Volume 113 Fall 2010 Roundup Issue 4

ROUNDUP UP

A look at Proposition 19. College professor to run for liutenant governor. KPCRadio.com, Pierceʼs on-campus radio station, hosts music show for students.

Delayed budget reduces funding

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a roughly $126 billion budget into law Friday that will cut funding for community colleges by $129 million, according to a summary published by the Dept. of Finance published that night.

The reduced funding is in addition to the $840 million owed to California community colleges since July.

“It wasn’t that they deferred the payments, it’s that the money wasn’t there,” said Kathleen BurkeKelly, president of Pierce College.

The roughly $126 billion budget was passed 100 days overdue, four months into the fiscal year.

“It’s too late to undo the damage by this delayed budget,” said Scott Lay, president and CEO of the Community College League of California, a corporately backed non-profit that lobbies for the California Community College system in Sacramento.

Pierce Collegeʼs Weather Station: Still unknown to many. The Gay Straight Alliance hosts a memorial Womenʼs soccer defeats Santa Monica 2-0.

Double quarterbacks stir curiosity.

Family still seeking justice

Pierce College student’s death nearing one-year anniversary

Sienna Jackson/ Roundup

Photographs line the walls of the Granada Hills home, of a young man with deep brown eyes and dark hair. It’s a warm Saturday afternoon.

Beams of sunlight catch on the glass frames. His bedroom is on the first floor, off the living room. It’s open and airy, with hardwood floors and a window that looks over the backyard. The bed is freshly made, clothes and other belongings tucked neatly away in the wall length closet.

The room is bright, warm and lived in. But its former occupant, Pierce College student Gombert Yepremyan, has been dead for almost a year. “He was a good man. [A] very calm, very nice boy, his first goal was to become an astro-

naut,” said Ani Atajyan, Yepremyan’s mother, seated on a sofa beside a photograph of her son. “He was very interested in the stars. He was always searching, searching, searching to know more, more, more, and he never gave me half his time,” she said, wringing her long, thin fingers. Yepremyan, known as Mike to friends and family, was killed Nov. 18, 2009 due to an argument over a text message he had sent to his girlfriend, Denielle Wegrzyn. He sent the text to Wegrzyn early in the evening to complain about her companion, now 21-year-old Kat Vardanian.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Yepremyan’s message read: “every time u hang out with that bitch u guys get hookah. Is there something cool bout her n hookah that u enjoy so much? [sic]”

That text set off a chain of phone calls and text messages between Vardanian, her brother and cousin, and an unknown man, all culminat-

ing in a late-night confrontation in a Sears parking lot in North Hollywood, where Yepremyan was fatally shot.

The shooter, an unidentified man, and Vardanian’s cousin, 22-year old Vahagn Jurian, fled from the scene in a black BMW with no license plates, which was later found by police.

So far, no one involved in the shooting has been convicted for Yepremyan’s death. Vardanian, who was arrested and charged for murder nearly five months after the shooting, was dropped of murder charges during a preliminary hearing in April.

Anthony Brooklier, Vardanian’s attorney, would not return calls from a reporter. Her next hearing on a lesser charge of conspiracy will be in November, marking the one year anniversary of Mike’s death.

SEE TEXT MESSAGE ON PAGE #3

“We estimate that [California] community colleges have spent over $5 million in fees and interest to borrow money to compensate for the late budget and cash deferrals the state has imposed on community colleges,” added Lay. “This could have funded 1,200 community college classes, at a time where students are being turned away every day.”

While Pierce College has not needed to borrow money to cover expenses—instead relying on a reserve fund of around $9 million— four other LACCD colleges have borrowed money through the Los Angeles County Office of Education this past year.

Burke-Kelly said that with Pierce’s reserve fund, the college could last without intervention from the state through December. “It’s hard to know what they’ll cut back on. If you’re funded by the state, they can come back and take that funding from you,” she said. The budget’s late approval also froze Cal Grant payments for more than 60 percent of community college students for the fall semester. Even with the budget passed, it is uncertain of how soon money will reach colleges or their students.

“Considering how bad the budget situation is in California, I think we’ve done as well as can be expected,” said Burke-Kelly. For the full story go therounduponline.netto

*Additional reporting by Rosalinda

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Burke-Kelly becomes collegeʼs 21st president

There are many changes going on at Pierce College, and one of the biggest has been the addition of the newest president, Dr. Kathleen Burke-Kelly, on Aug. 1.

“I am deeply committed to the role community colleges play in providing access to quality higher education for diverse populations,” she said.

Burke-Kelly has 29 years of experience as a community college educator. She has worked in the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) since 2001, where she was the dean of East Los Angeles College for five years, then served as vice president of academic affairs at

Los Angeles Mission College, Los Angeles City College and Los Angeles Trade Technical College.

Before working for the LACCD, she started her community college career at Glendale Community College, first as a professor teaching art history, then went on to become the division chair for visual and performing arts for 10 years. She then left that position to work at East Los Angeles College in 2001.

