24 minute read
Saving the world through community and connection
El Camino College President Brenda Thames stands in front of the college's Schauerman Library on April 21. The majority of Brenda's favorite places to visit on campus are linked to El Camino faculty and staff members that she enjoys working with and greeting, like the librarians.
social work, she hopes to pass on the values of humanity and respect to her kids.
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“I hope that I have and continue to instill in [my children] that you always recognize the humanity in the person that’s sitting in front of you…and that you remember how important it is that you share that space with civility and respect,” Thames said. “Sometimes you have to give up space to allow somebody else the equity they need to occupy the same space with you.”
With a renewed outlook on life that still adheres to her original dreams of “saving the world”, Thames embarked on a new career journey outside the field of social work and into public education. Thames accepted an opportunity at Modesto Junior College to become an adjunct instructor and also to direct TRIO Student Support Services, a program designed specifically to support lowincome first-generation college students.
Brenda would eventually work at a total of five community colleges throughout the state of California, spanning over 20 years' worth of experience. After Modesto Junior College, Brenda went on to work as the Director of Transfer and Articulation for the Los Rios Community College District.
After the Los Rios Community College District, Brenda moved on to American River College in 2009, where she started off working as the Director of Matriculation and Assessment, a position where she garnered a lot of respect and support from her colleagues. Eventually, when American River’s district started looking to hire someone for their vacant Department Chair position, Brenda won the position by write-in vote, beating out all other candidates.
Brenda also received her first administrative positions as Interim Dean of Student Development and later Dean of Counseling. After her time at American River College, Brenda would go back to Modesto in 2012 before accepting her first superintendent position as president of West Hills College in Coalinga, California from 2017 to 2021.
After some encouragement from her friends, Brenda got notice that El Camino College was looking for a president to replace El Camino’s previous presidential position held by Dena Maloney, who served as the college’s superintendent for five years before her contract expired in June 2021. Being more accustomed to the quieter small-town life, Brenda was initially hesitant about vying for the position.
“I cannot afford to live in L.A., I don’t want to live in L.A., I don’t even like L.A….and [my friends] kept encouraging me. When I started to look at [El Camino College], I saw how diverse it was, the beautiful campus. I saw some of the programs and things that El Camino was doing with social justice and equity,” Brenda said. “It feels like it might be a good fit.”
Equity was a big driving force for Brenda to prioritize the presidential position at El Camino College and it remains one now that she has the position. Although talks of equity have seen tremendous growth in recent years, Brenda views equity as a true actionable outcome more than its popularity as a word. Equity plays a huge role in Brenda's dream to give back to the world.
“I came to join El Camino and what it was doing because it’s doing a lot of things that I believe in and I think there’s not a lot to fix here. Every place has got its problems but it wasn’t broken. You don’t get a chance to go somewhere and really take what’s done and move it to the next level very often,” Brenda said.
On May 17, 2021, Brenda was officially announced as the next president of El Camino College.
Stepping in to lead a college during the middle of a global pandemic is a hard task on its own, but adding the collective trauma from recent incidents of racial injustice and social unrest combined all makes that leadership role a tougher challenge, however, Brenda was ready and willing to take on the task at hand. She knew that the El Camino College community would require connection, support and healing.
“I think [the college] is doing some amazing work but I don’t ever want us to think that we’re done because there’s always so much more work to do. Some folks have been marginalized and disenfranchised for so long that we have to do educating and bring awareness through events and things,” Brenda said. “We also have to do some healing and I don’t know that we’re quite there yet.”
Brenda hopes that El Camino College can get to a place where all students that attend El Camino College can feel supported and accepted no matter their ethnicity, background or financial status.
Colleges throughout the state of California and across the nation are facing the same challenges that have been brought on by both the pandemic and racial injustice. Fullerton College’s Interim President Gilbert Contreras said that he and his administration are similarly prioritizing healing and a sense of safety in their community.
