The Advocate 11-19

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

CMYK

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WEDNESDAY l 11.19.14 OUR 65TH YEAR CONTRA COSTA COLLEGE SAN PABLO, CALIF.

Coach Alonzo Carter (center) points toward their conference banner in the stands after the Comets’ 5110 win over San Jose City College at Comet Stadium on Saturday.

The win clinched the team’s third consecutive conference championship.

QING HUANG / THE ADVOCATE

Squad plays in memory of fallen coach, athletic mentor

BY Robert Clinton SPORTS EDITOR

rclinton.theadvocate@gmail.com

A 24-year-old former local football standout and current Contra Costa College football team defensive line coach Darryl Blackmon died as a result of an Blackmon automobile accident on a freeway at 4:30 a.m. on Nov. 1 in Mill Valley.

According to family, Blackmon fell asleep returning from his night job while traveling north on US 101. His Chrysler sedan hit a guardrail north of the Seminary Drive off-ramp.

The controversial type of guardrail involved is banned in over 30 states.

Investigations, however, have not determined if the barrier in question was the major factor involved in the severity of the crash because details surrounding his death have not been released by the Marin County Coroner’s Office.

Blackmon was born on Jan. 31, 1990.

He was raised in Oakland, California and was a student at Berkeley High School (BHS) when his football life SEE BLACKMON, PAGE 4

BITTERSWEET CHAMPIONSHIP

COMETS

51 10 JAGUARS

Despite tears, team earns its third consecutive bowl game, seeks to avenge defeat last season

BY Robert Clinton SPORTS EDITOR

rclinton.theadvocate@gmail.com

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layers on the Contra Costa College football team visited with the family of 24year old defensive line coach Darryl Blackmon at his funeral in Berkeley on Wednesday.

Blackmon died in a single-car accident in Mill Valley, in the early morning hours of Nov. 1 on his way home from work.

Having dedicated the season to Blackmon, the team entered Comet Stadium Saturday with one thing on its mind — a Pacific 7 championship.

With heavy hearts and a clear mission before them, the Comets scored the

final 44 points of the game, and held their opponent scoreless for the final three quarters, en route to a blowout victory over San Jose City College 51-10, wrapping up the regular season (6-0 in the Pacific 7 and 9-1 overall) and clinching their third straight bowl berth.

“Wednesday was tough. It didn’t just affect the defensive line,” offensive lineman Gabriel Davis said. “(Blackmon) was teaching us to be men, he helped all of us — so we could take our game to the next level.”

After a back and forth first quarter the Comet defense had no problem shutting down the Jaguars feckless

BY THE NUMBERS Year

Record

Record

2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004

9-1 7-4 8-3 6-4 4-6 1-9 0-10 2-8 4-6 4-6 2-8

Carter Carter Carter Carter Johnson McDermott McDermott McDermott McDermott McDermott McDermott

SEE CHAMPIONS, PAGE 7

FTES METRIC Speech and debate members showcase oratory talents DETERMINES APPORTIONED FUNDING intends

Statewide education allocations examined

BY Cody McFarland ASSOCIATE EDITOR

cmcfarland.theadvocate@gmail.com

The Full-Time Equivalent Student workload measure used by the state to apportion funding to California’s public colleges is largely unknown by students, let alone understood.

In an anonymous survey conducted by The Advocate on Monday, of the 54 Contra Costa College students polled, zero students definitively knew what one FTES is, 52 students had never heard the term and two students were familiar with the term, but did not know what it represents.

In its simplest breakdown, one FTES SEE FTES, PAGE 4

RHODES GALLERY ART DISPLAYED

potential speech students

PHOTO EDITOR

currutia.theadvocate@gmail.com

The topics and ideas presented by the speech and debate team piqued the interest of attendees during the annual Student Speaker Showcase at the Knox Center Thursday.

The fine and media arts and drama departments were incorporated in the event, showing student-made digital film shorts and revealing the technical aspects of theater and stage direction.

A preview scene of the upcoming play “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf ” was also performed by the cast and introduced by the director, adjunct professor Terence Ivory.

Interim speech and debate team director John Perez gave a welcoming address alongside speech department Chairperson Sherry Diestler and adjunct speech professor Hans Craycraft.

Perez said the speech department wants students to join and participate on the speech and debate team, stating that since many attendees were there for extra credit, they were unlikely

CHRISTIAN URRUTIA / THE ADVOCATE

to know Contra Costa College has a forensics course and team.

It also provided for Perez, as an instructor, a chance to show his students what would be on the final in his forensics class — a parliamentary debate.

“For my first event, it was a huge success; almost half of my students showed. It was a great opportunity to show our ability as a forensics team,” Perez said.

Richmond resident Janice Sharpe expected a standard debate coming into the showcase, but was pleased with the

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

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to lure

BY Christian Urrutia

varied acts she saw. Sharpe said she appreciated learning what she did about the technical side of theater, such as stage positions and terminology, as performed by the Drama 106 students.

Communications major and speech and debate team member DéAlaundria Gardner said the original poems she performed during her spoken word segment touched on subjects she felt particularly passionate about.

SEE SPEAKERS, PAGE 4

CMYK

Event

Cast members from the drama department perform a scene from an upcoming play during the Student Speaker Showcase in the Knox Center on Thursday.

CMYK

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Potter Stewart U.S. Supreme Court justice, 1978 Lorenzo Morotti editor-in-chief

Police Services building in dire need of seismic retrofit

George Morin art director

Roxana Amparo news editor Jared Amdahl Van Ly opinion editors Robert Clinton Jose Jimenez sports editors Mike Thomas scene editor Brian Boyle spotlight editor Qing Huang Christian Urrutia photo editors Janae Harris Cody Casares assistant photo editors Paul DeBolt faculty adviser Staff writers Jared Amdahl Salvador Godoy Krysta Gonzalez Florinda Hershey Mickalea Manuel Marlene Rivas Jason Sykes Manning Peterson Mark Wassberg Sean Whatley Staff photographers Jordan Khoo Staff illustrators Mayra Garcia Honors ACP National Newspaper Pacemaker Award 1990, 1994, 1997,1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011 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 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: accentadvocate@ 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.

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Editorial DETERIORATING FOUNDATIONS

Quotable “If the constitutional protection of a free press means anything, it means that the government cannot take it upon itself to decide what a newspaper may and may not publish.”

Cody McFarland Rodney Woodson associate editors

opinion

Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2014 Vol. 102, No. 9

WWW.CCCADVOCATE.COM

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olice officers work to protect and serve the community and at a college campus that mission is no different.

But without an adequately sized or seismically stable base of operations, that mission becomes increasingly difficult.

At Contra Costa College, Police Services works out of a portable that it has shared with Buildings and Grounds for about a decade.

While talks of building Police Services its own structure on campus have just begun between administrators at CCC and the district, the project is only in the planning and design phase. The start and completion dates of the project are unknown.

What is known is the current building was erected in 1967 and does not adhere to the Alquist–Priolo Zoning Act of 1972, despite being in proximity of a major active fault line — the Hayward Fault.

The zoning act states that any public institution building located on or within 2,000 feet from a fault must be seismically retrofitted or condemned.

According to a 2012 Kleinfelder, Inc. seismic map, the Hayward Fault dissects CCC starting at the Bus Transfer Center through Lot 1 and Lot 5 before crossing Castro Road into the Parking Annex.

Thornton Tomasetti, Inc. created a Seismic Risk Mitigation Implementation Plan Report for CCC in 2012, which assessed structural inefficiencies of buildings on campus. The report scaled the Maintenance and Receiving Building, where Police Services currently resides, at seismic risk level IV out of VII. This puts the building in the “questionable” category and recommends that it be demolished.

In the event of a major earthquake, Police Services may lose its current headquarters altogether. Also considering student police aides work within the facility, it is absolutely necessary that Police Services receive a state-of-the-art building up to modern seismic codes.

The Advocate supports administration and the district undertaking this vital project. But before we applaud them, we must ask why was such a project not dealt it with earlier?

A Police Services building would have fared well in a centralized location on campus when considering issues of access and response time.

After touring the Police Services building with Lt. Jose Oliveira last month, The Advocate believes a new facility is not only necessary for student and officer safety, but to properly accommodate Police Services’ entire operation.

For now, the facility is cramped, built on shaky ground, reliant on overflow storage and sub-par for efficient police business.

Considering the enormous threat the Hayward Fault poses, the district needs to expedite the process of providing a safe and spacious work environment for its officers before the next big one hits.

LORENZO MOROTTI / THE ADVOCATE

N PROMISCUITY

Multiple partners breeds lustful regret M

ultiple bedroom partners can be fun for most guys, and for a lot of men it is a way of life. That was my case back in the early 2000s. Yes, much fun was had by all, but as time went on, that pleasure turned to real-world pain.

