Volume 130 Spring 2019 Roundup Issue 9

English/ Math slashed

Despite the Pierce Cheer and Competition team losing many players throughout the season, they were still able to make a new addition - a national championship banner.

The judges scored the Brahmas routine with zero deductions and were awarded first place at the Spirit Cheer SoCal Finale Nationals in San Diego.

Zach Harris, cheer director, applauded the teams’ diligent mentality through an obstaclefilled season and believes that this is the best team Pierce has had in yet.

“I think that they understood each other and their strengths and their weaknesses,” Harris said. “They filled in the gaps for each other and really made it more of a family than a team.”

The season was not a smooth ascension to the top as they lost a majority of the team during the season due to financial reasons and scheduling conflicts. According to Harris, many of the members that left had key roles on the team and they had to constantly alter the routine every week because of their departure.

“We've had to change our routine a lot,” Harris said. “Almost every practice we had to build a new routine, switch something up or add a new member and changing around a formation.

Preview:

Of all the reasons to do the Tony Award-winning “In the Heights,” the most important is how the actors and Pierce College students can relate to the characters and their stories.

Written by “Hamilton’s”

Lin-Manuel Miranda, it tells the story of hopeful immigrants living in New York’s Washington Heights. While the characters struggle to find a way to leave and live life outside the neighborhood, as the story progresses they realize that they’ve been home all along.

The show opens April 26 and runs through May 5 at the Performing Arts Building Mainstage with a split cast.

Director Shaheen Vaaz said that although the production of the play has been more difficult because of the added combination of singing, dancing and acting, she thinks the story is what makes it worth it.

“I think this is a tough one,” Vaaz said. “It’s also feels easy in some ways because I think it’s a really authentic story.

When you do that a lot, it's really hard to clean up and organize it.” As the weeks went on and the competition date came closer, Harris said the team put in extra work in the last few practices they had and even switched around

crucial roles for the routine.

“Towards the end, we had an extra couple extra practices,” Harris said. “They worked really, really hard to make sure that the stunts that we were working on were solid and we had to change a

few flyers which is a major thing, but we ended up being able to switch our pyramid around and make it work.”

While performing the routine on the national stage, Harris admitted that he was nervous but

had the utmost confidence in the girls because of the hours of training they committed themselves to doing.

“During most of their stunts I was a little worried, but not too worried,”

[For the full story visit theroundupnews.com]

Students planning to enroll in fundamental English and math courses may be surprised.The Chancellor directed to remove them from the fall schedule. Representatives from the departments expressed opposition to this decision at Monday’s Academic Senate meeting, because it interfered with their transition plans to work with AB 705. The bill “maximize the probability that a student will enter and complete transfer-level coursework in English and math within a one year”

Crystal Kiekel, the Center for Academic Success director, argued that there is a major misconception that these courses are part of the English and math sequences.

She explained that students will not be placed in these classes as a requirement for transfer as they can have the liberty to take these courses for their development.

“We believe students should be able to choose to take a class that will allow them to strengthen their fundamental grammar, learning skills and their arithmetic skills should they choose to do so at any point before or after their transfer sequence,” Kiekel said.

Before AB 705, courses, such as English 21 and Math 110/115 were considered two or three levels below transfer level.

“So that means that we can no longer place students so low in a developmental sequence because students were sort of dwelling in below transfer level courses for years,” Kiekel said.

I’m an immigrant and it’s very much our story. I think the cast, all of us, we just get it.

We get it. We lived it on some level.”

Vaaz said that this play as a

whole feels personal to her own story of growing up. “I lived in Manhattan. I went

to grad school at Columbia so I was in the area and I was an actor pounding the pavement in Manhattan for many years,” Vaaz said. “I love that flavor of New York that you get in it. I’m also an immigrant so I understand this like search for home.

With musical numbers in both Spanish and English and genres ranging from hip-hop to salsa, Theater Manager Michael Sande said there’s a lot of variety to the play.

“It’s just a very ethnically diverse cast and it’s important to us to have roles considering the very ethnically diverse student body we have here,” Sande said. “In our own department we have a lot of Latinx students but there are also people of different ethnicities in this. We have a couple of African-Americans in the play, there’s some Filipinos. Its message is universal.

“In the Heights” opens Friday, April 26, at 8 p.m., at the Performing Arts Building Mainstage, and will run April 27 and 28 and May 2-5 with the times varying.

Chairman of Mathematics Eddie Tchertchian stressed that Pierce College’s mission is to help students gain career and technical proficiency.

Tchertchian stressed student equity, student choice, and students having the ability to make better decisions about their courses.

“It's important to point that up to 40 percent of our students here at Pierce College are CTE students, career technical education students, so many of those enrolled to gain just a specific skill. Their goal is not to transfer,” Tchertchian said.

The Senate unanimously approved a document that expressed opposition to the Chancellor’s direction the stated several reasons for inclusion of the English and math courses.

The Academic Senate announced their newly elected president Barbara Anderson winning with 84 votes, while Fernando Oleas had 33 votes according to the Nominations and Elections Committee.

“I'm excited to win but also humbled, realizing that it's a really important role to represent the faculty well and the pre-previous presidents have done an excellent job,” Anderson said.

Katya Castillo / Roundup

(Left to right) Alex Balderas , Trevor Alkazian, Janel "JJ" Javier, and Nic Escalante rehearse "In the Heights" by Lin Manuel Miranda at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif. on April 22, 2019.

Katya Castillo / Roundup

Lailah Vestal is lifted during cheer practice in the North Gym at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif. on April 22, 2019. The Pierce College Cheer

Team won a national title at Spirit Cheer competition in San Diego on April 19, 2019.

From the desk of the Roundup: Editorial

One in every 12 U.S. college students makes a suicide plan and more teenagers and young adults die from suicide than from all other medical illnesses combined, according to National Data on Campus Suicide and Depression.

Simply being informed about mental health is not enough.

According to the American College Health Association Spring 2015 assessment, twothirds of students who are struggling do not seek treatment. College students balancing school, work, friends and family while simultaneously trying to figure out and prepare for the future is a lot to think about and can lead to some health problems.

