The Advocate 3-6

WEDNESDAY l 3.6.19 OUR 69TH YEAR

CONTRA COSTA COLLEGE SAN PABLO, CALIF.

LEFT: Oakland Technical High School Junior Kalanie Scott (middle forefront), Oakland Tech junior Jordan Green (left), and Oakland Tech junior Aidaly Matancillas (right) protest outside Oakland Tech on Feb. 25.

DENIS PEREZ / THE ADVOCATE

TEACHERS FIGHT FOR PAY RAISE Oakland Unified School District teachers protest for an increase in salary

By Fatima Carrasco

n “If Oakland teachers get the pay

staff writer

fcarrasco.theadvocate@gmail.com

OAKLAND — With the popular slogan, “When we strike, we win,” the Oakland schools teachers union organized a seven-day strike before reaching a tentative agreement granting them an 11 percent increase in salary over four years plus a 3 percent bonus upon returning to work.

Conditions were finally agreed upon during an Oakland Education Association, which represents Oakland teachers, meeting at Paramount Theater Friday.

raise and everything else they are asking for, it can create an epidemic of protest.”

— Martha Castro, kindergarten teacher

Ratification of the Oakland Education Association contract came after 1,141 members voted in favor and 832 opposed it, with four abstentions.

Martha Castro, an observer marching in solidarity with Oakland teachers, said, “Listen to

what (Oakland) teachers say. Whatever these teachers say, is what every teacher wants.”

Castro, who is also an educator in the West Contra Costa Unified School District, serves as a kindergarten teacher at Tara Hills Elementary School.

Local teachers want higher pay, better health care and more support from school administration, Castro said.

“If Oakland teachers get the pay raise and everything else they are asking for, it can create an epidemic of protests. Everyone is going to SEE OAKLAND, PAGE 4

foundation awards set to stimulate campus projects

By Cindy Pantoja

Foundation projects

cpantoja.theadvocate@gmail.com

EOPS, Sparkpoint partnership: Partnership to bring support to students at CCC. n

Student Service Center water fountain: Water fountain to provide free water to students. n

Soundproof walls: Library soundproof walls to help academic environment. n

n

Translating documents: Money received to help with DACA paperwork.

Art, biology online courses: Program to facilitate learning resource. n

African-American Leadership program: Group to provide students with extra help. n

Video series to show case campus: Initiative to highlight campus resources. n

Whiteboard for the Library: Material to help students in study groups. n

FACEBOOK: /accentadvocate

n “We are investing in sound

opinion editor

The Contra Costa College Foundation launched a pilot fund that awarded $58,000 to finance eight projects aimed at supporting student success and providing the resources needed to achieve academic goals.

The Foundation’s new Program Innovation Fund was created in 2018 with a goal to develop an idea or project that created opportunities for students and aided with student retention.

“This a program meant to benefit students,” Foundation Development Officer Sara Marcellino said.

“It’s for staff and faculty. It was an application base program last fall.”

Once the application period was closed, the submissions were Marcellino reviewed by a committee of CCC Foundation Board members.

Marcellino said some of the criteria considered for this project required the initiatives to outline how the funding will directly impact students.

The Library and the Learning Center also partnered to become part of the eight projects funded by the Innovation Fund.

They were awarded $5,000 to invest in a whiteboard wall for the Media Lab and soundproofing panels for the tutoring area of the Learning Center.

Tutoring Program Coordinator Brandy Gibson said they have been trying to figure out a way to make learning more productive in the tutoring area at peak hours when approximately 50 people, students and tutors, are speaking at the same time.

“We’re investing in sound masking equipment. This is equipment that is usually deployed in call centers and really loud environments,” Gibson said. “They’ll put units in the ceiling. When it gets loud, we can use a remote control to sort of dampen the sound. It keeps the speech sound waves from traveling.”

INSTAGRAM: @cccadvocate

masking equipment. This is equipment that is usually deployed in call centers and really loud environments.

— Brandy Gibson, tutoring program coordinator

Sparkpoint and Extended Opportunity Programs and Services (EOPS) have been working together since 2016 and this time they formed a partnership to become part of the fund.

The funds will strengthen existing student services by ensuring that every EOPS student receives financial education through Sparkpoint.

“We applied for a state grant together and that grant, unfortunately, was not successful. But it gave us a framework that let us walk through the kind of thinking about what we could do more formally,” Sparkpoint Coordinator Bill Bankhead said.

The projected outcomes of this partnership are to increase EOPS enrollment and to increase its retention.

“All EOPS students, new and continuing, are strongly encouraged to co-enroll in Sparkpoint, although, is not an absolute requirement. We think is a really smart idea for everybody,” Bankhead said.

“There is an EOPS section of Counseling 120 that I’m doing with two presentations specifically on financial content.”

Sparkpoint will also focus its attention on financially educating students in the CARE program — a resource for single parents.

Students, particularly the students who are parents in the EOPS program, are required to attend two three-hour workshops throughout the semester in order to receive their full EOPS grant, Bankhead said “Sparkpoint workshops are one of the options for meeting that requirement.

They (students) can also go to Career SEE FOUNDATION, PAGE 3

TWITTER: @accentadvocate

YOUTUBE: /accentadvocate

SPARKPOINT OFFERS CLOTHES FOR SUCCESS

PAGE 4

Team falls in mercy rule shortened contest PAGE 7 SNAPCHAT: @cccadv0cate

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Quotable “The meaning of the First Amendment did not crystallize in 1791.”

Zechariah Chafee Jr. First Amendment scholar, 1969 Michael Santone editor-in-chief Robert Clinton associate editor Xavier Johnson web editor Denis Perez creative director Cindy Pantoja opinion editor Jessica Suico Gabriel Quiroz news editors Jose Arebalo scene editor Efrain Valdez Joel Umanzor sports editors Paul DeBolt faculty adviser Staff writers Issac Benavides Fatima Carrasco Luis Cortes Nijzel Dotson Kyle Grant Daniel Hernandez Janet Lira Gonzalez Luis Lopez De’Jon Sylvain Marshique West Honors ACP National Newspaper Pacemaker Award 1990, 1994, 1997,1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2017 CNPA Better Newspaper Contest 1st Place Award 1970, 1991, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2013 JACC Pacesetter Award 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018 Member

Associated Collegiate Press California Newspaper Publishers Association Journalism Association of Community Colleges How to reach us Phone: 510.215.3852 Fax: 510.235.NEWS Email: accent.advocate@ gmail.com Editorial policy Columns and editorial cartoons are the opinion of individual writers and artists and not that of The Advocate. Editorials reflect the majority opinion of the Editorial Board, which is made up of student editors.

opinion

WEDNESDAY, MARCH. 6, 2019 VOL. 108, NO. 14

WWW.CCCADVOCATE.COM

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EDITORIAL

FISHING FOR INFORMATION

Campus community grapples with string of inconsistencies

O

ver the past few years, it has become increasingly difficult to determine which side of a story is true, if information is factual, or if the phenomenon of fake news has leaked into every aspect of fact-finding that governs our daily existence.

