Student body elects Fall 2017 Assosiated Students Organization executive board

MADELINE MARTINEZ

Copy Editor @madisaysso

The Associated Students Organization (ASO) executive board candidates hit the Mall hard as they tried to sway students to vote for them on April 26 and 27.

Efren Lopez was elected president by a 260-148 vote. Janvi “Isha”

Pasricha won the vice president position, 306-109. Matthew Aguilera was approved for treasurer 360-8, and Kosar Afsari was approved for club council president 365-9.

While campaigning, the ASO candidates pushed hard each day through the hot weather to engage with students and promote their platforms.

“Campaigning has been so hard,” Pasricha said. “I was getting up early at six o’clock in the morning, and coming here at seven, putting up my posters. It is really tenacious as you have to talk to people, give flyers out to really get your message out there and show who is the better candidate.”

But Pasricha said being out there was also energizing.

“I enjoyed my time campaigning because this is something I am really proud and passionate about. Putting any effort in it, it’s not a bother,” she said.

Pasricha said she is happy her campaign paid off.

“I believe the real hard work is just about to begin,” Pasrich said. “Now I have a great responsibility that I need to fulfill by doing more than what's expected of me if I want to make real changes on our campus.

I am looking forward to being in the position and working alongside President Efren Lopez to make our campus better.”

Professor Charles Johnson, who was monitoring the poll box, says the turnout was more than expected.

“It was much higher than the last previous couple of elections and went really well with a lot of participation. The candidates were very excited and were really advertising themselves and getting out there,” Johnson said.

Efron Lopez, president elect, is thankful for every student that came out to vote.

“We had a really amazing turnout, which means students are becoming more involved in the civic process that controls their college experience,” Lopez said.

Lopez said that he is up for the challenge of what his new position entitles.

“Now I will be acquiring all the responsibility that comes with the ASO presidency,” Lopez said. “That means being the voice of the students in this great and diverse campus. With the help of the upcoming Student Senate next year, I hope to accomplish a lot.”

Tara Makabi, vice presidential candidate, said she had a good time while out on the Mall.

“Campaigning has been interesting,” Makabi said. “I got to meet a lot of different people, and it is really cool getting to see all of the different types of personalities. It has been very fun, in my opinion, helping support our school.”

Makabi said the turnout has made her thankful for all of the students who participated.

“I think the voting went good,” Makabi said. “Intense, if you want the truth. People were out there voting, and I appreciate that, for whoever they voted for. As long as they were voting, that’s what matters.”

Makabi is proud that she stepped out of her bounds to try something she hasn’t done before.

“Of course I'm disappointed, but this was definitely such a different experience than what I'm used to,” Makabi said. “I've never taken chances or risks before. The Tara in

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New SIS, who this?

Students will be receiving an email notifying them of the new Student Information System (SIS). The program will allow students to view their course history and prepare to enroll in fall 2017 classes enacting a registration cycle.

Transfer day

On Thursday, May 4 the Transfer Center will be celebrating transfer students on their success in moving forward to four-year institutions on the Mall from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.. Games, food and prizes will be available for students.

Online W's

Sunday, May 7 is the last day for students taking online courses to drop with W’s.

Vaccine clinic

high school would have never run for VP of her school. So I'm so proud I did this.”

Shayna Lavi, presidential candidate, thanks her friend for being out there campaigning alongside her.

“It was amazing, mostly for the fact that I had Makobi right beside me,” Lavi said. “We did a lot of work, printing out fliers and huge posters. The biggest thing for us was actually talking to people. Putting fliers up is great, but without the human interaction aspect of things it wouldn’t matter.”

Lavi said she was curious about the results of her hard work and determination.

“I was interested in seeing the turnout even though I was very nervous. Either way, I am happy, I am glad I made the effort, I am glad I tried, I am glad that I did it,” Lavi said.

