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INQUIRER Student Voice of Diablo Valley College
Volume IV No. 3
Thursday, March 10 - Wednesday, April 6, 2016 www.DVCInquirer.com
Rams take down vikings Women’s basketball loses in quarter finals See Page 8.
Eating disorders silently killing America Effects of anorexia and bulimia and combatting toxic societal standards See Page 3.
Bureacratic Issues dog Dvc admissions and records Lines, hoops, and the red tape labyrinth of DVC’s system See Page 7.
KATHARINE HADA / The Inquirer
news 2
Thursday, March 10 - Wednesday, April 6, 2016
DVC alumnus killed by hit and run driver
President Garcia to retire
KATHARINE HADA Co-editor in chief
SEAN ROSS News editor
Diablo Valley College student Jose Luis Daza was killed early Sunday morning, Feb. 28 in a freeway hit-and-run accident. Daza, who had parked his car along the shoulder of the freeway, was outside the vehicle checking his tire when his vehicle was struck, which lead to his death. Keri Cache, 31, of Oakland, hit Daza’s Toyota Corolla on eastbound Interstate 80 near the Pinole Valley Road exit just past midnight. Cache was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, causing the loss of life, felony hit and run causing the loss of life and driving with a suspended license, according to media reports, according to a Facebook post from the California Highway Patrol. Daza, 28-yearold Martinez native, was a DVC drama major working towards his AA degree. He partici- Jose Luis Daza DVC Alumnus pated in the InterCulturalClub, the Latino Student Alliance, and the DVC Disabled Student Services Club A3. “When I first got to DVC in 2011, Jose was part of the ICC and was in charge of major DVC changes,” said DVC president Peter Garcia. “He added a level of expectation and participation in student life.” One of his major contributions through ICC was overseeing how to qualify for club funding and being available to provide information to students. He also contributed greatly to the drama department, as an actor and technician, building scenery, and assisting with production lighting. “We were all devastated to learn of Jose’s passing,” said Beth McBrien, Academic Senate Council president and drama professor. “Jose was in my directing class several years ago, and he was always thoughtful, worked extremely well with other students, and had great ideas in class.Jose was always very kind, and very professional – he was a pleasure to have in class.” “Every moment I was free he would come and talk. He was ambitious and driven,” said Francisco Hinojosa, president of the ICC and longtime friend and colleague of Daza’s. “You could just sit and talk with him and he wouldn’t hesitate to help you in
After serving the Contra Costa Community College District for 30 years, Diablo Valley College President Garcia’s last day will be on June 30th, 2016. A rumor has been circulating among college administrators that Garcia’s intention to retire as early as this year. On Monday, March 7th, the President’s Office released a statement confirming the rumor. In the statement, Garcia remarked that he
Contact KATHARINE HADA at KHada@DVCInquirer.com
was “confident about DVC’s condition and future”, citing the college’s fiscal health, plans to bring on thirty new tenure track faculty, and DVC’s growing commitment to equity, excellence, and learning. Academic Senate Vice President and Biological Science professor John Freytag had this to say about the announcement, “President Garcia’s collaborative, respectful and ethical leadership style has been essential to helping DVC work towards the reaffirmation of its accreditation, develop and implement it strategic plan, and re-envision its entire governance structure,”
He went on to praise President Garcia’s, “willingness to listen to and work constructively with everyone on campus,” concluding that, “President Garcia’s leadership has helped DVC regain its sense of excellence and community and become once again a place that people want to be.” No transition plan or successor has been announced yet. Contact SEAN ROSS at SRoss@DVCInquirer.com
Legal settlement means smaller classes SEAN ROSS Staff member
As a result of Diablo Valley College’s recent settlement with a wheelchair bound student, who alleged Title III violations of the American’s with Disabilities Act, a number of desks will need to be removed from some classrooms. The consequence of this removal is a reduced enrollment capacity in any sections held in those classrooms. How many desks? Seven in total, according to DVC’s Dean of Instruction Kim Schenk. This may seem like a negligible number, but even one less chair in a classroom can have a tremendous impact. That’s one less student that can enroll in every section that is held