“On [Fullerton College’s] campus, there was a lot of difficult
conversations around race following George Floyd and our participation around equity alliance through USC. There was a real need to reinforce our values through respect and collegiality,” Gilbert said, “We are actively redesigning our support services and our campus to meet the needs of safety and a sense of belonging for our community as they gradually return.” Brenda said that part of her equity-focused plans at El Camino College is to hire a Director of Success specifically to help men of color due to men having lower success rates on average than women of color, in addition to adding more educational and support programs. In her free time, Brenda is an avid reader that consumes mostly self-help books over all other genres. In her office, Brenda has a grand collection of books. Brenda reads books that highlight African American women’s contributions to American culture, books about teaching and engaging men of color in community colleges and most recently, she finished Brenda's mentor, Manuel Perez, artistically illustrated her family in a book about establishing trust 2012, mimicking what is depicted in family photos. This framed artwork in all aspects of life called “The is now part of her office decor. SPEED of Trust” by Stephen Covey. Brenda got accustomed to working without keeping many personal items around because it was not allowed during her time working with the California Department of Correction Office. Over her 20-year service to various community colleges around the state, Brenda slowly began adding more personal items from her books to the graduation plaques that she received from all of the colleges she attended. One personal belonging that Brenda holds very near to her is a picture frame drawing of her and her family that was illustrated by one of her mentors, Manuel Pérez. “I know that [Brenda's] close-knit relationship with familia is very important to her. I think many might interpret [the drawing] as a disconnect but what I learned from my relationship with Brenda is that it’s quite the opposite,” Manuel said. “I think Brenda loves and cares so deeply that she wants to ensure what she presents forward is precisely what she wants folks to know of her and what it means to bring others into her sacred world." Manuel, now Vice President of Students Services at Cañada College in Redwood City, first met Brenda while working as the Dean of Student Development at American River College in 2009. Manuel interpreted the drawing through Brenda's words and experiences she shared about her family and envisioned the illustration in a way that most family portraits are depicted. The illustration was given to Brenda as a parting gift in 2012 when she returned to Modesto Junior College to become Vice President of Student Services and Instruction. Manuel often refers to Brenda as his “hermana” due to their close relationship El Camino College President Brenda Thames shares her love for this as colleagues and friends. They both looked out for each other Thames family portrait drawn by her mentor, Manuel Perez. The framed while working as people of color in administrative positions and artwork is now part of Brenda's office decor. would constantly push one another.
El Camino College President Brenda Thames shares a smile with a student as she tours the campus to visit her favorite places around El Camino on April 21.
As important as it is to form close bonds with colleagues from work, both Brenda and Manuel emphasized the importance of getting to know the student population that they serve both individually and collectively. The only way to know about a student’s needs is by talking with them and for students to reach out and speak with their administrative leaders.
“Getting to know administration and leaders at a college campus is one way to further anchor our humanity and the heartbeat that brings out our shared values. These moments to learn more about the stories, background and humanity of folks seen as holding authority in institutions is a way to destabilize power that becomes toxic,” Manuel said. “It’s a way to remember that we’re all folks trying to make our communities stronger.”
Since taking office in July 2021, Thames has held multiple community-wide town hall meetings to discuss public matters regarding the campus and the college institution as a whole. Thames is currently working with El Camino’s Student Services office to find a platform where she and Student Services can
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— Brenda Thames
address students’ needs on a more private and individual level.
With a 10-year plan and vision set in place, El Camino College is where Thames plans on retiring, with a total of 30 years of service with community colleges by the end of her career. Her ultimate goals for El Camino College are for the institution to become an Aspen Prize-winning college in community excellence, to erase the equity gap and for the college to be nationally known as an incubator and talent provider for men of color in both Science, Technology, Engineering, Math and in aerospace programs.
Having first worked on a farm with her family at 11-years-old to venturing out on her own as a first-generation college student, Brenda discovered a passion for helping people to improve their lives through social and a 20-year career serving five community colleges throughout the state of California, Brenda remains hopeful and excited on her never-ending pursuit to save the world.
“This work is like my life song. To impact 20,000 lives through giving back and making their lives and their communities a better place just for having shared this place with them," Brenda said. “I think it’s saving my part of the world. That’s what I’ll say.”
El Camino College President Brenda Thames, left, visits with Kim Cameron of the El Camino Warrior Pantry and Greg Toya, director of the Student Development Office on April 21. The Warrior Pantry is open Tuesday's and Thursday's from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Top 5 boba cafes in the South Bay
Here are some of the top boba places within 6 miles from El Camino College. Boba is chewy chunks derived from tapioca starch that is used in bubble teas. Boba, when combined with tea and milk, makes a rejuvenating drink.
Story and photos by Safia Ahmed
The interior of Kokoroll Cafe in Torrance, a cafe that serves both food and beverages. It’s located six miles from El Camino College.
The front of Gong Cha in Gardena, a lively cafe with an aesthetic setting. It’s located two miles from El Camino College.
