Voter turnout in California's 2016 Presidential Primary was 35% -Corrections-

DOES ANYONE CARE?

It’s frustrating seeing people complain online and in person about the current state of the government when they’re not doing anything themselves.

“Itgivesyouanopportunity tolearnmoreaboutevery black culture.”

-Lailah Vestal Kinesiology&MedicalScience

Some might question, “What can I do? I can’t change anything.”

Good news. You can vote.

When people vote, that is their opportunity to have their voice heard. That’s their chance to take their stance on important issues and to pick the people in office who make decisions on those laws.

“Blackpeopledon'thavea culture,soitgivesusareason tofeelinspiredthatwehave peoplebackinthedaythat wereabletodostuff,even thoughtheyweren'tallowed to.Itgivesushope.”

- Julia Plummer Biology

While many may make the argument that their choice won’t matter because they’re simply an average person, that isn’t true. If everyone had that same point of view, there wouldn’t be any votes to count.

The reason why certain candidates or laws get elected and passed is because one person went out to their polling place to cast their ballot, and then another, and another.

People in history have fought simply to have those rights. Some who are currently living in the U.S. still don’t have that privilege, don’t waste the opportunity to vote when you can so easily do so.

If someone truly cared about the problems that affected their daily livelihood, then they’d go out and vote to bring about those changes.

Do you not care? Or do you simply not have the time?

In the event that they don’t care because it doesn’t relate to them, they should be questioning themselves why they don’t.

Although the issues may not relate to them, they could be affecting the people around them that they know, work with or care about.

Those concerns also may not be something they’re worried about in the present, however they might matter in the future.

While there are lots of candidates and propositions to vote on, there’s no reason to stay uneducated. With how current and fast technology is today, a quick search on a phone or computer can turn the ignorant into the most informed.

The 2018 election had the highest turnout of voters with 36% of those being 18 to 29-year-olds, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. College students, especially those attending Pierce College or one of the nine colleges in the Los Angeles Community College District, should have no excuse not to vote. Each campus is having days where the public could come and cast an early vote for the primary elections on March 3. While the registration deadline was February 18, students who attend can register and vote the same day. So are you going to educate yourself, learn the issues and vote accordingly? Or will you do what they tell you?” or libelous and do not contain racial denigration.

Writers are given the 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. 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.

The lack of money led to a deficit that pushed them to use the money that was set aside for medical supplies. Benne brought the health fee issues to the Board of Trustees every month to add to the agenda for discussion.

“I will give them a running tally of how many hospitalizations we had, the new clients we had and how long the wait for a student was,” Benne said.

The flow of new students seeking mental help has forced the health center to stop admitting new clients in November. It had to put older clients on the side to make room.

“That is not fair for the clients that already had a relationship with the psychologist,” Benne said. “It’s heartbreaking. It's frustrating.”

The health fee increase will help the center attain much needed medical supplies, give adequate pay to its employees. And help with salary benefits. Benne said in time it would also allow for free services for students but she has to action in helping out their college proactively.

“We have been fighting this battle for years now, and in fact the union fought for a change in the debt relief plan at the district budget committee which is being mysteriously held up,” said Walsh. The break-down of trust between faculty and district officials is incredible ... we never get a straight answer.”

Along with the Union, department chairs were also in outrage over the news of the deficit affecting fall allocations.

Psychology/Statistics

Chair Maria Perser recalled the last major budget cut that Pierce underwent in 2008 during the Great Recession, and how they “decimated” the schedule of classes.

“We had 15-to-20 fix the center’s debt first. “It could give them something free like Tuberculosis (TB) students per class that were trying to add a class, and it was just so heartbreaking. It took us so many years to recover from that, so it is scary to think about,” Perser said.

“What is interesting when you look at these particular sheets that they gave us for the expenses, there is no detail.”

Perser said Pierce is supposed to now be funded by the new Student Success Funding Formula, and that state has already dispersed that money to the district and that is a part of this pot of money that the district is holding on to.

“This is unacceptable. The district needs to give the colleges the money that they are owed because they are not supposed to just hold on to money. They are not in the business of making money, and it is going to take all of us to stand up and say this is not okay,” testing, the flu shot or vaccines,” Benne said. “I don’t know yet, I have to dig us out of this hole we

Perser said.

Communications chair Yeprem Davoodian said it’s not easy trying to change the schedule now.

“As a department chair, I look at these situations from a departmental standpoint, a student success standpoint and an access standpoint for the campus. When we do our scheduling we try to make a range of courses that fit student’s schedules, and the problem that arises when we have to cut classes is now I have to decide which areas I can take from and that is never easy,” Davoodian said.

Sheri Berger relayed via email that based on his meetings with the District Office, Pierce will be able to use additional Student Centered Funding Formula funding that is anticipated on arriving this month from the State for the fall