The Guardsman, Vol. 175, Issue 5, City College of San Francisco

The Guardsman

Trustees “Take the Heat” When There is None on Campus

Fallen tree crushes car on Ocean campus

By Ellen Yoshitsugu egiese@mail.ccsf.edu

Strong east winds toppled several trees on the Ocean campus on Tuesday March 21, 2023, crushing one parked car next to the science building and trapping several others behind the student union. There were no injuries.

As he left his last meeting of the day, Student Trustee Malinalli Villalobos noticed the fallen tree on Science Circle and went to see if any one was hurt, because, he said, “people sleep in their cars here.”

City College Police Chief Mario Vasquez blocked off the areas with cones and safety tape. In an email to the campus community, he urged everyone to be watchful in outdoor areas for the rest of the week and to report any leaning trees or safety hazards to campus police at 415-239-3200.

“The college is contracting with an Arborist to come to our Ocean Campus to identify trees that may need removal for safety purposes,” Vasquez said by email.

By Renée Bartlett-Webber rbartle8@mail.ccsf.edu

Trustee President Alan Wong called for an emergency board meeting that was held on March 14. “The heating issues at our City College campuses are unacceptable,” wrote Wong in his meeting announcement two days prior. Despite the

short notice, many members of the public attended to express their distress over the lack of heat as well as other operational issues.

By the end of the meeting, the board approved the transfer of $2.6 million to a fund that will be used to fix the heat issues, and three other action items to help expedite contracts. While allocating the funds

is a necessary step, it will still take months to repair the buildings that don’t have heat. Members of the public appealed to the board to address solutions that will help now.

“We have taken temporary measures. We have provided space heaters… Additionally we have provided hand warmers, recognizing that it’s not a

long-term fix but it is something that we can provide to give short-term comfort for our students and employees in the classroom,” said Chancellor David Martin.

Many of the 17 public

commenters said that faculty were only provided two hand warmers in the beginning of the semester and that students didn’t have any. Some instructors didn’t receive a space heater

continued on page 3

City College Mental Health Services Gears Up Faculty, Staff Amid Suicide Rate Spike

By Shawn Ree Canin scanin@mail.ccsf.edu

One person dies of suicide every 11 minutes in the United States, according to 2020 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

City College is taking measures to offer resources and assistance for mental health to its students as suicide rates grow nationwide. More than 50% of community college students exhibit indications

of mental health disorders, according to a recent study.

Among the most impacted are students of color, LGBTQ+, veterans, and those from lowincome backgrounds. Their rates of services were also the lowest.

The Student Health Services have started a number of programs to prevent suicide and promote mental wellness on campus in response to this growing epidemic. In a recent presentation for Flex Day on March 7, Sandy Vaughn,

a mental health counselor, instructed faculty and staff on how to spot critical warning signs and how to assist students.

Among the risk factors that contribute to suicide include loss of housing, financiaproblems, problematic substance abuse, relationship or physical problems, and a crisis in the past or present, among many others.

Mental Health continued on page 2

The storm strengthened rapidly Tuesday afternoon and then stalled over the Bay Area, bringing wind gusts over 60 mph in San Francisco. The high winds brought widespread damage and five deaths.

"I have zero faith that this problem will be fixed in the fall" Heat,

1-800-273-TALK (8255) National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is free and confidential that will help connect with skilled and trained mental health professionals in your area.

Fallen pine tree crushes a parked car next to the science building on City College’s Ocean campus.

Photo by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman

High winds on March 21, 2023, topple a pine tree, crushing a parked car next to the science building on City College’s Ocean campus. Student Trustee Malinalli Villalobos takes a photo.

Photo by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman

The special City College Board of Trustees meeting on heating problems at the college on March 14, 2023, at the Mission campus.

Photo by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

Other signs among students include repeated absences, a decline in the quality of work, repeatedly appearing sick, excessively tired, and sudden uplift in the mood without reason.

“They [people with suicidal thoughts] don’t want to kill themselves; they want the pain to stop That’s the motivation for suicide. And they don’t see a way out,” says Vaughn. “We help them to see a way out. We share with them the possibilities. We connect them with resources that give them hope.”

If any of these critical warning signs are present in a person: threatening to hurt or kill oneself, making plans for suicide like purchasing a weapon or stockpiling pills, talking, writing, or posting about dying: the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline number 988 and Suicide Prevention Lifeline

number 1-800-273-TALK (8255) are available 24/7. San Francisco Crisis Line is also available 24/7 with the number 415-970-4000.

City College Mental Health Services is available free of charge to credit students to connect them with trained counselors that cater to different needs, backgrounds, and languages. To set an appointment, students can contact number 415-239-3110. They have psychotherapy and resources crucial in supporting and assisting during difficult times.