Far too often, when inconsistencies are exposed, offenders choose to attack the messenger rather than accept their faults, address mistakes and plot a path forward.

Not only is this a classic plan for deflection from the truth, by default it attempts to categorize the messenger as unreliable — simply for reporting the facts as they were presented at the time.

Instances like these have not been isolated to press briefings on the White House lawn, slow-walking information and attacking the messenger has become a popular past-time on this campus as well.

Student-journalists will not apologize for following up on questions of malpractice, how information is filtered or how positions on campus are delegated or filled.

Without the work done by student-journalists everywhere — administrators would run amuck — and campus communities across the country would be left in the dark.

These people make thousands upon thousands of dollars and neither their successes or their failures will be presented on the 10 o’clock news — but they directly affect us.

For a campus that operates under the guise of transparency, not fulfilling that vow encourages a level of concern.

Many believe these concerns to be the reason this institution continues to hemorrhage talent, with no end-in-sight.

For more than a year now, gathering information on campus has become increasingly difficult.

Administrative offices that once had an open-door policy now only sparsely communicate through email.

Even when contact is made, officials often take days or even weeks to respond.

Contra Costa College is a public institution and administrators who are too busy to respond to student inquiry forget those same students have the right to know if the administration is working for their benefit — or to benefit the bottom line.

What’s worse, calls to Police Services, not only by reporters, are also given second-class status.

Since a change to the crime log database was implemented over a year ago, vague incident reports have become the new normal for the department.

Requests to the department to provide the same level of detail in prior reports have fallen on deaf ears.

Moreover, no explanation was given as to why the information in the log initially was reduced.

When a car was stolen from campus Jan. 30, the crime log listed the theft as having occurred in the Bus Transfer Center.

The only location given for clarification was 2600 Mission Bell Drive — the college address.

In fact, every incident on campus is recorded with the same address accompanied by a small icon detailing the approximate location.

Who benefits from this? Certainly not students.

The good news is, the number of reported crimes on campus is relatively low.

What’s bad is we may never know if the opposite ever does happen?

CINDY PANTOJA / THE ADVOCATE

■ LIFESTYLE

Ancestry DNA results generate inner conflict W hen I got my AncestryDNA results back everything I thought was my ancestry and ethnicity changed in the blink of an eye.

For my entire life, through my mother’s life and my grandmother’s life, we have always known we were Shoshone Indian.

I grew up being told and raised that I am Filipino, Irish, Portuguese, French and Native American.

When I got my results back, it said I am everything I was told, however, it also said other things I didn’t know of.

The one thing it didn’t say is I am Native American.

I am confused and don’t know how to feel about this new set of facts.

It said I am 48 percent English Wales Northwestern European and 15 percent Irish or Scottish. That result doesn’t sit well with me.

My whole life I’ve known I am Native American and have learned about all the cruel acts that happened to them at the hands of European settlers in the 1700s.

Knowing that my ancestors were part of this cruelty to Indians is a hard reality to face.

I get my European blood from mostly my mom and I get the 20 percent Filipino, with a random sprinkling of Portuguese, from my dad.

Some of the Irish comes from my dad as well.

tion and because of geographic location.

Inherent skin coloration arises from differences in basal epidermal melanin amount and type.

Being that my skin pigmentation is darker than what my DNA shows, I have never been able, and The test also revealed never want to be able, to I am 3 percent Korean live the so-called life of and one percent Chinese, “white privilege.”

Italian, Greek, Finnish I grew up in Elk Grove and Cameroon, Congo, and the sad part about this Southern Bantu as well. city is the racism that is Between one and 5 per- flung around like it’s the cent of something isn’t thing to do. much, but Growing up, I got racialI grew it is still in ly profiled by my school me. teachers, faculty members up being In anth- and students. ropolohorribly bullied for told and gy class I myI was weight and skin color.

I was called meat face raised learned that we because I have brown pigget mentation. At the same that I am don’t the exact time, I was told by teachers and faculty that I was Filipino genes of our pargoing to end up as a low Irish, ents. If life on the streets. that was From an early age, I was French the case, harassed by the Elk Grove we would Department for just and be carbon Police walking down the street. of Because my ethnicity Native copies them. proves I am half white The doesn’t mean I will ever be American. DNA that treated like it. I am perfectwe inherit ly fine with that because I is unique to ourselves. am comfortable saying that We receive 50 percent of I don’t want to be labeled our DNA from each of our by my ethnicity. parents.

I am my own unique If we go back far enough, person who just wants to there’s a chance that we be accepted for the person inherit no DNA from a I am. particular ancestor.

According to www.ncbi.

Jessica Suico is a news nlm.nin.gov, skin coloreditor for The Advocate.

Contact her at jsuico.theadation varies partly due to the presence of pigmenta- vocate@gmail.com.

jessicasuico

CAMPUS COMMENT

Which professor or faculty member do you have the best connection with? Why?

“Professor Ampim because he is very understanding and I like the way he teaches. He is intriguing.”

Kaylan Andrews creative writing

“Professor Villafane. I have known her since my first semester and she is a very sweet person and cares about her students.”

Gabriella Suarez biology

JESSICA SUICO, JANET LIRA GONZALEZ / THE ADVOCATE

“Being a business major having a counselor is key because of all the requirements, so the counselors have been really helpful for me.”

Kennedy Magama business

“The counselors have help guide me with my schooling and major since I have been here, and that is very helpful.”

“English professor Lucinda Ray because she is very dedicated to her students.”

“Professor Becraft. I had him for Chemistry 119 and he was really understanding and a great teacher.”

Nixon Mazarados

Ama Kaur

Stephanie Martinez

business

biology

chemical engineering

campus beat

WWW.CCCADVOCATE.COM 3.6.2019 l WEDNESDAY l THE ADVOCATE

Joel NickelsonShanks responds to email and other work on Monday before being promoted to outreach coordinator.

NEWSLINE THEATER

PLAY DEPICTS DEATH WITH COMEDY “Dead Man’s Cell,” the drama department’s first production of the spring semester, opens at the John and Jean Knox Center for the Performing Arts Friday at 7:30 p.m.

