Volume 129 Fall 2018 Roundup Issue 12

Collection of one-act plays opens on the Performing Arts Building Mainstage Friday

play is Anthony Cantrell.

In a topsy turvy world of absurd characters, comedy will help the audience realize stark truths about the world around them.

The Theater department is bringing a new play to the table with a comedic flair. Durang Durang, a series of six, one-act plays written by Christopher Durang, opens Friday, Nov. 30, and will have shows until Dec. 9.

Deciding which shows to put on is diversity among the different genres of play.

“We wanted to do a robust, very audience friendly comedy that could speak to a wide demographic,” Gend said.

It is important that all people who come to the show can find something that resonates with them, regardless of age. Gend explained that each of the six one act plays will spoof a different genre of theater.

Gend explained that theater students may find this aspect amusing because there may be spoofs of genres they are studying in classes, while older adults may have actually seen those original productions.

Gend compared the satire in Durang Durang to the kind of satire one might see on shows such as Family Guy. It is a hope that every member of the audience will find the jokes funny even if they do not have a vast theatrical understanding.

The director for this particular

Cantrell explained again the process by which the play was selected for this particular season, and went into detail about his vision for the play.

“Of course I am always in collaboration with the designers, I articulate whatever vision I have for the play and the designers take that as a suggestion.”

Said Cantrell.

Cantrell also went on to explain how the design for this play proved semi difficult as it is not one play, but rather a series of six, one act plays with different design as well as costume.

Without wanting to spoil too much, Cantrell expressed that there was in fact one unifying theme for the play that should come as a surprise to the audience.

“Even though they aren’t necessarily linked by plot or even by theme necessarily there are six plays and we link them together using a theatrical device,” said Cantrell.

While the plays are separated, there is one universal theme that Cantrell has in mind.

He also believes that a common thread between the plays is the playwright, Christopher Durang. His uniqueness and the way he approaches the theater is something that Cantrell hopes

will shine through, linking all of the plays.

Having an open mind to the absurd world that Durang presents is also key to enjoying this play to its fullest potential, according to

President search underway

Committee hopes to fill position before fall 2019 semester

DEVIN MALONE Reporter @roundupnews

While Interim President Larry Buckley continues to preside over Pierce College, the search for a new full-time president is underway as students and staff look toward the future.

The search is being primarily held by the Presidential Search Committee. The committee itself and many of its operations remain largely confidential, but the faculty that attend Pierce’s Academic Senate meetings have discussed matters relating to the search.

Fernando Oleas, the chair of the Modern Language department, stated that the process to find a new president for Pierce has been going on for some time now. He also said that Pierce faculty are stressing the importance of open forums when it comes to deciding on the new president.

“What it is important to our campus and community is that the Search Committee represent their constituency,” Oleas said. “Faculty, staff and members of our community have expressed the need to hold Open Forums for the finalist. This last Academic Senate voted unanimously to have an Open Forum and at the AFT chapter meeting faculty member unanimously expressed the same desire.”

Outside of the Academic Senate, faculty and students are left to hope that whoever takes over next will be able to meet their demands and expectations.

Richard McMillan, an instructor of history, believes that when it comes to being a college president, a qualifying trait is being a good listener. “A good listener, that’s first and foremost,” McMillan said. “For those of us who are old timers - I’ve been here for 23 years - it was disheartening to see the divisiveness that permeated this campus. We’ve had a series of presidents who’ve loved Pierce, and you’d see them walking the campus, and as they were walking they’d see a piece of trash, they’d pick it up because this was their school and they wanted to keep it clean. It started from the person on the top and worked its

way down.”

McMillan also wants to see a president who treats students as equals.

“The most important person on the campus is the student, and the student comes to Pierce because of the faculty and to get an education, and that needs the faculty,” McMillan said. “So ‘What can we do to get students into those classes, to get their AA degree and transfer out’ means also in my mind ‘What can we do to clear the way for teachers to do their job.”

Joseph Guevara, a second year student majoring business administration, sees the qualifying traits of a president differently, and that if a new president should take office, they should be inspiring to students and staff as well as having a grasp general leadership skills prior to taking office.

“They first have to know how to lead, and if they don’t know how then they shouldn’t be in that position in the first place,” Guevara said. “They need to know how to control others and discipline them. That’s basically what a leader does, they make sure they follow orders, discipline them, and do what they’re supposed to do.”

According to Oleas, if things continue to go smoothly, the new President shall be taking office anywhere between four months to a year.

Cantrell.

Theater Manager Michael Sande explained more on how the separate plays are connected.

“Their all focused on kind of strange people put in strange

Andrew Susanto / Roundup

situations trying to make the situation better but they end up making it worse.” Sande said.

play opens this Friday, Nov. 30 at 8 p.m. on the Performing Arts Building Mainstage.

First year students Sophia Bejar and Sophia Bueno

"I feel like it's really calm and the people are nice. When I'm walking, random a-- people smile at me, but I feel like it's harder to make friend here even though people are nice."

-Sophia Bueno

Quote and photo by Natalie Miranda

Sports pg. 7

Lettiu Lu (Michelle Johnson), fires a gun in "The Book of Leviticus" act in the production of "Durang Durang" in the Performing Arts Theatre at Pierce College, Woodland Hills, Calif., on Nov. 26, 2018. "Durang Durang" is a collection of six one-act plays written by Christopher Durang.

“What it is important to our campus and community is that the Search Committee represent their constituency.”

- Fernando Oleas Modern Language department chair

smatzaganian.roundupnews@gmail.com

ROUNDUP www.theroundupnews.com Los Angeles Pierce College

From the desk of the Roundup: Editorial

Take charge and carry on

T

he desire to stay connected to electronic devices throughout the day increases as technology proves to be an important aspect of everyday life. As a student, a dying battery is an unnecessary stressor.