City College’s efforts to prevent suicide also include creating a culture of care and support on campus. The college has established peer-topeer support groups: Project SURVIVE, Peer Educators Office, Women's Resource Center,

39 Months of Purgatory

Family Resource Center, and Queer Resource Center, among others. These groups offer a safe and supportive environment where students can connect with others who understand their experiences and feelings.

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased stress and uncertainty in students’ lives, making it more critical for schools and colleges to prioritize mental wellness. City College aims to have a more proactive approach to suicide prevention and overall well-being for students. More information about mental health services can be found on the CCSF website. https://www.ccsf. edu/student-services/student-health-services/ mental-health-services-ccsf

Will City College rehire laid off faculty in impacted departments?

By Renée Barlett-Webber rbartle8@mail.ccsf.edu

In an interview for an article about the impact of faculty layoffs, Broadcast Electronic Media Arts (BEMA) Department Chair Dana Jae Labrecque told The Guardsman, “on the last day of school in spring 2022, the chancellor called an emergency meeting where he said that you will not be able to bring back your full-time faculty for 39 months.” She explained that the chancellor’s lawyer recommended this restriction to avoid any lawsuits from laid-off faculty.

However, there is nothing in the law that prohibits hiring in a department after a layoff, except that the full-time employees who were laid off must be prioritized for reemployment within each department for 39 months after the layoff. The full-time employees must take precedence over any part-time hiring/rehiring.

As part of a 10-hour trustee board meeting on March 23, Chancellor David Martin presented a status update of laid-off positions. Of the 92 full-time employees who were laid off last year, eight faculty were recalled. After lengthy discussion, Martin clarified that no positions were actually reinstated and all were still “permanently removed from the budget.” Those eight people who were recalled, replaced faculty who had recently retired. “When those

faculty retired, we would have otherwise removed those positions permanently from the budget. But we did not. We kept those positions in and pulled somebody from the 39-month hire list,” he said.

AFT 2121 Vice President Alan D’Souza told The Guardsman, “there were actually two very sad layoffs, both people were offered recall, but they declined.” They had received “pink slips” twice before. “Why would they come back?” he asked rhetorically.

During the 2021-2022 school year, faculty accepted a 10% cut to their salaries to stave off layoffs. Despite this, faculty layoffs were implemented at the very end of the same fiscal year. Now, the audit for that year shows that there was over a $9 million surplus. “AFT is going to ask for 100% of the salaries for faculty. And the monetary justification for layoffs is invalid. The reasonable ask is to rehire and lift the embargo,” D’Souza said.

While no classified positions have been recalled, there are currently 25 net new positions. These positions are not in the same categories as ones that had been eliminated, therefore laid-off employees were not offered recall. Martin also confirmed that many classified workers are transferring to the city because City College is “several percentage points behind” in compensation. Maria Salazar-Colón, president of the SEIU 1021, who represents the classified workers at City College, declined an interview.

Both students and faculty have expressed hardships due to the layoffs. In the March 23 board meeting at least five students appealed to the board to bring back teachers so they could complete their certificates or degrees.

“Please please please, we need our teacher back,” deplored one student of floristry, now a department of one. D’Souza also noted that “cases have been made by every department that seems like they have a reasonable impact to allow rehiring, but it’s not reasonable enough for the chancellor.”

Several trustee members have advocated for the reconsideration of the “permanently removed” positions. Vick Van Chung addressed the board, “we have the actuals of what was left over in reserves, now let’s take that money and put it back into departments so we can grow it, in a very specific and strategic manner.” Board President Alan Wong said “it’s devastating that the layoffs happened… We should definitely be working to bring back our employees.” He would like to see training for workers to switch to the fields that now have open positions.

Despite some board members’ expressed support for recalling many of the laid-off employees, their power to do so is limited.

“If the board were to take action without a recommendation from the chancellor, I do believe it would violate current board policies” and “accreditation standards,” the chancellor said.

For the moment all eliminated positions from layoffs remain as such and have not been built into the budget for the foreseeable future. Those who were laid off, have a

Teachers Picket SF Schools

chance of recall within the 39 months only if there are resignations/retirements in their departments or if the budget changes. Until then, it seems impacted departments will have to wait the 39 months to add any fulltime or part-time positions.

By Ellen Yoshitsugu egiese@mail.ccsf.edu

Educators, parents and students held informational pickets outside schools across San Francisco the week of March 20-24, 2023. The rallies were organized by the teachers union, United Educators of San Francisco, as part of their current contract negotiations with San Francisco Unified School District. Support for the educators was high at Dolores Huerta Elementary School the morning of March 23, 2023.

“These are fairness issues,” said District 7 Supervisor Myrna Melgar at an earlier picket at Clarendon Elementary School. She is very concerned about the numbers of

Teacher Picket continued on page 4

The chancellor called an emergency meeting where he said that you will not be able to bring back your fulltime faculty for 39 months

The monetary justification for layoffs is invalid. The reasonable ask is to rehire and lift the embargo

Illustration by Cindy Chan/TheGuardsman

The 988 Suicide & Crisis Hotline, national network center in the United States, is available 24/7 for anyone seeking confidential emotional help in suicidal crisis or emotional distress.

