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Features | 2

The

INQUIRER S T U D E N T V O IC E

Volume 77 No. 5

D I A B L O VA L L E Y C O L L E G E

www.TheInquirerOnline.com

MIND THE

GAP

Thursday, November 18, 2010

ACCJC visit could boost status JONATHAN ROISMAN Editor-in-chief

Group works to improve success of black students ANNIE SCIACCA Editor-in-chief

BRIAN DONOVAN Staff writer

Teachers, administrators and students are working together in a new group, the College Success Inquiry Project, to try to bridge the gap in achievement levels between black and white students. Annual data has repeatedly shown that black students at DVC have lower rates of achievement when compared to other racial groups, said Emily Stone, academic and student services manager. According to the 2009 DVC Fact Book, the most recent edition, black students represent 5.5 percent of DVC enrollment while white students represent 47.2 percent.

GAP, Page 8

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY JULIUS REA

Textbook posting law creates tension KEVIN HAYES Staff writer

When it comes to textbooks, you can’t please all of the people, all of the time. A new law went into effect July 1 requiring colleges to post prices and textbooks by the earliest registration time. Section 133 of the Higher Education Opportunity Act is intended to give students advance notice of what they’ll need for the next semester. But teachers want more time to review textbooks and students want more time to buy them. “There is a tension between helping students and allowing faculty the freedom to create curriculum,” English professor Keith Mikolavich said. For spring 2011, registration starts Nov. 22. In order to have time to prepare, the

The school may be able to breathe a sigh of relief as soon as its accreditation issues come under the microscope again. On Oct. 15, DVC completed and submitted a follow-up report to the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges in regard to determining their status as an accredited college, Interim President Peter Garcia said in a campuswide e-mail. He said the commission could take DVC off “probation” and make it fully accredited again as early as January 2011. “The commission will review both our follow-up report and the report from the visiting team during their semi-annual meeting in January 2011,” Garcia said in the e-mail. “The college will be notified of the commission’s action, in writing, in late January or early February 2011.” The commission will be visiting DVC Nov. 18. “I am confident that DVC has made, and continues to make, considerable

STATUS, Page 8

College can’t pay bus pass subsidy GERARDO RECINOS Staff writer

With gas prices on the rise and the cost of public transit becoming steeper every year, getting to school has become increasingly difficult for many DVC students. First-year student Sarel Avila commutes from Clayton, which is only about 15 minutes away from DVC by car, but said because the buses are less dependable, they take triple the amount of time. “It’s about 45 minutes to get to school and it ends up costing me a lot of money,” he said. “The cost of riding the bus to and from school costs students between $40 and $50 a month.” DVC’s attempt to solve this problem has been to sell bus passes on campus. The college sells passes to students at a discount, but it pays full price to Contra Costa County Transit Authority, while only receiving about half the revenue. In 2008, they were sold to students for $20,

CHRIS CORBIN / THE INQUIRER

BOOKS, Page 8 • News: 1, 8

• Features: 2, 3

A new law requires DVC instructors to post textbooks and prices by the earliest registration time.

• Entertainment: 4, 5

• Sports: 6

• Opinions: 7

• Editorial: 7

BUS, Page 8 • Campus Buzz: 7

• Calendar: 8

Features The Inquirer - Diablo Valley College

Thursday, November 18, 2010

All fired up Culinary student Juan Hernandez torches a New York steak for lunch at the Norseman restaurant.

ANNIE SCIACCA Editor-in-chief

“Hot! Hot!” a student chef yells in warning, running across the kitchen with a tray of steaming potatoes. It’s 10 a.m. on a Tuesday morning and many of the students in the kitchen behind the Norseman restaurant have been cleaning, dicing and sautéing since 6:30 a.m. Right now, they are preparing for the daily “plate-up,” where they will present the menu to the serving staff of the Norseman. While most students spend their weekdays taking history notes or studying statistics, the students in DVC’s culinary program are preparing dish after dish of roast beet ravioli and New York steak with porcini sauce and gorgonzola. The menu for the restaurant changes weekly, explains culinary arts student Juan Hernandez. Each student in the class is in charge of creating a menu, which usually follows a certain theme, such as food from a certain geographic area. This week, it’s an Italian menu, with dishes like chicken piccatta, shrimp scampi and bruschetta toast topped with prosciutto, aioli, and a green olive-red pepper relish. The desserts also change every week, and like the main courses, it’s up to the students to plan the menu. This morning, baking student Kacy Studeman is executing a plan for her designated dessert choice: gingerbread shortcakes with caramelized apples and cider sabayon. “I wanted to use pears,” she says, laughing, “but I’m allergic!” Studeman already works in a professional restaurant kitchen, and like other students in the program, hopes to continue her dream of working in the food industry. The college’s culinary program is divided into three different areas of study: baking and pastry, culinary arts and restaurant management. All of these programs offer classes that contribute to the running of the Norseman, thus giving students a glimpse into the professional culinary world. “In the morning, sometimes we’ll have a lecture or demo,” says culinary instructor Brian McGlynn. “But it’s very hands-on.” Students are expected to rotate with every chore so they can learn as many aspects of the business as possible. This, explains McGlynn, makes a chef more valuable in the industry. The expectation for well roundedness is apparent also in the scope of classes each culinary student takes. Baking students must take fundamental cooking classes, and