To keep up with the prominent existence of technology on campus, Pierce should install charging stations for students’ devices such as cell phones, tablets and laptops.Accessible charging stations are an essential tool for students because it allows them to continue staying connected and use their devices to aid them in their college success.

According to Top Hat’s Student Pulse Survey from Nov. 2017, “94% of students want to use cellphones in school for academic purposes and 75% of students feel that digital devices help them learn more effectively.”

According to goCharge.com, a mobile device charging station provider, there are multiple types of charging stations to choose from such wireless charging furniture, kiosks, lockers and solar stations. Among all of these options, the lockers allow students to charge their phone unattended while in class or on a break.

Chargetech.com shows that a charging locker has approximately eight individual compartments for phones that can be locked using a secure pin code. These stations range from $750 to $1,150 each.

The website’s other products range from under $100 to $2,750. Having access to fully charged phone, tablet or laptop could be essential to a students success. Many students use their phone to check and send emails, communicate with teachers and counselors, maintain a daily calendar, work on assignments or do research and stay updated with the time to make sure they are not late to class.

Students can power up their devices during breaks from class or while they are studying in the library or common areas.

Aside from being a helpful education tool, it is important to have a charged mobile device for security reasons. In the event of an emergency, Pierce does not have enough phones around campus for students to use. The blue emergency phones are scarce and many classrooms do not have a phone. A student having a charged device on them at all times helps ensure that students stay safe.

There are many places on campus where charging stations can be installed, such as the library, cafe, gym, student services or even in every building. With the major influence of technology on campus, Pierce should adopt this new way to help students be as successful as possible.

Dear Editor,

I would like to thank the Pierce College administration and, specifically, Pierce College Interim President Larry Buckley for organizing the Red Cross evacuation center on the territory of the college.

I experienced it firsthand, when I stayed with my family at the North Gymnasium.

It was a learning experience for me. A lot of effort went into making the evacuees feel comfortable. It was very impressive how wellcoordinated everything was.

Pierce College worked with Red Cross to set up the place for fire victims to stay, on such short notice. Within hours, the community college became a temporary home for us.

Some people came with nothing, thinking that they would be going home the next day. The evacuation center provided all of the necessities to people and their pets.

We had regular updates on the fire situation. We even had entertainment, such as a film premiere for Instant Family. It helped to get our mind off of the fire, and lighten up the mood.

Thank you to all of the volunteers, who made our stay at the Pierce College evacuation center a pleasant one.

Now that we are back home, it is good to know that Pierce College is out there supporting the community, when the need arises.

Alexander McGovern

Pro Con Monitoring oncoming traffic

SOFI MATZAGANIAN Campus Life Editor @sofimatz

Pierce should have its entrances monitored by some form of security in order to make students feel more safe on campus.

In light of recent incidents in Los Angeles, it would make sense to monitor who comes in and out of our school to some degree. While this could get excessive, no measure is too extensive to ensure the safety of our faculty and students alike.

While there is no clear solution to protecting students from tragedies such as school shootings, which are becoming more and more common as time progresses, we have to continue the conversation that has already begun.

According to College Students perceptions of campus safety initiatives, “Applying a framework derived from literature on fear of crime and other salient concepts, multivariate modeling is used to explain variation in the observed level of student support.”

Studies are being done in order to put into action some kind of precautionary measures however no concrete plan has been put into place.

According to As seen on TV, an article written by Cullen T. O’Donnell, Lisa M. Carter, Leilani B. Goodmon, Destiny K. Zunic Caitlin Smith, and Alyssa Parisi, “In order to help students feel more comfortable

in college, it is important for administrative staff, faculty, professors, and campus safety officers to be aware of student perceptions of safety—and the factors that can impact these perceptions.”

It is incredibly important for administration at schools to be aware that a change must be made. With no current plan in the works, we ask ourselves how rigorous of a process we must go through in order to monitor the people who come in and out of campus.

According to an article by George Padilla titled, Campus Safety in 4-year Public Colleges and Universities in the United States, “only 64 (75 percent) schools offered disaster response presentations to new students and staff, while 9 (11 percent) reported that their written emergency operations plans were not available to their communities, and that only 53 (62.4 percent) offered presentations regarding cyber-security and safeguarding online information.”

Given this information, not enough schools have offered a disaster response presentation to their students. While there is no current program set in place, having one in the works can eventually lead to an overall feeling of comfort for students and faculty alike. Pierce College is a well-knit community, and it is our job to make sure we are all as safe as possible.

DEVIN MALONE Reporter @roundupnews

While the protection of the students and faculty from threats should be a major concern for Pierce College, monitoring the entrances of the school is very much missing the forest for the trees.

As everyone who has stepped onto Pierce’s campus knows, the college is very vast and very open. There are multiple entrances and exits that circle the majority of the campus, and would require many people to patrol the area.

On paper, this is still plausible, as borders much larger have been maintained before, but unless people from the Sheriff's Office take this role, the guarding of entrances will be a moot point entirely.

According to a report by CBS, former marine Ian David Long was able to kill 13 people inside Borderline Bar & Grill, including a security guard manning the front door that night, as well as Police Sergeant Ron Helus.

The problem here is not that our entrances need guarding, as that is a drop in the pond of a much bigger issue at hand; rather, people should be rallying for more gun control, and the State of California should take better care to make sure that those with questionable mental health

backgrounds should be barred from owning firearms.

California does have tighter gun laws than most other states, and according to California’s Department of Justice website, by January 1, 2019, “any person who, as of July 1, 2018, owns a firearm that does not bear a serial number assigned to it shall apply to the Department for a unique serial number or other mark of identification. (Penal Code 29180).”

While this is great at identifying those who will own firearms in the future (Long himself purchased his firearm legally, according to ABC News), it doesn’t do much to stop criminals from hoarding unlicensed guns at all.

