Independent Student Voice of MHCC
Volume 52, Issue 8 November 10, 2017 advocate-online.net
Saints chase championship Page 4
The revelation of Jon Deshler
IS MENTAL HEALTH A PRIORITY ON CAMPUS?
Thor successfully changes the MCU style Page 6
PAGE 3
‘Forget about your worries and your strife’ PAGE 5
Page 6
2016 FIRST PLACE
General excellence Oregon Newspaper Publisher Association
OPINION EDITORIAL
A D V O C AT E - O N L I N E . N E T
ONE DOESN’T REPRESENT ALL
H
How Americans are reacting to terrorism
atred: Unfortunately, it’s a sentiment one can find in every country, city and community on the planet. For some people, it’s an emotion they work hard to avoid, while some incorporate it so much into their daily life that it becomes ingrained into their personality. This brings us to Sept. 11, 2001, a date many of you may not be old enough to remember clearly, but if you are, one that you’ll never forget. As soon as U.S. authorities had figured out what had happened and who had caused the death and destruction on that day, everything changed in American life. Across the country, week by week, year by year, scores of Muslim people were targeted in their homes, their mosques burned and blasted with powerful explosives. People who looked even slightly Middle Eastern, regardless of religious belief, were beaten in the street. Many behind the violence wanted retaliation for the feeling of terror they felt on 9/11, and lashed out at anyone they felt was responsible. Problem was, there was no proof that anyone assaulted or injured had any involvement in the New York twin tower attacks, or any other terrorist plot. America is not, we like to believe, a place where we judge people based on their religion or where they come from. Or, at least that’s
?? Editor-in-Chief Matana McIntire Associate Editor News Editor Greg Leonov Co-Arts & Entertainment Editors Ryan Moore Noah Guillen
not what the majority of us do. This country should be a place of freedom, a beacon of hope and a symbol of liberty and prosperity that the rest of the world can look to as a place they might want to be, or a place they should try to be like. There are things America and Americans do that anger our enemies; there are things
We should remember that these people who murder innocent people and claim they do so because of their religion are far from representative of everyone in the Muslim faith. we show the rest of the world that make us a target. It may be inevitable that regardless of what a country does it will create enemies, so we may always be a target on which terrorists and radicals across the world focus, and we can’t really control who decides to get upset with us.
Catholic. These atrocities happen, they are awful, and the people who commit them should be brought to justice, and forced to pay whatever penance is appropriate. But there are so many problems that are caused when we, as a people, attack a group in retaliation to the action of just person, or a few individuals. We can end up alienating ourselves from huge portions of our planet when we attack people based on their religion, or appearance. When that happens, we are the ones that lose. We lose the different ideas that come from including immigrants or others in our society. We lose the addition their culture can bring to our own, including foods, philosophies, values and a sense of ethics. We should never treat someone in a way we wouldn’t want to be treated. Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani female rights activist, and the youngest Nobel Prize winner ever at age 17, perhaps said it best: “There should be no discrimination against languages people speak, skin color, or religion.”