DVC culinary students feed hungry crowds

Three Italian dishes, above, served at the Norseman.

culinary arts students take classes in catering and dining room operations, where they take orders, serve food, wash dishes and act as cashiers for the Express Bar — where customers can get takeaway orders. Today, there is laughter, a few sighs and one or two groans of mild complaint in the front of the house as instructor Claude Capozzo assigns students daily duties for the week. “Sorry about that,” Capozzo says as he hands out a dishwashing assignment. It’s now 11 a.m., and the doors to the Norseman have opened, allowing inside a flood of hungry students who flock to the Express Bar line, and a few others, mostly instructors, who wander to the sitdown side of the restaurant. The restaurant closes its doors at 1 p.m., at which time the students will clean up and prepare to start all over the next day. Having been at the department for more than 20 years, baking instructor Chris Draa says the students’ long hours create a unique experience because he is able to develop such a close relationship with them. “At the beginning, they’re punks — they’re completely lost,” he says of many students starting the program. “It’s nice to see the students mature. We get to know our students more than most teachers ever would.” Draa urges students to gain some experience in some aspect of the restaurant business before deciding to pursue a certificate from the culinary program, noting that the rigorous Monday–Thursday schedule can be overwhelming for unprepared students. “It’s very similar to working in the industry,” he says of the experiential learning in the program. In fact, Draa’s office hours begin at 6 a.m., since for most of his students, class time will extend from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. He points to the flurry of movement outside his office in the corner of the kitchen behind the DVC bake shop, where baking students prepare and then sell a variety of muffins, cookies, pastries and cakes. There are pans of brioches and some students are gushing over the still-warm morning buns. “This is not like T.V.,” Draa says.

asciacca @TheInquirerOnline.com

Akiko Takeda seasons a dish, left, before sending it to the pass.

Culinary student Colin Henrey talks to a server regarding an order.

Theresa LeMoone dips almonds into hot sugar, creating a dessert for the Norseman. PHOTOS BY CHRIS CORBIN

Features

Thursday, November 18, 2010

The Inquirer - Diablo Valley College

Understanding

Well-traveled professor brings knowledge to DVC

slam

“ I have a duty to educate

Muslims — to let them know that we are in America. AMER ARAIM

”

JONATHAN ROISMAN Editor-in-chief

ike most educators, DVC professor Amer Araim wants people to better understand a certain aspect, a little splinter, of life. In this case, it’s Islam. Araim’s book, “Understandng Islam: Fifty Questions,” which was published in September, addresses a number of questions he has received from people at churches, schools and speaking engagements. “[People] want to know about [Islam]. I collected 50 of these questions and I put them in a book,” Araim said. “My idea is to speak to people to help them understand Islam.” The book focuses on more than just the religious aspect of Islam. “This book is not merely a religious book, it’s also explaining the Islamic culture,” he said. “We should know about the Islamic culture. It’s a part of sociology, history and political science. All is combined in this book.” Born in 1940 in Fulljah, Iraq, Araim served as a diplomat with the Iraqi Embassy in Washington, D.C. before holding a number of jobs at the United Nations, including one with the U.N. secretariat where he worked as a political affairs officer against apartheid in South Africa. He later accompanied a U.N. delegation to South Africa to congratulate President Nelson Mandela and the country on their efforts in ending apartheid. He became a citizen of the United States and retired from the U.N. in 1999 to begin a teaching career, which included stints as a lecturer at Dowling College in New York and as a professor at San Francisco State University. In 2003, he started teaching Middle East studies at DVC. “There was a program here to teach the Middle East, but they did not have anyone to teach [the] class,” Araim said. They [asked] whether I could teach the class, and [I said yes].” ASDVC president Katerina Schreck, who took Araim’s “Introduction to United States Government” class in the summer, said she liked his teaching style because he combined lecturing with class participation. “I really liked him,” she said. Political science professor Mickey Huff said DVC is lucky to have Araim. “What we have is someone with great international experience,” Huff said. “I admire him because he speaks out against injustices. He doesn’t troll along and just roll in line with it.” Huff said Araim organizes a number of on-campus events that encourage discussion of current affairs and politics, and the two have had a number of panels and open forums on the Middle East and U.S. foreign policy. “He brings teaching to the classroom in a way that is open,” he said. “He tries to open people’s minds, as well as people’s hearts, to understanding the importance of politics. He practices what he preaches.” Araim explained that he wrote his book to help educate both Muslims and non-Muslims in the United States. “I have a duty to educate Muslims — to let them know that we are in America,” he said. “We should care about the society where we live. We should build bridges with the other faiths and communities.” Araim currently teaches one class, “Introduction to Politics,” but he said he hopes to teach up to three next semester. “In politics there are always controversies,” he said, “but it depends on the media and the public whether they want to pay attention to such controversies or not.”

