CityTimes
www.sdcitytimes.com
Volume 61, Number 7
‘Mars’ visits City
Popular TV show films on campus News, page 3
Covering the San Diego City College community since 1945
Feb. 20, 2007
Student leaders to their boards: ‘Ban smoking’ By Scott Landheer City Times
Cameron Mason / City Times
Going after the Griffins
City’s men’s basketball team warms up at Harry West Gymnasium before their game against Grossmont on Feb. 8. Find out how the team did on page 7.
Bill would make vaccine mandatory in state By Blair Socci UCLA Daily Bruin LOS ANGELES (U-WIRE) — A bill that would require pre-teenaged girls in California to become vaccinated against the human papilloma virus has controversy brewing between advocates of the vaccine and those who are concerned that parents should have more say and that the vaccine will promote promiscuity. The bill, which was introduced in December and amended last week, would require girls in both public and private schools to have the vaccine before entering the seventh grade. Gardasil, released last June,
is a vaccine that prevents the four strains of HPV that cause 70 percent of cervical cancers and 90 percent of genital warts, according to Reuters Health Administration. “This (bill) is about preventing cancer and saving lives, so I believe it vital to make the vaccine as accessible as possible,” Assemblyman Ed Hernandez (D-West Covina), the lead author of the bill, said in a statement. Texas Gov. Rick Perry recently signed a similar executive order mandating that girls between the ages of 11 and 12 get the vaccine before entering the sixth grade, and also making it available to all females between the ages of 9
and 21. Gardasil costs $120 per dose and requires three doses in a six-month window. The vaccine is covered by some major insurance companies, and Medi-Cal will cover the shots for women between 19 and 26. The Vaccines for Children’s program also provides the vaccine for free to girls as young as 9 years old, according to the Los Angeles Times. Assemblywoman Sally Lieber (D-Mountain View) was the primary writer of the proposed California bill, but Hernandez took over as carrier of the bill after Lieber dropped her sponsorship. She did so, citing a
See VACCINE, Page 8
Kensington Grill wows from the first bite Arts, page 5
Student leaders from both the San Diego Community College District and Imperial Community College District voted on Feb. 9 to urge their governing boards to ban smoking on all campuses. The 7-0 vote asks officials to immediately impose designated smoking areas on campuses for the next year and to ban smoking completely after one year. Cuyamaca College and Miramar College did not attend the meeting. The resolution also calls for smoke prevention programs on campuses to help students, faculty and staff who want to quit smoking. The vote was taken at the monthly meeting of Associated Student Government presidents or their designated delegates. They decided to start working on the smoking ban in November 2006. “Students have spoken loud and clear to their districts today, urging immediate change in our smoking policies,” said City’s ASG President Francisco Fabian. “There is no doubt now of the ill effects of cigarette smoking, and in particular, second hand smoke. It’s time we took steps to ensure all students are able to learn in a healthy smoke free environment.” If the two districts pass a smoking ban, they would become the first completely smoke-free counties in the California community college system. Mesa College is leading the way for the rest of campuses in the two districts to follow. After a transition period with designated smoking areas in June 2006, Mesa became the fourth smoke-free campus in California. The ban came after a freshman at Mesa, who was a severe asthmatic, addressed the San Diego Community College
District Board of Trustees to express concerns about secondhand smoke on campus. She teamed up with staff and other students after the meeting to begin a smoke-free campaign and found the Smoking Investigation Committee. Their efforts helped lead the ■ Find out what students think about way to a smoking the smoking ban in ban on our Vox Populi campus. Page 2 Chanc e l l o r Constance Carroll said that when the issue first came up the district decided that each campus is a separate community of people and they should be the ones who decide what is best for them. Aside from enforcing state laws that prohibit smoking within 20 feet of doors and windows or inside closed doors, the district doesn’t want to impose a top-down solution that would be binding on every campus. She would like to see campuses look at the “excellent process followed at Mesa” and use it to come up with a solution that is best for everyone. She said Mesa’s process of involving everyone from students and faculty to staff and administration was very important. Now that Mesa is smokefree, they want to keep it that way. The campus held a heath fair on Feb. 5 to educate students on the effects of smoking. Student Health Services offers free programs and counseling to help students quit. Fabian is optimistic that officials will be receptive to their recommendations. “I know that the rest of the district is looking at Mesa to see how successful they are in implementing this new rule before the other schools follow,” Fabian said, “I believe that once the other schools, through their shared governance process decide to go smoke free, the board will approve a district wide policy.”
Index
Calendar ....................................2 News .........................................3 Opinion .....................................4 Arts ...........................................5 Sports .......................................7