The Advocate, Issue 24, April 15, 2011

) ) )VOLUME 46, ISSUE 24 APRIL 15, 2011

"If the teachers strike, so

will I"

Angela DeCortestudent

"I don't want my instructor to come

from the same place I got my coffee table"

Kristina Taylorfuneral services

4 10

RHO THETA WINS SEVEN AWARDS PAGE 8

"I'd rather graduate here than anywhere

else where I've invested my time.

The strike is pushing us into summer. "

Aaron Longautomotivetechnology

"I feel that the board is pitting

students against instructors. I just feel that's

wrong."

Tommie Kelldental hygiene

"It's unnerving and unsettling

that we're going to be taught

by the second best."

Jon Francisbroadcasting

By Jordan TichenorThe Advocate

The MHCC full-time faculty has begun to talk about starting the 10-day countdown to a strike because of the board’s unwillingness to engage in meaningful bargaining, according Sara Williams, the full-time faculty chief negotiator.

This comes after a Wednesday mediation ses-sion resulted in one non-economic article being signed off, and no progress made on any of the economic issues.

Randy Stedman, the labor relations consultant hired by the board to bargain the contract for the administration, had no comment Thursday when asked about the potential of the administration giving a fi ve-day notice of implementation of the contract.

Williams said, “The faculty made a proposal, with a four-page explanation with our reasoning, to try to communicate to the board. We need a counter-proposal to that to be able to move for-ward.”

The main sticking points for both sides seem to be in the areas of extra teach, summer teach and retiree health benefi ts.

Stedman said the faculty is “refusing to budge a single dollar on extra teach, summer teach or retiree health.”

Williams said, “We’ve basically met their de-mands in the area of salary and medical, and they remain unwilling to move on extra teach, summer teach and retiree health.”

Student interest in the negotiations has be-come more vocal in the last two weeks, resulting in 955 students signing a petition to present to the MHCC District board.

“Many students have become very concerned,” said Jenni Simonis, a student who collected the signatures, Wednesday during the board meeting. She said after the meeting it appears to many that “the board isn’t listening to students and isn’t con-sidering them during their negotiations.

Angela DeCorte, a student who helped to col-lect the signatures, said during the meeting, “I don’t want to pull out of this school, because I love it, but I will. If the teachers strike, so will I.”

Kristina Taylor, a funeral services student, also said during the meeting, “I don’t want my instruc-tor to come from the same place I got my coffee table,” referring to ads posted by the college on craigslist for replacement teachers in the event of a strike.

Part of MHCC’s fi nancial problem is related to improving the physical structure, which could be remedied by passage of a bond measure.

Asked how he thought a faculty strike would affect the college’s ability to pass a bond measure, MHCC President John Sygielski said Wednesday, “I don’t think it would have a major impact on our attempt to get a bond.”

Stalled faculty contract talks stir discussion around campus

For more student perspectives on the possible faculty strike, turn to page 8

Students to direct spring play

No hitter for the softball team

2 OPINION THE ADVOCATEAPRIL 15, 2011

Editors-in-ChiefJen ashenberner &Jordan tichenor

Sports EditorJon Fuccillo

Living Arts EditorDavid Gambill

Assistant Living Arts EditorAnevay Torrez

Photo EditorDevin Courtright

Advertising ManagerDavid Guida

Assistant News EditorJohn Tkebuchava

Submissions

Mt. Hood Community College26000 SE Stark Street

Gresham, Oregon 97030

E-mail [email protected]

www.advocate-online.net

503-491-7250 (Main)

503-491-7413 (Offi ce)

503-591-6064 (Fax)

AdviserBob Watkins

Assistant AdviserDan Ernst

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 [email protected]. 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 refl ect those of The Advocate or MHCC.

ReportersJill-Marie Gavin

Chanel Hill

Riley Hinds

Laura Knudson

Yuca Kosugi

Mike Mata

Kylie Rogers

Mario Rubio

Shelby Schwartz

Jessica Winters

EditorialWe need a resolution, even if it's temporary

It now seems as if students are the only ones taking the faculty contract negotiation mess seriously enough to actually avoid a strike. The whole process has been turned into an “ad-ministration said, faculty said” scenario. Both sides are being stubborn when it comes to the three items stalling the contract resolution: retirement benefi ts, extra teach and summer teach.

The faculty negotiators have insisted a clause be included in the retirement benefi ts article stating that the conditions only apply to those who join the faculty association after the contract is signed. It seems ridiculous that considering all the is-sues that have arisen, that the administration wouldn’t just do it.

The other areas — extra teach and sum-mer teach — seem to be a matter of common sense. Instructors al-ready make a signifi cant amount less to teach in the summer term. As for extra teach, instead of getting more pay (time and a half) like many other jobs, they get paid less than their regular salary when they work more than their con-tracted hours. Imagine this — the administra-tion wants to cut the pay for extra teach and summer teach even more. That doesn’t seem like a good place to cut a paycheck if you ask us. Nevertheless, at this point, the faculty is going to have to deal with taking a cut in either summer teach or extra teach if a strike is to be averted.

The Advocate urgently insists the admin-

istration and faculty association take a page from the federal government’s book and fi nd, at the minimum, a temporary solution in order to avoid a strike.

We have students talking about dropping out of school and postponing their educations if the faculty members they know and respect are forced to strike. How much more serious can we as students get? That’s in addition to the negative reputation MHCC is developing in the community. The talk of a strike has already begun to have its impact. An actual strike will cause irreversible damage. We sincerely hope

neither side will let it get to that point.