It was a pain for those I juggled with my seemingly infinite lust, and those battling for a true piece of my love that ultimately fell short, blocked by the wall my lies had created.

Being a player is all fun and games. But as for me, I am happy to be retired.

In 2004 my initial attempts to attract one particular woman, while sitting on the driver’s side of my bucket Honda as I drove the young lady home, were to no avail.

Yet, about a month later, as I pulled up to our shared place of employment in a shiny-red Ford Mustang, the same woman who turned me down, jogged toward me confessing of a dream she had about me the previous evening — an interesting coincidence.

I knew she just liked the car, but I really did not care. Had I known what was to follow after our numbers had been exchanged, alternatives to exploring our mental and physical desires would have been pondered.

although it was the guy I had one point caught her cheating on me with. Now I struggle at times to keep my head clear, and disagreements to a minimum, which is easy since she blocked me from calling all of her phones.

I don’t know why people cheat. I cheated because it Foregoing any logical was easy and I was selfish. thought processes, I dove During the two-year into the situation head-on, span between our break-up disregarding her shallow and the birth of our son I view of life and my girlattempted to be Richmond, friend at the time.

California’s Hugh Hefner.

My girlfriend ended Either shiny red muscle up catching me and I was cars are aphrodisiacs or I dumped soon after.

We still saw one another had a way with lowering women’s ambitions. continually however, ultiParties almost every mately leading to the birth other day, coupled with of my son in 2006.

Though I stopped seeing a good job and a healthy Mustang girl on the side, I appetite for alcohol, led continued my womanizing me into bed with more beautiful women than I can ways.

And though I remained remember.

I remember days of in my son’s life, the damwaking up and putting on age done to his mother’s sunglasses and staggering emotional state has yet to down the stairs of wherbe reversed or eased, and ever I may have turned up the relationship between my son and I teeters in the that night.

But if it meant the loss balance.

She is now married and of my memories of lust in has a new child, yet, she is exchange for being able still haunted by my infidel- to call my son whenever I wanted to, I would ask for ity, which affects the way a lobotomy. we deal with one another regarding little Rodney.

Rodney Woodson is She decided to move to Tacoma, Washington when an associate editor of The Advocate. Contact him at he was just 3 years old. rwoodson.theadvocate@ She had found somegmail.com. one new. I did not object,

rodneywoodson

CampusComment Did you vote in the midterm election on Nov. 4?

“No, I didn’t know. I wasn’t informed.”

Octavious Webster

“I didn’t know I had to.”

Leslie Chavarria health

business

“No, because I was very busy with other stuff going on and I was not informed.”

“I did because it was something I felt I had to do as a sense of obligation.”

“My birthday was recently and I just turned 18. It was too late to register.”

Roberto Lopez

Gabriel Gonzalez

Joanna Ramirez

radiology

history

chemistry

“I’m new (to the area) and didn’t know of the elections, so I didn’t vote. But I would have voted if I was aware.”

Angela Lotakoon undecided

ROXANA AMPARO, MAYRA GARCIA, AND JORDAN KHOO / THE ADVOCATE

forum N RICHMOND

markwassberg CITY COUNCIL ACTION HALTS POSITIVE PROGRESS

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ig money in politics — right or wrong?

Did Chevron really try to buy the 2014 election in Richmond?

Chevron was a few days away from modernizing its Richmond Refinery in 2008, to make it safe for the community and the environment in compliance with the Environmental Protection Agency’s standards.

The environmentalist liberal majority on the Richmond City Council claimed that Chevron was violating environmental laws and was unsafe for the surrounding community. Lawsuits began flying through the courts, stopping the project and losing Richmond 1,000 of good paying jobs, as well as losing the city’s economy millions of dollars.

In desperation Chevron spent $3 million to endorse its preferred candidates for City Council, in order to stop the gridlock on the council and allow for the upgrade of the refinery.

The Richmond City Council is known for its Jerry Springer-like quality during council meetings. Mayor Gayle McLaughlin had to police escort public speakers from the chambers, thus violating their constitutional rights to free speech.

She called a recess to stop a meeting and said, “I have the right to run this council my way.” Audience members booed and even Councilman Tom Butt was outraged enough to point his finger in the mayor’s face and yell at her about her inability to run a meeting.

McLaughlin, Vice Mayor Jovanka Beckles and Councilman-elect Eduardo Martinez, all part of the liberal majority on the council, are backed by the anarchist organization the Richmond Progressive Alliance.

The RPA is responsible for trying to implement unconstitutional policies in Richmond that would never hold up on a federal level — the soda tax, the use of eminent domain to protest fair market values on homes, the issuing of municipal I.D. cards without background checks to those entering the country illegally and banning the box on job applications, thus jeopardizing public safety in the workplace.

In 2007 a crime wave hit Richmond and the Richmond Police Department conducted checkpoints to arrest parole violators. It just so happened that persons who immigrated to the country illegally were stopped at the checkpoints and had their vehicles towed away for driving without license and insurance.

After the Latino community complained, McLaughlin and former council member John Marquez stopped the checkpoints. Richmond had 47 homicides that year.

Richmond’s population is more than 100,000. Only 20,000 residents voted in the recent election — the lowest turnout ever. Most of the votes went to the RPA-backed candidates and put them back in office.

The RPA in government will implement its own laws, not the constitutional laws of the United States.

Mark Wassberg is a staff writer for The Advocate.

Contact him at mwassberg. theadvocate@gmail.com.

WWW.CCCADVOCATE.COM 11.19.2014 l WEDNESDAY l THE ADVOCATE

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N INCLUSION

People are not ‘illegal’ or ‘aliens’ A

ccording to Dictionary.com, the definition of the word “alien” is no longer just a creature from outer space, but it is also actually “a resident born in or belonging in another country who has not acquired citizenship by naturalization; a foreigner.”

Some people will use the word almost over-willingly, not understanding the effect it can have on people.

At times alien is used as if the word does not have a burdening, almost-oppressing connotation attached to it — which it does.

When hearing the word alien, it brings to mind a green creature from outer space, with big black eyes, slimy fingers and a slender body.

Lacking human-like characteristics, the word robs undocumented families of the dignity that is supposed to be given to all in a free society.

It is a reminder that this is not their country, that they do not belong here because

To say that a person is illegal is to say they are unlawful by way of their very existence, even if no crime was ever committed.

In that case, why not call rapists and murderers “illegals” as well?

A large segment of society has embraced the stereotype that if someone is undocuof their place of birth, mented, they will steal jobs because of their lack of a and commit violent crimes, document. and words such as alien and It is often used without illegals only solidify those realizing the deep-rooted paradigms. history of undocumented The word criminalise the people in this country and innocent and makes them how the power of the word appear as if working to create discredits their contribua better life for their family tions.

Yes, many people emigrate is the equivalent to capital offenses. from their place of origin, Typically, people choose but they do it in search of to use the word or words better opportunities, and a “illegal,” “illegal alien,” “illebetter life for their families. gal immigrant” to refer to The word illegal means a undocumented people. person is unlawful, when in Having been born in the reality, the action of commitUS, these people have no ting a crime is unlawful. actual attachment to the It is illegal to kill, rape or drive while intoxicated. Does word.

And they tend to use the that mean it is right to call word to rally people of a people who commit those similar mind-set. crimes illegal?

roxanaamparo

One such person is antiillegal immigration proponent and former politician Tom Tancredo who opposes legislation such as the DREAM Act, which enables undocumented students to gain permanent residency through education or military service.

Anti-DREAMers believe undocumented people are taking educational opportunities from American students and hinder those trying to get tuition assistance.

When it implies that my hard work, and the hard work of millions of undocumented people should be less than appreciated, I take offense.

It is important to choose our words wisely. For some, the word illegal may not mean anything, but for others it is a painful reminder that some people do not want them in this country.

Roxana Amparo is the news editor of The Advocate.

Contact her at ramparo. theadvocate@gmail.com.

BARGAIN SHOPPING over holiday values percent in a year-over-year ratio at $7.4 billion. That accounts for more than 10 percent of retailers’ total holiday earnings. 248.7 shoppers were in stores and online over Thanksgiving weekend in 2013, up .5 percent over the previous year, listed by the NRF. The same statistic shows 64 percent of holiday shoppers went out on

BY Christian Urrutia PHOTO EDITOR Thanksgiving Day or visited stores by currutia.theadvocate@gmail.com 10 a.m. on Black Friday.

