June 11, 2008

El Vaquero June 11, 2 0 0 8

Glendale College

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Photo by Richard Kontas

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

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NEWS

Adult Re-entry Student El Vaquero Wins $500 Scholarship Glendale Community College

editor in chief

Richard Kontas SPORTS EDITOR

Ross Coleman

PHOTO EDITOR

Ismael Reyes

STAFF WRITERS

Claudia Anaya Sharese Mirzakhanyan Jessica Bourse Chabeli Sanchez Mariam Grigoryan Corinna Scott Eric Konarki Katherine Sosa Jake Madrigal Brent Wallace Arpee Markarian STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS

Graig Agop Allan Beglarian Fabienne Niederberger

Production Manager

Jane Pojawa

design adviser

Charles Eastman

faculty adviser

Michael Moreau

mmoreau@glendale.edu (818) 551-5214

advertising

Jeff Smith

jsmith@glendale.edu (818) 240-1000, ext. 1427

El Vaquero accepts story ideas in news, features, profiles, sports and entertainment from the public. To submit an idea or an article, e-mail the editor at editor@elvaq.com or call (818) 240-1000, ext. 5349.

By Katherine Sosa

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

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he Glendale Rotary Club offered $500 scholarships to adult re-entry students this spring and one of the winners was Karen Guillory, 49, sociology major.

Guillory has been attending Glendale since the spring of 2006, and has said that she enjoys it very much. She first heard of the scholarship after reading a flyer in the resource center. Not expecting to win, she said she had actually forgotten that she had applied for the scholarship.

“I was really blessed,” said Guillory, after hearing that there more than 400 applications and only four winners.

The other winners were Hasmik Stephanyan, an accounting major; Mikayel Sahakyan, a nursing major; and Armand Aslanian, also a nursing major.

On the day they received their scholarships, the Rotary Club invited each of the awardees a few minutes to address the meeting.

Dane Crawford, president

and director of the Rotary Club foundation, and Glady Kabateck, a former Glendale College counselor, presented the scholarships. Kabateck called Guillory to inform her that she was a winner of the scholarship.

“The look in my son’s eyes when he passed me the phone, and the voice of Kabateck was the reward,” said Guillory. “Her voice made it feel like a personal concern.”

She doesn’t know yet what she will do with the scholarship money. She said her main concerns at the time of the interview were turning in an English essay and doing well on her finals.

“Karen is a very outstanding student, really focused in school, said Kabateck. “She never dreamed it would happen to her. She was overwhelmed on the phone, and I was excited for her.”

Kabateck was a counselor at GCC for 23 years, but she is still involved with scholarship program and works in the community.

A reason Guillory came back to school was because one day when

she visited her son’s elementary school she noticed second grade students using Macintosh computers, and she was stunned that 7-year-old kids knew how to use a computer that she didn’t know how to use one.

She recalls: “I was married to a Muslim and from just being a stay-at-home mom, because my ex-husband didn’t want me to go school, I thought that I had to go to school. It will help me know the technology in today’s world.

I’m a single mom and I like what I do.”

Guillory finds herself pulling all-nighters lately until 5 a.m. to study for finals, and then taking a nap at night from 6 to 8 p.m..

The scholarship application asked about goals, current classes and for a counselor’s signature.

She said her major is sociology because she likes the art of finding out about people and their similarities and that the art of humanity brings people together.

Katherine Sosa can be reached at katherine_sosa@elvaq.com

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Karen Guillory, the recipient of a $500 Rotary Club scholarship, speaks about her experience as a re-entry student.

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008 3

NEWS / LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Job Interview Workshops Ease Employment Anxiety

By Sharese Mirzakhanyan EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

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s we walk through the door, sitting face to face with the employer, we find ourselves surprisingly nervous. Our hearts start pounding, the words don’t seem to come out as we expect, and at that moment all we want is to get through the interview successfully.

The nagging feeling that first impressions mean everything does not seem to go away. What can we do to prepare for an interview? What if we mess up during the interview? What will the employer think of us? How can we portray ourselves as the right employee?

In order to help students prepare for an interview, the career center held an interview workshop on May 29 from 2 to 3 p.m. Due to low attendance, counselors took in students one at a time to explain the major aspects and go over information

regarding the interview process.

Tatyana Bartholomew, student services technician, took the time to explain the main features of an interview and the characteristics employers look for.

“During an interview you are advertising your skills, abilities, and accomplishments.

You must become your [own] best spokesperson,” Bartholomew said.

Before going to an interview, one must prepare a resume and study the job announcement, which includes the duties and requirements valuable for the position. Some find it helpful to go through a practice interview.

That way one won’t have to anticipate the questions asked.

“Practice makes perfect,” Bartholomew said.

One should practice a style that projects confidence and friendliness.

Dress appropriately, arrive earlier than the scheduled interview, and relax. Qualities

employers seek are leadership, flexibility, intelligence, selfconfidence, skills, and a great energy level.

A key point to remember is to be confident, but be aware that over confidence will not be appreciated. As the employer is interviewing you, remember to relax and just be yourself.

Throughout the interview be sure to point out your valuable skills for the position you have chosen.

Since you have already practiced, the interview should be a breeze.

“In the career center, we assist students at various stages of the career development process from helping one choose a college major or a vocational program to prepare individuals to meet the challenges of the modern work force,” Bartholomew said.

Students can use a selfcontained database called Discover at the career center, where they can watch actual interviews and search through various questions that may

Letter to the Editor

From: Aiza Cayanan Re: Experience at the Career Center The day started incredibly oddly. I almost ran late catching the number 3 Glendale Beeline and I started to frantically look for a seat. I opted for the back. Little did I know what I was going to encounter.

Out of the blue, I was suddenly immersed in an interesting conversation with a man about literature and the fact that I was an English major, wanting to become a writer. I was beginning to get more and more curious in what he had to say. He suggested a place called the “Career Center” — which is actually in most colleges. By the time I came out of the bus, I was moved by a sense of adventure wanting to know more about myself and what I wanted to do in the future.

I arrived at the second floor of the San Gabriel building and without any knowledge, asked to know what to do if you want to specifically find out what you were meant to become, in terms of a career. It didn’t take a long time to find

out what I had to do because as soon as I walked in, I was already greeted by Tatyana or “Taty” (as they like to call her) at the front desk. I didn’t expect everyone to be extremely friendly and helpful. She was very informative and offered me many helpful suggestions about my major and the opportunities it had to offer, like the rate of job growth in the area and expected salaries.

Tatyana gave me books to read and introduced me to two computer programs named “Eureka” and “Discovery,” for which the college spends approximately $36,000 per year.

As students we benefit from this service given to us at a low rate and even a discounted price.

“GCC has one of the best Career Centers in most community colleges in the United States,” Tatyana said. Then, immediately I was referred to a counselor named Denise, who was also extremely friendly and eager to help.

She knew what students were going through. In her junior year, she encountered the same questions about herself (also starting as an English major,

hoping to become a lawyer in graduate school).

As soon as she had gotten advice from the Career Center, she soon liked the prospect of becoming a counselor and has the same desire to help students up to this present time. “It’s better to start as soon as you can,” she said.

Then, she asked me several questions about my interests, gave me some statistics about my field and offered me a variety personality tests to take.

Overall, I left the Career Center with a sense of accomplishment, knowing that even if I wasn’t sure about what I wanted to do in the future, I was more self-assured in the people who helped me in doing so that way.

The Career Center is one of the best places to go if you are considering many options in your major or career. Not only did I get to know myself better that day but I learned that you have to do what you love — and sometimes, it is something in the unexpected!

be asked during an interview.

Students can critique the performance and listen to the employers and their impressions of the interviewee.

“I personally have used this database before and it is really helpful. It gives you a heads up of the questions you might be asked so you can prepare before hand,” said Carolyn Kasparian, 18, biology major.

Counselors offer valuable

information for students to get a head start on their job search.

The career center also provides free career assessments to help students decide a path to pursue.

For more information call Tatyana Bartholomew (818) 2401000, ext. 5407.

Sharese Mirzakhanyan can be reached at smirzakhanyan@elvaq.com

Pretrial Hearing Set in Teacher Assault Case

By Claudia Anaya

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

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pretrial hearing is scheduled for Monday at the Glendale city courthouse, department two, for Grayr Markosyan, 24, who is being charged with Battery Against a School Employee, PC 243.6, which in this case is being treated as a misdemeanor.

On Feb. 19, Markosyan, a former GCC student, was seen fleeing from the library building where an English teacher was heard screaming for help and crying after being assaulted.

Two Glendale students who chased the suspect to parking lot 34 tried to convince Markosyan to turn himself in. He shouted back, “you wouldn’t understand, I was abused and picked on.”

On Feb. 20, Markosyan was arrested and then released on his own recognizance the following day.

Jilbert Tahmazian, Markosyan’s attorney, said that his client was served on March 12 with a three-year restraining order.

“It prevents him from coming near campus and near the victim,” said college police Capt. Nidal Kobaissi, who, on March 20, had accompanied the victim to court for safety reasons and to make sure she didn’t come into contact with the accused assailant.

According to college police Chief Steve Wagg, the trial

was pushed forward to April 22 because the court was not ready to hear the case.

The district attorney then pushed the date to May and again to June 6 in which the final date was set for the pretrial hearing.

The assaulted teacher did not return to complete the spring semester.

Penal Code Information: According to the California Penal Code, chapter nine: Assault and Battery, 243.6: When a battery is committed against a school employee engaged in the performance of his or her duties, or in retaliation for an act performed in the course of his or her duties, whether on or off campus, during the school day or at any other time, and the person committing the offense knows or reasonably should know that the victim is a school employee, the battery is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or by a fine not exceeding $2,000, or by both the fine and imprisonment. However, if an injury is inflicted on the victim, the battery shall be punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year, or by a fine of not more than $2,000, or by imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, or two or three years.

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

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Lecture Series Features Glendale Alumna Turned Author

By Arpee Markarian EL VAQUERO COPY EDITOR

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he returned fourteen years later to campus, the place that she had first come to without direction, and where through hard work she found her writer’s voice, the key to her future as a novelist.

Maria del Toro, author of two women’s fiction novels that focus on strong female characters, shared her story with students, faculty, and former classmates during the Lang Lecture Series at Kreider Hall on May 29.

Del Toro came to GCC when she was 18, the first in her family to continue education beyond high school.

“It was a very scary time; I didn’t know what I was doing here,” she said. “I signed up for a full load of classes and managed to fail every single one of them.

Not because I couldn’t do the work, but because I didn’t do it.

I had never been a stellar student before.”

The following semester, administration placed her on academic probation.

“I didn’t tell anyone what I had done because I was embarrassed.

I had failed big time,” said del Toro.

Little by little she raised her GPA until one semester she got all A’s and was on the dean’s list.

“Raising my grades was a pretty huge accomplishment,” del Toro said. “But I still had no idea what I was going to do with my life. I didn’t know what I was doing beyond working toward raising [my grades from] that first semester.

“I eventually met with an academic counselor, something I suggest everyone do a lot sooner …” she said. “You don’t always have to shoulder it on your own; there are people here who will help you.”

Three credits short of completing her certificate in child development, she switched to a major she enjoyed more, sociology, which she thought about pursuing after college. She didn’t want to take care of kids at $6 per hour.

At this point, she had to drop her algebra class she wasn’t doing well in, and take another class to maintain a full-time status. On her sister’s recommendation, she chose Mass Communications 101 with Professor Mike Eberts.

After completing the class with an A, Eberts encouraged her to join El Vaquero. Del Toro was planning to quit school and

Photo by Fabienne Niederberger

Glendale alumna turned author Maria del Toro signs books after her lecture at Kreider Hall.

begin working, but she accepted his invitation.

“It was a decision and invitation that changed my life,” said del Toro.

“You can mess up, not have a plan, but every decision you make leads to something,” she said.

“Once I joined [El Vaquero], it all fell into place for me.”

Among those at the lecture were her mother, husband, and former professor, Mike Eberts, coordinator of the humanities/social science lecture series and professor of mass communications.

“It’s a teacher’s dream come true that not only they go on and use something that you’ve taught, to some effect,” said Eberts, “but then the person goes off and is a great success. Maria is a role model. She truly is.”

Bart Edelman, professor of English, sat in the crowd, listening to his former student.

“It’s absolutely wonderful,” he said. “I am terribly proud of students who go out and come back and she has done a lot of writing and it’s remarkable.”

Dolores Blackburn, former classmate for two semesters at El Vaquero, said she hadn’t seen del Toro since she left for San Francisco, but knew of her success.

“She did well with her column [at El Vaquero],” Blackburn said.

“She used to write the quirky, funny, interesting stuff. I wanted to be like her.

“I’m just thrilled because I know her talent. She writes so well and she’s just fun. It has to be just as fun to read her books.”

After the lecture, del Toro signed books before attending a luncheon on campus in her honor

with faculty, administrators and others.

Del Toro walked away from campus with another set of memories to look back on.

