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Converting to Gleekdom
Features
Sigma Chi Eta named best chapter at NCA
OpINION
NEWS
FEATURES
Potter craze continues for Deathly Hallows
-Online
monitor
Salsa dancing gets spicy
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ohlone college Vol. XLI No. 7
ohlonemonitoronline.com Fremont, California
December 2, 2010
Big time baseball that has a small town feel
By CAROL VO and KYLE NORDEEN Staff writers
Miller’s optimism about ment. workout, then study,” said easier to manage. “They future successes at Ohlone Baseball almost appeared Fontaine. help set up my classes and encouraged Fontaine to break to be put on the back burner Yet he found himself study hall times.” the mold of his classmates at- with the rigorous academ- wanting to take breaks occaOver the past summer, Sometimes a change of tending Chico State and Delta ic schedule Fontaine had sionally when things seemed Fontaine visited multiple scenery is all that’s universities interested needed for a person to in him playing basereach their potential. ball. His first was SacThe same could be ramento State, followed said for Matt Fontaine, by the University of 20, starting pitcher Hawaii. and a team leader on “The visits were Ohlone’s baseball team. great. They paid for He comes from Traeverything and took me cy, a small town about out to eat dinner every an hour east of Frenight. The players also mont that doesn’t usutook me to the beach. ally come to mind when We just hopped in the thinking of athletic bed of a truck and went powerhouses. out.” Fresh out of West While Hawaii was enHigh School, Fontaine joyable, he found the didn’t consider attendbest fit to be Fresno ing a major school due State. to lack of exposure and “I just felt most finances. comfortable with the “We couldn’t afcoaches. They seem to ford showcases… and I run their team similar didn’t have many scouts to here.” The Fresno come out to watch me.” Bulldogs won the 2008 With a desire to College World Semove forward and experies and is a team that rience something unfais always capable of miliar, Fontaine sought Photos courtesy file and by Gregory Bush making a run for a nahelp from a former Rentional championship. egade on where to begin Baseball player Matt Fontaine received a full ride scholarship and will be attending He was also planning his collegiate career. Fresno State University next fall semester. a visit to the UniverBraxton Miller, a sity of Washington for former teammate, was Fon- College. on his plate. He found it overwhelming. a chance of reuniting with taine’s brother’s catcher in “I didn’t want see the same hard to balance school with He continued, “it’s espe- Coach Twohig, but he felt it high school. people from high school. I athletics, taking 15 units cially stressful during finals. was unnecessary. Miller was poised for big was ready to move on,” stated his first semester, 21 last When you finish that last Fresno State offered him things at the University of Fontaine. spring, and 19 this fall. one, it’s like you dropped 50 a full ride, but due to CaliNevada at Reno before a Early contact with former “It was hard with work- pounds.” fornia’s budget, he still has to major injury brought him Head Coach Jordon Twohig outs. It became a daily Having an academic coun- pay for part of his room and back to Ohlone. Continued on Page 6 helped accelerate his recruit- routine: wake up, school, selor helped make things
Three decades of service on the Ohlone board By MANIKA CASTERLINE Editor-in-Chief
reservist. Weed won his seat by 21 votes. “A lot of great things Over the last three decades have happened over the there have been five college years,” Weed said. presidents and a total of 19 He said the process of members of the Board of getting the Newark campus Trustees. One thing has not built was one of his proudest changed — until now. accomplishments. After serving the Ohlone “Initially it was about getCollege board for almost 34 ting a storefront leased at years, John Weed decided the Raley’s shopping center, retire this fall. which would mean four classWeed isn’t leaving quietly, rooms,” he said. “Then we though. He has more than a looked bigger. What Newark few things to say about his time did was change mindsets” on the board and the history about what could be done. of the college. While Weed was not seekWeed was elected in 1977 ing re-election this November when he was a 30-year-old he expressed that his main law student and Air Force contribution was to not say
anything during the campaign season. Weed voted against the current Facilities Master plan and the Educational Master plan, which are components included in the Measure G bond. Measure G was passed with 62.2 percent approval by Tri-City voters on Nov. 2. “The Educational Master plan provides no significant new growth and we’ve got potential. The facilities don’t support that and the Facilities Master plan has no additional parking. After San Bruno gas explosion, even before San Bruno, I was saying we’re going to have to go back and change things,” Weed said in
defense of both those votes. Weed continued, “I supported Measure G with the understanding that the plan that we had would have to be changed dramatically.” Weed believes that both plans are not comprehensive enough and Weed and former Assemblyman John Dutra of Fremont also endorsed the candidacy of Ishan Shah for a seat on the Board of Trustees. “I think over time Ishan will become an extraordinary politician if he chooses to stay with it,” Weed said. “So I gave him a chance. Of the people who have come on, all have had strong connections
to the Democratic Central Committee.” Weed also warned Shah not to list “student” as his occupation on the ballot since history has shown that candidates who run as students don’t win offices. Shah did not heed Weed’s advice and lost with 19 percent of the vote. Weed’s board colleagues had thoughts to share about their time serving alongside him. Trustee Bill McMillin: “John has been a constant source of inspiration for me both physically and mentally.” Weed was supportive when McMillin took time off while Continued on Page 3
OPINIONS
2 monitor December 2, 2010