in a room that has lost a chair, and already completely full to capacpotentially adds more students to ity. That capacity is not sufficient compete with to meet the for a spot in fudemands of all ture sections. who “To meet increasing students, While DVC may not be able has plenty of demands during im- to attend classseats available es during outduring “off pacted hours, DVC has side of “prime hours,” most approved construction time” hours students tend due to work or to concentrate of several new buildings family committheir academic over the next ten years, ments. schedules beTo meet tween the hours including new art, gen- increasing of 9:30 a.m. and real use, and kineseiol- demands dur2 p.m. During impacted ogy buildings.” ing this “prime hours, DVC time” window has approved DVC is, in the construction of words of Ms. Schenk, “completely several new buildings over the next impacted.” Meaning, enrollment is ten years, including new art, gen-
eral use, and kinesiology buildings. In the interim, the Office of Instruction is doing everything possible to minimize the impact of the settlement on enrollment. Desk removal was only done as a last resort after rearranging classroom layouts and replacing old desks with new ones with a smaller footprint. While the order of construction has not been decided, a steering committee is in the final stages of being formed to oversee the administrative details. This committee will include a number of student representatives in addition to DVC administrators. Contact SEAN ROSS at SRoss@DVCInquirer.com
Students not involved with ASDVC! DOMINIQUE SMITh Staff member
The Associated Students of Diablo Valley College are dealing with internal conflict and are struggling to gain participation from DVC students. On Tuesday, March 1, the ASDVC members met in the Student Conference room to discuss their upcoming team building outing, potential revisions to their mandatory board meeting clause, upcoming elections, and how to gain more involvement from DVC students. In hopes of getting members more comfortable with one another and more willing to speak up during weekly meetings, director of Activities, Jonathan Otis, has planned a trip to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. According to Otis, ASDVC funds are not really being spent, so he figures, why not put some of the money toward funding a team building activity. The only other time members have been able to bond, other than at meetings, is at the four to six hour mandatory board retreat given at the beginning of the semester. When only a few members wanted to revise an already existing rule of the ASDVC committee, conflict arose. Returning members felt it was necessary to add that the mandatory board retreat be optional for returning members. The consequence of attending only half the retreat would either count as one unexcused absence or members may be subject to being removed from the committee. It was unclear to many members of the committee how consequences would be put into effect, which was a major cause of dispute.
KATHARINE HADA / The Inquirer
ASDVC member WeiHau “Wesley” Xia sits at a recruitment tent in the quad during club day on Feb. 23. Another major concern was that all returning members would choose to not attend the full length of board retreat and fail to bond with new ASDVC members. With a result of 11 members against the revision and only four for the revision, the clause will not be added, but may be discussed again in future meetings. The remainder of the meeting was left to discuss the upcoming elections and how to get DVC students involved in the election process. Members of the ASDVC committee who plan
to run for positions are responsible for their own campaign, and it’s their job to inform DVC students about the upcoming elections. Candidates will start campaigning on March 8 and the final election will run March 15 through March 16 from 4 p.m. until 5 p.m. in the DVC cafeteria. Free burgers will be distributed to DVC students who participate in the voting process. Contact DOMINIQUE SMITH at DSmith@DVCInquirer.com
inquirer 3
Thursday, March 10 - Wednesday, April 6, 2016
Pretty does hurt
The fruitless pursuit of the ideal figure
W
hat do you think when you see the unaltered version of yourself in the
