Volume 138 Spring 2023 Roundup Issue 10

It’s no secret how difficult it can be to pull off a successful musical. With so many aspects to take into consideration such as choreography, singing and onstage chemistry, everything must be near perfect to captivate the audience.

The Pierce College Theatre cast and crew did just that. “Rent” is a musical performance that is absolutely worth attending, and it would be an ideal for newcomers–at least ones old enough to handle the subject matter.

Directed by Shaheen Vaaz and choreographed by Brian Moe, the 1994 musical by Jonathan Larson is running through May 14 at the Performing Arts Mainstage.

Romance, heartbreak & music

time of AIDS lands on campus

The performance begins by introducing the setting. It’s the late 1980s in East New York. Poverty is a well known struggle for many young people, and the AIDS epidemic is at its peak. At this point, we still didn’t have medicine that would help those with AIDS continue to live. Getting the disease during this time is essentially a death sentence.

We meet Mark (Dale Van Slyke), an independent filmmaker, who struggles to make ends meet. Mark introduces some of the main characters including his roommate, musician Roger (Kevin Boecher). Together they live in poverty in the East Village of New York.

Roger is a recovering heroin addict, who contracted AIDS

from sharing needles. As the production moves forward, we’re introduced to Tom (Aro Caitlin) and Angel (Aaron Revilla). Angel is a street drummer and a drag queen. Tom and Angel learn that they both have the HIV virus, which frequently leads to AIDS. Throughout the musical, Tom and Angel fall in love.

The on stage chemistry between this couple is incredible. The passion Caitlin and Revilla show through their romance feels authentic, and there is underlying sadness knowing their inevitable fate with HIV.

Another important couple to follow throughout the story is Roger and Mimi (Emelysse Paez). Mimi performs as an exotic dancer to support herself.

Messages on the Mall

Outdated and potentially misleading ads raise questions

She also has AIDS and is a drug addict, similar to Roger.

The dynamic between these two is fascinating. Paez’s vocal performance in “Light My Candle" alone is worth the admission to this play.

Mimi and Roger frequently sing the line “I Should Tell You,” implying that they want to tell each other their life struggles with AIDS, but are scared of the recipient's reaction.

We’re then introduced to Benny (Emmanuel Odaibo), who bought the building where the characters live, and which he plans to turn into a studio after evicting them.

Odaibo does an excellent job portraying the antagonist throughout the production. He

made it easy to hate someone that is trying to take the homes of others for selfish intent.

Their performances feel sincere. The skillset it takes to convey a genuine love connection on stage is executed perfectly by these actors.

Joanne (Kaitlyn Foley) and Maureen (Michelle Johnson) were also an important couple throughout the production. They’re a lesbian couple that struggles financially in this poverty stricken portion of New York.

Johnson’s confidence on stage is a spectacle. Joanne speaks early on in the performance about how crazy her partner is, and Johnson executes this perfectly.

When a character gives

warning to the audience that someone crazy is about to come on stage, it’s crucial for that character to deliver. Johnson does a fantastic job playing this role. Aside from the outstanding production regarding cast and crew, the on stage band is also worth noting. Their ability to keep up with the show and focus on the perfect timing for songs and sound effects is impressive to watch.

Pierce College’s production of “Rent” will leave people wanting more.

For more information or to purchase tickets, call 818719-6488. Tickets may also be purchased online (24/7) at: https://www.brownpapertickets. com/event/5749065.

Several advertisements around campus have not been updated in years, and it is unclear who is responsible.

Some of the ads present movies that came out years ago while others promote four-year universities for transfer. A couple of ads promote what appears to be a crisis pregnancy center called Open Arms Pregnancy Clinic. Many of the ads have been posted since before the pandemic.

After COVID-19 forced school and business closures, processes fell to the wayside. With the stay at home order, there was no real need to update the ads.

History and Gender Studies

Adviser Sheryl Nomelli said she wonders how an ad of this nature was approved in the first place.

“If anyone on campus is going to see something it reflects our campus and our leadership,” Nomelli said. “I think that it is really unfortunate and frankly, scandalous that this would be allowed.”

Rivet Vice President of Operations Kris Swanson said typically the process is a

collaboration between Pierce College, a representative from the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) and Rivet.

The media company also serves over 115 other schools in Southern California, including California State University Northridge, where the ads for Open Arms were also seen as recently as April 22.

There are seven kiosks on the Pierce campus owned by Rivet Campus Media. The company is responsible for maintenance and repairs, including removing old ads to place new ones.

Some ads are replaced more often depending on where they are located. Kiosks that are in locations that get a lot more foot traffic get more attention.

Rivet relies on a representative from Pierce to contact them if they have a concern or a request for maintenance.

Swanson said that there is even an opportunity for the contact to approve almost every single ad before it’s placed. It is unclear whether there was at one time such a person at Pierce but there is not one now.

“There's dialogue in many of our campuses, unfortunately,

your campus the dialog is not there,” Swanson said.

According to section 91301.12 of Article XIII of the Los Angeles Community College Board Rules, there are certain restrictions for ads containing harmful subject matter. They range from alcoholic beverages and tobacco to lethal weapons and illegal substances.

The rules also state that all advertising contracts have to contain a clause guaranteeing that no ads placed on campus will be “libelous, obscene, misleading, fraudulent, or designed to promote illegal activities” and the failure to adhere constitutes a breach of contract by the advertiser.

Nomelli believes that not only are crisis pregnancy centers misleading in general, but the advertisement promoting Open Arms to Pierce students is, too.

“It says ‘information on pregnancy options’ - that's misleading because you are led to believe all options available,” Nomelli explained. “But again it’s pushing you towards what they believe is right.”

[see ADS on page 7]

Photo by Rachael Rosenberg

Crisis Pregnancy Center, in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 8, 2023.

Photo by Daniela Raymundo

Kevin Boecher, as Roger, sings to his girlfriend Mimi, portrayed by Emelysse Paez, at the dress rehearsal on the main stage of The Performing Arts Building at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 4, 2023.

LINDSEY WHITTAKER Reporter

ALEC BENNETT Reporter

Photo by Daniela Raymundo Kaitlyn Foley, who portrays Joanne, sings next to "Rent" cast members at the dress rehearsal on the main stage of The Performing Arts Building at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 4, 2023.