The average amount of spending etail companies now brace their done by consumers was calculated employees for the advent of at $407, down 4 percent from the the holiday season right after previous year. Forty-three percent of Halloween, beginning in November. millennial consumers, that is 18- to Targeted advertising reminds us 34-year-old shoppers, shopped on that the onslaught of early morning Thanksgiving Day, up from 36 percent sales is steadily approaching once in 2012. Millennial shoppers spent again on Black Friday and Cyber 13 percent more than average adult Monday and we, as consumers, must ready ourselves if we want to reap the holiday shoppers over Thanksgiving weekend. Also the most conceited cheap rewards.

Within recent years, there is a trend age group, 83 percent of millennials shopped for themselves during that among younger consumers to do at same period. least some shopping on the busiest But more interestingly, mobile weekend of the year — Thanksgiving devices are increasingly getting a weekend. And, as long as consumbigger piece of the pie in terms of ers keep feeding the economic suravenues to conduct holiday spending plus that is Black Friday and Cyber when choosing where to buy.

Monday, there will be no cease to it.

Results from an analysis of According to the National Retail retail paid search advertising over Federation, the world’s largest retail Thanksgiving and Black Friday found trade association, 44.8 million consumers shopped on Thanksgiving Day that phones and tablets accounted for nearly 40 percent of ad spendand 92.1 million people shopped on ing. Additionally, phones and tablets Black Friday in 2013. accounted for 44 Sales from stores and websites hit percent of $57.4 billion, despite being down all paid 2.9 percent from 2012 according to a market research article by Giselle Abramovich, senior and strategic editor for CMO.com, a digital marketing research firm owned by computer software company Adobe Systems.

Cyber Monday sales reached $2.29 billion, up 16 percent in a year-overyear basis.

Abramovich goes on to state that total online sales during the 2013 Thanksgiving weekend are up 26

Time spent with family denoted in favor of deals

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MAYRA GARCIA / THE ADVOCATE

search clicks.

Compared to Thanksgiving 2012, PayPal saw a 91 percent increase in shopping through PayPal mobile around the world. The eBay Enterprise, meanwhile, saw usage and orders grow nearly 130 percent and 127 percent, respectively.

PayPal also revealed shoppers in the U.S. mainly took to their mobile devices to shop throughout the day, according to CMO.com.

A study that examined mobile shopping activity across 20 retailers during Thanksgiving and Black Friday found that total mobile visits increased by 93 percent and overall mobile transactions increased 219 percent. Total revenue from mobile transactions increased by 368 percent.

Reflecting the mobile and online sales, traditional brick-and-mortar businesses such as Macy’s, J.C. Penney, Best Buy, Kohl’s, Sears and Target have moved operating hours up to 5 or 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving, with Kmart staying open for 42 hours straight, according to a press release issued Nov. 3 by the company.

Doors will open at 6 a.m. and continue to stay open nearly two days, carrying on the idea of the “War on Thanksgiving” where low wage employees have to work during Thanksgiving holiday hours.

The spending spree mentality starts early. Shareen Pathak, brands editor of Digiday.com, said Nielsen’s 2014 holiday sales indicate about a quarter of consumers have already begun shopping for the holidays.

Although women are the ones who tend to do the early shopping, 70 percent of men plan to wait, showing that consumer confidence is slowly picking up steam from the 2008 recession.

Consumers should probably wait until the weekend is over, as those who purchased on Cyber Monday in 2013 consisted of 60 percent of overall shoppers, as reported by the NRF in a Prosper Insights and Analytics graphed listed on NRF’s foundation website.

Now it falls on consumers to decide where and through what avenues to shop. Decide wisely and, if compelled to engage in the madness that is Black Friday, watch out for the stampedes of dealhungry shoppers

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WWW.CCCADVOCATE.COM 11.19.2014 l WEDNESDAY l THE ADVOCATE

Follow The Advocate

POLICE RELOCATION IN EARLY STAGES

BY Lorenzo Morotti EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Receive breaking news and sports updates by following The Advocate on Twitter and Facebook. twitter.com/accentadvocate facebook.com/accentadvocate

Newsline Q registration

LAST DAY TO DROP CLASSES NEARS The last day for students to drop a course in person at Admissions and Records with a “W” is Thursday.

Students will be able to withdraw from courses using WebAdvisor with a “W” until Saturday.

For more information about important dates visit the college website at www.contracosta.edu.

Q festival

RICHMOND YOUTH HOST ‘GREEN’ EVENT The Craneway Pavilion will host the Greening Richmond Together Festival on Saturday from noon until 8 p.m.

Groundwork Richmond’s Youth Green Team is celebrating the community, youth and the environment with music, food, art and fun activities for the community.

Exhibits about the greening of Richmond will be displayed.

The event is free and anyone can attend.The event will feature music from the Pacific Mambo Orchestra and Susie Sheridan, among others.

It is sponsored by Nutiva Nourish Foundation, Rosie the Riveter Homefront National Park, Richmond Chamber of Commerce and Mechanics Bank.

For more information contact 510-847-5031.

Q opportunity

MIDDLE SCHOOLERS TO VISIT CAMPUS Students from Helms Middle School will be visiting Contra Costa College to learn about programs offered and future opportunities on Friday at 9 a.m.

One hundred and fifty students will get the chance to tour the campus and learn about the different courses and opportunities that the college has to offer.

CrimeWatch Sunday, Oct. 26: An officer conducted a traffic stop and it was determined the driver’s license was never issued.

The driver was cited and the vehicle was not towed.

Tuesday, Oct. 28: A student caused a disturbance at the Financial Aid counter. The student then returned and took a picture of the area.

Wednesday, Oct. 29: An officer conducted a traffic stop and it was determined the passenger had a warrant for his arrest.

Saturday, Nov. 1: A football player was injured on the field. He was transported to the hospital.

Monday, Nov. 3: An officer responded to an ongoing noise complaint outside of the Applied Arts Building.

Wednesday, Nov. 5: A staff member was contacted after causing a disturbance and was found to be intoxicated. He was released to his wife and not allowed to return to work as it would not have been safe for him to continue working.

Thursday, Nov. 6: A student accused her ex-boyriend of harassing her. The investigation determined there was no evidence to substantiate the story.

Sunday, Nov. 9: An unknown suspect stole a student’s backpack and ran off.

— Roxana Amparo & George Morin

lmorotti.theadvocate@gmail.com

Police Services will have a permanent facility on campus instead of the portable it has used to store equipment, dispatch officers and detain campus criminals since 2005.

Contra Costa Community College District Facilities and Projects Manager Ray Pyle said the first meeting to discuss the rough design, budget and location of the new Police Services Building was held at Contra Costa College on Oct. 1.

Chief of Police Services Charles Gibson said CCC and Los Medanos College are the two colleges in the district that are overdue for new Police Services facilities.

District Chancellor Helen Benjamin said she has been involved in pushing the project at the district level since Gibson began reporting to her two years ago. Dr. Benjamin said the district was able to funnel funding toward the project in June 2014.

Pyle said the new facilities are still in the early stages of design and the project does not have a construction start date.

He said, however, the project has been allocated $4 million in funding from Measure E, a $360

million bond to be used for priority infrastructure projects, which will be split between LMC and CCC. Pyle said he met with Police Services Lt. Jose Oliveira, Gibson and CCC President Denise Noldon to decide where the possible site of the Police Services Building should be located on campus.

At the meeting, Dr. Noldon said they decided that the best place for a new facility is where the Tennis Courts are currently located, adjacent to Comet Stadium.

Noldon said, “No formal decision was made. We are in preliminary discussions about what our interests are, but if we put the project on the table early we can meet as many of those interests as possible.

“We want (the new Police Services facility) to be in a location where it provides easy access for officers and students at a centralized location on campus,” she said.

Gibson said visibility and quick access to the rest of the campus were two major factors in deciding where to place the new facility.

He said, “Because it is located in the back of the campus, most (students) don’t know it exists.”

Police Services used to be more centralized on campus when it

was located in the now demolished Student Activities Building, Oliveira said.

Thornton Thomasetti, Inc., a design, investigation and analysis consultant hired by the district in 2010, measured the total assigned space in the portable co-habited

by Police Services and Buildings and Grounds at 3,035 square feet.

Building and Grounds Manager Bruce King and staff have shared a portable with Police Services since it was relocated from behind the SA building. The portable was built in 1967.

King said Police Services has about 1,560 square feet of work and storage space. Gibson said in order for the officers to do their jobs more efficiently they would need at least 2,000 square feet.

Oliveira said while the proposed location of the facility at the Tennis Courts hopes to deter crime near the Bus Transfer Center, which has a history of being a hot spot for robberies and assaults, the campus will be more safe generally because officers will have a better work environment.

“The real benefit would be the extra work space to meet the needs of employees to carry out their mission,” Oliveira said.