1. Kokoroll Cafe
Kokoroll Cafe in Torrance is a 15-minute drive from El Camino College. The cafe is elegant, yet minimalistic. A casual cafe that serves both beverages and food with a variety of boba drinks from milk teas to fruity teas. You may modify the sweetness degree of the bobas, which gives a signature touch to the tea while keeping it savory. Not only does the cafe sell bubble teas, but the cafe also serves meals including bowls, burritos, nori hand rolls, taiyaki, slushies, miso soup and smoothies.
Address: 22749 Hawthorne Blvd., Torrance Phone: 424-360-6341 Hours: Tuesday-Thursday: 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday-Saturday: 11:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Sunday: Noon to 7 p.m. Monday: Closed Website:https://kokorollcafe.com/torrance Instagram:@kokoroll_torrance
2. Gong Cha
Gong Cha in Gardena is an 8-minute drive from El Camino College. Gong Cha provides a rose-filled backdrop for customers to take photos with. In addition, the cafe offers a set of toppings for drinks. Toppings include pudding, rainbow jelly, milk foam, herbal jelly, ai- yu and basil seeds. Gong cha is one of the best spots for smoothies and milk teas. The employees create their own blend of various beverages such as coffees and smoothies. The cafe is clean and organized with seatings. The customer service is great and the drinks are served within minutes.
Address:18203 S. Western Ave., Unit 103, Gardena Phone: 424-528-2113 Hours: Open daily: 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Website:https://gong-cha-usa.com/ Instagram:@gongchatea
7 Leaves Cafe in Torrance offers coffees, bobas and macaroons. It’s located just over two miles from El Camino College. 7 Leaves cafe in Torrance is an 8-minute drive from El Camino College. 7 Leaves is a tiny cafe that offers coffees, boba teas and macaroons. With a small menu, the process of ordering is less time-consuming. You have the opportunity to sample drinks before ordering them. The most popular boba drink is Thai milk tea, which has a proportionate amount of boba and tea, allowing the drink to be more consistent.
Address:18547 S. Western Ave., Torrance Phone: 424-329-0538 Hours: Monday-Thursday: 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday: 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday: 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday: 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Website:https://7leavescafe.com/ Instagram: @7leavescafe
An artistic backdrop at Sharetea Cafe in Torrance, known to serve on several universities in Southern California. It’s located less than six miles from El Camino College.
It’s Boba Time is a boba cafe that serves a variety of beverages including, but not limited to, acai bowls and shaved ice. It’s located four miles from El Camino College.
4. Sharetea
Sharetea in Torrance is a 14-minute drive from El Camino College. It's a popular tea house with several locations on universities in Southern California. The serving size for bubble tea is 24 ounces. Sharetea offers mojitos as their signature drink. The mojitos are offered in a variety of flavors such as lime, mango, peach and strawberry. The drinks range from milk teas, ice-blended teas, unbrewed teas and fruit teas. Customers can customize the sweetness level of the boba and select boba alternatives such as lychee jelly and red bean.
Address:24208 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance Phone: 562-241-6473 Hours: Monday-Thursday: Noon to 9 p.m. Friday-Saturday: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Website:https://www.1992sharetea.com/ Instagram:@sharetea
5. It’s Boba Time
It's Boba Time is located in Torrance with a 13-minute drive from El Camino College and sells a wide range of the sweetest of beverages, including frappes and teas. The menu has a variety of smoothies, slushies, teas, acai bowls and shaved ice all prepared in a 16-ounce cup or bowl. The prices for bubble teas range from $3-5 (call to verify) and the environment is friendly. The boba has the ideal flavor to complement any beverage you choose.
Address:2370 Crenshaw Blvd., Suite J, Torrance Phone: 424-558-3699
Website:https://itsbobatime.com/torrance/ Instagram: @itsbobatimehq
Olivia Sullivent wears her vampire fangs from the Disney Launchpad short film "Growing Fangs" at El Camino College on April 28, 2022. Olivia is a dual-enrolled student, attending high school and community college at the same time.
Young actress and high school senior is a rising star
18-year-old balances academics and auditions on a weekly basis
Written by Katie O’Brien Photos by Sharlisa Shabazz
Olivia Sullivent has been working toward her big break in acting since her first project at 10 years old — “The Flamingo Lounge” – a college student’s short film.
Finally, it came after years of auditioning for Disney when she was cast in the network’s 2021 short film, “Growing Fangs.”
