Volume 111 Fall 2009 Roundup Issue 4

Winter session classes reduced

Cutbacks force limited classes

Eunice Virgen / Roundup

Winter session is soon approaching and there are going to be significant changes that will take place which may affect some continuing students.

Nabil Abu-Ghazaleh, vice president of academic affairs, discussed some of the changes Pierce College students can expect this upcoming winter session. One of the most notable changes is the reduction of classes being offered. The only classes students can expect to take this winter session are English (only up to 101), math (only up to 125) and speech.

Winter session is tentatively set to begin Jan. 5 and run through Feb.

4.

Abu-Ghazaleh encourages students to look at the online schedule and to remember that priority will be given to students based on seniority. He also stated that fees would remain the same for the winter session.

Abu-Ghazaleh explained the importance of keeping “core and basic skills classes” available, or those necessary for students who are planning to transfer or want to graduate from Pierce.

During the previous winter session, Pierce offered a total of 212 classes, while in this upcoming session only about 50 will be offered, according to Abu-Ghazaleh.

He also confirmed there would not be any night or weekend classes.

Pierce will not be sending out a separate mailing to the community. Instead they will be adding the winter session in the spring schedule of classes.

When asked why they wouldn’t be sending out a separate mailing into the community, Abu-Ghazaleh expressed that sending out mail can be costly and they are doing the best they can to save money.

Student Nahal Barahmand feels the limited availability of classes being offered in the winter will affect her negatively.

“Now that winter [session] is very limited, we are going to get pushed back a semester,” Barahamand said.

Barahamand was planning on taking statistics but since it will not be offered, she will be forced to put it off until the spring.

She won’t be the only student inconvenienced by the cut in classes.

Georgia Ensfield, who planned on taking Geography I in the winter and was hoping to transfer to CSUN in the spring, will also be forced to wait as the “core and basic skills classes” will not include geography.

“It’s going to prolong me transferring to CSUN. It’s like a catch 22 because you can’t get to where you want to be,” she said.

The earliest continuing students’ appointments will begin Oct. 29.

evirgen.roundupnews@gmail.com

HIV/AIDS Awareness Week canceled

The Pierce College Gay Straight Alliance will attempt to fill void

Elliot Golan / Roundup

The Student Health Center has canceled HIV/AIDS Awareness Week at Pierce this semester due to its scheduled relocation to the new Student Services Building.

The event, originally set to take place in October, was to occur the same week the Student Health Center is moving, according to Bernardine Pregerson, instructor of life science.

“It was just too much,” Pregerson said. She added that though she hoped it would be on schedule for this semester, they are on schedule for the spring semester event, which is slated for March.

Avoiding disaster

Pierce has implemented additional safety resources

How prepared is Pierce College for an emergency situation on campus?

More safety resources are being developed and implemented in an effort to effectively respond to emergencies on campus.

Emergency blue phones, classroom call boxes and the Pierce Alert text messaging system have served as important safety resources for students and faculty alike.

the call button and just walk away. The phones operate like a 9-1-1 call. The emergency is still registered in the system and units are sent out.”

Acts like these affect the sheriff’s department because they are potentially taking away from real emergencies that require units to be sent out.

contained.

Guerrero labeled the call boxes located in some classrooms “a work in progress.”

The call boxes are supposed to be used in the case of a classroom emergency. There is a button on the box that alerts the sheriff’s department of a potential emergency.

The week usually includes public speakers as well as free HIV testing.

“While free HIV testing will not be offered this semester, any student can receive a $9 serum HIV test through the Health Center by simply making an appointment,” wrote Beth Benne, director of the Student Health Center, in an e-mail.

Benne also wrote that Pierce will be unable to coordinate with the speakers bureau of Being Alive.

Being Alive is a group of men and women, all HIV positive, who have been to Pierce in the past to speak during HIV/AIDS Awareness Week. Their services include emotional

Continued on page 3

“There are approximately 20 or more blue emergency phones throughout the campus,” said Pierce College Sheriff Deputy Al Guerrero. “All a student has to do is press the red button and state their emergency. Units are sent out to the blue phone location immediately. They are effective.”

The emergency blue phones are located in well-lit areas. They are conveniently located near the main entrances, parking lots and the campus mall.

Pierce is home to more than 23,000 students this semester.