Next Sunday, May 13 the Veterinary Technology Program is organizing their Vaccine Clinic from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Center for Sciences Vet Tech Building. Pet owners can get their dogs and cats vaccinated with a recommended minimum donation of $20 and microchips at $30

UC Santa Cruz representative

We’ve all been there; walking across the parking lot under the blistering sun. Your car, after baking in that heat for hours, might as well be Death Valley in July. The steering wheel can’t be gripped, and the metal of the buckle could be used as a branding iron.

Installing more solar panels in parking lots could be beneficial for students who park on campus and continue to help the college’s electricity bill.

Locations such as the Staff Parking Lot near the south gym, the arts building and Parking Lot 6 are an example of how the solar panels can be integrated on campus.

The campus already leads the example in going green, so why not invest in conserving more energy?

In 2003, the school along with the district, launched the Green Power Extensive Program, which reduced the school’s electricity purchases by approximately 30 percent and their costs by $180,000 annually.

According to an article on businesswire.com, the project cost $4.1 million, of which $2 million were based on an offset and municipal rebates.

The parking lot near Shepard Stadium is one of many locations that can benefit solar panels. Shepard Stadium welcomes the community for home games for football and soccer. It provides extra parking for students who are not able to find a parking closer to their classrooms.

In a story The Roundup published in August 2010, the total cost to fund the project was roughly $8.7 million, which was a part of a $6 billion bond that Pierce proposed in November 2009.

Money shouldn’t be an issue because the college receives funds and donations all year long.

An article on

Kids in class

by Monica Villacorta

Students should be able to bring their children to class, alleviating their absence from school. Between getting your child ready in the morning and your child care plans failing, you have about one hour to figure out a new plan before eventually giving up and missing yet another day of class.

Although teen pregnancy has significantly gone down, according to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR), about a quarter of undergraduate students are raising kids while working toward their intended major.

Sure, many can argue that it’s our fault for deciding to have kids, but things happen, and now this is a reality for many students. The problem is real and affects a quarter of the student population, so why do we ignore it?

School systems are supposed to be built for the purpose of student success. There will be obstacles, and schools are there to help students navigate through it and still achieve their educational goals.

Daycares and babysitters are pricey, and students are already struggling enough as it is to pay for classes, books and living expenses. The average cost for daycare is $11,666 per year, according to an article in Babycenter. Most students would have to work to pay the daycare alone. The babysitter will probably make more than you do, so there goes that option.

For the full story vist theroundupnews.com renewableenergyworld.com said that the solar panels cover 20,000 square feet. The solar array generates enough power during the day to power 200 homes.

The article also mentions that emission reductions are equivalent to the planting of 520 acres of trees, not driving 4.5 million miles, or

ZACK ROME Reporter @datzackrome

Free speech is an integral part of our constitution. The First Amendment gives us freedoms that most countries do not have. If we bar people from handing out flyers on campus, not only are we restricting freedom of speech, but we are also setting the example that different opinions are not allowed on campus.

David Hudson, a law professor at Vanderbilt University who has written about free speech zones, was quoted in the Seattle Times saying, “I worry that when we talk about zoning speech, we’re really talking about limiting it.”

Hudson hit the nail right on the head. Free speech zones are just another way of restricting the people who are passing out flyers in the first place. When a college creates a free speech zone, the size of the zone is at the discretion of the college, and the students don’t get a say at all. This means your zone can be as little or big as the college you're attending wants it to be.

That doesn’t sound like free speech to me. A university provides a unique place where different ideas can clash in a friendly environment meant for education on both sides of the isle. College for students with differences to come together and listen to one another in a way that you just don’t find anywhere else.

"AsIwasgettingonthebusa guysaid,'Damn,IknewIsmelled chocolate.'" removing nearly 370 cars from the roadways in Los Angeles.

Parking Lot 7 is another location to install solar panels. Rather than cutting down the trees that are already planted, installing separate solar panels down the row can be an option.

Also, students will not have to

By not allowing outsiders to hand out flyers, or limiting the places in which people can speak, the message is being sent out to the students that their opinions don’t matter, and that their voice cannot be heard.