Unless something is done about United States’ gun laws (on both a state and national level), and so long as we keep skirting around the issue by addressing smaller grievances such as guarding entrances to a campus that is almost completely open in a 360 degree radius, then people’s lives will continue to be at the mercy of mad men with guns and other weapons meant to kill or mame.

Long is just one of many people who have exploited our nation’s weak gun laws and has used them to tragically take the lives of countless victims across the United States.

smatzaganian.roundupnews@gmail.com newsroom.roundupnews@gmail.com

Photographers:

Artists: Maxwell King

Rodriguez

Daisy

Cory

Massaro

Advisers: Jill Connelly

Jeff Favre

Tracie Savage

opportunity to revise unacceptable letters.

The Pierce College Roundup will not publish, as letters, literary endeavors, publicity releases, poetry or other such materials as the Editorial Board deems not to be a letter.

Sonya Miller

Maja Losinska

Andrew Susanto

do not contain racial denigration. Writers are given the

dmalone.roundupnews@gmail.com

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.

Illustration by Joshua Manes / Roundup

What do you think? Chime in on our twitter poll @roundupnews

Website prepares for construction

Updates are underway and coming soon to outdated college webpage

DEVIN MALONE Reporter @roudupnews

While charts and maps help explorers find their destinations, the Pierce website helps students navigate campus resources.

After years of using the current Pierce College website, the Pierce IT department is looking to change things by creating a new website that will address some of the concerns that students and staff have regarding the current one.

Pierce IT Manager Mark Henderson wrote in an email interview this new website will include an updated user interface, as well as make the site generally more mobile friendly.

“The changes that are going to be made will be to adhere to recent best practices that adopt ADA compliance, mobile-friendly access and improved UI/UX,” Henderson wrote.

The IT department will also be working closely with other departments around Pierce to maintain the site’s front page, as well as work on the architecture.

Although individual departments maintain the content for their sections, the public information officer maintains the front page content.

“The IT web services group assists with guiding the architecture and design limits,” Henderson said

in an email response. “We handle the web services back office functions and strategic development. We cover all potential knowledge and technical gaps that may arise within departments regarding authoring their sections.”

To Christopher Corning, an assistant professor of English, the two biggest issues with the current

website are the lack of updates regarding events or campus wide changes, as well a general sense of difficulty for students looking for resources.

“The biggest challenges I’ve seen is when students can’t easily find the information that they’re looking for,” Corning said. “And perhaps where there is information, it’s time specific

No time to adjust to schedule

Students and faculty question class time slots

ALEXIS CANELO & NICK MARTINEZ Reporter @alexiscanelo_ @NickEsai

Sometimes the bigger decisions on campus are the ones that don’t get made. Faculty are currently not allowed to schedule classes during an 80-minute time block between 2:10 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.

Michael Gend, Performing Arts chair, said department chairs and program directors met to discuss the data collected from the surveys sent out to students last spring and this fall semester.

The majority of students and faculty voted to keep the current schedule, according to the survey.

“The department chairs and program directors met and reviewed all of the survey data both from faculty and students and the

majority, in both cases, wants to keep the time blocks the way they currently are, the ones that we're using this semester,” Gend said.

While the decision to change the time block was not supported in student and faculty surveys, the idea continues to be discussed throughout different groups on campus.

Changing the time block would mean the new schedule would not be compliant with the 10-minute passing period. Also, this conflicts with the time slot needed for college hour, which is an allotted amount of time meant to increase student engagement on campus.

The Academic Senate will vote on Dec. 3 whether to address the issue.

“My assumption is they're going to approve it and then in that case we're not going to revisit it this session of Academic Senate,” Gend said. “If they don't approve it, I imagine there will be further debate, discussion and maybe a new resolution from a different body.”

Since there has been no update to the current time block, some faculty voiced concerns over the lack of change to the schedule.

Communications Professor Aric Eidadu said he had students who are still not adjusted to the current schedule.

“I have a class that starts at 6:50 p.m.,” Eidadu said. “I always taught it at 7 p.m., so to make a long story short, a lot of my students happen to be late.”

Another problem that was brought up was the way the survey was written.

Psychology Professor Jennifer Moses said the format and language used in the survey was confusing for students.

Moses said not enough options were explored. She believes there needs to be a robust discussion which includes constituents.

[for the full story visit theroundupnews.com]

and it doesn’t get updated within a timely manner. Sometimes it will say ‘coming up soon’ and it’s something that has already passed.”

Corning said he has noticed the slow news updates to campus wide events on the current website.

“I believe that right now, the website makes reference to our ‘new’ SIS system, which went into effect

back in January,” Corning said.

Henderson however did state that the new website will help streamline this process, making it easier for students to find and get the help they might need for their courses.

“The intended improvements will prove to be a better resource to empower the student with information relevant to their education and campus experience,” Henderson said.

Lawrence Krikorian, an instructor of English would still like see a possible boost in security when it comes to this new rendition of the Pierce Website.

“When I go on the WiFi with my phone, it’s unsecure. There’s no security, so people can spy on you,” Kirkorian said.

Henderson and the IT department are still working on getting the proper assets for the job to be properly done, as well as focusing on other current issues. Once these are dealt with, the group intends to continue working on the new website project. The launch date for the new website has yet to be determined.

“We are developing a project plan that should assist in garnering resources to support training and development,” Henderson said. A website restructure is a longer process; however, we are working to resolve some immediate concerns now. A base timeline is being drafted with the ability to alter the timeline as resources and training is made available.”

Rundown Brahma Blotter

Reported by: Danielle Padilla

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION by Danielle Padilla / Roundup

There are concerns while faculty and students adjust to the current time block.

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY Danielle Padilla / Roundup

A construciton worker looks at the current college website on Nov. 27, 2018 at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif.

Flowering from S.T.E.M. Club President found purpose in a messy situation

MALONE

From animation to marketing, and now computer science and electrical engineering.

Gina T. Rubio, was not always interested in the sciences.

