade she came out as bisexual.

“Coming out was a bit difficult because I wanted to be very certain before I came out and made such a big statement, because once it’s out, there is no going back.

I took a closer look at myself for the next few months be-

fore I can to my realization that I am bisexual. Coming out to my friends was a lot easier than I thought, even in high school I made a lot of jokes about my sexuality but still everyone accepted me and didn’t treat me differently,” she said.

Upon asking Mariah whether she felt like there was any sense of societal pressure bestowed upon her for identifying as LGBT in Stockton, she responded in a very charismatic fashion.

“Honestly I did not.

Stockton is a very diverse city with plenty of unique people living in it. And I was convinced that they had bigger issues to deal with than one little mixed bisexual girl walking the streets. I know

this may not be the case for some people of the LGBTQ, especially the men, but I hope that one day all members of the LGBTQ community can live in peace and roam the streets proud with me,” Brown said.

Brown said she was inspired by the cast of “Queer Eye,” a show that started a run in 2003 and has since been revamped by Netflix. “Queer Eye” circulated around the idea of gay men giving advice on fashion makeovers and in lifestyle.

“The cast of Queer Eye has taught me a lot about priding myself in my sexuality and embracing who I am because it’s literally who I am,” she said.

6 ENTERTAINMENT 103020

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Museum opens online offerings

BY KIMBERLY BENAVIDES Senior Staff Writer

NO CONTACT TREATS Parents seek alternatives for COVID-19 Halloween

BY DOMINIQUE WILLIAMS Photo Editor

We’ve spent multiple holidays this year unable to gather and celebrate, and as restrictions are starting to lift we have some freedom to decide whether we feel safe enough this Halloween to go out trick-ortreating, or if we’ll choose to come up with other ways for our families to have fun.

On Oct. 13, San Joaquin County Public Health Services posted the California Department of Health’s Guidance for Safer Halloween and Dia De Los Muertos Celebrations during COVID-19 announcement on their website.

This announcement suggested some safe yet fun alternatives to trick-or-treating including an inhome candy scavenger hunt, a scary movie night and participating in online parties/contests.

Ripon mother Ana Ramirez Lawson said that her family is dressing up as “Super Mario” characters and breaking a Super Mario question block pinata as a way for her children to still get candy.

“My sons are very excited about this plan. They’ve been asking for a pinata for a while,” said Ramirez Lawson, adding that her sons are a little sad about not trick-or-treating, but they understand it’s not very safe.

The California Department of Health’s announcement also said that trick-or-treating without necessary modifications is not currently permitted in California.

Trick-or-treating is not advised by California health officials, but a safer way to still engage in it is by avoiding congregating on doorsteps, and of course staying 6 feet apart and wearing a cloth face covering.

Pregnant Manteca mother Olivia Grigsby-Wang found a way to safely trick-or-treat with her family.

She said that she and her husband are taking their daughter, Violet, to neighborhoods where they know multiple people, including her parent’s and her aunt’s.

“We didn’t want Violet to miss out on holidays but don’t want her (or me with the pregnancy) risking exposure,” said Grigsby-Wang.

Restrictions in California may be starting to lift, but the threat of COVID-19 has not disappeared.

People look forward to Halloween every year and we’re not being stopped from celebrating it, but we should be cautious in how we do.

Trick-or-treating has been a tradition for as long as most of us can remember and there are ways to safely participate in it, but we can also use our growing creativity to create new holiday traditions for our families.

What’s next for music events?

BY SERGIO CUBA Staff Writer

Not too long ago we were enjoying live music events around the country. Stockton Arena schedule would usually be packed with fans every weekend, and outdoor events were always our getaways from everything.

The music scene has taken a big hit during this COVID-19 pandemic.

Event organizations are not sure what the next steps will be. Businesses are continuing to operate using outdoor locations to generate revenue. But what’s going to happen with music events in Stockton?

For the last two years Edmund Fong and his organization successfully established the “Bump Music Festival” that would occur every summer at Weber Point Event Center in Stockton.