some truth in that: The more you resemble the culturally promoted beauty ideal, the better you get treated in the world, socially in mirror? terms of work. It makes sense to For some of us, we constantly want that power," said Bacon. criticize our looks until we can "That said, I'd rather us invest no longer feel comfortable in our our time and energy in changing bodies and just focus on what's the culture, rather than buying lacking. into and perpetuating harmful The image we have of ourvalues." selves becomes warped, infecting Woman strive for the "perfect our health and minds. body" and it's not a recent deThere's a constant need to seek velopment. The desire for thigh approval and advice from family, gaps and prominent collar bones friends, and strangers, and inseare more present than ever. curities creep out when you hear This "ideal figure" started something you don't like. in the twentieth century when We live in a nation where 80 Farrah Fawcett came in the percent of wom1970s and en are dissatisKate Moss' fied with their thin frame bodies according inspired the to Psych Central 1990s fashion Professional, and world. Social want the "supermedia feeds model" body. into our conThe media stant need to doesn't like to compare our acknowledge pictures to the issue, and women we're generally refuses jealous of. to change the We hide unhealthy trends. behind filters, CHELSEY SCHALLIG A survey in makeup, and Staff member 2012 by Model sometimes Alliance revealed Photothat 31 percent shopped imof models suffer from eating dis- ages, which can cause emotional orders and 64 percent have been damage. asked by their agencies to lose Social media eats at our minds weight to become "ideal." and has created a generation that NYC Girl's Project conducted obsesses over how to get the a survey in 2010 that found out perfect butt or what their favorite that 60 percent of girls compare celebrity ate for lunch — or themselves to models and media didn't eat. images. "I think the more models we NYC Girl's Project also report- have fighting these images, from ed that 81 percent of girls want parents telling their little girls to see real pictures of untouched how strong and smart they are women in magazines and advermore than how pretty they are, tisements. However, the devastat- to more magazines like Sports ing truth is that 31 percent of Illustrated cover generated, you girls are also starving themselves see how really far we have to go," to conform to the "perfection" said Teresa Fournier, professor at of the models or celebrities they Diablo Valley College. "Wouldn't look up to. it be nice if "Plus" wasn't a size Linda Bacon, a professor at but "healthy" was? And that difCity College of San Francisco, ferent size bodies on covers did associate nutritionist at the Uninot make news?" versity of California at Davis, and "I'd encourage everyone to author of many books concernfocus on life, recognizing that ing nutrition said, “The popular appearance is just one aspect of media presents us with many who we are, and a superficial one images of white, able-bodied, at that," said Bacon. "There is so slender bodies, and doesn't much more that is important in accurately represent the larger life. And to not buy in to a culdiversity of what female bodies ture that tells us otherwise." really look like." "Women are taught that looks Contact Chelsey Schallig at CSchallig@DVCInquirer.com are their currency. And there is
Graphic illustration by JESSE SUTTERLEY
Support for anorexia recovery JESS PARRY Staff member
An estimated 30 million Americans are currently struggling with some form of eating disorder, according to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders (NAANAD). Possibly more troubling, a study in the American Journal of Psychiatry found that the mortality rate of anorexia is higher than any other mental illness. Not only that, but that mortality rate is 12 times higher than the rates associated with all causes of death for females 15-24 years old, according to NAANAD. NAANAD reports that 91 percent of women surveyed on a college campus had attempted to control their weight through forms of dieting. As that percentage rises each year, raising awareness for eating disorders is crucial to ceasing this upward trend and working towards a decline. Realization and discussion of toxic societal standards are important methods of combating the real causes of eating disorders. It is also important to know what treatment is available, and how and where to get it. Eating Disorder Recovery Specialists (EDRS) is the
first in-home and community based eating disorder recovery support program. They organize meal planning, cooking, and clinical coaching for their clients. Most recent to their list of services is the College Companion program. The co-founder of the concierge service EDRS, Greta Gleisner, is a psychotherapist, and bulimia survivor. In speaking of the company's mission statement, she said, “We can come to or near students’ campus to provide support and accountability for anything related to recovery— that could be having a meal companion at the dining hall, dorm room, or restaurant so that students have support around completing their nutritional goals. Or it could be in the form of in-person, phone, or text support, helping clients to execute daily recovery goals.” Organizations like EDRS hope to put the spotlight on the seriousness of eating disorders and to improve public understanding of their causes, triggers and treatments.