After touring all three existing facilities, including the new Diablo Valley College Police Services

Building, Benjamin said it became obvious that LMC and CCC are in dire need of new facilities.

She said the workspace provided to officers in the current Police Services portable is “cramped” and hinders being able to do their jobs properly.

Oliveira agrees with Benjamin.

He said the biggest drawback of the current Police Services portable is the lack of space.

In addition, the current portable Police Services building only has one holding cell that can detain up to three criminals at once on a single bench and is without an interview room.

The current portable also lacks a rest room for detainees or officers’ use. Oliveira said, “If (detainees) have to use the (restroom), we have to parade them through the hallways of the Applied Arts Building and that can be a shady situation.”

Gibson said having a new facility will also boost the morale of officers who patrol the campus daily.

“Instead of (the officers) thinking another day at the dungeon, they will be able to go to this new facility and feel good about their job,” Gibson said. “But it’s a challenge constructing any building at CCC because of the earthquake fault.”

BLACKMON | Defensive line coach dies in accident Continued from Page 1 began to take shape.

CCC’s current football coach, Alonzo Carter, was the varsity BHS football coach when Blackmon joined the team as a sophomore in 2006.

Carter said he re-introduced Blackmon to the game of football.

He said he was able to watch his passion and energy fuel his way to playing Division 1 football at Kansas State University.

“I’ve known (Blackmon) since he was 16 years old when I began coaching (football) at Berkeley High,” he said.

“His mom was involved and helped solidify his decision to continue playing football. Over the

years myself, my wife and his mom all became close, like extended family.”

Blackmon’s first collegiate stop was at City College of San Francisco. He then transferred to Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri where he finished his football scholarship. At 24, however, the 6-foot-7 defensive lineman’s career was far from over.

Carter said he knew that his former player’s experience, fresh ideas, and un-containable energy would be perfect to fill a recently vacated position on the Comet’s coaching staff.

“He always pushed us,” CCC defensive lineman Chibu Onyekwu said. “Coach Blackmon never let us look at all of the work involved

with playing football as punishment — he helped us see it as a way out.”

Many on the Comet coaching staff said Blackmon was as thorough during practice as he was productive, motivating CCC’s defensive linesmen to continually strive for excellence.

Despite dedicating most of his time to coaching, Blackmon had not given up his dream of playing in the National Football League.

Carter said Blackmon was still preparing for the next Pro Try-Out Day. Blackmon, Carter said, is still dedicated to his dream of reaching the NFL as he recently tore his labrum (the main joint in his shoulder) while training for an

open try-out for the San Francisco 49ers.

Carter said Blackmon did this all while he still thought of his academic future.

He said he was working to attain his master’s degree and give his aspiration of building a coaching career a solid foundation.

“It’s good to have a young aggressive coach,” CCC defensive lineman Deonte Reynolds said. “(Blackmon) knew a lot of techniques, definitely a help. He just knew the game (of football).”

Carter said Blackmon was an all around good person. He said his infectious smile and exuberant personality will be missed at practice and around the campus.

SHOWCASE | Speakers convey information, culture Continued from Page 1 “The first poem focuses on how men use masculinity to overtake women, stages of maturity that are experienced with someone else, overcoming a façade of false male empowerment and being able to take in someone for who they are,” Gardner said.

She said the second one is about being at war with one’s self, adding that she stuck to topics people can relate to.

Sociology major Jordan Webster said he found the event enjoyable, particularly the poetry-speaking segment featuring “For Colored Girls” cast member Bridgett Lott, who was able to convey the pain and emotion behind the poem’s heartfelt message.

Webster said impromptu speaker Nick Delgado was also impressive, due to his strong impromptu segment where he had to quickly improvise a speech.

“My hat’s off to him,” Webster said.

“Everything was off the top of his head.”

Fellow student Antonio Rojas-Cortes agreed.

Rojas-Cortes said, “(Delgado) was able to come up with a speech in a super short time and I didn’t realize how creative overall the entire speech and debate team is until this event.”

Digital film shorts were included in the schedule with other typical speech segments, such spoken word, informative speaking, impromptu speaking, oral interpretation of literature and a concluding parliamentary debate demonstration.

The shorts included quick, non sequitur videos and a short film entitled “School Scramble,” directed by fine and media arts student Sakeema Payne, who introduced the shorts.

Middle College High School freshmen

Samuel Solis and Kyra Abrams thought the oral interpretation of literature by Diamonique Spain was most interesting due to the fictional character development and the simultaneous real-life counterpart, both commentating on sexual advances on women.

Abrams also said the parliamentary debate, which concerned college tuition with the antigovernment side opposing free tuition and the pro-government side advocating free education, was effective in demonstrating convincing arguments.

“The (pro-government) side was convincing when they talked about certain things and I thought they had a strong argument using the president as one of their current examples,” she said.

Perez said, “We showed students what a debate looks like and how the debate structure works.”

FTES | Interpreting full-time equivalent model Continued from Page 1 is the equivalent of one student enrolled in 15 semester units, or multiple students enrolled in an accumulated 15 semester units.

This is not a head count system, considering multiple students may represent just one FTES. In actuality, one FTES is equivalent to 525 hours of student instruction annually.

“The FTES formula is actually much more complex, but we simplify by stating that a Full-Time Equivalent Student is one student enrolled in 15 units per term over two semesters,” district Executive Vice Chancellor of Education and Technology Mojdeh Mehdizadeh said.

“The 15 units come into play based on the state’s funding formula of 525 hours of instruction per year equating to full-time.

Since we are on a semester system of 17.5 weeks, 30 hours over two semesters multiplied by 17.5 weeks equals 525 hours.”

For students, it is widely known that being enrolled in 12 or more units of course sections is what constitutes full-time status. Such

status allows students certain benefits, such as financial aid eligibility or agency with an athletic team on campus.

So why is one FTES equivalent to 15 units instead of 12 units, if that is the baseline for students to attain full-time status?

Administrator of Fiscal Policy at the State Chancellor’s Office Diane Brady said, “For some programs and purposes, 12 units is considered a full-time load. However, if we consider that it normally takes 60 units for an associate’s degree, and 120 for a bachelor’s degree, it is felt that a normal load would be 30 units in a year or 15 per semester to graduate in four years.”

Historically, community colleges are known as two-year institutions and universities as four-years.

Though the reality of when students actually transfer or graduate may be considerably longer, this is what is expected by the state.

Mehdizadeh said, “Certainly from a financial perspective, if 24 hours (12 per term over two terms) or 420 hours per year equated to one FTES, and the apportionment dollar amount per FTES remained the same, it would be a nice ben-

efit to every college. Of course that would mean the state’s spending for community colleges would need to increase substantially.”

The dollar amount currently apportioned to public colleges in California per resident FTES is $4,676. While districts are required to report all resident and nonresident FTES to the state, only resident FTES can be claimed for state apportionment.

District Associate Vice Chancellor Chief Financial Officer Jonah Nicholas said that the district budgeted for 28,367 resident FTES this year. If achieved, that would result in a $132,644,092 apportionment.

The district also receives an additional $13,042,419 in apportionment revenue as a base allocation. Base allocations are flat dollar amounts that colleges and state approved centers receive based on size, Nicholas said.

The district receives about 51 percent of its FTES revenue from local property taxes, approximately $73.4 million. Another 11.4 percent comes from enrollment fees, approximately $16.5 million.

The remaining 37.6 percent comes

from state apportionment, approximately $54.3 million, he said.

Of California’s 72 community college districts, only six are considered “basic aid” or “excess tax” districts, meaning that property values in these districts are so high that tax revenues and student fees alone cover the cost of operation and no apportionment from the state general fund is required.

“The (Contra Costa Community College) district is not close to basic aid status,” Nicholas said.

Under state law, a minimum of 40 percent of California’s general fund is mandated to go toward education. Historically, the actual amount allocated to education exceeds the minimum at roughly 50 to 60 percent of the general fund.

While the University of California and California State University systems set their own tuition costs, the state Legislature is responsible for setting community college enrollment fees.

“In some ways (the community college system) is like K-12 and in some ways it is like university,” Brady said. “It is kind of a weird hybrid of both systems.”

campus beat

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Election underway for top position United Faculty president steps down after one term

BY Brian Boyle SPOTLIGHT EDITOR

bboyle.theadvocate@gmail.com

The position of United Faculty union president is currently up for election.

Glenn Appell, the current UF president, has stepped down after his first term in the president’s seat, though it has been his 12th year on the UF Executive Board.

“Glenn has done a terrific job,” English professor and UF Vice President for Contra Costa College Jeffrey Michels said. “Being president is a lot of work, but Glenn was very even-tempered at the board and very aggressive at the state level.”