“Every day somebody has an emergency,” Guerrero said. “However, an issue that we often encounter is when students press

“I think it’s messed up and wrong because the phones are providing a service and safety on campus,” said Pierce student Eliel Chavez. “If I were to see someone do that and help came, I would point out who it was.”

In the case of a natural disaster, such as an earthquake, the sheriff’s department is prepared to protect the safety of the students.

“Our initial role is safety of the students. We would dispense throughout the college and assess each building on its own,” Guerrero said. “Our main concerns are life and property.”

In Guerrero’s three years at Pierce, the most major campus emergencies have been the smoke from the surrounding brush fires and the suspicious package that was found in Parking Lot 7, both of which were

According to Guerrero, not all of the call boxes are activated in the classrooms yet, as there are some wiring issues being worked out.

The Pierce Alert text messaging system sends a text message to students regarding a current campus emergency.

“The text alert is going to be useful if you are not watching the news,” said Melat Deribe, business student. “It is a good idea, however, how many people have unlimited text messaging plans? That might be a problem because not everyone is able to receive them.”

Although, not all of Pierce’s emergency resources are up and running, the plan to keep the campus safe is in full effect.

sberry.roundupnews

Football standout commits to Kansas State

Despite injuries, wide receiver Kenny Davis to move on to bigger things

Tyler McGee / Roundup

With only six games as a Pierce College wide receiver, Kenny Davis has committed to Kansas State University as part of its 2010 football recruiting class.

It should be noted that although Davis is committed to Kansas State, he could still change his mind.

Davis said he chose Kansas State because of an assistant coach.

“Coach (Michael) Smith was a father figure to me. I’m 22 years old and I’m still looking for that father figure in my life,” Davis said. Davis, the Birmingham High School product, led the Pierce team in receptions, receiving yards and

receiving touchdowns last season. Davis had six touchdowns in an injury-shortened season.

Injuries would shorten Davis’ year once again. He sprained his anterior cruciate ligament in a scrimmage Aug. 29.

With that injury, the Pierce season would change.

The loss of Davis “limited the team,” said head coach Efrain Martinez. He also said “it took accountability away from the (opposing) defense. Now they don’t have to account for him in their game plan.”

When Davis graduated from Birmingham in 2005, he originally attended College of the Canyons. Davis would never see the field as a

Cougar. In fact, Davis would not play a competitive down on the gridiron until he came to Pierce last season.

“Kenny has a shot to be one of the best in the country by the time he leaves,” Martinez said.

A year ago, Davis found out football talent runs in the family when he learned his cousin is Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson. However, his cousin is not the player he strives to be.

Davis tries to play his position like his favorite player and future hall of famer, Jerry Rice. Davis enjoys watching the highlights of Rice daily, as well as prior to practices and games, on YouTube. Davis said Kansas State wants

him there for spring practice, so May is the latest. He said he hopes to transfer in December as a Christmas present to his mother.

Davis plans to be a good player on and off the field at Kansas State. He also intends to graduate with a degree in kinesiology and sports medicine.

“My plan is to play in the NFL,” Davis said. “I want to support my family. I’m tired of seeing my mom working and stressing every day.”

Questions have arisen about his time away from the game, according to Davis.

“I still got it,” assured Davis.

Gerard Walsh / Roundup

GO— Security Office Todd Hoyle patrols Parking Lot 1 during his normal schedule.

Shannon Berry / Roundup

Galit Royker / Roundup MOVING UP— Kenny Davis, wide receiver, has committed to Kansas State University, but he hasn’t signed yet.

Say “No” to censorship of free speech

The

Los Angeles City College’s studentrun newspaper, the Collegian, is an award-winning publication that has been in continuous print for 80 years.

Its staff of approximately 30 students works tirelessly to publish high-quality content while adhering to rigorous journalistic values.

The Collegian is a training ground for writers, reporters, columnists and editors, as are thousands of other student-run publications that hold to the same principles, standards and ethics.

But LACC’s president, Jamillah Moore, has made calculated attempts to hinder the students’ right to a free press.

She has tried to forbid a company working with the college from speaking to the student press; she has tried to pressure student reporters to sign releases for recording public meetings; she has violated California Open

Meeting Laws by requesting that reporters identify themselves; and she has attempted to silence the Collegian by slashing its budget by 40 percent — when the budgets of other student organizations were cut only 15 percent.