Contact JESS PARRY at JParry@DVCInquirer.com
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features 4
Thursday, March 10 - Wednesday, April 6, 2016
Return to roots opens eyes An Inquirer staff member travels to the Philippines, providing insight into daily lives and history MELANIE CALIMLIM Senior staff member
For any immigrant family, having the opportunity connect to our roots and visit our homeland is an experience I highly recommend. It’s been ten years since I have been back to my parents’ hometown in the Philippines, and each time I visit, I learn more about my family and the history of the country. The diversity of a place is what makes the trip worthwhile. Whether it be the physical geography, a different culture than we’re used to, or alternative customs which have been preserved over time. It makes us feel like there’s so much more to life, and allows us to experience more than the way we live day to day. Driving from Manila to our province, Malasiqui, was already a different experience. The traffic there was unbearable. Two lane streets turned into four or five “suggested lanes,” because obviously, traffic laws aren’t as imposed. Motor vehicles created unnecessary traffic by cramming into the lanes without even turning on their signals. I knew that I probably would have gotten into a car accident within ten minutes of driving around on my own. We took showers in our tiled bathroom, separate from the house, where cold water ran from the faucet. In order have a warmer shower, we would have to boil the water, which took a few minutes of forethought. We used a “tabò” – something along the lines
of a water pail – to get the water from the basin and wash ourselves. Not that taking showers like that was difficult. It wasn’t. But heating up the water from the shower-head back home in California is a bit easier. One highlight of my trip was a nine hour ride to the Banaue Rice Terraces. I thought that seeing how rice was grown wouldn’t be worth the trip, but it really was an amazing sight to witness. Especially after learning that these rice terraces have been cultivated for over 1,000 years. And the mountain elevation allowed us to see the extensive, multiple stair-like terraces. Walking around Banaue, we also were able to speak with a friendly elderly man who was asking about my camera. After a few moments of conversation, he then introduced himself as Tomoyuki Yamashita’s grandson. This was exciting for me, because I’ve heard stories about the infamous Yamashita gold and how it was never recovered, being hidden in the city of Baguio. In the end, being in a different country gives you many worthwhile life experiences. There’s some good and some bad, but in the end, it’s worth it to just give it a try, especially if it’s where your roots originate. Whether you’re visiting loved ones you’ve missed, or traveling to historic landmarks to learn about your country, there’s always something you can take back with you from these trips.
MELANIE CALIMLIM/ The Inquirer
Above, a view from the top of the Banaue Rice Terraces. Below, farmers taking care of one of the rice terraces.
Contact MELANIE CALIMLIM at MCalimlim@DVCInquirer.com
Nowruz celebration a sweet success for Persian Club ERIN SMITH Features editor
Iranians have been celebrating Nowruz, or Persian New Year, for over 2500 years. It’s a time to clear out the old and bring in the new. Nowruz, or “new day,” brings family and friends together to celebrate the coming of spring and enjoy each others company. Family and friends dressed to the nines gathered around the Performing Arts Center at Diablo Valley College on Friday Feb. 27 to take part in this ancient holiday and support the Persian club, the group responsible for creating the event. “We’re trying to show Persian culture to everyone whose non-Iranian,” said Sharmin Zirak, vice president of the Persian club and political science major. “Last time I only performed for the dances but now I’m vice president, so I can contribute in a greater way to the whole Persian community.” The event kicked off with an introduction from DVC computer science professor and
Persian club adviser, Firouzeh Zandi. “Imagine for a minute you live in a time where every country lives in harmony. No ISIS, no Taliban, this is what the Persian empire used to be,” said Zandi. In regards to the mission of the event, she said, “We are a culture that’s very tolerant and loving. There is a lot of bashing of Iranian culture on TV. We want to spread the message that we welcome everybody.” Zandi explained how the Persian culture was one of the first to believe in basic human rights and freedom of religion. A big component to the celebration is the Cyrus cylinder, a small clay cylinder that contains a declaration similar to the Bill of Rights. The women of the Persian club entertained the crowd with a dance in brightly colored and ornately beaded dresses as the Haft Seen, or table top arrangement, was set. The table contains seven items that represent qualities to look forward to in the new year. The items include such things as
an apple representing beauty and health, garlic to represent medicine, and sprouts representing rebirth. The Papiyon band got the crowd clapping and singing along as they played high energy songs on drums and keyboards. The band, which consists of three brothers, Vincent, Arman, and Alexi Omid, was a highlight of the show. Vincent Omid, president of the Persian club, said, “We have put a lot of work into this show and it would not have been possible without our adviser.” After a quick intermission where tea and small treats were served, a traditional folk dance opened up the second half of the show. A santoor, a traditional string instrument, was brought on stage and Vaheed Bagheri played a beautiful and heartfelt set of traditional Persian music. Up next was Parisa Vaaleh who had the most melodic and hauntingly beautiful voice. It was a very emotionally charged performance.