TRAVIS JENKINS / THE INQUIRER

Dr. Amer Araim, former United Nations diplomat and author, teaches “Introduction to Politcs,” this semester at DVC. Advertisement

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jroisman @TheInquirerOnline.com

Entertainment

Thursday, November 18, 2010

The Inquirer - Diablo Valley College

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Entertainment The Inquirer - Diablo Valley College

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Author Q + A

At a time when “Twilight” has become one of the most famous book and movie franchises in history, and shows like “True Blood” and “Vampire Diaries” are on many peoples’ must-see lists, a former DVC student has written a Bay Area-centric vampire novel. Elle Peyarre recently selfpublished her first novel, “The Two Courts,” a sexually charged, erotic vampire drama. Her story of a fierce clan of blood suckers focuses on the journey of a female vamp trying to find her place in the world with all the sex and violence a reader could want. While she gears up to publicize “The Two Courts,” Peyarre shares the heartache of being rejected by publishers, plus talks vampires, pornography and using writing as an escape. Ariel Messman-Rucker Staff Writer

How did you come up with the idea for your novel? The concept of a vampire family living in a castle near the bay has been with me ever since I was a kid. With “The Two Courts” I wanted to write a story that had all the elements I wanted to read, something very raw and visceral, chaotic and full of rage. Give me love, rejection, betrayal, anger, madness, obsession, revenge. Give me great sex and food, also. And in the end, I want a lesson. Why did you end up self-publishing your book? I was getting rejected left and right back in 2007 and thought “why am I going to wait? I should do something.” If I’m taking my last dying breath I want to at least say I accomplished something and so that’s what I did.

COURTESY OF ELLE PEYARRE

“The Two Courts,” is a self-published book by DVC student Elle Peyarre.

Sex, lies and vampires, all in the Bay Area Advertisement

Why did you decide to write an erotic vampire story? I see romance novels, but they’re all so romantic and I’m like, I want to get hard and dirty. That’s the kind of sex I like and this would be good for guys too. The fantastic thing about reading erotica is that you can be transported into an uninhibited world where your mind is free to explore and run sexually wild. The female vampires in your novel were brought up believing in romantic love and happily-ever-after endings. Were you brought up that way?

I think I should sue Disney [laughs]. Just kidding, but I think that every girl wants to be a princess, wants that romance, but now that I see it, it’s not like that. You can’t expect a guy to come and rescue you. There is a lot of sex in your book; do you enjoy pornography? My favorite porn star is Manuel Ferrara. The way he does “it” is inspiring. I think he should open up a school. If guys can be like him in bed, women would probably be so much more satisfied. When did you first become interested in vampires? I think it was the “Lost Boys.” I think it was the movie that did it and it was those old vampire movies. I’d never seen vampires so close to women, so romantic. … I think it was very sensual between them and I love vampires. I mean, I’m not like a fanatic or anything, but I think it was the sensual part that got me. They’re powerful, sensual, and ruthless creatures to me – ferocious predators. Why do you love writing? It has been my way of handling the bad, shameful stuff going on in my life, when I felt powerless and not in control. I remember many periods in my life when I was so miserable and hating reality that I would just write and write and write.

Amessmanrucker @TheInquirerOnline.com

Sports

6Vikings head to Grafitti Bowl The Inquirer - Diablo Valley College

Thursday, November 18, 2010

TRAVIS JENKINS / THE INQUIRER

Wide receiver Diante Jackson fights for extra yards after the catch. The Vikings beat Merced College 62-6 on Nov. 5th.

