The Puyallup Post | Volume 21 | Issue 9 | April 26, 2016

VOLUME 21 ISSUE 9

AprIL 26, 2016

SErVIng thE StUDEntS Of pIErcE cOLLEgE pUYALLUp

Commentary • News • Campus Life • Entertainment • Sports

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The voice of the students of Pierce College Puyallup

City of Puyallup lacks resources for the homeless Amber Gilliland Senior Reporter

Citizens of downtown Puyallup have been noticing a surge of homeless residents. Many people are unhappy with the state of the downtown area, making their complaints known at Puyallup City Council meetings and a popular Facebook page called Clean Up Puyallup. The complaints mostly center around New Hope Resource Center, which opened two years ago in Puyallup and aims to provide the homeless with crucial resources.

New Hope has been under heavy criticism during the last few months. People are blaming the center for increasing the homeless population in Puyallup and the large amounts of trash and drug paraphernalia found around the city.

The center was shut down by the city on March 15 after being found in violation of occupancy permits. According to The News Tribune, the city of Puyallup allowed New Hope to operate under violation for around five months before shutting down. Residents have questioned the Puyallup City Council about the permits, wondering why New Hope was allowed to continue operating for so long.

Puyallup residents have told stories at city council meetings and on the Clean Up Puyallup page of finding used needles in their yards and streets, witnessing homeless people around the center doing drugs and using the restroom in public behind local businesses. One woman at a city council meeting said there have been instances of homeless citizens banging on school windows while there are children inside.

Those who are blaming New Hope for the amount of homeless around town are greatly mistaken. New Hope didn’t cause these people to be homeless. There may be more homeless people in town now, but that’s because they finally have a place that will help them.

There’s an extreme lack of resources in Puyallup for the homeless. New Hope has its problems, but the idea behind the center is exactly what Puyallup needs.

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“those who are blaming new hope for the amount of homeless around town are greatly mistaken. new hope didn’t cause these people to be homeless. there may be more homeless people in town now, but that’s because they finally have a place that will help them.”

There are very few places in town where the homeless can take a shower, use the restroom and have access to computers and resources to help them out of homelessness.

There seems to be even fewer cheap or free mental health and drug therapy options.

Mental illness and addiction are major factors that contribute to homelessness in Pierce County. The 2015 Homeless Point-In-Time Report for Pierce County found that 1,283 people were experiencing homelessness in January 2015. Of those, 239 reported having a mental health disability and 115 reported having a history of substance abuse.

These numbers are likely understated because an individual must consent to being included in the count and these numbers are more than a year old.

This isn’t to say that all homeless individuals are struggling with mental illness and addiction. There are many circumstances that lead to homelessness, poverty being one of the biggest factors.

Pierce County also lacks overnight resources for the homeless. The 2015 PIT Count showed “There were 1,102 annual single beds in emergency shelter, transitional hous-

ing, rapid rehousing and permanent supportive housing projects.” This count didn’t include seasonal beds such as projects like Freezing Nights, which provides shelter for the homeless in the winter. Freezing Nights only runs until the end of March and then citizens utilizing the program must find somewhere else to go. Based on the number of reported homeless individuals, the 2015 PIT Count shows that there are at least 181 people in Pierce County who are lacking overnight shelter when seasonal beds aren’t available.

Puyallup needs a place like New Hope, but if it’s reopened some changes need to be made. Its location is one of the center’s biggest problems. With it being a 30 second drive from Stewart Elementary School, there are safety concerns. Children from the school shouldn’t be walking past some of the illegal activity that’s been happening around the center. New Hope needs to find a different location to operate or have better control over the activity happening so children aren’t exposed to potentially harmful situations as they walk to and from school.

New Hope also needs to have better mental health and addiction resources. The center is mostly run by volunteers, but they need to have doctors and counselors on site to provide those using the center with an affordable way to get the professional help they may need.

Citizens need to have a sense of understanding and patience when it comes to the homelessness situation in Puyallup. While nobody should have to fear for their safety or pick up used needles from their yard, these people need assistance. Residents have complained that they don’t want to see homeless citizens sleeping in public places, but this is the reality of these people’s lives. They need somewhere to go, whether it’s Puyallup or another town. Puyallup doesn’t have the ability to handle the entire county’s homeless population, so residents need to work together to help cities in our county have the means to care for their homeless. The best way to “clean up Puyallup” is to provide residents with the resources they need to overcome homelessness, in a location that works well for those living around it.

Armani Jackson

Chase Charaba

Suzanne Buchholz

Lizzie Duke

Katie Fenton

Amber Gilliland

Alex Heldrich

Andrea Mendoza

How to contact us: Editor-in-Chief: Grace Amsden..........................Lync ext: 8881 ............gamsden@pierce.ctc.edu Managing Editor: Armani Jackson ....................................8630............ ajackson@pierce.ctc.edu Online and Social Media Manager: Chase Charaba..........8632 ............ccharaba@pierce.ctc.edu Reporter: Suzanne Buchholz ............................................8722 ..........sbuchholz@pierce.ctc.edu Reporter: Lizzie Duke........................................................8620 .................eduke@pierce.ctc.edu Senior Reporter: Amber Gilliland.......................................8624 .............agilliland@pierce.ctc.edu Reporter: Alex Heldrich .....................................................8622.............aheldrich@pierce.ctc.edu Reporter: Hannah Pederson .............................................8628 ..........hpederson@pierce.ctc.edu Reporter: CJ Robinson .....................................................8631 ...........crobinson@pierce.ctc.edu Online Reporter: Katie Fenton ..........................................8654 ...............kfenton@pierce.ctc.edu Office Manager/Reporter: Andrea Mendoza......................8651 ..........amendoza@pierce.ctc.edu

The student newspaper office is in room 218 in the College Center.

Adviser: Teresa Josten Graphics/Production: Steve Heeb

Grace Amsden

www.puy alluppost.com

Newspaper racks are located throughout the Puyallup campus.

Hannah Pederson

CJ Robinson

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shoutout

fightin’words Should additional parking space be used for Sound Transit at the cost of the building for the Daffodil Aerie Eagles club?

Lizzie Duke

site that better fits their needs.

Then again, the Eagles shouldn’t have to find a new site in the first place, and obviously they don’t want to.

According to soundtransit.org, the If this meeting place means more to them than $6 milSound Transit Board identified a 420lion, it must be very important. stall parking garage at the current site Another important factor to consider is the use of of the Daffodil Aerie Eagles property. the space. According to The News Tribune, for years This site includes a pedestrian and Lizzie Duke the Eagle’s site has been used for food drives, giving bicycle bridge, surface parking lot and Christmas presents to families in need and giving additional leased parking at the Washington State Fair’s Red Lot. All of these features are scholarships to high school students. Sound Transit currently property of the Puyallup Daffodil Aerie plans to use it for parking.

Transportation is imporEagles, a service group with tant, but there’s only one locations across the nation.

Eagle’s nest, and there are The Puyallup Eagles own other parking lots that the land and have used it for “the puyallup Eagles own the many Sound Transit could puryears. The government can chase. Sound Transit could legally take the land if they land and have used it for just encourage carpooldeem it important for their years. the government can also ing to the station. That needs, but it doesn’t seem would be an environmentalfair to confiscate the land if legally take the land if they ly friendly compensation the Eagles don’t want to sell deem it important for their that would allow for more it.

The Eagles property and needs, but it doesn’t seem fair growth.

Sound Transit isn’t thinkbuilding together are estito confiscate the land if the ing about the people, it’s mated to be worth $6 million. If the Eagles gave in to Eagles don’t want to sell it.” thinking of it’s own profit and growth. If it were thinkselling, they could negotiate ing of the people, it’d a higher price. Even if they choose a different location didn’t initially want to sell, if Sound Transit is going to get the land either way, they to build on or buy, or come up with a different solution. might as well take the highest price they can get.

The Eagles’ property is a gem of the community.

This could be a great breakthrough for them. The land may have been theirs for years and it may be part For Puyallup to lose such a good, helpful organization of the community, but they could use the money for a would be a travesty.

Reporter

Hannah Pederson

Do you believe additional parking is worth buying out a business’s property?

Anthony Jordan Linquist: “No, I don’t think so. I

always go to Seattle and it’s kind of full (for parking), but I just find a spot anyway.”

David Wright: “I don’t think it’s

really fair to tear down a public building, but where else would you build the parking garage?”

CJ John Francis Snodgrass: “If Sound Transit compensates the Eagles, sure.”

Hassaballa Salim: “If it’s a community building, I’d probably say no.

If it’s legally acceptable and the Eagles agree to it, it should be OK.”

Chase Charaba

2035.

An increase of 770 new passengers doesn’t seem like much, but the already full parking lots wouldn’t be The Daffodil Aerie Eagles club has able to handle more cars. resided at 202 Fifth St. N.W. in Sound Transit plans to have 13 round trip trains by Puyallup since 1955, but members are 2017. Currently, trains make 10 round trips from Lakenow facing the possibility of having to wood to Seattle each day. find a new building. The local Puyallup With the amount of road traffic in Puyallup and chapter of the non-profit Fraternal Chase Charaba South Hill, there should be efforts to improve mass Order of Eagles organization operates on a site that’s been chosen by Sound Transit for an transit in the area by promoting the Sounder. Convertessential new parking garage to serve the Puyallup ing the Daffodil Aerie building into a parking garage is a solution to this problem.

Sounder Train Station.

However, the Eagles deserve adequate compensaDespite being a community-service driven nonprofit organization, the Eagles should sell their build- tion for their current building. According to The News ing to Sound Transit. The site is the best location for Tribune, the Eagles building is worth $6 million, but the cost of finding a new, the garage and the benefits to equally sized building the community outweigh the could cost more. Sound costs.

Daffodil Aerie doesn’t wish “At this point, they really don’t Transit should have to pay for that. to sell their current facility, have a choice because the It’s only fair for the however. At this point, they Eagles to be compensated really don’t have a choice property would fall under for the trouble Sound because the property would eminent domain, a Transit’s plan will put fall under eminent domain, a constitutionally-recognized constitutionally-recognized them through, but they need to act quickly with procedure where the governprocedure where the price negotiations. With ment can seize land with “just eminent domain, Sound compensation” to the property government can seize land Transit could take the owner.

According to Sound Tran- with ‘just compensation’ to the property and pay the Eagles what the property sit’s website, the proposed property owner.” appraises for. parking garage would have Ridership will continue 420 parking spaces that’d be to increase as highways used in conjunction with the existing parking lots at the Puyallup train station. The become crowded and the population of the Puget project would also include new pedestrian and bicycle Sound region continues to skyrocket. These improvements need to be made now before ridership exceeds bridges over the tracks to improve pedestrian safety.

According to an article from The News Tribune, capacity, even at the expense of the Eagle’s longtime Sound Transit expects the daily train ridership in home. This is a necessary project for the Puyallup Puyallup of 1,100 to increase by 70 percent before community.

Online and Social Media Manager

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Cassandra McDonald:

“Old people need a place to be. Puyallup has enough parking.”

Manjinder Singh Sandhu: “I don’t think it’s worth it

if it’s going to destroy an old person’s cultural hub.”

Bree Leaitu:

“Yes, because parking is a hellhole nightmare in Puyallup and it’s terrible.”

Chrissandra Sawtelle:

“I think Sounder should build more parking because the Eagles people are mean.”

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newsflash

What’s going on at Pierce College Puyallup

CJ Robinson

Alumni celebration honors success after Pierce CJ Robinson Reporter

The 20th annual alumni celebration honored four Pierce College alumni at the Fort Steilacoom campus on April 14.

This included a video highlighting each honoree, a dinner, guest speakers and the presentation of an award to each alumni.

The honorees included Amy Eveskcige, Yotsaphon Sangnil, Rosanna Sharpe and Melody Williams.

The event started with a dinner featuring a live student orchestra and social reception. To begin the ceremony, Jeff Brown, president of the Pierce College Foundation Board, introduced the event and its speakers. Denise Yochum, Pierce College Fort Steilacoom president, and Nathan Gibbs-Bowling, Distinguished Alumnus 2015, introduced this year’s distinguished alumni and presented awards to the honorees.