“This pandemic affected all types of entertainment for the city of Stockton, the younger community was finally engaging into this particular music which I love the most. We might have to find other outdoor options in order to keep ourselves going in the meantime. Our group might be looking into the Park ‘N Rave

method like insomniac is doing it back in SoCal,” said Fong.

Stockton resident Gibran Esquivez, has been attending local events for the past few years. He has seen the ups and down for the music scene with the city of Stockton.

“As a music fan, it is heartbreaking what the music event scene is going through, I have seen event organizations completely collapse because of the COVID-19 pandemic. These social distancing music events are not the same, I miss grooving with the large crowds,” said Esquivez.

It seems impossible to have fun at a “Social distancing” event nowadays. There needs to be CDC, state, and local recommendations for a proper social distancing event.

There are outdoor events happening in Stockton such as Whirlow’s Tossed & Grilled parking lot dinner & music and the Whirlow’s pet costume contest. Virtual events are starting to roll out more often since it’s the safest and newest way to attend an event during this pandemic.

Practice social distancing, so the city of Stockton can come back stronger than ever.

This pandemic has caused traditional field trips to either be canceled or postponed, but community organizations are working on making sure to make these educational opportunities still available, at least virtually.

The San Joaquin County Historical Museum developed SJCH Online as a digital museum for the community and for students to view for class academics purposes.

The San Joaquin County Historical Society and Museum has worked with community leaders and educators to develop exhibits with students, teachers, and parents in mind.

Online provides curriculum subscriptions for educators to support students with remote learning.

The society’s goals, according to its website, is to operate the San Joaquin County Historical Museum, present exhibits, and programs, and develop and disseminate publications and media. This is all available for students to virtually visit for academic research instead of visiting in person.

The San Joaquin County Historical Society focuses on preserving and revealing the history of San Joaquin county and operates the Museum under an agreement with the County of San Joaquin.

The program gives students who need arts or cultural exploration for classes a way to do so.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Delta has also had to make adjustments to support online learning in some classes that typically include field trips, galleries, or concert visits.

In music classes, as an assignment for a concert report, Aaron Garner provided a recording of a Royal Opera House performance instead of having students going to a concert themselves.

Delta Arts and Communication Division Dean Christopher Guptill said that “all of the multimedia classes have adapted to provide online education … and hybrid classes.”

The division has bought more computers, microphones, and software for teachers to work from home and students to be able to work on their assignments.

“We continue to identify and acquire the resources students need to remove barriers to their success,” said Guptill.

Delta’s Goleman Library has also made changes to make its resources available.

The school’s library is the best place to find books, magazines, digital media, news articles, and CDs or DVDs which the library has provided extensive collections, according to Guptill.

Students can have access to these resources by going to the Library web page and searching by title for specific CDs or DVDs. The resources are available for students through digital format or “Express Check Out.” “The “Express Check-Out” allows students to order materials online and set up a time to come to campus to pick them up (sanitized and packaged),” said Guptill.

Fundraiser benefits students

BY JAELYN MORALES Feature Editor

Live performances are a pastime that have been enjoyed by countless audiences for generations. Whether it is a musical, a stand up comedy, or a concert, live performance has grown to still be a huge source of entertainment and hobby for many to this day.

COVID-19 has changed the experience of live performances in ways we as a community have never seen before. Concerts are being postponed into next year, school productions canceled and even Broadway itself is struggling due to its main source of income being the audience.

“Broadway is now closed till the end of May. This has forced theaters and actors to think outside of the box and find new ways to stay connected with our audiences,” said James Reed, board member and theatre education director for the Stockton Civic Theatre.

The Stockton Civic Theatre has hosted their second annual Young@Heart virtual benefit on Oct. 17. The Young@Heart virtual benefit concert was a free virtual event hosted on the Stockton Civic Theatre Youtube channel. The concert was to raise money for The Bill Grotemeyer Fund, which helps support both theatre education for the youth of Stockton and the Stockton Civic Theatre.

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Delta resources aid undocumented students Undocumented students face a multitude of barriers compared to their peers Delta College student Fernando who were born and raised in the U.S. Cardenas said learning English was Cardenas has overcome massive obthe biggest barrier he has faced as an stacles in his pursuit to achieving his immigrant.