Dr. Burke-Kelly is a community college graduate herself, having completed her general education requirements at Glendale Community College.

“She was exceptionally well qualified,” said Mona Field, a trustee with the Los Angeles

Community College Board of Trustees. “She has a really strong sense of all the details of running a college.”

Dr. Joy McCaslin, who served as interim president of Pierce last year, also had tips to give Burke-Kelly.

“My advice to her would be to get to know as many college employees and community members as possible. People genuinely want to see the college succeed, and they are ready to help,” McCaslin added.

For the full story go therounduponline.netto

Amber-Rose Kelly / Roundup

MOURNING: Ani Atajyan displays a photograph of her son, Gombert Yepremyan. Yepremyan was fatally shot last year in a Sears parking lot.

Sienna Jackson/ Roundup

Amber-Rose Kelly /

New president Kathleen Burke-Kelly took

Rosalinda Pena/ Roundup

Jerry Brown for governor

The Roundup has decided that Whitman isn’t worth it

California is in a dire fiscal crisis, buckling under the weight of a $19.9 billion deficit. We have a broken education system that continues to suffer from demoralizing budget cuts. The 12.4 percent unemployment rate in California overshadowing the national average. And Politician after politician promising to do something about it.

But with the Nov. 2 election less than a month away, who will actually do it?

The next governor of California will inherit all the problems their predecessors couldn’t fix or made worse, and the two leading candidates couldn’t have less in common. Any election, and especially this gubernatorial election, is about who is the best person for the job. And that candidate is not Meg Whitman.

Whitman, the former eBay CEO, is just that, a CEO. Whitman has served as an executive for Proctor & Gamble, The Walt Disney Company, DreamWorks and Hasbro, but has never been elected to public office.

Her only political experience was when she served on Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney’s and Arizona Senator John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaigns. McCain mentioned her for Secretary of Treasury if he was elected.

Not only does she have no political experience, she hasn’t voted for 28 years, according to the Sacramento Bee, who went through the California voting

records.

Whitman’s campaign has focused heavily on illegal immigration, in which she proposed completing the construction of the border wall, even though she was recently accused of knowingly employing an illegal immigrant.

She’s also taking a stance on education. Whitman proposes reforming the welfare system in order to fund the CSU and UC school systems.

But she also wants to refuse illegal immigrants access to

Eli Peun/ Roundup

higher education, including community colleges, despite launching a Spanish language campaign saying that, “Latino kids attending public schools in California today will be tomorrow's doctors, engineers, businessmen and teachers.”

Brown is currently California attorney general and has been in politics for nearly 50 years. Born in San Francisco, he served as governor of California from 1975-1983, after serving as California Secretary of State (1971-1975).

In his time as governor, Brown was identified as a “fiscal conservative,” opposed the Vietnam War, focused on environmental issues during his terms, and refused many of the perks usually afforded to governors such as living in the newly constructed governors mansion and using a limousine.

Under Brown, the state saw one of the largest budget surpluses in history. In the 2008 election, Brown opposed Proposition 8, the proposition that would ban same sex marriage, one of the only attorney generals to oppose an electorate approved proposition.

And while his credentials should speak for themselves, there is one thing on his resume that speaks the loudest: Brown served on the first ever Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) board of trustees.

In 1969, Brown ran for a seat on the newly formed LACCD, placing first in a field of 124 candidates. Brown’s education plan includes a focus on community colleges, and believes that the 110-campus system plays a vital role in student’s education.

California is experiencing one of the greatest economic crisis’ in the states history, with the education system and job markets collapsing around us. We need a politician who knows, loves and cares for the people of this state, not a businesswoman who’s never even tried to improve it.

Brown might not be the perfect candidate, but we could do a hell of a lot worse.

Prop 19 draws mixed views about drugs and deficits in California

belong in this classification, then the studies that have been unable to find any long-term adverse effects of cannabis but many positive short-term uses should do the job.

Transfer bill wonʼt transfer to every school

Thank you for your article, “Transfer made easy.”

Unfortunately, SB1440 does not magically make transfer easy. It is an ambiguous, feelgood bill—and far from the “clear pathway” it claims to be.

This bill states that students are “eligible to transfer…when the student meets prescribed requirements.”

Wait—“Prescribed requirements”? What are those? Such details have not been specified by CSUs/UCs.

For years, the CCs and the CSUs/UCs have attempted to identify universally-accepted course sequences for transfer. We have tried—and failed— each time.

Until we succeed at that complex endeavor, this bill has no teeth and guarantees nothing.

One thing is “clear,” however: Senator Padilla is running for re-election in November, and likely wants to

be California Governor in the future. The bill “clearly” helps his re-election hopes but it does little else.