Williams is the owner of Melody Williams Allstate Insurance and achieved her associate degree at Pierce in 1991. Sangil is now the head of investment strategy and financial research at UOB Kay Hian Stock Exchange of Thailand and received his associate degree and high school diploma from Pierce in 2005. Eveskcige is the superintendent of Chief Leschi

Nathan Gibbs-Bowling introduces the honorees.

Amy Eveskcige

Yotsaphon Sangnil

Rosanna Sharpe

Schools and earned her associate degree in 1991. Sharpe is the Executive Director of the Northwest African American Museum and achieved her associate degree in 1983.

After the presentation of awards, the speakers gave guests the opportunity to give to the Foundation. Every donation would be matched up to $10,000 that night, donated by a group of attendees.

The selection committee for this event included a range of faculty, staff and previous board members. Nicole Ferris, manager for donor and alumni relations, said the process involved a certain investigative effect.

“I felt like I was a detective,” Ferris said. “Any kind of social media that existed out there, I was able to find information on people.”

After the committee decided on its nominations, these individuals were submitted to the presidents of each Pierce campus and the chancellor to receive input. Their opinions, along with the committee, helped narrow 15 nominations to four.

Next year, the college hopes to plan a gala in honor of its 50th anniversary, Ferris said. For more information on the event, the honorees and Foundation, visit www.pierce.ctc.edu/foundation/.

Melody Williams

Suzanne Buchholz

Local grocery store to leave the community Suzanne Buchholz Reporter

Students at Pierce College Puyallup have many options for places to eat near campus, whether they want a full meal or a quick bite. Students may be familiar with Haggen, a grocery store on South Hill near Shari’s Restaurant. Haggen offers hot deli items and bakery goods, in addition to convenient items such as ramen cups, yogurt or anything else a student might want.

Now, students will be left without this option as Haggen recently announced they’re shutting their doors.

A representative from Haggen said officials have been discussing closing the store in South Hill for about a year and a half due to multiple reasons, including bankruptcy. The store has begun to clearance items starting at 10 percent off and is expected to close by May, if not sooner.

Catherine Mann, a Pierce student who’s also an employee at Haggen, said she found out about the closure shortly after she began working there in January 2016.

“My initial thought was as long as I got paid it was fine,” Mann said. “But as time went on, I realized how badly it’d affect the community. There are people who have been (working) here for 20 plus years who don’t know what they will do.”

The South Hill store is one of the 127 Haggen stores confirmed to be closing or have already closed on the West Coast since Sept. 2015. According to The Oregonian, 29 of these stores have been purchased by Albertsons and 15 of them will continue operating under the Haggen name, while the remaining ones will

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Empty shelves inside Haggen. be converted to Albertsons stores. The South Hill location wasn’t among these stores and is expected to be closed completely.

Haggen Inc. has been operating stores in the Northwest since 1933, according to their website. The South Hill location has been serving the Puyallup area for more than 20 years, running under Haggen’s Top Food and Drug name before being rebranded as Haggen within the last year.

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Since opening, Haggen has been devoted to providing shoppers in the Northwest with high-quality products such as organic produce and locally-sourced meat at affordable prices, according to their website. The South Hill location also featured a pharmacy, bakery and delicatessen where someone could purchase premade foods like sandwiches, soups, salads, rotisserie chickens and various side dishes.

There isn’t a statement as to what will replace Haggen, or if there are plans to open a new store in the building yet.

Mann said the news has had a big impact on many people at Haggen and has changed the atmosphere significantly.

“It’s stressful,” Mann said. “We’ve had customers coming in on the verge of tears, and they’ve all talked about how much they’ll miss the store. I’m not as affected, but it’s depressing seeing how people are reacting. (The employees) used to be so full of life, happy, joking, but as soon as they got the news the energy just sort of died.”

Some students at Pierce said that Haggen’s closure doesn’t have any effect on them.

“We never shop there,” student Chrisanndra Sawtelle said. “We always looked and said ‘too expensive’ and drove by.”

Other students were upset by the news, as many of them had shopped there with their families for years.

“We’re all bummed,” student Sara Scott said. “It was our primary source of fresh fruit, snacks and other yummies. Personally, I’m really going to miss the spinach dip they sold. No other store sells the same brand or uses the same recipe, and no one does it like Haggen did.”

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Climate change in Washington state

Global warming does exist and is a threat Hannah Pederson Reporter

It’s no secret that something is going on with the global climate. Some argue that temperatures are rising at an unprecedented rate with increasingly terrifying consequences. Others say it’s just nature’s way and everything’s perfectly normal.

Of the two sparring sides of this debate, one is based in the communal research of the scientific community all over the globe and one is based in a scientifically inaccurate and invalidated study from the 1970s.

That study prompted a wave of a new ice age cometh coverage from the media, and global warming was considered a thing of the past.

In 2016, it’s very much relevant, if relevancy is measured in the number of sad British documentaries and long articles full of depressing statistics written about a subject.

Most articles focus on a global scale of climate change, which aids in general dissociation from the issue. Most Americans don’t care that global surface temperatures have increased by .43 degrees celsius (32.774 degrees fahrenheit) since 2000, according to NASA. Washingtonians probably care that Mount Rainier, what many regard as the jewel in this state’s crown of natural wonders, and the surrounding Cascades are being directly affected.

The average mountain snowpack in the Cascades has declined at 73 percent of the sites studied, with spring runoff occurring earlier each year, according to the

Washington State Department of Ecology.

Former Pierce College physics professor Les Urich has hiked the trails of Mount Rainier National Park for decades. He’s noticed definite shrinkage in the mountain’s renowned glaciers. And it’s not just Urich.

According to the WSDE, mountain glaciers in the Cascades have lost 18 to 32 percent of their total volume since 1983 and 53 glaciers have disappeared altogether since 1984. Washington’s ecosystem can’t

recover from such a loss in time to avoid adverse effects.

Some might have noticed that wildfires have been on the rise over the recent years, with local TV coverage full of vast expanses being roasted by stories tall flames. The numbers confirm these observations, with the average number of wildfires larger than 500 acres per year from six in the 1970s to 21 in the 2000s.

Some might assume that all these fires and reduced snowpack might lead to a lower sea levels, but it’s the opposite.

Washington has more than 2,300 miles of coastline, and rising sea levels have led to erosion of coastal areas and eventual complete submersion. In 100 years, Washington’s coast could be nearly unrecognizable to someone growing up now.

Besides rising to off-putting levels, the Pacific provides yet another example of the effects man has on its environment: ocean acidification.

Ocean acidification is what happens when human activities introduce too much carbon dioxide to the ocean’s ecosystem, and the reason Washington residents should consider caring about it is because shellfish can’t produce their calcium rich shells if the acidic waters won’t allow them to develop. These fish aren’t only the pricier items at dockside seafood houses meant for human consumption, but are a pivotal part of the ocean’s food chain.

Washington has some of the most biodiverse ecosystems in the United States. It has a rainforest, two major mountain ranges, a desert and, of course, the Sound.

Most Washingtonians grow up along its vibrant coastlines, under its heavy grey clouds that made the puddles they jumped in. Future generations only experiencing these places through the memories of their parents is quite possibly the new reality. There’s no going back.

Multi-million dollar data center opens next to Pierce Armani Jackson Managing Editor

Pierce College Puyallup will welcome a new neighbor in the form of the first transpacific data hub on the West Coast.

Centeris is a data center company keen on providing worldwide connections and is in the process of building a location in Puyallup. Their headquarters are located in Bellevue, and this new Puyallup building is comprised of 86 acres. The hub will serve both local and international companies.

Centeris owns and operates environments that sustain machines, and this site will be set up to run year-round.

“A computer system (and) networking equipment require very different conditions (compared to humans),” Centeris Director Simon Lee said. “They’re not necessarily compatible with what people need. A data center fundamentally provides it. We do what we term ‘Mission Critical.’ These are things that cannot go down (and) always (have to) be working.”

Lee said Puyallup was selected for multiple reasons. The site was originally a

site hasn’t been decided yet, but there will be enough to sustain the 24/7 operation.

“We’re frustrated enough as individuals (so) imagine companies,” Lee said.

“You cannot fail your clients so when you’re talking about ‘Mission Critical’ operations, it’s exactly that. The term comes from things like NASA (and) it has to work.”

The site is measured in terms of power, meaning to guess the number of servers that could be on the location would be calculated by determining how many running servers could be accounted for on a campus that has 50 megawatts of power. If need be, the site can be expanded in extra 25 megawatt increments. For perspective, one megawatt can power 1,000 homes.

Lee anticipates growth in the use of the site as far as clients and employees go, but it’s more difficult to scope how the data or facility will expand.

“We look at (growth) not as day-to-day (or) week-to-week,” Lee said. “We look at it as how important it is to connect (the) U.S. to Asia.”

semiconductor fabrication plant, which aids the building process because plants are typically required to have certain standards. They require immense amounts of high-quality power and have to be physically stable, meaning no environmental disruptions. The plant also has to be in an area free of pollutants.

Adding to the conductor’s preset conditions, the raw infrastructure was already in place. Also, Puyallup is relatively in the middle between the Seattle/Northern Washington locations and areas in Northern Oregon, Lee said. This midpoint is vital because the subsea cables connecting the company to Asia runs along that route.

The center would serve both local and IT-intensive businesses who need a lot of power, as well as some in California. Centeris also plans to help U.S. companies who are largely involved with Asia or vice versa, Lee said.

“Our vision for what we’re doing isn’t a bunch of buildings and power,” Lee said. “It’s about connecting different parts of the world.”

The number of employees working on

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To date, Centeris has invested more than $100 million into the site. Precise numbers couldn’t be disclosed.

Lee said the site will have little to no impact on Pierce, but has the potential to influence the city of Puyallup greatly.

“Our clients are coming in and we’re drawing in companies from (both) the country and world,” Lee said. “When (clients) start to do site selection and put equipment in, they have people that are coming, so they’re using local services.

Ultimately, on a more full-time basis, they’re determining where to put offices and people. We anticipate that if the transpacific hub evolves like we believe it will, the entire region will be more visited and eventually more developed.”

Centeris has large plans, Lee said, and is excited to be a part of what they see as the future.

As of April 10, the transpacific hub and one of the data centers located on the South Hill campus are fully functional.

The hub is a platform that evolves, so it’ll continue to grow as more clients partner with Centeris, Lee said.

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New direction for the Compass assessment Informal survey of 20 Pierce College students

Grace Amsden Editor-in-chief

The test Pierce College officials use to place incoming students in English, reading and math classes will be discontinued in the fall. This national assessment tool, ACT Compass, will no longer be available after Nov. 30.

According to act.org, it was a combination of customer feedback, empirical evidence and postsecondary trends that made company officials realize this assessment “is not contributing as effectively to student placement and success as it had in the past.”

As a result, all products from ACT Compass will be discontinued after Dec. 31.

The purpose of the Compass testing is to provide information for students regarding their skill levels before taking college courses.

The Compass shouldn’t be considered a “test” as this implies passing or failing, Director of Advising and Entry Services Christine McMullin said. The Compass is used to gain an idea for a starting point.

Some students come to Pierce who haven’t attended school in a while or may be unsure of where to start.

“They (the students) can be all over the board as far as their skill level, and we can’t make that assumption that all students are ready to do college-level work,” McMullin said. “The Compass was really nice (and) relatively low cost.”

A concern for the Compass is whether accurate placement information was being provided, McMullin said.

“The Compass did a really good job of making sure we didn’t get students into classes that were too difficult for them, but it did at times artificially push students down into classes that they really could’ve passed quite easily,” McMullin said.

For student Sadie Lapiers, she said that her math placement as indicated by the Compass may have been inaccurate.

“I know you have to take algebra II before you can take precalculus - at least in

Did you take the Compass upon coming to Pierce?

Is taking a test a strong way to indicate college-level readiness?

n Twenty students said yes. n Zero students answered no.

n Eleven students said yes. n Seven students said no. n Two abstained.

Do you feel that the Compass provided you with accurate results based on your knowledge? n Seventeen students said yes. n Two students said no. n One student marked yes and no.

Do you think the Compass is a strong tool for demonstrating college-level readiness?

Should there be more ways available at Pierce College to demonstrate college-level readiness? n Fourteen students said yes. n Five students said no. n One student abstained.

n Fourteen students said yes. n Six students answered no.

case a student doesn’t have those documents on them - something that doesn’t take days and days of interpretation.”