Vikings look to secure a bowl game win at Modesto Junior College GERARDO RECINOS Sports editor

The DVC Vikings clinched a bowl game berth thanks to a 5713 road rout against the Los Medanos Mustangs Nov. 12. Vikings quarterback Joey Bradley, who had 2,952 passing yards and 25 touchdown passes going into the game, helped guide the Vikings to a 8-2 overall record, including a 4-1 record in the newly formed Golden Gate Conference, according to the Contra Costa Times. Steady play from Bradley, wide receiver Frankie Darone, and a relentless defensive effort against Mustangs’ quarterback Juan Corral helped erase an early 6-0 LMC lead and secure a 34-13 lead over the Mustangs at halftime. The Vikings finished off the first half with four consecutive passes from Bradley before capping off the drive with a touchdown pass to Darone. DVC tied the game at six in the first quarter after a punt return from the Vikings’ Kevin Moss put the team deep into Mustangs territory and led to an eventual touchdown run by Jalil Turner. The extra point was no good. The Mustangs took a 13-6 lead before the Vikings tied the game on the opening drive of the second quarter after Bradley threw a touchdown pass to wide receiver Roby Adan. DVC scored three more touchdowns to close out the first half. Both teams traded turnovers in the third quarter before Bradley threw a touchdown pass to Darone giving the Vikings a 4113 lead. The Vikings had an active section of fans at LMC, with one fan banging on his cow bell and yelling, “the rides not over yet, Vikings.” The team was excited to advance to a bowl game. “We’re just excited, since we’ve

been working since spring,” said Greg Wilson, All Golden Gate Conference wide receiver. “The hard work is paying off. We put up one of the best records since 1993 by going 8-2.” DVC head coach Mike Darr agreed. “It’s a fantastic reward for these guys,” he said. “They are very deserving [and] great guys to work with. They bring their hard hats every day in the class room, film room and weight room.” The Vikings will play Modesto Junior College at Modesto on Saturday Nov. 20 at 1 p.m. This is DVC’s fourth bowl invitation in the past six seasons. Wide receiver Michael Adan was ruled ineligible for the game against Los Medanos because he was ejected for making a racial slur during DVC’s 62-6 win over Merced College the week before. Adan told an Inquirer reporter on the phone later that he did make the slur. “I guess the ref took that as a racial slur, but when it was said it wasn’t said in any type of racist way,” Adan said. “Every game we play in, people say the N-word all the time and the refs never say anything.” Darr said he understood why Adan was tossed from the game, but also defended his player. “The officials did nothing outside of the boundaries of the rules,” Darr said. “I think part of Mike Adan’s frustration was that it gets said on every play, but it’s not always consistently called.” League rules require a player to be ineligible the game following an ejection. Michael Adan is, however, eligible to play in the Grafitti Bowl at Modesto Junior College on Saturday, Darr said.

TRAVIS JENKINS/ THE INQUIRER

Running back Kenny Shrader tries to evade a tackle from a Merced College defender.

Grafitti Bowl tale of the tape MOD

OPP

TEAM STATISTICS

DVC

SCORING

327

179

SCORING

413

249

Points Per Game

32.7

17.9

Points Per Game

41.3

24.9

FIRST DOWNS

199

168

FIRST DOWNS

226

159

Rushing

101

Rushing

Passing

143

TEAM STATISTICS

Penalty

RUSHING YARDAGE

1961

957

RUSHING YARDAGE

1211

862

Yards gained rushing

2230

1352

1451

1358

269

395

Yards lost rushing

240

496

Rushing Attempts

455

358

Rushing Attempts

342

343

Average Per Rush

4.3

2.7

Average Per Game

196.1

95.7

Average Per Rush

3.5

2.5

Average Per Game

121.1

86.2

TDs Rushing PASSING YARDAGE Average Per Pass

DL Morgan Breslin

OL Nick Garitano

DL Julius Chulu

WR Chase Danska

LB Derek Goetting

WR Greg Wilson

DB Byron Richardson KR Chris Mamon

177-354-12 5.4

Average Per Catch

14.3

10.7

Average Per Game

227.1

189.9

TDs Passing

4232

2856

Total Plays

721

712

Average Per Play

5.9

4.0

TOTAL OFFENSE

423.2

285.6

KICK RETURNS: #-Yards

33-761

60-1345

PUNT RETURNS: #-Yards

30-165

15-116

INT RETURNS: #-Yards

12-263

14-169

KICK RETURN AVERAGE

23.1

22.4

PUNT RETURN AVERAGE

5.5

7.7

19-11

20-10

102-978

94-795

FUMBLES-LOST

PUNTS-Yards Average Per Punt Net punt average TIME OF POSSESSION/Game 3RD-DOWN Conversions 3rd-Down Pct 4TH-DOWN Conversions 4th-Down Pct TOUCHDOWNS SCORED FIELD GOALS-ATTEMPTS