Finally, I’d like to side with the CSUs and UCs: not every CC student should automatically be granted transfer after completing a “prescribed” course sequence. The quality of CCs varies widely across our state. Some CCs are marginal, or on probation. Slamming the 4-years by “mandating” they take all students does them disservice.

Pierce and other colleges should compete for spots at these campuses. Let the universities pick our best students, and this will raise the bar and encourage improved performance at all colleges.

—Dr. Pamela Brown Associate professor of economics

Dustin Johnson/ Roundup

The time has come to release this country, this state, and every day citizens from the burden that was created when marijuana was criminalized.

Passing Proposition 19 on Nov. 2 is the best thing for everyone.

Since the Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970, marijuana (cannabis) became recognized as a schedule 1 drug, which puts it in the same category as Heroine and MDMA.

According to the Controlled Substances Act, a schedule I drug is defined as a drug or other substance that has a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision.

Billions of dollars have been wasted on the misguided attempt to control the consumption and availability of marijuana in the United States, where roughly 100 million people (roughly one-third of the population) admit to having used cannabis and 15 million of them did so in the past month according to the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.

and easier for the government to regulate.

While denying our government potential billions in tax revenues, marijuana’s illegal status also supports drug cartels. It is reported that over 60 percent of their revenue is generated from the sale of marijuana in the U.S. Market. Proposition 19 will make it legal in the state of California for anyone over the age of 21 to posses, transport, and share no more than an ounce for individual consumption.

in outstanding general obligation bonds, and an additional $42.8 billion in authorized but unissued bonds.

To compensate, budget cuts have been flying left and right, and taxes seem to be increasing on a regular basis.

On top of that, more than 400 California small businesses (medical marijuana dispensaries) have been forced to shut down just in this past year.

Proposition 19 wastes any potential that may have come with the decriminalization of marijuana. It is simply a message from our state government that pot smoking has become a status quo and they are too lazy to fight it.

The semantics of this policy leave much to be desired, and there are quite a few apparent loose ends.

Prop 19 resolves to save millions of dollars from the costs of upholding marijuana-related laws, but the frequency of a crime is not the issue.

government in such an unflattering light that California would be a public service announcement away from encouraging citizens to “spark up” because it will help stimulate the economy.

One of the stipulations of Prop 19 is that employers will have limited ability to address a subordinate’s marijuana usage unless in a situation where job performance is impaired.

Trucking companies and school bus drivers will no longer be required to be drug free as a result, according to the 2010 Official Voter Information Guide. Such drivers will not be held accountable until after they have an accident that resulted from marijuana usage.

Prop 19 encourages passivity, preferring that companies and employers throw pro-activity to the wayside and only react to a work-related mishap after it occurs. Why should employers be forced to place their business performance under the inherent risks of a “wait and see” attitude?

The most common rebuttal to the legalization of marijuana is the safety of the nation’s youth.

According to the Monitoring the Future Survey—an annual survey of attitudes and drug use among the nation’s high school students showed that 32.8 percent of 12th graders had used marijuana. This means that 32 percent of high school teens have come in contact with drug dealers and people classified as criminals.

In addition, it will allow cultivation of marijuana on private property, reserve the rights of businesses to prohibit marijuana use for employees during work hours, and will prohibit smoking in public, while driving, and in the presence of minors.

This means law enforcement will have more time and resources to focus on solving violent crimes instead of targeting, trying, convicting, and imprisoning nonviolent citizens.

All of this comes during arguably the deepest recession to ever hit the nation, with a rising state unemployment rate that is currently at 12.8 percent.

Studies show that public opinion on marijuana has been shifting; we’ve been leaning towards legalization for over a decade.

As a leader of the progressive states it’s time for California to accept the future, set an example, and help itself.

Attack the problem at its source: our state budget has suffered from mismanagement for many years, and one of the many results is that our law enforcement is stretched too thin.

Under Prop 19, marijuana will be held to the same standards as alcohol; it will be illegal to smoke in public, in the presence of minors, and while driving.

Clearly, this is no longer true.

If reason alone cannot deduct that this once legal and still most commonly used drug doesn’t

If marijuana is legalized, it would make it just as difficult for minors to buy as alcohol and cigarettes. Neither of those substances, which are arguably worse than marijuana, are currently being sold on a black market or by drug dealers. Instead, they are being sold in convenience stores and the likes where it is cheaper

According to The Board of Equalization, proposition 19 would yield and extra $1.9 billion in tax revenue, money that can be used to fund education, transportation, public safety and more.

Over the past 7 years the state’s debt has nearly tripled. State Treasurer Bill Lockyer reported that the state now has $77.8 billion

It’s time to open the door and make room for the real issues. With the current burdens this state and its citizens face, there’s no place for petty laws and restrictions that create burdens on everyone.

Vote yes on Prop 19 along with the United States Surgeon General, Los Angeles Police Department, and the District Attorney, (just to name a few supporters), and let this problem be a thing of the past.