STREET BEAT

WHERE ARE YOU TRANSFERING TO AFTER PIERCE?

“I'mtransferringtoCalStateLong Beach because it's a nice area, it'sreallyprettyandtheyhave areallygoodcommunications programthere.”-DrewHokama, Communications major

EDITORIAL: From the desk of the Roundup

Bilingual Events for the code switching generation

“I’mtransferringtoUCLA.Iapplied to a lot of other UCs, but I feel like UCLAisthemostprestigiousoutof theonesIgotinto.”-VinitChauhan, Physicsmajor

Ya es tiempo que Pierce College tenga más eventos en Español y en Inglés. Por qué?

Pierce College is a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI).

According to Calmatters. org, “HSIs sometimes lack the intentionality of HBCUs in centering students’ identities and cultures in campus programs, curricula and faculty hiring practices.”

So far, Pierce faculty and staff have brought us actor Danny Trejo, muralist Robert Vargas and several other notable public figures of Latin American origins. These successful Latinos inspire the students and the

“I’mtransferringtoUCIrvine. It'sbeenmydreamschoolsince probablybeforehighschool.”

-ValeriaVallejo,Sociologymajor

community. Pierce needs more of these guests more often.

On top of that, the events can benefit from being in both English and Espanol.

Having more events hosted in Spanish may get more people to attend the events. At the same time, second, third, fourth generation students and mixed race students may benefit from being exposed to the language already spoken throughout the city.

Bilingual campus events and festivals may help the students fresh from El Salvador, from Honduras or from any country that typically make Los Angeles their new home feel

more accepted in their new home county.

Pierce can get a survey of what newcomers from Central America, South America and Mexico are into as far as their cultures. After gathering such information, Pierce can start crafting events tailored around such traditions and interests. Provided that these events are fully realized and in dual language, there is a chance that they will appeal not only to Latin Americans but to the student body at large. College is a great time for students to learn and be inspired by other languages and cultures.

As diverse as Los Angeles

PRO: Wellness culture enriches society

Marjan Sharifi Reporter

With both Western and Eastern societies encouraging hard work, productivity and hustling, many individuals may consider themselves to be successful.

What we may not realize is that they are not able to take good care of their health due to working so hard and so much.

This is where wellness culture comes in.

“I'mtransferringtoUCLAbecause it'smydreamschool.It'sthebestin thecountryandIjustlovethewhole atmosphere,allthetreesandall thatstuff.”-DaisyLuna-Contreras, Sociologymajor

Wellness culture seems to have a different definition based on who you ask, but this way of life ultimately means that people are adopting practices, diets, habits and work outs that are supposed to provide a more healthy and holistic life. This can include a positive change in diets, journaling, mediation, regular exercise, yoga, eating organically and so much more.

Wellness culture is a growing and expanding industry. As more research is put into it, new ideas, products, regiments and experts emerge.

People rely on wellness regimens to watch their health, to balance work life, to keep health complications at bay or because they are inspired by social media health influencers.

““I'mtransferringtoCaliforniaState UniversityNorthridge.I'mvery excitedbecausethishasbeenmy dreamschoolsinceIwas12years old,andI'mgladthat19almost 20yearslater,thedreamofgoing theredidn'tstop.”-DavidTucker, Sociologymajor

Corrections:

The benefits of taking watchful care of one’s health are aplenty.

Many corporations are adopting what is called “cultures of wellness”, and it has paid off.

An article from Forbes titled,“How You Can Nurture A Culture of Wellness”, recognizes that employees are happier, more productive and less stressed on the job when companies try to incorporate health and wellness into their places of employment.

Corporations are catching on to the

fact that wellness culture has benefits that stretch beyond short term results. They are discovering that having happy and healthy employees help the bottom line and produce an enjoyable work culture.

The article from Journal of Intercultural Management (JOIM), “Towards Corporate Wellness: Health Culture and Wellness” discusses the advantages of wellness culture being incorporated into the workplace.

The article outlines that “labor costs are systematically increasing”. Because of these unanticipated losses in profit, companies took a different approach and started programs that promote health and wellness to improve the psychological and physical health of their employees.

This ultimately led “to companies being able to develop and improve.”

An article from ResearchGate, “Creating a Culture of Wellness: A Call to Action for Higher Education, Igniting Change in Academic Institutions”, discusses that wellness culture should be incorporated into higher education for it to help alleviate the issues of the increased chronic health complications in today’s society, as well as personal choices that lead to questionable and substandard health.

The article aims to start the conversation and bring “overall wellbeing” to college life, as these changes are planned to be extended not only to students but to faculty and staff as well.

As society changes day by day, a positive change that has developed is a closer consciousness towards health. Seeing the productive effect of these developments leads to the conclusion that this can only be better for people who are a part of the growing wellness culture.

msharifi.roundupnews@gmail.com

is, the city still has segregation issues and racism. Pierce can be a place where its Latino students can come and enjoy a campus event hosted in Spanish and feel like they are a part of Los Angeles’ tapestry.

Pierce has the ability to empower and embolden the students who identify as Latin American, Latine, Latinx. The school can bring more Spanish speaking accomplished actors, journalists, broadcasters and politicians. Latin Americans need to be exposed to more successful role models who they can identify with and see themselves in.

Sophia Cano Reporter

Eat healthier, think positive and exercise more and all your problems will go away--or so they say. Wellness culture has been the forefront of our society for as long as anyone can remember.

At the end of the day, health looks different for every person, and it is doing more harm than good.

Wellness culture in today’s society seems to be less about the health of an individual and more about the physical appearance. People are more likely to view themselves negatively if they are unable to or naturally don’t fit into this image, and are more likely to develop mental health issues.

An article from the National Library of Medicine titled, Body image satisfaction among female college students - PMC said that “Individuals who perceive their bodies negatively with regard to culturally valued features may have low self-esteem, low satisfaction in life and feeling of inferiority and pose themselves at higher risk for depression, anxiety or eating disorders.”

College students are likely to develop eating disorders stemming from dieting. Most students are venturing out on their own for the first time. With the introduction of new foods, influences from social media, and more responsibilities , it’s easier for students to fall into unhealthy dieting or binge eating.