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What we can do, however, and what we have a moral, and ethical responsibility to do, is control the ways and means we use to retaliate against those enemies after we are attacked. On Oct. 31, the afternoon of Halloween, New York City suffered another attack on its citizens and city visitors, another assault on innocent people that lead to eight people dead when a man claiming ties to a terrorist organization decided to run them down with a rented truck. The man was an immigrant from Uzbekistan, and was a supporter of the terrorist group ISIS. This undoubtedly created feelings of pain and anger – and perhaps even hatred – but we should remember that these people who murder innocent people and claim they do so because of their religion are far from representative of everyone in the Muslim faith. The people of the Muslim faith or those with Middle East ties should not to be blamed or mistreated any more than a Christian or the “average white American” should be blamed due to Timothy McVeigh’s acts in Oklahoma City in 1995 when he blew up an FBI building, killing 168 people, because he was a Roman
Cory Wiese Megan Hayes
Nick Krane Gabriel Donaldson Miguel De La Rosa Ad Managers Megan Phelps Yen Le Social Media Manager Cassie Wilson Advisers Howard Buck Dan Ernst Staff Writers Antonio Edwards Hanna Benson Summer Frickey Maddy Sanstrum
Bethany McCurley Kyle Vanooker Logan Hertner Steven Rousseau K.C. Merkt Kente Bates Khalil Thompson Contact us! E-mail: advocatt@mhcc.edu Phone: 503-491-7250 Website: advocate-online.net Twitter: @MHCCAdvocate Facebook: facebook.com/TheAdvocateOnline Instagram: @MHCCAdvocate #MHCCAdvocate Mt. Hood Community College 26000 SE Stark Street Gresham, Oregon 97030 Room AC1369
Cover photo By Fletcher Wold Cover art direction By Prisma Flores The Advocate encourages readers to share their opinion by letters to the editor and guest columns for publication. All submissions must be typed and include the writer’s name and contact information. Contact information will not be printed unless requested. Original copies will not be returned to the author. The Advocate will not print any unsigned submission. Letters to the editor should not exceed 300 words and guest columns should not exceed 600. The decision to publish is at the discretion of the editorial board. The Advocate reserves the right to edit for style, punctuation, grammar and length. Please bring submissions to The Advocate in Room 1369, or e-mail them to advocatt@mhcc. edu. Submissions must be received by 5 p.m. Monday the week of publication to be considered for print. Opinions expressed in columns, letters to the editor or advertisements are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Advocate or MHCC.
EDITORIAL OPINION
NOVEMBER 10, 2017
MT. HOOD’S MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS
Are campus services adequate for students’ needs?
W
hy doesn’t Mt. Hood Community College offer anything near the mental health support its student body needs? MHCC’s Counseling Center is tucked away between the campus Bookstore and the Student Union, inside Building 12. According to Mt. Hood’s website, the center provides “brief solution-focused counseling for enrolled students. (It) can assist you with personal problems that are interfering with your life, academic and/or career success,” and invites students who are “having a personal emergency and need to talk to someone.” This sounds great on paper, but actually utilizing these services can be a different story. To start with, the Counseling Center does not offer walk-in services. This, in and of itself, is problematic. Accessing mental health assistance already entails overcom-
ing numerous barriers to action, including stigma, denial, and the despondence that accompanies depression. So, assuming students can even make it in the door to the center, those in crisis are immediately presented with yet another barrier: needing to schedule an appointment. True, Mt. Hood students can access the Multnomah County Crisis Line day or night, and they should if they’re undergoing crisis – the line can be reached, toll-free, at 800-7169769. But if the college’s only option for crisis management is to call a hotline available to everyone in Multnomah County, can that really be considered an option? Does such an instance not fall under the umbrella of a “personal emergency” that MHCC’s website explicitly mentions? Meantime – assuming the mental health issue isn’t truly urgent – students can schedule an appointment with one of Mt. Hood’s counselors. The college’s website lists the credentials of its counselors, all
of whom have a master’s degree in counseling. But, while they may be qualified, there simply aren’t enough of them, it turns out. With an ongoing enrollment of roughly 8,300 full-time/parttime students per term, the college offers just four counselors – that’s nearly 2,100 students per counselor. Now, it’s unrealistic to assume that every student enrolled at Mt. Hood requires mental health services, but the American Psychological Association stated that in a 2013 survey of over 150 colleges, 1 in 3 women, and 1 in 4 men, reported having “difficulty functioning in the last 12 months due to depression.” Assuming these trends run true for Mt. Hood, that means that somewhere near 2,500 students on campus could be struggling - that’s more than 600 students per counselor here. And that’s just for depression. So, Mt. Hood may not have enough support for students struggling with mental health, but it’s a problem that everyone’s struggling with, right? Every time another mass shooting hits the news, politicians and community leaders alike bemoan the lack of support for mental health. That’s just America, baby. But even among Oregon community colleges, Mt. Hood lags. Portland Community College, for example, has 17 counselors across its campuses, and Clackamas Community College has 5 counselors and offers walk-in services, though its student-to-counselor ratio also leaves something to be desired. These concerns are always relevant, but especially so in light of the body recently found on a remote portion of Mt. Hood’s campus, on Oct. 16. While authorities declined to reveal the identity of the deceased, Multnomah County Sheriff’s Lt. Chad Gaidos told the Gresham Outlook newspaper that there was “no question” that it was a suicide. Regardless of whether the deceased was a student, students living in East County need reliable access to actual services that the college nominally provides. Obviously, this is a difficult issue to resolve. If addressing mental health crises was easy, it would have been done already. That being said, there are concrete steps Mt. Hood can take to increase visibility and access for students: 1) Raise awareness. Many stu-
dents are unaware that free counseling services are available on campus. How many people could tell you where the Counseling Center is located, without looking at a campus map? This doesn’t just apply to students: a Student Services employee flatly told Advocate reporters who inquired there were no counseling services available on campus. 2) Dedicate a counselor for walkin services. If Mt. Hood doesn’t have enough funds to employ a full-time, walk-in counselor, then counselors need to take turns, much like many instructors do with their office hours. If students can get academic counseling any time the college is open, the same needs to be true for mental health counseling.