Today, she combines all her skills acquired throughout her fluctuating career as S.T.E.M. Club President. It was not until she was interning for ESPN for the X Games she had an epiphany.

The floor was littered with Red Bull energy drink cans.

“I was like, there’s so much trash, you guys don’t recycle. There was like a lot of stuff going on, I’m like I can’t. I was really, a big person with, that dealt with, the Surfrider Foundation, like that’s a big deal,” Rubio said.

Being involved with the Surfrider Foundation, a non-profit that aims to protect the ocean, meant recycling was important to Rubio.

“That would be one of my personal projects would be to like to build something that could really help out cleaning out the oceans, or the oceanic life forms, or anything of that kind,” Rubio said.

At the time Rubio was working in marketing, this incident helped push her into another field. Shortly after starting a job at Solar City the company merged with Tesla. She was happy to switch from the energy to the car industry.“I was very excited to be working with Tesla because I thought I was going to be surrounded by engineers or scientists,” Rubio said.

Rubio found that her job was more sales-based and did not involve the innovation and science she was craving. She began researching her scientific interests and looking for NASA tours.

“I started just to have this enormous appetite of wow, there’s so much more that I don’t know that I want to figure out and understand,” Rubio said.

Rubio’s transition from animation to marketing was not as drastic as her jump to the sciences.

Prior to her career in marketing and entertainment, Rubio studied animation at Cal Arts.

“It does feel a little bit challenging when somebody says that they’ve done things for years, they understood physics since they were in junior high, I never was really exposed to it. I was more exposed to art,” Rubio said.

Despite this, Rubio found herself more at home among her new peers.

“I felt a lot more comfortable with nerds. I was like ‘Oh, I am a nerd’,” Rubio said.

After contacting JPL, Rubio learned of the National Community College Aerospace Scholars. She submitted the

necessary paperwork and wrote an essay.

“I was obsessed with the moon when I was five years old. I just would stare at it. I’d be like, this is where the little crevices [are], like how far it is. And so I wrote that experience and that’s what got me into the program, and a bunch of other things,” Rubio said.

Sharing her experience of gazing at the moon as a child helped Rubio gain admission into the program.

Rubio had the chance to go to NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley. There Rubio, along with other NCAS students, worked on developing a rover out of Legos, met scientists, and viewed instruments that would soon be in space.

“Whatever they send there [space], they have to make sure that it’s not shaking and it won’t get broken apart when it gets there, because of all the rattling when it’s going into the actual rocket,” Rubio said.

It was in the Ames Research Center Rubio was recommended to go and get more insight from the college’s S.T.E.M. club, but it didn’t exist.

“There was no S.T.E.M. Club here and that’s exactly what they told me to go get advice from my project. I’m like, I don’t have anybody to go get advice from because it doesn’t exist. And I think that’s like another reason why I was more of a push to get it done,” Rubio said.

Rubio takes initiative in reaching out to people to fi nd guest speakers for S.T.E.M. Club.

“All the guest speakers that I’ve had for the club or anything of that nature is me actually reaching out to them cold turkey,” Rubio said. “I am seriously going out of my way to communicate with these people and be like, ‘Hey, I really care and I really want you to be part of us here and I know this is totally free but thank you so much.’”

Professor Dale Fields, Discipline Adviser of Astronomy and professor, said he is impressed with Rubio’s enthusiasm.

“A lot of people might say, ‘Oh, you know, that’s cool’, and then they just go home and continue their lives. But Gina says, ‘Oh, that’s cool. I’m going to go out and go to a Caltech lecture and fi nd out more about it. Or I’m going to go read it, five web pages and see two youtube videos to help me,’” Fields said.

Professor Travis Orloff, Instructor of Physics & Planetary Sciences, said he thinks Rubio is one of the most enthusiastic students he has ever had.

“She just has more drive and curiosity and interest in science and astronomy and planetary science in specific than, than almost any other students I’ve encountered before. She has genuine enthusiasm. She has absolutely no fear and just asking all the questions you possibly can. She actively seeks out these additional opportunities or presentations at places like JPL or Caltech,” Orloff said. Recycling, or the lack thereof, changed the course of Rubio’s life.

dmalone.roundupnews@gmail.com

Blue, red and every color in between

Political Science Society brings students from different parties together

preference. You can actually speak on what you truly want to say without anyone attacking you.”

Vice President Aviv Assayag said there’s not really any other club like this one.

With the world being so divided on a political front, it’s in this club where differences are put aside to speak as one.

The Political Science Society is a club on Pierce that allows all students with different beliefs to come together and discuss political issues.

The club focuses on one topic for a whole meeting in which members can talk about their stances on the issue. The next meeting’s topics are chosen by the members and then voted on based on the majority rule.

Past meetings topics were on the NFL kneeling, gun ownership and Proposition 10 which deals with rent control. The meeting held on Thursday Nov. 15 dealt with immigration.

President Emiliano Acosta said this club welcomes anyone, regardless if they are a democrat, republican, socialist, libertarian, or undecided, to speak.

“The reason why we’re keeping this club running is because people do want to discuss the political issues and social issues,” Acosta said. “People do want to discuss what’s going on in the country or in the world, but we’re so scared. We don’t want to get attacked by other people of the political

“From what I know pretty much every club that we have on campus is partisan, in some way or another, it takes a stance,” Assayag said. “It even resembles in our logo that we really try hard to be non-partisan. We really try to include everyone because we really think that two confl icting ideas and hashing it out and people being exposed to new ideas is really helpful.”

Having differing ideas on issues may cause confl ict, but Acosta said they keep it civil.

“The way that we do so, we don’t get any fights or arguments,” Acosta said. “We take on Professor Nabulsi [advisor], he asks us to reply to the statement rather than reply directly to a person. The moment you reply to a person then confl ict is created, but if you reply to the statement then that kind of makes it a little bit less charged.”