One option is the College Board ACCUPLACER which assesses students in reading, writing and math. This is untimed, and as students progress through this multiple choice online test, the questions shift levels of difficulty depending on their previous answers, according to accuplacer.collegeboard.org.

Student Ambassador Bailey Shippy hopes the next assessment will be similar to the Compass.

“I don’t like this kind of change, but I know that if they (the company) are stopping this, there must be a good reason,” Shippy said. “I do hope that the future replacement test will be just as easy and won’t scare students.”

Student Lauren New said that the Compass accurately assessed her knowledge and skills and that it’s a good option for students coming into college.

“I would hope that they would definitely

high school - but I haven’t taken algebra II and I got placed in precalculus,” Lapiers said. “I was a little concerned if I was ready for precalculus or not.”

On occasion, McMullin said that employees and advisers in the Student Success Center heard students say that they guessed throughout the Compass yet earned a high score, a concern if the student wasn’t ready to enter into a higher college-level course.

McMullin also said that the format of the Compass may not have been accurate for what students can demonstrate within their experience in class.

Although the Compass will become unavailable, a new assessment will take its place; currently, there’s exploration for a replacement.

“For students who have been away from school for a number of years or who are coming back to (earn) an adult high school diploma, we have other assessments they can take as well,” McMullin said. “But it’s nice to have one common (assessment) in

at least update some sort of testing to have into the classes, because I feel like throwing people into higher classes than they’re capable of isn’t really fair to them right off the bat,” New said.

Various Pierce College faculty from the departments of mathematics, reading and English meet to discuss ways to identify that a student is ready for college-level courses. They’re currently researching testing options for students. Discussion may include how a high school transcript can correlate to success in college, McMullin said.

Currently, a recent high school transcript and transfer work are tools that can be used for placement at Pierce. But students will have additional ways to reveal college-level readiness such as with results from the Smarter Balanced Assessment and further ways through a high school transcript, McMullin said.

“It may be a case that not as many students will be taking the assessment because they may have these other ways that they can place that they’re bringing with them,” McMullin said.

The goal for the transition regarding further placement options is to conclude by spring quarter, McMullin said.

Although the Compass is changing its course, this won’t affect students coming to Pierce in the fall who can still take the Compass.

While many students will likely still take the assessment that’ll replace the Compass, it may not serve as the dominant tool, McMullin said.

“I think we’re going to find more and more students talking about different ways that they placed into certain levels, or that they knew they were ready for certain levels of college,” McMullin said. “I think that it’s exciting. I think we’ve always been student focused, trying to make sure we’re doing the right thing for students, but this is really turning the focus to what is right for the students.”

Keeping the college up to code Alex Heldrich

Pierce College making small changes to Student Code of Conduct, which all students are required to follow Alex Heldrich Reporter

Pierce College students are required to follow the Student Code of Conduct policy. This refers to disciplinary proceedings, the jurisdictions of the college to which the code of conduct applies, students rights, rules and regulations of the college.

Within the past few months, changes have been made to the code. The last time the Student Code of Conduct policy was amended was in 2009. The deans of student success from the Puyallup, Fort Steilacoom and Joint Base Lewis-McChord campuses said that it was time to make a few more changes.

“There is nothing ‘wrong’ with our current Student Rights & Responsibilities/Student Code of Conduct policy,” Alicia Serrano, administrative assistant to the dean of student success, said. “The policy has reached a time where a review is necessary in order to ensure we’re meeting current guidelines and best practices as it relates to code of conduct proceedings.”

A change that was made to the Student Code of Conduct policy is how sexual misconduct is processed based on Title IX and the Violence Against Women Act requirements.

According to the Pierce College website, “Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is an all-encompassing federal law that prohibits gender-based discrimination in educational institutions that receive federal funds.”

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The Student Code of Conduct is available on the Pierce College website. statement of student rights, prohibited student conduct, disciplinary sanctions-terms-conditions, hearing procedures, discipline procedures for cases involving allegations of sexual misconduct and record keeping which will keep the college up to code with updated federal regulations.

In order to make such a change, many drafts and revisions must be made and approved.

Because the Student Code of Conduct is a part of the Washington Administrative Code, there are specific processes that must be followed in order for the revised code to be included in the WAC. WAC, according to the Washington state Legislature website, is explained as the “Regulations of executive branch agencies are issued by authority of statutes. The WAC

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codifies the regulations and arranges them by subject or agency.”

“During the process of revision, many different constituent groups are asked for feedback,” Serrano said.

“The first draft of the revised Student Code of Conduct has been presented to the Student Advancement Council, the Learning Council and Cabinet, as well as a variety of different committees, councils and departments. Once a final draft has been completed, it’ll be presented for feedback to groups again with a specific emphasis on student groups.”

After the three deans of student success began the process of making changes to the Code of Student Success, a sub-committee of the Student Advancement Council continued revising.

“Most recently, the vice president of human resources and the dean of student success from Fort Steilacoom have been addressing feedback gathered and reviewing it line by line,” Serrano said.

Although the changes made to the Code of Conduct are about the students, there’s no student involvement in the process. Students were also not directly notified that the Code of Conduct was being amended.

“I think that it should be passed through the students before changes are made,” student Connor Staffen said. “Since it pertains to us, I think we deserve a part in it.”

The revisions to the policy are nearly complete, and once finished it’ll be made official and the current code on the Pierce College website will be altered to match the amendments.

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Pierce Puyallup plans production Lizzie Duke

“We want to expand. Our goal is to always serve community needs.

If the community is growing, which it is, then we have to grow with it.”

Reporter

Enrollment is increasing at Pierce College Puyallup and the campus is almost out of classroom and parking space. Pierce College Puyallup President Marty Cavalluzzi has been brainstorming ways to add space in order to allow for the growth, such as having more classrooms.

“We’re just out of space, unless we get really creative,” Cavalluzzi said.

To solve this problem, Pierce staff are looking to identify more space. There’s lots of ways to do it, Cavalluzzi said.

One option is to rearrange courses.

This means having earlier morning courses, later night classes, expanding online courses or adding more hybrid courses.

Another option is to build a new building on campus. This is the most expensive, permanent and time-consuming option.

Funding was requested to build another building but wasn’t approved.

—Marty Cavalluzzi

price to construct this new building would be about $36 million, Cavalluzzi said.

If Pierce were to gain another building, Cavalluzzi wants to expand tutoring, supplemental instruction and create a veteran center. He’d also like to see more student study spaces such as having small rooms for groups, space to practice public speaking and expanding services for having more advisers, allowing for more personal conversations with staff of student services.

Cavalluzzi’s plan also includes expanding the library, as there would be new science labs and thus the bottom floor would be open for other classes.

“Imagine you walk into the library and see this grand staircase going down, (with) light flooding in,” Cavalluzzi said. “Picture the library expanded so all of those things (additional study rooms) connected to the library.”

This is the long-term plan, however, as the request submitted by Pierce was denied, college officials must wait to formally ask for funding again until December 2017. Cavalluzzi plans to keep applying until the money is provided.

“We want to expand,” Cavalluzzi said. “Our goal is to always serve community needs. If the community is growing, which it is, then we have to

“It would be a travesty if people want to come to this college and we can’t fit them,” Cavalluzzi said. “That’s just not right.”

A request was submitted to the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges last year for funding of a Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics building. But if the building was constructed or purchased, it may not end up being used for STEM, as general classroom space is the main focus.

Once it’s acquired, it could be used for any subject.

A new building, if provided by the state, would be 70,000 square feet. The

grow with it.”

Pierce officials will be going back to the SBCTC to discuss the last request to learn what could’ve been done better on their part, though this will not change the current denial.

In the meantime, Cavalluzzi is looking at other options, such as finding an alternate space the college can afford to lease or rent off campus.

One building Cavalluzzi has been looking into purchasing is the South Hill Business Technology Center. It’s vacant, a few miles from campus and is 175 thousand square feet.

“We actually don’t need that much space,” Cavalluzzi said. “But it would be growth space forever.”

Even if funding was acquired, it’d have to be leased to Pierce, because it’s too expensive to buy. Not only would the building provide more classrooms and space, it’d add another parking lot for Pierce students to access.

A road would be constructed to connect to the current road from the Health Education Center by Bradley Lake Park.

It’d be the same distance from the new parking lot to the HEC as it’s from the HEC parking lot to the Gaspard Administration Building.

Another building Cavalluzzi has been looking into is the abandoned Lowe’s building that’s used as a Halloween Spirit store during fall. If this building were purchased or leased to Pierce, there would be a shuttle provided from this building to campus so students wouldn’t have to walk.

Cavalluzzi hopes to have made a decision on a new space by winter quarter 2017. Though a new building, if approved, is years away. A 20-year possible plan for the Puyallup campus was created by an architect with input from students, facilities, the chancellor, community members and Cavalluzzi.

The college’s plan for the Puyallup campus is illustrated below.

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Amber Gilliland

Office of Student Life seeks new student leaders Amber Gilliland Senior Reporter

The Office of Student Life began accepting applications to fill 15 student leadership positions for the upcoming 2016-2017 academic year.

Student leadership is divided into two branches: student government and the activities board. Seven student government positions are available and include president, vice president, executive director of operations and senators. These OSL members will participate on the student council to make sure college decisions are aligning with student needs and input. Eight coordinator positions on the activities board are also available. This group is in charge of increasing student engagement on campus. Each coordinator must plan three to four events per quarter within a budget. Some activities board positions include the stability and wellness coordinator, clubs coordinator, and social issues and service coordinator.

In order to apply, students must complete an application packet in C210. They need to be currently registered at Pierce College Puyallup, have a GPA of at least 2.5, be enrolled in at least 10 credits and have already completed 10 credits.

Along with the application, students must include a resume that shows current work, education and/or volunteer experience, as well as an unofficial transcript.

An essay of at least 500 words that answers three questions listed on the application must also be included.

The questions center around why the student wants to be an OSL member. The final requirement is to have a program or academic instructor complete a Confidential Reference Form which is attached to the application packet. The instructor must return the form directly to the OSL. Students who don’t meet all of the requirements but still want to apply may ask for an appeal. A statement should be attached to the application describing the

Recreation and Entertainment Coordinator Jesse Hamelin holds up an OSL application for the upcoming school year. circumstances causing the student to not meet the requirements, and explaining to the Selection Committee why they should be considered despite these circumstances.

The Selection Committee will go through a multi-

step process to choose the candidates for the job. After the application deadline, the team will score each application using a rubric and then decide which applicants to interview. From there, individual interviews will be scheduled. The committee then decides who will move on to a group interview. Once this is complete, the committee will deliberate to make their final decision.

Director of Student Life Sean Cooke said he and the Selection Committee don’t look for any specific personality type when making staffing decisions.

“I think the best teams are made up of diverse groups with diverse personalities,” Cooke said.

There are some important traits the committee will look for in a potential student leader, Cooke said. The student must be able to manage time well, have a strong work ethic and a desire to help students.

Executive Director of Operations Cole Webb said that being a student leader requires a certain type of ambition.

“Things are going to get busy and there’s the bad kind of crazy, but there’s also the good kind of crazy where you’re just insane enough to jump for the big things, to not necessarily worry about whether something is feasible, but to go at it anyway,” Webb said.

OSL positions are paid and require a commitment for the entire academic year from summer 2016 to spring 2017. Training for the position will be provided.

Work schedules are tailored to the student’s class schedule.

Cooke encourages students of all backgrounds and personality types to apply.

“We’ve had student body presidents who are 16 and student body presidents who are 60 and everything in between,” Cooke said. “Student leadership is for everybody.”

Applications are due to the OSL by 5 p.m. on April 29 in C210.

Lizzie Duke

The BBB: buying back books Lizzie Duke Reporter

While at college, most students will need to purchase textbooks for classes.

Pierce College provides a few options of how to sell back textbooks once the quarter is over.

The first option is the campus bookstore. The bookstore will buy books back every day, bookstore manager at Pierce College Puyallup Dionne Latta said. On a daily basis, it’s what’s known as a wholesale buy back. Wholesale means it’s not for the school specifically but for the country, so the amount paid for the book is based on demand throughout the nation rather than just at the college.

For the last two weeks of each quarter, it’s resale buy back. This is when the bookstore buys books back that’ll be needed by students for the next quarter.

It’s based on how many rentals the bookstore receives back, so they can’t buy back all the books or they’d have more than is needed.