Michels said he considered it a shame that Appell chose to only serve a single term as union president.

“He (Appell) really focused on building a very effective and strong leadership team, and that’s what we have now,” Michels said.

Appell was unavailable for comment as of press time Tuesday.

The election for a new union president started on Nov. 11 and will end on

Nov. 25. An electronic ballot has been sent out to all UF members.

Initially the race was between Sylvester Henderson, Marco Godinez and Donna Wapner, but Godinez has since dropped out of the race.

Henderson has been a professor for 30 years, and over 20 of those years have been at Los Medanos College. Wapner was a faculty member at Diablo Valley College for 22 years, and has spent the last eight years working for the union in numerous roles.

“I’ve spent almost the last decade learning everything union,” Wapner said.

Henderson was not available for comment as of press time.

Michels said this election offered faculty members a very serious choice.

“This election is really about change,” Michels said. “A vote for Donna (Wapner) is a vote of confidence in the direction the union has been headed, and a vote for Sylvester (Henderson) is a vote for change.”

In his President’s Message portion of the union’s Table Talk newsletter,

Appell also urged union members to elect Wapner.

Michels said he would return to serve as CCC’s union vice president if Wapner was elected, but not if Henderson won the election.

Michels said it was nothing personal, but because Wapner has worked for the union for a long time, she has a realistic idea of what the level of work and dedication would be required of her if she won.

“Henderson has never worked for the union. He’s an outsider, and I’ve nothing against him, I just take union work very personally and I know I have a hard time delegating,” Michels said.

Henderson is currently the music department chairperson at LMC, and he is also currently serving as LMC’s Academic Senate President.

In his candidate statement, Henderson stressed that he will represent the entire district’s faculty with a level of commitment and energy that he has demonstrated in his positions at LMC. Henderson wrote that the issues fac-

ing the union in the coming years are those of respect, and he vowed to fight for fair contractual language and appropriate compensation packages in regard to more respectful treatment of college faculty.

The UF is an independent collective bargaining unit, a union, that is not associated with the much larger college faculty unions in California.

The issues that the faculty face in the coming years are numerous, according to Wapner and Michels.

“The costs of medical benefits and pensions has increased,” Michels said.

“But there hasn’t been any increase in funding for those. A lot of the local problems we have in the district are because we are underfunded.”

Wapner echoed this sentiment. She said, “We are going to have a lot of people retiring in the coming years. We need to find the funding for pensions and benefits now, and not when this ‘gray wave’ hits.”

Respect and dignity were also issues Wapner, like Henderson, said are facing the union.

VOTERS ELECT OLD FACES, NEW TRUSTEE TO BOARD

BY LORENZO MOROTTI EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

History professor Manu Ampim explains his book “The Death of the Willie Lynch Speech” during the annual Author Talk in the Library and Learning Resource Center on Nov. 5.

lmorotti.theadvocate@gmail.com

GEORGE MORIN / THE ADVOCATE

Campus historian dispells myths surrounding slavery Forgery revealed through confession from source

BY Mayra Garcia STAFF ILLUSTRATOR

rmgarcias.theadvocate@gmail.com

To explain and promote his book “The Death of The Willie Lynch Speech,” history professor Manu Ampim further explained his process of exposing “the myth.”

Students and faculty gathered in the Library on Nov. 5, to get a sense of the importance in professor Ampim’s piece. The book was published in 2013.

The Willie Lynch speech is a document that briefly advises slave masters on how to control black people, Ampim said. “The speech is a myth,” he said. Through “primary research” — first hand research or going directly to a source for information, Ampim said he had been presented with a confession letter.

The confession of the alleged forger of the Willie Lynch speech, novelist Dr. Kwabena Faheem Ashanti, was all Ampim needed to fully support the finding in his research.

Professor Ampim explained the process he took in order to come out with “the truth,” in this book.

When he mentioned anti-slavery activists and pro-slavery activists, he said none mentioned the Willie

Lynch speech.

In order to further convey his point, he brought out other findings. There had been no evidence of the speech until the 20th century, he said In the process of presenting his case, he wrote an essay explaining the reasons why the speech was a myth. The arising questions for clarification and feedback he received enabled him to write a second response essay, which lead to a third.

The speech first became known in 1993, after St. Louis, Missouri librarian Anne Taylor received a document from an anonymous source, Ampin said. The document was then published in the “St. Louis Black Page’s,” ninth edition.

“Documents do not just appear that way,” he said.

One good reason why the document made no sense was because of references that were made and not made, Ampim said.

He pointed out that there had been no specific country mentioned in the document. There had also been no region, during 1712, referred to as “The South,” he said.

All colonies had been linked at that time.

An even greater remark had been the term, “black,” when referring to people of color. No one

used “black,” because that is a 20th century term, he said, not only using the term itself, but also the capitalization of the word. There were other terms he said that were, “fool-proof or re-fueling.”

If all findings had not evidently been enough, Ampim said the chronology had been the biggest issue. He said there had been no evidence of a Willie Lynch owned plantation or had there been any physical evidence of his existence.

Half of the country’s history is based on slavery, which is bad enough he said. He then criticized the fact that the writer of the document also failed to give an outline of action for control.

Sociology major Tumyia Moore could not agree more with professor Ampim. Moore said she loved the professor’s speech, and thought it was good to have people hear his story.

The speech was thorough and clear, Aminta Mickles, human services department chairperson, said.

She said some of her students had made comments about what they learned. They agreed the eagerness Ampim displayed was wonderful.

After the event, students lined up to purchase Ampim’s book.

“I don’t believe in deception,” he said. “The idea was disrespectful and unnecessary.”

Voters within the Contra Costa Community College District service area elected John Marquez, John Nejedly and Tim Farley to the Governing Board on Nov. 4.

The district board oversees operating policies and procedures districtwide. It is made up of five members who are elected to four-year terms by voters in the district.

The district is separated into five wards, each of which is overseen by its respective board member.

The incumbent Marquez was elected over Cheryl Sudduth as the representative of Ward I. Nejedly ran unopposed for Ward IV and Farley won the majority vote against Matthew Rinn, who currently represents Ward III. Representative positions for Wards II and V were not open for the midterm election.

Contra Costa College is in Ward I, Los Medanos College is in Ward V, Diablo Valley College is in Ward III and the San Ramon extension campus is in Ward IV. Farley is the newest addition to the board as Marquez and Nejedly are currently holding the positions of president and vice president, respectively.

Chancellor Helen Benjamin said Farley is currently not a member of the board but will be sworn into office on Dec. 3. Dr. Benjamin said Farley will be replacing Rinn at the next district board meeting.

Farley won 68 percent of the votes, vowing to not only represent the interests of DVC, but those of the entire district.

“As a first generation college graduate,” Farley said, “I want to ensure that classes are offered districtwide that will provide a pathway for students seeking certificates.”

He said he does not feel intimidated by his new position on the board of trustees due to his good relationships with the current members of the board and experience as part of the Martinez City Council in 1990 and 1994.

Marquez garnered 56 percent of the voter turnout while his opponent, Sudduth, was close behind with 44 percent.

Sudduth said, “He was expected to beat me, but I thought that someone who has been in politics for longer than I have been living would have done so by a larger amount.”

Sudduth said she blames her defeat on a low-voter turnout caused by a general apathy of the public toward politics.

She said people do not understand the importance of voting and become outraged and discouraged when the results are not what they wanted.

“It’s all a game,” she said. “I lost and it is what it is.

That’s politics.”

This will be the second term that Marquez has functioned as the president of the board and as representative of Ward I. Marquez is a CCC alumnus and has been politically active since the 1980s when he was first appointed to the Richmond City Council.

PROGRAM OFFERS UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY FOR UC EXPERIENCE Enrollment plan offers courses without per-unit fees

BY Roxana Amparo NEWS EDITOR

ramparo.theadvocate@gmail.com

Students have the opportunity to enroll in a class at a chosen university for the upcoming spring semester through the Concurrent Enrollment Program.

The program provides full-time Contra Costa College students the ability to enroll in one course per semester at an outside university, free of charge.

Universities such as UC Berkeley, Mills College, JFK University and Cal State-East Bay offer a variety of courses for CCC students to potentially take, depending on availability.

Luci Castruita, a counselor at CCC, said the goal of the program is to give students the opportunity to experience

being on a particular campus before committing to transferring and actually being part of the campus.

The program extends the opportunity to full-time students who have completed 20 transferable units and have a minimum GPA of 2.4, Castruita said. Students can attain full-time status by enrolling in 12 or more semester units.

“It is highly recommended that students have completed English 1A, given the level of reading and writing that is required at the university,” Castruita said.