Adam Goldstein of the Student Press Law Center said that if he had to choose the biggest First Amendment offender in the country, he would most likely choose Moore.

And now, Moore is attempting to move the Collegian under student services, where the administration would have the option to edit all content, monitor stories and determine the direction of the paper.

An attack on free speech anywhere is an attack on free speech everywhere.

That is why we, the undersigned, have come together to universally condemn the actions of Jamillah Moore and the actions of any administration that makes deliber-

ate efforts to break the free speech of student publications.

As students, we have been taught to expect an environment where freedom of speech will go uncontested.

And as student journalists, we expect our administrations to understand that we strive to be an objective voice of reason. But we also recognize that any publication that disturbs the comfort of the comfortable will be challenged.

Student journalists at the University of

Editors Note:

Pittsburgh, the University of New Mexico and the University of Oregon, as well as countless untold others, have seen such assaults on their rights.

This cannot stand.

We, as student journalists, come together today with a single message: We will not tolerate administrations that, for their own benefit, try to silence the voice of the student free press. We will continue to rebuke those in power who attempt to diminish that freedom, and we will not be silenced.

This editorial is a joint editorial with colleges across the nation in response to the unfair treatment of Los Angeles City College’s paper, The Collegian.

The Roundup is publishing this article because we believe that the first amendment should be protected not only on our campus, but on campuses across the United States.

Breakthrough could lead to breakdown

If someone told you they could offer you something that would give you a 31 percent chance of not getting into a fatal car accident, would you take it?

That’s the issue being posed with the discovery of a seemingly successful human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) vaccine.

The vaccine was created by Global Solutions for Infectious Diseases and Sanofi Pasteur, a human vaccine company.

According to a report done by CNN, more than 16,000 people, in Thailand by the Thai Ministry of Health, participated in the trial that was conducted over three years.

Since the first case in 1981, vaccines have been tested with little to no success.

In 2007, the largest rate of contraction was male-to-male intercourse with 64 percent, followed by heterosexual intercourse with 15 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Estimates from the World Health Organization (WHO) and Joint United Nations Program on AIDS (UNAIDS), 33 million people worldwide were living with HIV at the end of 2007. That same year, some 2.7 million people became newly infected and 2 million died of AIDS, including 270,000 children.

The fact this vaccine has a 31 percent preven-

[For advertising call Julie at (818) 710-2960]

Reporters: Calvin Alagot, Shannon Berry, Laura Corral, Paula Duran, Andre Fuller, Ashley Green, Elliot Golan, Adrian Herrera, Eimantas Kiseliovas, Eduardo Lagunas, Jalima Maldonado, Tyler McGee, Sarah Mednick, Beatrice Negulescu, Kevin Peyton, Alina Popov, Helen Ramirez, Lorrie Reyes, Matthew Rubinfeld, Jeff Sandstoe, Gizette Segura, Eunice Virgen

Photographers: Aisha Ahal, Jason Alan, Takahiro Aono, Burke Bryant, Courtney Coles, Christina Colucci, Danny Duarte, Jill Durgan, Melissa Elder, Ryan Gall, Ayda Memary, Kody Robinson, Galit Royker, Hoomer Perez, Amber Rose

tion rate is exciting and a huge accomplishment on the part of the developers.

However, we should not lose sight of the bigger issue.

This vaccine will only lower your risk of contracting HIV; it will not prevent it entirely, nor cure those who already have the disease.

Just because you receive the vaccine, whenever or if ever it becomes available to the general public, doesn’t mean you can throw caution to the wind.

Everyone should still practice safe sex and still receive annual HIV screenings. It doesn’t matter if you or your partner receive the vaccination — it’s still up to you to protect yourself and others.

If people stop relying on safe sex to keep them from getting HIV because of the vaccine, it can actually increase the spread of the virus.

Global Solutions for Infectious Diseases and Sanofi Pasteur should be commended for the breakthrough vaccine. However, it could also lead to a false sense of security.

A vaccine is only a Band-Aid on an already gaping wound. We’re going to need a full first-aid kit in order to heal it completely.

Under appropriate state and federal court decisions, these materials are free from prior restraint by the virtue of the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America. Accordingly, materials published herein, including any opinions expressed, should not be interpreted as the position of the L.A. Community College District, the college or any officer or employee thereof.