During wholesale, students can receive up to 20 percent of their money back. During retail, books are purchased for up to 50 percent.

For example, if a student bought a book for $100, during wholesale the greatest amount they could receive back is $20. During resale, they could receive up to $50.

“It (the price) is a quote,” Latta said.

“It doesn’t stay that way, it’s based on demand. It can go down in a matter of a day or two.”

Also, if instructors don’t notify the

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The book board is located in the College Center by the computer lab. than the bookstore.

Another option at Pierce is the book wall, which is in the College Center on the top floor, against the back wall by the computer lab.

“We do encourage people to also use the book wall,” Latta said. “Try us first to see what we’re buying it back for and if that’s not something that seems reasonable enough, try the book wall.”

To post a book, students can go to the

bookstore of which books they’re planning to use, the bookstore can’t buy the books back yet, because the books aren’t in their system.

The individual book or barcode matters as well. If the book is missing a CD, is torn or if there’s a new addition of that book pending, it’s worth less. There are also some books the bookstore won’t buy back because they also cannot sell back books that were bought places other

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Office of Student Life to fill out a slip with their name, the book’s condition, personal contact information and how much money they’d like for the book.

The slips are color coordinated based on subject. For example, red is for science and pink is for social science.

At the end of the day, Student Advocacy Senator Perry Doidge adds the papers onto the book wall and keeps them up for the quarter.

“We don’t handle any of the books,” Doidge said. “It’s kind of like Craigslist where they keep the books and they (the students) sell it to each other.”

There’s also an online book board also organized by the OSL. To access it, students can go to https://goo.gl/KPLiwk.

This can also be accessed through the OSL website by selecting the tab textbook revolution and then “digital book board.”

To find a book online, a student can search by author. To post a book, students need to fill out information for it including the name of the book they’re selling, the author and subject.

If someone paid $100 for their textbook, they can usually sell it for $50 or the best offer from the student buying it off the bookwall, Doidge said.

Doidge recommends that students try to sell their textbooks on Amazon before trying the book wall. He doesn’t recommend selling it to the bookstore.

“Sell it to your friend (or) sell it to the students here,” Latta said. “That way, you can make some money if we’re not buying it back.”

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Grace Amsden

shoutout Andrea Mendoza

What is your favorite food at the fair?

LEfT: A small bottle of mace that can fit onto a key ring is one of the personal safety devices students may carry.

INSET: ROBOCOPP is one personal safety devices that’s an alarm. It weighs less than 1 ounce.

Preparing with personal safety devices Editor-in-Chief

It’s evening, and the last classes offered on campus are concluding. A student is walking to their car, but just before arriving they hear a rustle in the nearby bushes and an individual protrudes in a manner that the student believes to be suspicious. A shrill-sounding alarm is released into the air, loud enough to be heard across campus.

Perhaps in a backpack, pocket or on a keychain may be an item that an individual keeps for personal safety.

Mace, pepper spray, tasers, wearable whistles and even cat keychains - ones for self-defense where the user can put their fingers through the eyes holes, using the cat ears as sharp objects - are among the multiple personal safety devices available.

Alarms are another type of personal safety device. One example of an alarm is the ROBOCOPP. It can be added onto a key ring and activates by pulling a pin, which triggers a 120-decibel siren.

“I think the simple fact that you have something and you have a plan makes you feel more prepared, and it reminds me to be more aware of my surroundings,” Jill Turner, PR and marketing director for ROBOCOPP, said.

In emergencies, it doesn’t matter how strong someone is if they’re faced with an competent individual with a weapon, Co-Founder and CEO for ROBOCOPP Sam Mansen said. Although alarms can be placed into houses and cars for security purposes, personal safety devices are essential and will be integrated even more in the next 10 years, he said.

"People put alarms on their homes and their cars, but not themselves or their children,” Mansen said. “Why not? Life is much more valuable, I think."

Mansen said that once a student sets off the alarm, campus security officers are likely to follow the sound and it may also generate attention from students around the area.

“Students are often coming straight from high school (to a college campus) and it’s often (the case that) they’re coming from a relatively safe environment to a more dangerous one, where there’s more people their age, a lot of different surroundings they’re not familiar with and personal safety is way more of a concern than people give it credit for,” Turner said.

Student Brooklyn Brown said that for students who take night classes at Pierce College Puyallup, the campus can feel eerie. She said that students should be allowed to bring personal safety devices as long it’s not something like a gun or knife.

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“Who knows if they're (the student) going to claim that it’s for their safety, or they’re really not liking their instructor at the time and want to bombard everybody with something like that,” Brown said.

Student Robert Stewart said some devices may pose hazards; for example, he said that some mace products left in the car risk exploding if they get too hot.

Stewart said he can understand the reason for carrying a light or alarm, as for the most part these devices won’t cause harm unless used in a particular way.

“The light, if it’s heavy enough, can be used as selfdefense or just to keep people from trying to sneak up on you,” Stewart said.

While personal safety devices are important, they may not be necessary, Stewart said.

“It’s not necessary if you believe that you’re in a safer environment,” Stewart said. “It just depends on what time of the day that you’re taking classes.”

At Pierce College, weapons - including guns and knives - are prohibited, Director of Safety and Security Chris MacKersie said.

The Student Code of Conduct within the WAC 132K-126-190 Rules and regulations states that if students are in possession or use “firearms, explosives, other weapons or dangerous chemicals or any other device or substance which can be used to inflict bodily harm on college premises or at college-sponsored or supervised activities, expect for authorized purposes or for law enforcement officers,” they’re subject to disciplinary action.

MacKersie recommends that for personal safety, students should be aware of their surroundings and have their keys in hand and personal belongings situated before walking to their car. Individuals may be targets if they appear to lack confidence and aren’t focused on the area around them, he said.

Because students and staff are good about communicating with campus safety regarding concerns, this can help handle situations and lead to a lower crime rate, MacKersie said.

“Fortunately, we have had few serious incidents on campus,” MacKersie said. “Not that something couldn’t happen tomorrow, but historically the campuses have (a) pretty low crime (rate) and I know part of it is because of campus safety’s active presence.”

According to the results from an anonymous survey conducted by The Puyallup Post, three students out of 20 bring a personal safety device to campus. Seventeen students out of 20 stated that carrying a device is beneficial for students at Pierce.

Courtesy Jill Turner

Grace Amsden

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Sherry Manis-Walker:

“Elephant ears that have cinnamon and sugar on it. It’s been a long time since I've been to the fair but when I used to go, I would get (one) all the time.”

Silas Henderson: “I haven't been to the fair in a long time. When I would go, I’d get the cinnamon pretzels because they tasted really good.”

Kyle Bartz: “Elephant ears, because they clog my arteries. I get them every time. I buy one when I get there and then one when I leave.”

Matthew Morales: “Normally,

my favorite food at the fair is the fish and chips. I've eaten it since I was a kid and it's become a tradition every time I go with my family.”

John Sanchez: “I loved those

huge hamburgers that have a lot of onion and vegetable toppings with grease running down it.”

Lisa Repola: “I love those huge burgers, the ones that are the size of your face. They’re huge and round like the size of a pancake.”

Kaitlin Christensen: “I like the funnel cakes because they’re hot, good and super sweet. But I can only have a few because they’re super sugary.”

Nikoli Stevens: “The elephant

ears, because they’re sugary goodness.

They’re a solid 8.7 out of 10 on the foodo-meter.”

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Grace Amsden

Rides, curly fries and baby chicks can be found at the Spring fair.

One of the dogs jumping to retrieve their toy in the water, the distance to be measured.

Dogs make splash at Spring Fair Suzanne Buchholz Reporter

The Washington State Spring Fair offers a variety of entertainment for people of all ages, from concerts and wood-carving competitions to pig races and monster truck rallies. One of these options is DockDogs, an aquatic sporting event specifically for canines that’s popular among families and children.

The objective of the sport is simple. A dog stands at a dock in front of a pool of water, and the dog’s trainer will throw a toy into the water a far distance away. This is the dog’s cue to jump into the water after the toy. The goal is to see how far the dog can jump, and points are awarded for the longest distance in two jumps.

Puget Sound DockDogs allows dogs of all breeds and sizes to practice and compete as long as they’re at least six months old, PSDD Vice President Chelle Peterson said.

“There’s no hard and fast training for it, anybody can do it,” Peterson said. “(If) you’ve got a water crazy dog that loves their toys and will chase them into the water, come out and join us.”

The sport has been around for about 15 years, beginning as a filler for the national hunt trials on ESPN and then growing from there. Since 2014, the sport has been sponsored in part by Zuke’s, a company that specializes in making all-natural dog treats.

The Puget Sound branch of the club has been running for 11 years and has 60 members spanning from Vancouver, Wash. to Vancouver, B.C.. The PSDD is home to the world record holder for outdoor jumping, a retired racing Whippet.

Peterson said families love DockDogs, and that often whenever they’re performing at events such as the fair, families will show up to watch one showing and then return later for the next. She said children in particular enjoy watching the sport.

“It’s a big kid draw,” Peterson said. “On hot sunny days, we’ve got kids lining the side of the pools, getting splashed. They love it.”

It isn’t just families and children who love the sport though, Peterson said. She said the canines who compete in the events enjoy it just as much as their human spectators.

“I think this is doggie heaven,” Peterson said. “I have an 8 and a half - almost 9 year old - lab (that) I rescued when she was 3 and a half. All I have to do is pick up the bumper bag, and she goes nuts. And heaven forbid if I’m putting the bumper bag in the car and she’s not getting in the car.”

A shot of the fair at about 250 feet Grace Amsden Editor-in-chief

The sun was seeping through the clouds, shining its light onto the vibrant colors and sights that can be seen throughout the Washington State Spring Fair on April 15.

Spinning rides, children carrying plush toys, cotton candy stands and the Extreme Scream are part of the lifestyle at the Spring Fair, offered this year April 14-17.

Numerous attractions are offered here in the land of scones and fried treats. There’s carousels and flying simulators to roller coasters. But one attraction lets off a loud horn, which means that two individuals will be shot into the air in a cart that’ll perform multiple flips for fair visitors to see. This is the Hot Shot Slingshot attraction, which costs $35 per ride. According to the attraction’s sign, the approximate speed for the ride is 100 mph, the height of the tower is 190 feet and the capsule height is 250 feet. A video of each rider experience is available for $20.

Pierce College Fort Steilacoom student José Vergara and Anna Espenilla were two of these people to be strapped into the seats, anticipating for the thrill. They’d shortly get a different view of the fair than they would on ground level.

“We didn’t expect it to start flipping,” Vergara said.

Espenilla said this experience was similar to bungee jumping, which the two of them have participated in, but doing it over and over again.

“We like doing this stuff,” Espenilla said, who also said that they didn’t have any regrets for going on the slingshot once strapped into their seats. “We want to bungee jump again, actually.”

Espenilla and Vergara said when they were shot into the air for the first part of the

Photos by Grace Amsden, CJ Robinson, Armani Jackson and Chase Charaba

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attraction, it was a calm sensation. They didn’t feel their stomach drop until they’d flip and turn.

At the top of the slingshot, Vergara said that he caught a glimpse of the parking lot and people at the fair.

They’ve also been on the Extreme Scream, have gone sky diving and shark diving at the Point Defiance Zoo in the water with 16 sharks.

“We’re just trying to Google whatever’s around here to do, extreme sports and what not,” Vergara said.

Espenilla said she’d also like to go BASE jumping, which is jumping off a structure with a parachute.

“Before, I used to be scared of doing stuff,” Espenilla said. “But once you get into it (and have) the adrenaline rush, you’re just going to keep doing it again and again and again.”

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Armani Jackson

Members of Team Sabri in the Chamber’s Bay parking lot before the start of the walk.

Armani Jackson

Curing MS one step at a time Armani Jackson Managing Editor

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Armani Jackson

exclusive video content

Armani Jackson

Professor Tom McCollow, his wife Kendra McCollow and Professor Daniel Suh finishing the walk. individual had a fundraising goal they set Devin McCollow.

A person could register without being on for the day of the walk. Team Sabri exceeda team. But it’s encouraged because it ed their goal by 50 percent, raising $1,814. allows a greater opportunity to not only Many people advertise the cause on their raise more money, but also have more fun at Facebook, Twitter or other social media the event, according to the Walk MS web- accounts, but since Tom McCollow doesn’t have any, he called friends and other family site.