WR Diante Jackson

9 1899

8.5

Average Per Game

QB Joey Bradley

21 2271

Comp-Att-Int 159-266-14

PENALTIES-Yards

2010 Viking All Golden Gate Conference Selections.

Penalty

Yards lost rushing

Average Per Game

grecinos @TheInquirerOnline.com

OPP

ON-SIDE KICKS

97.8

79.5

46-1530

69-2389

33.3

34.6

30.7

31.1

30:25

29:35

49/148

43/158

33%

27%

16/30

10/30

53%

33%

TDs Rushing PASSING YARDAGE

3431

2046

Comp-Att-Int 236-414-22 Average Per Pass

123-340-19

8.3

6.0

Average Per Catch

14.5

16.6

Average Per Game

343.1

204.6

TDs Passing

4642

2908

Total Plays

756

683

Average Per Play

6.1

4.3

464.2

290.8 67-1540

TOTAL OFFENSE

Average Per Game KICK RETURNS: #-Yards

44-935

PUNT RETURNS: #-Yards

35-259

7-19

INT RETURNS: #-Yards

19-223

22-309

KICK RETURN AVERAGE

21.2

23.0

PUNT RETURN AVERAGE

7.4

2.7

19-6

20-11

PENALTIES-Yards

108-1034

84-809

Average Per Game

103.4

80.9

52-1916

74-2486

FUMBLES-LOST

PUNTS-Yards Average Per Punt

36.8

33.6

Net punt average

34.6

29.8

TIME OF POSSESSION/Game 3RD-DOWN Conversions 3rd-Down Pct 4TH-DOWN Conversions

4th-Down Pct

6-11

3-7

TOUCHDOWNS SCORED

0-0

FIELD GOALS-ATTEMPTS ON-SIDE KICKS

32:22

28:35

60/145

34/150

41%

23%

2/8

8/23

25%

35%

11-23

6-8

0-0

1-2

RED-ZONE SCORES (26-38) 68%

(15-24) 63%

RED-ZONE TOUCHDOWNS (21-38) 55%

(14-24) 58%

RED-ZONE SCORES (43-56) 77% (20-26) 77%

PAT-ATTEMPTS (29-33) 88%

(20-22) 91%

RED-ZONE TOUCHDOWNS (35-56) 63% (16-26) 62%

Source: California Community College Athletic Association

PAT-ATTEMPTS (46-53) 87% (27-31) 87%

Opinions Editorial

The

Buzz What are you thankful for?

Matthias Hofstadler, 20 Brewmaster “Family and beer. Family is there to support me and beer is there to get rich and to travel.”

Janette Garcia, 18 Undeclared “I guess music. There [are] many types and it can inspire you.”

The Inquirer - Diablo Valley College

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Student rights are being suppressed Freedom of speech and the right to protest are two of the United States’ founding principles, but these rights are being trampled on by DVC’s administration. At the Oct. 28 Inter Club Council meeting, members of the DVC club Students for a Democratic Society were found to have violated five charges brought against them by dean of student life Bill Oye because of the club’s Oct. 7 on-campus protest. The protest was a peaceful, nonviolent rally to protest recent budget cuts and fee increases that have made access to higher education harder for California students. The bulk of the charges brought against SDS were for failing to provide the Student Life Office with an itinerary for their rally and march route, for spray painting signs in the main Quad and for not filling out an activities request or having a club adviser present when the spray painting took place. Not only are these fairly minor infractions, but some of them aren’t even against any written cam-

pus code or policy. One of Oye’s arguments in favor of finding SDS guilty on the spray painting charges was that now that DVC is a smoke-free campus, spray painting is not allowed. Yes, DVC is a smoke-free campus, but it is not a chemical-free zone. Citing students for this is just an underhanded way to make it harder for them to create protest signs and banners. Part of the nature of a protest is to break the rules, disrupt business as usual and shock the public in order to make dissenting voices heard and to initiate real substantive change. By sanctioning SDS for minor infractions, Oye and the ICC are undermining this goal. But the student protesters also need to stand up for what they believe in, take the punishments that are handed down and wear them as a badge of honor, much the way protesters have done in the civil-rights movement, anti-war and antinuclear movements. Oye and the ICC should take a closer look at the

SCOTT BABA / THE INQUIRER

true meaning of the First Amendment because enforcing nit-picking policies that do little else but keep students from practicing their right to free speech should be stopped. Protesters in the 1960s held sit-ins that disrupted their campuses for days on end; they burned draft cards and broke into military recruitment offices. They were often punished or arrested, but unlike the DVC students who participated in the SDS protest,

they broke big laws, not small policies. And while the argument may be made that rules must be enforced or chaos will ensue, sometimes rocking the boat is exactly what is needed. Would the civil rights battle have been successful if activists had only conducted tame, mild protests? Would the women’s movement have won the right to vote if women hadn’t forcefully protested and been arrested?

We should all be thankful that protesters are trying to wake the school up and get students out of their classrooms to protest the egregious budget cuts that are gravely damaging higher education in California. It’s time that DVC’s administrators stop bullying students with repressive policies and for DVC students to stop being afraid to break a few rules in order to create change.

Opinions

Don’t be afraid to distinguish yourself

Mary Kalinowska, 21 Nursing “My family, friends and cat because I’d be miserable without them. You can ixnay on the cat [laughs].”