Lail Stockfish/ Roundup lstockfish.roundupnews@gmail.com

The government also wants to add a tax to marijuana, and funnily enough, such an implementation could backfire. Perhaps marijuana users will not want to pay the additional costs and will continue to obtain the product from dealers with all transactions being done under the table.

Marijuana sales from an unregistered and unlicensed establishment would still be illegal under Prop 19, and law enforcement officials will still have to maintain that aspect of the law. As a result, the attempt to save money in law enforcement will be rendered futile.

Personally, I feel that taxing marijuana would paint the state

However, there is no clear definition as to what constitutes being “under the influence” of marijuana. Additionally, there are no available methods, tests, or objectives for police to utilize in order to determine just how “under the influence” a driver is.

Prop 19 is a flawed policy leaving too many gray areas and illustrating the state government’s defeatist attitude in succumbing to a status quo instead of trying to raise it to higher standards.

Before the legalization of marijuana can ever become a reality, many small details must be ironed out and the government needs major priority realignment.

Professor goes political

Pam Brown runs for lieutenant governor

Dustin Johnson/ Roundup

This November, when citizens go to cast their votes, they will see a Pierce College professor on the ballot.

Professor of economics Dr. Pamela Brown is a libertarian who has her sights set on the position of lieutenant governor. Her intension is to settle the chaos that has plagued the state’s economy.

“People are sick of the same failed, corrupt politicians and grossly mismanaged budgets,” said Brown. “They’re tired of continuing high unemployment, late state budgets and hundreds of billions in state debt handed off to our young people.”

This is not her first time she has taken part in an election. In 2006 she ran for California senator, and in 2008, she ran for state assembly.

While the economy is a strong focus of her self-managed campaign, another platform is education reform, according to her website www.cawantsfreedom.com.

She proposes that greater competition among schools will aid in bringing down tuition costs and

help bring up test scores.

“Public schools do a very poor job of educating students without competition from non-profit, charter and for-profit education centers,” she said. “Competition among schools encourages rapid improvement and increases student success.”

Brown is not a supporter of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), believing they inhibit the free market sentiment.

“Most of my colleagues are good enough to compete without a union,” she said. “Many of them are underpaid [due] to collective bargaining. Promoting is based on seniority, not skills [or] success in the classroom or superior performance.”

Around campus, Brown has found support in her decision to run for office.

“I think it’s always a plus if we can have people who really know community colleges run for public office,” said Kathleen Burke-Kelly, president of Pierce College. “That helps strengthen our position on state legislature.”

Professor of physics and astronomy Don Sparks and president of AFT’s Pierce College chapter, who endorses Democrat Jerry Brown’s

gubernatorial campaign. Despite the difference of political views he remains supportive of Pam Brown.

“She is free to her opinion,” said Sparks. “As a faculty member she does well in the classroom. I’m delighted to see anyone [from Pierce] running.”

History Professor Richard Skidmore is an avid supporter of Brown, both as a fellow faculty member but also of what she promotes.

“Isn’t it exciting to have a faculty member from our community college to step up to the plate and run for lieutenant governor regardless of political party?” he said. “She wants students to come out of college and be able to think critically and not follow propaganda and indoctrination they received before coming to Pierce.”

Brown is confident that her policies reflect what 80 percent of Californians want and, as an economist, she can bring much-needed relief to the state budget crisis.

“I have the abilities needed to lead and I know which think-tanks and outside experts should be brought in to create legislation and the reforms needed,” Brown said.

djohnson.roundupnews@gmail.com

Memorial service for Levick Friday

A memorial service for Sharon Levick, the economics professor who died July 14 after suffering a brain aneurism, will take place this Friday at 3:30 p.m. in the Great Hall.

Levick, a Pierce professor of eight years, is survived by her husband and twin daughters

The service, which has been in

the works since the summer, will feature an introduction with short messages of condolence followed by an open mic.

Chair of Political Science, Economics and Criminal Justice Kathy Oborn, Chairsperson of Philosophy and Sociology Anna Bruzzese, office assistant of Honors Chris Lauterdale and English Professor Dr. Richard Follett, in addition to others

Anniversary of murder victim looms

community view these guys, Mike’s killers, as gods,” he said. “The people who did this, they’re real animals. Barbarians.”

“I want her to go to jail. What else? She killed my son,” said Atajyan. Meanwhile, Mike’s father, Art Yepremyan, has continued his own investigation into Mike’s murder with the help of a Beverly Hills private investigator, John J. Nazarian, who has been working pro bono for the Yepremyan family since last December.

“I feel like I’ve known this family for twenty years,” said Nazarian, sitting with the family in their backyard. “The only thing that Mr. and Mrs. Yepremyan did wrong was believe in the system.”

home for work. The last time they would ever speak would be by phone.

collaborated on organizing the event.

Follett, the event’s master of ceremonies, is coordinating a list for people who would like to speak at the service.

Follett can be reached at: folletrj@piercecollege.edu.

The service is expected to last an hour and a half.