The last singing act was given by Bazm Music. Emad Kalalipour sang a hymn with lyrics in Farsi, accompanied by a Setaar and drums. The music was very relaxing and soothing and the audience clapped and sang along with the familiar tunes. The Persian club returned to the stage with a contemporary Iranian dance that was fun and lighthearted. They fused modern and traditional dance moves set to an incredible array of music. The celebration ended with a big thank you and congratulations to the Persian club from Zandi, who said, “I’d like to thank all the crews and people who made it possible to put on this night and everyone who came.” Nowruz actually takes place on March 20, but this event was designed to be entertaining and educate students. Contact ERIN SMTH at ESmith@DVCInquirer.com
features 5
Thursday, March 10 - Wednesday, April 6, 2016
Local hero retires from helping the homeless in Contra Costa JESSE SUTTERLEY Co-editor-in-cheif
socks and give out food. But it’s much more than that,” said Stewart. After leaving Concord we headed for When most of us think about heroes, we the railroad tracks along an industrial strip generally associate it with capes, spandex, in North Richmond, we exited the car and and the ability to fly. hiked down to the water run off tunnels unHere in Contra Costa County there is a derneath the train tracks. man that is a true hero. Doug Stewart, is the “This is where there is a lot of camps, and founder of the Contra Costa County Home- you can usually walk down there, but you see less Outreach Program. I met up with Stew- that water, its a death sentence for anyone art a few nights ago to tag along as he went camping down there,” said Stewart. through his nightly routines. It wasn’t long before we stumbled upon a “It can get pretty crazy out here,” Stewart couple of homeless women who were glad to said, “Some of these people can be unpre- see Stewart. He provided them with tarp and dictable and you never know what you might some food. walk into.” We found another small camp as we But for almost seven days a week for the walked down the tracks where a man had past 12 years Stewart has gone out to take built a make shift home. Stewart was still able that risk. to leave some supplies and “People think what I also his business card for This all began 12 years ago. At the time Stewart do is easy: hand out the man, which he made was a Municipal Advisory sure to hand out or leave at socks and give out every site he visited. Council member, where he attended meeting after Through all of this Stewfood. But it’s much meeting and hearing the art never stopped showing more that that.” problem with homelesshis gratitude for the small ness brought up over and things. ~Doug Stewart over again. Finally Stewart As he sloshed through Founder of Contra Costa County took it upon himself to go mud up to his knees StewHomeless Outreach Program out and ask the homeless art said, “I get to go home what they actually needed and take off these boots for help, thus the CCCHOP was born. and put my feet next to the heater, but they Stewart goes out rain or shine, his SUV (the homeless) don’t. It makes you think.” stuffed to the brim with blankets, tarps, zip Stewart will be retiring at the end of June, lock bags filled with food and warm socks. which may mean the end of the CCCHOP, “I get calls from police agencies, but also and the end of the resources provided to citizens,” Stewart said as we headed to Con- these people. cord to respond to a call made from a private When asked if he might continue this citizen about a woman in distress. work in the future, Stewart responded, “If I As we pulled into the Concord Bart sta- do, it wont be for a while. I want to spend tion, Stewart met with a homeless man who sometime with my family, I want to relax.” had called him earlier. After giving out a Stewart has put the needs of others ahead some food and blankets, Stewart asked the of himself and his family every night. man how he had been doing, and checked There are many people in the East Bay that in on his overall well being. After a big thank owe their lives and well being to this man you from the man, Stewart and I were back and his team. on the road. “People think what I do is easy: hand out Contact JESSE SUTTERLEY at JSutterley@DVCInquirer.com
JESSE SUTTERLEY / The Inquirer
Doug Stewart from the Contra Costa County Homeless Outreach Program grabs blankets and food from their headquarters in Martinez as he prepares to go to North Richmond to check on the homeless population on March 5.