3) Reach out. Whether via posters, campus events, or by email, MHCC as a college needs to reach out to its students to let them know there is help available if they need it. This needs to be done every term, to ensure that every student who walks onto campus knows they’re supported by their administration. Mt. Hood needs to prioritize connecting students with access to mental health support. It’s not just a moral obligation – depression and anxiety interfere with a student’s ability to attend class, turn in assignments, and finish a degree program. Want to see enrollment and retention rates rise? Start providing students with the vital services they need.
Sources: Psychology Today National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Graphics by Nicole Meade // the Advocate
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SPORTS | NEWS
A D V O C AT E - O N L I N E . N E T
SAINTS VOLLEY BALL PLAYOFF-BOUND
Photo by Fletcher Wold // the Advocate
Khalil Thompson the advocate
The Mt. Hood volleyball team had high hopes coming into the season, and now are seeing them come true. After missing the NWAC championship tournament for three years, the Saints woman are headed for the playoffs with the South Region’s No. 4 seed. The 16team tournament starts in Tacoma,
Washington, on Thursday, Nov. 16. Even after a couple of rough patches, the Saints ended the regular season on Wednesday (a four-set home loss to Clark College) with their first winning records since 2013 (18-17 overall, 8-6 in the South Region). Asked about the most memorable highlight of the season, Saints head Coach Kim Lissinna said, “I think opening conference
(play) with a sweep on the road at SWOCC (Southwestern Oregon) and Umpqua was a really big moment for the program.” The wins “set the tone” for conference play, and the team took control of their destiny with working hard in practice, she said. They even pushed through adversity when key players were out due to injuries, including sophomore setter Elisha Levasa and freshman
middle blocker Madison Pernich. Lissinna and her players noted how hard the Saints were willing to work in order to win, and put Mt. Hood back toward its historically winning ways. Team chemistry played a role, with Pernich and sophomore outside hitter Hannah Spears described the team as “family” and “like playing with your best friends.”
Spears said her personal highlights were off the court: getting to know the girls, rides in the team van, and inside jokes. This was something Spears said Mt. Hood didn’t have last year, and the team seems to be closer than ever. Now, with a week to prepare for Tacoma, the Saints are in full attack mode and look to recreate more highlight moments in the tournament. The offense has been
NEWS
FEDERAL GRANT TO HELP UNDERSERVED STUDENTS Greg Leonov the advocate
This year, Mt. Hood has used new federal money to reach out and help often-underserved or struggling students to keep their education hopes on track. Late last year, MHCC was awarded a Title III grant by the U.S. Department of Education. About $2.1 million total is due, spread over five years. According to the DOE website, Title III grants help institutions like community colleges “become selfsufficient and expand their capacity to serve low-income students by providing funds to improve and strengthen the academic quality, institutional management, and fiscal stability of eligible institutions.” Matthew Farina, Mt. Hood’s PA G E 4
Title III-backed director of retention, explained how the grant is being used. “At community colleges in general, we see a lot of students (who) start, but don’t necessarily complete,” he said. “When we were awarded the grant, our yearto-year retention rate was around 52 percent. So, almost half of our students didn’t come back for a second year. That’s one thing we need to improve.” The grant is a way to push institutions to better serve students who are often underserved, said Farina. “We’re talking about nonnative English speakers, or students who are lower on the socioeconomic scale – so, students who are struggling to raise their families out of poverty.” In Fall Term of 2013, nearly 50 percent of Mt. Hood students were
identified as low-income and more than 35 percent as first-generation college students, helping the college win the grant money. Three main components to Title III improvements at Mt. Hood are: building learning communities, strengthening the process for new students who arrive; and professional development (training) for faculty and staff. Learning communities are designed to allow students to make meaningful connections on campus, by keeping them together in cohort groups for different classes. Faculty from different programs and disciplines collaborate to cross the “boundaries of the subject matter,” said Farina. Mt. Hood students live commuter lifestyles, so taking classes is often the only reason to be on campus, he noted. When the
same group of students take several classes together, “the students are all in that community together, so it really promotes building relationships quicker,” he said. Four-year universities often stress students’ first-year experience (FYE), he noted. Since Mt. Hood is a two-year institution, there hasn’t been much emphasis on an FYE. An improved “onboarding experience” would address what students must do, or need, before they even start classes, Farina said. “How would we get them up to speed? Do we get them an orientation? (Are) there different things we can do, so when (they) start, (they) really know what’s going on?” he explained. Professional development should help staff and faculty train on ways to make the students’ experience more meaningful.