Associated Collegiate Press / National Scholastic Press Association All American 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 Regional Pacemaker 1988 Journalism Association of Community Colleges General Excellence Fall 1994 General Excellence Fall 2000 General Excellence Fall 2004 General Excellence Fall 2005
Editor in chief: Manika Casterline Night editor: Kyle Stephens Page Editors: Dustin Findley, Jillian Sanchez Features editor: Sarah Hashemi Sports editor: Tomás Ortega Opinions editor: Tina Karimi Online editor: Max Stephens Photo editor: David Epperson Cartoonist: Amy Scott, Ashleigh WeigelBarrera Staff writers: Kevin Yin, Kathryn Dixon, Carol P. Vo, Dion Baker Jr., Munazza Ebtikar, Tushar Deshpande, Ean Taijeron, Oranoos Nerow, Sara Nasir, Felipe Maschion, Anh Huynh, Ashley McKenzie, Hassina Obaidy, Kyle Nordeen Online staff: Kol Parsons, Lael Erskine, Astghik Piliposyan Photographers: Caitlyn Rush, Gregory Bush, Jacob K’nari, Khesrow Ghafoor, Ricky Cardenas, Theo Li, Theodore Harrison, Christina Luviano Ad manager: Anna Biaritz Roldan Ad staff: Dustin Findley Adviser: Dick Rogers Printer: FP Press
Offices are located in Room 5310 on campus, 43600 Mission Blvd., Fremont 94539-5884. Call (510) 659-6075. Fax: (510) 659-6076. E-mail: monitor@ohlone.edu Opinions expressed in the Monitor are those of the respective authors and are not necessarily those of the staff, the college or the Associated Students of Ohlone College. Unsigned editorials reflect the majority view of staff members. Advertising material is printed herein for informational purposes and is not to be construed as an expression of endorsement or verification of such commercial ventures by the staff or college. The Monitor is funded by the district, by the Associated Students of Ohlone College, and through advertising revenue. The Monitor is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press, Journalism Association of Community Colleges, Community College Journalism Association, California Newspaper Publishers Association, College Media Advisers and Society of Newspaper Design.
Marriage should be about love, not race By HASSINA OBAIDY Staff writer
Marriage is defined as two people uniting in creating kinship, trust, commitment and the simple four letter word, love. It should not be about aspects of their background like ethnicity, class, religion or wealth. However, in most cases, people look only at those factors. I come from a very conservative family that completely dislikes the idea of interracial marriage. I, on
the other hand, developed different beliefs. Race should not matter! As an Afghan Muslim, I have to marry an Afghan Muslim; that’s the only thing that matters excluding education and sanity. My future spouse can’t be one or the other. For example, if my husband-to-be is not Muslim and wants to convert to Islam, apparently, “it doesn’t count,” even though Allah (God) would greatly appreciate someone converting to Islam. To them, it’s about reputation. “What are people going
to say about you?” Quite frankly, I don’t care what people think. Now, I do understand where they are coming from. My mom and her family grew up in a very conservative country where having a bad reputation can get you killed, literally. However, we live in a country where there isn’t really a bad reputation unless you are totally morally bankrupt. Those of us who are in this sort of situation can agree that it’s our happiness and not only theirs. A relationship with
a special someone is about being comfortable with them and knowing that they’re your support. There are many interracial couples out there, whether their families have accepted it or not. On the upside, the rate of racial mixed marriages has increased. According to the Pew Research Center, one out of seven new marriages in the U.S. is either interracial or interethnic. More and more people are choosing to marry outside of their ethnic group. Then there are those who
are still completely against it. Last year, a Louisiana justice of the peace resigned after refusing to marry an interracial couple, according to CNN news. The best thing about interracial marriage is interracial children. For example, former Victoria Secret Supermodel Heidi Klum (German) and British singer Seal (black) have the cutest children. Racial mixed marriage and relationships will continue to rise in the future. Sooner or later everyone will accept it.
the areas in which technology has hurt our society. The very idea of man has undergone change under the influence of machines. Previously, man was thought to be a weak creature who suffered from ignorance and superstition. Now he is all-powerful. Machines, however, have badly affected the thinking power of man. A decline in man’s attention span has taken
place, affecting our ability to concentrate and complete everyday activities. There are some technological developments that, although very useful, have hindered the usage of the human brain thus making it less effective in accomplishing simple tasks. For example, using calculators instead of your brain to do simple mathematics has caused a rise in
the inability to make the same calculations mentally. The number of people who struggle to do simple mathematics has increased. When texting, we tend to abbreviate words because we cannot be bothered to write them out in full. This is also affecting the way students write for academic purposes. Even learned individuals seem to bear bad abbreviation
habits from texting, naively importing them into the formal writing. Examiners in our day, for instance, are getting used to finding IMHO or LOL on exam answer sheets. The Internet, the most celebrated invention of our age, has given students a new window to unlimited knowledge. However, the Internet can quite easily be misleading.
Technology is not a universal saving grace
By ORANOOS NEROW Staff writer
Technology means technical advancement, or in other words, industrialism. The modern era has given birth to an entirely new type of culture and civilization. Technology has brought about a change in all spheres of society. In many aspects, technology has helped us, but many overlook
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Campus Comment > > > Did you participate in Black Friday shopping?
Jessica Hosmer
Cassie Eddlemon
Tavis Cano
Frankie Aredondo
UNDECIDED
ATHLETIC TRAINING
Frank Kincheloe
PSYCHOLOGY
“I got off work at 4 a.m and was way too tired.”