The play depicts how people memorialize the dead and how mourning changes them. It involves an incessantly ringing cell phone in a quiet café, a stranger at the next table who has had enough and a dead man with a lot of loose ends.

The wild and imaginative comedy will run each Friday, Saturday and Sunday (matinees) through March 17.

Tickets are $10 if purchased online, or $15 at the door.

For more information contact Carlos Chavarria by email at cchavarria@contraconsta.edu

EVENT

DAY CELEBRATES FEMALE STRUGGLES The political science department and Community Organizing and Political Action Club invite you to celebrate International Women’s Day on Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in GE-225.

A panel of judges will share immigration stories along with Contra Costa County District Attorney Diana Becton and Public Defender Rob Lipetzky.

Judge Ipema, who was born in Iran and is the current president of the National Women’s Judges Association, will be the keynote speaker.

Following the event a reception will be held in the Fireside Hall.

For more information or to RSVP visit ccciwd19.eventbrite. com or contact Vanna Gonzales at vgonzales@contracosta.edu. .

WORKSHOP

BOOTCAMP TEACHES FINANCIAL PLANNING Contra Costa College’s Sparkpoint will host its “Personal Finance Bootcamp” on Tuesdays March 12, 19 and 26 from noon to 1 p.m. in the Career/Transfer Center.

Learn about choosing a bank, planning a budget or establishing credit with this three-part series intended to help you with success.

All workshops and services are free for Contra Costa College students, faculty and staff.

Free lunch will be provided.

For more information contact Bill Bankhead by phone at 510-2156873 or by email at bbankhead@ contracosta.edu2.

CRIMEWATCH Tuesday, Feb. 26 An alarm was reported going off in the Physical Science building at 12:45 p.m.

Monday, March. 4 A theft was reported in the Library and Learning Resource Center at 5:10 p.m. No further details were given.

CORRECTION In the Feb. 27 issue of The Advocate on page 6 in the story titled “Africanism inspires passion,” the last name of Armond is Lee, not Corshawn.

The Advocate regrets the error.

In the Feb. 13 issue of The Advocate in the front page story and caption titled “In perfect harmony” the last name of NinoAngelo Lastimosa was spelled incorrectly.

The Advocate regrets the error.

— The Contra Costa Community College District is committed to equal opportunity in educational programs, employment, and campus life. The District does not discriminate on the basis of age, ancestry, color, disability, gender, marital status, national origin, parental status, race, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status in any access to and treatment in College programs, activities, and application for employment.

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EFRAIN VALDEZ / THE ADVOCATE

Student life adviser moves

By Efrain Valdez sports editor

evaldez.theadvocate@gmail.com

Following the departure of former Outreach Coordinator Maryam Attai earlier this semester, Student Life Coordinator Joel NickelsonShanks will assume her vacated position.

Nickelson-Shanks will remain as student life coordinator until the college hires a replacement while he learns and transitions into his new role.

“I have a lot of love for Student Life,” Nickelson Shanks said. “I’m doing what I can at the moment to make sure that the transition is smooth, so the new person knows exactly what to do and what the day-to-day routine looks like.”

He said when the new person is hired he will make himself available to them.

“My office is going to be right across the quad (in the SSC Building). It will only take a phone call or email and I’ll walk over there if I’m available,” Nickelson-Shanks said.

Dean of Students Dennis Franco said that he will be interviewing a candidate for the position later this week.

“I will be interviewing his replacement this week and hope to have the candidate in place very soon,” Franco said.

Even though the Associated Students

n “He also understands the gaps

that we need to address to improve our outreach efforts.”

— Denis Franco, dean of student services

Union was shocked to learn of his announcement, ASU President Rebecca Hernandez said that it was “bittersweet” moment.

“I was initially sad and shocked,” she said.

“Joel has been an immense help to ASU and Student Life throughout his time here.”

Nickelson-Shanks said he feels he is qualified for the position because he knows CCC so well.

He attended Middle College High School and he grew up in the area.

Franco believes Nickelson-Shanks has the drive to work hard and figure out ways to improve whatever he works on.

“He understands the needs of the community and potential students. He also understands the gaps that we need to address to improve our outreach efforts,” Franco said.

“Joel (Nickelson-Shanks) is excellent with managing relationships with both our eternal and external partners and is an excellent event planner,” which he said is important for that

position.

“I 100 percent believe that I am qualified for the job,” Nickelson-Shanks said. “I am a part of this community and I was raised in this community and I’ve been around CCC for 15 years now. I resemble the people we outreach too.”

Hernandez believes that Nickelson-Shanks has the ability to connect with students on a much more personal level.

“I hope his expertise will provide insight to the Outreach Program that they might not have had prior to his promotion,” she said.

Nickelson-Shanks will be letting students in the community know about CCC’s programs and organizations.

He will also provide prospective students access to the campus.

“We will try to bridge that gap. We’ll go out and talk on campuses, let them know about the registration process and how long it takes to graduate,” Nickelson-Shanks said.

He is looking forward to further progressing his career and helping CCC in this new role. Nickelson-Shanks expects to work on making resources on campus more available for incoming students.

“We have a bunch of new programs and resources that will be helpful to students who are just coming out of high school,” NickelsonShanks said.

OAKLAND | Strike ends after wage demands met Continued from Page 1 want a pay raise and everyone is going to want better benefits.”

About 1,000 public school teachers, students and parents began protesting outside Oakland City Hall beginning Feb. 21.

Since then, 95 percent of Oakland Education Association members were on the picket line and 97 percent of students were out of school.

There were thousands of people who showed support for the picket lines and rallies, according to a statement made by the OEA statement on Friday.

Oakland Technical High School freshman who only wanted to be known as Sophia said, “I came out to protest because I think we need to show solidarity. My teachers do everything for us to have a better education and much more.”

The freshman said she and her classmates deserve smaller classrooms, nurses and counselors to make school less chaotic.

She also believes teachers deserve an increase in pay.

“The least we can do is come out here and stand with them,” she said The contract agreement also addressed union demands involving lower class size, more student support, a five-month pause on dozens of projected school closures, a stop on charter expansion and higher pay for substitutes.

As the inflation rate increases, so does the demand for money, Oakland Technical High School teacher Johanna Langill said.

Last year the inflation rate was at 2.9 percent Langill said. However, every year that rate goes up, and as it increases workers need a wage increase that keeps pace she said.

Langill said, “Suppose the minimum cost of living in the Bay Area was $100. Last year the inflation percentage as up to 2.9 percent so that means that the cost of living went up to $102.90.

“If the teachers were asking for a 3 percent salary increase that would add up to $103.