There is no set strategy that outlines how Title III efforts are to be implemented. For each of the three components, Mt. Hood has established a staff-faculty task force to establish what it wants to do. Those involved have adopted a professional development theme based on Carol Dweck’s book “Growth Mindset.” Instructors use material from Dweck’s book to remind them that “people aren’t born with skills,” Farina said. “You develop skills... if you always remind yourself with that growth mindset.” As for the entire Title III effort, he said, “We want to do it collaboratively, getting as many people involved across campus: students, staff, faculty, administration, community, everybody. Now, it’s highfalutin, but that’s the goal.”
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
NOVEMBER 10, 2017
HOW BARBARA MARTIN GREW HER PASSION FOR ART Cassie Wilson the advocate
“I almost cried,” said Barbara Martin, the artist featured in this month’s Fireplace Gallery exhibit at Mt. Hood. “It’s a little bit overwhelming. This is the first time I’ve been able to see so many of the black-and-white paintings together, and to see them go down that long wall in a line is really amazing.” Martin, now based in Hillsboro, has been creating art her whole life but didn’t start calling herself an artist until six or seven years ago when she decided to pursue art full-time, she said. She lived in Ethiopia and Kenya when she was younger, and has lived in 11 different U.S. states since. Her family felt she was too smart to pursue an art-focused education in college, so she ended up studying business and earning her master’s degree in business administration. When she tried to get into art 10 years later, she got pregnant, and the chemicals in her welding class were too hazardous, so once again, her passion was put on hold. “I never thought I’d end up going into art,” Martin said. She participated in miniart courses whenever she had access to them, but assumed art would remain a hobby and enjoyed finding creativity in other aspects of life – her favorite being in the garden.
Photo courtesy of Barbara Martin
Barbara Martin uses her hands to create her “Super Ply and Friends” series, which is on display in the Student Union’s Fireplace Gallery for the month of November.