The Anxiety and Depression Association of America found that 30 percent of college students said their academic performance was hindered due to stress. More than 41 percent believed that anxiety was the main issue for college students and 85 percent reported feeling overwhelmed at some point within the last year.

Pierce College is a part of the California Community College Student Mental Health Program which provides junior colleges in the state with an online training module from a website named Kognito.

It consists of six interactive and research-proven training simulations designed to educate faculty, staff and students about the best practices in supporting students with mental illnesses

such as depression and anxiety. Pierce should make this program a requirement to register for classes similar to what the school is doing with the sexual harassment online training.

Each training is free and takes 30 to 60 minutes to complete and is structured as a virtual practice environment where users learn by engaging in interactive role-play conversations with emotionally responsive student avatars.

Social life in college serves as a prime example of an emotional spark that can ignite mental disorders, even if the student is unaware. More than 60 percent of students reported feeling lonely - a common indicator of depressionin the past year and approximately 35.8 percent of students typically undergo relationship problems, making it one of the top three mental struggles faced in college, according to National Data on Campus Suicide and Depression. Mental health services on campus play a crucial role in assisting students to overcome social hardships to upgrade their academic performance and optimize their college experience.

The Pierce Student Health Center provides on-campus personal counseling, crisis intervention and referrals are available. They offer individual and group counseling to any student suffering from mental illnesses such as anxiety, depression, eating disorders or drug/alcohol abuse. A student can see the psychotherapist up to six times a semester according

to the Pierce College website. Appointments are recommended to see all providers and required to see the psychologist, but walkins will be seen as the providers’ schedules permit.

By having mental health counseling available to students, Pierce is doing the right thing. But, according to Vice President

of Student Services, Earic DixonPeters, two students were sent to the hospital earlier this semester due to mental health issues. Having counseling available is one thing, but making sure students know that it exists is another. There seems to be a popular hesitation to seek mental

health treatment among college students, despite the prevalence of mental illness. If mental health programs are expanded to match growing student populations, their accessibility will attract more students to come forward and seek treatment.

The Health Center at Pierce is located on the second floor of

Should students get more voting power?

Pro: Give students a louder voice

JACKSON HAYANO Reporter @RoundupNews

There is an old saying that every voice matters. And while this may be true, the unfortunate reality is that not every voice has an opportunity to be heard. And this a problem that Pierce College currently has.

Sure, there are organizations such as Associated Students Organization (ASO), which represent student interests. But students must go directly to their office or get in touch with an ASO representative in order to voice a concern. And even then, there’s no guarantee that the concern or matter will gain much traction.

The idea of student voting would allow ASO and the administration to not only reach out to more students, but to get feedback on ideas and issues that directly affect them.

The voting could be online too, which would eliminate both the need for tellers and for paper ballots. Websites such as SurveyMonkey make it quick and easy to create a voting poll that can then be sent as links to all student emails. Thus, the process of creating a poll, sending it to students and counting the votes becomes quick and accessible.

As for which issues to be voted on, all ASO would have to

do is create a list of any current topics that are being discussed in Academic Senate or Pierce College Council (PCC) meetings.

On top of that, there can also be a suggestion box where students could submit possible ideas or issues that could be voted on.

Student voting would keep students up to date with what’s going on around them.

A weekly or even monthly email with a voting poll would showcase to students all the matters that are currently being discussed on campus. So, student voting would also play a role in keeping students informed on current issues.

About 95 percent of Pierce’s student population is aged 18 or older, making them eligible to vote in local and federal elections.

So, if Pierce students are able to vote on issues that concern their community and country, then why shouldn’t they be allowed to vote on issues that pertain to the college?

Plus, people are always trying to encourage younger folks to vote in upcoming elections.

The idea of student voting at Pierce would help students get into the habit of voting and could also show them the difference that their voice makes.

The act of voting has become

increasingly popular among college students. According to Tufts University, 31 percent of young people aged 18 to 29 voted in the 2018 midterms elections, which was a 10 percent increase from 2014. The fact that more people are showing up to vote ought to be indicator that young people have a voice that wants to be heard.

Faculty could even encourage student voting by offering extra credit on tests or homework for students who vote.

In the end, what we would get with student voting is a more connected, educated student population that is engaged with what goes on around them. Too many students here are kept in the dark over important issues. Student voting would help popularize and publicize issues that are circulating around campus grounds.

As paying students, it’s our tuition and our tax dollars that keep the school funded and running. Therefore, it only seems fair that we have a right to vote on issues that will affect our experiences at Pierce.

jhayano.roundupnews@gmail.com

the Student Services Building. From Monday through Thursday, their hours are 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. On Fridays, they are open from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. for medical appointments and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. for counseling.

Con: Hault more disruptions

SUSAN LOPEZ Reporter @RoundupNews

The word 'order' can be connected from the oldest to the most modern political ideologies of democracy. Even though these can vary widely from each other, their goal is maintenance and balance of a social organization. Student affairs can be a complicated field to trek, as the number of concerns surrounding their well being cannot reassure 100 percent of the people at the campus.

Therefore, having students to vote in an extensive list of issues will not be convenient for the Associated Students Organization (ASO). The reason why is that having the student body government to count the votes for each student could be chaotic causing rupture or differences on campus.

Pierce College has its own student body that collaborates with the ASO Senate.

According to the ASO ByLaws, “All meetings will be open to the public, posted within seventy-two (72) hours in advance, and held on campus during school hours unless otherwise authorized by the ASO Advisor. All members of committees must be paid ASO members and currently enrolled students.”

Anyone is welcome to attend Academic Senate meetings and Pierce College Council (PCC) meetings to stay informed on campus issues and budget decisions. Students can find ways to personally email board members if they wish to make a personal impact.

The Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) has similar processes where the body government represents the student's concerns and choose according to their best interests.

For example, Los Angeles Mission College and Valley College have a similar system, which students choose the ASO members through elections putting them in charge of voting on different issues relating to the students.

Also, California State University, Northridge follows the same system where they have an association of students, who each represent one of the career departments at the campus and that person will choose for the dozens of other students who belong in that group.

If this system is being followed by several campuses around the Los Angeles area, it is because it guarantees a line of order even though it might not be perfect.

However, putting more

people into the picture could worsen existing issues and rise controversy as the tally count may not be fair or precise.