“It was nice to just be able to acknowledge the people who had made a difference and impact on my life,” she said. “I knew I had to do it because GCC was my stepping stone to going on to get my degree in journalism. If I could share that with someone who might be on the fence or questioning if it’s worth it, I wanted to show that it is and that all the work and stress will pay off one way or another.”

Veloris Lang, former language arts chair and administrator, started the Lang Lecture series nine years ago. The Tuesday night free lectures she attended at Stanford University, one of the best memories she said she had, inspired her to create a similar experience for students.

“The purpose for having speakers come to the college is for student enrichment beyond the classroom,” said Lang, who began the Lang Lecture Fund when she retired after 34 years of service at the college. “The perspective on some area of someone’s life work, and the position they’ve taken in their life, can serve as some sort of inspiration for the students ….”

Arpee Markarian can be reached at arpee_markarian@elvaq.com

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ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

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Choir Spring Concert Entertains with Classics

By Jessica Bourse

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

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undreds of people hummed with excitement as they filled the college auditorium on May 31 for the much-anticipated choir spring concert, directed by Dr. Jayne Campbell.

The groups performing included the Glendale College Choir, Pops Ensemble, and the newly formed Opera Vignettes.

The audience fell silent as the lights dimmed, then applauded when Campbell walked on stage and welcomed everyone.

“Keep Your Lamps,” arranged

by Andre Thomas, was the first piece of the night. It started off with simple percussion, played by Emerson Galicia. As Galicia kept a steady beat, the choir emerged from both wings of the stage, and filled the empty risers.

The simple combination of voices and percussion proved to be a brilliant piece to kick off the night.

The choir then sang “Anvil Chorus,” from Giuseppe Verdi’s “Il Trovatore.”

Accompanist Brian Hanke played the piano while the choir’s voices rang in perfect harmony.

The third piece, Franz Shubert’s “Kyrie” from “Mass in G,” was an extremely melodic and magnificent piece. Soprano Alex Sanfilippo sang a gorgeous solo which made the piece even more enjoyable.

After “Ah, El Novio No Quire Dinero,” a 15th-century Sephardic

wedding song, the Opera Vignettes took stage.

Baritone Ararat Gharzian sang Guillaume Louis Cottrau’s “Santa Lucia.” Gharzian’s strong voice resonated through the auditorium as his hands trembled at his sides.

Tenor Derik Dermegerdichian sang the famous aria, “E Lucevan Le Stelle,” from Giacomo Puccini’s opera “Tosca.”

Written in the key of B minor, Dermegerdichian sang this heartwrenching solo was beautifully, as he was flawlessly accompanied

by Hanke.

The Pops Ensemble took the stage, along with musical director Charles Ion and accompanist Su Hyun Jue. Their first piece was a Gershwin medley, arranged by John Higgens. Bits and pieces were sung from songs such as “Rhapsody in Blue” (1924), “The Man I Love” (1924), “Embraceable You” (1930), “I Got Rhythm” (1930), and “I’ve Got a Crush on You” (1930).

The Opera Vignettes continued with a pianissimo solo from soprano and math teacher Françoise Grand-Clément, singing Marguerite Monnot’s “Les Amants d’un Jour,” followed by a pleasant solo from baritone Arman Manukyan, singing “On the Street Where You Live” from the musical “My Fair Lady.”

Dermegerdichian and Sanfilippo returned to the stage to sing famous duet, “Con te Partirò.” Although Sanfilippo’s

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The College Choir, directed by Jayne Campbell, left foreground, performs classic pieces for an enthusiastic audience in the auditorium on May 31.

voice was clean and beautiful, her dynamics didn’t seem to be quite as strong as Dermegerdichian’s.

Nonetheless, it was an exquisite piece of music, receiving a wild and enthusiastic applause from the audience.

The Pops Ensemble returned to stage, singing William Orbit’s “Ciudado Con Mi Corazon” and Frank Loesser’s “Big D,” from the 1956 musical “The Most Happy Fella.”

Scenes from Mozart’s “Le Nozze di Figaro” was performed

by Joy Chen as the countess, Sanfilippo as Susannah, Anna Gharibyan as Barbarina, Emily Gardina as Marcellina, Ty Ivory as Figaro, and Stepan Daduryan as the count.

Gardina and Chen later returned and performed scenes from Otto Nicolai’s “The Merry Wives of Windsor.” The storyline from the scenes show the audience an upset Mistress

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Ford, performed by Gardina, who is reading an absurd love letter she has received. When Mistress Page, performed by Chen, enters the scene, they discover they both have identical letters from the same man.

Gardina’s wonderful performance could be described as an amazing voice with a spunky attitude. When Chen joins Gardina for a duet, the two create a delightful mood, flirting with the idea of revenge.

The Pops Ensemble returned, singing Antonio Jobim’s “Corcovado,” or “Quiet Nights,” which entwined with their second piece, “Summer Samba,” by Paolo Valle.

After a lovely performance of “The Moon is Distant from the Sea,” and a fun interpretation of “Ask the Watchman,” the concert felt like it just couldn’t get better, but it did.

The Pops Ensemble sang

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“Wade in the Water,” a gospel piece, that left me with chills running up my spine.

The last performance of the night was a series of scenes from “The Pirates of Penzance.”

Dermegerdichian performed as Frederic, Sanfilippo as Mabel, and Markian Olesijuk as the Pirate King.

Olesijuk’s performance was the most entertaining to watch, with the entire choir dressed in pirates attire, singing the chorus in between a couple of “arrgh’s” and swordfights.

For more information, contact Jayne Campbell at (818) 2401000, ext. 5660.

My rating: three out of four stars.

Jessica Bourse can be reached at jessica_bourse@elvaq.com

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‘Snuff’ by ‘Fight Club’ Author Melds Porn, Violence and More

By Jake Madrigal

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

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hen it comes to the great writers of our generation there is no doubt that Chuck Palahniuk (“Fight Club,” 1997) will be remembered for his creative, controversial, and powerful work that leaves a lasting imprint in the reader’s mind.

With the release of his ninth novel, “Snuff,” it is clear that Palahniuk is not holding anything

back. From the time that he released “Fight Club” he has been on an all-out quest to expose his readers to the fringe elements of society.

“Snuff” deals with the sick and disturbing porn industry. To many it is hard to believe that this type of filming is even out there, but with the rising concern about the snuff pornography industry and the many questions it raises, it is hard to understand how such a thing is even created.

The main character is the

legendary and aging porn queen Cassie Wright, who after a lifetime of making films, marketing her own line of adult toys, and dealing with the consequences of putting her own child up for adoption is now about to attempt to set the all-time world record for serial fornication by having intercourse with 600 different men on camera during one continuous filming session that will ultimately cause the end of Cassie’s life.

Mr. 600, who is also an aging porn actor, believes he is the father

of the “porn baby” that Cassie put up for adoption in the beginning of her career. Not only has he filmed previous movies with Wright, but after drugging her with large doses of tranquilizers (known as “Special K”), and forcing her to film her first movie, he has encouraged her to progress in the business.

Now, 19 years later, Mr. 600 (also known as Branch Bacardi) has come back for his last and final filming with the famous Ms. Wright, but with someone

planning to kill Cassie before the big bang, the ending is an exciting shock to the reader.

As we go travel into this 197page story, we see through the eyes of four different people, Mr. 600, Mr. 72, Mr. 137, and Ms. Wright’s talent wrangler, producer, and stopwatch woman named Sheila.

When it comes to character, emotion, and description, Palahniuk is driven to a new [See “Snuff,” Page 7]

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

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F i l m review Got Stalkers? ‘The Strangers’ Delivers Creepy Fun

By Jessica Bourse

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

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t doesn’t matter if your lock your windows and bolt the doors — The Strangers” is a thrilling, on-the-edge-of-yourseat horror flick that will do anything to get in.

Reminiscent of slasher-movie classic “Halloween” (1978), and French horror film “Ils (Them)” (2006), “The Strangers” is a fun ride, delivering moments of fear and suspense.

Kristen McKay and James Hoyt, played by Liv Tyler (“Reign Over Me,” 2007) and Scott Speedman (“Underworld: Evolution,” 2006), as a distraught couple spending the night at the Hoyt’s family vacation home when they become the victims of stalking and terror from three masked strangers.

Both Tyler and Speedman

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stand out as horror movie actors, allowing their actions and emotions to speak louder than cheesy lines typically used by horror protagonists. While the two characters struggle to fight and survive, the audience senses their emotional wounds and feelings each other healing.

First-time director and writer Bryan Bertino delivers more than one would expect from a rookie.

As a director in a “new-school” industry, Bertino has mastered “old-school” horror techniques, relying on the art of building suspense and dread, instead of building up body counts and exaggerated gore.

The movie brings back the masked sociopathic killer, packaging it in the forms of three villains, adding the extrafrightening disclaimer: motive not included. The use of simple, childish masks enhanced the

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creepiness of the film.

Remaining true to the standard horror movie recipe, there are moments of frustration as characters become stupid with adrenaline and make the worst possible decisions—ever.

An example of this is when Hoyt’s friend, Mike, played by Glen Howerton (“Two Weeks,” 2006), pulls up to the house and sees that something is obviously not right. Instead of calling the police, like any normal person would do, he decides to enter the house…further explanation isn’t necessary.

Although the home-invasion type storyline is not entirely original, having been seen in movies such as “Funny Games” (1997 and 2007) and “Ils (Them),” “The Strangers” remains entertaining.

Overall, “The Strangers” is a fun movie, delivering

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Masked home-invasion psychopaths terrorize a couple in this summer thriller.

screams, fright, and delight.

My rating: three stars out of four.

This film is rated “R” for violence/terror and language; released by Universal Pictures; running time: 90 minutes.

Directed and written by Bryan Bertino; Peter Sova, director of photography; Kevin Greutert, film editor; production design

by John D. Kretschmer; original music by tomandandy, produced

by Rogue Pictures.

Jessica Bourse can be reached at jessica_bourse@elvaq.com

‘Sex’ Is Great for Everybody, Not Only Women

By Eric Konarki

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

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arrie, Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte are finally back, five years wiser, with their Manolo Blahniks on their feet and Cosmopolitans in hand.

HBO’s award winning series about sex and relationships from the female point of view ended its six-year run with Carrie finally being matched up with Mr. Big, Samantha beating cancer, Miranda moving to Brooklyn and Charlotte adopting a baby from China.

Five years have passed and their lives have changed. Carrie is planning her wedding. Samantha has moved to Los Angeles, Miranda is experiencing the troubles of putting her career before her family, and despite the odds, Charlotte is finally pregnant.

Sarah Jessica Parker’s (“A Family Affair,” 2008) portrayal of Carrie Bradshaw is fantastic.

Parker’s acting ability is flawless and very realistic. The way Parker exhibits the pain that Carrie endures throughout the movie seems as if this is actually happening and is not acting.

Kim Cattrall (“My Boy Jack,” 2007) portrays the promiscuous Samantha Jones. Cattrall brought the “sex” to the city and also the comedy. Her sexual frustration led to laughs that kept the movie balanced with comedy and drama.

Miranda Hobbes, the cynical lawyer, is portrayed by Cynthia Nixon (“The Babysitters, 2007”). Nixon’s performance is commendable. Her emotionfilled scenes are very tasteful and not over the top.

The conservative Charlotte York, portrayed by Kristin Davis (“Deck The Halls,” 2006), is excellent. Davis manages to balance proper nature and anger tastefully to maintain Charlotte’s preppy personality.

John James Preston, commonly known as Mr. Big, is portrayed

by Chris Noth (“The Perfect Man,” 2005). Noth does a great job of showing his characters’ indecisiveness that has been going on for 10 years. His acting is great because it is hard to establish what he is going to do and say next.

Louise from St. Louis is portrayed by Academy Awardwinning actress Jennifer Hudson

(“Dream Girls,” 2006). Hudson’s portrayal is perfect. Unlike the rest of the cast, it is quite obvious she is not a New Yorker, but she manages to keep a thick skin while trying to make it in New York.

Love and labels are the focus of this film. Patricia Fields, the costume designer, is gifted in the fashion field. Her fabulous fashions help explain the story without words. From the clothes, to the purses, to the shoes everything is a designer name. It almost feels as if the clothes are characters in the film.

Show creator Michael Patrick King puts together a complete film that will not disappoint fans and will create new ones. Credit must be giving to Patrick King for making the film a visual and emotional treat.

There is never a shortage of “chick flicks” but “Sex And The City: The Movie” is more than the average lovey-dovey romance movie aimed at women that men are forced to see by their girlfriends or wives. This movie might be marketed toward women of all ages, but men should not be worried about having to see it. It revolves around sex, it’s in the title.

This movie might not be for all ages but at least women can enjoy the romance, and men can enjoy the sex and jokes. This longawaited movie does not disappoint and is the perfect closure for this pop culture phenomenon.