He often felt left out of dream of a higher education.

Born in Jocona, Michoacá, Mexico, conversations in the classroom and segCardenas and his family moved to the regated from his peers.

While he couldn’t connect with United States in 2007 in hopes of paving classmates, Cardenas credits his fourththe way to a brighter future for themselves.

Cardenas, who was only 9 years old grade teacher for helping him adjust to at the time, had difficulty finding his a new environment.

“I felt welcomed in her class because place in a new country. she had a passion for teaching,” Carde“Being an undocumented immigrant has been a struggle for me,” Cardenas nas said. “She tried many ways to teach said. “When I first came to the United me how to speak English and I’m very States, there was a lot I didn’t know. I grateful for that.”

Cardenas said his teacher provided had to learn a new language, adapt to a different culture and do good in school.” him with audiobooks that allowed him According to a 2020 report by New to practice English. He also picked up American Economy (NAE) and Pres- on the language by watching television.

His challenges persisted. idents’ Alliance on Higher Education, When Cardenas was finally confident undocumented students make up an enough to speak English to his peers, he estimated two percent of all students said he was bullied for the way he spoke. enrolled in higher education in the “I still find myself struggling with U.S., which is approximately 450,000 some aspects of the language, such as students.

The report also found California has writing essays,” Cardenas said.

At Delta, Cardenas said he has the highest number of undocumented found support in his English as a Secstudents in postsecondary education, ond Language (ESL) Professor Lilia with a total of 92,000 students.

Becerra-Quintor.

BY HANNAH WORKMAN Editor in Chief

“She made me fall in love with reading and helped me to get rid of my shyness,” Cardenas said.

The educators Cardenas has encountered on his journey have inspired him to pursue a career in teaching, either for children with special needs or bilingual children.

“I want to have an impact on students’ lives because I want every child to succeed in life,” Cardenas said.

Another resource offered at Delta that has helped Cardenas is the I Am/ Yo Soy club.

According to the club’s mission statement, the I Am/Yo Soy club aims to provide a safe space for all undocumented students, immigrants, and allies.

Brenda Sandoval, president of the I Am/Yo Soy club, believes the club “creates an easier path” for undocumented students and immigrants.

She joined the club during her first semester at Delta, a time in which she said she felt lost due to the transition between high school and college.

“I felt welcomed by club members and advisors, and felt as though I found my place on campus,” Sandoval said.

Taly Bautizta, club member, said she wanted to join the club because she was inspired by the way it advocates for students who are often left without a voice.

“The club spreads awareness and provides hope to undocumented students that they could still attend college and gain a higher education,” Bautizta said.

Bautizta said that through I Am/ Yo Soy, undocumented and immigrant students are able to build relationships with one another and take comfort in the fact there are others in the same situation or allies who are willing to help.

There are also resources the club provides students with, such as scholarships, workshops, and connections to immigration attorneys in San Joaquin County.

Meetings for the I Am/Yo Soy club are held every Friday at 2 p.m. on Zoom.

The meeting ID is 772-878-1990.

Sandoval and Bautizta said they hope to be strong allies to undocumented and immigrant students on campus, allies that students like Cardenas could turn to.

Despite the hardships he has endured as an undocumented immigrant, Cardenas remains determined to create a better life for himself, just as his parents desired.

“I want to tell every undocumented student that they are not alone,” Cardenas said. “Dreams can come true if you work hard to accomplish them.”

MASK FASHION

Market makes, sells masks Every weekend Delta Colleges Budd 4 parking lot turns into The Market at Delta College. Martha Lara of Stockton is a vendor at The Market.

Along with other miscellaneous clothing such as socks and gloves, Lara has begun selling reusable/washable cloth face masks.

Lara said she wears a mask not only for her health, but the health of others around her.

“This pandemic will end, it may take another year or year and half, but this will end. In the meantime, I will continue to wear my mask. Maybe if everyone wore their mask like we all should, it won’t take another year or more for this pandemic to end,” said Lara.