sports 6 Rams defeat Vikings in elite eight round Thursday, March 10 - Wednesday, April 6, 2016
JULIANNA CARDINALE Sports editor
Diablo Valley College women’s basketball lost to City College of San Francisco, Saturday, March 5 in the California Community College Championships quarter final game. The Rams got off to a quick start in the first quarter scoring the games first 10 points. But the Vikings forward, number 11, Jojuan Carrington stopped the Rams run hitting a tree pointer
for DVC’s first points on the game. Foul trouble for the Vikings alThe Vikings would go on an lowed the Rams to extend their 11-1 run, tying the game at 11 lead to 17 points, leaving the half at the end of time score at 34the of the first “We got off to a slow 17. quarter. In the third start... so, it was hard quarter the ViThe Rams returned the favor to get the game back.” kings started to in the second make a comequarter, going back with Car~ JOJUAN CARRINGTON on an 11-1 run rington leading Forward of their own, the way. bringing the The Vikings score to 22-12 with three minutes scored 28 points in the quarter, remaining in the half. holding the Rams to just 14 points
in the quarter. The Vikings were only down by three points going into the fourth quarter, with the score at 48-45. In the fourth quarter the Vikings put up a good fight, but the Rams proved to be too much. The Rams started to pull away, brining their lead to 10 points with only four minutes left to play in the game. The Rams defeated the Vikings with a final score of 64-56. “We got off to a slow start,” said Carrington who had 20 points
in the game, “so it was hard to get the game back.” Although this was a tough loss for the Viking there was still a lot of positives for this season, “I think we played a great season,” said guard Safiyyah Yasin who had 14 points on the night,” A lot of people counted us out, but we wound up making it to the elite eight and I’m proud of my team for that.” Contact JULIANNA CARDINALE at JCardinale@DVCInquirer.com
DVC smacks down Santa Rosa after six years ALLISON ROULLIER Senior staff member
Diablo Valley College men’s tennis continued the season with another well deserved win, defeating Santa Rosa 9-0 on Tuesday March 1. To start off the match, DVC won all three of their double matches, with top two players Garrett Goldman and Mariano Salvador winning an impressive 8-0. Fellow teammates Sean Austin Miller and Eric Lofquist went on to win their match 8-1, as well as Marvic Domingo and Ricky
Leung winning with an unbeaten 8-0. “I give all the credit to our men’s assistant coach, Jeff Jaymot, who in his third year has put a lot of work into preparing our team for each season,” said Head Coach Jacqueline Ponciano-Babb. Since this is the first time defeating Santa Rosa in the past six years, the team as a whole has come a long way since the beginning of the season. “Having a talented group of young men to represent DVC on the tennis courts makes it exciting to coach as well as fun to watch. We instill hard work, competition,
consistency and drive into the student-athletes in our tennis program” said PoncianoBabb. All of the success in the first half of the day flowed smoothly into the second half, as DVC continued to prevail in the single matches. “Encouraging them to always compete as though it was match play every day in practice with their teammates will only get them better in the long run. Each match is important to us because we want everyone on our team to have one another’s back. An individual win is great but collectively a team
win even better,” said Ponciano-Babb Now 5-2 for the season, DVC’s goal is to focus on keeping this mentality and success in each match for the rest of the season and work towards the Big 8 Championship Tournament, which will lead to qualification for the California Community College Athletic Association State Championship Tournament in Ojai next month. The Vikings will take on Solano College at home on Tuesday, March 15 at 1 p.m. Contact ALLISON ROULLIER at ARoullier@DVCInquirer.com
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opinions 7 DVC admission services fail to meet students’ needs Thursday, March 10 - Wednesday, April 6, 2016
calendar Thursday, March 10, 2016 Student Union Brown Bag Workshop: Success Beyond The Classroom 12:30 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 15 Student Union College Success Workshop: Digital Literacy - Learning Google Research Skills 5:30 6:45 p.m. DVC Baseball Field Women’s Softball versus Sacramento 3 - 5 p.m. Thursday, March 17 Student Union Brown Bag Workshop: The WAGE Gap, 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. Friday, March 18 Performing Arts Center Opening Night of “Almost, Maine” performances on Friday and Saturday at 8:30 p.m, Sundays April 3 and April 10 at 2:30 No shows March 25 to 27.