After getting pregnant, she explored garden design. “It’s three-dimensional art, plus time, so you have four dimensions, which is cool,” she said. “I worked a lot with proportions and line and color just like you do in any art, but it wasn’t ‘art art’. ” When Martin finally felt like the time was right and she had the full support of her husband and daughter, she decided to take
more art classes and revolve her life around painting. “Once you have that feeling that art is really interesting to you and your hands want to make art, it doesn’t go away,” she said. Her series on display at MHCC, “Super Ply and Friends,” is a collection of primarily blackand-white paintings that pull inspiration from a few different sources. Martin wanted to work on “values,” the different shades of gray between white and black, so that way, she could apply those understandings of light and dark to her color paintings. Practicing this skill allowed her to discover how much she enjoys painting in black-and-white. Each painting in the series comes as a result of an almost identical process. Martin took a class from local artist, Jesse Reno, and a class exercise went as follows: Martin, who is right-handed, puts paint in her left hand and doodles with it on paper, then she presses that paper onto a thin piece of plywood a few times and begins looking for eyes or faces in the prints. She expanded on what started as a simple learning exercise, and created a series of characters from it. “I’ve done quite a few of these as live demonstrations, and the mood in the room really affects the painting,” she said. “There’s one called “Nebulous” which was done in a
senior center. There were many elderly people who had either been artists and stopped, wished they had started, or were currently trying to start, who came up to talk to me, and it was all a very gentle kind of ethereal feel in the room – kind of in slow motion. And that painting is very unresolved that way.” Other paintings were inspired by moments such as music performances in the space where live demos took place; cliques she saw at high schools; even, the atmosphere of a wine tasting event. When explaining her love for mixed-media art, Martin said, “I like to keep exploring, kind of stay on the edge of what (I) don’t know.” The Fireplace Gallery is one of her favorite places in which she has displayed because of the space, lighting, atmosphere, and welcomeness she has felt from the moment she started hanging her paintings, she said. “Super Ply and Friends” may be viewed at MHCC from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays (until 5 p.m. on Fridays) through Nov. 29. Martin hopes to display her art in increasingly prestigious venues, but, when it comes down to it, “every day is an accomplishment. You just go into the studio and make art,” she said. “Just like writers have the blank page, artists have the blank canvas. Being able to do that every day is amazing.” For more: barbaramartinart.com
‘THE JUNGLE BOOK’ PREMIERES AT MHCC Theatre students transform themselves into wild animals Hanna Han- Benson the advocate na Benson “The Jungle Book,” a play adapted for children by playwright Kathryn Schultz Miller, is being performed by MHCC theatre arts students for local children to enjoy and be drawn to, making it a great event for families with young ones. Borrowing from the book by Rudyard Kipling published in 1894, the Children’s Theatre Workshop show is about a boy, Mowgli, who is raised by wolves when he is forced to leave his jungle home in India because of a vicious tiger who threatens him. This sends Mowgli on a journey with a sensible panther named Bagheera, and a humorous bear, Baloo. He meets many
different animals throughout his adventure as they come together and form one big team and embrace their wild lifestyle. The MHCC audience will get taken on an adventure while the Mt. Hood actors transform themselves into wild animals from the story. The cast seems to maintain strong focus despite having to account for 400 young children, and the actors aren’t afraid to go beyond the stage as they chase Mowgli around the auditorium. Joining in a game of hide-andseek, children in the audience will be sure to shout out and give away any of the hiding actors to the others, making it fun and interactive. The costumes are colorful and creative as one of the actors is transformed into a devious python who hypnotizes the other animals. The set captures the essence of the deep jungles of Madhya Pradesh in India, with its moving vines, bushes, and shrubs – something that looks like the theatre
students had a lot of fun designing. There are really fun effects with lighting that make the walls appear to move with a glow. There’s also a
tention. The actors seem to bring the better-known jungle animals to the stage, so no one’s favorite animal gets left out. The porcupine’s
vulture who swarms the audience, making kids jump with excitement. The show is long enough to cover the original story, yet short enough to maintain everyone’s at-
costume makes the audience gasp as the character appears on stage showing off its prickly back, and the elephants inspire a unique costume idea for Halloween next year.
While several weekday morning performances in the College Theatre are reserved for area school groups (note: MHCC students and staff are invited to slip into empty seats), there’s one showing for the general public at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 18. All tickets are $2, for sale at the door, or in advance from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays at the MHCC Performing Arts office, Room AC2134 on the Gresham campus.