Collegian is defending the first amendment against foes that are irrational and apathetic

PIERCE COLLEGE

NEWS IN BRIEF

The Center for the Sciences building, located next to the Mason parking lot, will be available for use by students and teachers this summer, according to Andrew Ramsay, senior project manager.

Costing $40.25 million, it will house the chemistry, physics, life sciences, nursing, veterinary tech., planetary science and geology departments.

Features of the new building include spacious labs for students, stadium seating classrooms, a courtyard and a planetarium. It will also include animal facilities, which will have cages to shelter animals and an animal surgery room.

AIDS walk

Continued from PAGE 1

support, a wellness center, education and a speakers bureau, according to Kevin Kurth, executive director.

“If the date has been moved, we can always send speakers,” Kurth said.

Being Alive speaks at several other colleges in the area, including UCLA, according to Colin Hadlow, volunteer chairman of the speakers bureau.

“Young people just don’t come out of the closet with HIV,” Hadlow said.

Hadlow also told of the sobering statistics about the ages at which young people get tested.

“Of 700 students, seven will get tested,” he said.

The Pierce College Gay Straight Alliance intends to take on the load in late October left by the canceled event, according to Annette Pakhchian, the club’s vice president.

“We hope to have a table set up with pamphlets and condoms to give away,” said Chris Murphy, GSA president.

AIDS affects all races and ethnicity groups, with statistics showing no category to be insusceptible.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists Black/African American as the ethnicity group they estimate to have the most cases of AIDS through 2007 on their Web site. The CDC names male-to-male sexual contact as the largest transmission category.

The CDC also lists as the secondand third-highest categories through 2007 as that of injection drug use and high-risk heterosexual contact, respectively. High-risk heterosexual contact is defined as “heterosexual contact with a person known to have, or to be at high risk for, HIV infection,” according to the Web site.

AIDS also affects all age groups.

“AIDS is the fifth leading cause of death among people aged 25 to 44 in the United States,” according to

Google Health.

“It’s not something we can just brush under the rug. It’s not going to go away,” Pakhchian said.

The Pierce College GSA has formed a team for the AIDS Walk Los Angeles, which takes place Oct. 18. The GSA has put posters up around campus to recruit more walkers to their team.

The walk begins and ends in West Hollywood Park at San Vicente Boulevard. The 10-kilometer walk starts at 10 a.m. and is expected to take roughly two to three hours to complete, according to the organization’s Web site.

AIDS Walk Los Angeles has raised more than $63 million since the event began 25 years ago, according to James Leahy, team coordinator and fundraising specialist for AIDS Walk Los Angeles.

“We have lifelong volunteers who have been doing this for 20 plus years,” Leahy said.

Leahy told of people arriving early in the morning to begin work and not leaving until well after dinner, which is often donated by corporate sponsors.

“Organizations are just revving up,” Leahy said.

The AIDS community received important news Sept. 24, when reports of a successful AIDS prevention vaccine flooded the news.

The vaccine, a combination of two vaccines that had failed in the past, showed a reduction in risk of HIV infection by more than 31 percent, according to announcements out of Bangkok.

The U.S.-sponsored project was conducted by the Thailand Ministry of Public Health.

“Honestly, I don’t really have a comment yet,” Murphy said of the vaccine reports.

egolan.roundupnews@gmail.com

Pierce signs with iTunesU

Contract may lead to more multimedia options for learning

Ashley Geren / Roundup

Pierce College has recently signed a contract with iTunesU, and the distance education administration is working toward having the school’s section of the Web site up by mid-November.

In the new iTunes 9, the iTunes store has a separate tab just for education-related materials called iTunesU, which allows the user to organize and maintain education material while keeping it separate from the music in iTunes. The material can then be synced to iPods and iPhones to be accessible anywhere.

“Nothing else has been done (except the contract being signed),” said Cynthia Alexander, a faculty member in the Pierce online office. “We’re working right now just to get the skin — the look — for our page.”

“I think that students would use it because I believe that no matter how much you pay attention in class, there are things you can miss,” said Bryan Sanchez, 25, business management major. “Pierce is definitely keeping on the cutting edge of technology.”

iTunesU provides podcasts, audiobooks, language lessons and other content for instructors to make accessible to students. This part of the iTunes store was immediately utilized by top universities including Stanford, Cambridge and Carnegie Mellon.