But before she fell in love with acting, she fell in love with costume design — designing shoes was a passion. She used to want to work behind the scenes in a costume department, rather than center-stage. This changed when she discovered acting.
She found acting after she and her brother were adopted out of a bad situation in Tulsa, Oklahoma and eventually moved to Denver, Colorado. As a way of getting Olivia out of her shell, Olivia’s adopted mother enrolled her in acting classes.
Olivia immediately knew she loved acting. The ability to become another person was an incentive to her, from being able to understand how a character can say things to how they can move.
She’s had to get used to memorizing up to nine pages of a script in a short time span, such as 20 minutes, for projects like commercials. However, that wasn’t always a natural talent.
“I started off doing musical theater and summer camps and youth productions where it was very repetitive and coaches would have you play games to memorize,” Olivia says.
However, by the time she went to her art school in Colorado, “they would give you a scene at the beginning of the week and you would have three days to memorize it, they kind of left students to their own devices.”
Now, she says she can look at a script once and have it down in minutes after years of practice.
Since then, the 18-year-old has played the role of Dora in the Disney movie while attending online high school at Redondo Union and taking classes at El Camino College.
She took journalism and political science classes in fall 2021 and sociology and communication classes in spring 2022.
She plans to attend ECC full time as an undecided major after graduating high school in 2022, but is drawn to journalism and French as it’s her second language. As for pursuing El Camino’s theater classes, she isn’t as sure if she wants to do that, as she says she has already gained experience at an acting school.
Olivia honed in on her acting skills growing up in Denver at The Denver Center for the Performing Arts but had a hard time fitting in class in Denver and high school after moving to Redondo Beach.
Upon her enrollment in ninth grade at Redondo Union High School, Olivia had great friends, but not everybody understood the reality of her commitment to acting, especially not RUHS.
In her first semester, she used up all her absences for the entire school year due to auditions. Her social life and academics struggled to stay afloat, but Olivia knew that pursuing acting was worth it and she decided to move to online schooling to better balance acting and academics.
The time commitment for Olivia not only meant missing her friends and school, but having to decide to give up a side interest in dancing for now and focus solely on acting instead. However, the most harsh aspect of the industry was the rejection.
She can’t recall how many times she was turned away for “not looking the part” even though every other girl who auditioned for the part looked exactly like her. She can’t remember how many times she was typecast as the “nerdy girl” because of her glasses and tall stature.
She can’t remember how many times she’s been told that she
Olivia Sullivent shows her casting credit in a theatre program for "The Who's Tommy" performed at The Stage Theatre in Denver in 2018. Olivia has appeared in over 200 commercials, including Ford Motor Company's "We Lead."
just isn’t what a project is looking for.
As a teenager, she knows the rejection has changed her. But more importantly, she understands that she has an abundance of experience and success in an industry that isn’t always so welcoming.
Anyone who doesn’t come from the entertainment industry doesn’t have an understanding of what you need to have to make it as an actor or actress, experts say.
Holly Sneed, an adjunct theater instructor who’s been teaching at El Camino for about 14 years says that “more than anything, flexibility” is what makes an actor or actress good.
Making it as a star is rarely about being in the right place at the right time, it’s about rolling with the punches more often than not, Holly says.
“When you prepare for an audition, they give you the words ahead of time, but when you go in, nine times out of ten they’ll say ‘OK, now do it this way,’” Holly says.
What it comes down to is flexibility in terms of direction, but flexibility seems to be Olivia’s strength, and her portfolio is a dead give away when you look at all the projects she’s been involved in.
Olivia has grown her portfolio on and off camera. She’s been in theater productions of “A Christmas Carol” and “Who’s Tommy?” in Denver where she worked with people including Andy Mientus who was in “The Flash” and “Les Miserables” as well as Sara Capner, a Broadway star.
She’s worked on over 200 commercials, modeled and of course has starred in the Disney short film. This June she will play a part in “Stages,” a musical created by Karen Tobey, her vocal coach and Colorado Children’s Theater owner, which is where Olivia and Karen met.
The musical is set to premiere for one night in Denver on June 17.
The 71 year-old coach has had record offers, has had leads in musicals, but “life just kept taking [her] to be a teacher,” Karen says.
Before she began teaching in Colorado, Karen says she taught in Los Angeles, producing over “100 working actors” today, including A-listers like Juliett Lewis, Brie Larson, and Joseph Gordon Levitt.