Parents, teachers and students picket at San Jose Ave and Randall St. Photo taken March 23, 2023, at Dolores Huerta Elementary School by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

and those who had, said that they were not effective. “As everyone has said here, space heaters don’t work. Even if you put two of them, even if they don’t blow out the fuses, they don’t change the temperature of the room,” said ESL instructor Kevin Cross.

“I have zero faith that this problem will be fixed in the fall,” said Cross. He echoed many other faculty comments that the administration has known about these issues for years and they have not been fixed. “Coming to a meeting and listening, then not doing anything is just performative.”

“How did we get here?” was a question that both commenters and trustee members asked although it went unanswered. Martin, who has been chancellor for more than two years, said, “looking backwards will not do us any good.”

In addition to the ineffectiveness of the “temporary measures,” commenters also pointed out their dirty classrooms, crumbling ceiling tiles and mold. They addressed the

shortage of custodians due to the layoffs from last year and because of a pay gap in offering salaries. “I ask the board to address all facility deficits at all City College locations,” requested ESL instructor Christa Lewis.

While the board approved all action items, there was only one short-term solution that could be addressed immediately: Potentially relocating classrooms to rooms with both heat and air purifiers. Although it’s unclear how many classrooms are available that meet that requirement. The other solutions discussed were investigating alternative heat sources and hiring more facilities workers, both of which will take time.

Trustees Aliya Christi said that there is a communication breakdown and “radio silence is unacceptable.” She offered to meet more often in order to expedite the bid and contracting process to get the heat issues fixed more quickly.

Kate Frei makes public comment at the special City College Board of Trustees meeting on heating problems at the college on March 14, 2023, at the Mission campus. Photo by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

Chancellor David Martin answers questions from the trustees regarding heating problems on City College campuses during the special City College Board of Trustees meeting on heating problems at the college on March 14, 2023, at the Mission campus. Student Trustee Malinalli Villalobos listens. Photo by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman

From left to right, Trustees Vick Van Chung, Murrell Green and Aliya Chisti, Board President Alan Wong and Vice President Anita Martinez, Trustees Susan Solomon and Shanell Williams, and Chancellor David Martin and Student Chancellor Malinalli Villalobos listen to public comment during a special City College Board of Trustees meeting on March 14, 2023, at the Mission campus. Photo by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The

Shawn Yee checks the monitors during the hybrid special City College Board of Trustees meeting on heating problems at the college on March 14, 2023, at the Mission campus. Chancellor David Martin and Trustee Shanell Williams listen to public comment. Photo by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

Teacher Picket, continued from page 2

teachers leaving the district, and said the schools are short staffed and paycheck errors persist (caused by the district’s EmPower software launched in January 2022). She noted that coming out of the pandemic students are generally behind academically and socially and that “we barely pay the teachers appropriately.”

Jess Leary Duquette, teacher and parent, said,“We need for our district to treat our teachers with respect. And that means paying us for the work that we do, and making sure that teachers feel safe and supported so that we can in turn take care of our students.”

Panchito, a parent, pickets at San Jose Ave and Randall St. Photo taken March 23, 2023, at Dolores Huerta Elementary School by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The

Students watch the picket line from the school yard. Photo taken March 23, 2023, at Dolores Huerta Elementary School by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

Photo taken March 23, 2023, at Dolores Huerta Elementary School by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

Pablo Portillo, fifth grade teacher, and Kelly Baker, organizer for United Educators of San Francisco. Portillo said, “We just felt disrespected by the district, by the city, that they're prioritizing other aspects of life and not the most basic part of a community which is the children.” Photo taken March 23, 2023, at Dolores Huerta Elementary School by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

Cynthia, parent and ELAC member at Dolores Huerta ES, said, “This is one of the immersion programs for Latino students, so we need this campus here. Our teachers work really hard for the students.” ELAC stands for English Learner Advisory Committee.

Photo by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

Parents, teachers and students picket at San Jose Ave and Randall St. Photo taken March 23, 2023, at Dolores Huerta Elementary School by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

Parents, teachers and students picket at San Jose Ave and Randall St. Photo taken March 23, 2023, at Dolores Huerta Elementary School by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

Parents, teachers and students picket at San Jose Ave and Randall St. Photo taken March 23, 2023, at Dolores Huerta Elementary School by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

Union activists prepare for the picket at Dolores Huerta Elementary School on March 23, 2023. Photo by Ellen Yoshitsugu/The Guardsman.

“Never Empty Nesters” Benefit From More Time To Love

By Beth Lederer bethlyn2020@gmail.com

(Excerpts from a feature article)

Most parents who are caregivers for their young adults with disabilities effortlessly provide love, care, and compassion with a loyal sense of duty. They play an extensive role in their loved one’s everyday activities by providing them the essentials for living a “normal” life and helping them to stay active members in their own communities.