Walk MS is a part of the Multiple Scle- members to donate.

At the event, teams could win awards, rosis Society national organization which sponsors various walks, runs, bike rides and some including “Best Dressed Team” and obstacle courses every year to raise money “Most Spirited.” Leading up to the walk, mini competitions were held for meeting for the cause.

The trail was two miles, but there was challenges. For example, individuals or also a one mile option. The air was chilly, teams could win various prizes for achievbut it didn’t stop people from cheering and ing statuses like raising more than $100 or dancing their way along the path to I Can doubling a team’s size within a certain time frame, Tom McCollow said.

Do This by David Osmond.

According to the National MS Society “I’m old and fat, but I can still walk two website, MS is a disease that occurs in the miles,” Tom McCollow said.

Hunt said this event was “an inspiring central nervous system. Multiple lesions develop in the brain and it disrupts the flow walk for a beautiful cause.”

Once the team was established, some of information in the brain, and between effort before the event was necessary, Tom someone’s brain and body.

“I’m learning more and more about what McCollow said. Every registered team and

Armani Jackson

Before 10 a.m. on a foggy Saturday morning, Tom McCollow’s team along with thousands of people gathered creating a sea of orange, the recognized color for Multiple Sclerosis awareness, for the 26th annual South Sound MS walk at Chamber’s Bay. Wigs, inflatable suits, the Tacoma Rainiers mascot Rhubarb The Reindeer and inspirational music created an atmosphere of elation among participants.

Pierce College Puyallup Math Professor Tom McCollow and 11 team members including family and fellow Pierce faculty participated in Walk MS on April 9, a fundraiser to raise money and awareness for multiple sclerosis, a disease that occurs in the central nervous system where lesions in the brain can develop. Thousands of people, either suffering from the disease or knowing someone who does, participated.

Tom McCollow, his daughter-in-law Nikole McCollow and Pierce student Autumn McVay were among the people who walked for Tom McCollow and Kendra McCollow’s son Devin. Other members were Amy Muir, Consolidated Services faculty member Robert Crane, Chemistry Professor Katy Olsen-Tiglao, Mel Tiglao, Paul Olsen, Nursing Dept.

Coordinator Lauren Julin, Administrative Assistant Karen Hunt, Kristi Sweeney, Assistant Professor of Sociology Daniel Suh and Associate Professor Roya Sabeti.

This is the first walk Tom McCollow and his family have been apart of.

McCollow’s son was diagnosed with MS a little more than a year ago.

“There’s not much that I can do to help him with his MS, and this is a fun thing to do, so I want to get involved with that,” Tom McCollow said.

Tom McCollow received an email in December from the National MS Society announcing the event. He talked with his family and then began asking his coworkers if they were interested. Many agreed, creating a team of 15 called “Team Sabri,” derived from Tysabri, the medication for

MS is about,” Tom McCollow said. “Like so many diseases, it’s different for everybody. (The walk is) a community thing, learning and getting to know people (and) learning what resources are available. I kind of feel a little frustrated right now sometimes in that I don’t know what I can offer for my son.”

Previously, treatments for MS were mostly to minimize the effects of the symptoms, but as of recently, medical professionals are starting to cure the disease, Tom McCollow said.

Walk MS also provided the opportunity to see what resources are available for someone suffering from MS as well as being able to meet individuals who have battled it and survived.

“My son is fighting with the insurance company because the treatments are expensive,” Tom McCollow said. “He lives in Ellensburg and has to come over here to Seattle for treatment. It’s a real bother for him, (and) he’s not getting a lot of support that way.”

Devin McCollow was able to network with attendees and now receives his treatment in Ellensburg.

Along with networking, faculty members were able to build a stronger bond with each other while on the team.

“I’m seeing sides of people that I work with that I’ve not seen before,” Tom McCollow said. “Karen Hunt is a super amazing administrative assistant, but she’s a funny person too. She’s hilarious. And Daniel (Suh), he’s a fun guy. It allows us to see each other out of our role (as educators).”

To learn more about MS and its effects, visit NationalMSSociety.org. To participate in a Walk MS, visit WalkMS.org

Thousands of people walk to raise awareness for MS.

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Julin, Crane and McVay finish the walk.

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www.prnewswire.com

Bees? They’re disappearing at alarming rates, need to be saved Alex Heldrich Reporter

Flowers are blooming, pollen is clouding eyes, the clouds and sun are battling for dominance and supermarkets are filled with fresh fruits. Spring is here. But it could be different if bees were taken out of the equation. There would be no blooming flowers for people to admire, no pollen, which many may appreciate, but there would also be little produce left on the shelves of stores.

This reality may be the future. Within the past decade, populations of Western honey bees have been disappearing at an alarming rate. This phenomenon is known as Colony Collapse Disorder. The United States Department of Agriculture defines CCD as “a syndrome where a dead colony with no adult bees or dead bee bodies, but live with a live queen and usually honey and immature bees are still present.” CCD doesn’t just affect the beekeepers; it has large scale consequences.

“If you look back in evolutionary history, when bees evolved it’s right when we get flowering plants,” Max Handler, assistant professor of environmental science and geography, said. “So the two have, as far as we can tell, always gone together, hand in hand. There essentially aren’t bees without flowering plants and there’s not flowering plants without bees.”

This poses as a major threat for agriculturalists, food distributors, florists and the general population.

“If you are a farmer or an economist, the way you look at it is: the Western honey bee is used to pollinating crops, so people bring their honey bees and release them to the crops for a day or two,” Handler said. “The value of crops that are pollinated by western honey bees is roughly $200 billion. So if

Grocery stores with bees compared to stores’ produce without bees. you take away the honey bees, some of those plants will still be pollinated, but it will be a lot less.”

As pollination is a necessity for life, as is human reproduction, there would need to be a man-made alternative to bees. Although most varieties of bees act as pollinators, Western honey bees are typically the variety kept for large scale industrial pollination.

“One way to think about the economic price is if bees aren’t pollinating the crops so we had to invent a new way to do it, how much would it cost?” Handler said. “It’s going to be a lot more than $200 billion to fix the problem.”

The logical solution to fixing CCD would be to get rid of the factor that’s responsible; however, it’s not as simple of a fix as it may seem.

“Domestic bees are raised for pollination for industrial purposes and these industrial farms pay agriculturalists a lot of money to come bring their bees to perform pollination.,” Handler said. “So what you have is people driving around a tremendous amount

of bees all around the United States and Canada. In one week they might be in Georgia and then next week in Central California and the next week in Saskatchewan, Canada and so their environment is all over, which has made it really difficult to tell what is causing bee populations to collapse.”

Scientists who are researching the reason behind the disappearance of honey bees highly suspect that a class of relevantly new pesticides is one of the factors involved.

These specific pesticides contain nicotine.

“Although people have been spraying nicotine on their crops for a long time, they’ve kind of reworked nicotine into a bunch of pesticides within the last decade into a substance called neonicotinoids,” Handler said. “We know this because when you feed the neonicotinoids to the bees, the symptoms are the same as what we’re seeing in the populations that are collapsing.”

However, this isn’t the only factor related to CCD. There are multiple pesticides and other influences to blame as well such as

mites and loss natural land containing wildflowers.

“It’s a difficult problem,” Handler said. “The first problem is that there is definitely more than one cause, so you can’t just solve one of them. We need lots of different people taking action in order to really make a change. We would need to have one agency get together and make firm decisions on what to do and have people follow.”

Simple actions, such as not destroying patches of wild clover while mowing the lawn and planting a “bee garden,” can make a difference. A “bee garden” is a garden with flowering plants that bees love as well as other plants. Some of the flowering plants that bees are especially attracted to are lavender, buttercups, sage, geraniums, poppies, aster and zinnias. Simply planting these flowers in a garden will attract hungry bees and provide them with a healthy dose of nectar, as long as hazardous pesticides aren’t used.

“Here at Pierce College we could get rid of any pesticide use,” Handler said. “We have beautiful lawns, but if you just let them go, there would be lots of clover which would be really great for the bees, but maybe not so great for maintaining the campus. I also think it would be great if we had a garden at Pierce and then we could have lots of bees.”

While the issue may seem too big for one person to solve, small actions add up. People must rally to plant flowers and keep the buzz going about the horrors of a world without bees.

Suzanne Buchholz

Springtime arrives at Pierce College Suzanne Buchholz Reporter

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Above: Students play soccer in the warm weather. Below: A tree on campus has blossomed.

Suzanne Buchholz

After a wet winter that brought record-breaking rainfall and flooding to Western Washington according to The Olympian, spring has arrived and students are embracing the change.

Students are ditching their jackets and donning shorts and sandals as the weather heats up. They’re also spending more time in the courtyard, hanging out with their friends on the stone benches and playing Frisbee in the grass. According to an informal survey conducted by The Puyallup Post, this might be one of students’ favorite parts of the season.

“It’s warm,” student Sara Thompson stated on the survey. “It’s nice out.”

According to The News Tribune, it’s been an unusually sunny springtime for Washington so far, with less rain and higher temperatures. The temperature is expected to reach at least 80 degrees on certain days in April, which would break heat records for the month as the highest recorded temperature in the past was 78 degrees in 1996.

This is caused by El Niño conditions, when winds over the Pacific Ocean get weaker and warms up the water, which in turn pushes warmer air toward the coastline.

This phenomenon should subside by summer.

Other students, such as Natsuko Nakanishi and Sarah Bridges, said they enjoy the plants that blooms when springtime arrives.

“I like seeing the flowers open up,” Nakanishi said on the survey.

Several types of flowers grow in abundance in Washington, and in several locations. Skagit Valley in the northwestern region of the state is home to an array of brightly-colored bulbs including daffodils and tulips.

Cherry blossoms are another favorite, blooming throughout the state but seen most prominently in the Seattle

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area. Wildflowers can be found growing in bountiful numbers in Eastern Washington and the Columbia River Gorge during the spring.

Some students gave more specific reasons for liking springtime, such as dates and events that are important to them.

“My birthday is in spring,” student Soreen Tarrell wrote on the survey.

For those looking for entertaining events to partake in, a plethora of local events are available to attend. The Washington State Spring Fair was at the Puyallup Fairgrounds from April 14-17, offering rides, games, food and shows to fairgoers. The Puyallup Farmer’s Market, held annually in Pioneer Park and Pavilion in front of the Puyallup Public Library, opened for the season on April 16, with vendors selling a variety of handmade crafts and fresh food ranging from produce to baked goods. The Meeker Days Festival in downtown Puyallup will be from June 17-19.

With events occurring and warm weather enticing students to go outside, some people might be wondering if those students are slacking off in class or even skipping class altogether. Chemistry professor Katy Olsen-Tiglao said that doesn’t seem to be the case. In her classes the students seem to work just as hard and complete their assignments as they do during other quarters, she said.

“The students in my classes tend to be very motivated, so they turn in assignments on time,” Olsen-Tiglao said.

No matter how students choose to welcome spring, they should keep in mind the importance of classwork, Olsen-Tiglao said. She has advice for students who would rather go outside and enjoy the sunshine than work on homework or attend class.

“I would remind them that they have worked hard all year,” Olsen-Tiglao said, “and they don’t want to undo the good work they have done at the end of the year.”

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Shining stars: Theater programs at Pierce Suzanne Buchholz

Theater-related classes offered at Puyallup campus Suzanne Buchholz Reporter

The green room behind the main stage in the AAH building.

“Anyone who takes a theater class at Puyallup gains practical experience in theater that can be applied to other areas of their lives,” Potter said. “Learning how to construct a set teaches basic construction skills, problem solving skills and teamwork. Acting teaches you how to adapt to new situations. It teaches you how to be confident in front of others and how to be an engaging performer.”

In addition to theater classes, students can participate in the plays produced at Pierce, which usually occur in fall and spring quarters. Although many of the students who audition for the plays are enrolled in theater classes, any student at Pierce can try out. Potter said the plays provide theater students with an opportunity to practice and display their developing skills in a more professional environment.

Potter said it takes about a year to plan and develop the plays for Pierce. Most of them are based on original material rather than already existing plays that have been performed numerous times at other schools.

Other shows are thought up by the cast members during rehearsals for the show, such as the upcoming 10-Minute Play Festival on June 2.