However, say the district’s last written offer was a 1.5 percent bonus. That would come down

DENIS PEREZ / THE ADVOCATE

A parent of Oakland Technical High School student Ginny Fine pickets in the front lawn of the campus during the fifth day of the Oakland teacher’s strike on Feb. 25 in Oakland.

to a $101.50 pay. That would result in a $1.40 shortage.”

This is a reality teacher’s have to face every year as the cost of living goes up, Langill said.

She said the struggle many Oakland teachers face is finding affordable homes in the city where they actually teach.

Many teachers share the economic concern as Langill, while also having concerns about negative atmosphere in schools and how to create a better work environment for students

and teachers.

Ted Allen, a teacher at Oakland Tech, said, “There’s this issue now that schools hire individuals who don’t have the necessary educational (qualifications).”

“It is cheaper for schools to hire undergrad teachers,” Allen said. “The school system does little to balance out the struggles new teachers have. With financial instability mounting, it is more necessary than ever to give teachers support from all sides.”

FOUNDATION | Program sees boost for student success Continued from Page 1

one who can help with their marketing and outreach. This position is restricted to stuServices, or transfer workshops or the Student dents who are currently in good standing with Success workshops for retention. There are EOPS and have had experience working with several other options, but Sparkpoint counts Sparkpoint. for that,” Bankhead said.

Business major Valentino Cooper said, “All Sparkpoint is also planning to hire some- these projects are bound to be a good start

toward improving students’ college experience. It will also be helpful if some tables and chairs could be added to the sitting areas in the General Education Building because it is very common to see students working on assignments or eating on the floor.”

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campusbeat

WWW.CCCADVOCATE.COM 3.6.2019 l WEDNESDAY l THE ADVOCATE

ERROR REPORTS ACTIVITY AS RAPE District website shows false record of crime

By Cindy Pantoja opinion editor

cpantoja.theadvocate@gmail.com

A Tweet by The Advocate regarding a miscoded report of “rape by force” generated pandemonium throughout the Contra Costa College administration, prompting a mass emergency text to students at roughly 5:30 p.m. on the evening of Feb. 26.

The daily crime log, available on the Contra Costa Community College District website, recorded the code PC 261 — rape by force at 1:27 p.m. on Feb. 20 in the Student Services Center.

Upon receiving the dispatch call on Feb. 20, Police Services Corporal David Sano and Officer Drake Gammil responded.

“We got a dispatch call for a person with information. It was not a rape or anything,” Sano said. “It was something different in nature that wasn’t even a crime. There was an actual report taken, yes. An informational report, but it was miscoded.”

Sano said calls come into the dispatch center on campus and are input into the system by the dispatcher, and are then answered

by Police Services.

“We go to the call and clear the call, sometimes with the help of outside agencies, like 911,” he said.

However, after assessing the situation and determining that no rape or crime occurred in the SSC, the log remained unchanged for six days with no acknowledgment or clarification from Police Services.

JANET LIRA / THE ADVOCATE

A mass text on February 26 at 5:30 p.m. alerted Contra Costa College that a report of rape on the daily crime log was in fact a miscode.

“We got a dispatch call for a person with information. It was not a rape or anything.”

David Sano,

Police Services corporal

In fact, the miscoded entry went unnoticed by the entire district until it was brought to light in a tweet by The Advocate at 2:42 p.m. on Feb. 26. The tweet included a screenshot of the incident report directly from the Daily Crime Log. This prompted an immediate frenzy and a reply from @lifeatccc, the Twitter account for the campus, which read, “We looked into this and can verify that it was a coding error. It never referred to a rape. A student reported information relating to a crime that occurred several years ago, off campus. That

crime was not a sexual assault.”

District Director of Communications and Community Relations Tim Leong said via Twitter, “Police Services indicated the incident was a miscoding and there was no rape on CCC campus.”

The Feb. 20 log was finally removed on March 1, nine days after its initial entry.

Police Services Chief Ed Carney said once the district found out about the miscoding and subsequent rape scare, they immediately began working with the software company to correct the issue.

“Apparently, it became much more difficult than it seemed after the extended period of time that the report was made,” Carney said. “We were completely dependent on the software company to get us the answers, but unfortunately, not all software glitches can be fixed easily.”

Carney said the reason there was such a long delay in removing the log was because the system is designed keep people from

altering or falsifying what could ultimately be evidence.

“It’s not unusual for an event to be initially dispatched as something different than its outcome and the report to have a discrepancy,” he said. “Quite frankly, it would have gone completely unnoticed except for the event log recording such a horrible crime.”

Carney said that each campus lieutenant is responsible for keeping track of their reports, as well as their daily logs.

“Checks are done, at least typically twice, one by the shift lieutenant or by the college campus lieutenant and then again by the lieutenant in charge of our record keeping.

That lieutenant did see it and did report over to CCC to have it changed and they were not able to change it,” he said.

“Obviously, if something like this had occurred, we would have made sure that people in the college community, our surrounding community, faculty and staff would have been made aware of the situation.”

HBCU tour highlights educational opportunities Eleven students to visit six historically black colleges

By Nijzel Dotson advocate staff

ndotson.theadvocate@gmail.com

Eleven Contra Costa College students will get the opportunity of a lifetime this semester as they go on a tour of six Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

For the third year in a row, CCC Transfer Coordinator Andrea Phillips has put together a tour with the intention of “giving students of color the chance to look at schools outside of California and see what their options are.”

“I want students to understand the impact that these type of trips can have on them,” Phillips said.

The schools on the itinerary are Howard University, Morgan State, Bowie State, Hampton University, Norfolk State and Lincoln University

(Pennsylvania).

Benefits of the trip include on-thespot admissions, STEM opportunities, a window into Greek Life, student panels and a visit to the African-American History Museum in Washington D.C. The all-expenses paid trip will take place March 31 through April 7 when CCC students will be out of classes for spring break.

The tour is being funded by the African-American Staff Association, West Contra Costa Unified School District, Per Ankh Academy, HSI Stem Grant funds and the CCC Foundation.

Phillips made sure the group of students is prepared ahead of time by having them read two books about HBCUs and meeting with them each Tuesday to discuss the readings and build chemistry before the trip.

The two books are “Our Kind of

People: Inside of America’s Black Upper Class” and “HBCU Experience — ­ The Book: A Collection of Essays Celebrating the Black College Experience.”

They have been meeting in preparation for the trip since January.

The group is made up of six male students and five female students. Two of the students are Latinx and two are representing Middle College High School.

One of the MCHS students, Preston Akubuo-Onwuemeka, made it a point to highlight the significance of the trip being free.