All too often, they sacrifice aspects of their own lives to give their young adults with disabilities a more meaningful and respectful life. Chances are, they may never get the recognition they deserve. They may not even be aware of all that they do. These parents are true superheroes.

When bird parents kick their younglings out of the nest as soon as they are old enough to fly, what is left is an empty nest. When human children move out of their house, the family dynamics change too, usually leaving the parents with a quiet home and a void to fill. It’s also an empty nest and the parents are considered empty nesters.

Carol Collins is an empty nester. Collins, 56, has a 19-year-old daughter, Sophia, who is neuro-typical and in college. The Collins are a very close knit family consisting of both parents and Sophia.

Collins struggled when Sophia first went off to college, so she started a months-long project. She took apart every window in her

house to clean. “It could have been a little bit of a distraction about the sadness,” Collins says, “I can’t bring her back. I can't change that, but I can do this and this feels good to do.”

Parents with young adults with disabilities may never have this free time to fill. The responsibility doesn’t taper off. Their time is booked with doctor appointments, therapies and activities. These are our “Never-Empty-Nesters.”

Lillian Pena is a never-empty-nester. She is the mother of 20-year old Sidney, who is dependent on her to provide 24/7 care. Sidney has autism, but she is so much more than that.

“Even though she is high functioning, she’s always going to require some type of assistance or prompting. ‘Sidney get up, Sidney go to school, Sidney do this.’ It’s my responsibility to look after her wellbeing,” says Pena.

Sidney is beautiful, creative and shows an artistic flair for living. She loves to perform; acting, singing, dancing and dressing up in character.

“She is a blessing in my life, I can’t imagine what my life would be without her. Sidney is the reason that I wake up every day and do it all over again,” Pena says, “Sidney is my battery.”

One Sunday afternoon in October, Pena and her daughter Sidney head to the University of San Francisco, USF, gymnasium. They are part of a group of families who take their young adults with disabilities to E-Hoops, which is an all-volunteer, inclusive basketball program.

Lillian Pena sits in the bleachers with parents Julia Zhang and Dwight Daguman as their children join in e-hoops. All three of

them have children in their twenties who are participating. Pena and Zhang converse with one another while their young adults play basketball. Their daughters, Sidney, Joyce and Aarolyn who didn’t attend this basketball class, are very close friends. They participate in most activities together during the week. Sometimes all three girls are inseparable.

Over the last six decades life has improved immensely for the disability community. More activities now exist to meet the demands of the special needs community and more continue to become available.

Many of the young adults who attend activities like E-Hoops are not independent enough yet to go to activities on their own. They need their parents or caregivers assistance for support, guidance or transportation.

A social worker employed at Golden Gate Regional Center(GGRC) for 25 years, Mario Bravo, explains the importance of teaching his clients independent skills for daily living. Preparations usually begin through the school district when the clients are around 16. About 90% of Bravo’s clients are on the certificate track which allows for their public school education to extend until they are 22 years old. Once they transition out of the school district then GGRC takes over.

Dwight Daguman, whose son Joshua is non-verbal, prefers his son live at home because he is concerned about his son’s safety. “He will live with us until I die,” he says. Daguman worries that should his son live in a residential home, someone might abuse him, “And

he can’t stay ‘Stop!’ so safety is paramount.”

Bravo agrees with Daguman, “Parents are electing to keep their kids living at home because they want their children to feel safe.”

Experts such as Bravo believe young adults with disabilities who move out of the house acclimate well. On the other hand, Bravo also sees it as a much greater loss for the parent, “It’s like losing the person that depended on you, but they’re not dependent on you anymore. “

Nowadays young adults with disabilities participate in so many activities outside of the home that both the parents and their children become part of a community and friendships form. Sidney, Pena’s daughter, and Joyce, Zhang’s daughter, met playing violin. Mothers, Pena and Zhang became friends too, through coordinating their daughters’ acivities.

Joyce and Sidney’s families shared a cabin together at Camp Mather last summer.

At the Camp Mather Talent Show, Sidney and Joyce won over the crowd singing a Katy Perry Song together.

Both parents dream that their daughters one day will have the skills to live independently. For now it is not a priority. They do not feel they are missing out on the empty nest experience.

“It’s a lifelong responsibility for us even though she might live with special needs kids in a group home,” Zhang says, “So we will never be empty nesters, even if Joyce is not living with us, the responsibility is still there.”

Young adults with disabilities are pushed to live independently though many never leave their parents’ homes

Three best friends Sidney, Arolyn and Joyce all on the autism spectrum participate in San Bruno Park Walking Club Special Olympics.

Best friends Joyce and Sidney spend a week at Camp Mather 2022.

Three best friends on the autism spectrum (Arolyn, Sidney and Joyce) participate in Achieve Tahoe 2022.