Pierce will soon be a provider of content for iTunesU, which is a completely free program and has more than 200,000 audio and video downloads.

Students are hoping their instructors will participate in making podcasts and other educational resources available to them as supplemental aids to their classes

through iTunesU.

“The more help, the merrier. Being able to e-mail my professors is good, but there may be things in the podcast that I might not have thought about otherwise,” said Dalia Ghesser, 19, child psychology major.

Those taking online courses think it would be very helpful to have this resource available as a supplementary course aid.

Carrie Ray, music major, has taken online courses and thinks this would be very beneficial because “it will make the courses more personal. And they might serve like a lecture that the whole class watches.”

If you open your iTunes Store, the furthest tab to the right is iTunesU. Although Pierce is not yet on the list of colleges and universities to choose from, you can still browse material from every other

Anyone can download iTunes for free on a Mac or PC, but only those with iPhones or an iPod Touch can sync the material for on-the-go use. For those students, they can have these resources available to them anytime, anywhere. With the fast-paced, multitasking lives of Pierce students, this partnership with iTunesU could benefit many.

Although mid-November is the projected time for the Pierce College page to be finished, it is hard to tell because the distance education department at Pierce is currently a person short. Alexander said once the new person is hired, the process will speed up.

ageren.roundupnews @gmail.com

Ayda Memary / Roundup

SCULPTING— Mila Gaiyireti, 20, international business major, makes a portrait of herself using clay in Art 700: Introduction to Sculpture in Room 3305.

Smiling faces and new spaces

Child Development Center awaits new building while still providing quality care

Achild playing is not the typical image a college student encounters as they walk to class, but it isn’t uncommon on the Pierce College campus.

The Child Development Center, which provides childcare for Pierce students, will be moving to a new building in the spring.

Kathleen Reiter-Vasquez has been the Child Development Center director for 35 years. She was also instrumental in starting the Child Development Department 11 years ago.

The Child Development Center will be moving to a new building close to the animal barn in the spring of 2010. The staff very excited.

“The children will have access to the animals,” Reiter-Vasquez said.

“I like my job, I like being around children,” said Gina Witherspoon, a teacher’s assistant and a student at Pierce. When asked about the new center, she said, “I’m excited. I think we have worked hard for the new center.”

The new center will have a lot of new features the current center does not. For example, the children will have sand pits, mud pits and a “secret garden” where the kids can play outside.

Inside the new center they will have lots of space. Each classroom will have about 2,200 square feet, allow them to accommodate about 32 children per room.

Reiter-Vasquez wants to keep the capacity to around 20 to 24 children

per room, as she feels quantity does not equate to quality. She wants to make sure the children have enough space to play and that safety measures remain a priority.

Before they can even think about moving to the new center, Reiter-Vasquez has to begin licensing procedures this month, to be ready by April 2010. Furthermore, the Los Angeles Fire Department and the L.A. Health Department must also give clearance to allow the new center to open.

The center must also have support from the campus. According to Reiter-Vasquez, Pierce is one of the most supportive campuses in the district.

“Bob Garber, the previous president, was very supportive and instrumental,” Reiter-Vasquez said. The campus gives a substantial contribution that goes directly toward keeping the program running.

Besides campus contributions, the Child Development Center receives most of its funding through the California State Budget. However, there is a process to receive funding.

Reiter-Vasquez explained that in order for her center to receive state funding, she must create a budget that includes all costs and submit a proposal to the state. She must earn the money being allocated by providing childcare to qualifying students.

The current state budget cuts have affected the Child Development Center. The evening program that lasts from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. has been cut and Reiter-Vasquez has had to let go of a part-time lead teacher and two assistants. She expects more cuts in the near future.

Currently, the center has six full-time classes Monday through Friday, with about 18 children in each class, which run simultaneously from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. The children’s age requirements are between 2 years and 9 months to 5 years old, and the children must be toilet trained. The center does not take infants because that requires a different license.

More information is available by contacting the Child Development Center at (818) 719-6494.

expectations

Honor societies focus on service and academic achievements

Jeff Sandstoe / Roundup

There are two honor societies on campus that can help students earn scholarships and help transfer to four-year universities.