My rating: four stars out of four

Rated R for strong sexual content, graphic nudity, and language Running Time: 148 minutes Production company: Darren Star Productions HBO Films New Line Cinema Eric Konarki can be reached at eric_konarki@elvaq.com

The “Sex in the City” gang makes a smooth transition from television to big screen in this summer blockbuster.

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

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Scarlett Johansson Should Stick to Acting, Avoid Singing

By Chabeli Sanchez EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

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here is nothing worse than an actor turned musician. Russell Crowe (“Gladiator,” 2000) did it with his horrific pub rock band, “30 Odd Foot of Grunts” (1992) and everyone heard the disastrous single “Higher” (2007) from “Hills” reality star Heidi Montag.

Scarlett Johansson (“The Other Boleyn Girl,” 2008) can now be added to the list with her debut album, “Anywhere I Lay My Head.”

There are few actors turned musicians who have had great success. Hilary Duff (“Metamorphosis,” 2003) is an exception. What she has is a talent and a knack for singing.

Duff started out as a Disney channel television star and was transformed into a movie star as well as an amazing recording artist. However, Johansson should only approach a microphone when presenting an Oscar or when reading lines of a script,

never to sing.

Johansson has a very manly and raspy voice to begin with, and some would think that her voice would transform on a record into a very cool and funky sound. However, in this case, she sounds even more like a man, and a drunken one at that.

Listening to the album made me question the fact that Johansson was actually a girl. Yes, she is biologically a girl, but sadly on this album she sounds more and more like a man.

Before announcing two years ago that she would record an album, Johansson dipped her feet into music, with moderate results.

She sang, “Brass in Pocket” from her movie “Lost in Translation,” which was all right, but nothing to write home about. She also did backing vocals on “Just Like Honey” on stage with The Jesus and Mary Chain (“Psychocandy,” 1985) at last year’s Coachella festival, though her [movie] star value outshined the quality of her voice.

Johansson recruited producer Dave Sitek from TV on the Radio and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs (“Show Your Bones,’ 2006), band member/guitarist Nick Zinner to help create her album. David Bowie (“Reality,” 2003) also helped with the production of this album and also appears as backing vocals for Johansson.

Bowie and Johansson are friends, which seems odd, since friends shouldn’t let friends make idiots out of themselves. This would have been a great time for Bowie to speak up.

The album consists of 10 cover versions of the legendary Tom Waits (“Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers, and Bastards,” 2006) songs and one original song from Johansson titled, “Song for Jo.” The song consists of acoustic guitar strums and an ambient orchestra playing in the background, and let’s not forget the manly vocals delivered by Johansson.

Each song on the album is filled with a vast variety of

sounds. Many tracks are filled with the hum of dark subways, and the buzzing of power lines.

However, all of this background noise cannot mask the voice of a drunken girl/boy performing karaoke.

I wish I could dissect each and every track and review it, but the truth is, I could barely stand listening to more than a minute of each track. It was unbearably horrific.

The entire album sounded like one long depressed monotone track performed by a drag queen.

Praising Johansson’s work on this mess of an album, as many critics are doing, is surprising.

Number one, they need to seriously get their ears checked or they are listening to some other album out there, because this is nothing to be praised.

Secondly, Waits is one of the best contemporary songwriters around, and mentioning Johansson and Waits in the same sentence is appalling.

Johansson is a silver screen

princess with lots of cash to throw around, so it is not surprising she chose to make an album. However, not everyone on this planet can sing, Fox’s hit show; “American Idol” proves that week after week. But electronically altering a pretty faced girl’s manly voice does not make her worthy of singing Waits covers.

Johansson can act, and she is smoking hot. That was all made evident in her performance in “Lost in Translation,” but sing, she cannot.

Lindsay Lohan (“Speak,” 2004) and J-LO (“On the 6,” 1999) made better albums than Johansson, which is not saying much.

Released: May 20 Price: $ 12.99 Rating 1 out of 4 stars, just because David Bowie took part.

Chabeli Sanchez can be reached at chabeli_sanchez@elvaq.com

Chuck Palahniuk’s New Novel Satisfies with Challenging Themes [‘Snuff,’ from Page 5] level of creativity with his simple sentence structure. The flow is never lost throughout the novel, and with each chapter being told through the eyes of a different character it feels as if the read is much faster giving you a good feel of completion at the end.

With Palahniuk’s easy-toread style he goes beyond and far past what anyone could have prepared for. His writing has truly improved and expanded from his past classics such as “Fight Club” and “Choke.”

In the past Palahniuk has been known for his confusing style with the plot jumping back and forth throughout the book. But in “Snuff” there is no second-guessing; his writing is straight to the point and very insightful.

Not only does Palahniuk follow this new style but his extraordinary story telling skills goes far beyond the writing of others like James

Frey (“A Million Little Pieces,” 2007) who tends to lack these skills with his writings on similar topics.

With the story not only dealing with the corrupt porn industry, Palahniuk also gives the reader a great insight to other subjects, such as gang identity in our own country.

“On his lower back just above the waistband on his boxer shorts, is a scrolled fancy tattoo of the number 187: the California Penitentiary Code section for murder,” said character Mr. 72 in an interesting and informing conversation dealing with gangs in America.

Palahniuk not only defines and explains these lessons but he also uses a unique sense of description when telling them, he really makes the reader feel as if he is a part of the action, which is exactly what a good writer should do.

With facts about the mainstream film industry sprinkled throughout the book, the reader also gets somewhat of

a history lesson when it comes to classic Hollywood movie stars like our own Marilyn Monroe and Gene Kelly.

Palahniuk also has a long list of facts revealing some strange stories about both Hitler and the royal family of Caesar Augustus.

Don’t think this book is made for everyone though, the weak stomached and the easily disturbed should not partake in this journey. Yet, if you are a fan of Palahniuk or you are up for a climactic ride, I do recommend it.

Shelia says, “Do you respect someone’s right to seek challenges and discover their true potential? How is a gangbang any different than risking your life to climb Mount Everest? And do you accept sex as a form of viable emotional therapy?” These are the type of questions that Palahniuk poses to the readers.

Although Palahniuk asks these questions straightforwardly in the text, there are many that come to ones mind while reading.

Like how can people even think

of such a film? Or how can these men make money off the suffering of women?

Palahniuk forces us to think outside of the norms and carry over to the dark side of society, where many have never been before.

600 men, one legendary porn star, and a room full of cameras… get ready to fully engage into this one, and don’t be afraid to let it all out. You will be shocked, you will be disturbed, but you will be

satisfied.

Chuck Palahniuk has done it once again.

Hardcover: 208 pages Publisher: Doubleday (May 20, 2008) My rating: 4 out of 4 stars

Jake Madrigal can be reached at jake_madrigal@elvaq.com

Have you seen the Insider?

Check Out Glendale’s New Online Magazine

www.gccinsider.com

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ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

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Free Radical’s‘Haze’ Gets Lost in its Own Haze

By Brent Wallace

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

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aze is a first-person shooter (FPS) that has been made

by Free Radical exclusively for the Playstation 3 (PS3). Free Radical has had a good run with the shooter genre, starting off strong with 007: Goldeneye for the Nintendo 64 console, and then providing more high quality titles, such as the Timesplitters series.

With all of that experience behind them, its quite shocking to see how Free Radical messed up with Haze. Haze is still a solid shooter that is worth a look, but the game’s merits are almost completely lost in its own hazy mist.

The premise of Haze has you playing as a character named Shane Carpenter, who has had a rough past but wants to do good deeds for the world. As a result, Carpenter joins the army of Mantel, a mysterious military industrial corporation that

provides its troops with a drug called nectar, which makes their troops more powerful and neatly shields their eyes from the ugly sights of warfare, such as blood and dead bodies.

You’ll probably appreciate it more if you do your research and get familiar with the undertones used in Haze’s story, which include the mockery of generic shooter characters, the consequences of drug usage, media manipulation, and more.

Even with these undertones, however, Haze’s story is very boring, and never gets you truly involved.

The basic game play of Haze revolves around two different sides, the Mantel Troopers and the Promised Hand Rebels, and their distinct usage of nectar.

The Mantel troopers use nectar to make fighting their enemies easier. When used, nectar increases the trooper’s fighting capability and highlights enemies with a red glow, making them very hard to see. Nectar also gives

Result of nectar’s consequences: more proof that you should not use drugs.

the troopers other advantages, such as the ability to see the blast radius of an explosive before it goes off.

The troopers have to be careful and avoid going into an overdose or else they will lose control and start shooting everyone in their vicinity.

The rebels don’t use nectar directly on themselves like the troopers do. Instead, the rebels have abilities such as dodge rolls, the ability to use nectar-infused knives and grenades to force overdoses on the troopers, and the power to play dead to hide from the troopers, since they can’t see dead bodies.

The game’s short and uninteresting single-player campaign doesn’t do that good of a job introducing players to each side’s differences. This is primarily because you quickly discover that nectar usage doesn’t really change how you play the game in any meaningful way.

With the troopers, you probably won’t be very selective with how and when to use nectar; since you have little to no excuse to ever be caught in a fire fight without it.

With the rebels, you’ll see that forcing overdoses is not as effective of a tactic as just running-and-gunning. The dodge roll and playing dead abilities are more than enough to counter the trooper’s strengths.

When you’re done with the campaign, Haze offers a few multiplayer modes for you to check out, although you’ve seen them all before. Haze offers basic death match and team death match modes, along with the more interesting team assault mode, which has each team going for specific objectives.

A nice touch in the death match modes is that you are allowed to play against the artificial intelligence (AI), even though its quality can be questionable at times.

Unfortunately, the death match mode suffers from some slight balance issues between the game’s two sides. At first glance, you’d think the troopers would have the upper hand with all of nectar’s advantages. But the balance of the game is actually in

favor of the rebels, since nectar can’t effectively counter playing dead.

Haze also allows you to play through the campaign cooperatively with up to three other people online, or with one other person locally via split screen. This does make the campaign a bit more enjoyable, since you now have intelligent players on your side instead of the lackluster allied AI. Graphically, Haze is an ugly sight to behold as a PS3 game.

The graphics look like they were made using the 4-year-old Doom 3 engine. Haze has some good looking character and weapon models, but everything else, from the stiff animation to the low resolution textures, looks downright dated. The game’s fire effects are particularly hideous and could even put a Playstation 2 (PS2) to shame.

Haze doesn’t fare much better with the sound department either. Haze does have some decent music, but none of it is truly memorable. The game’s voice acting is also decent, but is sabotaged by a lack of decent dialogue. The voice acting also gets very repetitive since many characters repeat the same few lines way too often. At least the game’s weapons all sound and feel right.

What makes Haze all the more disappointing is the fact that the developers of the game have had plenty of experience in the genre.

They had no excuse to send Haze out in its current state.

Despite all its flaws however, Haze is still a solid shooter that is worth checking out, as long as you haven’t been spoiled by the likes of Resistance: Fall of Man or Call of Duty 4.

Released: May 20 ESRB: M for mature: Intense Violence, Blood, Strong Language, Use of Drugs Retail Price: $59.99 Availability: Retail stores and online vendors My rating: trwo out of four stars

Brent Wallace can be reached at brent_wallace@elvaq.com

Video Games in 2008: An Even Bigger Year

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e all thought 2007 was a big year with games such as Super Mario Galaxy, Crysis, Halo 3, Call of Duty 4, Bioshock, and the Orange Box. With titles like these, 2007 has arguably managed to beat 1998, which had games like Half-Life, Grim Fandango, and Korea’s National Sport; Starcraft, as the best year for video games yet.

But 2008 is already proving to be even bigger with big releases such as Super Smash Bros Brawl and the phenomenon that is Grand Theft Auto 4 already being picked off of store shelves by the millions. With its history making sales figures, Grand Theft Auto 4 has undoubtedly already put 2008 on top.

We generally don’t see this many big releases until the holiday season. And the surge of highly anticipated releases is not finished yet!

Coming this month, we can look forward to titles such as Metal Gear Solid 4 for the Playstation 3 (PS3), Ninja Gaiden 2 for the Xbox 360, Secret Agent Clank for the Playstation Portable (PSP), Bionic Commando Rearmed for the 360, PS3, and PC, Strong Bad’s Cool Game for Attractive People for the Wii, and Alone in the Dark for the 360, PS2, PC, and Wii. In July, we can expect Soulcalibur 4 for the PS3 and 360, along with Gran Turismo 4 Mobile for the PSP. The rest of the year has a multitude of highly anticipated titles such as Far Cry 2 for the PC, Spore for the PC and Mac, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed for the PS3, 360, PS2, Wii, PSP, and DS, Fallout 3 for the PC, Gears of War 2 for the 360, Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway for the PC, PS3, and 360, Fable 2 for the 360, and more.

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

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COLUMN/OPINION

Columnist Gives Semester Recap Artificial Intelligence:

By Graig Agop

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER/ PHOTOGRAPHER

Our columnist has never been one to mince words and in this installment, he gives a semester recap that may cause readers to question the meaning of existence.