In order to be considered for the Concurrent Enrollment Program, students must submit a counselor or instructor recommendation.

The program requires a petition sheet

that must be signed by the instructor of the course, as well as by the Graduate Student Instructor.

“I recommend having a list of backup classes just in case the one you want has a restriction that doesn’t allow you to take it,” linguistics major Moises Volantin-Serano said.

He is currently enrolled in an ethnic studies class at UC Berkeley through the program and advises students to seize and enjoy the opportunity.

Castruita said students are allowed to take one class per semester of 3-4 units, which must be taken for a letter grade and not simply pass/fail.

As well, students can only enroll in courses that are lower division. Courses 1-96 are attainable, but above 97 are not, she said.

Jennifer Osoria, Alpha Gamma Sigma honor society vice president, said the program exposes students to what is to come in the future and familiarizes them with what a four-year university is like.

“We get the opportunity to venture out of our comfort zone, which helps build character,” Osoria said.

Castruita advised students to “get lost at the college,” and for students to find their way before the first day of actually attending the college itself. She also said to take courses that will be beneficial to them, such as electives not offered at CCC. Other benefits of the program include receiving tutoring and library services from the university at which the student is concurrently enrolled.

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WWW.CCCADVOCATE.COM 11.19.2014 l WEDNESDAY l THE ADVOCATE

COMETS KEEP PLAYOFF HOPE ALIVE Team wins final game of the week, shuts out Mariners

COMETS

2 0

MARINERS

BY Lorenzo Morotti

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

lmorotti.theadvocate@gmail.com

Despite wasting a slew of goal scoring chances, the men’s soccer team kept its composure throughout its ultimate game of the season to shut out the College of Marin at the Soccer Field on Friday.

Contra Costa College (11-6-3 overall, 8-3-1 in the Bay Valley Conference), defeated the Mariners 2-0 by managing to slip a goal past goalkeeper Will Finnie moments before halftime and again late in the second half.

College of Marin (10-5-4 overall, 8-4-0 in the BVC) dropped from second place in the conference standings to third after its offense was muffled by a tight knit Comet team, determined to keep possessions and secure a spot among the top 14 Northern California teams invited to the playoffs.

CCC finished in 14th place among the regional standings and is awaiting confirmation of a playoff berth, coach Nikki Ferguson said, which should come today.

The Comets sealed their victory over Marin at 80 minutes when left midfielder Jesus Villagrana’s cross connected with striker Bryan Santos at the far post who nudged the ball into goal with his head.

“There was nothing I could do to stop that header,” Finnie said.

“On the break, (CCC) sent a cross into the box from the left wing toward the back post and (Santos) snuck past the backline to get there.”

The play developed from the backfield when a diagonal aerial pass reached striker Bryan Vega about 40 yards out from the Mariner goal.

“I received the ball from (Vega) and looked up to see if I could cross it but there was not much space,” Villagrana said. “I decided to dribble it to the end line and hit it to the second post. I figured someone should be there and it was (Santos).”

Villagrana was responsible for assisting both headed goals scored

by Santos.

“The second goal was beautiful,” Comet center back Charlie Mendoza said. “Majestic even.”

At stoppage time of the first half, the Comets’ offense surged into the attacking third and forced defender Austin Sewell to make a reckless tackle just outside the penalty area in the left wing.

Villagrana set up to take the free kick. He struck the ball with his right foot to lift it up and toward the far post. As it was dropping, Santos overpowered Marin’s defenders to redirect the ball just inside the post using his head.

Mariner coach Swap Mushiana said the late first half goal “deflated” the team morale going into the second half.

“It was a tough, tough, loss but I’ve got to give it to (CCC). It’s legit.

We lost to the better team today.”

The Mariners struggled throughout the game to match the rhythm of the Comets’ passing play and fitness level. It became apparent in the second half when CCC had multiple chances to score. But rushed shots sent the ball either wide or into Finnie’s gloves.

CCC outshot the Mariners 14 to 9 by the full 90 minutes but was dangerously close to scoring only moments after the outset of the game.

Comet assistant coach Jon Scoles said, “We should have been up by three or four goals. But at the end of the day we got the win.”

A play developed along the right touchline of the field. The Comet right fullback Enri Refunjol burst past a Marin defender and sent a cross to the near post to center midfielder Ivan Marin. His resulting shot did not only shake the framework of the goal but the Mariners’ confidence as well.

“The pivotal play was when (Marin) hit the post in the first minute,” Comet center back Bradley Alman said. “As soon as you hit the post it gives you so much more to believe in. It was then that I knew we could do this.

We could win.”

Defensively, CCC managed to keep its shape during COM counter attacks and drives but resulted to fouling 10 times to stop scoring chances.

Scoles said, “We like to keep possession and don’t mind giving up a couple fouls to keep it.”

Comet defender Brad Alman heads the ball toward goal during CCC’s 2-0 win over College of Marin at the Soccer Field on Friday.

QING HUANG / THE ADVOCATE

Hawks highlight squad woes, trounce team in ultimate bout Soccer team done with season before the final game

BY Jason Sykes STAFF WRITER

jsykes.theadvocate@gmail.com

A relentless Hawk offensive barrage destroyed the Comet defense in its final game of the season.

Contra Costa College (1-19 overall, and 1-11 in the Bay Valley Conference) fell to Las Positas College (6-12 overall and 4-7 in BVC), losing 11-0, in a lopsided contest on the Soccer Field Friday.

The Hawks pressed the Comets all game and refused to let off of the gas.

It was going to be a long day for the Comets after a quick goal by the Hawks’ Madison Umidon just seconds into the game. Comet defensive breakdowns were a continuous component in the game.

The Hawks pressed up the field fast and tested the Comet backline all game.

LPC had its way, scoring at will, taking advantage of miscommunication and

bad offensive possessions.

“We got on the field not ready to play,” coach Amanda Beckenhauer said.

The Comets started the second half off with another defensive breakdown allowing LPC to score right off the opening whistle.

The Hawks charged up the sideline, putting themselves into great position for a shot on goal then added to the large lead they had built.

CCC had trouble advancing the ball up the field after they gained possession of the ball. The Hawks dominated possession for the majority of the game causing CCC to have fewer opportunities to advance up the field.

When the Comets did gain possession they failed to get anything going, often times handing Las Positas the ball back each time.

The team had trouble passing the ball to one another causing many unforced turnovers. Defender Taheerah Brewer

said, “The result of not HAWKS using your team is the score.”

The Comets did not get a shot on goal until late in the second half COMETS of the game when it was already out of reach.

Midfielder Mayra Garcia said, “When I would push up I would have no one running with me.”

Offense was a huge problem due to the fact they could not find openings in the Hawks’ defense.

The Hawks had a big scoring day, taking advantage of every offensive opportunity.

They took 15 shots on goal, efficiently scoring on 11 of those tries.

CCC finished the year losing eight straight games, wrapping up a long tough season for the squad.

11 0

SQUAD DROPS FIVE-SET HEARTBREAKER Sophomore Night smiles erased by disappointing loss MARINERS DEFEAT COMETS 25-15, 17-25, 22-25, 25-23, 15-11

BY Jason Sykes STAFF WRITER

jsykes.theadvocate@gmail.com

Costly mistakes and a latematch offensive drought led to a spoiling of Sophomore Night for the volleyball team in the Gymnasium Friday.

The Comets fell to the College of Marin in a hard fought five-set match. Neither team was able to gain a serious advantage over the other, as the contest was a toss up the entire match.

The Mariners eventually won the contest 3-2: 25-15, 17-25, 2225, 25-23, and 15-11.

After solid play in the third set, the Comets needed to continue their great play in the fourth. CCC started off great and got off to a hot start offensively. However, the Mariners were on their heels throughout the set.

It appeared CCC would come out victorious on its Sophomore Night. But Marin would not go away as it continued to battle and fight back into the game. The Comet offensive would begin to become ineffective late in the fourth set as the Mariner defense began to challenge the Comets.

“Their blocker was huge and we weren’t ready,” Micaela ZaragozaSoto said. Marin’s blockers neutralized the Comet attack for the majority of the fourth set.

Solid defense allowed the Mariners to gain some points off of blocks, opening the door for easier offensive execution as well.

The shift in momentum caused CCC to lose composure, which

QING HUANG / THE ADVOCATE

Comet outside hitter Rachelle Cuevas (right) spikes the ball toward a Marin player during the team’s five-set loss to the Mariners in the Gymnasium on Friday.

led to inefficient defense and offense late.

CCC continued its struggles at the beginning of the fifth set.

COM went up 5-0 quickly in the final set. There were many Comet mistakes and the Mariners did not hesitate to take advantage of them.

Coach Zachary Shrieve said the players got a little “tight” and they made too many mistakes.