An honor society is an organization that offers prestige as well as other perks to its student members.

One of these groups is Phi Theta Kappa (PTK), a group that “recognizes and encourages the academic achievement of two-year college students,” according to the PTK Web site.

Students who join PTK will receive a gold diploma seal, a gold honors stole and tassel for graduation, access to the society’s directory of scholarships, as well as transcript recognition “which looks great for transferring,” said Ryan Peretz, the president of the Pierce chapter.

PTK faculty adviser Kathy Oborn says the main attraction to their group is the scholarships.

“Becoming a member enables you to gain access to (PTK’s) entire directory of scholarships, forever.”

PTK offers $33 million in scholarships yearly to their members, according to Oborn. Peretz and member Myrna Mora were among those who won scholarships, placing in the All-California Academic Team last year, and were awarded an undisclosed amount.

Some upcoming events that PTK has planned are “Earth Days” throughout October and November in which members will pick up trash around the campus.

PTK’s main charity, however, will be part of the “Operation Gratitude” campaign, in which there will be a candy drive from Oct. 26 to Nov. 17. Bins will be placed around the campus so that students, staff and fac-

ulty can donate candy that will be shipped to troops serving our country overseas.

The second honor society is Alpha Gamma Sigma (AGS), a group “with the aim of recognizing and encouraging high scholastic achievement, leadership, and service among community college students,” according to the group’s Web site.

Benefits of membership are a golden seal on your transcripts, scholarships and knowledge about transferring to four-year colleges.

“AGS provides a nice balance for school work and socializing,” said AGS faculty adviser Carol Kozeracki.

One of their main scholarships is the “Service Hour Scholarship,” according to AGS president Nitaya Kamsingwong, which “is awarded to members who complete the highest number of service hours within the semester.”

AGS’s major events will be the “Staff Appreciation Banquet,” in which club members will provide lunch for the staff at Pierce, as well as social membership events including cosmic bowling, archery and an upcoming hike and barbecue. They are also currently working on a Halloween / Homecoming Dance to take place toward the end of the month, according to Kamsingwong.

Eligibility requirements for AGS are a GPA of 3.0 or higher, membership in the ASO and $10 in fees. Members are also required to complete at least 12 hours of social events or community services.

Eligibility requirements for PTK are having a 3.5 GPA for any one semester and maintaining a 3.25 GPA while in the club. Although events and activities will be hosted, participation from members is optional and not required to maintain one’s membership.

Membership fees for PTK are $80, but earn you a lifetime membership in the society.

Students can join at any point throughout the semester. However, since processing takes several weeks, students are encouraged to apply early.

“You meet people you wouldn’t normally meet,” said Nicole Carvajal, vice president of AGS. “I originally joined the group because I wanted to be an active student at Pierce, and I really liked that the club focused both on the social aspect of community college, along with providing community service opportunities.”

AGS and PTK have meetings scheduled Oct. 26 and Nov. 16 under the library, in room 1A.

jsandstoe.roundupnews@gmail.com

Eunice Virgen / Roundup

Aisha Ahal / Roundup CHILD’S PLAY— Nathan Coleman (front, right) plays bakery during dramatic play day in Child Development 3.

twoon

Helen Ramirez/ Roundup

Curtains will open Oct. 23 for Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman,” directed by RoZsa Horvath, at the Performing Arts Mainstage.

Death of a Salesman tells the story of a middle-aged man, Willy Loman, struggling to achieve his idea of the American Dream.

Yet his ambition to achieve this dream keeps him blinded to the people who truly love him. The story of Willy’s struggle explores the idea of false hope in the American Dream.

“I think this play is very timely because of the economy. It has a lot to say about the family and our relationships with each other,” said director RoZsa Horvath.

Arthur Miller died Feb. 10, 2005, yet before his death he directed his play in China with a Chinese cast. “Death of a Salesman” was also performed on Broadway 10 years ago, winning the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre (Tony Award).

Wasin Nomani, part of the cast in the fall production, said, “Death of a Salesman being performed in China showed that the play does not just speak to a particular culture.”

For Nomani, this is his second time being part of a play production at Pierce College. He said, “The energy of a live show is so electric, especially plays performed with such a high caliber.”