“When I direct a show, my expectations are not much different from any other pro-

The male minority:

fessional theater,” Potter said. “That’s not to sound scary, but to show that what we do at Pierce isn’t less than any other theater.”

Several students have either taken classes in theatre or acted in plays at Pierce, some have done both.

Student Amber Gooden took Drama 101 during winter quarter to fulfill credits for her degree. She said she enjoyed how the class covered different genres and eras of theater.

She didn’t act in any plays during this course but attended one play instead.

“The play I recently went to was the 4000 Miles production at the Fort Steilacoom campus,” Gooden said. “The production was OK to me - the reason is because I didn't do any research before hand and I missed some references throughout the play about subjects such as capitalism and Marxism.”

Gooden said this experience at the play as well as the class in general has taught her some lessons that she’ll apply to her life.

“I will definitely plan to make sure I do my research on plays beforehand and also to go out to see more plays in the future,” Gooden said.

Gooden said the college might consider offering a class at some point that reflects one of the aspects of theater she enjoyed.

“I would suggest a theater program in

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For students at Pierce College Puyallup who want to work in theater or simply want to take a class on it, they can choose from a variety of options to satisfy those desires.

Not only are there several classes on theater topics available to students, but they also have opportunities to try out for plays at the college.

Pierce features many classes that cover multiple topics in the field of theater, ranging from acting to production, that are offered in different quarters. Currently the classes available at the Puyallup campus include Acting I and II, Technical Film and Theater II and III, Production Practicum and Intro to Theater. The Fort Steilacoom campus offers a few other classes such as Digital Movie Making I, Tech Film and Theater II and Acting Stage Digital Film II. Communications/Drama Assistant Professor Joshua Potter said the theater courses at Pierce cover both traditional and new techniques, and that students of any skill level regardless of their past experience can enroll in these classes. Depending on the course, students will have the opportunity to work alongside faculty members on some aspects of theater such as directing a play.

“Our production classes work closely with the performances we do at the college,” Potter said. “Students who take the Technical Film/Theatre or Production Practicum courses work closely with the director and the designer of our performances and gain hands-on experience constructing a set, learn safety principles and learn the basics about stage management.”

Potter also said the skills students gain through these courses will help improve themselves as performers while benefitting them in other areas of life as well.

which students can analyze plays or scripts and interpret historical significance of a play in a specific era of time,” Goode said.

Student Seth Jans took Acting for Stage and Film in spring quarter 2015, and portrayed the role of Eduardo Suarez in a play titled The Cuban Swimmer as part of one of his final assignments in the class. He said his initial reason for taking the class differed some from the outcome.

“I’m still in the process of putting my life together, to varying degrees of success, but one thing that I always found therapeutic was capturing things in a camera, make something immortal, and I decided that I would go to school for film,” Jans said.

“Maybe even become a director some day.

When I saw the class in the listings, I jumped at the chance not because I wanted to be an actor personally, but so I could tell others how to be a good one when the time came.”

Jans said taking the class was a good experience and helped him develop more interest in acting despite his ultimate goal of directing or filmmaking.

“I still want to be the big puppet master behind the lens, but it turns out I enjoyed acting more than I thought I would,” Jans said. “Good thing too because it turned out Pierce didn't actually have a film department, so we were limited to stage, something I actually don't prefer.”

Jans said that while acting has become a hobby, he’ll likely pursue more in the future and believes that’s what acting has become in general to people who enjoy it - just a hobby. He said it seems that those who have a passion for it don’t seem to have enough time to focus on it among their school or other work, or that they trick themselves into believing their goals are out of reach.

He said he thinks most people are actually natural actors whether they’re aware of it or not.

“I think what truly separates the amateur from the professional is the willingness to admit that sometimes in life, we trick ourselves and smile through our teeth,” Jans said.

Nursing at Pierce with Keith Bell Hannah Pederson Reporter

To be a nurse, a student has to be wellrounded. Nursing demands compassion, an iron will and dedication, to say the least. It may not be one of the easier professions, with nurses often working several shifts in a row. Choosing to be a nurse means accepting all of this and dedicating years to even getting a certification. For student Keith Bell, it wasn’t all that complicated.

Bell is part of a median population at Pierce College Puyallup who are working toward a degree in nursing, whether it be an associate or accreditation to become a nursing assistant.

He chose to attend Pierce for its reputation as a military friendly school, after serving in the military as an infantry man.

He then received his emergency medical technician certification from the college, his interest turned to the nursing program.

“When I was a kid I had wanted to be an astronaut, but nursing caught my attention as life went on,” Bell said. “I had always had an aptitude for it.”

Bell hopes his nursing school experience will be a smooth transition from his current full-time position as a Washington state Department of Social and Health Services counselor for developmentally disabled adults.

Eventually he hopes to work for Veterans Affairs, and thinks that his experience in the armed forces might make his future patients more comfortable.

“Some (patients) might like me,” Bell said. “Some might not.”

Currently, Bell has taken three quarters of prerequisites and plans to start the nursing program in fall quarter to become a Registered Nurse.

The associate degree is a six-quarter program averaging a little more than 12 credits per quarter, not counting the prerequisites.

A registered nurse in the United States makes an average of $66,640 per year before taxes, according to mynextmove.org. But for Bell, it’s not all about the money.

“It’s just something I’ve always wanted,” Bell said.

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With the warmer spring weather, keep an eye out for deer and other wildlife roaming in some of the open areas on campus.

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raidersports

Athletics and activities of Pierce College Puyallup

The 2016 Raiders softball team and its outlook for the season Alex Heldrich Reporter

Batter up! The Pierce College Raiders Softball season is up and running. Their season began at the end of February when they played their first game, which they lost 0-2 against Columbia Basin. The season will continue until May 20, which is when the Northwest Athletic Conference Championship will be held.

Although games begin in late winter, the softball players have been training since the early fall.

“We have a six-week fall session, followed by a six week period of weights and conditioning, which takes the players right up to winter break,” Head Coach Mark Edmonston said. “When the players return for the beginning of the winter quarter, they have two more weeks of weights and conditioning. Then, in the third week of January, the official season begins.”

Once the season starts, the team has 25 game dates, most of which are double headers. Since their first game, the team has won 11 of the 26 games played.

“We look good,” Edmonston said. “And when we get everyone healthy, we will look even better.”

Fourteen players are on the team this season, eight of them returning from the previous season. The six freshman players are Kailie Alama, Emily Bishop, Bailee Bradley, Jessilyn Enlow, Sierra Halsey and Jordan Roberts.

Bishop is a recent Tahoma High School graduate. During her senior year of high school, she had the third highest batting average in the league at .632 while having only four strikeouts out of 94 at bat, accord-

ing to the her freshman biography on the Pierce College Athletics page. As a Raider, she plays first base.

“There’s a lot more intensity in college level sports than high school,” Bishop said.

“Whether it’s at practice, in the weight-room or in a game, the overall intensity and focus is greater than it was in high school. One challenge between high school and college level sports is how much more we practice and play games. In high school, the season was only a few months, while in college it is all year.”

Being on a team with the intensity of college level sports means that teammates have to support each other.

“The team has great chemistry and it really shows on the field,” Bishop said.

“I’ve been on teams where people don't like each other, and this team isn’t like that.

Since we spend so much time together, we have gotten to know each other a lot more and it creates a better team.”

Edmonston says that his goal for his team is to recapture the western region crown. He also wants to establish a new school record for the number of wins this season.

Bishop says that her goal is to see the team improve throughout the season.

“I’m proud of how even when it gets hard, we still push ourselves and each other,” Bishop said. “Having a lot of practices and games can get tough, but I’m proud of how this team has continued to push themselves to get better.”

The team will continue to push through their last 12 games of the season and possibly attend the NWAC Championships.

“My favorite part of coaching is helping the players get better, (and) also helping them move on to the next phase of life, whether it be finding the right college after Pierce or moving into their respective careers,” Edmonston said. “And winning... winning isn't bad either.”

Raiders Athletics

Standings and recent results Northwest Athletic Conference - West Region Compiled by Chase Charaba

Raiders Softball 4-2 Conference / 11-14 Overall March March March March March March March A p r i l

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Pierce Pierce Pierce Pierce Pierce Pierce Pierce

lost to Wenatchee Valley 1-4 defeated Yakima Valley 9-8 defeated Yakima Valley 12-4 defeated Shoreline 7-3 lost to Shoreline 0-8 lost to Mt. Hood 0-10 defeated Chemeketa 8-3

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CJ Robinson Reporter

Shouts of encouragement come from the dugout as one of the players steps to home plate. This is a scene at one of the games for the Pierce College Raiders baseball team.

Head Coach Kevin Davis said the recruiting process begins at local high schools, and some recruitment is in Hawaii and Alaska. He looks for top players in the area that, for some reason, couldn’t compete at the university level.

“You got kids who play the game for fun and you got the kids who play because they have aspirations to go on and further their careers,” Davis said.

“Usually we can identify that pretty quickly.”

This season, Davis emphasized team dynamics with the athletes he assembled. He said that for the last few years, his coaching staff have stressed the close-knit bond that other teams may not share.

Often times, it's possible to see this teamwork transfer to

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Pierce Pierce Pierce Pierce Pierce Pierce Pierce Pierce Pierce Pierce

defeated Olympic 9-2 lost to Edmonds 0-4 defeated Shoreline 6-4 lost to Shoreline 2-6 defeated Yakima Valley 6-4 defeated Edmonds 7-5 defeated Mt. Hood 5-2 defeated Yakima Valley 2-0 lost to Olympic 0-12 lost to Everett 0-15

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March 25 - Pierce defeated SW Oregon 3-1 March 26 - Pierce defeated Chemeketa 7-0 March 26 - Pierce defeated Bellevue 8-7 April 2 - Pierce defeated Lower Columbia 4-3 April 3 - Pierce lost to Tacoma 7-9 April 6 - Pierce defeated Grays Harbor 11-0 April 9 - Pierce defeated Centralia 8-2 April 10 - Pierce defeated Green River 7-0 April 16 - Pierce lost to Lower Columbia 4-5 April 16 - Pierce lost to Lower Columbia 2-3 April 17 - Pierce lost to Lower Columbia 1-4 Apil 17 - Pierce lost to Lower Columbia 1-5

March 25 - Pierce lost to Lower Columbia 3-8 March 25 - Pierce lost to Lower Columbia 1-16 March 26 - Pierce lost to Mt. Hood 2-10 March 29 - Pierce lost to Clark 0-8 March 29 - Pierce lost to Clark 2-10 April 2 - Pierce defeated Clackamas 7-4 April 2 - Pierce lost to Clackamas 8-19 April 6 - Pierce lost to Highline 3-4 April 6 - Pierce defeated Highline 5-2

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Raiders Baseball March March March March March March March March March March

the field, Davis said. This season, the Raiders are 4-1 in league games with a 7-0 win on Clover Park on April 10. The team has thrown two no-hitters - a game in which no hits were recorded for a team—so far, the only no-hitters Davis remembers in the past six years. The first was thrown by Mac McCarty, Caleb Wallen and Conner Sharp. The second was by Keenan Lum. Gunnar Schubert, shortstop for the Raiders, said the main difference between last season and the current season is experience and leadership.

“The freshmen outnumbered the sophomores 4:1,” Schubert said. “We were a little bit immature and didn’t know what was going on, and now we know it’s gonna be

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A girl’s place is at home plate

by CJ Robinso

The Raiders softball team hangs out before a game.

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Emily Bishop

Raiders baseball off to strong start

April April April April April April April April April

9 - Pierce lost to Olympic 3-6 9 - Pierce defeated Grays Harbor 20-0 10 - Pierce defeated Highline 8-0 10 - Pierce defeated Centralia 2-1 16 - Pierce defeated Blue Mountain 15-8 16 - Pierce defeated Treasure Valley 12-2 17 - Pierce lost to Walla Walla 4-8 17 - Pierce lost to Southwest Oregon 3-15 18 - Pierce defeated Skagit Valley 12-2 T h e

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a long, tough season but we’re all gonna pull our weight.”

These results don’t come without the hard work put in by the players. Davis said players usually have classes between 8 a.m.-noon and practice is from 12:30-3:30 p.m. In addition, five hours in the tutoring center are mandatory for each member on the team to help maintain grades. Weekends with twogame days mean that from March to May the Saturdays and Sundays are fully booked for the athletes. On top of this, Davis said some players have a job.