The ASO By-Laws also states, “The Senate members must have at least five voting members to be legitimate ASO and conduct business. They must also hold weekly meetings where they propose legislation or policies concerning each student. This assures the order and effectiveness of proposed policies.”

It is also important to remind students that this doesn’t mean their voices are being silenced, but on the contrary, they should speak up about the troubles that are affecting campus and bring them to the ASO member so they can take action.

The ASO members represent all students at Pierce and having them makes the goal for student satisfaction run smoothly for better agreements. Getting to know your representatives and staying up-to-date with public meetings on campus is the best way to take the proper initiative.

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.

Photo Illustration: A semicolon is used as a message of support for people dealing with mental health issues. Blake Williams/Roundup

Brahmas finances go red

Pierce projects $3 million deficit

Pierce College is facing a financial problem that hasn't been seen on campus for more than a generation, which has put the school in a deficit this year, and it is projected to be even more in the fall.

Administration and staff are working to fix this budget crisis.

“We're looking at right now for ‘19-’20 is something around $3 and a half million,” Interim President Larry Buckley said. “What we're looking at for this year is to try to marshal resources in part, by costs aversion that might be called cost cutting in other areas. There are some resources that we believe are available to us through the district in paybacks. We're waiting to include some federal money that is related to the cost associated when we had the fire evacuation last November. We are going to be at, or close to the balance for the ‘18 -‘19 year.”

Senate Treasurer and Psychology Professor Angela Belden explained part of the reason for the financial issue is how they allocate funds throughout the district.

According to Belden, the district has changed how they distribute financing for each of the nine colleges.

Belden said the smaller schools in the district has been having a tough time creating profit for the school. This led the district to change how the money is administered. Each college is then given a certain amount of funds for administrators.

“Pierce College is categorized as a medium college as are quite a number of the colleges,” Belden said. “So we get funded based on that and not on the amount of money that we bring in anymore.”

Belden points out that another factor to take into consideration is the decline of enrollment.

“It's like a perfect storm of things where we have this funding formula that that changed up how we did things and on top of that we see an

enrollment decline,” Belden said.

A third factor that we have to take into consideration, according to Belden, is Pierce College's reserve funds.

“I think it's almost like a one-two punch right to the budget and then to add a third punch in there. We used to have a pretty healthy reserve,” Belden said. “And over the past several years, as enrollment has declined, we've had to borrow money from that reserve.”

Belden adds that Pierce College has some reserves that the district holds, but that there are very strict rules about how you can use that money.

“It's almost like the district is the parents of nine children and the district wants all of its nine children to be successful and financially solid,” Belden said. “And it gets really complicated and really messy.”

Fernando Oleas, the chair of the Modern Languages, said departments are already looking on how to reduce their budget.

“There are three divisions, academic affairs, administrative services and the student services. They are already having conversations as to how they can reduce their operational budget,” Oleas said. “What we have to think about is that it's not about how are we going to satisfy this year, it’s what we're going to be doing for next year.”

Buckley said they are working on the issue for this year and the future.

“We have instituted a schedule through our enrollment management

Field trip fun

Extension classes offer excursions

GINA WONG Reporter @RoundupNews

One of the highlights of elementary school is field trips.

That same fun can be found at Pierce.

Registration is open for travel tours provided by the Pierce Extension Community Education located at Village 8200.

-

committee as well as our office of instruction,” Buckley said. “They tried to reduce expenditures without adversely affecting enrollment. And that's an art, not a science. So we'll see how that goes. But in trying to cut into that projected deficits by reducing costs of instruction, about 2.5 percent will put us in a much better position.

Buckley said under the new funding formula, Pierce may gain additional apportionment from the state built around the number of pell grants and transfers students.

New Academic Senate President, Barbara Anderson stated Pierce’s stature among the other colleges in the district will be fine because of a solid track record.

“Pierce College is one of the leaders in the district, and we have a great faculty and we've been very responsible fiscally,” said Anderson.

“So I think we've got the wisdom that it takes to make good decisions.”

Belden says that moving forward with how the district funds Pierce, the student enrollment number, and the status of Pierce’s reserve funds are all critical pieces to solving the puzzle that is the budget deficit.

“We have not been a deficit college for over 30 years,” Belden said. “We are clearly having some growing pains that could be solved with this money that we've earned as well as these other aspects. But I’m very hopeful about the budget and the future.”

aali.roundupnews@gmail.com

The travel tours can be found in the catalog and they range from single-day to multi-day tours, which take place from April to December. However, the difference between the two types of tours is that some of the multi-day tours may require flights or a trip to a different state.

Dean of Academic Affairs

Sharon Dalmage said because Pierce Extension has a robust community they want people to enjoy different cultural experiences and expand their recreation.

“We created a list of different tours that they can take which allows them to have fun,” Dalmage said. “They are able to congregate with other people in the community and are able to explore.”

The goal of these tours is to provide exciting opportunities to the community that is engaging and will introduce people to Pierce because community members can network, according to Dalmage.

“Many community members who take Pierce classes at the same time can also learn about other academic programs that Pierce has to offer,” Dalmage said.

Program Coordinate of Foster/ Kinship care at Pierce Extension Kristina Petrosyan said the travel tours started in 2018 and are contracted with Good Times Travel.

“Participants get picked up here on campus and they go different locations on the tours,” Petrosyan said. “In the multi-day tours, people can travel to San Antonio, Seattle, Canada, New Mexico and Monterey.”

Petrosyan said Pierce Extension is open to everybody whether it is for

tours or classes, but the tours are just a new addition for self-enjoyment.

“They are like mini vacations,” Petrosyan said. “Anyone can register, pay the fees and enjoy.”

Dalmage said these tours are beneficial for some people who may be retired or others who are interested in doing fun things, especially in the summer.

“They want to take vacations, but maybe they don’t have enough money to go as far as on a flight or to do a road trip or don’t want to drive,”

Dalmage said. “So they feel like they can take one of our trips where it’s on a chartered bus so someone else can do all the driving for them.”

Office Assistant of Community Services Martha Benavides said these trips are beneficial because a person’s criteria expands when they travel.

“Some people say that trips illustrate more than academics at school,” Benavides said. “I believe you learn from every trip that you take when you get out of your comfort zone of your region, you become more open-minded. You expand your horizons; you become multicultural even if it’s within the same country.”