Josh Ryan, a professional actor, feels Pierce College theater is high quality. Ryan has been coming to Pierce College for many years to be part of the play productions. Ryan plays the role of Biff Loman, Willy’s eldest son, who struggles with his father’s

actor playing Willy Loman

dreams for him and the dreams he has for himself.

As a professional actor, people have asked him if he has made it into show business, and he has always felt he has. Ryan feels the play opens people’s eyes about the meaning of success and what people view as successful.

Ryan says his love for acting saved him from going to prison when he was in college.

He is now married and his wife recently gave birth to his first child.

Jim Seerden, playing the role of Willy Loman, the central character of the story, relates to Willy personally. Seerden said his father was a salesman who died at a young age and he wants to play this part in honor of his father.

“This play is about someone chasing after the American Dream, but instead of catching the dream, the dream runs him over,” Seerden said.

The 13 actors in “Death of a Salesman” have rehearsals five times a week, totaling up to about 20 hours each week, according to Horvath.

“For every minute of the play, it takes about two hours rehearsal,” Horvath said.

“Rehearsals are not very hectic because the acts of the play are scheduled for certain days, so if you’re not in the act of that day you don’t have to attend,” said Crystal Lott, who is playing the role of “The Woman.”

“Dividing the scenes gives the director time to get the actors into character and critique the incorrect so that the play has the most ultimate outcome,” said actor Evan Boelsen. Boelsen, a former Pierce College student, returns just to act. He has been in four shows at Pierce College and said he enjoys the quality of direction provided.

“This play shows the humanity of the characters and how sometimes in life we have the greatest success and the greatest tragedy,” Boelsen said. “And sometimes we have greatest success and do not even know it, and that’s tragic.

The show is scheduled to premiere at 8 p.m. Oct. 23 in the Performing Arts Mainstage. General admission is $15 and student/ senior admission is $12.

Friday and Saturday Showings: Oct. 23, 24, 30, 31 at 8 p.m. Sunday Showings: Oct. 25 and Nov. 1 at 2 p.m.

Prices: General admission - $15 Students/Seniors - $12

Alina Popov / Roundup

T

Victor Stephen Kamont / Roundup PLAYING: Linda Sharon, who plays Willy’s wife, Samples, and Jim Seerden, who plays the leading role of Willy in “Death of a Salesman” at rehearsals.

The Pierce Diversity Committee, chaired by college compliance officer Sylvia Silva and co-chaired by Fernando Oleas, modern languages professor, has acknowledged this month with several events for the past couple of years.

The festivities will take place from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., and like last year’s event will feature appetizers, drinks, music and dance.

“This is a beautiful event that has been set up to appreciate diversity,” said Mitra Hoshiar, professor of sociology.

The star of the event will be Los Pinguos, an eclectic group originating from Buenos Aires that primarily plays acoustic instru-

ments such as Spanish guitars, a Cuban Tres and Peruvian box drums.

o celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, Pierce College will host a free event for students, faculty and staff Oct. 8 in the Great Hall inside the Student Community Center.“This is the second year in a row that the Argentinean band will play for our students, faculty and staff to enjoy,” Silva said. “The event last year was so well liked and attended that the PDC voted to have them return.”

“It is a life-changing experience and one of the most important components is to disseminate an overall understanding of our cultural diversity,” Oleas said. “The Hispanic dance is a representation of only one important aspect of the richness of our culture.”

Los Pinguos will be hosting a dance contest with prizes at the end like they did last year.

English major Ava Badiee, 18, thinks the event will create a strong social atmosphere for Hispanic students at Pierce.

“It is going to be a great experience for Hispanic students who are

looking to find friends with the same cultural perspectives,” she said. “It is an opportunity for the students to explore and interact with our overall campus life,” Oleas said. “It is a reminder that the student’s life does not start or end in the classroom.”

For the full story and more A&E stories go to theroundupnews .com/a-e

For the second time, Pierce College is performing the play ‘Death of a Salesman’

This play is about someone chasing after the American dream, but... the dream runs him over.

Seerden

“ ”

Hispanic Heritage hits home

hramirez.roundupnews@gmail.com

apopov.roundupnews@gmail. com

Football wins thriller in L.A.

The contrasting offensive style of the two teams presented a back and forth scoring frenzy that didn’t end until the last possession of the game as Pierce College defeated East Los Angeles College Huskies, 35-27, Saturday night in Monterey Park.