The University of Michigan School of Public Health reported that approximately 35% of students have tried to lose weight from dieting - and 25% of those diets turn into eating disorders. These disorders have negative effects on a person’s

The more bilingual events the school has, the more the school will enrich the lives and minds of the Spanish speaking students.

Let Pierce lean toward embracing the Spanish language in its events and festivities to create the new bilingual leaders of the United States. Perhaps in a generation or two, Pierce will boast that it cultivated the next Jesse Gabriel of politics, the new Rigoberta Menchu of human rights activism or the new Guillermo del Toro of filmmaking.

body physically - in the form of vitamin deficiencies, extreme weight loss, menstrual cycle changes and fatigue. Eating habits and exercises formed by wellness culture can also have the opposite of the desired effect on a person. In cases of losing weight quickly through vigorous workouts and dieting, weight can come back faster.

According to an article by Time “more than 80% of people with obesity who lose weight gain it back. That’s because when you lose weight, your resting metabolism (how much energy your body uses when at rest) slows down–possibly an evolutionary holdover from the days when food scarcity was common.”

The same article also reported that a person’s metabolism remains low even when your body gains the weight back, ultimately making it harder for a person to lose weight again in the future, in the case of extreme weight loss in short periods of time.

Wellness culture offers a ‘one size fits all’ approach to a healthy living, but in reality people need plans that are tailorfit to their needs, both mentally and physically. They need to be provided goals that allow them to reach their best self in healthy ways. Instead of focusing on trends and diets, people should be constructing eating habits that are fit to help them.

Wellness culture has the potential to create mental health problems, physical problems, and is overall not effective in helping someone become healthier. It should be avoided and instead be replaced by mental health resources and customized physical health solutions for one’s personal goals.

Quotes gathered by Nicole Khait Photos by Owen Meza

CON: Wellness culture has negative effects on students

CSUN & UCLA bound

A celebration on the Mall honors students who are going to CSUN and UCLA next semester

The Mall at Los Angeles Pierce College looked festive with balloons, carnival games, music playing, and crowds of students during the CSUN and UCLA Transfer Day event on Wednesday.

Even though it was a day for those two campuses to come out and have their different departments table, it was also a day where the Transfer Center celebrated students who have been accepted to transfer to a four year school, now and in the future.

The celebration on the Mall started at 11:00 a.m. and was followed by a student panel at 2 p.m. to help students connect and ask questions.

There was a picture prop station for students to take photographs with flags or pennants of the

school they’re transferring to after Pierce. Students could tag the Transfer Center on social media, Instagram or Facebook.

Students received tickets for a free churro and pizza.

The Transfer Center set up a table for transferring students to write words of wisdom and advice on cards for future transfer students.

The cards were pinned on a cork board which was displayed next to the Bull in the mall.

On the other side of the card, there was a place for students who are planning on transferring in the future to write their transfer goals. These cards too were displayed for those in attendance on a cork board.

Silver Transfer Cords were provided to transfer students to be worn with their cap and gown at graduation.

Transfer Center Director

Sunday Salter thought that the event was effective because there were so many departments present from UCLA and CSUN in one day.

“The majority of our students either want to transfer to those two campuses, or they have already applied and have been admitted to those two campuses,” Salter said. “So it's a way for students who are transferring in fall to connect with their future advisors and ask questions. And for students who have not yet applied, they can explore.”

Pierce College General Counselor Judy Lam said that she loved the event because of how exciting it is for transfer students.

“It’s a way for transfer students to celebrate,”Lam said. “it’s so exciting for them to see all the transfer students celebrate so that they know this is going to happen for them.

It's just a celebration for all our wonderful Pierce students.” Many students took part in the activities and visited the departments that were tabling that day.

Some of the CSUN departments that were present included the College of Engineering and Computer Science, Liberal Studies and Interdisciplinary Studies, College of Education, College of Education, College of Business and Economics, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences.. Tabling for CSUN was Academic Advisor for psychology and anthropology Kevin Zemlicka, who expressed that these events help clear away the mystery that transferring can bring.

said. “This is where you start shopping around and you start figuring out how to seek advice. We’re not just counting units and telling people how to achieve the goal of graduation. We’re also helping folks figure out what is after this. We want them to be able to hit the ground running.”

UCLA had representatives from departments such as Biology, Computational and Systems, School of Education and Information Studies, Anthropology Physical Sciences, Sociology, Asian Studies, Nursing, Neuroscience.

a lot of the different programs that are offered at UCLA,” Kikuchi said. “. It also offers transfer students the opportunity to speak directly with advisors that represent the departments. To answer questions beforehand and for advisors to offer up some tips in terms of how to prepare for thriving in the major.”

Pierce College sophomore and sociology major Francisco Ponce is getting ready to transfer to CSUN and expressed that the event was beneficial to him.

“I think it allows students to interact with each other who have similar majors,” Ponce said. “I actually made a couple of connections here today. Just keep pushing and you will transfer soon.”

12 new hires projected

are down to a crunch of time.”

the growth of the campus.

Zemlicka

“The academic advisor should be the first person you meet at any institution.”

Pierce plans to bring on several full-time faculty in an accelerated process

Although the Academic Senate at Pierce College met as usual on Monday, it was not business as usual.

The most pressing discussion was the fact that Pierce College is expected to hire twelve full time tenured track professors by August of 2023.

The process of selecting the newly tenured faculty will be rushed, and faculty members who are on the board to help with this emergency hiring process will receive stipends.

Interim President of LA Pierce College Ara Aguiar during the College Administration Report said that the district applied for emergency funding for these hires.

“They are providing us funding for FTES [Full Time Equivalent Student],” Aguiar said. “The funding has totalled $45 million for a two-year period of time. The funding is with the intent to have 75% of full-time faculty, and we were already at about 69% full time faculty. These 12 positions will be for 2023 fall hires, and we

Aguiar acknowledged that this process of bringing faculty on board so quickly is outside of the college’s norm.

President of the Academic Senate Barbara Andersonstated that the State Chancellor's office was offering an opportunity for districts to apply to get additional funding to help strengthen and help the colleges grow.