The Market is open year around, every Saturday and Sunday from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Check the Delta College website: www.deltacollege.edu/department/market-delta for updates regarding pandemic closures.

Face masks are required to enter the market.

PHOTO BY ANDREA TIPTON

Stockton offers free flu shots, drive-through COVID testing

BY KIMBERLY BENAVIDES Senior Staff Writer

Flu season is rapidly approaching and Stockton Unified Health Services, in partnership with San Joaquin County Public Health Services, is offering free drive-thru flu shots.

The campaign began in September and is continuing through November at selected sites within the school district.

Shots are available from 11 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. on weekdays at each site, which can change daily.

For the schedule of locations, visit https://bit. ly/3012MuL. Parents and siblings may receive a flu vaccine with signed consent. These vaccination clinics are only held for the flu shots themselves, not for COVID-19 treatment or testing.

Hospitals, Rite Aid, CVS, Wal-Mart, and Walgreens are also providing free flu shots for people who need them.

On Oct. 6, shots were given at Stagg High School, August, and El Dorado elementary schools.

Carole Caton, who was part of the flu shot setting tables has an office that is located at Stagg High, said participation was somewhat light last week, and hopes more people take part in the coming days.

The Stockton Unified School District encourages all adults and children to get their 2020 flu vaccination, although people who are moderately ill should not receive a flu shot until they have recovered.

Delta College provided a free flu shot drive in the Child Development Center parking lot near the DeRicco Building, on Pacific Avenue side of campus in mid-October.

A repeat event will be held Nov. 18 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Walk-ups are available, but registration is recommended to prevent waiting in line.

The flu shots are part of a new partnership with Community Medical Centers, which will open a health center on campus when students are allowed to return.

To reserve an upcoming flu shot, students can text “REG” to (209) 926-3900 or visit www.communitymedicalcenters.org/Helpful-Resources/Forms.

“It is critical that everyone get their flu shots, especially this year. Things do not look too good with COVID for people to be careless. Most people skip a year or so from their flu shots, but I don’t recommend it this year,” said Cassandra Mauchado, a customer at the drive-thru.

COVID-19 TESTING Coronavirus testing began in San Joaquin General Hospital as part of the governor’s fifth COVID-19 testing program.

This has been happening since April 2020 and is separate from the free flu shots that are also being provided by San Joaquin General Hospital.

The way that the free testing works is that you go online to projectbaseline.com/COVID-19.

There, you can answer questions about your symptoms and, if you meet predetermined criteria, receive information on when to go and get a test.

When going to these drive-thru testing, people must remain in their cars.

When arriving at the first station, the customer must show their identification and their appointment.

A person is given a flu shot at a drive-thru vaccination event at Delta College on Oct. 21. PHOTO COURTESY OF ALEX BREITLER

In station two, people verify identity and in station three, people roll down their window and get a test swab.

If your test results are positive you will get a phone call, if they are negative, you will get an email.

“I felt like I was being singled out because I had to stay in my car, follow cones that designated where to park, and then someone came out in a hazmat suit and communicated using hand gestures. I was also nervous about the results even though I felt OK and healthy,” said Juan Chavez, a former student at Delta College who went to the drive-thru COVID-19 testing.

For the schedule of locations, visit https://bit. ly/3012MuL.

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Online test proctoring services cause concerns about equity, privacy

BY HANNAH WORKMAN Editor in Chief

The transition to distance education meant institutions had to find a new monitoring system for assessments.

At the beginning of the Fall 2020 semester, instructors of select courses at Delta College started requiring the installation of LockDown Browser and Respondus Monitor, electronic test tracking and proctoring software.

This decision was met with data privacy and equity concerns from the student body, including members of the Associated Students of Delta College (ASDC).

“Across the state, we’ve heard horror stories about these specific programs,” Colm Fitzgerald, president of the ASDC and student member of the California Community College Board of Governors, said.

According to Respondus, the developer of the software, there are two key components to their method of test tracking: LockDown Browser, which prohibits students from opening new tabs during assessments, and Respondus Monitor, a separate web application that is meant to enhance LockDown Browser.