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Los Angeles police detectives in the North Hollywood division that handled the shooting did not return calls.

Nazarian, a third-generation Armenian, believes that the shooter and Jurian returned to the United States after fleeing the country in the days after the shooting, and are now being hidden by ‘certain elements’ of the Armenian community in California.

“Everybody in the Armenian

A formal dedication ceremony and reception for the Center for the Sciences (CFS) building is scheduled Friday at 12:30 p.m. in the center’s courtyard.

The $57 million investment is the largest project in Pierce’s history. The building is already in use and opened at the beginning of the semester.

Funding for the building came from the Los Angeles Community College District’s (LACCD) Substantial

Beside him, Art nods, eyes cast down towards his shoes.

“I don’t believe they’re going to help,” said Art of the local community. “They’re not going to help, and I won’t ask them for help,” he said.

The Yepremyan family moved from Armenia when Mike was 6, to search out a new life for their family. After working in various markets and shops in the Valley, Art found a steady career at a flooring company.

Occasionally, he accompanies Nazarian on his investigations, serving both as translator and mediator for Nazarian, who speaks no Armenian.

The lack of closure for the Yepremyan family has left them frozen in grief. In the months after his son’s death, Art’s hair has become greyer, and he’s lost weight.

On that morning in November, the last day that Art would ever see his son, he was sleeping in his bedroom. Art had peaked in to check on him before he left

Building Program, the district’s $6 billion building program--made possible by voter approved bond measures.

The two story building that covers more than 100,000 square feet features six separate sections that consist of six lecture labs, 22 labs and a planetarium.

All six sections (chemistry, life sciences, nursing, planetary science, physics and the veterinary clinic) include state-of-the-art features. The planetary science

“He had been happy, laughing. He was really, really happy,” Art said, hands clenched. “He was a good boy, he never gave me any troubles.”

Atajyan’s eyes are redrimmed. “Every single day when he came home from work, he hugged me and kissed me and said, did you miss me? And I said, I did, I did,” said Atajyan, voice breaking.

Atajyan and her husband received a call from a local hospital the morning after Mike’s death. They weren’t told over the phone that their son was dead.

“When they called me from the hospital, I don’t know… I just know one thing, I love him so much, I want him back,” she sobbed, putting her face in her hands. “I want them to answer for this, all of them, the girl, the cousin, the killer. All of them.”

Friday

section is comprised of telescopes that are allocated on a large deck outside the planetarium. The veterinary section includes a small veterinary hospital, which the general public can take pets to for vaccinations and medical issues on weekends.

Classes offered in the CFS are: anatomy, astronomy, biology, marine biology microbiology, oceanography, physiology geology and physics.

Water-efficient

irrigation, low-emission interior materials, variable speed air conditioning and heating that automatically adjusts, in addition to other features makes this a environmentally friendly building that exceeds state requirements by more than 30 percent. Free parking will be available for the event in Parking Lot 7 and 9.

Amber-Rose Kelly / Roundup

REMEMBERENCE: A shrine made by Gombert Yepremyanʼs aunt hangs on the wall in the living room of the familyʼs home.

Bryan Melara / Roundup

Bryan Melara / Roundup

Campus radio station draws crowds

and Hey You!

“It was good, definitely a bigger crowd than we thought,” said Jeff Sandstoe the program director of KPCRadio.com.

KPCRadio.com had their first ever live music event in the Great Hall at Pierce College on Oct 6. Performers at the event included Juliet Piper, Cadence, Johnny Got A Lighter, ACIDIC

Asked what he thought of this first venture into a live music event Sandstoe said, “For the first event it went very well.”

Sandstoe thought the crowd, “Thinned out around 10 o’clock,” but overall he was pleased.

There are currently no more live music events planned this year.

However, Sandstoe said, “We definitely plan on having more events, not [necessarily] a music event, it’s not on the agenda, we want to diversify, to do a couple more things.”

One of the events coming up will be a giant bike ride. Sandstoe wants to involve the community and “get the word out” about the radio station. Sandstoe wants everyone to know that the station is about news, music and talk.

“We want to do something with a little more substance, well-rounded, maybe a panel discussion,” he added.

As the live music continued

the crowd appeared to be delighted with the performers.

The singer Juliet Piper was the opening act. She sang and played acoustic guitar.

“The night was exciting for me, I enjoy performing on stage. I have been writing songs since I was very little. Music is

definitely my main passion,” Piper said.

Piper is currently pursuing her studies in world cultures and art with the hope of attending UCLA.

Irene Walton, a Taft High School junior said, “I think Juliet was incredible; it was an intimate setting…good for her. I really enjoyed the evening and all of the music.”

The bands also enjoyed the evening in the Great Hall.

Rhiana Lewis, guitar player and lead singer for the Indie band Johnny Got a Lighter said, “Thanks to all our friends and

fans for coming out, it was a good time.”