“There are low income students who may not have as many academic benefits afforded to them. A trip like this allows them to relax and have a good time focusing on their education and future,” he said.

One of the aspects he is most excited

about is getting to experience student life on an HBCU campus.

Preston’s target school is Howard University in Washington D.C. Kyler Williams, the other Middle College student going on the tour, is looking forward to bringing experiences back with him that he can cherish for the rest of his life.

He also plans to use his experiences to educate others about HBCUs. Both of them agreed that giving young black scholars an opportunity to network is something very important.

Eligah Morgan, a CCC student who went on the very first tour two years ago, said, “When I went on the trip it was a real eye-opener getting to interact with HBCU students and hear from them about why they chose to go there.

“The hospitality at those schools is just so much different,” he said.

wardrobe change emits professionalism

By Joel Umanzor advocate staff

jumanzor.theadvocate@gmail.com

Spreading information about professional etiquette while providing the tools to act on that knowledge was highlighted during the Steps to Stability event, which took place Friday in Fireside Hall.

Hosted by Wardrobe for Opportunity, Contra Costa College and Sparkpoint, the event provided registered attendees with a professional outfit, information about how to become an attractive job candidate and light refreshments.

The event was to help guide students toward successfully getting a job and knowing what to wear during a job interview. It provided racks of different types of professional outfits from which attendees could choose some new clothes.

Career Services Coordinator Natasha DeAlmeida let students know of the event by having Sparkpoint put up flyers around campus and also had counselors and the Extended Opportunity Programs Services (EOPS) provide information to their students.

“We had students register for this event in advance, so Wardrobe for Opportunity knew what sizes and styles of clothes to have available,” DeAlmeida said.

Talent Acquisition Enthusiast

CINDY PANTOJA / THE ADVOCATE

Volunteers Renne Parson (left) helps a student (right) change into an outfit as Maria Giron (right) organizes clothes during the Steps to Stability event on Friday in Fireside Hall.

Chelsea Diekow, of Robert Half International Company, was the guest speaker for the event.

During her speech Diekow said, “Go to work with a positive attitude, be kind to others and take initiative.”

DeAlmeida said, “We want to help students with resumes, cover letters and get more information on what they need to do to get a

job in their career.”

On March 20, a Career Fair will give students who attended the Steps to Stability event an opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills they learned to possibly land a job, DeAlmeida said.

Private investigation major Merari Villasenor said, “Chelsea really lit up the room today with her enthusiasm. This event was

great and I learned a lot about what to prepare for in the job force.”

Villasenor learned about the event through EOPS. Diekow said, “I want to provide students with all the tools they need to succeed on their career path and make them realize they are not alone on this journey.

There are many available resources around us.”

Coming out and doing these types of events makes Diekow happy. That she gets to help people succeed and land jobs is something money can’t buy.

“You can’t grow unless you are comfortable with yourself and your career,” she said.

Being a speaker at this event tied into her career and passions.

“I help people land jobs daily with the skills I provide people. It is an amazing feeling to help people succeed and learn something new,” she said.

Diekow got into this career of a talent acquisition enthusiast because when she went for her first job interview in the Midwest for a job into her career, she was not hired because she was overqualified. She realized they had way too many standards, especially for women.

“They didn’t hire me because they knew they wouldn’t be able to treat me like a robot like they wanted to,” Diekow said.

Everyone involved with the event categorized it as a success.

DeAlmeida said, “This event really brought community partners together in the West County population. It is important because we don’t have that many resources in Richmond compared to other Bay Area cities.”

campus beat

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Rain has affected the construction a little bit, but all plans remain on schedule,” — Bruce King, building and grounds manager

5

LONGFORM WORSKSHOP HELPS ESL STUDENTS

By De’Jon Sylvain staff writer

dsylvain.theadvocate@gmail.com

Rain temporarily slows construction

DANIEL HERNANDEZ / THE ADVOCATE

ABOVE: Contractor Sylvester Duarte digs near the Applied Arts Building as part of the campus construction for the new Science Complex.

n “I’ve already gotten used to the con-

By Luis Cortes staff writer

lcortes.theadvocate@gmail.com

The 2019 winter season has brought a significant amount of rain and with it a halt on the progress of the three phases of construction of the new Science Complex.

However, construction near the Applied Arts Building looks to resume after weeks of inclement weather.

The first increment in the project was to demolish the former Health Science and Liberal Arts buildings. That phase has reached completion. The projected timeline for the completion of the building of the Science Complex is 2023.

Building and Grounds Manager Bruce King said the rain had affected the construction a little bit, but all plans remain on schedule.

“There’s still plenty of time,” King said regarding increment two which hopes to begin near the end of March.

Increment two involves grading (which may start in April), utilities and the laying down of the foundation.

This phase will take place primarily in the dry months of the year, King said. Increment three is the start of the actual construction of the building.

The cost for the entire project, from the demolition of the Health Science and Liberal Arts buildings to the construction of the Science Complex, is $68.86 million.

Students who walk up the stairs located near Lot 11 will notice workers digging up the ground situated outside the AA Building.

Many have questioned if the works that are being done in this area is connected to the construction of the Science Complex or something new.

King said the installation is a conduit for the lighting in the Science Complex along with the color coding of the ground.

struction, so it doesn’t annoy me anymore. As long as the construction doesn’t emit toxic stuff, it’s OK.” — Pedro Campos, economics major

The tube will reroute power for lights and will reach the back of the AA Building into the boiler room.

King said it is a necessary procedure to have wires through a conduit because it protects the wires and routes them.

The National Electrical Code (NEC), which is the electrical installation code in the United States, demands that conduits used in commercial and industrial buildings must protect any wiring from damage, commonly using metal or plastic conduit, or passageways cast in concrete.

In this case, plastic conduit is being used.

Sylvester Duarte, a contracted construction worker who is currently working on the conduit, said it will be done sometime near midday Tuesday (March 5). “We plan to get the majority done today,” he said.

Students around campus have gotten used to the commotion caused by the construction. Economics major Pedro Campos said the disruption in access and loud noise does not affect his regular school day as much as it used to.

“I’ve already gotten used to it, so it doesn’t annoy me anymore,” he said. “As long as the construction doesn’t emit toxic stuff, its OK.” Campos said he is looking forward to the campus having the new Science Complex.

“I think the new building is going to be a great addition to the college.”

Following a move to offer writing courses in 2015-16 aimed to help students with basic computer skills, the Contra Costa College English as a second language department (ESL) has implemented new programs and services for students for the 2019 spring semester.