When an assessment requires the use of Respondus Monitor, LockDown Browser will access Respondus Monitor prior to the beginning of the assessment.

Respondus Monitor uses the student’s webcam to record a video while they complete the assessment and flag suspicious activity, such as background noise or the student’s eyes shifting away from the computer screen.

Fitzgerald said there are serious issues with both LockDown Browser and Respondus Monitor.

“We heard a story from a student who was taking a test with this software that’s extremely restrictive,” Fitzgerald said, in reference to a state meeting. “He was in the middle of the test when his little brother walked in the room and when he looked at his brother to tell him to get out, he failed the test.”

Fitzgerald said it is extremely common to hear stories like this at state meetings and meetings on campus.

He said Respondus Monitor causes equity concerns because most students don’t have the luxury of having a

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GRAPHIC BY HANNAH WORKMAN

quiet, private space to complete assessments, especially those who are disadvantaged.

Student Monica Woodall said she doesn’t have a space at home where she can take assessments uninterrupted.

“I take care of my elderly parents. I look up frequently during exams in case one of them falls or needs help.

It’s worse than having a newborn,” she said. “If I got flagged for cheating, it would be very messed up.”

LockDown Browser and Respondus Monitor also cause equity concerns related to access to broadband internet connection and technology.

Installation requirements for the software include operating systems Windows 10, 8 or 7, macOS 10.12 to 10.15, or iOS 11.0 or higher.

A 2020 survey by the California School Boards Association (CSBA) found that one-third, or 33 percent, of the survey’s respondents indicated that “less than half ” or “a small minority/none” of their students have broadband home internet access or similar.

In addition, 50 percent of respondents reported that “less than half ” or “a small minority/none” of their

VOTE: Poll workers taking precautions continued from PAGE 1

would have been a bit fearful since I do have moderate asthma, but I would still go either way,” said Lopez.

Other people have called the registrar of voters regarding the use of face masks for in-person voting.

“We have received questions about if people can vote without a mask, which they can, ” said Jolena Voorhis, deputy county administrator for San Joaquin County. “There has been coworker training to prepare them for COVID health protocols including sanitizing surfaces, social distancing, offering masks to voters, monitoring room capacity and other measures relating to protecting health of the public and our staff.”

Officials want to make sure that voters come out and vote and feel safe.

“Workers have been trained on de-escalation tactics in place in case we do have intimidation or rallies at the ballot boxes as has been seen in other counties, we work closely with the sheriff departments to develop a strategy for our coworkers and for everybody in the county,” said Voohris.

The Registrar of Voters for San Joaquin County reports that there will be four options to vote this year.

In addition to voting by mail, residents can vote in-person at the San Joaquin County Registrar’s office, open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. They can also vote in person at a voters service center as of Oct. 31. There will be 34 voter service

students have access to multiple internet-capable devices at home.

In an effort to combat students’ lack of broadband internet connection and technology, Delta offers free Wi-Fi in most campus parking lots from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m Monday through Saturday.

Delta also purchased Google Chromebooks and other laptops for students to borrow during the semester.

However, Fitzgerald and other students said this didn’t eliminate the problems tied to the usage of LockDown Browser and Respondus Monitor.

“They gave out Google Chromebooks, but those couldn’t even run LockDown Browser,” Fitzgerald said.

With the issues seemingly piling up, Fitzgerald said the ASDC knew it had to take action.

“When we became aware of these issues, we did a couple of things,” he said. “The first thing we did was write a letter, with the input of our Legislative Affairs Committee and Equity Committee. We all worked together to make sure that the institution knew we were upset.”

The ASDC also requested to be invited to the Academic Senate meeting on Oct. 7 to express concerns to faculty.

At the meeting, the ASDC learned LockDown Browser and Respondus Monitor were a part of the same subscription service, and the latter was being tested by the institution.

When the institution was made aware of student concerns, Vivie Sinou, dean of Regional and Distance Education, made the decision to end the institution’s subscription.

However, it has been discovered that some professors are still utilizing LockDown Browser as it is a free feature that came with the purchase of the subscription.

