NEWS

NEWS BRIEFS

HOLIDAY

Campus will be closed Feb. 18-21 in observance of Washington’s Birthday and Presidents Day.

Riverside City College accreditation reaffrmed

The Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, Western Association for Schools and Colleges reaffirmed accreditation for RCC, Norco College and Moreno Valley College. Norco College’s accreditation was reaffrmed without the need to undergo evaluation. Accreditation by the ACCJC affrms that accredited educational institutions are in compliance with standards of academic quality, institutional effectiveness and student success. The next review cycle for all three Riverside Community College District campuses will begin in 2026.

California mask mandate lifted

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced on Twitter that California’s statewide indoor mask mandate will expire on Feb. 15, unvaccinated people will still be required to wear a mask indoors. He stated that California’s COVID infection rate has dropped by 65% since the peak of the Omicron variant spread. The announcement came less than a week before California will host Super Bowl LVI at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.

UMOJA Celebrates Black History Month Virtually

RCC’s UMOJA club is hosting a variety of online celebrations via Zoom throughout the month of February to celebrate Black History Month. Events include a poetry jam, a series of workshops to address mental health among Black men, and a speech by RCC alumni Justin Hudson. Registration for each event is free but is required in order to attend.

For more information visit https://bit.ly/3J3KJrN

All of these dates are subject to change due to possible regulations to come involving the containment of the coronavirus.

To stay up to date on upcoming campus events, visit the Viewpoints calendar listed at viewpointsonline.org.

If you have events happening on campus that you want featured on the calendar, send information about the event to viewpoints. news@gmail.com.

Colleagues remember Oliver Thompson

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He was a beloved friend and community member throughout Riverside Community College District. Many faculty and staff remember him as a close confdant and dear friend.

“Dr. Thompson was someone I respected greatly and will never forget,” sociology instructor Eduardo “Eddie” Perez said. “One of his greatest lessons to many of us is to never give up the good fght and to alway(s) fght for what’s right, even in the face of adversity.”

Before he taught full-time at RCC he served as chief deputy, among other positions, with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department from 1965 to 1992 and as chief of police for the Inglewood Police Department from 1992 to 1997.

Prior to his career in law enforcement he spent four years in the U.S. Air Force.

“I was lucky enough to have Dr. Thompson as my professor,” Desiree Reyes said, an offcer with the RCCD Police Department. “He was a true motivator and believer of what he was teaching. Years passed and I became a police offcer for (the) RCCD Police Department.”

From lecturing about prisons to participating in community forums, Thompson was known as willing to educate and support those around him.

“He would always hold the administration accountable,” RCC President Gregory Anderson said. “And he would always do that in a very powerful way, but never in a rude way. Never demeaning.”

Many knew him as the kind of instructor that always made time for his students and colleagues. “Sometimes those of us in his hallway could hear his booming voice helping students over the phone, or his laughter chatting with students and colleagues in the halls, but also his insistence to students that they could meet the challenge in front of them,” English instructor Kelly Douglass said. “And to colleagues — Oliver poking his head in your office to offer a word of support or concern or just to grab a snack could be the moment to turn a rough day around.”

The influence he had on his community continues to this day.

“It’s hard to put into words the admiration and respect I hold for him,” said Debbie Cazares, an instructor and department chair of School of Education and Teacher Preparation. “He lived through so much, and those experiences made him into the incredible person that he was. I learned so much from him and am grateful that we crossed paths. He is already missed.”

He was born on March 20, 1942 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He was raised by his grandmother, great grandmother and great aunt. Thompson raised four children of his own. He briefy taught at UCLA, UC Riverside, CSU Los Angeles and CSU San Bernardino.

There will be a viewing for Thompson Feb. 15 from 4-8 p.m. at Acheson & Graham Garden of Prayer Mortuary located at 7944 Magnolia Ave. A graveside service will be held the following day from 10-11 a.m. at Riverside National Cemetery located at 22495 Van Buren Blvd.

AJA SANDERS | VIEWPOINTS File photo of Oliver Thompson in his offce in 2015.

Cultural appropriation leads Board to take action

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they did.”

She was among those who met with Hill.

“It gives us a sense of pride knowing that we’re proud of the student who stood up,” Manzanares Ybarra told Viewpoints. “We suffered a lot of trauma from the way we had to grow up, but we want the trauma to end. It’s time.”

Paulina Kiriakos, 24, protested among others at the RUSD offce in downtown Riverside and has since continued to advocate for a resolution. She said the decision came as a result of the community’s effort to speak up for what they believe in.

“Regardless of the hate, regardless of the blockages that we faced, we prevailed and we got what we deserved, which was justice,” Kiriakos said. “This teacher doesn’t deserve to teach.”

Protesters say that although the decision to fre the trigonometry teacher is a step in the right direction, a lot of work still needs to be done to prevent this kind of behavior from happening again in the school system. They do not believe this to be a stand-alone incident.

A history major from Orange County, Jon, who wished to be identifed only by frst name, was also among those who protested when the video surfaced. He hopes to be a high school teacher in the future.

“This is clearly something that needs to be taught no matter what field you’re in,” Jon said. “It’s something that needs to happen right now if students like me want to become teachers in the future so that way things like this will not repeat. When things like that repeat, there’s going to be consequences.”

Independent professor Citlalli Citalmina Anahuac, who teaches decolonial historical courses centralizing on indigenous perspectives, said the lack of immediate district action highlights deeper rooted issues within the educational system.

“It shows an institutional problem when it comes to respecting and understanding indigenous history, culture and identity,” Anahuac said. “I think beyond the hiring practices there has to be an entire reeducation and restructure of how teachers are being taught to teach these subjects and what type of consideration are they giving to the population.”

She said the outpouring of activists, community members and historians that joined together to demand justice serve as an example of what can be accomplished through this kind of advocacy.

“It was very powerful,” Anahuac said. “This shows the power that we have in the community and this hit home for a lot of folks. Indigenous people in the diaspora all over were able to relate to this type of violence.”

Following the board’s decision, Reed will have the opportunity to appeal the charges for dismissal from RUSD.