Dalmage said people can register for these tours by going online to the pierce extension website, and create an account.

Registration fees and deadlines to register vary depending on the tour and can all be found be in the catalog.

It is also directed on a first come, first serve basis and because seats fill fast so people are advised to register early, according to Dalmage.

Petrosyan said the first time the tours were conducted they had really good registration and many participants were interested.

“We got good reports that the tours are exciting and people were excited that we brought this on campus and to the community,” Petrosyan said.

For more information call 1(818) 719-6425 or visit www. extension.piercecollege.edu.

gwong.roupnews@gmail.com

Rundown Brahma Blotter

These incidents were reported between 4/14-4/20

Reported by: Sofi Matzaganian

4/15 1:27 p.m.

•Student Ill

A student felt ill in class and paramedics called.

4/15 8:22 a.m

•Student Incident

Student upset by phone call regarding family matter and a scene was caused outside class

4/15 7:00 p.m

•Student injured

A student burned his fingers during welding class.

4/15 4:45 p.m

•Traffic incident

Two vehicle traffic collision.

4/16 7:47 p.m

•Student Ill

A student was ill in class.

4/17 10:30-10:45 a.m

•Petty theft Student reported headphones, cell phone and $10 was stole from backpack.

The famed Rocky from Philadelphia is a fictional boxer who was honored with a statue.

The Rocky of Pierce, Darroch “Rocky” Young, is a real life leader, who was honored last week with a plaque recognizing his accomplishments. It sits in the school’s park that has been named after him.

To celebrate the 20 years since former President Rocky Young's arrival, a day of celebration was organized by the faculty and administration April 17.

InterimPresidentLarryBuckleysaid he has a great relationship with Young.

"He remembers my name, talks to me, pretends that he likes me," joked Buckley. “It's been a wonderful relationship.”

Professor of Business Administration Robert Lyons laughed at Buckley’s joke and said, “I think it's very fitting and it's a wonderful tribute to him because he really got this place back on track.”

“I've taught here for 50 years and I've seen it up and down, up and down. When Rocky came we were down. ,” Lyons said. “The morale was horrible. Having Rocky here brought it back.”

Professor Monika Ramirez and her student, liberal arts major Joanna O’Conner, observed the display their class had created for the event.

“I was approached by Doreen Clay,

our PR manager, about the prospect of my students being interested in working on a project as a part of the festivities today,” Ramirez said. “I was teaching Museum Studies, specifically ART 92, so I said yes. My students would love to work on this project because we can fit into the curriculum.”

“We had the opportunity to file through some images found by the PR director of Pierce College,” explained O’Connor. “We were able to look through the records in the library and sift through pertinent information that applied to what Rocky Young stood for and established for Pierce College, which was creating a community available to anyone and everyone.”

Buckley said Young’s leadership impacted those around him.

“His leadership and character touches and will continue to touch the lives of everyone for decades and decades to come,” Buckley said.

Toward the tail end of the event, everyone left the building to take a walk to the Rocky Young Park to see the plaque dedicated in Young’s name “It's really a homecoming for all of us,” said Diana Young, Rocky Young’s wife. “There are so many people here who mean so much to us. And I know this place means a lot to Rocky.”

Young believes one of the highlights of his life was at Pierce.

“I often rejoice about our time together. It was the best five years of my career and I particularly thank you for the naming of this park and this wonderful plaque,” Young said.

4/18 4:10 p.m

•Student Ill

A student caused a disturbance in class.

Pierce College Sheriff’s Station

General Information: (818) 719-6450

Emergency: (818) 710 - 4311

Photo illustration by Joshua Manes Pierce College President Larry Buckley, reports an approximate $3 million defi

cit in the next school year. This will be the first time since the 1980’s.

Nick Martinez/ Roundup

Darroch "Rocky" Young unveils his monument in Rocky Young Park on April 17, 2019, in Woodland Hills Calif.

Vote Now: ASO Elections going on today until April 29 Presidential Candidates

Students can vote through their LACCD student portal.

The potential politicians of Pierce Presidential canidate from abroad provides new solutions

STORIES BY: NICK MARTINEZ Feature Editor @NickEsai

In her youth, the only future

Aleksandra Alimova saw for herself was being a young mother in Uzbekistan.

That all changed when her mother brought her to California four years ago. Now, she has the aspirations to pursue a career in law.

“But the people who actually have a chance to leave, they leave, but I’m not trying to say its a bad country,” Alimova said. “Here I have so many opportunities and if I would’ve stayed there, I would probably be married by the age of 22 and have kids.”

Alimova is a political science student at Pierce College, and is making use of her new oppertunities by running for ASO president.

When first coming here, learning an entirely new language was the most difficult part of Alimova’s transition to a new country.

“I did not know even one word in English,” Alimova said. “I learned English here in high school, I would watch the news on tv, and I didnt have any Russian friends. They were all American so they would always fix my english, fix my grammar and tell me how to say certain things.”

Alimova describes how she first became apart of ASO as a senator.

“I became a senator in fall 2018 and I’m also the chair of their Welfare Committee with my friend, and I’m helping her out with some events coming up in May,” Alimova said. “We are planning an event called ‘No Weights, No Worries’, where we all workout with just resistance bands. As part of the welfare committee we thought that this would be a good way to benefit

student’s health.”

Alimova describes why she believes she should be ASO president.

“I believe I can make a difference and make student voices heard because students’ voices are really important. We have so much power that we don’t know about and I want to make sure that all students know about it, even the minorities, because I’m a part of a minority,”

Alimova said. “I feel like even though we’re all different, we still can be united by this institution and we all can benefit even though we come from different backgrounds.”

The current ASO President, Isha Pasricha, describes what it has been like working with Alimova.

“She has been interested in being the president since the beginning,” Pasricha said. “She’s been very observant about how meetings run

and what I do with my job as she’s had a very personal experience with me. So, she is very well versed with this job already and I really admire how straightforward she is. She will tell you to your face something like ‘I think that is wrong and it shouldn’t be that way’ and that’s what a president needs to do sometimes.”

Along with this, Pasricha adds that Alimova has been a great

addition to ASO.