“LockDown Browser isn’t as big of an equity concern compared to its counterpart, but it still is an equity concern,” Fitzgerald said. “If there’s an equity concern, then we have to annihilate it.”

READ THE FULL STORY ONLINE AT DELTACOLLEGIAN.NET centers in San Joaquin County that will operate Saturday, Sunday, and Monday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Lastly, accessible vote-by-mail is also an option.

That can be done by using a remote accessible vote by mail ballot that can be filled out at home, once filled out it will need to be printed and returned to the office of the registrar by 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

“Ballots returned by mail must be postmarked on or before Nov. 3, 2020 and received by the office of the Registrar of Voters by Friday, Nov. 20, 2020 to be counted,” according to sjgov.org.

Any questions or concerns regarding elections and voting you may contact the San Joaquin County Registrar of Voters’ Office at (209) 468-8683.

The office is located at 44 N. San Joaquin St., Stockton, Suite 350.

MAYOR: Small business, youth development among areas addressed continued from PAGE 1 housing units for the homeless.

Forty-two homeless residents will be able to move into the units as early as this winter, according to Jonathan Mendelson, executive director of the San Joaquin Continuum of Care (CoC).

Lincoln told The Collegian he doesn’t agree with this approach.

“We need to take immediate action to deal with this crisis,” he said. “The current Housing First proposal is not fiscally realistic.”

Lincoln proposes Stockton embark on a public or private partnership that will erect enough low-barrier congregate shelters to accommodate the homeless population in a timely manner.

“These bridge shelters will provide wrap-around services to help the homeless with drug and mental health issues,” he said. “We can’t wait for the government to give each homeless person their own apartment. We can solve this problem now with a common sense approach.”

Lincoln said he believes affordable housing is an important component to

the city’s homeless crisis, but it’s not the primary factor.

“The driving cause of homelessness is drug addiction and mental health,” he said. “However, Stockton does need more affordable housing. We can achieve this by providing incentives for developers and nonprofits to build more affordable housing.”

SMALL BUSINESS One matter Tubbs and Lincoln agree on is more small businesses, specifically those founded by minorities, are needed in Stockton.

In August 2020, Tubbs announced the launch of the Juneteenth Capital Initiative, a collaborative effort to help Black-owned small businesses and nonprofit organizations.

A total of $165,000 was granted to Black small business owners and leaders of nonprofits organizations. This money came partially from Tubbs’ SEED program, as well as Bank of America, A.G. Spanos Companies and Stockton Strong.

Grants in amounts of $5,000 to $20,000 were given to 14 businesses and nonprofits, all of which addressed

community’s needs such as business education, drug recovery, education, health care, and housing.

In an interview with The Record the same month, Tubbs said he would work to ensure more Black entrepreneurs received financial support.

Lincoln told The Collegian small businesses are the backbone of Stockton’s economy.

“I would like to see more familyowned businesses in Stockton,” Lincoln said. “As a businessperson myself, attracting independent business is the cornerstone of a more secure future.”

He said he would advocate for the youth, communities of color, and individuals previously from disadvantaged neighborhoods to start new businesses.

“Free enterprise works best when everyone benefits,” Lincoln said.

YOUTH DEVELOPMENT On the topic of youth development, Tubbs and Lincoln have different approaches.

In 2018, Tubbs launched Stockton Scholars, a privately-funded program which grants college scholarships to

graduating high school seniors in the Stockton Unified School District and Delta College students.

With the help of a $20 million donation, Tubbs has been able to grant scholarships of $500 to qualifying students to cover the cost of books, transportation, and other school-related expenses.

Lincoln told The Collegian he would take a more hands-on approach to youth development.

“When elected mayor, I will host a roundtable discussion that includes all superintendents from all school districts that serve Stockton students,” he said. “As well, I will host a meeting with the Delta College Foundation and Board of Trustees to see how the city can be a stronger partner.”

In order to promote civic engagement amongst the youth, Lincoln said he would convene a Mayor’s Youth Advisory Committee of students and young people.

“I will hold regular meetings, listen to ideas, and then implement solutions which ultimately will improve the lives and well-being of individuals aged 19 and under,” he said.