Photo by Fletcher Wold // the Advocate
Graphics by Prisma Flores // the Advocate
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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
A D V O C AT E - O N L I N E . N E T
DESHLER BLENDS HIS JAZZ MUSIC AND PHOTOGRAPHY Hanna Benson the advocate
Noted jazz trumpeter and photographer Jon Deshler has brought his star-studded work to MHCC’s Visual Arts Gallery, capturing prominent jazz musicians at work. On the afternoon of Nov. 2, Deshler set the atmosphere at his artist’s opening reception, playing jazz with Jay Jorgensen (bass), Rich Turnoy (piano), Marilyn Keller (singer) and Laura Cunard (singer). Together, they helped create an appropriate vibe for visitors while they admired local and musical performance photographs taken by Deshler. Deshler’s passion for photography began when his father had him shoot pictures from the co-pilot seat of his private airplane. Then, at age 12 he began trumpet lessons, carrying on his family’s musical tradition. His music and photography talents
blended together when he took his camera on a high school field trip to a jazz festival at Disneyland, he said. “That all led to this. It’s like revelations stacked on revelations, and it was kind of a serendipitous
Graphic by Bethany Lange // the Advocate
anomaly. It gave me something to move into,” he said. This hinted some inspiration for the title of Deshler’s gallery,
Photo by Jon Deshler
“Naked Revelations,” a name which spontaneously came to him as he noticed his pictures pointing out some of the major life-shaping experiences he faced. This anomaly continued when Deshler started to work for a photo lab in 1976 that happened to sit right next to a trumpet shop in Hollywood. The photo lab worked with corporate clients and was owned by distant relatives of his family. Years after working at the lab, he moved to Portland and continued building his skills as an independent photographer. Within two years, he began creating event (program) covers for the Oregon Symphony Orchestra. He used many different methods to create some of these covers. He described one he calls “painting with light:” He first creates a set using frames, layers of Plexiglas, canvas, and props while an aimed camera sits on a tripod. Then he runs around in a dark studio while illuminating the set in different areas in order to add emphasis and color during a long exposure time. “I’m a master light painter,” Deshler said proudly. Not only does he photograph event covers for clients, he also creates advertisements. A while back, he was invited to an annual Oregon event by two separate friends. It supported the Cheetah Conservation Fund, working to save decreasing cheetah populations. He partnered with a woman from India who travels to raise money to promote the safety of the animals. He was intrigued by her adventures and wanted to
Photo provided by Reed Ricker
RIGHT: Deshler playing the trumpet during the “Naked Revelations” reception. LEFT: “The Weather Report,” photographed by Deshler at 16 years old.
be involved, he said. He started a crowd-sourcing campaign to raise advertising dollars to persuade people to take action. Before Deshler knew it, he was doing video pitches, developing teleprompter scripts, and snapping shots of a 105-pound cheetah right in his studio. This all became yet
another “revelation” as he evolved from trumpeter-photographer, to wildlife protector. Visitors can see Deshler’s experiences and adventures at the Visual Arts Gallery, open for free weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Nov. 21. For more: jondeshlerjazz.com
HAIR METAL MEETS MARVEL IN ‘THOR: RAGNAROK’ Noah Guillen the advocate
4 out of 5 stars
The third solo film from Marvel’s “Thor” franchise is more everything. More fun, more action, and true to Marvel’s other films, more CGI. The only deviance in “Thor: Ragnarok” is the seemingly negligent handling of the universe in which it exists. The result is a refreshingly unorthodox movie that sets itself apart from the redundancy of its fellow films. Even the early production of “Thor: Ragnarok” was different. NorPA G E 6
mally, Marvel studio executives seek out accomplished indie film directors to sit in a director’s seat, set in the corner. They are offered loads of money in exchange for creative control. However, director Taika Waititi approached Marvel and somehow successfully pitched his vision for a third installment to the series. In his pitch? Absurdity and Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song.” The film feels lively. It hits the ground running: just a few lines in, and jokes are already being cracked in a bizarre world. Before long, our title-character Thor is fighting dragons and undead armies. The film is so uncharacteristically funny at times that it risks remov-
ing the audience from immersion in Marvel’s Universe – for better or worse. Early cameos from surprising actors and jokes that feel too daring to have passed an executive producer are often disillusioning. On many occasions, the poorly rendered CGI sets feel as though they would have been more convincing left as a green screen. Nonetheless, the film is unapologetic, to the point of almost flaunting its poor quality. Much like ’80s hair-metal fantasy adventures, the film carries itself with a level of certainty that helps counter-balance – even, complement – what it lacks in production value. Where the film thrives in partic-
ular is in its astonishingly fun characters. Lead actor Chris Hemsworth’s fifth depiction of the God of Thunder finds new depth. No longer just a face, his Thor rises in the ranks of funniest personality in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) with a unique naivety and confounding confidence that amplifies his charm throughout the film. Next to Thor are returning characters such as Loki and the Hulk, played by Tom Hiddleston and Mark Ruffalo, respectively, both surprising the audience with a hilarious twist on their character’s conventional portrayal. Also brightening up the film are a couple new additions: the incredibly talented up-and-comer Tessa Thompson (“Dear White People,”
“Creed”) as Valkyrie and the director himself, Waititi, as Korg. The array of new cast and characters breathes a level of individuality into the Thor film, as if this should be the first in a new franchise, apart from the rest. “Thor: Ragnarok” only suffers as a contribution to the MCU. It has too much of its own personality and style to be considered among the likes of its Avenger counterparts. At one point it even directly pokes fun at an arguably laughable moment from “Avengers 2: Age of Ultron.” The film is too funny and too weird to be assimilated. On its own, “Ragnarok” is an exciting taste of the creative control’s capability, in the hands of a director with a vision.