The LA Community College District leadership submitted an application requesting to participate, and they were granted the opportunity in the State Chancellor's office.

“This process will then hopefully help us hire folks in areas where there’s greater need,” Anderson said. “In areas that have needed full-timers for a while and in new areas that need to be developed, such as ethnic studies, which we don’t have. We have two full-time faculty members that teach in Chicano studies, which teach ethnic studies courses. But we don’t have more than that.”

Anderson also emphasized why it is important for the college to have full-time faculty and why that is important for

“We don’t only want to have wonderful part-time faculty, but wonderful full-time faculty who are then able to commit to the campus and get involved in a variety of ways and serve in shared governance capacities,” Anderson said. “So it helps to have full-time faculty in these areas and just strengthen the good work that's being done.”

She was surprised the school would be hiring 12 full-time faculty by August of 2023.

“That’s really an unusual opportunity”, she said.

The typical process of hiring starts in the fall. Departments state their need for full-time faculty. The list is gathered and ranked by the committee. Then, the college president communicates with the district, and then the hiring process begins.

“So we considered our hiring cycle of hiring faculty to be completed,” Anderson said. “Then, last week, I got a call from the college president saying, ‘Guess what? We just now found out that we’re approved to get additional funding from the state of California to help beef up and strengthen our faculty ranks

in the district.’ Since the cycle had already been completed, it was a bit of a surprise to find out we’re hiring 12 more.”

The Academic Senate meeting also discussed programs that benefit students through the counseling office.

Counselor Judy Lam explained the Guided Pathways program at the meeting.

“Guided Pathways program is a mandate from the state, and it started in 2017, and it's basically a lot of funding that came down and asked us to help our students find more guided pathways,” Lam said. “We have what we call CAP Communities. CAP means career and academic pathways.”

Lam explained that there are seven CAPs and this attempts to put students into different categories based on their educational tracks.

“We have seven CAPs, so seven career and academic pathways,” Lam said. “This is to help our students kind of slot into schools, if you will.”

The seven CAPs are arts/ media/performing arts and design, humanities and communication, industrial tech and automotive services,

Undergraduate Advisor for anthropology Myrna Dee Kikuchi was tabling for UCLA and thought the event was important because there are smaller programs that transfer students might not always be exposed to

“I think it exposes students to

agriculture science, STEM, social and behavioral sciences, as well as business and law.

“These CAP communities are faculty, counselors, deans and everything that can provide wrap-around services,” Lam said.

The Guided Pathways program is meant to be more than a passive, and it attempts to be groundbreaking in how it serves students.

“Change is slow and change is hard,” Lam said. “So we’ve been trying to restructure the school so that we can provide more services to our students, because there are only so many faculty and staff on campus, while we’ve got tons and tons of students.”

Lam discussed the urgent need to reach more students.

“It’s impossible to have one-on-one interactions with all of our students,” Lam said. “So how do we make sure our students get as many services as possible? And this is some of it. So they’ve infused some of our funding to try and get some of this stuff out to our students.”

The next academic Senate meeting will take place on May 22 in Building 600.

A minor traffic accident car vs light pole on Sunday. No injuries.

A medical emergency during pupusa festival on April 30. Individual was

Photo by Ashley Shellmire LEFT: Hospitality student Isaac Martinez signs in during the Transfer Celebration to recieve the perks set up for students on the Mall at Pierce College on May 5, 2023.

Photo by Ashley Shellmire

RIGHT: Transfer Center table offers a variety of college flags for students to take pictures with and post of social media during the Transfer Celebration on the Mall at Pierce College on May 5, 2023.

MARJAN SHARIFI Reporter

Photo by Ashley Shellmire

ABOVE: Psychology major and ASO Vice President Gayane Zazyan shows off a transfer shirt during the Transfer Celebration at Mall at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., May 2, 2023.

MARJAN SHARIFI Reporter

2nd Annual Valley Asian Cultural Festival

In Celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month, Pierce College brought back the 2nd Annual Asian Culture Festival, providing different kinds of cultural arts, dances and foods. Throughout the Festival, people discovered the different cultures between the Philippines, Vietnam, India, China, Korea, Taiwan and Japanese experiences of how they influence their traditions.

Pierce College hosts the 2nd Annual Valley Asian Cultural Festival, celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander Hertiage Month on May 6, 2023

The Camarillo Dance Association perform a Lion Dance for festival attendees at Rocky Young Park at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 6, 2023.

Handcrafted Vietnamese Lion Dance heads at Rocky Young Park in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 6, 2023.

Festival attendees order dumplings and boba from Kai Kai at the Pierce College 2nd Annual Asian Festival on May 6, 2023.

The Hiza Yoo Korean Dance Institute perform for festival attendees at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 6, 2023.

Photos by Audrinna Meza

(L to R)Sammi Kayne, Emelysse Paez and Maya Palacios perform a dance at the dress rehersal on the main stage of The Performing Arts Building at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 4, 2023.

(L to R) Andrew Tafur, Maya Palacios, Sammi Kayne, Jennifer Moses, Garret Sullivan and Adam Derbigny perform a song on the main stage of The Performing Arts Building at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 4, 2023.

Michelle Johnson, who portraits Maureen singing at the dress rehersal on the main stage of The Performing Arts Building at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 4, 2023.

Kevin Boecher, who portraits Roger, plays the guitar at the dress rehersal on the main stage of The Performing Arts Building at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 4, 2023.

Pierce College hosts the last production of the semester, "Rent," written by Jonathan Larson and directed by Shaheen Vaaz.

Photos by Daniela Raymundo

"Rent" cast members during the final scene on the main stage of The Performing Arts Building at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 4, 2023.

Promoting literacy through visual media

Comic Book Expo brings diversity to campus

One Book One Campus presented the Comic Expo at the Learning Crossroads Courtyard and Multicultural Center on Thursday.

At each booth, writers and artists promoted their work.

One merchant, Jonathan Freeman, promoted “A LA BRAVA” a Latina superhero team comic book series while wearing A La BRAVA-themed baseball cap and T-shirt.

“ A La Brava is the name of the first-ever all-Latina superhero team in comic book history,” Freeman said. “You can go tolatinasuperheroes.com to check out the new princess series.”