“I didn’t go because I didn’t want to die.”
“I did, but in the late morning to get one thing.”
“I didn’t go shopping, but I did drive around at midnight...”
“I didn’t go shopping because I don’t like crowds.”
CRIMINAL JUSTICE
BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
NEWS John Weed retires after 33 years
December 2, 2010 monitor 3
The “B” Side By MANIKA CASTERLINE Editor-in-Chief
Teacher’s pet or not? Hello December. This month is arguably one of the most stressful times of the year for me what with finals, holidays, working retail and of course the duo of unappreciated birthdays aka my mother’s and my best friend’s. Thanks you two for that weird twist of fate that adds to my stress level. Isn’t the retail part bad enough? Naturally, the first that comes is the ultimate “f” word among academics and I’m not talking about the one you do on the weekends. I’m talking about finals so get your mind out of the gutter. According to one of my classmates, I’m a “teacher’s pet” when it comes to a particular one of my classes and the final exam for it. It’s a comment that significantly offends me because I feel a greater burden now more than ever to excel based on hard work rather than this peer’s perception of me. Now I’ve been at Ohlone since roughly 2006 and I’ve been fortunate to have some amazing professors in my time here. I also have a reputation when it comes to my work ethic over when it comes to the courses I enjoy in that I have the tendency to take on more than is my fair share. During my time at Ohlone a key lesson that I’ve learned is how to prioritize in order to get things accomplished. In this instance, I did what any person with no life would do - I listened to the lectures and took notes during the summer. So I came into the semester considerably prepared as opposed to my peers. It has not however changed my behavior as a student in that I still show up to class and participate when need be. Does this alone make me a “teacher’s pet” though? No. Its completely disingenuous to be characterized as such especially considering the source. The thing about class is that it’s a foundation that can’t be precisely replicated outside of a classroom setting and there’s always the organic element of surprise that occurs with face-to-face interactions. Take note that no you can’t have my outlines and yes I’ll be at home the day before the exam because I’m not here to teach you when you won’t listen.
soapboxes. We’ve disagreed and there was a group that over some things over those killed off a commercial dehe was battling leukemia. years. But Weed always been velopment called the Bradrick Trustee Teresa Cox: “I feel able to stand on those soap- development.” “It could have been at like I’ve known him my whole boxes without being disagreeArdenwood and that’s the life. And with his passion and able.” wisdom I call him the walkWeed is often known as the location it should have been ing encyclopedia of Ohlone historian among his board at. We would probably have College.” colleagues and has in-depth had a school that is two or Trustee Greg Bonoccorsi: knowledge about Ohlone’s three times larger,” Weed continued. “I got to know him during our humble beginnings. Weed thinks that the probtime on the policy subcomWeed said that when demittee. Those meetings would turn out running longer than an hour because it doesn’t matter what the policy is, there is a history behind all those words. John wants to make sure that we hear what that history was and why its so important. That’s a context we need.” Trustee Nick Nardolillo, who has served for 17 years and now will become the board’s longest serving member: “Never give John your business card.” Nardiolillo continued, “ When John was at a conference in Washington, D.C, there was a ‘very sparkly lady’. I got a call from somebody in D.C that I didn’t recognize. Apparently John had given her my card. So, just be careful.” Trustee Garrett Yee, jokingly said, “I’ve really enjoyed all of the stories three or four times. Five times, somePhoto file times,” in regard to Weed’s habit of repeating certain tales John Weed has served on the Ohlone college more than once. Jim Wright, vice president board of trustees since March 1977 and retired of Academic Affairs: “We November 2010. should be knowledgeable about our past and we should ciding on Ohlone’s current lem of where Ohlone was built not forget where we began and location that the selection is that it was constructed on a fault line and also the fact what we’ve gone through and process was bizarre. how that shapes the present. Weed said, “They were that the location is isolated We have joked about Weed’s looking at different settings from the rest of the community. Continued from Page 1
Weed said, “The culture of the campus probably would have not been the same if Ohlone was built elsewhere. So, to the extent that we maintained this extraordinary culture, I think that part of that is a reaction to a somewhat isolated location.” An example of the Ohlone way, was when in the early ’80s a mural was commissioned for the cafeteria that would have been a source of controversy if it was displayed as it was painted. According to Weed, someone ran into a closed session board meeting with the complaint that the painting had oversize genitalia in it. The board did not want to get into a public debate regarding appropriate size and color. The artist’s argument was that it had been done in the way of the old masters and that it was not meant to be inappropriate. Also noted was the section where a woman’s breast was exposed. Weed jokingly remarked, “Well, we’re not prudes.” The concession that was made by the artist was to paint a loin cloth over the exposed parts. Weed continued, “Even when we get into sometimes very intense issues, everybody comes together and as a result the college has very positive support in the community,” and the mural issue was one instance of how the Ohlone way of compromising works to everyone’s advantage. Weed will continue to serve on the Board of Directors of the Alameda County Water District.