Pierce College made national headlines when a man named Kevin Shaw was told to stop handing out copies of the constitution at Pierce. School officials told him he needed to do so in the school’s free speech zone, and that he needed a permit, which is ridiculous.

Authur Willner, a lawyer working with the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) stated in the Portland Press Herald that, “At the very moment when colleges and universities should be encouraging open debate and the active exchange of ideas, Pierce College instead sends the message to its students that free speech is suspect and should be ever more tightly controlled.” worry about returning to their hot cars and burned seats, especially on a summer day, because the panels will be there to shade them.

Pierce completely sent the wrong message. If we want to be a campus that is accepting of all different types of backgrounds, religions and races, then we must allow people to speak their mind.

Free speech on campuses is how progress is made in our country. And if we constantly limit students on how to say or how to act with their opinion, then we are no worse than countries that control the media.

It could also provide shade, especially if he or she has a long way to walk, because they can take a breather.

This school is known for being

DANI NOVAZSKI Reporter @dnovazski

You’re rushing across campus, lugging your books as you power walk to make a class that starts in three minutes, when a stranger waving a flyer gets in your face and stops you. “Excuse me… Excuse me… Real quick…”

It happens all too often. Students on their way to class get stopped by someone outside of Pierce who is handing out flyers. Most of the time, this is unsolicited irritation for someone pursuing their education.

This sort of thing can be a big distraction. Advertisers can be aggressive. They sometimes do everything short of blockade students just to get their attention. Most of the time, students are not interested in whatever is being promoted and just feel awkward trying to get past the person passing out the flyer. A college student has enough on their mind, and shouldn’t have to worry about feeling uncomfortable walking through campus. Most of the flyers passed out end up in the trash. This is a huge waste of paper, and is not good for the environment. Many of these flyers don’t even make it to the trash and end up littering our campus. If people want to be solicited, they can opt in to electronic correspondence.

There could be even more troubling consequences allowing people outside of Pierce to pass out flyers. Their motives for being

“Idrinkdietsoda,becauseyouʼre theonlysugarIneed.”

-JoelGuzman,19,Accounting environmentally friendly. It’s time to take that extra step, and adding more panels will be beneficial for all students, faculty and staff.

“DoyouknowCPR?Ibetyouʼre goodatmouth-to-mouth.”

-CianaPapp,20,Mechanical Engineering on campus are not to pursue an education. This same person would likely not feel obligated to the same code of conduct that a student or staff member would be expected to uphold.

There is also the issue of safety, in many different respects. Allowing people outside of Pierce to freely pass out flyers on campus could provide a convenient alibi for someone with bad intentions, such as stealing or harming others.

When we allow people to pass out flyers, there is a suggestion that anybody is free to solicit at Pierce. I think our Free Speech Area should be designated for school related endeavors, such as promoting school clubs or services. Permitting people to pass out flyers may cause them to feel that they have the green light to collect signatures or badger people to sign up for gym memberships or newspaper subscriptions.

The issue with this sort of thing, is a rushed student may be inclined to oblige without consideration of where their information may be used. Furnishing private information to “change legislation” may or may not be legitimate, however, someone in a hurry is less likely to stop and request credentials.

I think it’s appropriate for people on campus to promote their agendas, when they are part of the education system. Pierce should be an area that is not littered with flyers promoting outside interests, and our students should not be subject to being bombarded.

“Girl,areyouoxygenmagnesium? BecausewhenIseeyouallIcansay isOMG.”

-MarciniaRobinson,20,Psychology Cartoonist:

-IsaakBocanegra,19,ComputerScience a letter. The deadline is 11:59 p.m. the Sunday prior to the issue date. Editorial Policy: The Pierce College Roundup position is presented only in the editorials.

Cartoons and photos, unless run under the editorial masthead, and columns are the opinions of the creators and not necessarily that of the Roundup. The college newspaper is published as a learning experience under the college journalism instructional program. The editorial and advertising materials published herein, including any opinions expressed, are the responsibility of the student newspaper staff. 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.