The band Hey You! got the crowd on its feet, dancing to all of their songs. Many in the crowd said they liked Hey You! because their music was easy to dance to.

Lead singer for the band, Kyle Tkatch said, “We have the best fans in the world, devoted to us. This was a good venue; intimate…had a good time tonight.”

Sandstoe agreed when he wrapped up the evening by saying, “All and all the event went very well…keep on listening, checking in on KPCRadio.com, see what we’re doing next, we’ll see you soon.”

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Come rain or shine

The weather station’s popularity is rising from grants and their web site

As he looks up to the sun that shines brightly, he wipes perspiration from his head.

He kneels down and grabs the soil sensor dug 20 millimeters deep underneath the ground, then checks his notebook and compares the temperatures from earlier.

Running back to the shack, he types in the calculations on his computer and instantly they are placed on the web for the world to see.

This is a typical Monday morning for Steve Woodruff, a certified weather observer and volunteer for the Los Angeles Pierce Colleges Weather Station.

Recently, the station has been awarded by Congressman Brad Sherman an $85,000 grant funded by the Global National Oceanographic Atmosphere Administration (NOAA).

The grant will be used to expand the station, install cameras for weather observations and to build in a new 20-foot tower.

Woodruff will be building and constructing the new tower that will be added into the station.

He is no stranger to this work since he built the automated system for the station in 1999.

“Pierce’s weather station has improved due to new technologies which permit it to operate with little human intervention,”

William Reid said, a storm chaser and certified weather observer at Van Nuys Airport.

Pierce’s station is one of the oldest

weather stations in the nation, with countless data that dates back to over a century ago.

The weather station was founded by A. Lee Haines July 1, 1949.

Thirty-seven years later, in 1986, the station was passed onto William Russell, the current director who works with Woodruff.

Woodruff became involved with the station after Professor Russell asked for volunteers and he was quick to jump on the opportunity.

The stations popularity comes from a mixture of old observational techniques and new modernized machinery. It’s known for its reliability and accuracy in data observations.

The data observations can be found on the weather stations website that was made by Woodruff in 1999.

“I created the website 11 years ago, having authored all its text and graphical content and desire to spread basic knowledge of some science behind atmospheric physics,” said Woodruff. “I wanted everyone to be able to access the data and not have to call in and ask.”

The station has 10 minute updates that can be viewed on the data sheets.

The new grant money will allow for cameras to be built in the station.

It will be directly installed in the data system and pictures will be uploaded instantly for viewers to see.

The weather station is part of the “A” network, which is the basic climate network for the National Weather Society.

“The weather station is used to describe the climate of the United States,” said

Dessa Emch, Data Acquisition and Surface Observing Program Manager. “The fact that Pierce College has held maximum and minimum air temperature extremes for the entire Los Angeles Basin, climate data is highly sought after by a variety of customers.”

The station’s web site enabled to have a following that ranged all over the world from Cairo, Michigan, Belgium, Germany, NASA.

The web site has also become a helpful tool for the local community.

Farm workers and firefighters check the updates regularly to see how the weather may or may not affect their day.

“When accidents have occurred and somebody is hurt really badly or it could be fatal, we look up the weather data and put that information in the report,” said Officer Bledsoe From California Highway Patrol. Woodruff is still in the process of trying to build a sign so visitors are able to find the location of the weather station without any hassle.

“Weather affects every person on the planet on a continuous basis- and directly affects mankind’s livelihood,” said Reid. “One would be hard-pressed to argue that weather is of little importance.”

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It’s Wednesday evening at Pierce College and a crowd shuffles in.

Students coming to take Kathy Oborn’s Introduction to Administration of Justice class fill the auditorium-style classroom as a bubbly teacher walks in.

Kathy Oborn, the chair of the Political science/Economics/Criminal justice/Latino studies department, is a legend at Pierce College.

She has created a system for her students to follow in order to transfer effortlessly to a California State University and earn an AA degree from Pierce.

Oborn caters to all of her students and her Wednesday night class was no exception.

“It’s easier if you roll each others fingers, that way you get a clean print,” she instructed to her class. “It’s just like in the movies.”

Oborn, a parent of seven, first came to Pierce as a student in 1972.

In 1996 she returned to Pierce as a Dean of Student Services.

After the Dean Reduction

Program in 2002, eliminating positions at all of the junior colleges in the district, she became a criminal justice instructor.

“She teaches a lot about your rights,” said freshmen Supo Ojeikere. “Stuff that people don’t really think about.”

She was instrumental in bringing in a judge, a deputy district attorney and a retired police lieutenant to teach criminal justice classes.

“We’re not a police program,” she said. “We focus on the justice system as a whole. We’re an academic track.”

Oborn has no budget for supplies and chooses to bring many of her materials from her home including FBI fingerprint cards, print pads, and magnifying glasses.

Her friendly manner makes her approachable and it is because of that, many students have been enticed into the criminal justice program after taking one of her courses.