police beat Saturday, Feb 27 District Office in Martinez Unknown subject(s) used a garbage can to smash a window at the District Office in Martinez. Monday, Feb 29 BFL Building Student reported that his bicycle was stolen from campus property. There were no witnesses. Life and Health Science A small trash can ignited causing minor damage to the carpet and wall. Parking Lots Science Circle Instructor reported that her vehicle was broken into while parked and unattended on campus. Tuesday, March 1 Parking Lot 9 During a traffic enforcement stop it was discovered that a driver had never been issued a California driver’s license. Friday, March 4 Humanities 101 An unknown suspect stole the primate skeleton from staff members desk.
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JESSE SUTTERLEY / The Inquirer
or most students attending Diablo If the site crashes for registration, there is Valley College, transferring is the end basically no point in having a registration date. goal. Whether it be a university or a I can't even register that day. state school, we all want to eventually Get a new site, or space out registration get out of DVC and get on with our lives. days. Unfortunately, the bureaucratic system of Now, since I started my DVC career five higher education doesn't make transferring all years ago, I have seen four different counselthat easy. ors. None of them, not even one, has presentI've probably been attending DVC too long. ed me with helpful information. Part of this is my fault for taking my time, From recommending unnecessary classes, to trying to "find myself" while giving me wrong informastudying here. However, a tion about transfer dates, large part of the reason I semesters added up and have been here for so long is soon I'd been here longer due to the poor work of the than I can count...one, two, admissions and counseling three...and yeah, that next offices, and the overall hannumber. dling of class registration. Counselors don't seem to I think it's a good thing have coordinated with one that students who have been another at all, or even feel here longer have a priority the need to log anything registration date, over first into the system. When I or second semester students. would see a new counselor I am not going to argue it would be the whole introagainst that. But the fact that duction all over again. What InSite would crash, spazz I was studying? What was JESSE SUTTERLEY out, or just refuse to load is my school plan? They even Co-editor-in-chief insane! asked me, "What did your I even called the school last councilor tell you?" The to ask about the crash and they responded, whole experience has felt endless. "We're sorry it's like this, but we have invested Lastly: Admissions. What's going on guys? a lot of money into the program, so we can't I am specifically talking about the admisback out now. If it makes you feel any betsions center which is staffed by one person ter — at least all the students are having this who is about to go on their lunch break all the problem." time.
THE INQUIRER Diablo Valley College 321 Golf Club Road, ATC-103 Pleasant Hill, CA 94523 The Inquirer is published Thursdays during the school year by the Diablo Valley College journalism students. Unsigned articles appearing on the opinions page are editorials and reflect a two-thirds majority opinion of the editorial staff. Signed columns and cartoons are the opinions of the writer or artist and not necessarily those of The Inquirer, Diablo Valley College or Contra Costa Community College District.