Photos Courtesy of the Lam Family

Three Never Empty Nester families Lam (Joyce), Feng (Arolyn) and Pena (Sidney) in front of Great America carnival float 2022

Arolyn, Joyce and Sidney spend the day on

the water at KEEN Paddle SF 2022.

Zero Waste Fest: An Actionable Way to Start off Climate Action Month

By Imani C. Davis imani.investigates@gmail.com

San Francisco zero waste nonprofit Race to Zero Waste is hosting their annual festival and FUNdraiser at Crissy Field on April 1 2023 to kick off Climate Action Month.

The event will include a wasteless 5K run and 1 mile walk at Crissy Field, followed by a Resource Fair at Sports Basement Presidio’s community space, The Dairy.

Race to Zero Waste is a woman-founded and run nonprofit that educates the local San Francisco Bay Area community about the principles of zero waste, defined by the Zero Waste International Alliance as “the conservation of all resources by means of responsible production, consumption, reuse, and recovery of products, packaging, and materials without burning and with no discharges to land, water, or air that threaten the environment or human health.” The zero waste organization puts on the annual Zero Waste Fest to exemplify fun and actionable ways of how to live by zero waste principles. Strategic Director of Communications Hayden Sloan said of the fest, “So at Zero Waste Fest, we're, showing solutions, demonstrating these solutions, that exist now in San Francisco, that people can be implementing or can even borrow from and implement closer to their home.” Zero Waste Fest is their largest annual fundraiser, complete with a raffle, with all proceeds going to fund community work the organization does year round.

The event, originally known as the Cup-Free & Bib-Free 5K Run to Zero Waste, creates the reality of a zero waste sporting event, while teaching hands-on, actionable skills that attendants can utilize to improve purchase choices and reduce their waste. From showcasing reusable products to teaching how to repair personal items, the resource fair will allow attendants to experience zero waste solutions they can take with them. The

annual FUNdraiser, intentionally highlighting fun is meant to demonstrate to attendants that moving towards a zero waste lifestyle is not only important, but can also add enjoyment to one’s regular activities. Sloan explained, “it's our FUNdraiser and fun is capitalized. Right. And so the idea is that part of partially that zero waste can be fun, right?” Sloan continued by explaining the impact the funds raised have in continuing to expand zero waste spaces and events. “But it's also a fundraiser and the fundraiser part of it benefits the Zero Waste Stations that we are putting together. So we have Zero Waste Stations at Dolores Park and across events. And that's for our educational campaigns around waste sorting, reuse, and just community education and community involvement.” The organization provides these stations in the community, while also working to help other organizations help themselves and facilitate their own zero waste events. “We're developing Zero Waste [Station] kits that people can use at, you know, their own community cleanups or their own events. Sort of, as like, an event greening idea, but also to bring Zero Waste education to any event, essentially.” The funds raised will help Race to Zero Waste continue their own work, as well as spread this model to other organizations’ events.

The pre-run and walk activities start at 7:30am when registration opens, and the all-day used running shoe donation drive begins. Yoga and stretching starts at 8, before a Ramaytush Ohlone Land Acknowledgement and race kick-off. The race and walk will officially begin at 8:30am and go until 9:30, at which point a post-run and walk yoga session, light breakfast and mingling will occur. All run and walk participants will receive a raffle ticket, with winners being called following yoga. Participants can obtain an extra raffle ticket by donating a pair of used running shoes, dressing up as an animal or sea creature, or directly donating to Race to Zero Waste.

From 10:30am-2pm both the shoe drive

and Sea Hugger’s demonstrations on plasticfree lifestyles alternatives will be available to attendants. At 11am and 1pm City Surf Project will have demonstrations on wetsuit repair. Additionally, there will be a total of 10-12 organizations tabling at The Dairy inside Sports Basement Presidio.

The ticket price for students is $20, $25 for 5k runners and $15 for 1 mile walkers and children.

Zero Waste Fest is an excellent opportunity for City College of San Francisco students and other SF Bay Area residents to experience the future of joy-filled, educational events with the zero waste event model the fest is built

on. Students interested in gaining skills to better reduce and reuse will have many ways to garner that knowledge from environmental organizations at the Resource Fair, as well as the experience of the fest itself, and be able to leave knowing some of the control of waste reduction and product reuse is in their hands.

To learn more about Race to Zero Waste or purchase student tickets for Zero Waste Fest, please visit https://racetozerowaste.org/ zerowastefest/.

The San Francisco Housing Crisis

Illustration by Eduardo Morales

A look into the complexities of the housing issues in San Francisco. Illustration by Sarah Clayson

City College’s Lack of Transparency: A Training Ground for Journalists

In a school that’s full of tensions from faculty salary concessions during a surplus year, to no heat in classrooms, a journalist doesn’t have to go far to find news-worthy stories.