“I took her Administration of Justice class and I wanted to learn more,” said Maty Leimert, a criminal justice major.

After 38 years of being a part of the Pierce community, Oborn still works hard so her students have the best time. “My

Rick Ramirez/ Roundup

NEW TOWER: William H. Russell, the current director of the station, poses with the Pierce weather stationʼs newest addition, which was paid for by a government grant.

Vanessa Sahawi/ Roundup

Story by Kat Mabry & James Hermon

Photos by UD

The Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) club at Pierce College hosted its first annual Matthew Shepard Remembrance Day demonstration.

According to Julian Brown, the event coordinator for the GSA, the purpose was to bring attention to the club, a group on campus that “cares about equal rights, not only as members of GSA but as students at Pierce.”

The two part demonstration began in the free speech zone, located south of the Country Cafe and concluded in the Great Hall with a viewing of “The Laramie Project.”

In lieu of the recent suicides of gay individuals, GSA made a visual demonstration complete with

Deadly Words

a recreation of the scene where Shepard was found beaten beyond recognition and left tied to a fence on Oct. 7, 1998. His face was covered in blood aside from where his tears had fallen.

Shepard succumbed to his injuries five days later and died at Proudre Valley Hospital Oct. 12, 1998.

“With his death, [Shepard’s] parents and friends really got motivated to add homosexuality to the list of what [was] classified as a hate crime,” said Sarah Gerson, a GSA member.

The Matthew Shepard Act was passed on Oct. 22 2009 and signed into Congress by President Barak Obama six days later to expand the United States federal hate crime law to include sexual orientation.

Still Unbeaten

Brahmas defeat Santa Monica 2-0, shutout streak now at eight.

Maybe it’s the up-beat warm-up music featuring top 40 artists, or the large “Go Pierce, Go” banner painted on the grassy hillside at the edge of the pitch, or it could just be the line- up and coaching staff.

Whatever it is, Pierce’s women’s soccer team is on a roll, collecting yet another win Friday against the Santa Monica College Corsairs.

The Brahmas were up 2-0 when the referee blew the final whistle declaring another win for the still undefeated Pierce women’s soccer team, and putting an end to the physical match.

It was the ninth win of the season for the Brahmas, and eighth consecutive shutout for goalkeeper Marissa Graska.

“It was a team shutout,” said Graska. “This team was very hungry to score, and the defense shut

them down.”

Pierce was the favorite to win against the less impressive SMC Corsairs (3-1-5), but it didn’t come easy.

The game had an exciting start with three consecutive Pierce attacks on the SMC net. The Corsairs made their own rebuttal, forcing a diving save that had the crowd bursting in cheers for Graska.

It became a battle of brute and determination, with both teams going head to head for loose balls, producing frequent whistles from the referee. Some of the whistles resulted in yellow cards. Three were handed out Friday.

“We knew they were going to be physical, we knew they had it out for us, everything we expected to happen, happened,” said Head Coach Adolfo Perez.

Vangsness, who took a ball straight to the face said, “that’s

their goal, to beat Pierce every time, so we knew they’d be rough.”

Briana Behrad scored the first goal in the 28th minute, silencing the SMC cheering section.

“It felt really good,” said Behrad. “I worked so hard. We all work really, really hard. That’s probably why we win every game.”

Soon after, Erica Vangsness collected her 13th goal of the season, surpassing her last season total, and tying the Pierce all-time record for most goals scored in a season (12).

“It’s nice to surpass last season’s record, and my next goal will [be to] beat the all-time goals scored record,” said Vangsess. “But my real goal is to win.”

Despite the win over former player SMC Head Coach Aaron Benditson, Perez was disappointed in the team’s performance.

“It’s always exciting to play

—FOOTBALL—

The Brahma tailback had a great game on the road against Glendale College Saturday night. The 5’10”, 180 pound sophomore from San Fernando High School rushed for 100 yards on 12 carries scoring 2 touchdowns. Lopez is the team’s leading rusher on the season with 290 yards.

—SOCCER—

someone I coached, but this was a tough one, a very tough one, ” said Perez. “The only good thing about this game was that we won, but this was not one of our better efforts. We were out-worked; that’s the disappointing part.”

Benditson was not as disappointed in his team’s effort.

“We knew we were playing against a quality opponent. The goal was to make a great showing for ourselves and we did. I was happy with the back-and-forth; it was exciting and both teams had opportunities,” said Benditson. “They exploited our mistakes. That’s how the game works.”

The Brahmas are now at 10-0-1 for the season and 4-0 in the Southern Division of the Western State Conference.

lstockfish.roundupnews@gmail.com

Making her second appearance on this list, Graska has to be mentioned after recording her 8th consecutive shutout for the undefeated Brahma soccer team. The 5’11” sophomore from Rockwell High School in Texas is statistically the best goalie in the state, and arguably the nation.