The Huskies spread offense and Brahmas’ conventional pro-style offense left the opposing defenses with headaches throughout the game.

No one benefited from this more than Pierce quarterback Matt Wabby, who ran for two touchdowns and threw one. Taking his game to a new level, Wabby showed great patience and vision as he spread the ball out to everyone on the offense.

“The offensive line really got after it in the second half. They protected me well and the receivers made plays when they had the opportunity to,” Wabby said. “It was just a great way for us to get going in the second half.”

After a long drive by the Brahmas that was capped off with a five-yard touchdown run by running back Prince Young, the Brahma defense stepped up, forcing a quick three and out.

This led to wide receiver Coleman Edmond’s 61yard punt return for a touchdown. Edmond’s abilities could not be accounted for throughout the game, as the Huskies defense had no answers for the playmaking receiver.

“I have a coaching staff that has a lot of confidence in me. If I say something to them they listen,” Edmond said. “Like when I told them to rekick the ball so I get another opportunity to take t back to the house.”

“So when you have coaches over there that are on

your side, making plays like that are easy because you’re not worried about what going to happen. Turnovers — and capitalizing on them — was the name of the game for the Brahmas. Usually turning the ball over, the Brahmas found a way to force four turnovers and put East LA on its heels.

However, the Brahmas couldn’t put the Huskies away as their offensive and defensive units couldn’t produce success on a consistent basis.

Throughout the season, playing consistent football has plagued the Brahmas as they start slow and then find a way to get their offense started later in the game.

Fortunately for the Brahmas, they got it together before it was too late when Wabby connected with wide receiver Julian Damon on several occasions, including a 36-yard pass.

“It seems like we don’t wake up until about midthird quarter. We just gotta get after it sooner. We fall behind too much maybe we aren’t going to bed early enough,” Wabby said.

“We haven’t played four quarters yet, which is a scary thing,” he continued. “We have been in every game. When we put four quarters together, who knows how good we can be?”

This became apparent as Huskies QB Pedro Velasquez connected with WR Anthony Denham for three touchdown passes.

A Wabby interception with 1:20 left in the second quarter led to a 64-yard touchdown drive by the Huskies. Velasquez linked with Denham for a 20-yard touchdown reception, with 0.8 seconds left in the first half.

The lack of tackling ability on both sides was apparent throughout the game, but it was even more so in the second half as the Huskies took the opening second half drive the length of the field and ended it with a two-yard touchdown run by running back Aubrey Haynes.

Showing poise and maturity in the game, the Brahma offense quickly responded as Wabby led the Brahmas down the field as he topped a 59-yard drive

with a one-yard touchdown run.

The Brahma offensive line stepped up its play tremendously in the second half. Their focus and determination led them to victory.

“Our offensive line is solid. They’re a nasty group that gets the job done,” Wabby said. “I kinda’ gave [the Brahma offensive line] a look in the eyes and they looked at me back and we knew that we had to get after it.”

Wabby & Co. continued its scoring trend with another long drive, capped off by a two-yard touchdown run from Wabby.

“They weren’t better than us. We felt that if we executed, we were going to get the job done,” Wabby said.

Not to be outdone, the Huskies refused to give up as Velasquez orchestrated a big play as he connected with Denham for 78-yard touchdown pass.

Nonetheless, the Brahma offense quickly quieted

the crowd with a 52-yard touchdown pass from Wabby to Edmond, leaving 3:15 on the clock in the fourth quarter.

With the momentum swaying, the bend-but-don’tbreak Brahma defense was able to adapt to the Huskies’ spread offense as seconds ticked away to their final possession.

“Everybody gets frustrated when we get down, but at halftime, coach talked to us and told us to keep our head up,” Damon said. “And then in the second half everyone started to come together and work as one.”

Danny Duarte / Roundup

DIVING ON THE FUMBLE Pierce defensive tackle, Franky Anaya, recovers a fumble by East Los Angeles quarterback Pedro Velasquez in the first quarter. The turnover would eventually lead to a Brahma touchdown.

Danny Duarte / Roundup

BREAKING FREE— Pierce running back Prince Young makes a run during the Brahmas’ 35-27 victory over East.

Tyler McGee / Roundup