By Renée Bartlett-Webber rbartle8@mail.ccsf.edu

After only two months of studying journalism at City College, I have discovered that this is likely one of the best places to receive a journalism education. The school has changed drastically over the last few years due to layoffs, mismanagement of budgets, accreditation challenges and more. No heat in classrooms, unintended consequences of layoffs and cuts to classes are just a few stories I have been able to chase down this semester. In addition to unending newsworthy stories, I am faced with the classic obstacles of accessing information, when those in power don’t want you to find it.

Part of journalism is finding the truth through interviews and accessing public information. City College is a public institution that is funded by your tax dollars and therefore has certain legal obligations to provide this information. While it’s easy to find meeting agendas, minutes and approved/rejected action items through BoardDocs, there is substantially more information that the school is required to provide upon request that is almost impossible to access.

With the school’s deferral to rehire a Public Information Officer after more than a year, and no contact information on their public information page, journalists have to resort to the directory to get ahold of the people and information. We must search through the many departments and employees to get to the person who we believe will be able to get us the information we need. Because there is no one responsible for providing us this information, our requests are often left unanswered. San Francisco Sunshine Ordinances require any public records

request to be fully answered within a maximum of 24 days, but because there is no one person responsible for receiving and fulfilling these requests, it’s hard for us to even make requests. While it is technically required for a public institution to have a custodian of records, the only way to enforce it is through a lawsuit, which is time- and money-consuming.

City College does not seem to be unique among community colleges to lack transparency. In fact, Laney College has started the process of suing their administration for that exact reason.

In the process of interviewing faculty, board members and administration alike, I have found a consistent pattern: no one (who is willing to talk to me) is fully knowledgeable on the overarching changes and further implications of our school. Some faculty have asked only to be used as information sources without publishing their name for fear of losing their job. Faculty members who do speak with me are the most cooperative and have offered the most complete information they can, but it often needs follow up from the decision makers. Board member responses to interview questions have ranged from “I’m not sure” to “I will have to be briefed on that before I can answer these questions.” Chancellor David Martin seems to be the most informed and most vocal in pushing decisions through, but he has tactfully avoided speaking to myself or any of my colleagues as far as I understand.

Martin did briefly appear to increase transparency when he held a community budget forum on the 2023-24 budget. However, those in attendance soon found out that this meeting

replaced individual budget meetings for all constituent groups, those of whom did not have a say in the agenda. Of particular interest, Martin refused to meet with the local faculty union, AFT 2121, and the classified union, SEIU 1021.

While I do not applaud the obstacles obscuring access to public information, it has certainly provided me with great training that will help me navigate similar challenges in our democracy.

Thank you, City College, for creating such a dramatic environment for me to learn how to overcome bureaucracy and lack of transparency in public institutions. The skills I’m learning to creatively get around the obstacles that impede discovering the truth, I know will truly help fuel me in my journalism career.

Cooking a home flood - Illustration by Cindy Chan for the Guardsman.

By Beth Lederer bethlyn2020@gmail.com

It was hard to keep up with my classwork because of the way that power outages were happening. I had two power outages at my house and they were around two to two and a half hours each. It was really difficult though because now I have to catch up. I'm taking four classes and I’m lost on what's going on. Other than the power outages, I would say I did get more done at home and I'm glad we had some rain. The extreme weather was a little surprising, it felt weird but cool.

- Sarah Kassab

It affects my everyday routine. When it rains you can’t really go outside. I take my dogs for walks a lot. Depending on how slippery the road is you have to drive more safely. When it's light, I’ll drive but if it's raining really hard and I have to come to class, I like to catch a bus. I’ve been in some instances where it's been raining very hard, and someone has swerved into me which has been a very close call.

The rain on the weekends definitely gives me a chance to catch up on any assignments which I haven’t done so that’s a pro. The rain keeps me from being outside with my dogs.

When it’s raining, I’ll take them for a walk around the block just so they can go outside and use the bathroom. When it's not raining, I take my dogs for long walks, usually for four to five hours per day. The dogs are brother and sister, one dog loves the water, whenever there are puddles she’ll run through them, splashing them.The brother doesn’t like getting wet. The dogs are a Catahoula Leopard dog mixed with a Rottweiler.

The rain keeps me confined to the house, which I don’t mind because obviously you have to spend some time in the house but anytime I get, I just like to go for a hike, try to go somewhere new. I live in Treasure Island, it's a perfect place to walk my dogs.

- Ajani Jabari Aragon

I actually work at the airport, San Francisco International Airport (SFO). I load planes all day long, 12 hours a day, 16 hours a day. So the weather has really impacted me

It's not just bags we load, sometimes fancy race cars, sometimes it's like 10,000 pounds of salmon

because I work outside in the rain. I was soaking wet and it was cold too. It's right on the bay. I got a raise because I had to work two to three months of that, and everybody else was calling in.