—SOCCER—

This freshman forward from nearby Taft High School scored a goal Friday against Santa Monica during the Brahma’s 2-0 victory. Her team is still ranked No. 2 team in the state and Behrad is one the team’s leading goal scorers so far this season.

Lail Stockfish/ Roundup

Joe Kukuczka / Roundup

OUCH: Erica Vangsness takes a hard kick to the jaw from Cassidy Ragus during Pierceʼs matchup against Santa Monica College last Friday.

DANIEL LOPEZ

BRIANA BEHRAD

MARISSA GRASKA

Photos by UD / Roundup

Compiled by Mark Gillman

The sun has just set behind the Performing Arts building, leaving John Shepard stadium bathed in shadow.

Head coach Efrain Martinez surveys his team as they warm up before the kickoff, stalking back and forth across the field.

“It really doesn’t matter how I feel, I always feel good [about a game],” he said.

He watches two of his players, quarterbacks Exavier Johnson and Clinton Granger as they move through some warm up plays.

“This is really unique, these two quarterbacks,” he said with pride.

For the first time that anyone on the field can recall, the Brahmas are using a two-quarterback system, with Johnson and Granger as their star players.

“They’re that good. They’re both Division 1 players, they’re

Better with Two

Pierce dual quarterback system a winning experiment

GRANGER JOHNSON

both really competitive,” Martinez continues, arms folded across his chest.

The two-quarterback system has never been a winning strategy in football, and for good reason. Clashing egos, discordant playing styles, and uneven levels of skill can break a team.

For Martinez, it’s his quarterbacks’ talent that makes this finicky system a logical choice.

“They complement each other, they have no animosity towards each other,” he explains.

“If one was at this level, and the other was at [a lower] level, it

wouldn’t work. But they’re both very similar in style and in ability. They’re both strong players.”

During game warm ups, whether its Johnson or Granger getting the start, the two stand at full attention on the sidelines as the first play begins to the roars of the crowd.

This is the first season that Martinez has ever used two quarterbacks, giving Pierce “the best offense in the state of California,” he said. “It may have been done before, but not with this caliber of quarterbacks.”

Throughout the game Johnson and Granger share the field evenly, one playing two series before switching off to the other.

It’s an odd dynamic, as both are as much in competition with each other as they are with the opposing team.

“They push each other and want the other to succeed,” said Jim Thornton, offensive coordinator for the Brahmas since 2008. “We kind of let them play out to see if one

would rise above the other.”

The two have remained even throughout the season.

“Johnson is more flamboyant than Granger. And Granger is more patient,” he said. “They’re both leaders, but Exavier is more of a natural leader than Clinton. Clinton’s more of a quiet, reserved guy, it doesn’t come to him as naturally but he’s getting there.”

Thornton said that their different personalities complement each other.

“If they were bickering or disagreeing with each other all the time, this wouldn’t work,” he said. “Granger and Johnson are both hoping to go as far as they can in the game, and that drive doubles as their greatest strength, as well as their greatest weakness.”

The two quarterbacks, by most accounts, tend to force things because they want to make things happen.

When Granger throws a goahead touchdown pass down the field, Johnson grins and claps his

hands together.

“As he goes, we go; he’s going to be an awesome quarterback,” Johnson said later. “I’m gonna make him better just as much as he’s gonna make me better.”

The styles of the two Brahma quarterbacks are similar—both play aggressively and favor the shotgun pass—but even from the stands you can see the difference in temperament.

When Granger is on the field, the deliberation in his style in play is visible. Every step he takes is quick and measured, searching for that opportune moment before his arm cocks back to make the pass.

While Granger’s in play, freshman Johnson stands alert, shifting his weight from side to side in anticipation for his turn.

When Johnson gets on the field, he zips back and forth almost too fast for the eye to follow, bobbing and weaving through the opposing team with kinetic energy.

Granger waits patiently, watching from the benches or practicing

his throws as Johnson plays.

“Knowing they both came from Division 1 colleges, it’s been amazing,” said Brahma wide-receiver Kenny Davis. “They taught me a lot of things, they taught me to work harder, how fast it’s like to play at that level, working with them has been like working with Brett Favre or Joe Montana. From the first day, it’s been amazing. Exavier is my god brother.”

During the final minutes of the fourth quarter during Pierce’s 4238 loss to Long Beach City College Oct. 2, Granger leaped into the air to make a pass, but came down awkwardly, and his knee gave out from under him.

The players line up, and Granger watches from the bench, ice strapped to his knee as Johnson takes his position.

“We just motivate each other,” Granger said matter-of-factly after the game. “It is what it is, it’s just two different types of players.”

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Sienna Jackson/ Roundup

/ Roundup

POISE: Clinton Granger stays calm while in the pocket.

UD / Roundup

PASSION: Exavier Johnson remains fired up while on the gridiron.

Working with them has been like working with Brett Favre or Joe Montana.

-Kenny Davis Sophomore wide receiver