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hen people ask me what I do for a living, I tell them I’m an actor. I play a struggling student without family issues, drug problems, eating disorders, or mathematical skills in “Glendale Community College.”

I lied, I have an eating disorder, I can’t stop eating those damned maple scones. Oh, and I never really got along with my brother and I’m addicted to prescription drugs. There you have it, oh yeah, and I’m a compulsive liar.

I’m not saying I’m the greatest actor but at least I’m not an overactor, like our very own Jose “Shermie” Aguilar. That kid acts like he’s never been on stage before in every production he’s in.

Take some lessons from the lovely, beautiful and talented Ms. Mary Claire Garcia. She never makes a fool of herself, she’s graceful as hell and she pulls off pastel colors like it’s nobody’s business. Shermie, for your next role try some Ritalin, and you’re welcome.

OMG I got my pictures back from the Glendale Police and not only did they charge $380 a photo, they are also expecting me to pay for all the photos I took, and Tabucky and I took a lot.

Who do they think they are, Annie

The Roundup

Leibovitz? Over the shoulder!

I wrote no on the envelope and sent it back!

I’ve had crisper and way more original photos taken at the Glendale Galleria. Oh, and they were even in color and I didn’t have my eyes closed, rip-off’s.

Tabucky is mad too. Tabucky’s dad is a lawyer. She told me her father is going sue the photo agency.

OMG did you watch the “American” Idol finale? I bet child protective services were on call. Actually, I wonder if David Archuleta is still alive. Only time will tell, I heard it takes a few days for a body to surface from the river. Unless Jeff Archuleta was smart enough to weigh down the body. You did it for him. Yeah, we know, save it for Joe Simpson.

Anthropology professor Victoria Buresch is a freaking saint. Quote me. I have the gift of telepathically receiving “energy vibes” from people’s souls, and great news! Ms. Buresch your test results came back positive!

I sense this woman is the next Mother Teresa. It’s nice to see something good in today’s ugly world. I’ll drink to that. Amen.

Why do we have an aviation building with no jets? Does it have anything to do with having a baseball team with no trophies?

I should look into that.

Thank freaking goodness The Justice Coalition to a breather this semester because frankly, they piss me off. Hiss. When they stage gay weddings, I want to stage straight weddings. When they put 3,000 crosses all over Plaza Vaquero, I want to use

them to build a gazebo.

Don’t get me wrong I’m pro human rights but, they aren’t striving for change, they’re striving for attention, and that makes me sick. How can a group be against like virtually everything? They must take a stand. I think they should have a seat.

The Justice Coalition is child’s-play compared to the misconception that people have regarding the idea that so-called “fake people” exist. Ok, It’s a scientific fact either you’re human or your not. I’m sorry I hate to be the one to tell you but, there are such things as “fake people.”

People are what you call “fake” because they don’t really like you, and they’re so nice that they won’t say it to your face.

They weren’t raised by wolves.

This isn’t Beyonce. You call it fake. I call it well mannered.

It is safe to say everyone’s gone crazy. They’re all like, “gas this, and gas that.” Try gas-x, and your welcome.

Or you can do it the old fashion way and make your own gas! It’s really not that hard. My friend Tabucky’s uncle does it all the time. Come closer, here’s the recipe. Five gallons of extra virgin olive oil, a funnel, 12 sardines, three whole chickens, six potatoes, and ½ cup diced cilantro.

Deep fry the chickens whole until crisp. Then blend the sardines with the cilantro and ¼ cup of oil. Next cut potatoes into quarters and surround the chicken. Finally drizzle sauce, set oven at 350, bake for 2 hours, and voila! Chicken al la Cilantro

Necessity or Waste of Space?

By Brent Wallace

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

T

he video game industry used to be much simpler than it is today.

In the past, people who wanted to play video games simply had to stop by the arcades, but the days of the arcades are mostly gone and now the majority of gamers have to buy a console or computer in order to play.

As technology for these platforms advanced, such as the development of the Internet for online play and more advanced game engines for powering their games, video games have also been advancing along with technology.

Believe it or not however, even in today’s high-tech world, not everyone has a speedy internet connection. And not every gamer has hundreds of hours to kill either. And most of gaming’s genres, such as strategy games and shooters, require some kind of non-player controlled resistance. This is where artificial intelligence (AI) comes in.

AI has had a role in video with roasted potatoes! Yum! Now get off your ass, stop being cheap, and fill up your damn gas tank!

What, did I stutter?

I hope you learned something today. Say no to Beyonce, fill up your gas tank, and say no to Beyonce. Oh, maybe, you can fill up your gas tank while saying no to Beyonce. I love multi-tasking.

games for a long time. AIcontrolled characters first started appearing in the 1970s and ’80s in arcade games such as Space Invaders and Pac-Man. When new genres such as real-time-strategy started appearing in the 1990s, AI development became more complex, as video games started featuring more in-game tasks for AI to handle. And the AI of video games quickly rose up to the new challenges.

These days, AI is regarded as a very important aspect of most single-player games, and even some multiplayer games.

The use and necessity of AI in video games varies heavily depending upon what genre is being focused on, and whether or not the game is focused on single player or multiplayer.

Multiplayer focused games have commonly excluded AI support, since it is viewed as an unnecessary addition since you can play against other human players.

Recently, however, an increasing number of multiplayer-focused games [See Games, Page 17] I hope this semester was more productive for you than it was for me. We had teachers getting beaten; we had Armenian’s and Latino’s protesting left, right, top and bottom. Hell, we even had a black out, like Britney! It was fun fun fun! Shalom!

Graig Agop can be reached at Graig_Agop@elvaq.com

by Corinna Scott

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

www.elvaq.com 11

GRADUATION

2008 Sets New Graduate Record — See Related Story

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he class of 2008 Commencement ceremony held on June 6 at Sartoris Field set a new record for the total number of graduates honored. Clockwise from upper left: President Audre Levy leads the faculty to Sartoris Field; A happy graduate with diploma in hand; The white doves circle the field before their flight home; Graduate James R. Stallworth, Jr. salutes the crowd; The diverse class of 2008 proceeds through Plaza Vaquero on their way to the Commencement ceremony; California State Assemblymember Anthony Portantino delivering the Commencement Address; Hiromi Yoshimura proudly displays her Honors certificate.

Richard Kontas can be reached at Richard_Kontas@elvaq.com

Page 12

— Photos by Richard Kontas

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GRADUATION

Graduate Class of 2008 Presented by President Levy

By Claudia Anaya

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

H

undreds stood with smiles on their faces last Friday, waiting to get a look at the class of 2008 as the procession of graduates headed onto Sartoris field.

“Pomp and Circumstance,” the traditional graduation song, played as friends, family, and significant others approached the front of the bleachers to take pictures of the graduates wearing their burgundy caps and gowns, under the bright 5 p.m. sun.

“This commencement ceremony represents the culmination of years of hard work and dedication,” said Assembly member Anthony Portantino, 44th District, who gave the commencement address.

Portantino mentioned that it was a day to reflect on the past and recognize the struggles that each graduate had to overcome to successfully accomplish his or her academic goals.

Many students worked parttime or full-time jobs, others had to raise a family, and all had

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sacrificed sleep and time with loved ones.

Stella Adamyan, 30, is a business office technology graduate who raised her 13-yearold son Gevorg Nersisyan and her 10-year-old daughter, Anahit Nersisyan, as she worked toward her goal.

Both Gevorg and Anahit said they were happy their mom was graduating.

“I hope she’ll get a good job,” said Gevorg.

Roza Mirzakhanyan, Adamyan’s mother describes her as “nice, intelligent, and polite… it’s hard to find people like her.”

Anjelica Mucci, 19, who earned her associate’s degree in nutrition, will be transferring to San Diego State to work on being a registered dietician, “I’m ready to move on.”

There were, overall this year, 606 associate of arts degrees and 215 associate of science degrees earned, which is 100 more than last year. Seven hundred certificates were awarded and 108 nurses graduated.

Christine Yuson, 23, and Celine Angeles, 23, were two of the nursing graduates who decorated their caps with the letters RN. “It’s a tradition for the nurses to be recognized among the other graduates,” said Yuson.

“We’re happy that we’ve made it. The nursing program was very challenging. It’s a good program,” said Yuson.

Both Yuson and Angeles have already found jobs. Yuson will be working at Huntington Memorial in Pasadena and Angeles will be working at Northridge Hospital Medical Center.

Portantino talked about the day as a day where graduates stand at a crossroads of who they were and who they will become.

Yuson and Angeles, former students, are in a transitional period of becoming nurses that will help others and the impact the world around them.

People acknowledged for the support given to graduates were parents, children, friends, and significant others.

“Success is also due to the faculty, instructors, counselors, and librarians, their success is the graduates achievements… dedicated employees are the heart and soul of the college,” said President Audre Levy.

Among the faculty recognized was Charles Eastman, who won the Exceptional Adjunct Award for distinguished contributions in his field. He has been with the college for more than 10 years.

It was said that Eastman cares about students and makes them

do their best.

Eric Johnston, professor of anthropology, who is known for the extra time he spends with students and who would stay after class to offer his help won the Distinguished Faculty Award.

The William L. Parker Award was given to Lynn Pomeroy, professor of mathematics for her long service to Glendale College.

With the help of instructors that often offer their time to help, 142 hardworking students graduated with honors, with a GPA of 3.5 or higher, it’s been the largest number of students in GCC history to graduate with academic honors.

Twenty two percent of graduates plan on transferring to the UC system, 34 percent plan on transferring to a Cal State, 8 percent plan to transfer to a private school, and 29 percent plan on entering the work force.

To the graduates of 2008, Glendale College has been their gateway to the future.

The graduates “looked at obstacles ahead and figured out how to keep at it until they successfully climbed over them,’ said Portantino.

Claudia Anaya can be reached at claudia_anaya@elvaq.com

International Students Hold Spring Dinner Dance

By Fabienne Niederberger EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER/ PHOTOGRAPHER

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he atmosphere was festive at the Brookside Golf and Country Club in Pasadena on May 30, where Glendale’s international students gathered for their Spring Dinner Dance.

Currently, the college hosts more than 500 international students enrolled from 50 different countries and they are an active part of the campus community.

The evening began with a welcoming speech from Philip Kamara-Kay, counselor and professor of student development, followed by a delicious dinner buffet, all organized by the International Student Program office.

Later, some of the 2008 graduates were honored and

Photo by Fabienne Niederberger

Van Nguyen, left, Chau Tran, Thanh Nguyen and Diem Tran enjoy the Spring Dinner Dance on May 30, organized for the international students.

congratulated by Anh Nguyen, senior coordinator for the International Student Program, and Mariah Ribeiro, counselor and professor of student development.

Getting an education is not only about books and tests but also about being able to learn about other cultures, and it might be the only time someone from Switzerland could dance with

someone from Sri Lanka, France, Australia, Japan, The Kingdom of Bahrain or Sweden.

The Spring Dinner Dance was a great way to end the year, and allowed the students a brief break before finals.

For more information on the international student programs call (818) 240-1000, ext. 5439.

Fabienne Niederberger can be reached at fabienne_niederberger@elvaq.com

Free Pregnancy Tests Are Available

• V isit or call the Asian Pacific Health Care Venture – a community health center.

• Family Planning Services (STD Testing, Birth Control Methods, etc.), • Emergency Contraception Pill (ECP), and • Free Pregnancy Tests (walk-ins available) APHCV 1530 Hillhurst Ave., Suite 200,Los Angeles, CA 90027

(323) 644-3888 • www.aphcv.org

Photo by Anh Nguyen

2008 graduates: Martin Weiss, left, Hyejin Kim, Moody Yousry, Joshua Dailo, Fabienne Niederberger, Marvin Yousry, Nune Shakhramanyan, Yuka Kamiya, Lai Kuen Grace Cheng and Miguel Gomez.