I’m a veteran as well, US Air Force veteran taking business classes. I lead all below operations for airlines such as China Airways, Philippine Airlines, Emirates. It's not just bags we load, sometimes fancy race cars, sometimes it’s like 10,000 pounds of Salmon.

It was stormy, we’re on the coast, right by the water. So my loader to load the plane was swaying this way and the plane was swaying opposite. So I had to tie everything correctly to get everything on the right way, plus it was storming at the same time. I lost my load sheet five times and I was fumbling for that. A load sheet you have to put it on for center balance so the plane doesn’t tip, when it goes up, the weight has to be distributed evenly.

I’m in a good position to travel now. On the weekends we’re traveling more, nobody wants to be here now. We just came back from vacation. We went to Napa the weekend before last and we went to New Orleans for my nephews birthday.

- Marc Anthony J. Bundy

The weather has added to the expenses of the commute. I commute from Sacramento two times a week, four trips total each week. I’ve had challenges with my car. The whole reason I don’t live in San Francisco is money, it’s a little bit cheaper to live out in Sacramento and commute. The commute is definitely more than two hours almost every time. Two weeks ago my car wouldn't start and also this week. I had to buy a $150 jump starter at Walmart. Walmart didn’t have the $99 one I wanted to get, only the more expensive one. So I used it to jump start my car this morning. I had to pay somebody to jump it before my last class

Right now there is no heat in the science building. It kind of affects the results in the class and makes it really cold.

two weeks ago. But because of the weather, I ended up actually missing my class even though I got my car jumped. There was bad weather and there was a wreck on the freeway. Every place I called to try to get them to come to jump my car, “oh it will be 45 minutes because there’s a wreck on the freeway right where you’re at.” I’m a veteran, and there are at least seven veterans in my class. Most of the veterans commute, most of them don’t live in San Francisco.

Right now there is no heat in the science building. It kind of affects the results in the class and makes it really cold. When you’re in there your hands get really cold, it's a brick building. My professor bought in portable heaters and we’re using Bunsen burners. The heat has been out the whole semester.

- Rachel Robinson

So funny story, it was last Sunday, it was around 1:00 a.m. My dad was awake in the living room. I had my headphones on, I was talking with my friends, we were playing video games and all of sudden I heard my dad yell “Kenny” from the living room. I'm a little annoyed because he’s yelling at me. Like “what’s going on?” I take one part of my headphones off, and he says, “Kenny it’s flooding.” “What?”

All of sudden from underneath my closed door, water just starts seeping into my room, and I’m shocked and I don’t know what to do. And it’s coming in and it’s starting to fill up the floor of my room. I’m moving frantically, trying to raise all the electronics above on

My mom was wearing bags on her feet and my dad in his sandals and socks all soaked sweeping the water.

platforms, on chairs, on tables. It was maybe an inch high throughout the entire room, that's when I ran to the door. I had some towels hung up somewhere and started plugging up the door. Then I exit to my parents room because there is an entrance to my room from the living room. My parents' room is elevated already, so no water has gotten into their room. And I'm looking in the kitchen, and there’s water just pouring through the kitchen like a stream, a river almost. And it’s coming through the kitchen and through the living room. My dad has the backyard door open, and he has a mop and is trying to sweep the water through. It’s just absolutely crazy. We had sandbags in front of the garage so the water didn't come from there. The water actually came up from the garage drain. Some city sewer systems must have gotten flooded and they didn’t have the facilities to handle all the extra water and it just started coming out enough to create a stream. My shoes got soaked and I had to wear really old shoes on Monday when I went to school. My AC adapter got fried, and some plywood boards that I used to stage for flooring for the rest of my room just got soaked. I probably need to remove them because of mold.

Everything was so hectic. My mom was wearing bags on her feet and my dad in his sandals and socks all soaked sweeping the water. My aunt, who is the owner of the house, was taking pictures and video evidence so she could contact the city government so they could do something about the flooding.

- Kenny Khuong

SPRING ATHLETICS CALENDAR

Women’s Tennis

Thursday April 13 Rams vs. TBA @ West Valley College

Friday April 14 Rams vs. TBA @ West Valley College

Saturday April 15 Rams vs. TBA @ West Valley College

Men’s Baseball

Saturday April 8, 1pm Rams at Chabot***

Tuesday April 11, 2:30pm Rams at Cañada***

Thursday April 13, 11:30am Rams vs. Cañada at Fairmont***

Saturday April 15, 12pm Rams vs. Cañada at San Francisco State University***

Women’s Badminton

Tuesday April 11, 3pm Fresno at CCSF Rams***

Friday April 14, 12pm Mid-Conference Tournament

Women’s Swimming

Saturday April 8, All-day Chabot Last Chance Invitational

***CONFERENCE GAMES

Women’s Badminton Team ReadieS for Title

By Gracia Hernandez Rovelo ghern140@mail.ccsf.edu

The City College of San Francisco Rams women’s badminton team has had a history of winning, becoming coast conference champions in 2010, 2011 and 2012. The high profile competitive team was crowned state champion in 2010 and runner-up in 2009, 2011 and 2012.