Sigma Chi Eta wins Chapter of the Year By MUNAZZA EBTIKAR Staff writer
Ohlone College’s communications honor society was named chapter of the year at this year’s National Communication Association (NCA) competition. Victoria Zolfarelli, an Ohlone College, student was elected for student vice president of the board of Sigma Chi Eta. The vice president’s job is to solicit and coordinate the selection of programs for the NCA annual convention; they are to take over the office of president in the event of the resignation of the president and to preside over the national business meeting in the absence of the president. Ohone College competed against 32 other community colleges in this competition. How chapters demonstrate and facilitate the goals of Lamba Pi Eta is what makes each chapter unique. The chapter of the year is then presented to the school
munity college communication honor society of the NCA for undergraduates in two years communication programs. Nominations for the chapter are closely reviewed by an eight-person panel, which consists of the national officers of Lambda Pi Eta and the five members of the faculty advisory board. The chapter of the year is then awarded to the chapter that best exemplifies the goals of Lambda Pi Eta. Also, in addition to an award plaque, the Chapter of the Year receives a $200 cash prize from the NCA in recognition of the successful execution and devotion to Photo courtesy Victoria Zolfareli the principles and mission of the honor society. “An academic conferSpeech instructors Christine Caroll and Brenda Anthotlz with students Robert Lantin, Victoria Zolfareli ence is for top scholars in their fields to share their and Ka-Po Tam at the 96th NCA. research, their primary purpose is to add this knowlwith this distinction in turn Antholtz, the speech club edge to our field” Antholtz serves as an example to adviser. In this convention, other chapters throughout Ohlone College’s Sigma Chi explains. NCA is the largest the nation. Eta was awarded Chapter national organization dedi“We won because of our of the Year for 2010. Sigma cated to communication. students, they are great stu- Chi Eta is the official comthat best exemplifies each of the Lamba Pi Eta goals. The chapter honored
dent leaders and I am very impressed and proud of my team” said Professor Brenda
4 monitor December 2, 2010
The thing is... By anh
huynh Columnist
Giving back this season Aesop once said “No act of kindness, however small, is ever wasted.” This season is a season for reflection. It encourages us to huddle in our warm homes to count all of our blessings. Gratitude inspires us to appreciate what we have. It also allows us to galvanize compassion for those who have less and those who have none. Any statistics of all the poor, starving, homeless and sick people may bore us to death, but boredom is a better way to go than freezing in the cold from lack of clothing or starving from lack of food. If we consider other people’s happiness before our own, we receive unexpected joy - the joy of helping someone without getting a reward. The act itself is intrinsically rewarding. It is a bridge connecting us to the other person. The more genuine and generous the act, the stronger the bridge becomes. So be glad you’re in the position of being able to make someone happy. To a small degree, it makes you God-like or a deity of your choice. Atheists, think of it as the “higher self.” You can easily make someone’s day by yielding a parking spot or simply acknowledging how important your loved ones are. Even buying lunch for the classmate whose notes you’ve been copying off of on those days when you’re feeling “under the weather.” Possibly donate and volunteer your time to a nonprofit organization of your choice. Better yet, do something that strikes your passion. The world still has its problems but let this season be a time for us to get high. Get high on thankfulness, on joy and on love. Get high on the scent of pine, of the soup kitchens where hungry men and women wait patiently in the cold for free meals. Get high on the intoxicating exchange of humanity. It’s a wonderful time of the year. Happy Holidays! Cheers.
FEATURES
Students do salsa: the dance, not the dip
purpose for this event is for complex, yet beautiful, lookthe students to have fun and ing dance together for those to learn something new at the who remained. They moved with much fluDancing is a very fun activ- same time. Also, one of the dancers, idity and smoothness, making ity to partake in and a very entertaining activity to watch named Sesma, is currently a many of the steps blend with others do. As many things in life, dance has different styles. There’s break dancing, ballet, modern dance, jazz, tap, hip-hop and ballroom just to name a few. Another form of dance which is a very wonderful style is salsa dancing. On the last day in November, the students in the cafeteria were joined by Melody Sesma and Javier Alvarez. They are two very talented salsa dancers who have been dancing for six years. They came to perform and teach the fundamental steps of salsa dancing. It was apparent that they did a wonderful job because everyone who participated had a smile on their face while Photo by Gregory Bush performing the dance moves Melody Sesma and Javier Alvarez dance for they just learned. the students in the cafeteria. Altogether, at least thirty people stepped on the dance floor to learn how to perform student here at Ohlone. After the next. teaching everyone how to the salsa dance. There were some moveRenee Gonzales, who is do steps such as the travel- ments which were very sharp the head of the Campus Ac- ing and twirling, Sesma and and defined, but a majority tivities Department, said the Alvarez performed a more of the movements flowed to-
gether; the combination of the two was very good. The sense of the dance was very sultry, steamy and seductive. The series of spins, back-bends and physical connections made the dance very entertaining to watch and everyone who saw it was impressed. Some might believe that this style of dance is too intimate to perform in public. Others think that salsa is too difficult to learn or perform, but it actually is very easy and fun to do. With time and much practice it becomes easier also. Sesma gives us a picture of how salsa makes her feel by saying, “When we dance, we feel like we’re on top of the world.” When doing something that one is passionate about, this is the feeling that they usually feel. In this case, salsa is Sesma’s passion. Alvarez says the thing that makes salsa so fun for him is, “How it takes us over on stage.” It simply means that one is having a lot of fun which is very important. Salsa dancing is a very wonderful activity to do, and is an entertaining form of dance to watch.