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

GRADUATION LIST

Glendale Community College Candidates For Graduation- June, 2008

Associate in Science Degree Edna Abnosian*** Anait Abraamyan* Stella Adamyan Sedik Aghajanian** Yoshimi Aizawa Catherine Anne Alzate Ana de la Llana Angeles Domenica Araujo Tommy Areepong*** Valentin Artunion* Karine Arutyunyan** (H) Leanna Assadourian Hasmik Avanesian Hilda Avanesian* (H) Juliet Avanesian Shakeh Avedian* (H) Artur Ayrapetyan Greta Babaian Akop Bagarian* Arax Barania** Marine Bezhanyan (H) Rynell Lauren Binzley Erik Bottema** (H) Fatima E. Boulares** Manuel Bracamonte*** John Edrik L. Brillante Karla E. Brower Anna Budakyan** Triza L. Caballero (H) Jose D. Carlos Barbara D Castillo** Amelia B. Castor Sergio Noel Castro Shin Hyo Cha** Michael M. Chandless Vardouhi Charchoghlian** Lai Kuen Grace Cheng Ramon A. Cisneros*** Coleman C. Coleman Sherita Patrice Cooper** Juliet Elorta Cordero Amy D. Cortina** (H) Ana Celia Cruz**

Josue M. Cruz Lusik L. Darbinyan (H) Hallie Rose Dash (H) Artur Davtyan William Asis De Lange** Arbi Delkeoukian*** Maria C. Del Rosario (H) Narine Dilanyan Kristina Eliasian** (H) Florinale C. Elorta** Remik Elyasi* Alice Evartrazian Tracy Lynn Everitt** (H) Anna Nuqui Fabella Cristina Laura Fallis (H) Leah N. Fortuna** Jennie Fox Eugenio M. Francisco Sose Frankyan* Yuki Fujiwara* Silvano Cesar Galindo** Tomm Adam Gallup Jose Israel Garcia Jr.*** Boghos Paul Garjalian Lida Gharibyan***(H) Natalya Ghazaryan* Shnorik Gorgi Carmen E. Gragosian* Elsik Grigorian** (H) Meredith L. Gross** Rubina Hairapetian*** Lusine Hakobyan (H) Andre Hakoopian Fred Hambarsomian** (H) Miki Hasada** Angelica M. Herrera*** Sepideh Heydarian Patricia A. Hilderbrand** Sarah Rochelle Hilton** Mari Hovsepyan Mariko Igarashi** Manolito Inductivo** (H) Armenoei Isaeian** (H)

Seda Isagulyan Alisa F. Ismailyan (H) Poloria Jananeh Vincent P. Jimenez*** Jumi Jung*** Seta Katoromian Armen G. Kenareki** JoDeane Renee Kent*** Nezer J. Khan Klaris Khudaverdian (H) Eugene Kim** John Joohun Kim Tony Bumsik Kim Yoomija Kim** Edgar Kirakosyan Anastasia Komarova** Shoko Kuwashima Bridget Ledford (H) Mari Lelikyan** Barbara Lineaweaver (H) Armine Manukyan** (H) Jessica Marquez Rangel Heather Crystal Martell Janette Demero Martin Stella Marie Matar** Mai Matsumoto Melody Mawhinney (H) Michael Charles Meeks Ani Melik-Stepanyan* Tatyana V. Mesa** Joy Hadassa Meyer (H) Rebecca Lynn Meza Aroos Minassian***(H) Christian R. Roubina Mirsaians***(H) Fredrick Mirzakhanian Rima Mkhitarian Seroj Moississian** Fernanda Bazaz** Donald Morrison Aya Nakano Delbar E. Namin* Sofia Ignacia Nava

Monika I. Nawrocka** (H) Armenohi Nazari Armineh Nazarian Arshavir Nazarian (H) Rima Nazariannamagerdi (H) Karine Nersisyan (H) Shanti Nichanian** Margaret M Nichols Ronald Harris Vicente Obregon (H) Kristel K. Ochoa (H) Ademuyiwa O. Ojelade Rachel Oksun Satomi Okubo Valentina M. Ovasapyan* Lida Patatanyan (H) Rosa A. Patti Zaven A. Pehlevanian Susan J Penrod** Jorge Perez* Marc Anthony Perkins Lida Peroomian Fabiola Raquel Prieto Irma Yolanda Quijano** Yvonne Quintero** Patricia Helen Ramirez** Charlene Joyce Raval** Jennifer Sang Sook Rhee Priscilla Marie Rocha Norma Isabel Rojas** (H) Vartoohi Rostami Alejandra Ruiz (H) Renate Luise Sahar (H) Haruka Sakaguchi Esperanza Sanchez Brooke Nicole Sanders** Aisa Sano Graciela R. Santillano Narine Sarian* Anahita Sarkissian Anahita Sarksian* Catherine R. See Han Young Seo

Momoko Sezaki Tello Nora Shaabani (H) Yurik Shagbabyan** Karine Shahgulyan** Narineh Shahinian** (H) Jasmen Shahmoradian (H) Gayane Shahnazaryan** Yuki Shundo Jennifer Elizabeth Smith** Soyen Sohn* Jeanny B. Sy** (H) Anait Tagmizyan Rieko Takizawa*** Mark Aaron Tamayo** Rycelonia Antonio Tan** Fumiko Taniguchi Patricia Tapia Norik Taroian** (H) Vardui Tigranyan** Suzy Mi Tran Anahit Trdatyan* Angelica Trinidad (H) Ai Tsunematsu* (H) Masako Ueki Rocio Uribe Marie-Ruth Abalos Valerio Ruben Vasquez** Tasama Vazquez John-Flores Velante Gerard H. Vosgheritchian Renee Joyce Weber*** Mark Damon Williams Asami Yamaguchi** (H) Kaori Yamashita Natalya Yim** Hiromi Yoshimura (H) December L. Yumul (H) Christine T.Yuson (H) Haleh Zahab** Jasmen Zeinali** Hasmik Ziraki Kimberly Zumpfe* (AGS) Melissa Zuniga

Associate in ARTS Degree Yasmin N. Abedin (H) Matthew A. Abell* Vanuhi Abrahami*** Verjik Abrahamian Carolin Abrami (H) Lusine Abramyan Karla Yuridia Acosta Diaz (H) Denise Acuna Adin Adamian Deegant H. Adhvaryu Lord Anthony Rionda Advincula Kristina Adzhemyan (H) Narek Agabalyan Alina Agemian Narine Aghaganian Zarneh Ani Aghajanyan***

Gayane Aghajanyan* (H) Sherwin Aghamohammad Alvine Aghazaryan Armine Aghazaryan Hasmik Aghazaryan Hong Jin Ahn Sihem Aiteche (PACE) Vania D. Akda Aylin Akoopi Suren Akopian* Yvette Alahdadi (H) Edwin Saul Alapisco Efrem Alemayehu Antonio Alfaro Meline A. Almasi** (H) Fernando Alonzo*** Lizette Alvarez

Veronica Alvarez (H) Shushan S Andriasyan (H) Masashi Annaka (H) Germine Antonyan Miyoko Aoki***(H) Justin B. Aquino** Sachiko Arakawa* Maneh Arakelyan (H) Vigen Arakelyan* (H) Michael Arakian** Tommy S. Areepong** Ana Cristina Arevalo (H) Christian F. Artizada** Enda Asadoorzadeh* Takudai Asakawa** Helga Boghossian Anita Aslanyan*

Ailin Astvazadrian* Elizabeth A. Atherton** (H) (PACE) Karine Avagyan* Lilit Avagyan** Meghi M. Avakian Narine Avakyan** Hasmik Avanesian*** Hermineh Avanesian Robert Avanesian*** Aylin Avarterazian (H) Nanor Avedissian* Heriberto Avila** Rosenda Marie Ayala Artur Ayrapetyan* Anna Ayvazyan (H)

Vahagn Ayvzayan Artak V. Azaryan Nagi Azemoto** Hasmigh Azizian-Azar (H) Arabo Babakhani (H) Valentin Babakhanian Edward M Babayan* (H) Anush Bagdzhyan*** Vilena Baghdasaryan** Arpine Bagumyan** Seunghyun Baik Mariam V. Balasanyan Emma Balayan** (H) Monica Barajas Raya Imad Barakat (H) Megan Jane Barnett

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www.elvaq.com

GRADUATION LIST

Associate in ARTS Degree, cONTINUED Cynthia Medrano** Monica N. Barrios* Chad E. Bartley** Tamara Celeste Baskin Rami M. Batikh* Juan C. Batres** Joe Brian Bautista* Susana Bautista Valentin Bazeekian** Christopher Beltran Allen Beneli** (H) Suzan Berberian Genevyeve Ordonez Zakariya Beshti Ankin Boghos Arpi Khouyegani** Joshua Dean Bolster Kimberly Bouchard** Steffanie Bowerman Hrant H. Boyajian Vardan Boyazhyan** Paul Christian Bright (H) Jonas Campos Bruno Dexter Edward Bryant II Luan Kinh Bui Kevin Lynn Butcher Julissa Camacho Isidoro Can* Dominique R. Canavati Melinda Miller Canfield** Nicole Brianne Caplinger Melany M. Carias* Vanessa Louise Carlos** Andrew Wells Cartwright Angelina P. Caruso** (H) Abel Urmanita Casasola Alica M. Castaneda Lucia Castano* Andrea M. Castellanos* Jacqueline Castro Nadia L. Castro** Aiza Ong Cayanan Teny Chaharbakhsh Karine Chakhoyan Keelan K Chan Vuoythoung Chao Natalie Chiriboga Garineh Chirinian***(H) Arutyun Chiroglyan* Jee S. Cho* (H) Paul Jehoon Cho Hannah R. Choi** Melkon Chuldjian** Charlie Jinhwan Chun Jennifer Chung Monica Cifuentes*** Noemy Leyva Clayborn Angelica Cobos Reggie W Collazo*** Elizabeth Constan*** Catherine Mary Coon Susana Corona Melida Coto Santos (H) Juan Camilo Cruz* Anthony Lavon Cullors Michelle Czegledi Joshua Christopher Dailo Cristine Danelian**

Harutyun Danielyan*** Adrine Davtyan** Naira Davtyan (H) Ana Marie De Leon** Mikhail Andre Deleon (H) Enrique Delgado (PACE) Celine Eunice Deocute Rachel Ann Deperio** Willow Leigh Derbidge (H) Carine Der Hovanessian** Jasman Dersahakian Violet Dersahakian Mindy Deschner (H) Julian Rowe Dewberry* Ibrahima Diallo Gina Nicole Diana Vanessa Yaskra Diaz* Monica G. Diehl Allison Dubon John Glenn Dunlap Marie Noelle Dupuis (H) Vitali Dzugkoyev** Jeffrey Charles Eastman Jasman Ebdalian Angine Ebrahimi Arsine Edjhuryan Angineh Eivazian Arssineh Eskandarian* Shake Esmailian Sheila Marie S. Estepa* Maria Evardone Vyacheslav Fedosov* (H) Jacqueline Felix Stephanie Felix Miriam Lagunas Fernandez Ruben Filian (AGS) Andrew S. Flores** (H) Jessica A Forster* Jonathan Josue Franchini* Arakel Frankyan Lei Fukuda Mai Fukuoka** Tina Gabrielyan* Pamela Galstians Anna Galstyan* Jose R. Ganuza* Nancy Katia Garabedian Azucena Garcia Cindy Ivette Garcia** Diana Edith Garcia Victor Garcia Rodriguez Alberto Garcia Martinez Petros Gasparyan***(H) Armine Gazaryan* Anahit Geghamyan* (H) Ira Geragos (PACE) Sona Gevorgyan*** Eda Gharachadaghi Meghmik Gharibian Suzy Gharibian Lida Gharibyan** (H) Alik Ghazarian** Armine Ghukasyan** Maria Angelina Gil** Ani V. Ginosyan (H) Guillermo Godinez (PACE) Alma Tatiana Gomez Ariana Gomez

Miguel Gomez (H) Carmen A. Gonzales* Cristina Gonzalez** (H) Maria L. Gonzalez Rene Aldo Gonzalez* Julia Rosanna Gordillo* Jeffery Graley** (PACE) Elsik Grigorian***(H) Vahagn Grigorian* David Grigoryan** Lusine Grigoryan** Stella G. Grigoryan** Jason Grimes* (PACE) Joy Grimes***(H) (PACE) Jason C. Gudani** Jhet Pagtalunan Guevarra Zoraya Guillermo*** Cynthia Irene Gutierrez** Anthony James Guyon Talin Hagopian Alen Hakobyan (H) Meri Hambardzumyan** Alenoush Hartouni (H) Njdeh Nick Hartounian Artak Harutyunyan* Hiroki Hasegawa** Shino Hasegawa*** Aaron William Hayden (H) Denise Ann Hayes Alina Hayrapetian** Joseph Hayward** Anahit Hazryan Misato Hazu (H) Alex S. Heiman Ginny Salazar Iram A Hernandez Ramon Herrera Jonathan Jimin Hong (H) Anna Hovasapyan** Anita Hovassian** Aren Hovsepian** Lizeth Huerta* Bran’D Garcia Hutalla (H) Shan’l Garcia Hutalla Mark J. Iniego** Katsuya Inoue Yui Ishida Bryan Christopher Jackson Armen Boghosian* Yong J. Jang Paula Lee Jennings (H) Christina Kaladjian (H) Laura Kalave Natalie M. Kalfayan* Dalar Kaloosi** Tony Kaloutian Yu Kamiya (H) Eleez Karabidian** (H) Armine Karapetyan** Mackenna Misae Karasawa Albert J. Karauski* Norvik Karimian** Anush Kasemyan (H) Armine Kasimyan Yuka Katahara** Miho Kawabata Shihoko Kawamura Karine N. Kazaryan**