NEWS
NOVEMBER 10, 2017
HOMELESS VETERANS AMONG US
Student shares his struggles Bethany McCurley the advocate
As a disabled, homeless veteran, Joe Bailey’s path to graduating from Mt. Hood is an “uphill battle,” he said. When his insomnia finally subsides, he sleeps in the icy air of a 40-year-old RV with nothing but his service dogs, a dog bed, a few sleeping bags, and a small space heater. As the winds shake the RV and his mind runs, he is always on alert. Between post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, and mood swings, his rest is often restless. “What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger, but I’m tired,” said Bailey. As one of 466 homeless veterans described in Multnomah County’s 2017 Point-In-Time survey, Bailey said that no veteran should have to be homeless. “I’m trying to give a voice to
the voiceless, not only homeless vets, but all homeless,” said Bailey. “Why hasn’t the college addressed or remedied it?” Only 5 percent of the entire county’s population are military veterans, yet they make up 11 percent of the homeless population. There are some individuals who choose to be independent and become homeless. But Bailey’s own housing situation spiraled out of his control. Two years ago, his father’s health started to deteriorate, so Bailey quit his job and cared for him full-time. Last February, when his father died, he not only lost his dad, but also a home and a steady income. Unlike many of us who have a warm home to come back to after a long day, he retires to a cold, unwelcoming place to sleep. Bailey has one sister in Chicago he calls when he is desperate for someone to talk to, but it’s
not the same as a personal, up-close relationship. The closest thing to companionship Bailey has are his two service dogs, Remington and Bonny. In addition to being tired and lonely, he has the stress of maintaining his GPA to keep his scholarships and receive an associate degree in general studies, with an emphasis on history. Bailey said it’s hard enough to stay awake in class, much less do all of his work. With needs pulling him in every direction and his lone computer power source at school, his time to complete assignments is limited. Bailey wishes there was more support for veterans, overall.
“I’m trying to give a voice to the voiceless, not only homeless vets, but all homeless.” – Joe Bailey When individuals volunteer for the military, he said, it is like they are no longer citizens, but government property. Even after being discharged, they hold onto a veteran identity instead of a citizen. He said he doesn’t consider himself superior, but thinks that the government should offer more support for troops. Resources such as food pantries and hotlines such as 211 are good, but are only a Band-Aid for the
underlying issue of homelessness, he said. Veterans are getting trickles of support, but there needs to be short term and long term support. Bailey said it’s just like the quote from the movie “Braveheart”: “You’re too busy squabbling for the scraps from Longshank’s table, that you missed your God-given right to something better.”
CIFUENTES LEAVES NIKE, COMES TO MHCC Bethany McCurley the advocate
He left a Nike, Inc. career designing soccer cleats and working with famous soccer players, such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar, to follow his second passion – higher education. Gerardo Cifuentes, Mt. Hood’s new director of enrollment services, said the two vocations share much in common. He said he loved playing tactical midfield because of the strategy to score goals and the team dynamic, and he loves working in the administration office because of the strategy to reach new MHCC students and the office’s team atmosphere. Cifuentes said working for Nike was amazing because its goal was simplicity. The firm didn’t use titles or require fancy work attire because the focus was on creativity and
teamwork. Instead of complicating its designs, the teams focused on quality and efficiency. Cifuentes said he follows these same strategies in his current work to remove barriers for new students entering college. Just as Nike freed creative minds by removing unnecessary requirements, he aims to remove students’ mental blocks by personalizing information and simplifying the admission and financial aid process. At Nike, he enjoyed working closely with international star athletes. One of his projects at the Beaverton-based sports apparel company was creating Ronaldo’s last soccer boot before he retires. “One thing that is really cool about the products we develop at Nike was each shoe had a new story,” said Cifuentes. A big part of the design is personalizing the boot to the players’ styles and background.