full time at Fremont Bank and went to Holy Names College in Oakland for his masters. The poetry readers are voluntary. Mitchell sends out an email and those who respond will be the ones reading poetry. “I like to organize events on a regular basis, once a month,” said Mitchell. The poetry readings do not exclude students, but showcase faculty members. Many of them already have poetry published in books and journals. Poetry is an imaginative awareness of experience expressed through meaning,
sound and rhythmic language choices so as to evoke an emotional response. Poetry has been known to employ meter and rhyme, but this is by no means necessary. Poetry is an ancient form that has gone through numerous and drastic reinvention over time. The very nature of poetry as an authentic and individual mode of expression makes it nearly impossible to define. Park read from her own poetry collections and discussed her writing process. She asked the students what type of poems they were interested in hearing and she
gave them choices. Students decided they wanted to hear “Love Poems.” We all were given a sticky note to write our favorite song and our favorite color. Then Parks read them out loud, she then continued her poetry and handed out index cards. She had a selection of love poems, musical, jealous, love for son and for father and strangers. Anyone interested in learning more, should attend one of the poetry readings for the Spring semester. Poetry is an easy way of expressing your feelings by writing down your thoughts.
All dance classes will be performing from tap, jazz, ballet, modern and more. In addition, some students have never even danced or performed until now. “It gives beginners a chance to see what it’s like and decide if they want to be in the spring production,” Tomblin added. The dance show started off as a work in progress presentation then the students finished the dances and began to search for costumes. Finally, all the dance classes wanted to participate. The show allows other students to see what’s going on in
the dance classes and make decisions about what dances they want to do; classes they want to try and see what the professors are like. In the first show, they had to turn people away because there wasn’t enough room in the NUMMI Theater. The dance show sells out every year. Tomblin encourages attendees to purchase their tickets in advance. All proceeds go back into the dance program to help make Tomblin’s dance company more viable, help purchase costumes and the time required to make them for
the big dance production in Spring. The show is also helping to fund the spring show because “that has all the bells and whistles,” Tomblin said. It’s a much bigger show with a capacity of 400 people in the Jackson Theater. There are 100 students performing, however there are only 100 seats in the NUMMI Theater, so purchase tickets fast! Tickets range from $10-12. The Spring Dance production, “Once Upon a Time,” will be holding an audition on Dec. 11 at 11a.m. in the Smith Center.
By DION BAKER JR. Staff Writer
Sandra Park reads poetry for students By ORANOOS NEROW Staff Writer
The English Department and the library staged the second of their Fall 2010 faculty poetry readings on Thursday Nov. 4, at 12 - 1 p.m. in the library. The featured reader was Ohlone College English instructor Sandra Park, whose poetry has appeared in several literary journals and anthologies. Robert Mitchell, organizer of the poetry reading, started teaching at Ohlone college in 2000. Before pursuing the teaching career, Mitchell worked
Fourth annual winter dance show opens By HASSINA OBAIDY Staff Writer
The Theater and Dance Department formally invites all students, staff, family and friends to the fourth Annual Winter Dance show from Dec. 2-4 at 8 p.m. in the NUMMI Theater at Ohlone College. Director of Dance, Theater and Dance Department, Janel Tomblin Brown is enthusiastic about the upcoming show. “We decided to put something together to show friends and family what they’ve been doing,” she said.
FEATURES
December 2, 2010 monitor 5
Photos courtesy of Jeremy Sutton Louie-Meager Art Gallery will display the work of Jeremy Sutton, a painter from San Francisco, in collaboration with the Nutcracker.
Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker last show of the season By FELIPE MASCHION Staff Writer
The Fremont Symphony along with Yoko Young’s Dance and Performing Arts Academy returns to Ohlone’s Jackson Theater to put on its last show of the season, “Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker,” now on its sixth consecutive year of production. The show will utilize the accompaniment of the Fremont Symphony, led by Maestro David Sloss, to put on a dazzling show. Yoko Young began her studies in dance at the age of four, learning the traditional Fujima form and later going on to study classical ballet under various well respected
teachers and dance schools. Young’s impressive repertoire ranges from being the Prima Ballerina in productions such as Swan Lake, to working in major American films and commercials including M.A.S.H. and VISA. She is also an accomplished choreographer producing Once Upon A Mattress, Little Miss Sunshine, Annie and The Wizard of Oz to name a few. Continuing with tradition, this year’s show promises to feature “guest artists and local celebrities”. Bob Wieckowski, current council member and future state legislator, has been confirmed to play the role of Herr Drosselmeyer.
Other notable performers include classical pianist Jon Nakamatsu and dancer Gabriel Williams. Ohlone’s Museum Studies class will be hosting an art exhibit in conjunction with the show. Appropriately titled “Eurythmia,” which stems from Greek roots eurythmy meaning beautiful or harmonious rhythm, the show will feature works from Bay Area artists Lindsay Rikeman and Jeremy Sutton. The main purpose of the show was to “give recognition to extraordinary Bay Area artists” and feature semester long student art projects. Lindsay Rikeman, an award winning artist and west coast
native, works primarily with metal; bending, shaping and welding inert steel into life. A featured piece in the exhibit is the beautiful “Railroad Spikes: Dancer.” Featured artist Jeremy Sutton, a pioneer of the digital art medium, began experimenting with digital painting in 1991 and has constantly evolved and perfected his skills. The paintings on display are vibrant and powerful, bringing a sense of life and vitality to the dreary winter season. While the two artists practice in two completely different mediums, Ohlone Gallery Director Kenney Mencher says that “when juxtaposed
with another, the thematic commonalities become apparent: representations of movement, material, rhythm, performance, motion and sound.” Performances for “Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker” begin on Dec. 4 with two showings at 2-7pm. There will be a matinee only show on Dec. 5 at 2pm. Matinee showings at 2pm will be followed by Sugar Plum parties where children will be able to interact and have their pictures taken with costumed dancers. Tickets to the Sugar Plum parties are $7. Audience members are welcome to attend the art exhibit “Eurythmia” on Dec. 4 from 6-7pm.