I wholeheartedly disagree. In just the last two years Yes, there may be those who France has banned the wearing of burqas, a bomb was placed in have begun to hate being Muslim – correctly proa mosque in Jacknounced “Musssonville, Florida, “In the face of a lim” and not and Switzerland voted to outlaw repressive bigotry “Mooz-lum.” I, however, am the construction we should always confident and of minarets on stand up for the op- proud of my idenmosques. These are atro- pressed, even if they tity as a Muslim. Terrorist groups, cious testimonies are starkly different such as al-Qaida to the rise of hatred and racism than us or don’t fall and the Taliban, toward those who under our definition have committed murderous acts are “different” of ‘normal.’ ” that have been and, in this case, attributed to the Muslim. According to All Academic’s Muslim community as a whole. To combat this constant onwebsite, many sociologists and psychologists argue that in the slaught, Muslims across the naface of increasing discrimination tion create events to unify and and prejudice people will begin to empower their community. There feel resentful, embarrassed and was Muslim Unity Day at Great shameful of their ethnic, cultural America that took place mid-September and DVC’s very own Unity or religious group.

Taliah Mirmalek Opinions editor

Dinner on Nov 8. Events such as these are meant to provide empowerment for Muslim youth and imbue them with a sense of unity. Osama bin Laden and his followers do not have the power – I will never give them the power – to change my opinion of myself, my identity or my religion. We shouldn’t give these groups power to create mistrust and cause us to hate one another. Hate spreads like a disease and

the key to stopping it is education. If life were black and white, good guys vs. bad guys, the bad guys would be defined by bad traits including racism, hatred and prejudice. In this ideological battle we can’t let the bad guys win. We shouldn’t allow them to shape our opinions with their hate speeches and their scapegoating. This doesn’t just apply to hatred against Muslims, but rather hatred toward any group, any person. In the face of a repressive bigotry we should always stand up for the oppressed, even if they are starkly different than us or don’t fall under our definition of “normal.” tmirmalek @TheInquirerOnline.com

Letter to the Editor

Noah Gold, 18 Computer Science “I’m thankful to be able to go to this school. A lot of people can’t.”

Interviewer: Julius Rea Photographer: Travis Jenkins

DVC administration attacks free speech Once again, the DVC administration is attempting to suppress First Amendment constitutional rights of students on our campus. For the past 20 years, student activists have had to fight the administration repeatedly in order to utilize our basic constitutionally protected first amendment rights. The administration routinely attempts to establish unconstitu-

tional and undemocratic restrictions on free speech. All of this occurs when people least expect it. Student activists often have to win the same right over and over again, even though it is protected by the constitution. The most recent attack on free speech and democracy occurred Oct. 28 as dean of student life Bill Oye pressed charges with the Inter Club Council at DVC against

Editorial Board

Staff

EDITORS IN CHIEF Jonathan Roisman Annie Sciacca

BUSINESS MANAGER Ryan Beck PHOTO CHIEF Travis Jenkins STAFF WRITERS Brian Donovan, Kevin Hayes, Parjanya Holtz, Carly Jones, Soledad Lopez, and Jasmine Burch, Christian Magdaleno PHOTOGRAPHERS Carly Jones

NEWS EDITOR Julius Rea FEAUTRES EDITOR Scott Baba OPINIONS EDITOR Taliah Mirmalek ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Troy Patton SPORTS EDITOR Gerardo Recinos VISUAL EDITOR Christopher Corbin COPY EDITOR Ariel Messman-Rucker

INSTR. LAB COORDINATOR Ann Stenmark ADVISER Samanda Dorger

Students for a Democratic Society. Dean Oye raised four charges against SDS for organizing a peaceful rally and march to defend public education on Oct. 7, which SDS was sentenced for, but not convicted. Dean Oye admitted that it was a permitted and approved event that was peaceful, non-disruptive and caused no complaints. He also admitted that all of the minor flaws of the larger

March 4 day of action last semester were corrected. [SDS will distribute their written statement] about the charges and further details on this issue. But for now, do your own research and ask, “What does free speech mean to you?” Students for a Democratic Society Campus Group

THE INQUIRER Diablo Valley College 321 Golf Club Road, H-102 Pleasant Hill, CA 94523 The Inquirer is published Thursday mornings during the school year by the journalism students of Diablo Valley College. All unsigned articles appearing on the opinions page are editorials and relfect a two-thirds majority opinion of the editorial staff. All signed columns and cartoons are the opinions of the writer or artists and not necessarily those of The Inquirer, Diablo Valley College or Contra Costa Community College Disctrict

Winner: Journalism Association of Community Colleges 2009 Online General Excellence

• Phone: 925.685.1230 ext. 2313 • Fax: 925.681.3045 • Email: inquirer@dvc.edu • Website: www.TheInquirerOnline.com • Printed Every Two Weeks •

News

CALENDAR Thursday, Nov. 18 DVC Film Club Documentary showing in the Forum. Tickets are for $5; $3 with ASDVC sticker 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Brown Bag Lecture Series: Smoking Cessation SU room 204 12:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 19 Queer Straight Alliance Club SU room 210 11a.m. Saturday, Nov. 20 Masterworks Chorale and Orchestra Tickets: $20 in advance, $25 at the door. Performing Arts Center Monday, Nov. 22 Project Censored Club DVC SU room 202A 3:30 p.m.