“Stages” has been in the works for 35 years, with the first premiere being 15 years ago with a third of the play completed, the second in 2017 being half completed, and the one in June being the first full production to premiere.
The musical follows a popular dyslexic teenager who moves schools after going through a difficult time; upon joining the new school he has a hard time adjusting until he meets a girl and joins the drama club where he learns from the “rejects” within it.
Olivia is playing a cheerleader named Maddie who is learning to love herself and those around her after realizing she won’t find it by sleeping around and being used by men. She’s “one of the emotionally crippled kids,” Karen says.
Before she flies out to Denver, Olivia is working on her craft. She has acting classes with William James on Thursdays and is one of the only teenage students who is in such an advanced class. On Fridays she works with Karen.
Olivia’s coaches and teachers say she is a rising star and she’s already getting recognized.
“Olivia is my best student,” Karen says.
She’s moved her way up in Nickelodeon’s casting process as she was one of only a few to be selected for the network’s training. She’s been recognized by Uber drivers who tell her she “looks familiar,” but the most heartfelt example of recognition to her
Olivia Sullivent appears in the Disney Launchpad short film "Growing Fangs." Olivia was interested in costume design before acting.
were people reaching out to her on social media from her role in “Growing Fangs.”
However, making it as a star when you’re a teenager isn’t easy. Holly says it’s “not often,” but it helps “if you’re over 16 and you look younger than your age because you have a better chance of getting work.”
This is simply because of legality; a child under 16 years old can only work on set for so many hours due to child labor laws and the fact that they also need to attend school, often on set.
Another huge legal issue is Coogan’s law, which is upheld in California, and requires that the earnings a minor receives from their work is the minor’s money, not their parents, and that 15% of their earnings must be set aside in a trust account, or a Coogan account.
Before Olivia turned 18, she needed a child supervisor or guardian on set. This came with shorter hours and less pay.
“My mom had to be everywhere with me and the set teacher did too, I had to do school for three hours and I couldn’t get lunch by myself,” Olivia says. “Someone would have to have their eyes on me at all times.”
Needless to say, being over 16 comes with its perks if you consider how many restrictions are removed while you look young enough to still play teenage roles.
Since Olivia turned 18 in July, she says that being on set is easier now.
“There’s a lot of restrictions that are lifted, I don’t need a guardian on set and I can basically do whatever I want in the compounds of the rules that are established,” Olivia says.
She can drive herself to auditions and be there by herself without a supervisor or guardian today, and she often does during the week.
Olivia can confirm that it’s much easier to get cast if you’re a legal adult but can still play younger roles.
“All my auditions now are 18 plus because casting loves people that are 18 but look younger,” Olivia says.
While she’s enjoying the perks that come with being an adult on set, she says she’s also trying to re-brand herself away from the child she was as “a little skinny twig with big curly hair and glasses.”
“It’s a bigger deal now that I’m older and my agency and manager are very direct in telling me to look how I’ve branded myself,” Olivia says, “now I wear my hair back and my style is edgier… but everyone is on board and supportive.”
As for how a usual project process may go for Holly and Olivia, they start with an open call that are usually found on websites nowadays which provide a breakdown of character names and descriptive words.
Next is a “side,” or in other words a piece of a script they want you to prepare and memorize for an audition. After that would be a “call-back” where actors are paired with other actors to read scenes together.
People are typically cast after such call-backs, and a “readthrough” follows suit with stage directions and a group script reading. The rehearsal process usually begins after the “readthrough.”
For Olivia, “usually in a week you audition and get a call back a few days later,” but that isn’t always how it goes.
During the process for a printing project, she auditioned a few weeks prior to getting the part, but after not hearing back about anything, she assumed she didn’t get the gig.
Along with Tobey and James, Olivia credits her manager April Baker, her agency, Osbrink, her vocal coaches Marin Hill and David Kaufman, who voiced Danny Phantom on the selftitled Nickelodeon show, and her friends for being nothing but supportive.
Olivia’s talent and optimism radiates from her, and it’s obvious to everyone who’s been around her.
“She is going to go out and make the world a much better place,” Karen says, “her positivity is going to affect everything and everybody she touches.”
(Left) Olivia Sullivent appears in a theatre program "The Who's Tommy." She has also appeared in "A Christmas Carol."
(Right) Olivia Sullivent in the music quad at El Camino College on April 28, 2022. Olivia graduates from Redondo Union High Shcool in June.