He dresses exactly like him, talks in a British accent and owns all types of Harry Potter merchandise including the books, films, posters, bed setting and more. Many children and young adults wish they live in a world where witch craft and wizardry existed. Some are still dressing up in long black cloaks and wrapped the yellow and red Gryffindor scarves around their necks. Similar to the Star Wars film release where fans dressed in fan gear and carried light sabers, some young adults pretended to use their wands and yell out spells from the Cover movie like, “expecto patronum” or “stupify” at their friends. Some fans drew the
famous Harry Potter light- series since she was nine ning bolt scar across their years old. She waited in line for about five hours for the midnight IMAX showing with friends, who wore Harry Potter t-shirts and put little lightening bolts on their forehead. “ I see it as a big part of my childhood. I love the books and the movies, it’s a great story and I’m really fascinated by how Rowling created this whole other world,” she said. The line to get into the theater went all the way around the Regal Cinema in Dublin. Photo courtesy of amazon.com Sadi Haque attended the midnight for the seventh Harry Potter showing and waited in line for two hours. She felt forehead as well. Ohlone student Najia Qadir like it was a party with the has been a huge fan of the amount of people present.
“People were all dressed up and going crazy that Harry Potter is out and screaming. So I guess I can put them in the weirdos list because the theatre was quiet except for a bunch of high school kids, who think they went to Hogwarts and went crazy!” Haque continued. Haque also saw young adults carrying fake wands and waving it at each other. “The movie was amazing! They did an amazing job making the film and the actors are way better than the Twilight actors,” said Kubra Seth. Kubra did not attend the midnight showing; however she still had to wait an hour and saw fans dressed in black cloaks. “I like Harry Potter because of the fantasy/ magic aspect of the story. It completely takes you into a different world,” said Aaron Leung. With the end of the series, committed fans will keep Harry Potter in their hearts, forever and always.
Part one of Deathly Hallows movie attracts fans By HASSINA OBAIDY Staff Writer
Hundreds of crazy fans stood in line for hours and hours eagerly waiting to see the last chapter of the Harry Potter series; Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 1. Harry Potter began as a series of seven books by J.K Rowling; the first one releasing in 1997. Then in 2001, the very first film was released, Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone. From then on, the next six films were released and people from all over the world were eagerly waiting to see the next chapter of Harry Potter’s mission; defeating Lord Voldemort, the main villain who wants to kill Potter. Facebook has game quizzes like “Which Harry Potter Villain Are You?” or “Which Harry Potter Character Are You?” On YouTube, there’s a young teenage boy known as the World’s Biggest Harry Potter fan.
6 monitor December 2, 2010
NEWS
Tech making us dependent Transfer guranteed
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Students often do not know how to discriminate between reliable and untrustworthy sources when conducting academic research via the Internet. Some university students do not even know how to use the library to find books and articles for such research. We have come to rely on technology so heavily that our daily lives can go into a
tailspin when it fails. We count on our phones and computers to keep in contact with family, friends and business associates. In the case of a power outage or computer crash, many of these interconnected systems will crash and we left with no connection to the outside world. Technology is only great when it works. We need to make sure that we can carry on should
it not. Of course, technology has improved the way we live our lives. There has been a definite and perceptible rise in our standard of life. I’m not saying that technology is all bad and we shouldn’t use it at all. It’s just that our naivety and laziness has led us to rely on technology when we should be using our own brains.
By KATHRYN DIXON Staff writer
The Joint Task Force to implement SB 1440, the Student Transfer Achievement Act, had a meeting to begin implementing the STAR act by fall 2011 when the act takes effect. The STAR act requires every community college to provide a “Transfer Associate Degree” of no more than 60 units. 39 of these units will fulfill the General Education requirement and will meet California State University (CSU) requirements. CSU must guarantee junior class standing to all graduates possessing the AA degree and will require no more than 60 additional units to confer a bachelor’s degree. STAR mandates that the community colleges get the new degrees in place by May 2011 for transfer into CSU system by fall 2011. When in effect, STAR will eliminate a typical scenarios where students transferring into a CSU with an AA degree find they have to take additional courses, because CSU and community college transfer requirements often differ. STAR requires each CSU to publish a list of major compatible for transfer
with the new transfer associate degree. According to President Browning, CSU East Bay has promised to take Ohlone students who meet their transfer requirements for the next 3 terms. This is not part of the STAR plan. Browning said the college’s research office has determined that Ohlone College’s transfer students to CSU have the top graduation rate at CSUEB of 83.7 percent. Community colleges student in general have a 76.4 percent rate. Native CSU freshmen have a 81.7 percent rate. According to Kenn Waters, counselor, Ohlone expects the STAR program to be coordinated statewide and Ohlone to participate as soon as possible. The co-chairs of the Joint Task Force to implement SB 1440 are Ephraim Smith, California State University executive vice-chancellor and chief academic officer, and Erick Skinner, California community colleges Executive Vice Chancellor for programs. The task force includes administrators, faculty and experts from community colleges and the CSUs as well as student representatives.