POLICE BEAT Nov. 4, 2010 Parking Lot 8: A student’s personal belongings were stolen from his secured vehicle. PAC 101: Police warned a student for being verbally abusive to an instructor. The incident was referred to Bill Oye, dean of student life. Nov. 9, 2010 Library: A student’s bike was stolen from the bike rack underneath the library stairwell. Nov. 10, 2010 Police Services: A student’s bicycle was stolen from the bike rack underneath the library stairwell. There were no witnesses. Physical Education area: A student’s bicycle was stolen from the bike rack near the men’s locker room. There were no witnesses. Math 250: A student, who refused medical attention, suffered an electrical shock to his right hand and experienced numbness in his left hand and arm. A friend escorted him to John Muir Hospital in Walnut Creek for medical observation. San Ramon Campus lower level elevator: Police found a drunk student in the elevator and they released the student to his father.

CORRECTION In the police beat in the Oct. 28 issue of The Inquirer, Bill Oye’s title was incorrect. His title is dean of student life.

CLASSIFIED PLACEMENT INFORMATION $1.50 a line 2 line minimum. 32 characters per line includes punctuation & spaces Copy and payment due the Monday before publication date. For more information call 925.685.1230 ext 2313 or stop by The Inquirer office.

The Inquirer - Diablo Valley College

Thursday, November 18, 2010

US from Pg. 1

but the college paid the full $53, said Bill Oye, dean of student life. Since 2009, DVC has capped the number of bus passes they can sell to students at 65 per month. The limit is because there was a cap on the amount of money they could subsidize. The college started selling them in February 2009 and have sold an average of about 60 per month. The Associated Students of DVC recently approached the CCCTA to reach a deal to provide students with a cheaper and more environmentally friendly way to get to campus. ASDVC went into negotiations with CCCTA hopeful that they would be able to make a deal similar to the one Los Medanos College made with Tri-Delta Transit. David Belman, a student life worker at LMC, said the college used to pay TriDelta Transit $14,000 every year so that their students

ANNIE SCIACCA / THE INQUIRER

A County Connection bus waits to pick up students at the DVC bus terminal.

could ride the bus for free. The difference of $16,000 was picked up by 511 Contra Costa, a commuter transportation information group for the county. But CCCTA didn’t like the idea because it didn’t benefit them financially, Oye said.He said that DVC would need to pay CCCTA

$302,045 to reach the same agreement LMC had with Tri-Delta. The price, said Chris Leivas, vice president of finance and administration, is one that the college could not afford. “It was disheartening to get that message from CCCTA,” Oye said. Another option for DVC is

to put before voters a transportation fee added to registration fees. “It would be a nice thing to have a winwin situation where we get students cheaper transportation and they step away from private transportation,” he said. grecinos @TheInquirerOnline.com

AP from Pg. 1

the form of a grant from the Foundation for College SucThe Fact Book shows that cess, said Lindsay Kong, a of those groups enrolled co-leader of CSI. Matthew Powell, another at DVC, black students are behind compared to their leader of CSI and an African white counterparts in aca- American studies profesdemic success by more sor, said that as an African than 18 percent from 2004 American, it’s his obligation to participate in the group. to 2008. “The gap between rich The gap in achievement is measured in course success and poor within African and retention, degrees and America is an issue not certificates awarded, trans- addressed here,” he said. fer to four-year institutions, “What’s happening with grade point averages, stan- all of the black people who dardized test scores and drop out of high school or placement in courses after don’t go to college?” The college tried to adhigh school graduation, acdress the gap with Ujima, a cording to the Fact Book. CSI was started this se- program similar to Puente, a program mester as Mohamed a group of On this Eisa, dean of faculty, staff planning, reand stucampus, I feel search and dents who like an outcast student outresearch ... Yes, there are comes, said and make has had relarecommen2,000 black peotive success dations to ple [at DVC] – I in addressthe college never see them. ing the Lato address tino student the achieveDaija Cornelious achievement ment gap, CSI student representative gap. said Stone, Ujima had paid coordinaa co-leader of the group. There are 20 members of tors and staff that used a the group, including stu- community-learning model dent representatives, Daija in which students simultaCornelious and Douglas neously enrolled in two or more classes for one semesPhenix. Members meet twice a ter with the help of counselmonth as a large group, but ing throughout. Stone said not enough there are three subgroups that meet more often. One black students enrolled subgroup looks at data, an- in the Ujima classes and other gathers input from the two-year program was students and the last takes discontinued after spring on the need for funding. 2010. “On this campus, I feel CSI’s current funding is in

“

”

Number Crunching The Fact Book shows black students are behind in comparison to their white counterparts in academic success by an average of over 18 percent, over a fiveyear period.