“I approached the ESL department and with funding from the campus Basic Skills Committee and we were able to develop Digital Tools. It is a series of basic computer skills workshops for ESL students,” ESL department faculty member Laila Khan said.

The ESL department offers courses in English language skills (such as reading, writing, listening, speaking, grammar and pronunciation) to students whose first language is not English.

“ESL students come from a variety of different backgrounds from all over the world and speak a number of different languages,” Khan said. “Students take our courses to improve their English language skills for social, academic and professional purposes.”

The workshop is a 12-week hybrid series that helps students navigate through and out of college.

“The Canvas help sessions also specifically help students at the beginning of the semester when they may be more overwhelmed by all the course requirements,” ESL department Chairperson Anoosheh Borhan said. “It also Borhan provides support for students at a ESL critical time.” department Borhan said technology has chairperson become a central part of people’s day-to-day lives and it is important for students who frequently need to use these tools to know how to access them.

The program covers the use of the online learning Canvas, basic computer parts and use, typing practice, keyboard shortcuts, college email writing skills, creating and formatting documents, creating slide presentations, internet browsing basics and use of online office productivity software (Google Drive or Office Online).

Khan said, “The Digital Tools workshops help ESL students gain practice with these tools, so they can complete their coursework with greater ease and efficiency. Those skills can extend into their professional lives as well.”

The ESL department also includes tutoring services for students enrolled in the program.

Borhan said students can get one-on-one help from an ESL faculty member for free.

Faculty members work with students on class assignments or help explain things that students may have difficulty understanding in their ESL courses.

Also available are Canvas drop-in sessions. These unscheduled sessions are for students who have difficulty using Canvas to access or submit assignments, so they can drop in to get help with specific things.

ESL assistant Julissa Martin helps students during these sessions.

Martin said the drop-ins are only available during the first month of classes as students learn how to navigate Canvas and she also sets up appointments for students who are not available during drop-in hours.

The class meets on Monday’s from 3-5 p.m. every week in the College Skills Center. To attend one of the upcoming sessions, students need only have their WebAdvisor login and password information.

SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE MAINTAINS CAMPUS ENVIRONMENT, AIMS TO SPREAD ECO AWARENESS

By Daniel Hernandez staff writer

dhernandez.theadvocate@gmail.com

When you throw your soda bottle into the recycling bin do you ever think of why that big blue bin sits there?

When you throw your waste into the recycling or compost bins on campus it’s an unconscious contribution to the cause of the Contra Costa College Sustainability Committee, which has set out to help the environment.

“We have very good members on the committee,” Buildings and Grounds Manager Bruce King said. “I’ve got students, I’ve got faculty members, I’ve got classified staff.”

The committee is comprised of faculty, staff and student members from all around the campus including the automotive department, culinary arts and Middle College High School.

However, regularly participating college students are a missing piece in the committee.

The committee meets the first Thursday of each month in the

n “We’re celebrating

Arbor Day. We’ll be planting 10 fruit trees up in the garden area.”

— Bruce King, buildings and grounds manager

Building and Grounds Building conference room. The next meeting will be Thursday at 7 a.m.

The committee is responsible for the recycling bins, motion sensor water fountains and an organic waste dumpster out by the Comet Baseball and Softball fields, among other things.

“We planted 50 Redwood trees on campus that were donated by EBMUD (East Bay Municipal Utility District). We got a grant from city of Richmond to put in LED lighting on the upper part of campus that saves us energy,” King said.

Through the power of the committee they are able to create an impact on campus, but it is not all as easy as it sounds.

“We’re expected by senior management to be proactive on stuff, but it is hard to do that with no money at all,” King said.

At one point this was the case when the committee had no money, but with advertisements placed on the recycle bins bringing in $300 a month, small renovation projects around campus receive funding.

“With our budget and also working some other budgets on the campus, we’re looking at replacing two drinking fountains,” King said, “one in the Student Services Center and one in the Library.”

Each fountain costs around $4,500 and each is expected to be installed later this year.

With Earth Day and Arbor Day just around the corner the spring semester is an active time for the Sustainability Committee “We host three major events during the year and one is coming up. We’re celebrating Arbor Day. We’ll be planting 10 fruit trees up at the garden area,” King said.

King said college President Katrina VanderWoude is expect-

ed to make an appearance at the Arbor Day festivities and the culinary arts department is expected to cater the event.

“We do a big celebration of Earth Day. We’ll have 15 to 20 organizations in the quad on April 22.” King said.

There will be food, music and different organizations will be handing out information, free seeds and totes.

M C H S s t u d e nt King Aman Butt Buildings said, “I would and grounds definitely manager say that the Sustainability Committee is overlooked just because of the fact that it’s not something that’s fancy.”

He has been an active member since the beginning of last fall semester.

Butt is also a senator in the Associated Students Union where

his role is to maintain communication on finance between the two groups.

Butt said, “If this campus wasn’t clean and spotless then nobody would want to attend here.”

Culinary arts department Chairperson Nader Shakes said he is an original member of the Sustainability Committee.

“We still see lots of usage of paper and printed materials, but we’d like to see less of that,” Sharkes said.

As culinary department chairperson he said he tries to make efforts to reduce their usage of cardboard and non-recyclable plastics.

King said, “Not bragging about our school, but we have contacted sustainability committees at DVC and Los Medanos and usually they have like three, maybe four members.”

King said he wants more students to join the Sustainability Committee to bring in fresh ideas to improve the campus environmentally.

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SPECIAL TO / THE ADVOCATE

From left to right: Asha Alvarez (far left), Xavier Johnson (bottom left), Erin Forman (center left), drama department Chairperson Carlos-Manuel Chavarria (back center), Nino-Angelo Lastimosa (center), Joshuya Saephan (bottom center), Tyler Nguyen (right center), adjunct professor Angelina LaBarre (back center) and Diego Loza (far right) celebrate their award-winning showing.

Drama earns two awards

By Jose Arebalo scene editor

jarebalo.theadvocate@gmail.com

A weeklong celebration of the dramatic arts brought hopeful students across state lines to compete and celebrate in multiple disciplines providing an enriching developmental experience.

The Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival took place at the University of Oregon from Feb. 18-22.

A gathering of university students from northwestern states, who make up the Kennedy Center’s 7th Regional District, were brought together for a week full of thespian activities.

“They have a whole week to take as many classes as they like and can choose from multiple things to do,” drama department chairperson Carlos-Manuel Chavarria said. There were seven students and two faculty members who traveled to Oregon to participate, he said.

The festival is a chance for drama students to immerse themselves in a community full of diverse artistic talents, Chavarria said.