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board. At Fresno State he is planning to major in either criminal justice or criminology. These programs have national recognition at Fresno State. Adapting to his new surroundings is something Fontaine finds exciting. As of right now, he lives with a family friend in Fremont during the week and goes back to Tracy on the weekends. Fontaine, “ready to live on [his] own,” finds that moving to Fresno will be a new beginning and a new start for,
not only baseball, but life. “When I get home from practice, I have dinner waiting for me. In Fresno, when I get home and I’m tired, I won’t have those luxuries.” While the Bay Area’s weather has been unfavorable for baseball as of late, Fontaine feels that Fresno’s climate is better suited for the baseball season. “It’s not that cold, except late at night. It also doesn’t rain as much so we won’t miss many practices or time to work out. It’s just better overall for baseball.” Before his time here is up, Fontaine plans to leave his mark on Ohlone.
FEATURES/EVENTS Discrimination thrives on fear and ignorance
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By ANH HUYNH Staff writer
OK, the U.S. is not perfect. There, pressure’s off. I admire the founding fathers for laying the groundwork for this democratic experiment. They had to know such a honeypot of a country would attract international flies. But could they have foreseen the rich diversity American now holds? Bay Area residents are fortunate to rub elbows with different colors,
nationalities, religions, and lifestyles. At the surface we’re distinctive but we all love this area for its weather, abundance, culture, commerce, and opportunities. That, we can all agree on. When people of different backgrounds collaborate, diversity can inspire such fresh and innovative approaches to solve an issue they all have in common. Yet when they fight about what makes them different, they begin to think the same: I am
superior. Discrimination thrives on fear and ignorance where assumptions are sufficient in building perceptions. Without really knowing someone, the worst could be assumed. Sometimes, we’re reinforcing our own assumptions. If you’ve ever assumed someone looks inherently rude, then you approach them with resentment or hostility (conscious or not), you are contributing to that person’s hostile response, by
which you reaffirm that you were right in the first place. I’ve done this. It’s an easy trap. Getting to know someone behind the stereotypes takes much more work. But after you’ve done so, it’s as if a wall had been torn down by removing one critical brick. More than often, we’re victims of some sort of discrimination whether obvious or subtle. Certainly, we cannot be everybody’s type.
So when people judge and discriminate against you, it’s really not about you. That ugliness is how they feel. We’re mostly sensitive people and we personalize attacks whether we’re sending or receiving. So we launch a counterattack to protect ourselves. Is it a wonder that such sick cyclical pattern continues? “Kill all the blacks, kill all the reds. If it’s a war between the sexes, there’ll be no people left.”-Joe Jackson
was disappointed with my many friends that caught the “Gleesease.” I had never seen an episode of the show. My story had many points, many strongly worded puns, and absolutely biased views about the show.
The only problem was that my article lacked research and the “other side” of the picture. So, to ensure my points were valid, and my dislike of the show came with experience rather than vague judgments, I decided to watch at least some of the
series. I watched the first episode, and when the end credits struck, a feeling of nausea hit my stomach. I feverishly grew to love and hate the show almost immediately. Most if not all of the
sound effects during the show were replaced with short a capella hits. The songs covered in the show appeal to a wide variety of songs that I personally love, and the covers are all well done. Continued online
30 ASOC meeting, room 7101, 4 to 5 p.m.
2 Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) meeting, room SC-116, 4 to 5 p.m.
Joshua Walters, San Francisco State University, room 2133, 1 to 2 p.m.
The “Gleesease” is extremely contagious By EAN TAIJERON Staff writer
Last week, I planned to write a simple piece about despising the show “Glee.” I was excited to write this article because I was annoyed with this new major fad, and
November
Ballet, Fremont Symphony and Yoko's Dance and Performing Arts Academy. 30 Women's Volleyball December Purchase tickets at www.freCCCAA Regional round 3, montsymphony.org, Jackson 3-4 Winter Dance Show2 Winter Dance Showall day 1 Foundation Full Board case, NUMMI Theatre, Smith case, NUMMI Theatre, 8 p.m. Theatre, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Center, 8 p.m. meeting, 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. 30 HIV Testing Clinic, 4 Men's Basketball home 4 Ohlone College BookStudent Health Center, room vs. College of the Sequoias store is CLOSED 3-5 Men's Soccer 1-2 Stress Free: Week 7302, 11a.m to 2 p.m. How to Salsa Dance Cafeteria, CCCAA State Champion4--5 Women's Volleyball ship, all day 5 A Family Tradition: 30 Stress Free Week: noon to 1 p.m. away on CCCAA State ChamTchaikovsky's Nutcracker How to Salsa Dance Cafeteria, pionship, Chaffey College, 3-5 Women's Soccer 1 Faculty Senate meetBallet, Jackson Theatre, 2 noon to 1 p.m. ing, room 7101, 3:30 to 5 p.m. CCCAA State Championship, Rancho Cucamonga, all day, p.m. all day 6 Distance Learning 30 Inter Club Council 4 A Family Tradition: 3 Speech Speaker Semi2 Sustainability ComSubcommittee meeting, (ICC) meeting, room 7101, Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker nar: Madhouse Rhythm by mittee meeting, noon to 1p.m. room 8112, 2 to 3:30 p.m. 2:30 to 3:30 p.m.