Clover Park put them one step closer to the championships.

“It's worth it because it defines who you are and who you want to be going forward,” Schubert said. “I think Pierce has definitely prepared me for the next level and has made become more of a young adult.”

To see the Raiders baseball schedule, roster and any recent news, visit www.pierce.ctc.edu/athletics/baseball/.

annual Halloween game and dinner auction that Pierce hosts. At the Halloween game, tickets are sold to see Raiders play opposing teams in Halloween costumes. For the dinner auction, seats are sold, donated items are auctioned off and almost $25,000 is raised every year for the team. These funds mainly go towards scholarships for student athletes and new gear for the team.

Looking toward future goals, Davis said he hopes to move all his players onto the university level and to make it to the Northwest Athletic Conference finals. Holistically, he said that the recent victory against

by Ra iders A thletics

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“It’s definitely a grind for these kids,” Davis said. “When people say that student athletes have it easy, sometimes I want to challenge them to have the same schedule (the athletes) have.”

Fundraisers also contribute to the success of the team. The two main contributors of funding to the team include the

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We test the waters so you don’t have to

Alex Heldrich

Meowtropolitain Cafe is the cat’s meow Alex Heldrich Reporter

Far, far away, in the land of Seattle rests the small shire of the Meowtropolitain Cafe. This seemingly average coffee shop is actually home to 20 to 30 feline knights. For $10, customers get any beverage of their choice and 50 minutes to spend petting and playing with cats in the medieval themed cat lounge.

The cat cafe, which recently opened this year, adopts adult cats from the Regional Animal Services of King County. The newly adopted cats then spend several weeks warming up to the other cats before they’re released into the cat lounge.

There are seven residential knights who permanently stay at the Meowtropolitain Cafe: Penguin, Nova, Django, Pink, Clouds and Robin. The other 10 to 20 knights that make up the rest of the feline staff can be adopted by customers.

The cafe is frequently getting new cats from RASKC as others are getting adopted into loving homes. Profiles for some of the adoptable cats are available on the cafe’s website, seattlemeowtropolitan.com, so those looking into adoption may find out which cats suit their needs before meeting the cat in person at the cafe. The profiles detail how well the cat gets along with other cats, if they like people, how well they interact with kids,

The Meowtropolitain Cafe coat of arms printed on the lounge floor. if they like to play and their eating habits.

Currently, there are only nine cats listed on the website for adoption, although there are more cats who live at the cafe who aren’t ready to be adopted because they’re new to the scene and still need to be better socialized.

For those who aren’t looking to adopt

and just want to de-stress or enjoy a catpuccino, Meowtropolitain Cafe is just the place. There are tables and benches outlining the room so there are plenty of places to relax with a coffee in hand and cat on the lap. Big windows line the front of the cafe so that passers-by may gawk in envy. The cafe also has tasty cat-themed pastries such as macarons

shaped like a little kitty’s head.

There’s absolutely no “cat smell” in the lounge. There’s a litter box behind a wall in the far corner that’s out of sight and out of mind. Everything is kept sanitary so customers can focus on snuggling with cats.

Every cat in the lounge was welcoming and loving. One younger cat with a lot of energy was running around playing, but most of the others were relaxing in the beds that are spread throughout the room. Clouds is especially loving, letting people scratch his belly for 20 minutes.

The overall concept of the cafe is genius. It allows those contemplating adoption to interact with and get to know their cat’s personality before bringing them home. Meowtropolitain Cafe is a great activity during a day in Seattle. It brings happiness to every cat and customer.

For those looking to have the time of their life, visits can be booked on seattlemeowtropolitan.com. Walk-ins are also welcome, but spots aren’t guaranteed. There’s a limit as to how many people can be in the room at once so the cats aren’t overwhelmed. The lounge is open Tuesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.

I give this:

HHHHH

musicreview Hannah Pederson Untitled unmastered.

Kendrick Lamar

Untitled Unmastered is the newest release from artist Kendrick Lamar, a compilation of tracks recorded during the making of his album To Pimp a Butterfly. The eight track album has the same overall jazzy, familiar feel of To Pimp a Butterfly, but it seems like Lamar used this opportunity to try out some of his more experimental tracks.

As someone who recently got into Lamar’s music a number of months ago, Untitled Unmastered doesn’t seem to extend too far out of the sounds he normally produces, just enough to be refreshing.

The first track, untitled 01|08.19.2014, feels suspenseful and promising until what comes down to essentially getting sexually assaulted by the vocalist, which makes sense as Lamar’s intent was probably to make the listener uncomfortable. The track feels like Lamar calling attention to the plight of young women, “The ground is shakin’, swallowing young women.” His inflection grows more passionate as he nears the end, his lines punctuated by a lower voice chanting “it’s happening” until it finally slows down and fades away into a much more relaxed harmony. The message Lamar conveys is powerful, and this track carried that message.

Untitled 02|06.23.2014 opens with a pimped-out version of the celebratory phrase hip-hip hooray with a saxophone trilling in and out of the vocals, working its way toward feeling smooth but not quite getting there.

Lamar’s voice rises to a break at the end of every phrase, reminiscent of puberty. Lamar gives a dizzying

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delivery and the song feels like floating. It was kind of stressful, which was aided by “what if, what if,” surfacing through everything else. It was hard to focus on anything else when listening to this track as it just draws the listener in.

The album changes track with untitled 03|05.28.2013, which feels light and effortless. Lamar’s quiet lyrics interspersed with a timid flute makes the listener lean in and pay attention. The lyrics pursue the motivations of different cultures and overall feels pessimistic about whatever future comes to pass. Untitled 03|05.28.2013 is one of the highlights of the album. It can be put on loop for 20 minutes and every time it comes around, a new meaning can be derived.

Untitled 04|08.14.2014 is the shortest track of the album, coming in at under two minutes. Lamar and a female vocalist lead in with quiet, fervent whispers, “They say the government mislead the youth...and welfare don’t mean well for you.” The lyrics have pro-educational undertones, but the song feels like sitting in a graveyard. There might not be enough power in this track to get Lamar’s message across, but it was an interesting experience either way.

The album comes back down with untitled 05|09.21.2014, one of the jazziest tracks full of erratic sax. This song features three guest artists, Anna Wise

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providing smooth hypnotic vocals that the listener is so wrapped up in they don’t notice that Lamar opened his rap, which assaults the listener with everything minorities have to face. Artists Punch and Jay Rock contribute to the desperate feel of the track, which carries itself well enough.

Untitled 06|06.30.2014 has a faster rhythm punctuated with a falling flute and what sounds like a xylophone that features the artist Cee Lo Green. Lamar and Green’s delivery creates a soothing dissonance that contrasts with the male insecurities the lyrics explore.

The seventh track, untitled 07|2014-2016, is more than eight minutes and split into three noticeable parts.

The first part is somewhat laid back, but the repetitive lyrics create a false sense of security as it leads into part two, which seems like a challenge to competitors. Part three is sexually charged with straight vocals underlaid with a few notes plucked out of an electric guitar. Overall, it was a bit underwhelming and probably could have achieved its effect better with just the first two parts.

Untitled 08|09.06.2014 is decidedly funky with a strong beat that’s easy to listen to. Soft vocals supported by choral “ohs” go back and forth between desperation and hints at optimism before ending the album with a “pimp pimp...hooray!”

Untitled Unmastered might technically be the rejects from a bigger album, but none of the tracks felt subpar to anything that appeared on To Pimp a Butterfly. It’s easy to follow and makes the listener feel like they were on some emotional odyssey that they’d go on again and again.

I give this:

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New iPhone app Quartz The life of the rocks the news world student ambassadors Lizzie Duke

GIF, which adds to the friendly vibe of the app’s style of communication.

Quartz is news in a whole Quartz is good for someone new way. This free app for who wants limited information iPhones displays news in the on many topics in a short amount form of a text, basically this genof time. It’s basically the perfect eration’s version of reading a party tool to keep anyone up-tonewspaper. date enough to make According to the slightly informed comapp’s description, this is for people who spend “Quartz is good for ments without having to research the topic too half their days texting.

It’s a creative new way someone who wants much.

It’s also good for to stay informed. a small amount of people who aren’t comOnce users downloads the app, they can information on many pletely interested in the news or might not have customize their experitopics in a short much time for it, but ence by setting notifications for breaking news, amount of time. It’s still want to keep up. conversation-style interesting news, any basically the perfect The news can be accessed at news updates or none.

To see recent news, party tool to keep any time, which is perfect for bus or train users can click on the anyone up-to-date rides, elevators, while app and information walking through the will pop up as a text enough to make store or sitting in a bormessage. Once the app slightly informed ing class. Basically, it sends the message, it provides options of comments without can be used anywhere with phone service. what the user can reply. having to research The app’s target The options are usually emojis, a snarky com- the topic too much.” audience seems to be teenagers or young ment about the news or adults, as some older a “next” text, which causes more information or a different news adults like to know all the information and don’t mind taking the time to read an entire topic to appear.

Often, the texts are accompanied by a article, though the texting process of the app GIF or photo relating to the news. About is definitely easy enough for the elderly to half the time, the texts can be clicked on, navigate.

This is the perfect app for an on-the-go sending the user to a full article for more information. The news blurbs range from college student and a wonderful innovation politics to pop culture and information in from the world of journalism.

The app store has given Quartz four and between.

The user of the app can continue clicking a half stars. next until eventually a “You’re all caught I give it: up!” text appears, usually with a random

Reporter

at Pierce College Bailey Shippy Contributing writer

Have you ever wondered who answers the phone in the Student Success Center? It could be a student ambassador on the other side of the phone. Many students don’t know that the five student ambassadors are here as leaders and representatives of the students of Pierce College. They’re the face of what the students of Pierce College are like. They have to have the fire, energy and passion of us—the students.

They have to be able to answer all of the phones to answer all of the questions that students—new or prospective--may have. Students may come in and requests appointments with advisers or anyone that’s in the office. They also must give tours to many students, new and current, to introduce them to the campus. On the tours, it’s very informative and the ambassadors have fun leading them. The student ambassadors led many of the new student orientations, many of which are fun to watch as they try to liven up the bored students.

The five student ambassadors share one desk in the Student Success Center and can sometimes work side by side on all of their projects. It can be fun working with the other ambassadors on projects. The difficult thing about it is sometimes deciphering where the other per-

son left off so we really are communicating with everyone on where we’re at in the process. The most time consuming project we can get is “calling projects” when we sometimes have to call an adviser’s students to remind them about meeting with them.

At the end of the day, the student ambassadors work as hard at who they are as an ambassador as well as a student. They try so hard to find the right balance of worker and student as well as their social life.

“My experiences as a student ambassador have been wonderful,” Ronda Apfel said. “This position is a great way to network with students and faculty. I enjoy helping current and new students on finding the resources that they need to succeed.”

The sad part is that this job must come to an end at the end of the year, like most jobs do. The ambassadors will be looking for replacements soon. If you’re interested in an opportunity like this, then please be aware that the application will be available toward the end of the quarter. The current student ambassadors hope that future ambassadors will have that same fire as they do, as well as the skills to work in an office.

—Bailey Shippy is a student ambassador at the Puyallup campus.

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Photo from Sakura-Con website

fans attend a panel at Sakura-Con.

Conventions in the Northwest Photo from Emerald City Comic Con website

Fans rejoicing that convention season is here Suzanne Buchholz Reporter

Many people, regardless of their fandom, might consider conventions to be one of the best parts about being a dedicated fan. They provide people with similar interests a chance to meet and enjoy various aspects of their fandom such as cosplaying, attending panels and purchasing merchandise. Many conventions also feature specials guests such as actors and artists, making them an even bigger dream come true for some fans.

The Northwest hosts various conventions throughout the year, the majority of which occur in spring and early summer.

Some conventions have already happened for the year, while others are coming soon.

One of the biggest conventions in the Northwest is Emerald City Comicon, a convention devoted to comics and all things pop culture. The ECCC has been held annually since 2003 and has gained a growing number of attendees each year, reaching 8,000 people in 2015. It’s run by ReedPOP, a group that’s been dedicated to organizing fun and exciting events that “put fans first” since it launched in 2006, according to their website.