The group of students was made up of not only four drama students, but three music students and

a journalism student. Asha Alvarez, Diego Loza and Joshua Saephan were the actors who participated.

Xavier Johnson competed as a journalist.

A stage production requires contributions from multiple angles of artistic talent, Chavarria said.

“I asked the music department if any students would be interested in composing the score for a production” he said.

“I always try to encourage collaboration,” he said.

The festival also holds competitions in acting, playwriting, directing, journalism and design.

For this year’s trip, the department brought competitors in acting, journalism and design.

The students brought home a regional award in design for their work in musical composition and set management.

“When I came (to Contra Costa College) five years ago, I wanted to excite students to become part of the drama department and create success. I hope these results will bring more support from the school,” Chavarria said.

Recently, things have been going well for the drama department and these accolades are expected to bring even more respect to the program he said.

As the weeklong event was centered mainly on theater, not being a drama student might be a little

disorienting for first-timers at the festival.

Music students Ninoangelo Lastimosa, Erin Forman and Tyler Nguyen were surprised to have received a nomination for their work.

“We didn’t expect any of this,” Nguyen said.

The festival came out of left field to the composers who had worked with the drama department to create live musical accompaniments he said.

“We watched rehearsals about three or four times and around the seventh time we began to play a few motifs,” Nguyen said.

Making the sound design was an organic process for the team as they eventually found a rhythm of motifs they felt comfortable with.

“We had a violin, bass and keyboard to play along within the actor’s movements,” Lastimosa said. As the actors ran their lines and blocked movements, the musical accompaniment was inspired in those moments, he said.

“We don’t get to compose for film and we don’t get collaborative opportunities often, but are looking forward to more efforts like these again,” Lastimosa said.

The music students say they are eager to work with the drama department in the future. Placing second in regionals won them a one-week intensive workshop with composer Don Childs.

Speech squad practices for national berth

By Jose Arebalo scene editor

jarebalo.theadvocate@gmail.com

Any college campus is brimming with potential and excellence, but a hallmark of true greatness is delivering it consistently.

The Contra Costa College speech team is preparing for its next competition on a national stage March 22 on the heels of an invigorating experience at a regional competition.

The Northern California Forensics Association (NCFA) Spring Championship raised the stakes for the speech team, inspiring many of their students to achieve even higher goals.

“We did really well as a team (at the regional competition) all things considered,” speech team captain Shreejal Luitel said.

The competition consisted of teams from UC Berkeley and Cal State-Chico, among

other colleges.

“Teams tend to send members there for multiple years” he said. “For us, it’s everyone’s first time this year in speech except for me,” Luitel said.

Everyone tried their best and considering their experience, the result was very positive, he said.

“We tend to look at it from an optimistic perspective,” Luitel said. “We’ve just seen high quality speeches backto-back and I feel that is only going to motivate us.”

With only a month left to prepare for their national tournament, the speech team is working on a tight schedule.

“We are adopting a new strategy with metric-driven goals for each member to see how much time they can allocate weekly to speech,” Luitel said.

The hope is, by organizing their time efficiently, the team can produce the best pieces

DENIS PEREZ / THE ADVOCATE

Speech team captain Shreejal Luitel (center) and team member Gaby Hernandez (hidden behind trophy) meet with coach Randy Carver (right) in the Speech Lab in AA-219.

possible within the month.

A healthy amount of pressure and excitement was how communications major Sydney Alex remembers her third tournament with the speech team.

“The competition just got better,” Alex said. After going to some of these events, students can see “the way in which they’ve developed,” she said.

From edits to omissions, small changes add up and create a significant impact on their performances, she said. While

still unsure whether she will attend nationals this year, the experience was still an impactful one, she said.

For some students, it was their first experience with this kind of event and the performances even moved some students to tears.

CCC student Kelana Ranganath came along with the speech team to serve as a spectator for the event.

“There are a lot of moments when you just realize the talent

that people have to put together in these pieces,” Ranganath said. The amount of detail and effort that goes into their speeches is inspiring.

“I remember sitting in the poetry (competition) and I had to look away because I would’ve just started crying,” Ranganath said.

The speech team will be holding an evening showcase, dubbed Speech Night on March 21 from 5 to 6 p.m. in the Fireside Hall.

sports

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7

■ OFF THE RECORD

efrainvaldez

GIANT PROBLEMS

S

ince the move to San Francisco in the spring of 1958, the Giants, as an organization, have experienced good and bad times.

For the last 25 years, the Giants have been able to remain one of the model professional franchises in the Bay Area.

However, this offseason has been a nightmare.

The franchise has not experienced such a bad series of offseason events since the team was nearly moved to St. Petersburg, Florida in 1992.

Giants fans seem to be surprisingly unbothered by all the moves that didn’t happen in free agency, the front office shuffle and their CEO Larry Baer’s public domestic violence incident last Friday.

It’s startling to believe that fans aren’t more paranoid about the trajectory in which this franchise is heading.

The organization has been almost perfect for decades and the fans have always expected that high standard. Now it could all be thrown away.

As an A’s fan, I constantly criticize the cheap ownership and the mediocre business practices that have plagued my favorite team for most of my life.

Yet, I still find a way to balance my criticisms with being a passionate and supportive fan at games.

I bring this up to encourage the Giants’ fan base to stop giving the franchise the benefit of the doubt, even if that means critiquing an ownership group and front office who brought your city championships.

Let’s keep it real though, the roster has seven awful contracts (pitchers Johnny Cueto and Mark Melancon are the worst).

Giant fans should be happy at their team’s attempt to go after every big free agent on the market every year.

However, to fall short in every pursuit of a superstar makes it seem like the front office is just window shopping.

It is like going to Santana Row and bringing a stack of one-hundred-dollar bills to stunt and then leaving empty-handed.

Ever since the 2014 World Series, the Giants have missed out on Zach Grienke, who went to Arizona, were outbid by the Yankees to get Giancarlo Stanton. Landing Jeff Samardzija on that monster $90 million contract was the cherry on top of the turd.

So, how will this end?

Well, the recent video of the physical confrontation between Baer and his wife Pam was a self-inflicted wound that the Giants as a franchise did not need.

This event could potentially hurt the team’s ticket sales because of the displeasure shown by women who support the team on social media over the weekend.

It’s time for the fans to stop looking for excuses because this franchise could be one of the very best in baseball.

The fans must hold this front office accountable during these hard times to ensure that their team doesn’t miss the opportunity of getting into the upper-echelon of MLB. Efrain Valdez is the sports editor of The Advocate.

Contact him at evaldez.theadvocate@gmail.com.