“She’s very determined and a focused woman, she’s a very strong headed person,” Pasricha said.

“We need a student leader who encourages her peers to do better and to push them out of their comfort zone and navigate their ways around society or a school and like reach the highest limits of their potential. I’m not going to say she is just like me, or I see myself in her, but she in

her own way is unique and brings a very new mix to the table.”

Politics extend beyond Pierce’s campus, and Alimova is pretty familiar with American politics, with the Constitution being her favorite piece of American legislature.

“I love the Constitution and it makes me cry,” Alimova said. “Because can you imagine it was written hundreds of years ago and we still use it, and the laws are still obeyed, it just blows my mind.

It’s basically the main thing why America is America today.”

After switching her major, Alimova is now majoring in political science, and describes what direction she wants to take with her life..

“I was computer science major originally, but last semester I switched to political science because it just felt that that’s what I want to do, and then go to a law school afterwards,” Alimova said.

Alimova also adds that being part of ASO will help her peruse her possible profession in the future.

“Even running as a president right now will give me a certain degree of experience being in law school, Plus being a lawyer is not only about experience, but it’s, it’s about personality,” Alimova said.

“I see myself as a lawyer because I have that drive and I really enjoy it.”

Chair of Events, Nicole Alfaro, said that Alimova is already concentrating on fixing issues on campus.

“At our meetings, she always says ‘Our parking sucks,’” Alfaro said. “She asks about when they are going to do refillable water stations, and she’s not even president yet, and she’s already working on that, which is pretty amazing.”

Students can vote through their LACCD portal until the deadline on April 29.

ASO senator hopes to help others as new treasurer

When thinking about being treasurer, a business mindset is what usually comes to mind. Brandon Le however, brings a new twist by incorporating psychology to fill this position.

“It’s kind of weird for a psychology major to become a treasurer, but there is psychology in all sorts of things in terms of finance. I kind of like to see it as business psychology,” Le said.

Le, who is currently an ASO senator, is running for treasurer, which he believes is the best position in which he can use his skills to help others.

“I joined ASO early on because I kind of want to get the ball rolling on helping the community, which is something I lacked entirely when I was in high school,” Le said. “I mean I’m probably in the best position where I’ll be able to help fund events on campus that can help benefit students as a whole.”

This drive to help stems from a mentality that Le has adopted.

“I think time is all relative, so that’s why I want to take the time to stay in school and then end up helping people out in the future,” Le said. “There’s only so much you can do in your life, and why not just use it to help others.”

Prior to setting his sights on becoming a psychology major, Le believes that joining ASO as a senator has really opened the doors for his career choice.

“At first I was a computer science major, but I only chose it because it meant my entire life would just revolved around computers, but that’s just more of a blanket statement,” Le said.

“I just didn’t know what the heck I was doing but then ever since I

joined ASO it really has made me realize there is so much you can do as a leader. Like whether it’s in the medical field or becoming a CEO of a company, it really helps you develop those leadership skills. It really has given me some confidence to do the things that I never thought about doing like

becoming a doctor in the future.”

Le describes how he first got involved with ASO finances, which was by working with the urrent treasurer.

“I was getting more exposure in the finance meetings and how Marek, the treasurer was handling them,” Le said. “I kind of got this

little interest from the beginning because I was like, ‘Why not? It’s just finance, I’m not good with numbers but I’ll see how it goes.’ And so, I was shadowing Marek.”

ASO President Isha Pasricha thinks Le has been a great addition to the committee and has helped her a lot through the semester.

“Brandon has been like a rock to me,” Pasricha said. “When I was absent and when I couldn’t attend certain meeting, Brandon was that reliable person in the Senate whom you can trust to go and replace you in the meetings to give the report and he would do it confidently. he was always there

to give the report and he did an excellent job at it. He was always been a very reliable person.”

With this being Pasricha’s last semester, she believes that ASO would be in good hands after she leaves if Le becomes treasurer.

“I knew that after I transfer I do want Brandon to be on the board for how determined he is, how good work ethics he has and I’m not sugar coating it,” Pasricha said. “he is like that one shining star I was looking for honestly I really commend his hard work.”

ASO Treasurer Marek Jansin describes how he and Le have been working together to fulfill the financial needs of students on campus.

“In the finance meeting when we have a request and it would otherwise be denied,” Jansin said.

“But Brandon and I kind of sit there and try to pick it apart and see how we can modify it in order that it meets both our requirements of what we can fund and maintain that person’s vision. Sometimes we have to great creative to meet those requirements for that event.”

Jansin also believes that Le that he is well suited to take up his position.

“I think he’s the best thing we have going for the financial side of ASO,” Jansin said. “I think he’ll be the best fit and I would not even think of recommending anybody else simply because he has done the hard work of learning and I’m very proud of what he’s accomplished and the amount of knowledge he’s gained. I think it’s literally the best thing that can happen is for him to take over my

Nick Martinez / Roundup

Aleksandra Alimova poses in front of the Bull statue on t he Mall on April 17, 2019, in Woodland Hills, Calif. She is currently runnning for ASO president.

seat.”

Nick Martinez / Roundup

Brandon Le poses infront of the Great Hall on April 17, 2019, in Woodland Hills, Calif. Le is a first year student and ASO senator.

Angel Orellana

• Wants to focus on students social needs.

• 15 years of experience in community organizing.

William Daugherty

• Vice President of Pierce Vegan Society.

• Wants to encourage more on-campus events.

Read more about Aleksandra Alimova below.

The musical “In The Heights,” by Lin Manuel-Miranda, premiered in July of 2005 and on Broadway in March of 2008. It was nominated for 13 Tony awards and won four, including Best Musical, Best Original Score and Best Choreography.

The Pierce Theatre Department had the enviable trouble of more performers than roles.

“It was almost too difficult to cast because we had so much talent,” Vaaz said. “We have a double cast because we did not want to turn the talent away.

“In the Heights” opens Friday, April 26, at 8 p.m., at the Performing Arts Building Mainstage. The play will run April 27 and 28 and May 2-5 with the times varying.

For tickets go to brownpapertickets. com.