This year, the ECCC was held from April 7-10 at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle. The convention featured more than 100 guests that ranged from celebrities such as Norman Reedus (The Walking Dead), Nolan North (Uncharted), Sean Astin (The Lord of the Rings) and Nathan Fillion (Firefly) to comic book artists and authors. The guests were available for autographs with fans as well as events.

The ECCC also featured panels that fans could attend that covered a variety of topics, from how to turn interests into professional careers, to the evolution of comics in modern society. There were also events in which attendees could play both video and board games, exhibitions known as The Block and Artist Alley where fans could peruse art and merchandise and a Cospitality Zone where attendees could get tips on how to create cosplay outfits as well as find cosplay repair stations.

Another major convention in the

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A panel at ECCC. Northwest area is Sakura-Con. Whereas ECCC focuses more on action heroes and the like, the central focus of SakuraCon is anime, a style of Japanese animation that’s become popular with American fans. The convention has ran annually since 1998 and was attended by more than 23,000 people in 2015. It’s presented by the Asia Northwest Cultural Education Association, a non-profit organization whose prime goal is to spread awareness of Asian culture throughout the Northwest, according to their website.

This year, Sakura-Con was also held at the Washington State Convention Center from March 25-27. Various guests were in attendance to give autographs to fans, including popular voice actors from dubbed (anime translated into spoken English) anime series such as Chuck Huber, Ian Sinclair and J. Michael Tatum.

Like ECCC, Sakura-Con featured various events for fans to participate in.

A wide selection of panels were open to attendees that were themed around many popular anime such as Hetalia, Attack on Titan, Sword Art Online, Soul Eater and more. There were also panels devoted to topics like popular recurring themes in anime and presentations of the newest shows by companies like Funimation.

Other events included gaming competitions, a karaoke contest, a manga (a Japanese style of comics) library and even more cultural Japanese events like traditional tea ceremonies and mahjong competitions.

While the focus of the event was on anime, many popular American cartoons were represented by artists and cosplayers, such as Steven Universe and Over the Garden Wall as seen on Cartoon Network. One of the most popular cosplay options as seen in the crowd of attendees was Dipper Pines from Disney XD’s Gravity Falls, according to an informal survey conducted by The Puyallup Post.

Another convention that recently occurred was Norwescon, one of the largest science fiction and fantasy conventions in the Northwest, according to their website. The convention focuses mainly on the literary aspect of science fiction and fantasy, but also features aspects such as gaming, art and cosplay.

It’s been held annually since 1978 and will celebrate its 40th anniversary next year in 2017.

Norwescon was held March 24-27 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Seattle Airport in SeaTac. Many of the panels focused on how to improve writing skills, as well as discussing various aspects of belonging to fandoms. Night-

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ly events including dances and laser tag were also available.

Norwescon has also hosted the Philip K. Dick Award every year since 1984.

Sponsored by the Philadelphia Science Fiction Society and presented by Northwest Science Fiction Society, the award serves as recognition of distinguished science fiction books published for the first time in the United States as a paperback, according to their website.

This year’s award was given to Apex, the final book in the Nexus trilogy by Ramez Naam.

While many conventions have already passed, there are still ones coming up that fans can look forward to.

Everfree Northwest, running for its fifth year in a row, will be held at the DoubleTree Hotel Seattle Airport in Seattle from May 13-15. Everfree is an all-ages convention celebrating all things related to My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. The convention will feature guests such as writers and voice actors from the popular series, as well as vendors, panels, a charity auction and a concert series known as Ponystock.

For those who were able to make the trip, the 25th bi-annual Just A Game Con was held at the Corvallis Elks Lodge in Corvallis, Ore. from April 1617. JAG Con is a gaming convention run by Matt’s Cavalcade of Comics, a comics and collectibles shop in Corvallis, as well as volunteers. It offers a library of games that attendees can rent, as well as gaming events including board games, card games, video games and role-playing games.

For those who aren’t able to travel, one convention they might consider is Puli-Con, a miniature convention being held at the Puyallup Public Library on May 7. Puli-Con was first held last year in honor of Free Comic Book Day, an event that the library has been holding since 2002 where fans could pick up free comics from some of their favorite series. Some of the comics that will be available this year include Doctor Who, Lumberjanes, Pokemon and The Avengers. In addition to free comics, the library will also offer an Artist Alley, panels, crafts, a cosplay contest and scavenger hunt.

No matter what someone’s interests might be, there will almost always be a convention that’ll satisfy them. Conventions might even lead them to new friends who share their interests or the next fandoms they might love. It’s a great opportunity for fans to take advantage of this whenever possible.

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Mainstream music streaming How different music streaming services hold up against their competition CJ Robinson Reporter

The days of buying music are slowly fading away, replaced with music streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal and Google Play. These services can offer varying levels of music availability and range from free to $19.99 a month.

Spotify can be used for free with limitations but a student subscription for both Spotify and Tidal is $4.99 for full use of the services. Apple Music and Google Play don’t offer a student discount and come with a uniform price $9.99. Apple Music offers a family plan for $14.99 a month which grants up to six people access and Spotify Family gives a 50 percent discount to up to four more members on the same account.

All the services listed above have around 30 million songs in their library, while Tidal has an additional 75,000 videos included in its service. Some albums are exclusive to certain services, such as Taylor Swift’s 1989, which is only available on Apple Music, or Formation by Beyonce, available exclusively on Tidal. This aspect of music streaming is often dependent on the user’s preferences and level of music obscurity they enjoy. Thirty day trials are available for these programs in order to identify which music is available.

Each service comes with unique features and some are available across all streaming services. Common features across all services include ad-free playback, offline playing

Spotify Price for one user a month: $9.99 Student/Family Discount? Yes Users: 30 million Unique features: Sharing is easier, running program matches songs to your workout

appLe muSic Price for one user a month: $9.99 Student/Family Discount? Yes Users: 10 million Unique features: Radio 1, Taylor Swift’s 1989

tidaL Price for one user a month: $9.99 Student/Family Discount? Yes Users: 3 million Unique features: Tidal X connects fans and artists, focus on independent artists

GooGLe pLay Price for one user a month: $9.99 Student/Family Discount? No Users: Unavailable Unique features: Access includes YouTube Red and YouTube Music

and customized playlists and radio for events or moods. Unique aspects include Tidal X, a program that connects fans and artists through exclusive performances or meet-andgreets and Tidal’s specific focus on independent artists. Spotify emphasizes the connection between social media and music through a feed of music that someone’s friends have played and the ability to follow individual artists, friends or playlists. It also offers a running service which matches a user's running pace to their music. Google Play is an extension of a subscription to YouTube Red, a service which eliminates ads from YouTube, enables downloadable videos and additionally gives access to YouTube music. This gives users the ability to lock their phones while watching YouTube videos and still listen to the audio. Apple Music has a unique radio station called Beats 1.

Looking at each of these services holistically requires a user to weigh its benefits against others. A social person who prefers pop music may want to choose an option like Spotify, where the music selection is fairly large and easily shared with friends. Someone who’s a major Taylor Swift fan will probably favor Apple Music. Someone who uses YouTube frequently and wants a music streaming service would enjoy the multiple benefits of Google Play. The best way to choose which option is the best for an individual is to sign-up for a trial run and try it for a month or two.

Campus events calendar Compiled by Andrea Mendoza

April

25 Spring Quarter Graduation Application due 26 National Pretzel Day 27 Pandora’s Promise documentary from 10 a.m.-noon in the MPR

29 Keanu movie release 30 Pierce College Raiders Baseball v. Grays Harbor Chokers Baseball at Mt. Tahoma High School at 1 p.m.

30 Pierce College Raiders Softball v. Highline Thunderbirds at Pierce Ft. Steilacoom at 1 p.m.

30 Office of Student Life Seattle Sounders v. Ohio Columbus Crew event at 11 a.m.

May 1

Pierce College Raiders Baseball v. Grays Harbor Chokers Baseball in Aberdeen, Wash. at 1 p.m.

3

Pierce College Puyallup transfer fair from 10 a.m. - 1 p.m in the CTR

3

Financial Aid workshop from 6-7 p.m. in CTR 270

4

Star Wars Day

5

Cinco de Mayo

6

Pierce College Raiders Baseball v. Centralia Blazers in Centralia, Wash. at 4 p.m.

6

No classes - District Employee Recognition/in-service day

6

Captain America: Civil War movie release

6-8 Office of Student Life Seaside Trip 7

Pierce College Raiders Baseball v. Centralia Blazers at Mount Tahoma High School at 1 p.m.

7

Pierce College Raiders Softball v. Grays Harbor Chokers Softball at Pierce Fort Steilacoom at 1 p.m.

8

Mother’s Day

9

Summer and fall quarter schedules published

9-16 Pre-Registration Advising

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Utah rocks T

ents, blankets, pillows, headlamps, maps and rock hammers were among some of the items packed into the rented vans which would travel approximately 1,080 miles from Pierce College Puyallup to their first destination.

These items belonged to Pierce students and Tom Bush, professor and department coordinator in earth and space sciences, who were embarking on a geological exploration in Utah.

Formally called the Canyon County Field Excursion, this trip was for GEOL&115: The Geology of National Parks. Leading up to the trip was six weeks of online work.

The trip served as a way for students to learn about geology and the scenery, but also experience hardships, Bush said.

“The weather can play a role as far as hardships,” Bush said. “(There were also) long days of travel, sometimes long hikes where we’re pretty tired by the end of the hike. All of those things combined really help form a bond between the students.”

On March 25, the vehicles left campus. About 22 hours later on March 26, the group arrived to the Archview RV Resort & Campground near their first destination: Arches National Park.

The Double Arch, Devil’s Garden and Fiery Furnace are all features at Arches National Park. There’s also Delicate Arch, which happened to be in a windy location, student lab assistant Brandon Voelker said.

“We saw a couple of baseball caps on the trail, and we didn’t really know why they were there,” Voelker said. “We thought someone just left them behind. It wasn’t until we got to the top of the trail when we realized the wind blew their hats, like, 200 feet farther down the trail right off their heads.”

Besides wind, low temperatures were also experienced. On the last two days upon waking up, temperatures were about 28 and 29 degrees, Earth Science Student Lab Tech Jessica Kelsey, Bush’s assistant on the trip, said.

“I would turn on my headlamp (when I woke up) and you could see it just shimmering because the ice crystals (were) all over the inside of my tent,” Kelsey said. “I would put my clothes in my sleeping bag to get them warm so I wouldn't have to put freezing cold clothes on in the morning.”

At about 8 a.m. each day, Bush and his students departed from the campsite for a day of taking notes, driving to various locations, learning about geological features and hiking.

The second campsite the group stayed at was the Needles Outpost near their second destination, Canyonlands National Park.

Preserved dinosaur tracks were found outside of Canyonlands National Park.

“Just to think that there was a little dinosaur walking in that same spot - and this is (the) Triassic (period), so probably like over 200 million years ago - in the mud somewhere, and then it got preserved and you can still see that, is amazing,” Voelker said.

From a store in Moab, Utah called Triassic, Kelsey purchased a dinosaur bone necklace which she plans to keep as a collectible.

“I knew that they would have rocks and stuff like that, and that’s what I was looking in (the store) for,” Kelsey said, “But they had dinosaur bones.

(I was) really impressed.”

The group also went to the Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument, which contains hundreds of petroglyphs that were carved by cultures including the Navajo, Fremont, Anasazi and Anglo people, according to desertusa.com.

During the trip, students had to give a presentation about the Upheaval Dome, a structure in Canyonlands National Park.

On April 3, the group arrived back at campus. The students who took this class for credit submitted a report which included information regarding learned material.

GEOL&115 spring break trip exploration

from march 25-april 3, students from the Geology of national parks class traveled to utah and went to the national parks including arches national park and canyonlands national park, exploring and learning about geologic features, hiking and creating memories along the way.

Story by Grace Amsden Photos by Tom Bush and Brandon Voelker ABOVE: Lauren Asher and Emily Wilbur at Gooseneck Overlook in Canyonlands National Park.

1. (From front) Amber Reed, Lauren Asher, Emily Wilbur, Avery Floyd, Brandon Voelker, Scott Kelsey and Jessica Kelsey walk on the Confluence Overlook Trail.

2. Taking a break at the Elephant Canyon Trails.

3. The Double Arch at Arches National Park.

4. Petroglyphs on Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument.

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