Writer and illustrator Paul Meyer spoke about his book, “Under the Cotton Tree.”

“It's a Chicano fairy tale,” Meyer said. “It's about a woman who lost her way, and the children of the village help her find her way again and her own humanity, and they have a large adventure the whole day, but they also learn about culture and family.”

ASO Special Student Services

Assistant Ozzy Portillo described

the significance of the event.

“I think bringing any sort of art, especially comic book art, onto campus is a really awesome thing,” Portillo said. “Super happy that this is going on. It's nice to see local artists here having their work showcased. That's really beautiful.”

Other merchants who were at the Comic Expo included Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural, selling such comic books like "La Voz de M.A.Y.O.: Tata Rambo" by Henry Barajas and "Lowriders in Space" by Cathy Camper.

Pierce Librarian Lisa Valdez hosted the event. Valdez provided attendees with raffle tickets and an autograph card, as well as instructions on what to do with the raffle tickets. The winner received a prize of different graphic novels and a set of books. There was also a photo booth inside the Multicultural Center where guests could take pictures.

“It is the last literary event of the semester,” Valdez said. “We just want to do something small and quaint with local bookstores. We have some Latino indigenous writers and local artists, and we’re promoting their books.”

cpasillas.roundupnews@gmail.com

Kicking off AAPI month

Valley Asian Culture Festival honors Asian heritage with food, music

JENNIFER TANZIL Reporter

It was a day of celebration at the second annual Valley Asian Cultural Festival on Saturday at Pierce College, welcoming the start of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month.

Attendees enjoyed dance and musical performances from various Asian and Pacific Islander cultures. In addition, food trucks and vendors sold Indian, Vietnamese and Japanese foods, among many other cuisines.

Pierce was one of the festival’s main sponsors along with Councilmember Bob Blumenfield’s office and the West Valley-Warner Center Chamber of Commerce.

Lois P. Klavir, President of the Filipino-American Chamber of Commerce Greater LA, was proud to represent the Filipino community at the event.

“Today is about diversity, appreciating what is unique about each culture and what is common amongst all of us–we’re all human,” Klavir said. “We all live here in the Valley, which we all love and care about. We need to appreciate our Asian communities and uplift each other.”

Klavir spoke on the importance of the Asian

community coming together to support each other, especially now. Events like this help to create networks amongst people.

“It is more important than ever (for Asians to come together),” Klavir said. “As we all know, during the pandemic, it affected us as a community. So we should be having those conversations, how we shouldn’t allow those things to happen. We cannot be quiet when one community is experiencing discrimination. We all have to speak up for each other.”

Asian or not, Klavir hoped everyone would appreciate the different cultures around them, as all these rich cultures are what make our society.

“Everyone is going through different challenges, whether they are first generation or second generation immigrants,” Klavir said. “Each culture has their own stories, so don’t generalize and look into individual experiences. As a community, as an ally, we have to get together and support each other.”

The festival included a Katori Shinto Ryu samurai performance, a traditional style of Japanese martial arts, as well as a Chinese lion dance put on by the Camarillo Kung Fu & Lion Dance Association.

Families and children also made paper lanterns and origami.

and dance

At one booth, historian Rex J.T. Yu showcased the many Taiwanese hand puppets he has collected, from traditional puppets to more modern ones. Several puppets on display were lent by the Taiwanese government for the day.

Glove puppetry, or “budaixi,” is an art form dating back to the 17th century in which handpainted, doll-like puppets are controlled by hand to create a story and show. The shows were originally performed in theaters but since modern times, have been made specially for TV.

“This is a performing art from the Qing Dynasty from about 200 years ago,” Yu said. “When the immigrants came to Taiwan, they brought this art along. The tradition is still popular in Taiwan, but not as popular as before.”

San Fernando resident and attendee Vivian Thai was proud to see the celebration of cultures as she looked to learn more about her own Vietnamese culture.

Thai admits there was a time in her life when she felt ashamed of her identity, but she has come a long way since then.

“As a kid, I was kind of ashamed to be Asian because I went through some racism with people being racist towards me,” Thai said. “But growing up, I realized it’s something

I shouldn’t be ashamed of and I should be proud of.”

West Valley-Warner Center Chamber of Commerce board member Susan Tenzer helped organize the event as a way to get people to learn about different cultures in the community.

“There aren’t enough events that are around that are free for the community to see what other cultures are all about,” Tenzer said. “Today, we are bringing the culture of all Asian communities to Woodland Hills. We have vendors, we have costumes, national dresses and dances from various cultures.”

As May is AAPI month, the Valley Asian Cultural Festival also served as a way for Asian communities to have a safe and informative gathering while celebrating what it means to be Asian.

“What being Asian is to me, is about excellence–excellence in what we do, excellence in our careers, excellence in serving the community and also our families,” Klavir said. “We support a community like it’s our family.”

CLEMENTE PASILLAS Reporter

Author Paul Meyer speaks to biology major Carol Watkins

Festival attendees enjoy the scenery of the Asian Culture Festival’s Lang Viet Nam booth at Rocky Young Park at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 6, 2023.

Photo by Owen Meza

Photo by Audrinna Meza

Photo by Wyatt Sanchez

Merchants Jackie Garcia and Joey Rodriguez sit at their booth as aerospace and environmental engineering major Haniah Hazmah looks at their books at the Comic Expo at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 4, 2023.

Photo by Owen Meza

LINDSEY WHITTAKER Reporter

Gracejeet Sroya's life changed when she took organic chemistry and met Billy Stevens. They were stationed next to each other in the laboratory , and after a meetcute worthy of a romantic comedy, they became friends.

After eight years, the two started dating. A couple of years after that, they both returned to campus, and Stevens proposed to her in front of the college sign on Mason Avenue and Victory Boulevard.

“For me, that was the best proposal,” Sroya said. “It was where we met and it's a school that we loved so much, and still love so much.”

The day they met in organic chemistry was Stevens’ first class, but Sroya had been taking classes for a few semesters already.