“Their boots are almost like their weapon. We make sure it’s not just a boot, it’s something that belongs to them, to their story, to
minor in education – to use. Instead of creating personalized cleats, he creates personalized education. Everyone has a unique story that is crucial to developing their passion and connection to others, said Cifuentes. Our backgrounds form how we grow up thinking, seeing, and interacting with different elements, he said. After growing up in a family without many resources himself, he feels personally connected and excited to work with the low-income, first-generation, transitioning, and multicultural learning community in Gresham. Education is a big part of making these students’ passions truly become a career, he said. “I really want to be part of that experience,” said Cifuentes. “It breaks my heart when students go to
“It breaks my heart when students go to college and they get so much student debt.” – Gerardo Cifuentes their identity,” he said. Working for Nike taught him a lot, but it wasn’t his true passion, he decided. He still keeps in contact by playing soccer for Nike’s Swoosh team, but he decided to pursue his enthusiasm for higher education at Mt. Hood and put his degree in business administration – and his
college and they get so much student debt.” College is a cycle, he said. In the future, he visualizes mapping out a whole year of constant communication with individual students to encapsulate the big picture and make enrollment a simple and fun task for each one. Customizing the college experience and information can take many different forms: needbased simplification, phonefriendly information, expanded campus tours, or newly established relationships. With such personalized steps, students will be “ready to go play the game,” said Cifuentes. Through engaging the community and establishing high school outreach, he hopes to change the idea of enrollment being frustrating or confusing, so that future students see the process as something that’s done together. PA G E 7
STUDENT LIFE
NEWS BRIEFS TEA HOUSE PARTY The Japanese Club welcomes anyone interested to explore Japan’s culture with drinks and pastries at its Tea House event, from 8 to 11:30 a.m. this Wednesday in the Student Union’s Fireplace Lounge.
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Rho Theta is hosting a fun evening with games, prizes and food to commemorate the Phi Theta Kappa Founder’s Day. In addition to the PTK birthday, the international honor society will celebrate its new MHCC members. The event will run 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday in the Student Union Fireplace Lounge.
– Bethany McCurley
– Bethany McCurley
REBECCA KILGORE & DAVE TULL QUARTET One of America’s leading song stylists, Rebecca Kilgore, and world class jazz drummer, vocalist, and songwriter Dave Tull, are performing in a quartet at MHCC’s Visual Arts Theatre from 7 to 9 p.m. this Wednesday. Admission is free. Tull has toured the world as a drummer and has performed with Michael Bublé, Barbra Steisand, and on FOX TV’s “Family Guy.” Kilgore is a frequent guest on NPR’s “Fresh Air” program with host Terry Gross, and has been inducted to the Oregon Music Hall of Fame and to the Jazz Society of Oregon’s Hall of Fame. The MHCC Jazz Combo wil open for the quartet.
– Bethany McCurley
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1. Photo editor for the Advocate is Fletcher ____. 2. The artist featured in the Fireplace Gallery through Nov. 29 is Barbara _____. 3. Mt. Hood’s cross country coach, Jim _____. 4. In how many movies has Chris Hemsworth depicted Thor? 5. The Met Gala 2018 theme has been announced and is titled “Heavenly _____: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination.” 6. Associated Student Government’s vice president is Carey ______.
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7. The Advocate has five sections, which include Arts & Entertainment, News, Sports, Student Life, and ______. 8. Tessa Thompson plays _____ in “Thor: Ragnarok,” which opened on Nov. 3. 9. Where did Gerardo Cifuentes, new MHCC director of enrollment services, work before taking the job here? (profile in this issue) 10. The “Saga of ______” is the Advocate’s ongoing comic series. 11. John ______ is the photographer and trumpeter who is featured in the Visual Arts Gallery through Nov. 21.
Last week's answers Across 1. Beyonce 2. Riverview 3. Akkad
4. Outreach Down 1. Bernard 5. Punk
6. Pantry 7. Net 8. Endres