Starting this meeting, a time cap of 3 minutes was placed for one person to speak and then they move on to the next person that has something to say. The person can speak again after another person has spoken. Assayag said this has also worked in keeping the gatherings peaceful. “We have instituted a time limit,” Assayag said. “So that’s

something that we’ve been trying to do is letting everyone speak and only giving somebody so much time that they’re allowed to speak for at one time. So far thankfully we’ve been able to have pretty respectful meetings.”

The turnout usually is around 15, but this meeting there was 22 students. Acosta said the club is showing strong signs of growth.

“This is our fi rst year after it got reestablished,” Acosta said. “The club went through some ups and downs in the past, but this is the fi rst year that we’re actually getting the ball rolling. I think that we’re doing good, from the fi rst meeting we’ve had to right now. Today, I think we had the most people. In 2019, we’re going to go full force. This is the fi rst

semester that it’s really started, but people are so eager to come to the meetings and fi nd interest in it.”

Assayag said the club is open for anyone to come to the meetings whether they choose to voice their opinions or not.

“We do have quite a few members that just come to sit and listen, and they think that it’s

interesting,” Assayag said. “It’s also a place to become informed. You get to hear both sides of the issue and you get to become informed on whatever topic that the club chooses collectively. We try to get everyone to speak, but we never burden those people that don’t want to speak, and we never cold call people either. So people that just want to come and listen are also welcome.”

Secretary Makenna Gordon said she thinks the club can benefit anyone who comes to the meetings.

“You get to hear everyone’s perspectives and it really helps with the problem of polarization too,” Gordon said. “Everyone can fi nd a common ground and learn about each other’s personal views and it just helps people become more well-rounded in politics. I think it’s a really good club to go to.”

The Political Science Society’s website is commongroundtalks. com. Information can be found on how to become a member, the next club meeting dates, and resources for political science majors. The next club meeting is on Thursday Nov. 29 and will be focusing on news media. Their fi nal meeting will be on Dec. 6, topic to be chosen after the next. They meet in BIRCH 1101 Thursdays at 2:20 p.m. asaldate.roundupnews@gmail.com

Abigail Hernandez / Roundup

Club secretary Makenna Gordon, Vice President Aviv Assayag and President Emiliano Acosta of the Political Science Society on Nov. 15, 2018.

Natalie Miranda/ Roundup

S.T.E.M. Club President Gina Rubio stands in front of a white board with a formula at Pierce college on Nov. 2, 2018, in Woodland Hills, Calif.

ANGELICA LOPEZ Reporter @angietography

DEVIN

Reporter @roundupnews

“I started just to have this enormous appetite of wow, there’s so much more that I don’t know that I want to figure out and understand.”

- Gina T. Rubio S.T.E.M. Club President

What's old is new at the Vintage Market

said. “We really hope that it raises the profile of Pierce College, because Pierce is a gift to the San Fernando Valley and we are happy to be helping with the school.”

Rotblat said customers enjoy the process of negotiating with vendors.

Racks of graphic T-shirts, sparkly crystals and cheeky trinkets from past generations are on display at Pierce College.

Thanks to the Topanga Vintage Market,aisles of unique treasures wait to be discovered by potential customers as shoppers sift through timeless artifacts. The market meets on the fourth Sunday of every month in Parking lot 7.

Lori Rotblat, cofounder of the Topanga Vintage Market, said the market originated at the Westfield Promenade about seven years ago, but changed location in recent years, finding its home at Pierce College.

“We got so big and busy the Promenade wanted us to go, because we were taking up too many parking spaces so we found Pierce as a our lovely host,” Rotblat

She said the market gives people the opportunity to connect with items from the past.

“The vintage market and the scene of loving and finding and really enjoying vintage is very much in vogue especially in Los Angeles,” Rotblat said. “And what we are doing here is not only having people walk down and find their own memories, but there is a whole new generation that realizes that things that were made in the 30s, 40s, 50’s and 60s had a real quality.”

Cultivating a place of culture gives a sense familiarity to the community.

“This market is like a huge celebration for the vendors and the shoppers,” Rotblat said. “The feeling is like a large block party. People come once a month and enjoy the experience of seeing pieces of their own past. They walk

“An open marketplace is the oldest business in the world so the bartering gives shoppers the chance to really find something and get it at a good price,” Rotblat said.

Rotblat said due to the long winter break, the market stays closed, but they try to remain open as often as they can throughout the rest of the year.

“We are usually dark in December, because it falls right around Christmas so we are January through November,” Rotblat said. “And If there are five Sundays, we are always on the fourth."

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down the aisles and remember things when they were young.”

Shelton Hyunh, a vendor, said he enjoys selling at Pierce, because the atmosphere is intimate and the convenience of having the market in his neighborhood.

“I’ve had the chance to talk to a lot of people, and it feels local. A lot of people are from around here – this city or that city – not too far from here,” Hyunh said. “The Rose Bowl is totally opposite so almost 90 percent are tourists or travellers so it’s smaller here. I like this one. That’s the difference between all the other markets.”

Matteo Gilardelli, a vendor, said the Topanga Vintage Market is unlike most marketplaces.

“We do the Alameda Market, San Francisco, we do Rose Bowl, we do Long Beach – those are crazy, huge markets so this is very chill, calm, nothing crazy,” Gilardelli said.

-Jesus Morales Undecided:

“Theywanttomakeitfeel asrealaspossible,and basicallywanttheplayers tobethepersoninthe game,asarealperson.”

-AyronQuiazon CommunicationsMajor

Natalie Miranda/ Roundup

Alyssa Adraneda organizes her booth at the Topanga Vintage Market on Nov. 25, 2018, at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif.

have an effect on society,theirjust gamesthatpeople playtokilltimeorto playaround.”

“Videogamesare supposedtotakeus awayfromsociety andgodeepinto thegaming,toplay andforgetabout everythingforawhile, butplayingalotis bad.”