Editorial Board EDITORS-IN-CHIEF NEWS EDITOR SPORTS EDITOR OPINIONS EDITOR FEATURES EDITOR PRINT EDITOR
Katharine Hada Jesse Sutterley Sean Ross Julianna Cardinale Marcel Scott Erin Smith Cooper Mead
I understand sitting behind a desk and talking to frustrated students all day can be a tiring job, but when DVC is the fourth high-
“From recommending unnecessary classes, to giving me wrong information about transfer dates, semesters added up and soon I’d been here longer than I can count.” est transfer school in California I can't even imagine what other schools admissions offices look like. This was just my experience, and maybe because I have a platform to voice it, it might get heard. But now you, my fellow students, you will have a chance to make your voice heard. If you take an English class. A new prompt will allow you — in 300 words, half of this article — to tell the school your experience. But don't be scared, it is your right to explain to the school that you may have had a terrible experience and give them real examples of how they could fix it. So I encourage you to take these prompts not as another class assignment, but as a real way to help the school improve upon a broken system. Contact JESSE SUTTERLEY at JSutterley@DVCInquirer.com
Staff STAFF MEMBERS Jess Parry, Chelsey Schallig, Dominique Smith, Randy Taylor SENIOR STAFF MEMBERS Madeline Berry, Melanie Calimlim, Austin Lemak, Allison Roullier INSTRUCTIONAL LAB COORDINATOR Julius Rea ADVISER Mary Mazzocco
• Phone: 925.969.2543 • Email: inquirer@dvc.edu • Website: www.dvcinquirer.com • Printed seven times per semester •
opinions 8
Thursday, March 10 - Wednesday, April 6, 2016
Registration gone full auto Legislature shows uncommon sense in motor-voter bill
I
n the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s shameless gutting of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, there has been an ever increasing push in several states, primarily in the deep south, to create barriers between the common citizen and their right to participate in government. In the 5-4 decision, the Court’s opinion, delivered by Chief Justice John Roberts, declared that the Act “employed extraordinary measures to address an extraordinary problem,” and that “there is no denying, however, that the conditions that originally justified these measures no longer characterize voting in the covered jurisdictions.” Apparently, discrimination at the polls is no longer a thing. Yet, in this era of state-sanctioned voter suppression, two states signed into law last year bills that implement a radical new approach to voting; under Oregon House Bill 2177 and California Assembly Bill 1461, every citizen who is at least 17 years of age and registers or applies for renewal of a driver’s license, state ID, or files a change of address form will automatically be registered to vote with the party of their choosing, if any. It also mandates the implementation of an electronic application system. If two UC Berkeley students get their way, this automatic registration will extend to all students attending any
California public college. If implemented, all current and future students will have the requisite voter information forwarded to the appropriate election officials. What a novel concept; a simple yet elegant way of bringing potentially millions of new voters to the poll, simply by making registration automatic, rather than an additional hoop to jump through. These are brilliant pieces of ground breaking legislation that the states of California
“As it stands currently, there are simply too many obstacles between a would-be voter and the ballot box.”
and Oregon have every reason to be proud of. However, the fact that this is considered groundbreaking legislation is nothing short of disgraceful. An unrestricted right to vote is essential to the democratic process which America has professed to hold so dear. Why then is this not the default throughout the country? What possible excuse is there that voter registration is opt-
in, rather than opt-out? If this fair nation were to be true to it’s espoused ideal of E Pluribus Unum, then every U.S. citizen should automatically be registered to vote — the day they are able to. As it stands currently, there are simply too many obstacles between a would-be voter and the ballot box. Too many voters show up to the polls only to find out that they needed to register at least a month in advance. It’s no surprise that only 36.4 percent of eligible voters took part in the 2014 midterm elections, the lowest in more than half a century. For reference, Turkey — you know that country a certain Gollum-like individual is hell-bent on devolving into Sultanate — had a participation rate of 86.4 percent. The fact that Congress currently has a 14 percent approval rating, yet simultaneously saw 96.4 percent of its incumbents reelected to their posts is a direct result of this pathetic level of voter participation. Also the fact that former U.S. President Jimmy Carter can say with factual accuracy that the U.S. government is “an oligarchy, with unlimited political bribery being the essence of getting the nominations for president or to elect the president. And the same thing applies to governors and U.S. senators and congress members.” Bravo to the States of California and Oregon. This uncommon sense legislation is precisely what this country needs to move forward and catch up with the rest of the developed world.
The
Buzz
What was your dream job as a child? Has it changed between then and now?
Mathew Stanford, 20, Business
Abby Burk, 17, Undeclared
“I wanted to be a cop, but it’s changed because my habits conflict with my life style.””
“I wasn’t sure as a child, but when I started seeing what was out there, I thought dental hygienist. But I worked in a dentist office and didn’t like it.”
Riley Egan, 21, Environmental science
Elsa Denis, 18, Political Science
“I think I wanted to be a magician. Now I want to be a NG photographer.”
“I wanted to be a vet, now I’m a political science major, so yeah, it’s changed.”