But the Comets did not give up easily. They tried to gut it out and pull off a comeback. But, the

Mariner offense was rolling and CCC had no answer.

“It’s hard to come back in a game of 15 (the points needed to win the fifth game), especially when they have their best server to start the set,” Shrieve said.

CCC had played very well until the end of the fourth set and the beginning of the last set.

Marin looked as if it was not going to have enough energy to overcome the deficit the team faced being down 2-1 games.

But they were able to get a good

defensive groove going and CCC could not find a way to get around the large wall they had.

“Coach said keep hitting harder,” middle backer Valeria Avila said. “It was more about making ‘smart’ moves rather than trying to overpower them.”

Coach Shrieve said, “We’ve been playing well but we just haven’t been winning.”

CCC ends its season on a three-game losing streak to finish the season at 4-15 (2-12 in the BVC).

sports

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“

After the funeral Wednesday, I had to attend my cousin’s funeral Thursday. I harnessed all of that pain and anger and used it. With the help of the offensive line we were able to run effectively and get first downs.” — Harold Halcombe III, Comet running back

QING HUANG / THE ADVOCATE

CHAMPIONS | Squad defeats Jags to secure top conference spot Team

Continued from Page 1

earns

offensive attempts, keeping SJCC ball carriers from even threatening to score for the majority of the afternoon.

CCC used a devastating rushing attack featuring running back Harold Halcombe III, who eclipsed the 100-yard mark for the first time this season. The shifty ball carrier also had three touchdowns in the contest.

Comet coach Alonzo Carter pulled Halcombe aside before the game and told him that he needed a big time performance from — who he calls, “The most unselfish player on the team.”

Carter will need his offense firing on all cylinders when CCC faces Hartnell College in the Living Breath Foundation Bowl on Nov. 29 at Hartnell in Salinas. It is a re-match last year’s bowl game, a 37-26 Comet loss.

Even when not reaching the end zone, the compact Halcombe seared the Jaguar defense.

In the third quarter, he broke containment and dashed 41 yards up field, paving the way for a 13yard touchdown strike from quarterback Emmanuell Williams to receiver Dominic Barnett.

San Jose City College (3-7 overall, 2-4 in the Pac 7) shocked the Comets early, returning the opening kickoff 52 yards. This emboldened the Jaguars as they moved the ball up the field, eventually succumbing to the CCC defensive front after attempting to convert a risky fourth down and one.

The Comets squandered the opportunity by fumbling the ball away, leading to an early Jaguar field goal.

Defensive and special teams speedster Lavon Washington set

another bowl berth

the table for quarterback Jonathan Banks and the CCC offense with a 35-yard kickoff return. After converting three first downs, the drive fizzled and over the next six minutes both teams exchanged possessions without scoring.

CCC erased the zero from its side of the ledger late in the first quarter on a 31-yard touchdown pass from Banks to Barnett for the first of the receivers two touchdowns in the game.

With its offense sputtering, the Jaguars only hope was to attempt a prayer after choosing to go for it on fourth and three. The prayer was answered — by way of a Trenton Paganini touchdown pass up the left sideline to receiver Nick Inneh, giving the Jags a 10-7 lead.

The touchdown enraged the CCC defensive players.

Rather than provide momentum for SJCC, the Comets released a week’s worth of bottled-up emotion and pain.

The first of Halcombe’s three touchdowns of the game came with 10 minutes remaining in the second quarter.

“After the funeral Wednesday, I had to attend my cousin’s funeral Thursday,” Halcombe said.

“I harnessed all of that pain and anger and used it. With the help of the offensive line we were able to run effectively and get first downs.”

The emotional outburst was not displayed by Halcombe alone.

The CCC receivers over the next eight minutes would put 13 more points on the board on 47yard and 16-yard touchdown passes from Banks to receiver Larry Cornish Jr. and Frank Stephens, respectively.

“It’s tough emotionally, getting them geared back up (after

Blackmon’s death and funeral).

They’re human,” Carter said.

“Even with his (Darryl‘s) mom being here, it’s still a lot to absorb.

Considering the week they just had, and fought through, I’m really proud of them.”

A batted ball by defensive end Anthony Ledoux on fourth down, shattered any hopes SJCC had of scoring before the half ended.

At the break the Comets led 27-10.

A quick three and out started the third quarter for CCC. Defensive lineman Chibu Onyeukwu fought through the Jaguar protection to record a sack that forced SJCC to punt the ball back to the Comets.

Williams replaced Banks in the second half as play caller of the quick strike Comet offense. He moved the ball up the field with pocket passing and timely running, scrambling and converted on a fourth and long play.

The drive was capped by a 2yard Halcombe touchdown run with 4:50 remaining in the third quarter.

With the CCC defensive boot still in place, pressed firmly to the back of the Jaguar’s collective neck, the Comets used a 41-yard Halcombe run to chew through enough yards for Williams to complete a 13-yard touchdown pass to Barnett.

The following Jaguar possession netted an interception for defensive back Damarius Brinson. The milestone interception gives a pick to every member of the Comet defensive secondary this year.

Carter said he now has to accept of the unit’s self-imposed nickname of “The Money Team.”

The SJCC turnover led to a 7-yard touchdown run by Halcombe.

The trio of freshmen quarterbacks the Jaguars used to face off against CCC were no match for the high-powered, emotionally charged defense that owned the field Saturday.

The strides Carter has taken with this team over his four-year tenure are clear in some of the most important statistical categories.

The team has increased its points per game from 30 in 2011 to 40.2 at this point in the season.

This team has already surpassed the largest point total of any team during his time on campus — previously 371 points in the 2013 season.

“We set out to win the championship ever since the loss in the bowl game last year,” defensive back Terrance Alexander said. “We knew we could beat anyone in conference but now we have a chip on our shoulder. We’re playing hungry — we have more to win for.

CCC has earned a bowl appearance three years in a row.

The task of lifting Comet football from the depths of mediocrity would have been a daunting challenge for any head coach.

And highlights why the hiring of Carter on the heels of an abysmal (1-9) 2009 season, was the perfect fusion of passion and success to restore the football program to the powerhouse it was in years past.

Even before turning the Comet program around, Carter had the recipe for success, touting an overall high school record of (82-42-3) in 11 years as a head coach.

His mantle is full of achievements with three Alameda-Contra Costa Athletic League titles, four Oakland Athletic League titles and three Silver Bowl Championships.

Comet quarterback Jonathan Banks charges up field during CCC’s 51-10 win against San Jose City College at Comet Stadium on Saturday.

Men’s basketball team wins consolation prize Fresh

BY Rodney Woodson

talent

rwoodson.theadvocate@gmail.com

ready for upcoming season

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

After finishing 2-1 and winning the consolation bracket at the Tony Costello Memorial Tournament, the men’s basketball team is off to a decent start to the 2014-15 season.

Held at Las Positas College Nov. 6-8, the tourney took place 20 days before the team’s next game. The Comet philosophy is built around what led them to take two of their first three contests.

Now in his 10th year coaching at the community college level (six at Contra Costa College) coach Miguel Johnson said the team is talented and skillful, yet a bit inexperienced. In order to win the elusive Bay Valley Conference title, Johnson said the team is going to work toward stopping opponents’ offenses and crisp execution.

“This year, we have talented players.

It’s just getting them to play together,” Johnson said. “(It can be) difficult to teach community college players to make the best decision, while having freedom in the offense and realizing (that freedom in the offense) must be structured.”

The Comets dropped the first game

of the tournament to Butte College, 79-77, bringing the game to within two points with just over one minute remaining in the game. Climbing back from a 16-point deficit, CCC was unable to complete the come from behind win.

CCC won its next two games 60-57 and 74-56 against intra-district rival Diablo Valley College and College of the Siskiyous, respectively.

The Comets return to action against San Jose City College on Nov. 28, at the DVC tournament.

Johnson said the Butte game was theirs to win yet poor execution on offense and lax defense helped the team dig itself into a hole. While the team attests its current two-game winning streak to an improved defensive effort, there is no doubt that the Comets will definitely need strong defenders and offensive proficiency in order to end Yuba College’s eight-year run as conference champs.

The 49ers, currently 0-2, finished the 2013-14 season ranked No. 3 in the state. CCC has had some pretty solid years recently under Johnson.

After making the state tournament for the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons the Comets missed the postseason last year.

Evident from the squad’s 16-12 overall record, this was not Johnson and the Comets’ best year. Yet, during CCC’s previous playoff runs, both years the team finished with at least 20 wins, it failed to win the conference.

“As we get better, other teams get better,” Johnson said. “We have to raise the bar. If (coaches) set high standards and we hold people to those standards guys will realize what it takes to win.”