Tina Kazaryan Jordan Kelly-Gilpin Roy Anthony Keowen** Derenik Keshish Lilit Keshishyan Romella Keshishyan (H) Lilian Khachatorians*** Hermana Khachatourian Armenuhi Khachatryan (H) David Khachatryan** Lusine Khachatryan (H) Parandzem Khachatryan* Vartkes V. Khacherian Lina Khachikian Anahit Khalafyan** Sarineh Khanbabaei (H) Elena Khavshaba Karim Kherbache (H) Satoshi Kida** (H) Hovig Kiladjian** Harout J. Kilafian* Chami Kim** Hyejin Kim Kevin K. Kim (H) Yoomija Kim Kyle Joseph King Anush Kirakosyan Herbert Knebel** Sharon Jean Kok (PACE) Vardouhi Koupalian Lela Kuchukishvili** Harutyun Kurazyan* Kazuki Kutsuna Mary Anne Labarda Vardouhi A. Lafian* Yen Hsuan Lai Maylin Lara Ester Lee** Gina J. Lee Kijoon Lee Michael Roy Lee* (H) Geralynn Parrin Legaspi Marilyn Licea Olivia Elisabeth Loibl (H) Dehianira Lomeli* Claudia Lopez Yolanda Selina Lopez (H) Anna Louie** Steven Lueneburg** (H) Luvinia Luna** Fadi S. Makhoul** Naieri Malakian Jessica Maldonado* Lernik Malek-Aghakhan Crist Malekyan (H) Lita Manookian Nona Manoukian** Edward Manoukyan* (H) Hermine Hakobyan** Ani Manukyan** Diana Manukyan Gevorg Manukyan Michelle Victoria Manzo Luis C. Mares-Moreno** Karine Margousian (H) Violette Margousian Janelle Marie Marin* Adrine Markosyan***

Melina Markosyan (H) Iveta Markova (H) Arturo Martinez* Ani Martirosian** Yui Maruyama (H) Dale Michael Mascari Edit Matevosyan (H) Tara Marie Mathews*** Lily McDonald Michael McDonald Diana Maribel Medrano Domenica Megerdichian Isabel Mejia-Arias Jennifer Melendez* Artour Melikyan** Anet Melkomian (H) Melissa Melkonian Mitzi Mendoza* Karla Maricela Mercado* Ninnia Grace Mesina Arin Minasian Caroline Minasian (H) Katrin Minasian Aroos Minassian** (H) Tina Minassian Ariga Mirzakhanian* Arpine Mirzakhanyan Diana Mirzoian** (H) Eriko Miura** Yukina Miyazaki** Yurik Mnatsakanyan Rodica Mondocea (H) Hugo Montanez Edgar A. Monzon (PACE) Connie L. Moore** Annette Moradkhani** Susana Moran* Adam Moreno** Bertha Mseryan (H) Anjelica Rae Mucci (H) Asuka Murata Liana Musakhanyan* Gennadiy Nadirov*** Gevork Nadzharyan Caroline Najarian** (H) Papken Nalbandian** Delbar E. Namin** Kei Narita Lilet Navarro***(H) Lilit Navasardyan Valentina Navasardyan Arpi Nazaryan** Diane Murray Nelson (H) Timothy D. Nelson Lilit Nersisyan Anahit Novshadyan Lylliam Agurcia** Celine Obone Brendan Blake O’Colmain Mark Daniel OConnor* Artashes Oganesian** (H) Yuko Ogiso** Angelina H. Ohanyan** Miki Okada Sean Okamuro Kanami Okuyama Momoko Omi*** Arpa Orojian

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

15

GRADUATION LIST

Associate in ARTS Degree, cONTINUED Carmen Ortiz Wilfredo Ortiz Diana Gabriela Osorio* Arda Oukayan Junko Oyama Christina Olivia Painter Tamara Panosyan** Srboui Papazian (H) Zhaklina Jackie Papazyan Aksel Parseghian Felicia D. Paz Jennifer J. Paz Timothy Ray Perea Jessica Paola Pereira Eduardo Perez* Kristine Periyan Rokshana Pervin** Narbeh Petrosian Vergineh Petrosian* Anet Petrosyan Grigor S. Petrosyan Paul S. Phakpiseth* (H) Phat Minh Phan (H) Alicia M. Pimentel** Deanna Pirics** (PACE) Jennivie Po Alis Akopovna Pogosyan Artak Pogosyan* Judith Elizabeth Ponce*** Nelson E. Portillo Fabiola Raquel Prieto*** Jacob Leo Proctor Kris Nattapon Pukdam*

Nida Qamar Gonzalo Quintero III** Yvonne Quintero* Matthew A. Ramirez** Paola A. Ramirez* Katrina Mae Regner*** Brittany Ann Reid Justin C.B.Reyes* Maria Elizabeth Rios Mindy G. Rivera Edward Robles** Mariana Rocha** Joanna Elizabeth Rodriguez* Lydia Romero Brenda Guadalupe Ruiz Christina Safarian** Benita Safaryans* Cynthia Sahakian* Vadim Sahakian** Martin Sahakyan* Kaede Saito* Ryutaro Sakamoto Joseph David Salaices Gustavo A. Salazar** Bertha M. Salinas Gloria Cristina Salinas Chabeli Caridad Sanchez Edgar Arath Santacruz Hector Santacruz Armen Sargsyan Narek Sarkezi***(H) Armen Sarkisian** Edit Sarkisian

Telma Sarkisloo Allen S. Sarkissian Sevan Sarkisyan** Norimitsu Sawaki Chason W. Schirmer Ashley Schrader** Lorraine Krystyna Schraner***(H) (PACE) Alexa Jean Schumacher Ziad Sedki Karen Lyn Seifert Nicholas David Seim* (H) Seounggi Seo Josephina Setaghian Edwin Shabani** Lilian Shabani* (H) Lynette Shahoian Nune Shakhramanyan Navid Sharbatdar Anna Shaumyan** Avedis Avo Shilvarju Kana Shimada* Candice Rose Shin Sam Shin** Etsuko Shinno** Ernest Shirvanian** Vanesa Silva David King Sinatra Christopher S. Sohn Ninava Golpashin Jeanie Song*** Taeko Tia Sonoda Michael Louis Soria*

Monica Patricia Soria*** Tina Souleymani** Charles C. Spann** Michael Joseph Stefun (H) Melody Genevie Stendal** Raquel Stone** (H) Prisana Suchatsuthatham Arsine Suleimanyan Maiko Suzuki** Amelia S. Syeda (PACE) Janice Anne Tabut Jermen Tahmasian Talik Tahmasian Rubina Tahmazyan Miki Tanaka Tamar Tashdjian** Stephanie LuAnn Tassart Aisling Ann Thornton** Lia Thorosian Jennifer Adonay Tinoco Brandon Torres Raul A. Torres* Grant Tovmasian** (H) Manuel Jesus Tovar*** Osvaldo Trujillo-Loza Jacqueline Chilei Tsang Astghik G. Tsatryan (H) Ara Tsaturyan* Christian Tucker* Paula Valdovinos* Alexandre R. Valencia* David-Joseph A Valerio* Armen Vardanyan*

Arusyak Varderesyan (H) Silvana Vardumyan* Daniel Vargas* Syouneh Sione Vartanian Cassy Athena Vasile Wendy E. Vela Regina Whittaker*** Brittany Nicole Williams** Zachary Elijah Williams Elisha Imani Wilson* (H) Shai Wolman Zoe Won* Hye Won Woo* (H) Evan Patrick Wooters** Amber Amori Wright Narbeh Yaghoubian Mariko Yagi*** Quincy T. Yamada** Yi Lin Yan (H) Ying Yang*** Noyemik Yans** Sonia Yeretzian Aya Yoshida Michelle Silvia Younani** John Adam Young (H) Arpi Zadoorian*** Armenui Zakevosyan** Andrey Zargarian* Mohammed Zarif Zhaneta Zeynalyan Elena Zohrabi Ariga Soroushkani (H) Carmen Alexandra Zometa

CANDIDATES FOR CERTIFICATES OF COMPLETION ACCOUNTING Robert Avanesian* Ailin Avanessian*** Eugenio Mateo Francisco* Jose Israel Garcia Jr.** Anna S. Gevorgyan** Anahit Gomtsyan* Karine Grigoryan** Meghedi Harutyunyan Claudia Jefferies** Yuka Kamiya Anzhela Martirosyan** Anahit Melkonyan Shirley Ann Murray** Karine Nersisyan** Diana Gabriela Osorio* Ivet Parseghian*** Rosa A. Patti Yvonne Quintero* Knarik Terteryan Mary Torosian** Sevak Vartamanian** Gerard H. Vosgheritchian* Sooren V Yans*** ADMINI OF JUSTICE Lourdes Noemi Flores** Rima Mkhitarian Elias Ruiz**

ADV. CULINARY ARTS Andrew Ayers*** Rosa Ochian** Jasmin Guzman Quidato** Jessica Rosaura Solorzano Ani Yadgaryan* ADVERTISING ART Evangeline Jimenez (AGS) Miki Kato** Nune Shakhramanyan ARCHITECTURE - CAD Edgar Kirakosyan*** ARCHITECTURE - DRAFTING Edmond Aghasarian* Arthur Badalian* Josue M. Cruz Jermaine Ramirez Estonilo** Tomm Adam Gallup Tadeh Hakopian* Elba Khachatryan** Edgar Kirakosyan** Karo Kmbikyan* Narineh Shahinian* ARCHITECTURE - RESIDENTIAL Tomm Adam Gallup

Artin Yaghobian* ART Michelle Duque Gottlieb Miki Kato** AVIATION & TRANSPORTATION - FLIGHT ATTENDANT Eri Adachi** Elvia Vanessa Arevalo** Wendy Brindis de Salas** Rosario Adilia Perez** Sunny A. Ramos** Haruka Sakaguchi* Noriko Toyoizumi* Lizett Zelaya* AVIATION AND TRANSPORTATION PILOT TRAINING Sherif R. Toma** BEGINNING CULINARY ARTS CERTIFICATE Edgar Angel** Andrew Ayers*** Armenohi Gharibian Aida Malekian Ashkharui Orudzhyan** Ani Yadgaryan***

BOOKKEEPING Ailin Avanessian*** Susanna Chalikyan* Narine Dilanyan Eugenio Mateo Francisco* Karine Grigoryan*** Anzhela Martirosyan** Karine Nersisyan** Ivet Parseghian*** Yvonne Quintero** Miriam Rodriguez* Knarik Terteryan Sevak Vartamanian Gerard H. Vosgheritchian* Sooren V Yans***

BUSINESS-GENERAL OFFICE Kristina Odinokiy

BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION - FINANCIAL PLANNING AND INVESTMENT Daniele Ingrao**

CHILD DEVELOPMENT - MASTER TEACHER Greta Babaian* Lissette DeLaRosa*

BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION - INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS Yuka Kamiya Mario E. Portillo

CHILD DEVELOPMENT/ TEACHER - INFANT TODDLER Meri Gevorgyan Elia Nazarova Lidoosh Nazaryan-Darberoody

CERAMICS Serina Nakazawa Cecilia Barbara Torres*** Asuka Tsuzuki** Lilia C. Venier CERTIFIED TAX PREPARER Alvart A. Baroni** Narine Dilanyan Karine Grigoryan** Liana Mkhitaryan Miriam Rodriguez* Knarik Terteryan

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

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GRADUATION LIST

CANDIDATES FOR CERTIFICATES OF COMPLETION CHILD DEVELOPMENT/ TEACHER - PRESCHOOL Abeer Abdulahad Nancy Aghasarian** Nargiz Narine Andreasyan Greta Babaian*** Araxie S. Kelechian* Johanna Lozano** Kimberly Eng Martinez*** Elia Nazarova Susanna Nersisyan*** Noer Rita Poon Armineh Tarbinian** Karine Terteryan Akopyan* Sandy Zaghuni CHOREOGRAPHIC STUDIES AND DANCE TECHNIQUE Rika Aizu Beatrice Rose Casini*** COMMUNICATIONS Alina Agemian** Santiago C. Aldape** Michael Arakian* Juan C. Batres** Jessica Carolina Cruz* Roberto Dawidowski*** Gilda Eliasyan James Heller** Grigor S. Petrosyan** Yvonne Quintero* Martine G. Rickell** Christopher S. Sohn*** Haverj Taimorian Edwin A. Tarverdians** Quincy T. Yamada* COMPUTER APPLICATIONS/BUSINESS OFFICE TECHNOLOGIES-GENERAL OFFICE Janet Alexander Ruzanna Avagyan** Alis Avasepian** Hasmik Jasmine Azaryan Zoya Bazikian** Nora N. Bouldoukian* Susanna Chalikyan** Lusik Lusine Darbinyan Hasmik Davtyan Lili Galstyan Carineh Gharakhani*** Alis Gharibian** Gayane L. Gharibyan*** Arpik Hakobyan Seda Isagulyan Alina Khachatorians Sabah Khalil** Klaris Khudaverdian** Adrina Koohi* Anait Melkomyan Roubina Mirsaians*** Theresa A. Morales* Anahit Muradyan Narine Oganesyan Evet Parganian**

Lida Patatanyan** Larisa Poghosyan** Violet Sarian** Anait Tagmizyan Anahit Trdatyan*

