t
CHECK OUT MORE UPCOMING EVENTS ON PAGE 2
INTERACTIVE ART ON CAMPUS A new art exhibit opened in the Boehm Gallery at the San Marcos campus showcasing an artist from New York and a local artist from Encinitas, Calif. • Page 5
the telescope Palomar College’s Independent Newspaper
•
Vol. 68, No. 1 • Monday, Sept. 8, 2014
•
the-telescope.com
Arsonist sets fire as ‘way out’ of school
NEW ASG PRESIDENT
CHRISTIAN GAXIOLA THE TELESCOPE
Associated Student Government President Jason Hosfield prepares for the challenge of being a student leader and student trustee. • photo illustration by Erika Shasky/The Telescope
New president to lead student body SUSAN WHALEY THE TELESCOPE
With the support of his family and significant other, Jason Hosfield decided to run for president of the Associated Student Government at Palomar College. He was elected the new ASG president after running uncontested
at the end of last Spring semester. “(My mother and father) encouraged and challenged me to be committed to the organizations that have interested me,” Hosfield said in an email. He added that his brother “was almost entirely responsible for helping me develop leadership skills in workplace situations.” His significant other and “future
wife”, Lindsay Sylvester, gave her support to Hosfield and it was with her blessing that he dedicated himself to the ASG. Hosfield is 29 years old and was born and raised in Vista, Calif. He went to Rancho Buena Vista High School and competed in speech and debate in his junior and senior years. Hosfield enrolled at Palomar in
2003 for its speech and debate program. After a few years he decided to leave and finish school when he was 25 so he could receive financial aid as an independent. “Financing school is always an issue,” Hosfield said about paying for college.
JUMP TO PRESIDENT PAGE 6
President Deegan issues update on injured students CHRISTOPHER BULLOCK THE TELESCOPE
Five international Palomar students injured in a deadly single-car accident Aug. 21 have been released from the hospital, according to school officials. In a letter sent out Aug. 25 by school president Robert Deegan, Deegan said he has been in contact with the families of those involved. Out of respect for the families’ wishes, the school will not release the names of those involved in the accident. “We know that many of you would like to reach out to these students, their families and loved ones,” Deegan wrote in the letter. “However, the families are asking for privacy at this most difficult time.” Late Thursday Aug. 21, eight
Palomar President Robert Deegan • Stephen Davis/The Telescope
international students from the school were involved in a single-car accident on State Route 78 between El Camino Real and College Boulevard in Oceanside. The car had veered off the highway into an embankment, then ran into a power pole, severing the pole in half. The driver and two passengers died on impact, with the five surviving students being transported to local hospitals. CBULLOCK@THE-TELESCOPE.COM
A day of remembrance will be held at 7:30 a.m. on Sept. 11
Connor Cook, 19, the Palomar College student accused of lighting a series of restroom fires during the Spring 2014 semester, has admitted to starting at least one of the fires, and exclusively told The Telescope why. “I was overwhelmed with school. I wanted a way out,” Cook said during a recent phone interview. Connor said he has always been a good student, but college classes were putting unusual pressure on him. Within just weeks of starting school, he found himself falling behind while other students pushed forward. Rather than seeking help or dropping classes, he decided to do something extreme. “I thought it would help me catch up,” he said. “I never intended to burn down the school, or hurt anyone. I was just trying to help myself. And it was the wrong thing to do. It was all based on bad judgment.” Unfortunately, Cook’s actions didn’t make college life any easier. He was arrested on March 14 and charged with arson and attempted arson for a fire he started in the men’s restroom of the P Building. The small blaze was built with toilet paper and toilet seat covers, similar to a number of previous fires that were started on campus as far back as December 2013. Cook said he was booked into the Vista Detention Facility where he spent five days thinking about what he’d done and worrying about his future. “I prayed that somehow God would help me through the mess I was in,” he said. Cook’s parents came to his aid and posted his $25,000 bail. They also pulled together enough cash to hire an attorney.
JUMP TO ARSONIST PAGE 6