This season’s squad is similar to his previous playoff squads, Johnson said, stating that there is a nice mixture of talented redshirt freshmen and sophomores with experience.

Guards Phillip Secrease and Tajai Johnson are among the names he mentioned as second-year guys he expects to step up this year.

He also talked about Jordan Brown and Justin Johnson, transfer students from Lamar Community College in Lamar, Colorado and DVC. To vie for a conference crown Tajai Johnson said communication on the defensive side end is paramount.

“We shouldn’t have lost to Butte,” he said during practice Thursday. “Coaches Johnson and Maples emphasized talking, which helped us bring the (Butte)

game within two. We COMETS just have to always talk.”

He also reiterated what coach Johnson said in his office EAGLES Wednesday, highlighting the need for he and other guys to find room to score within the offense, as opposed to making room to score.

Sophomore Dawson Johnson, who transferred from De Anza College in Cupertino, is an Oakland native who played at Castro Valley High School.

He said he has played basketball since the age of 12.

“We played all right (in the Las Positas tournament),” he said. “On defense we could have played a little harder.”

To get better, Dawson said the team needs to improve on rebounding, and that his coach is stressing the burden of leadership on the sophomores. “(Coach Johnson) gave us certain people to keep an eye on and make sure they’re on board (with the team concept),” he said.

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WWW.CCCADVOCATE.COM 11.19.2014 l WEDNESDAY l THE ADVOCATE

Unleashed

MOVIES

This week: “The Hunger Games: The MockingJay – Part 1” (PG-13) “V/H/S: Viral” (R) “Happy Valley” (NR) “A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night” (NR)

BLU-RAYS

New releases: Blu-Rays: “22 Jump Street” (R) “Sin City: A Dame to Kill For” (R) “Into the Storm” (PG-13) “If I Stay” (PG-13)

MUSIC

PHOTOS BY CHRISTIAN URRUTIA / THE ADVOCATE

Portraiture showcase attracts community, alters perspective Gallery promotes

New releases: Depeche Mode: “Live in Berlin”

Bay Area artist Barbara

Nickelback: “No Fixed Address”

Hazard,

Paul McCartney: “The Art of McCartney”

portraits

fractal

One Direction: “Four” Tyga: “The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty”

GAMES

New releases: “Far Cry 4” (R) “WWE 2K15” (T) “Dragon Age: Inquisition” (M) “Smash Bros for Wii U” (T)

Editor’s note: This column lists popular new (and upcoming) releases for the week.

BY Mayra Garcia STAFF ILLUSTRATOR

mgarcia.theadvocate@gmail.com

Peculiar paintings and a variety of art pieces were displayed at the Eddie Rhodes Gallery on Thursday.

Stepping in, one would notice the unique art of Barbara Hazard, a San Francisco Bay Area artist.

From 4:30-6:30 p.m. visitors were able to gaze upon the one-woman art show, “The Artist at Work: Facets of Portraiture.”

Wrapped in quilting material, an odd looking cube caught the interest of many at the exhibit, while seemingly puzzling a few.

Hazard said the idea for her piece came from her experience in another art show — where she remembered stepping into a larger cube version of her piece.

The reflection through the cube captures the eye’s attention because of the different mirrored images of oneself, she said.

Portraits of her canvas paintings have mirror-like attributes. She said she has created several of her portrait pieces by looking through the quilted mirrored cube piece.

Diablo Valley College student Isidro Maldonado, a psychology major, said Hazard’s exhibit made him think of different “dimensions.”

The various “dimensions” captured a presentation of Hazard’s natural self, he said, and pointed at one of her

other portraits.

Dana Davis, an adjunct professor in the fine and media arts department, said a portrayal of Picasso’s style is displayed in her pieces. He said the rearmament of the face structure is unique in Hazard’s style.

Although the artist gave the viewers much to talk about at the event, she said in the past she had not been confident in her art. “I had always been shy about drawing people,” she said. Eventually she got past her insecurity when she began teaching a drawing class.

From the ceiling hung cardboard cutout drawings of fish and angels.

Hazard said the angel drawings are pieces from years ago and she has a love for, and is fascinated by, fish.

Her fascinations have been a major contributor to her creations. “I paint what I love — my friends, my cat, flowers, California landscapes, St. Petersburg,” she said.

Though Hazard’s art studio is located in Berkeley, she said she has also spent many spring seasons visiting Russia where she paints portraits of new friendships made. “I find people fascinating,” she said.

A favorite painting she pointed out is “Three Sisters,” a painting with three women and a man off to the side. Hazard questioned her painting. She questioned who the people are, what the guy on the side is doing, and questioned where the eye

should be focused.

She wanted viewers to question her art the way she does.

Finding enjoyment in replicating what she sees she compares her artistic approach to be like that of a photographer. Lines, curves and dimensions are what catch her attention, she said.

Genn Toffey, an oil acrylics painter who recently moved to the Bay Area from Korea, said she appreciates Hazard’s work and connects with it because she can see the diffusion of culture.

“It’s the sense of dealing with two worlds that I connect with,” she said. Toffey said she had never seen Hazard’s work before, and that she knows of Hazard through one of her poetry books.

Jim Quay, retired head of California Council for Humanities, is part of Berkeley’s senior poetry group, where he met Hazard.

His wife, Caren Quay, retired communications manager at Kaiser Permanente, said the reception was her first time seeing Hazard’s work.

She said she finds her work fascinating to look at, and that she displayed lovely pieces of art.

Friends and fans of her art surrounded her during the reception and by the end of the night she held Alcatraz flowers, given to her by friends and supporters, throughout the night.

TOP LEFT: Richmond resident Sybil Meyer (left) points out a quilted mirror cube to friend Sarah Gallagher during an exhibit for “The Artist at Work: Facets of Portraiture” paintings and drawings

by Barbara Hazard in the Eddie Rhodes Gallery on Thursday.

TOP RIGHT: Roger Edelson of Albany observes one of the quilted mirror cubes during an exhibit for “The Artist at Work: Facets of Portraiture” paintings and drawings

by Barbara Hazard in the Eddie Rhodes Gallery on Thursday.

ABOVE: Richmond resident Sybil Meyer (left) and Crockett resident Sarah Gallagher look at a painting by Barbara Hazard at the Eddie Rhodes Gallery on Thursday.

CERAMIC AUCTION TO FUNDRAISE FOR SUPPLIES

BY Marlene Rivas STAFF WRITER

mrivas.theadvocate@gmail.com

In order to purchase materials used in art courses the fine and media arts department is having a fundraiser during the first week of December.

The pottery and sculptures will be sold in a silent auction and include pieces made by Contra Costa College art students.

The individual pieces will be numbered and there will be a sign-up sheet on which bidders may write down their offers. If a bidder wishes to outbid someone, then they must raise the bid by at least $3 more than the current highest bid.

One student, Larry Jones, said that the auction brings excitement from hoping no one will bid up on one’s chosen pieces. The event’s host, Anne Van Blarieom, said that attendees should expect to see great art pieces,

which make great gifts.

People can bid beginning Dec. 1.

The event continues through Dec. 5.

The scheduled times for the event vary by the day and are the following: Monday from noon to 3 p.m., Tuesday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Friday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

The merchandise will be displayed in the Art Building’s courtyard and gallery.

The items up for bid, which include those by current students as well as donated pieces from previous students, encompass functional and decorative works.

There will be pieces made for household use — such as mugs, plates, casserole dishes, teapots, vases and garden stones, to name a few.

With Christmas being right around the corner, Blarieom said that the auction could be a great chance to acquire wonderful handmade art for a frac-

Need pottery?: A silent auction will begin on Dec. 1 and continue until Dec. 5.

Sales will fund supplies for art students.

Students can bid on pieces in the Art Building from noon to 3 p.m. starting Dec. 1. tion of the price it would be valued elsewhere.

At the end of the week, those with the highest auction on the pieces will be contacted and informed they have won, and may claim their prize.

The earnings made will then be used to help pay for art students supplies, such as glazing, clay, and paints.

Ceramics professor Mary Law said the

event is wonderful and a great help to the art department.

“It covers the costs not met for materials, and in previous years it has raised a minimum of $2,000, said Law. First-time ceramics student Belen Macedo said that the event is a good thing. “It helps out (financially), like the Empty Bowls event,” Macedo said.

Students put much effort into making the pieces for the event. The time put into completing pieces varies by the complexity of the piece and the experience of the maker.

Sculptures can take from a couple of hours to a couple of weeks, Jones said. Sergio Corona, who plans to attend the event and support by bidding, said that the event benefits students economically and personally.

“It teaches students to appreciate their own work. It motivates them and helps them discover their potential,” Corona said.