-MACHINIST Narbeh Eskandari*** Alfred Mikhaelian*** Edvard Torabian Ararat Art Zadourian***

COMPUTER APPLICATIONS/ BUSINESS OFFICE TECHNOLOGY-ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Christina Elizabeth Wilkinson

MANAGEMENT Ceci M Castro Jasmin Guzman Quidato** Armen Sargsyan***

COMPUTERIZED ACCOUNTING SPECIALIST Alvart A. Baroni** Lida Gharibyan** Karine Grigoryan** Anzhela Martirosyan** Karine Nersisyan** Ivet Parseghian*** Knarik Terteryan Gerard H. Vosgheritchian** CULINARY ARTS Mahboba Azizi Sasiwimon Chinnakaew Ming Shen Hsu DIETARY SERVICE SUPERVISOR Jose de Jesus Gutierrez** Jasmen Hovelian Esther Kim Zhasmen Lalayan* Ani Yadgaryan* ENGINEERING/ELECTROMECHANICAL DESIGN - DRAFTING/CAD Harutyun A. Terterian*** ENGINEERING/ELECTROMECHANICAL DESIGN MECHANICAL DESIGN Harutyun A. Terterian*** FIRE TECHNOLOGY Ryan E. Carey** Manuel Abraham Delatorre* Michael Ermino* Octavio Joseph Guijarro** James Manuel Villanueva HOSPITALITY SUPERVISION Armenui Amy Kalayidzhyan Franciscus Loukrezis Ploy Srisiri* HOTEL/RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT Mahboba Azizi Ming Shen Hsu Alina Karapetyan** INSURANCE PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATE Derek M. Lew** MACHINE AND MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY

MEDICAL ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES - MEDICAL FRONT OFFICE Lilya Mirzoyan Marina Narinyan** Araksya Tadevosyan MEDICAL ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES - MEDICAL TRANSCRIPTION Hannah Burnham MEDICAL BILLING AND CODING Gayane L. Gharibyan** Isabella Litmanovich Marine Mirzakhanyan Lilya Mirzoyan Marina Narinyan** Lyudmila Omelchenko** Araksya Tadevosyan Inese Zalkalne* Carineh Gharakhani*** Natalie Voytalyuk** MICROSOFT OFFICE USER SPECIALIST - OPTION 4 Stella Adamyan MUSIC Nalini L. Lasiewicz PERSONAL TRAINER CERTIFICATE Caroline Alexandra Mansson PHOTOGRAPHY Fabienne Niederberger PUBLIC RELATIONS Nanor Avedissian* Sevan Sarkisyan** Mariko Yagi** REAL ESTATE Albert Avedissian** Joseph Boodanian* Dimitrios V. Gerasimatos** Matthew M. Givrad David A. Glover** Hendrik Haritoonian** Clinton R. Hilderbrand** Jung Ho Lee** Artur S. Petrosyan* Leon R. Zoltzman*** RECEPTIONIST/OFFICE CLERK Veronik Z Abedi**

Stella Adamyan Ruzanna Avagyan* Alis Avasepian** Diana Baghoomian Jenik Baghumian*** Arleta Baghumyan Hasmik Bakalyan** Telly Helen Chalabian*** Susanna Chalikyan* Lusik Lusine Darbinyan Hasmik Davtyan Hranush Frangyan Carineh Gharakhani*** Gayane L. Gharibyan*** Marine Ginosyan Arpik Hakobyan Hasmik Kesheshian** Sabah Khalil** Klaris Khudaverdian** Tsaghik Mehrabyan** Lilya Mirzoyan Maria Irene Navas*** Anita Nazaryans** Hasmik Sargsyan Violet Sharbatian Sarkisian Gayane Shahnazaryan** Julet Shamirian Robina Shirvanian Alisa Takhmazyan** Ivet Terharoutyounian*** Anahit Trdatyan* Irina Vardoyan** REGISTERED NURSING Ramonito K Alanes** Michelle Elizabeth Allen** Norma Amador-Vega** Andres Feria Austria** Alexander B. Denker Melayn Marie Dryden Alan Joseph Garcin** Amy Elizabeth Good** Vinchenza K Harley** Lori Lynn Hasman Jennifer Nicole Henry*** Akiko Ishida Rhonda Janette Johnston** Mirembe L. Kagwa** Aram Kazaryan** Jenni Elise Lang Megan Joy Mancuso** Frank A. Matias Rose Anne Cembrano Ong Yiu** Roselyn Santiago Ongjoco Bridget Oporta** Hasmik Petrosyan Bienvenido Dizon Pineda** Monique R. Renick Randal J. Salyer** Sal W Sciortino** Karen Solomon Randi Page Starvish* Laima Marija Sturonas** Inna Nikki Tauber Christine Tovmassian** Michael Philip Tremko Natalie Voytalyuk Ofik Yaghobi**

RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT Mahboba Azizi Sasiwimon Chinnakaew Rosa Ochian** RESTAURANT SUPERVISION Erica Guzman*** Rosa Ochian** Ani Yadgaryan*** SPECIALIST IN ALCOHOL/ DRUG STUDIES Arzi Abi_Khalil Krikor Balian** Roxanne L. Cooperstone Theresa F French Phyllis R. Gillon Mark Robert LaPointe Nancy Lozano-Stecyk Keith Lamont Marshall Donald James McKetchnie Albert Poghosyan Wallace Reid** Amber Lynn Reiff** Gemma Richter Andy William Rodemich Sheryll Lee Ryan Arsho Siroun Salazar William R. Shelby III** Michelle Nuccio Smith James R. Stallworth Jr. Kathy Lynn Vandevort James Keith Zimmerman TELEVISION PRODUCTIONCORPORATE TELEVISION Moody Mourad Yousry WEB GRAPHICS Karapet Alakheryan Daniel Fagan Miki Kato Jae Y. Kim David Robert Norek Cecilia Barbara Torres*** WELDING, OCCUPATIONAL (COMBINATION WELDER) Matthew R. Gunto** Keith F. Rickell

www.elvaq.com

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

17

SPORTS / ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

Watch it, Record it, Share it: This is Sports-Tube

By Jake Madrigal

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

W

ith the growth and popularity of Web sites such as YouTube, Myspace, and Facebook it is becoming easier to start your own Web site, and for Michael Arakian, 20, and Sion Davoudi, 21, both finance majors here at Glendale, this has become a reality.

“We have always been thinking of a Web site to start, a funny video site like www.ebaumsworld. com, or something in that area is what we were originally aiming for,” said Arakian, but as they sat down and began to brainstorm their ideas it suddenly struck.

With experience in business 106, Written Business Communication, and business 120, Business Law, Arakian said, “it has helped me a lot with writing more effective and professional e-mails, and has helped with my knowledge of the legal aspects. We are also in the process of becoming an LLC (limited liability company), so it was good timing to take business law this semester.”

“I was watching sports on TV one night and it hit me: a sports video site like YouTube where you could upload your own videos and share them with the world. So I told Sion and he was up for it,” said Arakian.

As the two started to put their dream into action they realized it was a lot easier than they had predicted.

They agreed on the fact that they were going to make a sportsbased version of YouTube and that they were going to call it sportstube.com, a site through which users would be allowed to upload their own sports videos, comment on others, and watch them all.

Starting with the idea of the site last January, Arakian said, “three long months went into this process before being able to launch it on Mother’s Day.” Now just a few weeks later their site is up and running “at about 98 percent (completion),” said Arakian.

In order for the two to start their own site there was a fee of $40 per month for the domain server and additional cost for the advertisement of the site, but with the growth of the site over the

Photo by Allan Beglarian

Sion Davoudi, left, and Michael Arakian developed sports-tube.com for sports fans to share their favorite video clips.

last few weeks Arakian predicts that their domain fee will rise to about $200 to $300 due to the increasing number of views per day and storage space.

As of now www.Sports-Tube. com is being advertised all over the Web on different sites such as

Opinion: Artificial Intelligence Isn’t Enough [Game, from Page 9] such as the Unreal Tournament series and Enemy Territory: Quake Wars have started to go the extra length and provide AI to play against.

Some multiplayer games have gained critical acclaim because of their AI. The Unreal Tournament series is a perfect example of this, as it has been reported that many people who play Unreal Tournament are content playing against the game’s high-quality AI instead of going online.

Ultimately however, the whole point of a multiplayer game is to have human players go against each other.

Some say that the purpose of AI in multiplayer games is simply that of a placeholder for when human players aren’t available. On the other hand, some would also think that multiplayer AI should be more than just a placeholder and actually play the game skillfully

enough so that it becomes tricky to differentiate human players from AI-controlled players.

Then there are single player modes, in which the purpose of AI is much more easily defined. At the same time however, the use of AI for single player is much more varied than it is with multiplayer games, since AI characters can have different capabilities, options, and roles than the player — differences that would never fit into a multiplayer game.

When they create singleplayer campaigns and modes, some developers take the extra effort to make their AI characters put up an extremely challenging performance for the player, while others settle with an average, but still entertaining AI. There are nearly endless possibilities for what can be done with AI in single player to enhance the experience.

So how should developers use AI to attain the best experience possible with their video games?

Should they rely on godlike AI or average AI? Many developers

unfortunately settle with weak AI. Developers should try to strike a balance and offer both strong and average AI, not just in single player games, but in multiplayer games as well because, as said above, not everyone has a speedy Internet connection.

By offering both strong and weak AIs, developers can truly enhance just about any game they create. The only type of AI developers need to avoid is weak AI, which is a type of AI that far too many developers use.

Although the quality of video game AI has improved vastly over the years, the uses and importance of AI has for the most part been the same.

As such, AI has made a firm role for itself in the video game industry, and should keep players entertained for years to come.

Brent Wallace can be reached at brent_wallace@elvaq.com

Google, Myspace, Facebook and many other sports message board sites.

The two said they have already started making some money.

Revenues are beginning to come in from other sites that are using Sports-Tube as an advertisement opportunity.

Through a series of Google-based advertisements random ads come up on Sports-Tube on the right hand side of the screen. These advertisers pay for ad placement, so Arakian and Davoudi collect the extra revenue.

With the site up and running for a month now, the number of videos has grown to about 1,300.

These include popular UFC fights with Kimbo-Slice to videos of Kobe Bryant jumping over an Aston Martin.

Arakian also estimates that about five or six new videos are uploaded every day from users.

The two started with about 700 that Arakian and Davoudi had

to upload themselves before the release of the site.

Although the site is already live there is still much work involved.

“I spend about four or five hours a day uploading videos. It’s been harder lately with finals coming up but I try and manage my time,” said Davoudi.

As of now, Arakian and Davoudi are wrapped up in the duties of running their own Web site, and with a site like this that is very easy to use and enjoyable for any sports fan it looks as if the two are in for a bright future.

“Anything’s possible. If you have the drive, desire, and are selfmotivated you can do anything,” said Arakian. “The YouTube guys did it, we did it, you don’t have to be an Ivy League school graduate or be a computer geek to make something of your own.”

Jake Madrigal can be reached at jake_madrigal@elvaq.com

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

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SPORTS

Vaquero Spring Sports Bring Home the Hardware

By Ross Coleman

EL VAQUERO SPORTS EDITOR

W

ith summer rapidly approaching, it’s time to look back at the spring semester and see what the many student athletes on campus have accomplished.

It is hard to pick up any local newspaper and not read about the amazing Tove Berg and her multiple state championships and All-American honors. But what you may not see is that her teammates have also had quite a season as well. Sophomore Zitlalic Ley and sophomore James Poet also both were named

All-Americans in their events.

While Vivien Wadeck and Michael Flowers both faced various disappointments in the state finals, both must also be commended for their great seasons. Wadeck hadn’t lost in the 1,500 meters all season before the finals and Flowers also had a great season in a number of running events. Both will continue to run elsewhere next year.

In men’s tennis, sophomore Matt Taoatao was named coplayer of the year for the Western State Conference (WSC). He was also part of the honorable mention doubles team that included Greg Arutyunyan, who was named second team All-WSC for his

singles season. The doubles team of Emanuel Haug and Ryan Stanbury were also named honorable mention All-WSC. On the women’s side, sophomore Sonia Rodriguez and freshman Meldia Hacopian were named All-WSC second team in singles. Also, Rodriguez received all-WSC second team honors in doubles with Miyuki Yokozuka.

For softball, the team finished fourth in the WSC Blue Division with a record of 22-17 overall and 15-10 in conference.

Sophomore Kelly Korras was named conference pitcher of the year after compiling a record of 17-15 and an ERA of 1.26.

Joining Korras with WSC honors

are sophomore Diane Garcia, second team; sophomore Melissa Legaspi, honorable mention; and freshman Debbie Martin, honorable mention.

Baseball had its ups and downs all season. The team finished with a record of 17-25 overall and 1216 in conference. They finished sixth in the south division of the WSC. Sophomore Mike Mendoza and freshman Chris Arredondo were both named to second team All-WSC. Sophomores Ellis Brown and Richard Barrett were both awarded honorable mention.