“I built the laboratory apparatus that day, and it flooded her lab,” Stevens said. “I've always joked that my first words to her were, oh my god, I'm so sorry. Which was prophetically good practice for

Documenting deputy gangs

A trailblazing journalist talks about her journey during a Media Arts speaking engagement about covering law enforcement corruption.

CLEMENTE PASILLAS Reporter

The Media Arts Speaker Series featured awardwinning multimedia journalist Cerise Castle to the Multicultural Center on Monday to give a presentation on police gang reporting.

Castle is a Los Angeles-based journalist. She produces videos and has a true crime podcast called “A Tradition of Violence”.

Castle received the 2022 International Women in Media Foundation Courage Award.

“It honestly was surprising,”

Castle said. “That was the first award that I ever won for any of my recordings. And it’s on a story like this, which at the time when it was published was taboo and not a lot of people wanted to talk about getting that recognition from the International Women’s Media Foundation. It truly altered the course of my career, and I couldn't be more thankful.”

Cerise Castle presented a PowerPoint presentation about the Deputy of Gangs called “A Tradition of Violence.” She worked at KCRW. In 2020 while covering a protest, she was shot. She has done a 15-part series

on the history of deputy gangs called A Tradition of Violence.

Castle defines Deputy Gangs.

Castle said that she likes sharing her journey with students.

“ This is the stuff that gets me fired up and excited about going back to do my reporting,” Castle said. “Getting the chance to share this story with people that may not have heard it before and who will then take it back to their friends and family is probably one of my favorite things about doing this.”

Film major Kezia Gania said that she learned about police gangs, which she

Happily ever after…

Pierce is the setting for a rom-com worthy love story

eventually being a husband.”

Stevens said that if given the chance, he would flood Sroya’s biochem lab all over again.

“I just feel so blessed and privileged that I did walk into that classroom all those years ago,” Stevens said. “Flooding the lab was an accident but it definitely got her attention.”

At 16 years old, Sroya moved to Los Angeles from Singapore and began working on her associates degree. Compared to the more rigid educational experience of her homeland, Pierce felt like home and Sroya felt more empowered with choice in her educational goals.

“My experience at Pierce was transformative,” Sroya said.

“The amount of support that I got from my professors here, it just really helped to boost my confidence and I had more belief in myself to do well.”

At the time Pierce did not offer a science degree for transfer, so Sroya majored in Liberal Arts. She then transferred to UCLA, got her bachelor's degree in biochemistry and her masters degree in biotechnology.

Throughout her career, teaching had always been calling to her. Starting out at the Center for Academic Success at Pierce,

she tutored math and English. Then she taught subjects like math, chemistry and English to high school students. She even did a stint as a cancer researcher where she made time to mentor undergraduate students during the summer months. No matter where she was, she always made time for teaching.

“Teaching is just second nature to me,” Sroya said. “I love being able to explain, to be able to guide and interact with my students.”

Sroya wanted to teach at Pierce but because she was not a resident, she was unable to apply. Eventually, she got married and was able to apply through Project MATCH, a mentorship program for aspiring teachers through the Los Angeles Community College District. She got in and was paired up with Professor of Biology and Chair of Life Sciences Shannon DeVaney, who ultimately helped Sroya get her first position as an adjunct professor of biology.

DeVaney said as a mentee Sroya was a hard worker who went above and beyond what was expected from a mentee in the program.

“She paid close attention to what I did and asked questions about why I made the choices

I made,” DeVaney said. “To improve at anything, you have to have humility and understand that there is always more you can learn. She has that.”

Asking questions as part of the learning process was not something Sroya gained from her education in Singapore.

“Here there's a more open minded way of learning where you can question things,” Sroya explained. “In Singapore it's much different. You just accept what's being taught to you. You don't really ask questions.”

During her time as a student at Pierce, Sroya said she learned how to question what she was learning. Now as an educator, she credits her experience as a Brahma with influencing her teaching style and understanding her students.

“You need to be excited about answering questions, no matter how many come at you,” Sroya said. “It's actually the interaction with the students that keeps me happy and excited. That's what I look forward to every day.”

lwhittaker.roundupnews@gmail.com

did not know existed.

And film major Elise Miller said that the presentation was well done.

“I knew very little about this issue, so hearing it, I felt like I got a perfect base of knowing more of the ins and outs of these gangs from what I previously did not know,” Miller said. “She's been through so much to still be able to feel very confident in what she's speaking about.”

To read or hear more of Castle’s work, visit her website at https://cerisecastle.me.

cpasillas.roundupnews@gmail.com

Classified employees demand equity in LACCD

KYANNA HOJATI Reporter

For years, employees of the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) have believed the district has overlooked their needs to help ensure the execution of student goals. This neglect was expressed by representatives of the Classified Management Association (CMA) at the latest Board of Trustees meeting on Wednesday, May 3.

CMA continues to fight to receive equity, with LA Southwest College CalWorks Director and CMA President Blanca Barajas taking the lead.

“I am here to ask that the board and the district administration

[FROM ADS PG. 1]

Nomelli said she thinks the ads are out of place on a college campus.

“I do think it’s dangerous,” Nomelli said. “I don’t think a publicly funded college campus should have church-funded advertisements that discourage women from their legal rights. And I think that is what this

approve our petition, filed with the Public Employee Relations Board on March 17, 2023, to be recognized with the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees, Ashby union,” Barajas said.

Ashby union is sought after by the CMA for its democratic perspective and range when dealing with the oversight and representation needed by classified employees.

One specific struggle shared within the district is that work should be paid and recognized in accordance to what is being done, rather than overlooked and causing the workload to double on others.

President for AFT 1521A

Hazel Alonso highlighted how

does. I don’t know how else to interpret that.”

The advertiser may also be in breach of contract for exceeding the duration of greater than six months, according to Article XIII of the Board Rules.

Swanson said that ads for crisis pregnancy centers may be something that can get added to the restricted list by LACCD administration.

the improper treatment of staff has led to a repetitive cycle and insufficient workspace, beseeching the board to address the “mighty elephant in the room,” the lack of staffing.

“I am bombarded with employee complaints about the lack of classified hiring, there are more departments being manned by one or two classified staff with no supervisors or back support,” Alonso said. “Empty desks continue to remain unmanned, work continues to bottle neck, existing staff are overworked, overstressed and develop health issues. It is a cycle of self destruction and this administration seems so reluctant to fix it.”