Natalie Miranda / Roundup Jenny Miller and Cammy Hacker hold a piece of crystal at the Topanga Vintage Market at Pierce College on Nov. 25, 2018, in Woodland Hills, Calif.

Natalie Miranda/ Roundup

Linda Stewart , the Mystical Hertforms vendor, shows Sira Zirtia her poncho at the Topanga Vintage Market on Nov. 25, 2018, at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif.

“An open marketplace is the oldest business in world so the bartering gives shoppers the chance to really find something and get a good price.”

- Lori Rotblat Co-founder of the Topanga Vintage Market

Six stories,one night

As the curtain open, the lights turn toward the stage to reveal a rattled auburn-haired woman; dressed up in red lipstick and a velvet dress, she drops her script notes. Dotty and aloof, she overly articulates her likes and dislikes of theater.

The Pierce College Theatre Department is premiering the play DurangDurang , a series of six one-act plays. The show will run Nov. 30 through Dec. 9.

The production is a mixture of culture shocks and gags.

Durang Durang speaks with a light hearted tone over the dark and controversial subject matter.

In the first act, the audience is informed to expect laughter and slight irritation from the performances.

Durang Durang explores various topics in satire, portraying the normalization of selective murders and hate crimes.

Photos and copy by Andrew Susanto.

Top left: Marsha (Michelle Johnson) embraced by Wanda (Meagan Truxal) uncomfortably at the dinner table. Pierce College, Woodland Hills, Calif. November 26, 2018

Top right: Lawrence’s (Trevor Alkazian) collection of coffee stirrers sits on the table.

Middle left: Lettie Lu (Michelle Johnson), looking at her cameraman Tommy (Trevor Alkazian) as she recites from her Bible.

Above: Mrs. Sorken (Laurien Allmon) delivers a monologue.

Bottom Left: Wanda sets her eyes on Jim (Spencer Sharp) as she shifts the subject of conversation away from Marsha.

Kicking it into high gear

Captain multitasks while being on the team

Sometimes the best teachers in life are not in a classroom.

For team captain Diana Salonga, the lesson plan is hours of game film and the classroom is the soccer field.

It is not a leisure activity for Salonga. She translates the way she prepares herself for games into how she goes about life.

“For soccer, I’m doing all the work, all the preparation and all the practice to succeed in the game. Then I’m doing all the work, preparation and practice so I can succeed in life,” Salonga said. “The end result, when you get the win and when you achieve your goals, it’s all worth it.”

Salonga started playing soccer at the age of six. She played four years at Chatsworth High School while serving as the class president and graduating as a valedictorian in 2016.

Despite playing for Pierce the last two years, her soccer career almost came to an end in her senior year of high school when she fell ill.

“My senior year was not my best,” Salonga said. “I got sick and I didn’t really know. By the time I got to the hospital, I had pneumonia and bronchitis.”

After she graduated high school, Salonga decided she did not want to play soccer anymore and did not join the Pierce soccer program in her first semester.

Salonga was having a difficult time paying attention in class and was unmotivated to do better in school. Salonga was then diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder in the fall of 2016.

In her spring semester of 2017, Salonga’s mindset changed when she decided to join the soccer conditioning class. From there, she was offered a spot on the soccer team.

Salonga said that playing soccer at Pierce and finding out that she has ADD was a turning point in her life and it brought out her competitive drive.

“I finally started trying harder in school and studying and I was getting A’s,” Salonga said. “It was the first time in a while I felt like I have my life under control.”

Game Preview:

West LA Tourney

DEVIN MALONE Reporter @roundupnews

The Brahmas are getting prepared for the upcoming West L.A. Tournament after their win against Oxnard College on Nov. 20. The other colleges participating are Glendale, Compton, LA Valley, Santa Ana, Long Beach and Barstow.

During the tournament, the Brahmas will be competing against Glendale in the first game.

Casey Weitzel, head coach, had a match with Glendale, with the Brahmas walking away with the win by a score of 77-70.

“We’ve already played them,” Weitzel said. “That was the game that was originally supposed to be here for the home opener, but because of the fire shelter being here we had to move that back to Glendale.”

The Brahmas practice for each game, and the coaches may gather information by watching their competitors games prior to playing them.

Ely Cohen, a shooting guard for the Brahmas, says that team practises using information they’ve learned from their coaches after they’ve scouted their opponents.

“Depending on what team we

Season Review:

Brahmas soccer

EZZAT WANAS Reporter @EzzatWanas

Salonga’s newly-found ambition has led her to take on two jobs where she works approximately 33 hours a week. She is a server at Olive Garden and a manager at Taco Bell. She is currently enrolled in Calculus 2, Chemistry, and a Chemistry lab. Including soccer, that equates to fourteen credits.

Salonga is pulling off this balancing act all while being one of three captains on the team and maintaining a cumulative 4.0 GPA.

Salonga uses her mentality that she adopted from sports into real life. She is determined to get good grades and make as much money as possible.

“I see some athletic tendencies in everything I do,” Salonga said. “It’s almost like I have to do this and I don’t have a choice. It’s the competitive side of me. I want to have a lot of money when I am older and that’s the goal.”

Adolfo Perez, head coach, believes its Salonga’s leadership qualities that stand out about her and it’s the reason why she is a captain on the team.

“It’s not always your best players, it’s the leaders,” Perez said. “She is super organized which helps us tremendously.”

Perez said that Salonga acts as the

play, Coach Casey, Coach Bruce [English] and Coach Charles [White] do a great job at scouting the other teams and watching their games,” Cohen said. “Many, many games, not just one or two like most normal college coaches would. Like eight to ten games, so we really know what the other team runs and their plays.”

Weitzel said this technique, and stated the team employs the other team’s actions into their own practice as a means of familiarizing themselves with how the opponents play.

“What we do kind of stays the same, but how we do it might change,” Weitzel said. “So if a team runs a certain series of actions, we’ll add those actions into our regular practice, because we have that built in. A period of time in practice to work on specific actions that we will see.”