With the direction of the Head Coach Tiffany Mariano and Assistant Coach Jesus Hernandez, the 2023 City College women’s badminton roster features talented young players like Xinyi Cai, Yuchu Huang, Rianna Lee, Kayla Mann, Eunice Claire Millares, Carolyn Nyguyen, Adriene Pineda, Malia Santiago, Kaylie Sumi, Kristin Vinluan and Kelly Yau. City College of San Francisco Athletics Department cited Carolyn Nguyen as Ram of the Week for women’s badminton; Nguyen stood out with high scores of 21-6 and 21-7 against Skyline on Thursday, March 9.

Heading into the Conference Championships at Fresno City College on May 5 to 6 and CCCAA State Championships at San Diego City College on May 11 to 13, the Rams team has won important games in conference play against Skyline, Evergreen Valley, Fresno, Mission and De Anza in a powerful drive to recapture the state championship.

Despite Almost Endless Rains, Rams Tennis is Alive and Well

Team prepares the championship despite inclement weather

By Xela Vargas xelavargas222@gmail.com

Although recent rain storms have dampened the City College's Womens tennis season with reschedulings, the Rams team is holding its own as it approaches the coast conference championship, which will take place April 13-15 at West Valley College. As we all know, this spring we have been confronted with rain storms after wind storms and even hail storms. Tennis being an outdoor sport has been deeply inconvenienced by the forces of Mother Nature. At press time, the team is 2-2 in conference play and 4-2 overall.

The 15-member team is led by Head Coach Mary Graber and Assistant Coach Lance Johnson. Team members include Lauren Acuan, Tiffany Beavers, Aurora Bellone, Rosanna Chiu, Susan Curry Walker, Anh Duong, Julia Milena

Durkin, Alanna Hale, Sherry Lee, Christina Ling, Marietta Nunoz, Lily Tan, Gina Tsui, Tianrui Xu, and Bernice Zhu. Days prior to the CCC tournament, the Rams will have played nonconference games against Chabot College at home on April 3, an away game against Monterey Peninsula College on April 5, followed by another away game at Canada College on April 6.Shortly thereafter, the CCCAA state championship takes place at Ventura/Ojal from April 27-30.

Despite the inconvenience of the heavy rains, the team has persevered and played well. Keep track of the team through April, which will surely test the teams strength heading into championship play.

Rams women's tennis team for the 2022-23 season.  Photo courtesy of CCSF Athletics.

Scoring Punch Lacking at Times as Rams Continue Losing Streak

By Bob Kinoshita Rkino@hotmail.com

The College Rams baseball team took it on the chin on March 18 suffering a 13-2 loss to the West Valley Vikings in a home game at San Francisco State University's Maloney Field.

The Rams collected only five hits, committed three errors and suffered 10 strikeouts for their second straight loss of the season.

West Valley pitchers kept the Rams scoreless for seven innings. In the eighth inning, Jerin Po'oma'a-Adaro (#3) collected the only Ram RBI when he reached first base on a fielder’s choice scoring Eli Villaobos (#2). The second Rams run came in the ninth inning when Zach Harte (#19) scored on a pass ball.

The visiting Vikings scored early and often with four runs in the first inning and five in the eighth. Five Rams pitchers couldn't stop the assault. Rams pitcher Angel Acosta (#9) picked-up the loss.Of the five Rams hits Ryan Anderson (#24) went 2 for 3.

At press time, the Rams extended their losing streak to four games following losses to the College of San Mateo, 14-1 and Skyline College, 10-1. The Rams are 1-4 in conference play and 8-13 overall.

Rams catcher Shane Stanley (22) leaps to catch the ball and hold-off a West Valley runner from advancing during a home game at San Francisco State University's Maloney Field on March 18, 2023. Bob Kinoshita/ The Guardsman.

Rams second baseman Aman Khera (#5) throws to first base to complete a 6-4-3 double play during a home game on March 18, 2023 at San Francisco State University's Maloney Field. Bob Kinoshita/The Guardsman.

Rams shortstop Jerin Po'oma'a-Adaro (3) readies for a tag attempt as a West Valley player slides into second base during a City College home game on March 18, 2023 at San Francisco State University's Maloney Field. Bob Kinoshita/The Guardsman.

Rams starting pitcher Angel Acosta (#20) warms up to start the game against the visiting West Valley team at San Francisco State University's Maloney Field on March 18, 2023. Bob Kinoshita/The Guardsman.

Rams first baseman Miguel Esquviez (25) snags a line-drive and tags a West Valley runner scampering back to the bag during a City College home game at San Francisco State University's Maloney Field on March 18, 2023. Bob Kinoshita/The Guardsman.