Men’s golf made a triumphant return to the Glendale campus after a budget induced 25-year hiatus. The team had many bright

spots this year including Ryan Richardson earning a scholarship to Cal Lutheran. While the team finished eighth in conference, most of the team will be back next year. Throw in a few new, experienced recruits and the team looks to be a strong contender next year.

With the spring semester ending, next year offers a clean slate for all GCC sports. The best thing about college sports is that the cycle starts again every fall.

Ross Coleman can be reached at Ross_Coleman@elvaq.com

Skateboards Spin Through Verdugo Park Friday Nights

By Mariam Grigoryan EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

H

eart beating fast, adrenaline pumping, mind focused on one thing: landing a trey flip over the gap. This is a common scenario found at the local skate park every Friday.

Friday Night Lights, which is organized by the City of Glendale Parks, Recreation and Community Service, began in February 2006, welcoming participants of all ages, to skate, enjoy pizza, raffle games and watch skate videos every Friday from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

With a purchase of $1 raffle ticket skaters enjoy pizza. A new raffle begins every first Friday of the month and the winner is chosen on the last Friday of the month.

The prizes — ranging from T-shirts to skateboards — are donated by skate shops such as Billy’s Boardshop, Boarders in Glendale Galleria and Active.

In the evening, a projector is set up and skateboarding videos are shown for about two hours.

McCoy Kirgo, 15, has been skating for five years, and comes to the park on a daily basis. His worst injury was a broken wrist, and he “idolizes world champion skateboarder Tony Hawk.”

Lucin Pijolec, 12, has been skating for three years. His worst injury is a broken finger. Pijolec’s favorite move is the kick flip and back lip slide.

Isaac Franco,17, has been

Photo by Richard Kontas

Noah Portzal, 10, negotiates the bowl at Verdugo Park during “Friday Night Lights.”

skating for four years, and his worst injury was landing on his knee. His favorite trick is front side flip. “It’s a great opportunity to hang out and skate in an environment where we are welcome,” said Franco.

Instructors such as Drew Petzoldt, 21, and Jose Cubias, 25, are close by to supervise the safety of skaters, who are required to

wear helmets, kneepads and elbow pads. According to instructors the average age of skaters is 17.

“It’s a place for fun, someplace to go besides the mall,” said Cubias.

Patrick Waddling, 16, said he skates at the park every Friday and is one of many to win the raffle, receiving a deck last year for his birthday

Wadding advises all skaters to “look both ways” after running into someone himself. He then demonstrated his favorite trick: a switch hard flip.

About 50 to 60 skaters show up every Friday.

The skate park opened in 2004, admission is free to all but nonresident adults. Skating classes are offered throughout the year.

Comprising about 36.5 acres, the park is equipped with a basketball court, baseball field, children’s play area, a large open grass area for picnics and parties and the skate park.

For more information contact (818) 548-2786.

Mariam Grigoryan can be reached at mariam_grigoryan@elvaq.com

www.elvaq.com

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

19

Calendar On Campus announcements Book Buy Back — The bookstore is buying back books for cash today and Thursday from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. and Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the bookstore window. For more information visit www.glendalebookstore.com.

Summer Registration — Walkthrough registration for the summer session Friday from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. in. For more information, call (818) 240-1000, ext.

5901.

First Summer Session — The first summer session begins June 16. Late registration for the first summer session is June 16 through 20. For more information, call (818) 240-1000, ext. 5901.

Second Summer Session — The second summer session begins July 21. Open registration for the second session is June 16 through July 18. For more information, call (818) 240-1000, ext. 5901.

Fall Admission — The deadline to apply for the fall semester and be eligible for prioirty registration

is June 20. For more information, call (818) 240-1000, ext. 5901.

events

Friday at 6 p.m. Tickets are $25 for students and $35 for guests.

For more information, call (818) 240-1000, ext. 3033.

20 at 8 p.m. and June 21 at 6:30 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children 12 and under.

For more information, visit www. glendale.edu/planetarium or call (818) 240-1000, ext. 5275.

Student Government — Get involved on campus and. join Student Government today. There are five representative positions open. Sign up at SC201. For more information, call (818) 240-1000, ext. 3033.

Swap Meet — Upper campus parking lot. Sunday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is free. For more information, call (818) 2401000, ext. 5805.

ASGCC — The Associated Students Honors and Awards Banquet will be held at The Castaway, 1250 Harvard Road., Burbank.

“Evening with the Stars” — This planetarium show will introduce the stars, constellations and planets visible in the night sky. June

Board of Trustees — Board members will present their tentative budget. June 23 at 5 p.m. in Kreider Hall.

ties between the jazz and classical genres. With classical pianist Daniel Lessner and jazz pianist Kei Akagi. Monday at 7 p.m. Admission is free. For more information, visit www.theorchestras. org or call (626) 793-7172.

clubspaceland.com or call (323) 661-4380.

planetarium

meetings Board of Trustees — Monday at 5 p.m. in Kreider Hall.

Around Town events Glendale College Alumni Softball Game — Glendale Sports Complex, 2200 Fern Lane. Saturday at 5 p.m. For more information, call (818) 548-6420.

Wolfpack Hustle Bike Ride — 4341 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles. Spend your Monday nights getting a little air with the guys and girls of Wolfpack Hustle. The ride is free. Bring your own bike.

For more information, visit www. wolfpackhustle.com or call (323) 662-4085.

Los Angeles Summer Jobfair 2008: For English-Japanese Bilinguals and International Students — Torrance Marriott Hotel, 3635 Fashion Way, Torrance. The job fair is open to English-Japanese bilinguals and international students from Japan. Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is free but participants must register. For information, visit www. jobfair.jp or call (310) 3811-9251.

exhibitions Philip-Lorca diCorcia — Los Angeles County Museum of Arts, 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. Philip-Lorca diCorcia is one of the most influential photographers of all time. This exhibition features works from his key series of the past 20 years including “Hustlers,” “Streetwork,” “Heads,” and “Lucky 13.” Now through Sept. 14. Admission is

$12 for adults and $8 for students.

Museum hours vary. For information, visit www.lacma.org or call (323) 857-6000.

Kori Newkirk — Pasadena Museum of California Art, 490 E. Union St., Pasadena. This exhibition covers the last 10 years of Kori Newkirk’s career, whose practice is based on transforming everyday materials into loaded signifiers. Now through Sept. 14.

Museum hours are Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Admission is $7 for adults and $5 for students. For more information, visit www.pmcaonline. org or call (626) 568-3665.

Imagining Christ — The Getty Center, 1200 Getty Center Drive, Los Angeles. This exhibition features images of Christ in illuminated manuscripts of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Now through July 27. Admission is free and parking is $8 per car.

Museum hours vary. For more information, visit www.getty.edu or call (310) 440-7300.

Marcel Duchamp Redux — Norton Simon Musuem of Art, 411 W. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena.

The installation features a dozen Duchamp works acquired by the museum during and after a famous 1963 exhibition, as well as photographs and ephemera from the retrospective. Now through Dec 8. Museum hours vary. Admission is $8 for adults and free for students with ID. For more information, visit www.nortonsimon.org or call (626) 449-6840.

theater “Rapunzel” — Glendale Centre Theatre, 324 N. Orange St. A musical adaptation of the classic fairy tale of the long-haired princess trapped in a tower waiting to be rescued by her true love.

Now through June 28. Admission is $13 for adults and $11.50 for children 12 and under. For more information, visit www.glendalecentretheatre.con or call (818) 244-8481.

“A Chorus Line” — Ahmanson Theatre, 135 North Grand Ave., Los Angeles. The musical for everyone who’s ever had a dream and put it all on the line.

Come meet the new generation of Broadway’s best. Now through July 6. Ticket prices and showtimes vary. For more information, visit www.centertheatregroup.org or call (213) 972-7401.

“Finally” — Black Dahlia Theatre, 5453 W. Pico Blvd, Los Angeles. The Black Dahlia Theater presents the disturbing human puzzle play by Stephen Belbert.

Now through July 6. Admission prices and showtimes vary. For information, visit www.thedahlia. com or call (323) 525-0070.

music The Orchestras of Pasadena — Pasadena Jazz Institute, 260 E Colorado Blvd., Pasadena.

Hosted by pianist Bill Cunliffe.

The program “Two Men, 88 Keys,” will explore the similari-

L.A. Choir—Is looking for college voices to join the 300 members singing sacred, contemporary, classic and movie themes and songs from around the world, Rehearsals are every Tuesday from 7 to 10 p.m. at 1653 S. Glendale Ave. For audition info visit: www.LAChoir. com or email MrKeith@att.net Los Angeles Opera — Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 135 N. Grand Ave., Los Angeles. Marta Domingo directs the Puccini opera “La Rondine.” Now through June 28. Ticket prices and show times vary. For more information, visit www.laopera.com or call (213) 972-8001.

Song Fest 2008 — Pepperdine University, Raitt Recital Hall, 24255 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu. The 2008 recital series at Pepperdine Friday, Monday and Tuesday at 7 p.m. Free admission. For information, visit www.songfest.us or call (310) 506-7511.

The Afternoons — Spaceland, 1717 Silver Lake Blvd., Los Angeles. Enjoy live entrtainment from the former members of Irving. Now through June 30. Admission is free. Showtimes vary.

For more information, www.

classes Chinese Brush Painting — Pacific Asia Museum, 46 N Los Robles Ave, Pasadena. Instructor Guang Li Zhang offers demonstrations, lessons and workshops.

The six-week session is $90 for members and $99 for non-members. Saturdays from 10 a.m. to noon. For information, visit www.pacificasiamuseum.org or call (626) 449-2742, ext. 31.

wellness Busy Life, Peaceful Mind — Shoseian Whispering Pine Teahouse, 1601 W. Mountain St., in Brand Park in Glendale. The Kadampa Meditation Center California offers a meditation class Sundays from 10:15 to 11:45 a.m.

Admission is $12. For more information, visit www.meditateinla.org.

Free Health Clinic — Open Tuesdays 6 to 8:30 p.m. On a first-come, first-served basis. At 134 N. Kenwood St. third floor, room 330, Glendale. For more information, visit www.glendaleclinic.org or call (818) 243-2105, ext. 202.

Free Yoga in the Park— Runyon Canyon Park, 2000 Fuller Drive, Los Angeles. Free yoga lessons every Tuesday and Thursday at 4:30 p.m. For more information, call (323) 666-5046.

Compiled by Tina Hagopian

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

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VAQUERO VIEWS

‘Dance Performance 2008’ Showcases Student Moves

By Claudia Anaya

EL VAQUERO STAFF WRITER

D

Photo by Graig Agop

“Freak Show” temptress Selin Minassians, gets down and freaky in “Dance Performance.”

ance Performance 2008 was presented in a packed Sierra Nevada gym on May 28.

The program began with “Stress and Cigarettes,” choreographed by Mario Mason and performed by The Company.

Starring students from the dance production class and featuring three main dancers dressed in ballerina outfits with bright red and purple tutus, dancing to upbeat hip-hop music.

Richard Realivasquez, appeared in “Stress and Cigarettes,” “Utopia,” “Pop Fiction,” “Candyland,” “Roll of the Dice,” “What It Takes,” and “Freak Show.”

Realivasquez has danced since he was 5 years old but has taken classes since he was 10. He’s a theater major and sees dancing as part of his future profession.

Martha Realivasquez, Richard’s mother, said her favorite piece was “Stress and Cigarettes,” she enjoyed that “they held nothing back…the dance floor was their playground.”

“Desperately Seeking Vlad,” choreographed by Robin Ward and Patt Paczynski, was the second piece presented, in which two females wore black robes lined with red and purple fluttering satin as they performed.

“Utopia” choreographed

by Esteban Martinez, played third, and “Almost Lover,” choreographed by Elise Reyes followed.

Erik Mesropian, 19, business major enjoyed “Almost Lover,”

a piece in which Reyes appeared in with Mario Mason expressing the heartache of a relationship through dance.

“I liked that they choreographed it themselves, it was a good choice of music with a lot of variety,” Mesropian said.

Mesropian’s favorite piece was “19,” the sixth dance whose concept and direction were by Victor Robles and was performed by students of the jazz performance skills class who portrayed soldiers wearing camouflage pants and black shirts.

A red light illuminated the stage as the performers brought up death and post-traumatic stress disorder through the dance, industrial music, and the action of the performers simulating a gun with their fingers to their head.

Since the beginning of the semester, the students “have been preparing for the show with six hours of practice each day,” said Realivasquez.

With his least favorite part of dancing being the injuries and soreness from daily practicing, Realivasquez looks forward to dancing in upcoming semesters.

Stroboscope effects, black light effects, and smoke were used during the show.

The 37th annual production presented on May 27 through June 1 was funded by ASGCC. The dance department also accepted donations.

For more information contact dance director, Lynn McMurrey at mcmurrey@glendale.edu Claudia Anaya can be reached at claudia_anaya@elvaq.com

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