Photos by Katya Castillo

Copy by Christopher Torres

Bottom: (left to right) Alex Balderas, Trevor Alkazian, Janel “JJ” Javier, and Nic Escalante rehearse “In the Heights” by Lin Manuel Miranda at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 22, 2019.

Left: Christine Avila plays Abuela Claudia from “In the Heights” by Lin Manuel Miranda, during a dress rehearsal at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 22, 2019.

Middle:

The cast of the Pierce College production of “In the Heights” by Lin Manuel Miranda, rehearse at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 22, 2019.

Alex Balderas (center) plays Usnavi de la Vega, the owner of a small bodega and the main narrator of “In the Heights” by Lin Manuel Miranda, during a dress rehearsal at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 22, 2019.

Brenda Garcia (right) and Jeremy Lee (left) play the parents of Nina Rosario from “In the Heights” by Lin Manuel Miranda, during a dress rehearsal at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 22, 2019.

ROUNDUP: April 24, 2019

The Dead of the Night

Evolution is one of many theoretical debates on the origin of life. One thing that can be said and holds true to almost everyone is that the human skeleton isn’t easy to understand.

Students who take the Anthropology 111 lab class at night have to observe and measure everything, from differences in skull sizes to seeing how big a toe is.

Just knowing something as simple as the shape and size of teeth can give anthropologists an idea about what our ancestors once ate.

With the combination of Anthropology 101, this laboratory class can be taken to complete general education requirements in biological science.

Top: (L-R) Katie Kang and Chelsea Alexander analyze a femur bone during an anthropology lab in the ELM Building in room 1709 at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 9, 2019.

Middle Left : Vanessa Merrit studies and writes down notes during the anthropology lab in the ELM building in room 1709 at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 9, 2019.

Photos by: Chelsea Westman

Copy By: Angelica Lopez

Bottom Left: (L-R) Hannah Haines and Marina Scheerson laugh as they figure out how to measure and identify a femur bone during an anthropology lab in the ELM building in room 1709 at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 9, 2019. Instructor of Anthropology Ronald Faulseit looks over in the background to assist the students.

Bottom Right: Students study and identify different human bones during the antropology lab in the ELM building in room 1709 at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 9, 2019. Ronald Faulseit stands on the right with a femur bone as he assists the class.

Middle Center: A human skull on display during an anthropology lab in the ELM building in room 1709 at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 9, 2019.

Pulitzer Prize winner reveals the truth in war

Award winning photojournalist, with a career spanning five decades,

Famed photojournalist Nick Ut, did something most people couldn’t by capturing the essence of a warzone through his artistry.

Vietnam and started his career as a war photographer when he was 16 years old.

to students who are pursuing photography in the room.

Children screaming in terror, a mother holding her lifeless child in her arms, Vietnam soldiers in battle.

The Pierce College Media Arts department welcomed the Pulitzer Prize-Winning photographer for their latest speaker series at the Faculty and Staff Center Thursday, April 18. Ut is originally from

STREET

Who’s going to earn the throne in Game of Thrones?

After 51 years working as a photographer with the Associated Press (AP), Nick Ut retired and shared a bit of what he is been up to nowadays.

“A photographer never really retires,” Ut said. “I thought I was going to stay home and not be busy, but I am very busy. I have traveled all around the world doing workshops and people invite me to talk about the picture of Vietnam. People don’t really believe that I travel almost every two weeks.”

Nick Ut might not be a familiar name for various people, but people might recognize his outstanding photography available in numerous media outlets. His work includes pictures from the Vietnam war, Michael Jackson, O.J Simpson trial, and other crucial news in Los Angeles.

However, there is one picture that has remained pivotal in Ut’s career, which is an image of children running after a napalm bomb attache during the Vietnam war. This picture was later awarded the Pulitzer-Prize in 1973.

“[During the war] I was heartbroken every day. Children died next to me. After the napalm bomb attack, the girl would have died if I wouldn’t have helped her. I saw her burns and her arms. She was naked so I said, ‘I will help her.’”

Ut shared knowledge and anecdotes followed by a Q&A, which gave important advice

BEAT

“Thenightkingsaregoingtowin.It’snotafairytale;the goodguysdon’talwayswin.It’safreeforallandanyone couldtakeit.”

-BeatriseAvila Anthropology

““IwantJonSnowtobeking,butIwanthimtobea cleanking. Jonistoonice.”

-Andria Salinas Accounting

“Ithastoendthewayitisgoingtoend.Theproductionhasto endinoneoftwoways.Eitheritworksforbothofthem,oritis goingtobegiventobothparties.”

-EddieSanchez MechanicalEngineering

"Partofmefeelslikeit’sgoingtobeDaenerysbecausewith allthepeopletheyhave,Idon’tseewhytheywouldn’twin. However,theNorthdoesn’twanttoworkwithDaenerys;they wantherasaqueenbecauseofherbloodline.”

-Camila Cortez AmericanSignLanguage

"Nooneisgoingtowin.Whitewalkerisgoingtowin which means no one.”

-ZaneLeyva Philosophy

Also, it was mentioned that there will be a documentary called “From Hell to Hollywood,” which is about Ut’s life and his journey as a photographer, which is expected to be released around the summer.

Producer Scott Templeton has been working along with Ut for almost two years in this project traveling to Vietnam to recount the most tragic moments in Ut’s life describing it as an unbelievable experience.

“It's really an amazing life that he's lived,” Templeton said. “So it's almost like the planets and moons were aligned to make him a photographer. A very interesting thing about Nick is from a man who saw so much horror at first hand, he has one of the best attitudes about life.”

Peter Villafane, a journalism major, attended the event and it made a big impact on Villafane and how a journalist should be passionate for what they do.

“I just feel really inspired,” Villafane said. “I think I always liked taking pictures before, but now I really want to go out and take pictures with intention. And I got inspired to go and do things that are scary for the purpose of helping people. I think that is really important. I don't think I've ever heard about journalists going out and helping the victims.”

Quotes and photos by Shawn Upshaw and Chelsea Westman

Sonia Gurrola/Roundup

Tracie Savage (left), Nick Ut (middle), and David Gascon (right)pose for a

photo at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif on April 18, 2019.