SPORTS Fragile Renegades get much-needed victory
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By Kyle Nordeen Staff writer The Ohlone men’s basketball team defeated Monterey Peninsula College on Wednesday 65-51 in a game they desperately needed to win to prevent a three game losing streak dating back to the Shasta Summit Tournament. A slow start by the Renegades allowed the Lobos to jump out to an 11-4 lead four minutes into the game, but rather than calling a timeout, head coach John Peterson decided to let the players make the necessary adjustments. “No, I didn’t really think of calling a timeout.” “It was still early in the game, and I wanted to let the guys play it out,” he said. His strategy appeared to work just fine as the Renegades started to settle in, going on an 11-0 run themselves to take a 15-11 lead with 12:09 left in the first half; a lead they wouldn’t relinquish the rest of the game. Despite the team seeming to be in control for a majority of the game, Peterson was still left wondering what this team is really made of. “It was better than Shasta, but we still need to get better defensively. That tournament was disappointing, the way these guys played.” “I think we have a fragile group, both mentally and physically.” Glimpses of the toughness he desired were seen in hustle plays by Lavon Gray, who had an offensive board that lead to a three-point opportunity. Ring Ayuel also hustled with
Photo by Kyle Nordeen Ohlone’s Cyleb Burton, 24, converts a hook shot during the Renegades’ 65-51victory over Monterey Peninsula College. a block and a save, which lead to a fast break opportunity, but Peterson knew that wouldn’t be enough. “Those plays happen because of guys competing, but that’s only two guys. We need more of them to display that toughness.” Getting more opportunities at
the free-throw line will be just one of the benefits this team could enjoy. The score line against MPC would’ve been much larger for the Renegades had they converted more of their attempts from the free-throw line. “We like to be aggressive
Women’s basketball loses first home game to Foothill By Kevin Yin Staff writer The 2010-2011 Ohlone Women’s Basketball team made their home debut on Wednesday night, Nov. 24 and for the sake of everyone associated with the program, hopefully the outcome was heavily influenced by opening night jitters. Featuring a rotation that included several fresh faces, the Renegades committed a staggering 26 turnovers en route to being defeated by Foothill College 74-58. “We didn’t execute tonight. I don’t know what we ran offensively,” said Head Coach Julia Allender. “It comes down to can you take care of the ball, can you defend, and can you execute. When you don’t do any of those, you get what we got tonight.” Most notable among those
fresh faces is freshmen point guard Chereese Thomas. Thomas has the unenviable task of being Ohlone’s primary ball handler. Thomas’ final stats on the night—13 points on five of 10 shooting, five assists and three steals—would seem to suggest that she’s up to the task, but overall offensive execution seemed to suffer from a lack of floor direction. Allender called her team’s ball security “horrible,” though she tempered her judgment with a reminder that everyone is still learning. Ohlone’s second leading scorer on the night was freshman forward Alexous Robinson, who finished the game with 11 points and eight rebounds but was only three of nine from the field and surrendered a team high five turnovers. The contest certainly didn’t begin as a blowout. Ohlone held
a 14-11 lead with 12:39 to go in the first half, and at intermission the Renegades trailed by just six points at 35-29, but when Ohlone opened the second half with a glut of turnovers that led to easy Foothill baskets, no one on the floor seemed capable of restoring order. The second half rout left questions about which players would provide leadership in critical moments going forward; when questioned about the issue after the game, Allender quite candidly said: “Great question. I’m asking the same one, honestly.” With the loss, Ohlone falls to 2-3 on the season. They will take the floor next on Dec. 9, when they travel to Santa Rosa to compete in the Caren Franci Tournament. The Renegades next home game will be their conference opener vs. Cabrillo on Jan. 5h at 5 p.m.
and play from the inside out. We aren’t getting to the line enough because our shot selection has been questionable, and we haven’t been playing well.” A loss at Cabrillo this past Saturday has the Renegades overall record sitting at a mun-
Never think; Do By Ricky Contreras Columnist
Ohlone ignores other sports Ohlone Community College now offers seven athletic sports for its students: soccer, volleyball, water polo, basketball, baseball, softball, and swimming/diving. While community colleges’ main focus is academia, sports offer students an outlet from textbooks and work to pay for classes. While other community colleges have about the same number of sports offered, some schools offer other fewer mainstream sports. Upon reviewing the CCCAA website (California Community College Athletic Association), Ohlone has many of the sports offered to California community
dane 5-4. When asked what is being done to improve their toughness, Peterson didn’t have all that much to say that hadn’t already been said. “Just trying to get them to practice harder. I’m sure I’m not very pleasant to be around when we are playing like this.” colleges, with the exception of some sports that might not be considered mainstream, excluding football. Ohlone could offer several other sports options with minimal spending. This could generate money for the school by attracting more students. One sport that could be plausible for the Renegades is cross-country running. Many high schools offer it so gathering runners would not be hard. The location is also perfect for training because of the close trails behind the school, and Mission Boulevard’s sloped street provides a challenge for most runners. Cross-country doesn’t require much, other than running trails, a uniform, and transportation to meets. Ohlone also has eight tennis courts across the street from the aquatic center. Again, another sport found in many high schools, which could also be easily added to Ohlone without much costs. Read more of Ricky online.