CMA showed their

“That's something where we can go back to the school and say, look, this is not on your restriction list, but maybe that's something that needs to be added in the future,” Swanson said.

The ads were brought to the attention of President Ara Aguiar, who said she plans to schedule a walk through to check out the ads currently on display. Aguiar suggested using the ad

disappointment as their pleas to be heard have been received and weren't met with action. Members of the board were unwilling to show their support for the workers. With no classified school employee league resolution, classified staff continue to feel overlooked.

“We are more than animated machines,” Alonso said. “There is a prevalent atmosphere in LACCD, that we are continuously thanked, recognized and praised as an afterthought, only gaining a semblance of traction when the administration is admonished for the oversight.”

Alonso also discussed taking further measures with fellow group leaders in support of a lobby day at

space to benefit the programs and resources available to students right here on campus.

“Well, the thing is that this is in direct conflict with our health care center,” Aguiar said of the ads for Open Arms. “Our health care center can do the same thing.”

Even though the kiosks are on Pierce property, anyone who desires to advertise their

the capitol, hoping that joint collaboration within the unions could inspire collaboration through unity to meet goals as opposed to infighting.

Another topic that was discussed at the Board of Trustees meeting was the impact of legislation on academic programs, such as AB- 928, AB-1111 and AB 1705. These guidelines were created to help streamline the transfer process of community colleges to four-year institutions.

However, attendees such as Angela Echeverri shared concerns that this attempt to simplify the systems will inevitably leave students illprepared and decrease the already struggling enrollment

programs or student resources has to pay the same fees as any other advertiser.

Swanson emphasized the importance of keeping Rivet’s relationship with the school strong and believes it’s the key to the ad placement process running smoothly.

“We want to keep our relationship with the school as positive as possible,” Swanson

rate across the LACCD.

“I want to reiterate that we are very concerned about some of the unintended consequences of this legislation,” said Echeverri.

“As you know our system has been shrinking from about 2.1 million students to roughly 1.6 million or so, we have lost about a quarter of our students statewide. We are just concerned that this legislation is tying our hands and preventing us from serving our students adequately.”

The next public LACCD Board of Trustees meeting will take place on June 7. The meeting will be streamed via Zoom and live on YouTube.

khojati.roundupnews@gmail.com

said. “If some issue comes up, school reaches out, we'll look at that issue and say, okay, how do we fix this?”

Several attempts were made to speak with someone from Open Arms Pregnancy Clinic, but they were unavailable to provide a comment before this story went to print.

Photo by Wyatt Sanchez

Professor Gracejeet Sroya, a former Pierce student, is a professor for the college's Life Science department. Taken in the CFS offices in Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 4, 2023

Photo by Rachael Rosenberg

Journalist Cerise Castle speaks at the Multicultural Center in Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on May 8, 2023.

Baseball Closes Out 2023 Season

There’s no crying in baseball.

It’s not just an iconic line from the 1992 movie “A League of Their Own,” it’s the general mindset surrounding the 2023 Pierce College baseball team as they ended their season with a 13-27 record.

It’s a slight improvement from last year’s finish (10-30) but the season certainly didn’t go as the team would’ve liked.

Pitching coach Alex FaGalde, who finished his first year of coaching, said there was still so much to be proud of despite the record.

“The record obviously wasn’t great, but I don’t necessarily feel that it was reflective of the growth that the team had,” FaGalde said. “I got to watch a lot of the players really improve their game and mature as the season went on.”

Improvement may not have come in terms of wins, but FaGalde believed it showed in the quality of baseball that was played.

“When you look at the first and second halves of the season, we didn’t win many games there at the very end, but there was a stretch in the middle and towards the end where we played some really good baseball,” FaGalde said. “We’re very competitive in our conference.”

The first few rainy months of the year brought in slight bumps on the road.

At one point, the rain and wind caused a tree to fall through the batting cages used for practice. Though the tree was removed, the batting cages remain damaged. Then came the game cancellations and rescheduling due to unsuitable weather conditions.

“There were times where

Progress on the field

Softball coaches and players reflect on semester

we had four, maybe five games in a seven to eight day period which can get stressful on the pitchers because that’s a lot of innings,” FaGalde said. “It becomes stressful for the position guys as well because it’s more time on the field.”

Through the slumps, FaGalde credited the team for sticking together despite the odds being against them.

“It’s really a testament to them to have that kind of integrity to continue to work hard when no one was watching,” FaGalde said.

For right-handed pitcher Joe Metcalf, coming back from an injury year posed a challenge.

“Mentally, injuries and struggles (on the field) really hold you back sometimes,” Metcalf said. “I’m proud of myself for that though, and putting my best effort out on the field.”

Metcalf has big off-season plans, he’ll be playing in the MLB Draft League, a collegiate summer baseball league for draft-eligible prospects. He’s grateful for the lessons learned at Pierce, as he looks to further his baseball endeavors.

“Pierce gave me a home. (Head coach Bill) Picketts gave me an opportunity and stood by me as a player,” Metcalf said. “His trust has allowed me to grow in so many ways.”

Meanwhile, right-handed pitcher Justin Gottlieb shared that the highlight of the season for him was the Brahmas’ win in 12 innings to defeat the Cuesta College Cougars in March.

The 8-6 win sparked a three-game winning streak for the Brahmas, a season high. They went on to take four of their next five games.

“[That game] turned us around a lot,” Gottlieb said.

He also commended the grit and perseverance of the team.

“I’m really proud of the

The newly revamped Pierce College softball team ended their season with a 1-14 record.

According to Head Coach Brett Marschall, the team showed great improvements as the season progressed, and the newly reassembled group of student athletes set a precedent for the upcoming softball teams at Pierce.

“At the start of the year, I told them, ‘You are the trailblazing group’, the trail blazing team for softball at Pierce,” Marschall said. “You’re building the foundation for future years of softball players.”

Marschall said he was very happy to see the team's confidence and ability to play improve as the season moved forward.

‘believe’, which is what I think the girls truly did throughout the season,” Marschall said. “They started to believe a lot more in themselves, each other and the team as the season went on. Their skill levels improved and the whole competitiveness of our team improved. That belief, or that confidence, really showed through as one of the lessons we learned this year.”

