Embracing cultural diversity Global education promoted by International Students Club

STEVEN TAN Reporter @stevent_roundup

Jules Verne took readers around the world in 80 days in 1873. On Monday, Pierce students had the opportunity to experience it in about 80 minutes.

The International Students Club hosted Cultural and Diversity Day in the Great Hall at Pierce College on Monday to promote international education and diversity on campus.

"It prepares American students for a global environment, and it appreciates our diverse and international students here at Pierce College,” President of International Student Club Saman Karimi said. “I think it is the difference that makes us beautiful. If we are all united together, then we would have the power to unite the world to be better."

Karimi said that at the event they presented passports, stamps and foods so that students would feel as though they were visiting countries.

"We want them to learn something at our tables. To get the stamps, we are hoping they will learn the information and really remember and like it,” Karimi said. “We are also making them familiar with the food culture.”

Vice President of the International Students Club Viet Le said the event promotes diversity and helps foreign students who might feel lonely.

The Associated Students Organization, International Students club and the Social/Cultural Committee partnered up for International Education Week. They held a Diversity and Cultural Day in the Great Hall from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif on Nov. 13, 2017.

"Pierce is not just American. We have a lot of people from all over the world, and we want to celebrate and share their culture,” Le said. “We know how lonely it is for a foreign student, and this will help them and promote their uniqueness.” Le said that he hopes students at the event will be engaged so they can

Don't stress, talk it out

Health Center offers group sessions for stress relief

ROCIO ARENAS Reporter @rarenas_roundup

Stress can kill.

But the Student Health Center hopes to help students find relief through group sessions.

There were five reported cases of students feeling suicidal during the semester, and they were provided with resources to aid them, according to an email sent out by the Student Health Center.

The Student Health Center provides clinical services, from flu shots to contraceptives. However, they have made it their priority to promote and raise awareness for mental health.

“Stress is a big inhibitor of success, whether that’s educational, occupational, or daily success. If more students can manage their stress, they’re going to do better in school and in life,” said Student Health Center intern Sarah Eckstein.

Eckstein is also a group session leader for the Student Health Center’s stress groups that meet Monday and Wednesday evenings.

The stress groups are led by mental health professionals, specifically pre- and postdoctoral interns who specialize in facilitating group and individual therapy sessions.

Eckstein said learning and practicing mindfulness, the process of bringing one's attention to experiences occurring in the present, is important in the stress groups. She said incorporating memberto-member feedback to show support and empathy for each other during sessions is important.

“Some stress groups are more structured with providing coping skills and providing a space for students to talk about their experiences and experience a sense of universality,” Eckstein said.

With the fall semester coming to a close, many students may be dealing with stress in school as they prepare for finals while working long hours.

A 2011 report by Kim Kubicek of Western Kentucky University states that 30 percent of college students reported feeling overwhelmed for most of the semester.

Beth Benne, the Director of the Student Health Center, said she understands the importance of solidarity in stress groups because she attends group sessions for parents.

“There is tremendous healing and growth with the validation of your feelings. This isn’t abnormal and it’s normal to feel this way. That alone is such a weight off,” Benne said.

Students of all ages and lifestyles have stress, but Eckstein said the average age of group participants is 20. She said the Health Center does outreach during the week on the Mall, where interested students can sign up at the pop-up booth.

Students interested in joining are individually evaluated by a mental health professional.

“We get an idea of what they need and which group they would fit better with,” said Niaz Khani, the supervising psychologist.

The Health Center began offering mental health services in

A healthy alternative

First Vegan Day set to offer guests, games and goodies Thursday

TAYLOR THIBODAUX Reporter @taylorthibbs

When someone hears the term “vegan,” the common misconception that follows is that the food is boring and will cost a pretty penny.

The Vegan Society on Pierce College hopes to change that stigma with their first Vegan Day event in the Great Hall on Thursday, Nov. 16, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The objective of Vegan Day is to shed light on the benefits of being vegan, its effects on climate change, discussion of animal rights, environmental justice and health, Vegan Society President Erin Baker said.

Vegan Day has received attention from not only those on campus, but also from the outside community. The club had to issue a statement via their Facebook page following the removal of the event on social media, clarifying the event is for Pierce students and faculty not open to the general public Throughout the event, many different speakers will talk about the different aspects of veganism. Guests can enjoy food, samples, games, and purchase goods at a bake sale.

Vegan Society Treasurer Galit Ashkenazi said the club wanted to create a line-up of guest speakers and games as opposed to a one-hour slide presentation event because they said it would help further the message and allow their audience to open up.

“We wanted to bring a bigger audience because, if you have one presentation, it’s going to be very much like you are going to another class and sitting down and learning something,” Ashkenazi said.

Ashkenazi said that having speakers who really believe in the message can make a difference on how the information given can be received.

“When we have actual people that are invested in the topic are talking about it, it really shows the enthusiasm and how one person can be so passionate,” Ashkenazi said.

Vegan Society Advisor Stephanie Winnard hopes to change the minds about veganism after the event.

“We hope to persuade as many people as possible to go vegan after attending our event. And that those who are already vegan will enjoy a sense of community and friendship,” Winnard said. “We hope to spread veganism to make the world a better, more peaceful place for all life on earth, including the animals, and also for future generations.”

1998 and started with five weekly hours of therapy for all students on campus. Now the center offers more than 100 hours for mental health treatment per week, and three full-time post-doctoral interns, in addition to Khani, are available for individual sessions.

Khani said mental health is becoming less stigmatized, and more people are coming in to the Health Center to receive help. She said the majority of participants discuss stress within their personal relationships.

“Sometimes it’s related to feeling overwhelmed and not knowing how to balance all the different things they have to take care of,” Khani said.

Khani said students also find it difficult to allocate time for self care. “If you’re not healthy, mentally and emotionally, you can’t focus. This is the best time to be able to build relationships, and if you’re not healthy, you may isolate,” Khani said. “It’s definitely going to affect your academic success.” understand how others think.

Oftentimes, Khani said, participants struggle when they “open up” and show their emotions during group sessions, but the reward is the connection they make with peers and with their therapist.

“Overtime, they feel more relieved because they let it out and they learned new tools to deal with stress,” Khani said.

“I hope the students will not just be standing and waiting, but approach and be engaged by asking questions and being curious,” Le said. “You can only truly understand somebody when you learn their culture and understand how they think and see things."

ASO Social and Cultural Committee member Maryam Yahyaei said we should learn to understand each other and not base others on stereotypes. stan.roundupnews@gmail.com

"We want people to learn that they are so different from each other and have certain needs they need to consider,” Yahyaei said. “It's good for people to understand there are differences, but we should all learn to understand and accept each other. Don’t treat each other based on stereotypes. Although we are celebrating differences, we are actually becoming one."