Sonia Gurrola/ Roundup Nick Ut, Photojournalist, speaks at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif. on April 18, 2019

Drum master makes his return and brings a band

Bernie Dresel, alongside the BBB, orchestrate classical jazz pieces for all audiences to enjoy

Jazz may seem like music your grandparents jam too, but when Bernie Dresel and his BBB band play, his toe-tapping tunes and swinging beats can find a place anywhere.

It’s not the first time Dresel has performed at Pierce college’s Thursday Concert Series. This time he brought his entire band, the BBB. Dresel performed Thursday, April 18, on the art hill.

Dresel is known for his TV and film and soundtrack credits,

such as Incredibles 2, Zootopia, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Family Guy, and The Simpsons. He moved to Los Angeles in 1983 after studying at the Eastman School of Music. Since then, he was the drummer for two Grammy Award-winning bands. He now heads his own big band, The BBB featuring Bernie Dresel on their second album tour.

The concert started off strong with “Straight, No Chaser,” a classic jazz piece originally composed by Thelonious Monk.

A full horn section of trumpets, trombones, saxophones and clarinet, as well as upright bass and guitar, powered through the

song as arranged by Andrew Neu.

A crowd of around 200 students, faculty and community members sat out in the sun on the grass, in chairs and some hiding out of the heat in the shade of the music buildings. A few of the students were even hopping and bopping to the beat and feeling the groove in front of the stage.

Dresel joked around in between songs and kept the mood lively with tidbits and facts about the songs and players.

He remarked that one of the biggest challenges to playing outdoors is the wind, as the players stumbled around with clothespins and paperweights to keep their music sheets from blowing away.

“We use these things, called clothespins,” Dresel said. “Do you know what they were originally used for? We used to hang our laundry out to dry on a line at my grandma’s house.”

Throughout the show, the players helped each other to keep the music going by constantly monitoring and fixing each other's papers, especially during solos, but they never missed a beat amidst the adjustments.

Next, the band moved on to Cole Porter’s classic, “Love for Sale” as arranged by Peter Myers featuring Jeff Bunnell on trumpet, Rob Lockhart on tenor saxophone and Brian Scanlon on alto saxophone.

Each of the songs they played was drawn from the BBB’s second album, “Bern Bern Bern”.

Then, they played “Sunny Side of the Street,” a slower swing tempo that has become a jazz standard, originally composed by Jimmy McHugh and arranged by Nan Schwartz.

Some of the following songs were arranged and even composed by BBB players, such as Samba Quente, composed and arranged by baritone saxophonist Brian Williams. Two of the songs, “Body and Soul” composed by Johnny Green and “A Night in Tunisia” by Dizzy Gillespie, were arranged by trumpeter Jeff Bunnell. And

I CAN TEACH

“Bern Bern Bern,” the album’s title track was composed and arranged by trombonist James McMillen.

Near the end, they played “Wiggle Waggle,” a song originally composed by the funky Herbie Hancock, who became a household name in the 1980’s with his MTV hit song “Rockit.” The Bill Cunliffe arrangement focused more on the playful aspects of the song than the edgy tension of the original. They closed out the

concert with “Crossing the Boulevard,” composed and arranged by Andrew Neu.

Dresel was especially playful and boisterous during his drum solo which started out intense and fast and devolved into a seemingly experimental and interpretive burst of wild energy and cross-tempos until it dropped down to just the kick drum and symbols, lighter and lighter and fading to nothing, then bursting back for a dramatic finish.

The crowd responded with thunderous applause and Dresel thanked the college and audience then mingled with the students, signing autographs and talking about jazz. Some people went up to the stage afterward to take turns touching the instruments, fiddling with the upright bass and sharing their enthusiasm for the music with the players. Overall, it was one groovy ride.

Celebrating culture

Multicultural Day highlights social injustices

Diversity comes in different colors, shapes and sizes. A community can learn from each other as everyone has their own struggles and tribulations.

This was the goal for Multicultural Day to bring a community together and start a conversation.

Pierce College hosted its first Multicultural day on Thursday April 18 in the Great Hall.

English professor Maria Bates said she had seen an event like Multicultural day take place at Moorpark college and loved the unity between students and faculty.

Bates new all too well what being taken advantage in the workplace was like. She believed it was important to have a session for students that spoke about their work rights.

“We just realize that their students who are really struggling with work and they don't know their rights.I remember I used to work at Kentucky Fried Chicken and so there was a lot of things that I got taken advantage of,” Bates said. “The second one is black lives matter. I mean, I feel like when you have diversity, you know, you really do have to know how to be an advocate as a student”.

Bates said that the session were catered to struggles that students may have in there place and things that are going on the news now.

Bates believes that these events can help give students the will to stand up for their beliefs.

“I feel like as a student and a lot of times you feel disempowered about where does my voice come from? And I feel like there's so much going on within a community and other colleges,” said Bates. “We wanted to bring that synergy and the energy to Pierce to say, you know what? We have things

here that people are very involved.”

The event was a three part event that spoke about labor rights, the black lives movement and asian american struggles.

The first session was initiated by the UCLA Labor center Saba Waheed, Janna ShadduckHernandez and Michele Wong.

They spoke on how important it is for students to know their rights in a workplace, and assured them that they need to speak up when they see the company taking advantage of them.

UCLA Labor center representative Janna Shadduck-Hernandez said that it is important to have paperwork of everything a company is doing to them that they feel is against their rights.

“It is important to have documentation of everything and to build power by forming a union,” Shadduck said.

The second session was lead by history professor Chris Strickland who spoke on selfidentity through resistance: The historical implications of why Black lives and resistance matter.

Strickland gave a background of how many African Americans had suffer but differed in the way they showed resistances.

Strickland said that there is a way to resist in a positive way when they

see or hear of injustice happening.

“As an educator, I definitely have to say education is the key. I know that sounds cliche but education and connecting with other people who don't look like you is very important,”Strickland said.

The last session was by comedian Atsuko Okatsuka who spoke about being Asian Pacific American.

Okatsuka spoke in a very upbeat manner about her struggles being multicultural and how comedy helped her cope with what she was going through.

Okatsuka said that the most important thing is to never lose sight of their own identity.

“Remembering why you matter within the confines of so many rules,” Okatsuka said.

Habata hopes students were able to gain more culture awareness within their Pierce community.