Mohamed Sako, forward, believes that the team has been working to see their efforts pay off.

“I’m excited and this year our whole goal is to play in the championship,” Sako said. “We have been working hard these past couple of weeks and months and we’d really like to just go there and win a lot of games this year. That’s a promise.”

Weitzel mentioned the challenges the team had so far.

“Really our biggest obstacles would be the short turnarounds on these games,” Weitzel said. “You’re prepared for the first one, but then you don’t know who you’ll play until the result of the game after or before you. So then as soon as you finish your game you prepare for the next game and getting in your gym can be hard. Our gym floor will be getting done during that tournament, which is great because we need it, but at the same time we can’t come in and do

perfect role model for the other girls on the team and exemplifies what a student athlete should be.

“I fully respect people that do what she does because it is not easy,” Perez said. “I know someone with her work ethic definitely has a bright future.”

Jocelyn Ramos, midfielder, and one of Salonga’s best friends, said that her hard work is contagious and it helps inspire the rest of the team to have a better work ethic.

“She’s really our motivation,” Ramos said. “It makes each and every one of us work hard because we don’t have as difficult of a life as she does. There’s no excuse for us to slack off if she’s not.”

Along with leadership, Ramos said that she is also one of the nicest people on the team and she treats everyone with kindness and compassion.

“She’s really down to earth and really positive,” Ramos said. “She’s really the light of the whole team and she brings us all together.”

Salonga said that other than success, her main motivation in life are her parents because they both work incredibly hard to support her and her brother.

“I think the reason why I work so hard is because I want to do the same

thing for my kids and do even more but not have the slightest bit of worry about money,” Salonga said.

Despite going through adversity and living a very busy life with not much time for herself, there are three simple words that Salonga constantly repeats to herself every day. Whatever It Takes. “It’s whatever it takes whether it’s in school, in life, or in a game,” Salonga said. “I want to be a billionaire. I don’t know what I have to do but I am going to do whatever it takes to get there.”

After Pierce, Salonga plans on applying to transfer to San Diego State University, University of California, San Diego or University of California, Los Angeles. She is currently undecided on her major but is considering aerospace or mechanical engineering and nursing.

Salonga has no plans on playing wherever she transfers and confirmed that this is her last season being a student athlete.

“I definitely love the sport, but I think ending now is perfect for me and I would be happy,” Salonga said.

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The soccer team concluded the 2018 season with an 18th straight playoff appearance, despite having a year full of ups and downs.

The Brahmas lost to the Cerritos College Falcons in the first round of the regionals.

Head coach Adolfo Perez said the players never gave up.

“Our girls here at Pierce played that hard, played that good, I am so proud of them,” Perez said.

The Brahmas ended with an overall record of 13-6-3, while finishing second in conference play at 5-2-1.

The team scored a total of 74 goals, at 3.36 per game. They had 186 shots on goal and a total of 80 assists.

Perez said that the team faced a lot of obstacles and a lot of injuries.

For example, the team began the season with four goalkeepers and end up with only one.

Madison Holland went out for the season due to a torn ACL. Midfielder Irene Reyes had the same injury.

Iliana Yanez suffered a concussion in the game against Santa Monica College and Valerie Mojica suffered an injury around the lower part of her leg.

From the beginning of the season, Perez was worried about injuries.

“My most successful years, like 2002, 2005, and 2010 we didn’t have a lot of injuries, so there is a correlation between injuries and performance. You have no control over injuries and

this year we had a lot of injuries,” Perez said.

Keyonna Hill led the team with 29 goals. She tied the all-time goalscorer who was Erica Vangsness.

“I would really like to thank Coach Adolfo Perez for being a strong amazing coach. After two years of not playing he was able to help shape and guide me. Special thanks to Coach Willie [Diaz] because of you I never quit no matter how,” Hill said.

Diana Millan led the team and the state with 29 assists.

One of the highlights this season was coming back from three goals down to beat Ventura College 4-3.

Diana Salonga, midfielder, said that the team did very well this season.

“We have a good record, every girl played hard, we got a lot of goals everywhere we played,” Salonga said.

The Brahmas fell short of another conference title finishing second behind Santa Monica.

In the Play-In Game of regionals Pierce faced their cross-town rival LA Valley College.

Gisell Cruz scored the only goal for the team which helped the team advance to the next round.

In the next round, they faced Cerritos and lost 4-0.

“We actually played the best game. In my 18 years I never seen a game plays like Cerritos, they won 21 games and scored 128 goals, but our team played the best game,” Perez said.

[For the full story visit theroundupnews.com]

a shoot up round to prepare for the other team.”

Regardless of these setback, Weitzel and Brahmas are looking forward to the tournament as they see it as a chance to better themselves

on the court.

“I think every day that this team has gotten together, their focus has been to get better,” Weitzel said. “So what I’m looking forward to is seeing them get better every game,

and they have. So each time we go out, we prepare a little bit better, we compete a little bit better, we execute a little bit better and we just keep getting closer and closer to putting a complete game together. So I’m going to be really excited to

see if maybe this weekend would be a chance to see that complete game.” The tournament takes place from Nov. 29 to Dec.1.

Natalie Miranda/ Roundup

Cerritos College’s defender America Ontiveros tries to steal the ball from Pierce’s forward Gisell Cruz as she makes her way down the field during the first round of the Southern California Regional Playoffs on Nov. 17, 2018, in Cerritos, Calif.

CHRISTOPHER TORRES Reporter @chris_t_torres

Christopher Torres/ Roundup

Diana Salonga ties her soccer cleat at The Pit on Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2018 at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif.

Alex Moreno/ Roundup

Kevin Fassu shoots the ball against Oxnard College on Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2018 at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif. The Brahmas won 101-83.