Although the season is over, the team still has plans for the off season.

“We are going to have a summer class, so anyone interested in joining softball is welcome to come out and join that summer class as a way to prepare for next year,” Marschall said. “We’ve now got a foundation to build on for the future. We got players who understand what we’re trying to accomplish, how we play softball at Pierce and our style of play.“

plans to work on situational defense and softball IQ.

Freshman catcher and business major Alexcia Espinoza thought she and her teammates did very well given the circumstances.

“I think we actually did pretty good,” Espinoza said. “The beginning was a little rough, but we ended up growing together as a team.” Espinoza’s takeaway from the season was the importance of teamwork.

“I feel like when you work together as a team, we made it work a lot better,” Espinoza said. “Relying on each other is what I've learned.”

She also cited the importance of building close relationships on her team.

“It just felt good knowing you had such close friends and you see each other everyday,” Espinoza said.

way we kept showing up to the field everyday, even though the season didn’t end up going as we had hoped,” Gottlieb said.

As the team heads into the offseason, they’ll ponder on the different paths they’ll take next year– some players will be off to play elsewhere while others are looking to stick around to help the Brahmas another round.

“For the players, it’s a good time to reflect and evaluate and see what’s next,” FaGalde said. “For us coaches, we’re already looking forward to next season and certainly how we can improve.”

In terms of improvement, FaGalde said “a little bit of everything” is needed, from pitching to defense and offense. He’s working on a program for the pitchers this summer and hopes to help them develop.

“Obviously, we want to perform a little better than we did,” FaGalde said of his goals for next season. “Hopefully we can win a couple more games and make the playoffs.”

FaGalde looked forward to building the next generation of Pierce baseball players.

This season also marked the first time since 2019 that the baseball team was able to have home games.

After the pandemic, Joe Kelly Field was in unfavorable conditions for playing.

The recently completed renovation of the field meant spending less time traveling for games and more time practicing.

[Read the rest of the story on theroundupnews.com]

“We haven't played for four years prior to this, so we’re starting from scratch,” Marschall said. “One of the goals was to make sure we established, or fielded, a team and we were competitive. We became much more competitive as the season went on, from our first games to our last games.”

The improvement of the softball team was noticed by other coaches in the league during the post game conferences. The coaches noticed the upward trend the Pierce College softball team was showing.

“We used this one term,

Freshmanpitcher and nursing major Andrea Roldan reminisced about the season.

“It was definitely a struggle,” Roldan said. “We lost a lot. There's really no fun way to say it. But I think it built a lot of character. And I think it gave a lot of my teammates strength. It was rough but there were a lot of good moments that I think all of us appreciated.”

When looking back on the season, Roldan said that patience was the most important lesson.

In addition to building physical strength and working her pitching accuracy during the off season, Roldan

Her plans for the off season consisted of coming back stronger for the upcoming softball season.

“For the off season I think I need to work out and get stronger, and I feel like everybody does,” Espinoza said. “We’ll come back better than we did this season.”

Espinoza will be featured on the Brahma Sports Podcast on May 15. For students interested in joining softball, the team is currently recruiting for next season. Please reach out to Coach Brett Marschall at marschb@piercecollege.edu.

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Pierce celebrates big victory

to her coaches for their success at the competition.

“They always push us– they’re so supportive of us,” Trahan said.

The cheer squad's recent win at a competition on Feb. 25 proved that with hard work and spirit, success is possible.

Pierce Cheer's red team traveled to the Anaheim Convention Center to participate in the 2023 USA Collegiate Championships. It was a two-day competition, and they competed against Eastern Arizona College. It was the first time the school had attended this particular event.

During the competition the cheer squad performed their routine and skills, and worked together as a team to not only strengthen their skills but also build their sense of teamwork.

Main base for the cheer squad and nursing major, Destinee Trahan was glad to have the opportunity to represent Pierce.

“We got some recognition from other schools. Putting Pierce’s name on the map felt amazing, winning that competition with a team that feels like family is such a good feeling,” Trahan said. “I would 100% go to a cheer competition again with Pierce.” Trahan gave recognition

A factor to their win was that they were able to explore more challenging and intricate stunts at Pierce than they were able to in highschool due to safety restrictions. Head Coach Zachary Harris helped them with the opportunity to expand their skill set.

“They’re starting to work on new tumbling skills– starting to work on stunts that they’ve never done before,” Harris said. “Once they get to college, they’re allowed to do a lot more, they were very limited in high school.”

Harris was an important member in their training for the competition. Athletic Director Susan Armenta spoke highly of him when describing his affect on the team.

“He’s been very supportive of the cheer team,” Armenta said. “He’s been really instrumental in getting more visibility for athletic programs and for Pierce College.”

Some of those programs include alumni programs and coaching opportunities for high schools, where they get to

meet a lot of people and gain connections and experience.

“They benefit from that network,” Harris said. “They’re working hard as a team, and because of that they get opportunities with the team, employment opportunities, and outreach opportunities with Pierce as well.”

The cheer squad has also participated in other events this semester, including club rush, welcome week and sports games.

“That’s kind of what cheer is about,” Trahan said. “Supporting other teams and being the spirit of the school, and bringing the fun to campus.”

They’re off to a strong start, and the rest of this season they have more competitions and school events they’re preparing for to try and expand their program.

“Those competitions are mostly just outreach to make sure we can recruit for next year,” Harris said. “To get the word out that Pierce has a cheer squad.”

Coming up on their calendar is the Sharp Competition on June 10, and a cheer competition for the community being held at Pierce on April 1 at 10 a.m.

SOPHIA

JENNIFER TANZIL Reporter

MARJAN SHARIFI Reporter

Coach and players find a silver lining at the end of a tough season

Catcher Alexcia Espinoza prepares to catch a ball on the Softball Field in Woodland Hills, Calif., on Feb. 2, 2023.

File photo by Hunter Hammerot

Pitcher Brent Chavez throws a baseball to home plate at Joe Kelly Field at Pierce College at Woodland Hills, Calif., on April 11, 2023.

File photo by Owen Meza