DENIS PEREZ/ THE ADVOCATE

Hartnell College first baseman Chris Wright fields a pickoff throw from his pitcher as Comet outfielder Mychael Jamison dives safely back to first base.

comets lack focus, lose big

Game ends after 8 innings, both teams agreed to forgo the rest of the game.

By Joel Umanzor sports editor

jumanzor.theadvocate@gmail.com

In a failed attempt to erase a sting of 12 consecutive losses, the Comets (0-13 overall) were bludgeoned by Hartnell College 21-3 in an eight-inning mercy rule shortened contest Friday at the Baseball Field.

Comet coach Brian Guinn and Panther coach Travis Babin met at home plate in between the eighth and ninth innings and agreed to forgo the final inning.

This after the Hartnell (7-7 overall) had thoroughly dominated the CCC in the final two innings of play and the home team’s focus was noticeably dwindling.

Guinn said he thinks that some players are not as locked in as they should be at every moment which is critical in the game of baseball.

“It (losing) has to do with some players who are not as focused as they should be. That affects us defensively,” Guinn said.

The Comets began Bay Valley Conference play in the first game of a three-game series

against Los Medanos College Tuesday (after presstime) at 2:30 p.m. at the Baseball Field, if the weather cooperates.

Against Hartnell, trailing 6-2 going into the sixth inning, the Comets found themselves within striking distance of the Panthers after left fielder Mychael Jamison scored a run from first base on an errant throw by the pitcher an inning earlier.

The jolt of energy from the run was enough to fuel the Comets to two quick outs in the top half of the sixth inning, but their positive play eventually stalled out.

COMETS The Comets committed an avalanche of errors and defensive positioning miscues, which allowed the Panthers to break open the PANTHERS game with eight runs.

The scoring output sank all feelings of positivity for the home team down the drain.

Jamison said, “We need to communicate more and the errors are a result of that lack of communication. There is no reason why we should have two outs on the board and not get out of that inning.”

The Comets have found themselves in this predicament for most of this season and have played host to the majority of that erratic play

3 21

with a ridiculous run differential at home of minus 59 runs.

This is a familiar predicament for the team which is feeling mounting pressure going into the BVC season.

Center fielder Darius Foster said each position group is focusing hard on the task at hand of putting together quality at-bats in light of being limited to indoor activity.

The team has been unable to get on-field practice with the seemingly never-ending winter storms hitting the area in the month of February.

Foster said, “I know that we as an outfield group have certain areas we like to work on together and it’s been unfortunate that we haven’t been able to practice outside lately.”

The Comets have been limited to taking indoor batting practice in the Gym Annex Building and it’s been a glaring deficiency for them on the field in live competition.

Jamison said using the other facilities to practice isn’t really an excuse, but it’s something that the team has been forced to juggle along with a changing schedule in the preseason.

“We haven’t been able to establish the rhythm we would like at all this season, but we have an opportunity with conference play beginning next week to have a clean slate,” Jamison said.

Council approves new logo design

By Luis Cortes advocate staff

lcortes.theadvocate@gmail.com

A new athletic department logo design was voted on and approved by the Operations Council and College Council and most importantly, will not cost Contra Costa College a dime.

The idea initially came from men’s basketball coach Miguel Johnson.

“It wasn’t really a logo, more like a court graphic for the gym,” he said.

Johnson said he got the idea from the Cleveland Cavaliers secondary logo and an old logo in the Men’s Locker Room. He sent the graphic to Kourt Graphics Sonora (a company that designs logos for custom basketball court design that has previously worked with the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings) to SPECIAL TO THE ADVOCATE help come up with a better-looking A logo change was approved by the College Council for the new athletic department facilities logo.

Coach Johnson attributed the and Gymnasium. This design was inspired by the Cleveland Cavaliers secondary logo. change of logo to modernization and aesthetic properties. “It’s about what During the process of making the new logo, the color scheme stayed people want to see — something nice when you promote,” Johnson said. the same as the former logo.

With a new logo now in place, Johnson hopes his addition contribHoward said the College Council surveyed student-athletes to utes to the history of the college. He wants to give back to CCC to help ensure that they were also on board with the new logo. Because so many the college thrive while leaving more than just in the department were on-board with the new design, the process of a positive record of wins and losses. choosing a finalist from multiple examples was eliminated.

The design gained popularity with other “Since we had a version of a logo that had been displayed promicoaches and players leaving many to ask if it nently on campus for years and was already well liked, we didn’t expand could become the official athletic department additional resources to have other versions designed,” she said. logo.

Despite the change garnering a near consensus, some believe multiDirector of Marketing and Media Design ple layers of change can damage department uniformity.

Brandy Howard said, “Since I began working Although Athletic Director John Wade subscribes to the idea that at the college in 2016, several of the coaches change isn’t a bad thing, he believes modernization leaves everything Miguel Johnson expressed a preference for the logo that had up-for-grabs regarding the colors teams use and the designing of logos. been painted on the Gym floor.”

Wade thinks the lack of uniformity between CCC sports teams will “When plans for the soon to be renovated be a result of having too many colors available, athletic facilities showed the old logo featured prominently, we decided “We have so many colors now it’s like we don’t care,” he said it was time to purse the change so that we could open the facilities with Wade believes there should be one single color scheme used by all a modern logo,” she said. sports teams on campus for uniforms, gear and promotion.

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Oiler team delivers high quality soccer season Photos by: Denis Perez For ABOVE: Richmond High School Oilers’ forward Roberto Gonzalez dribbles up the field during their 2-1 loss against Montgomery High School during the North Coast Section Final at Santa Rosa High School’s soccer field on Feb. 23.

Gonzalez, a senior, led the Oiler team in scoring during the 2018-19 season.

more photos, please visit our website: www.cccadvocate.com

LEFT: The Richmond High School Oilers hold up the Tri-County Athletic League Championship banner after beating Pinole Valley High School at De Anza High School’s soccer field on Feb. 8.

Richmond’s win qualified them to play in the North Coast Section tournament.

RIGHT: Richmond coach Rene Siles approaches his squad before the NCS quarter final home game against Concord High School Feb 16. The 2018-19 season is the last for Siles after coaching for five years.

RIGHT: The Oilers feel devastated after losing the NCS final 2-1 to Montgomery High School for the second year in a row. However, making the finals of the NCS qualified the Richmond team to play in the California Interscholastic Federation State Tournament. The Oilers lost in the second round of the CIF 3-2 against Watsonville High School at home on Feb. 28.

Richmond High School Oilers’ freshman Yeison Sontay boots a ball during the Oilers 1-0 win against Soledad High School during the first round of the California Interscholastic Federation State Tournament.