According to the Fact Book, the gap is measured by course success and retention, degrees and certificates awarded, transfer to four-year institutions, grade point averages, standardized test scores and placement in courses after high school graduation.

The difference of success rates between white and black students: 2004

19%

2005

17.6%

2006

17.8%

2007

19.6%

2008

18.1%

Source: DVC Fact Book 2009

like an outcast,” Cornelious said, speaking at a recent student government meeting about the achievement gap. “Yes, there are 2,000 black people [at DVC] – I never see them.” Cornelious said economics are the biggest reason for the achievement gap. “A lot of the African American students come from impoverished areas,” she said. “We have students coming from all over the Bay Area ... who attend poorly funded schools that don’t prepare them for the life outside of

high school.” CSI leader Powell noted other reasons for the performance differences, including a lack of access to education and public resources in the past because of segregation and apartheid. “What do you expect when the social conditions of black people in this country have been so historically and systematically poor for such a long time?” he said.

are often standard books to use. “The information doesn’t change much in science, math … even history,” Fischer said. “What we think students will respond well to in writing is likely to change year-to-year.” For other departments at DVC the policy change matters much less. Science professor Craig Gerken said that all of the chemistry sections use the same textbook. “For logistical reasons it’s easier for everyone to use the same book,” he said.

To combat these issues, the English department has decided that all of its composition classes next semester will be flagged with the phrase “attend class first” at the bookstore. The necessary books will be tentatively listed online to show students approximately how expensive class materials will be, but faculty “can’t promise the books listed will be the books used,” Gerken said. These flags may not only be found in English composition classes. “Any teacher in the college can put this

asciacca @TheInquirerOnline.com bdonovan @TheInquirerOnline.com

TATUS from Pg. 1

progress toward addressing the recommendations made by the previous visiting teams,” said Ted Wieden, interim senior dean of curriculum and instruction. DVC was placed on “show cause” status by the commission in February 2009 for seven deficiencies the commission found from previous visits, including four from 2002. The commission recommended that the school clarify decisionmaking roles, integrate college planning and improve communication, according to a November 2009 ACCJC visiting team’s report. DVC modified its mission statement for the “show cause” report in 2009, but they were not required to do so again for the follow-up report, Wieden said. The school was not required to address student learning outcomes in the current follow-up report, Wieden said, but “DVC continues to work on instructional SLO’s for courses and programs” and for student services. A February 2010 letter from the commission improved the school’s accreditation status from “show cause” to “probation,” after the commission found that the college had “completed significant amounts of good work to address the deficiencies” that were found in the previous report. “I think it’s very likely we’ll be taken off probation,” said Bill Oye, dean of student life. He said, however, that the school could also be improved to “warning” status or kept on “probation.” Oye said the school’s work toward improving itself wouldn’t change, regardless of what the commission does. Garcia said in his e-mail to DVC faculty and staff, “I have to note that the professionalism and focus of your work in the quest to have your accreditation reaffirmed and your long and illustrious reputation restored are impressive.” Garcia became interim president Oct. 1. “Certainly, our hope is that the [commission] will find your work to be reason enough to reaffirm accreditation, but that is a decision and action that is now out of our control,” he said. jroisman @TheInquirerOnline.com

OOKS from Pg. 1

bookstore gave instructors an Oct. 18 deadline for listing their required materials. English professor Laury Fischer said he needed more time to determine whether or not the books he was teaching with would be appropriate to use again. He said the early deadline “forces teachers to make bad pedagogical decisions.” Administrators are also concerned about last-minute staffing changes to classes and whether or not replacement teachers would

be forced to use books they didn’t choose. Some departments are more affected by this than others. “We don’t change instructors … it happens once in a blue moon,” said Catherine Machalinski of the biological sciences department. It’s a different story in the English department, where late-staffing changes amount to “typically 25-50 per semester,” said Nancy Zink, chair of the English department. English teachers are constantly looking for new materials, whereas in other disciplines there

in their classes … they just have to fill out a form,” said Becky Opsata of the applied and fine arts department. Xin Chen, a first-year student, said she was unimpressed by the idea of using the “attend class first” label on books. “The information is not useful, it’s pointless,” Chen said. She would prefer that English professors “don’t put anything on the website and on the first day, give students a longer time to get books.” khayes @TheInquirerOnline.com