Natalie Miranda/ Roundup Ely Cohen shoots the ball while Oxnard College’s forward Taieem Comeaux tries to get the ball during a game in Pierce College’s Ken Stanley Court on Nov. 20, 2018, in Woodland Hills, Calif.

Volleyball Soccer Football

Football's year of firsts

The football team ended the 2018 season on the stronger foot ending with a win agianst the Santa Monica College Corsairs.

With the win, the Brahmas ended the season with a winning record for the first time since 2015.

The team finished with an overall record of 6-4,4-1 in conference play.

There was much to look back on for both the coaches and the team itself.

This year offered more wins than losses which Woods attributes to the team’s tenacity and inner leadership.

“We have very good, strong core of leaders with our sophomore class, and we were able to end up winning five of the last six ball games. As you know, it’s the first winning season they have had around here since 2015, and it’s a testament to the guys who stayed,” Woods said.

According to the Community College Athletic Association, the team averaged 42 touchdowns for 311 points.

However, the Brahmas were unable to make a Bowl Game.

Woods taught and drilled with positive reinforcement in order to the motivate the team, regardless of whether they won or lost their game.

Against Santa Monica it was a season highlight for Woods as it helped reinforce his teachings this semester.

“I preach to the guys all year that every game, whether we won or lost, we left plays on the field,” Woods said. “I stressed to them about emptying the tank. At the end of the day when you’re done with the game you want to be able to say “I left it right there on the field.

Every single snap, I gave it my all.”

The football team after four games were 1-3. Losses included their home opener against Mt. San Jacinto, San Diego Mesa and losing the Victory Bell in the final seconds against LA Valley College. However they bounced back beating West LA College in the second game of the season.

Dimetri King, cornerback, made the game winning interception for the Brahmas. King led the Brahmas with four interceptions this season..

After the loss to the Monarchs, the Brahmas would go on a fourgame winning streak beating College of the Desert, Santa Barbara, Pasadena City and LA Harbor.

In the games against the Roadrunners and the Lancers the wins were by the same score 44-43. For the game against Hancock

College things did not go the way the Brahmas wanted. In the second half, interceptions and fumbles proved costly as the Bulldogs won the game 49-24.

Jua Ng-Keys, running back, was enthusiastic about seeing people from across the country play as a cooperative unit, as well as being generally excited about playing his first season as a Brahma.

“Seeing everyone you know and everyone out of state and all of us coming together as a team,” NgKeys said. “This whole season it was all the ups and downs, but we fixed it. I ran for five yards, which was cool and surprising because I thought I wasn’t going to actually play this season, but I was happy got to and It was a lot of fun.”

Christian Graves, wide receiver,

the game against the Corsairs

Brahma of the Week

Max Edwards

Sport: Basketball

Position: Forward Class: Freshman

Hometown: Simi Valley

Led the team with 29 points in the game against Oxnard College.

You led the team in points last week. What was the overall feeling?

“It was good. I was struggling in the first couple of weeks, so it was great to have that breakout game.”

Do you have any pregame rituals or superstitions?

“I just listen to music and visualize what I am going to do in the game.”

If you weren’t playing basketball, what sport would be playing?

“I played football and baseball when I was little, so either one.”

What do you feel you can improve on?

"Being more consistent and improving on defense.”

Any plans after Pierce?

“Getting to a four-year school.”

Brahmas Scoreboard

Soccer

L @ Cerritos 4-0

Life outside of their sport

NICHOLAS MARTINEZ Reporter @NickEsai

Students athletes may just be best known for how they put points on the scoreboard and maintain a good defence. Although here at Pierce College, some have to give more to reach their goals.

Men's basketball head coach Casey Weitzel explains how the athletic department has a study hall where athletes must attend tutoring depending on their academic performance.

“We have English and math both coming every day Monday through Friday and depending on my students on my team's GPA, they are required to complete a certain amount of hours each week,” Weitzel said. “If their grade point average is below a 2.0 its three hours a week, if it is anywhere from a 2.0 to a 2.5 it's two hours a week, if they have above a 2.5, it's one hour a week, and anything higher is no hours.”

Weitzel says that as a coach, his support to his players is not just on the court, but also extends further.

“We are not only coaches, but sometimes we are tutors as well,” Weitzel said. “One of my students had to come up with a scenario and they read the example and I help them brainstorm the right answer for it.”

Many student athletes also work as well and it can sometimes conflict with practice times and games. Weitzel explains how far his athletes are willing to go to play and clock in on time.

have any schedule conflicts,” Weitzel said. “So they work at night, they go to sleep for a few hours, they go to class, then they come to practice and they go back to work. So their schedules are insane.”

Water polo team captain Cassidy Hoffman usually found herself rushing to work right after practice, but believes with the right kind of time management its worth it.

“It can be definitely hard sometimes, it's just kind of learning how to balance and manage your time, and figure out how to do A, B, and C but also remember you have two hours of practice at the end of your day,” Hoffman said. “My weeks change between part time and full time, I work between 25 to 45 hours a week, and that was definitely a struggle when school first started.”

Former Olympian and athletic director Moriah Van Norman believes that student aspect should always be the main focus of any student athlete.

“In college, being successful is getting a degree, and if we limit things to just wins and losses, a lot of people are going to be disappointed,” Van Norman said. “My gauge of success is, are they doing well in their classes? Are they respectful? Are they figuring out what else their good at besides athletics, and where are they going to transfer?”

Weitzel said that many people have the wrong perspective on the athletes.

“A lot of them are holding down jobs just like a regular student and are also making it to practice and games,” Weitzel said.

Volleyball

W @ SMC 72-0

Water Polo MBasketball WBasketball

[For

“A number of our guys have jobs, and we even have a couple of them work at night so they don't

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said

was his highlight of the season.

Natalie Miranda/ Roundup

Running back David Kates tries to run with the ball during a game against San Diego Mesa College on Sept. 15, 2018 at Pierce College's John Shepard Stadium in W oodland Hills, Calif.