“I think that Pierce College and a lot of cultures throughout California, southern California there's a wealth of different backgrounds and experiences and it's kind of a celebration of that. It is also a chance for students to learn more about other identities and cultures that aren't their own,” Habata said.

BELEN HERNANDEZ Campus Life Editor @RoundUpNews

Maja Losinska/Roundup

The BBB Featuring Bernie Dresel performs at the Pierce College Music Lawn, Woodland Hills, Calif., April 18, 2019.

Sonia Gurrola/ Roundup Christopher Strickland Speaks on MultiCultural Day on April 18, 2019 at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif.

Maja Losinska/Roundup

The BBB featuring Bernie Dresel performs at the Pierce College Music Lawn, Pierce College, Woodland Hills, Calif., April 18, 2019.

Swimming towards Cupertino

Three-day event sees swimmers advance to state

HARLEY DAVIS Reporter @ht_davis

Personal accolades were not enough for the swim team in the 2019 Western State Conference Championships, a three-day meet at the Santa Clarita Aquatic Center, starting on April 18.

The men took fifth place with 352 points and the women finished tenth with 139.

Santa Monica College finished first with 711 points in the men’s standings, while Santa Barbara City College took first place in the women’s category with 647.

From the team, Mario Marshall, Juo Sato, Wyatt Feldman, Alonso Noguera and Jacob Jepson advanced to the state competition in Cupertino on May 2-4, according to Head Coach Judi Terhar.

Jepson said after the last session on Saturday that everyone collaborates on this team.

“Whether you’re just getting into a consolation final, or you’re getting first place like Mario [Marshall], top five like Wyatt [Feldman], Juo [Sato], myself,” Jepson said. “It’s an amazing feeling. We each play a part on this team.”

Terhar said that some have more experience being in the pool than others.

“Most of the women are on the water polo team and we had them come to this team to help get them in shape. For many of them, this has been their first experience with swim racing.”

There are eight women and eight men on the swim team. Many of the men have been swimming before, while most of the women have only been

swimming for water polo. That didn’t stop Nanako Fujikura from competing in all but the last relay the women entered, along with the 1,650yard freestyle heat. It also didn’t stop the women’s team from entering 31 total race events.

Judy Martinez said she didn’t want to let the team down during the 200-meter freestyle relay of the Thursday finals.

“I pushed for 29 seconds and I came in at 28.95 seconds, so I was really happy with that,” Martinez said.

The men competed in 24 individual heats, and five relays, for a total of 29 events.

Several family members were in attendance at various stages of the event. Carla Jepson, mother of Jacob

Jepson was in attendance with her sister on Thursday.

Marshall had his daughter and wife watching him in the stands. Other family members made appearances later in the event, taking videos and photos with phones and cameras.

Terhar said that it is difficult to see her swimmers leave.

“It’s really tough,” Terhar said. “I get so attached to these kids, and they’re gone in two years.”

In total there were 83 preliminary heats and 50 final events.

Every race event is split into heats. For some events, there were more entries than controllable lanes, so the entries are split up into multiple groups.

According to Terhar, most final events had a consolation

heat for swimmers whose preliminary times didn’t qualify for the main heat, to give them an opportunity to compete, and to improve on their time.

Records were also broken by Marshall on Friday and Saturday.

“I broke my own record on the 100 fly [100-meter butterfly] yesterday [Friday],” Marshall said. “I broke that record for the second time. And today I broke the record for the 100 [meter] freestyle.”

Marshall’s original time for the butterfly was 50.17 seconds, and his new time was 49.53. For the freestyle, his original time was 45.64 seconds, his preliminary heat time was 46.43 and his finals time was 45.59.

hdavis.roundupnews@gmail.com

Joshua Manes / Roundup

Ava Recchia competes in the women's 100-yard butterfly in the WSC State Championships at the Santa Clarita Aquatics Center on April

2019. Recchia finished

with

of

Joshua Manes / Roundup Johnathan Lavallee slides into home plate against Los Angeles Mission College on Joe Kelly Field at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 12, 2019. Lavallee pitched seven innings and went 3-4 with two runs scored but the Brahmas lost 8-7 in eleven innings.

Men's Volleyball Baseball Tennis Softball Swim

JUSTIN MIRANDA Reporter @justinmirandapc

The tennis season was a struggle as the team didn’t have enough players and lost every game. However, two players went through the rough patch and are now competing in The Ojai Tennis Tournament from April 25-28.

To play at Ojai, which is a state competition, players must qualify.

Thanks to a first-round win at the Ventura College conference tournament, Christian Ponce and Daniel Vinterfeld were able to

also testing new rackets and his improving doing conditioning work.

Vinterfeld is preparing for the event by playing a lot, staying motivated and trying to keep his

“I been working on a lot of basic fundamentals like working at the net,” Vinterfeld said. “Lot of doubles

work as well, just practicing closing out points, playing at the net and finishing at the ball.”

Head Coach Long Dao is preparing for the event by mainly trying to manage their health, so the tennis players are able to play four matches a day.

“I’m just making sure their

physical health is in good order and just mainly making sure they can survive as many games they can play,” Dao said.

Dao is also helping the players work on strategy and what to exactly do on the court.

Ponce said he is just going to just go out there and play.

“I kind of expect to win because I’m putting myself ahead,” Ponce said.

Vinterfeld is more excited than nervous going in to the tournament.

“If I’m ever nervous I use it as fuel to get me energized off it,” Vinterfeld said.

Ponce and Vinterfeld have learned a lot from Dao.

“He told me to play more in a composed fashion and not to go for extremely risky shots,” Ponce said.

Vinterfeld said Dao has helped him in his serving.

“He’s helped me develop my serve a lot more,” Vinterfeld said.

“Having more tennis IQ has help a lot.”

Dao said he is always excited for The Ojai tournament because it's the most fun tournament for him.

“After we compete, we get to see some division one guys play,” said Dao. “They get to see what it’s like to compete at a high level.”

Dao hopes his team can at least get through the first day. Dao advises his players to just be patient.

“I know for them it's going to be an exciting time,” Dao said. “Just be patient and let all the work we put in the season to this moment.”

Christopher Torres / Roundup singles two, jumps to hit the ball with a power forehand shot in the Xanthos Tennis Courts at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on