To the editor:As a former MHCC student and cur-

rent faculty member, I am writing to urge MHCC students to participate in the upcoming Multnomah County spe-cial election on May 17. In this election, four of the seven MHCC board of direc-tors positions will be on the ballot. That means that this election will fundamen-tally affect the direction of the college for years to come. Who is eligible to elect the next MHCC board of directors? All registered voters who live in the MHCC district. A map of the district is available at http://www.co.multnomah.or.us/dbcs/elections/map/mhcc_zones.pdf.

This year has been a tumultuous one on campus due to the diffi cult contract negotiations between the MHCC board of directors and the full-time Faculty As-sociation. During this time, I’ve heard many students say they wish they could do something. Well, now is the time for

students to act. There is no more pow-erful tool at your disposal than the col-lective power of your vote and the op-portunity to elect the next MHCC board of directors. By doing so, you will fun-damentally infl uence the future of this college.

I believe that the MHCC student body is the most important stakeholder in this critical election and, as such, should have the most signifi cant voice in infl u-encing the outcome. I urge students to research the backgrounds of the MHCC board of director candidates and to con-tact these individuals directly to talk to them about their positions on key issues. After all, they are being elected by you to run your college!

The four positions up for election on May 17 include:

• MHCC Zone 3 director, 4-year term ending June 30, 2015

• MHCC Zone 5 director, 4-year term

ending June 30, 2015 • MHCC Position 6, at-large director,

4-year term ending June 30, 2015• MHCC Position 7, at-large director,

4-year term ending June 30, 2015Information on candidates are run-

ning for these positions can be found at http://www.co.multnomah.or.us/dbcs/elections/2011-05/candidate_list.shtml#mhcc.

Individuals must be registered to vote by April 26, 2011, in order to be eli-gible to vote in this election. People can register online or check to verify that they are already registered at http://www.co.multnomah.or.us/dbcs/elections/voter_registration.shtml.

Long Live the Saints!

Kristin J. Kjensrud, instructor, Physical Therapist Assis-

tant ProgramAllied Health Division

Letter to the Editor:

"We have students talking about dropping out of school and postponing their educations if the faculty members they know and respect are forced to strike."

Students need to vote in May board election

APRIL 15, 2011 LIVING ARTS 3

By John TkebuchavaThe Advocate

Jeniferever, a band hail-ing from Uppsala, Sweden, plays a brand of “atmospher-ic” indie/post rock on “Sile-sia” that, although not terri-bly original, is very easy on the ears.

The group, whose name pays homage to the Smashing Pump-kins song “Jennifer Ever,” consists of Kristofer Jönson (vocals), Mar-tin Sandström (guitar), Olle Bilius (bass, keyboards) and Fredrik Aspe-lin (drums).

The album art, featuring a snowy mountain-ous range with jut-ting, jagged rock, is something one would more associate with Swe-den’s infamous metal scene rather than an indie rock band. But rather than em-phasizing the bitterness and cold of winter, the band’s sound seemed to explore its natural beauty and the sol-ace it brings.

The album opens up with the title track, “Silesia.” A bit of an odd sounding song, “Silesia” sums up the gener-al sound of the album, with slow guitar melodies accom-panied by soothing vocals and occasional outlandish keyboard and synth effects.

There are some excep-tions of course. “The Beat of Our Own Blood” is the pop-iest of the bunch and is much more upbeat. Others, like “A Drink to Remember,” are long and open slowly and are sometimes tedious.

Although they are adept at the atmospheric style they offer on “Silesia,” this is both a blessing and a curse in that you’ve got to give the CD a couple of spins before you can truly begin to appreciate the tracks. Because of the at-mospheric vibe, it was very easy listening the fi rst time through, but almost too easy.

When the fi nal song, “Hearth,” faded out, it was hard to recall any particular favorites or standouts from the album.

But after the second and third time through, distin-

guishing songs from one an-other was not nearly as dif-fi cult.

Vocalist Jönson can be a hit or miss for listeners. Some might fi nd the softness of his voice a bit empty or

droning,

w h i l e for others it can be relaxing. However, his style of vocals fi t right in with the atmo-spheric sound and fl ow of the music. At times, his voice can come off as emo, but thankfully without sounding whiny or too melancholy.

With most songs generally slow to mid-paced, the guitar work can be simplistic but by no means ineffective, and the bass follows suit. Though you might often fi nd that the guitars and bass take a back seat to the vocals and may mesh in with the keyboards and synths, they just further add to the atmosphere and tone that the band tries to set.

The band also experi-ments with various other sounds, such as the violins on “Cathedral Peak” and other computerized effects that come up every so often in the songs.

Their usage is fairly mini-mal, but the small segments in which they were show-cased helped establish the individual identity of each song which can be a problem with the album and is its only major fl aw.

Overall, this release is a pretty good listen and is rec-ommended to anyone inter-ested in ambient music as these Swedes have a knack for atmosphere.

Tuesday, April 19

C a l e n d a r

Wednesday, April 20

Thursday, April 21

Friday, April 22

Monday, April 18

Cafe Tuesday in Jazz Café. Seatings at 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

‘Passion Play’ 7:30 p.m. The students of Portland Actors Conservatory perform Sarah Ruhl’s own student work, in passion plays from 16th cen-tury England through Nazi Germany to 1970s South Dakota. 1436 SW Montgomery St., Portland

‘A Walk in the Woods’ 7:30 p.m. Two diplomats, an American and a Rus-sian, play mind games and grow close during nuclear arms talks. 3430 SE Belmont St., Portland

John Vanderslice, Ivan & Alyosha 9 p.m. performat Doug Fir Lounge 830 E Burnside St., Portland

Phosphorescent Family Band John Heart Jackie. Doors open 7 p.m.,show 8 p.m. Mission Theater, 1624 N.W. Glisan, Portland

Café Thursday offers a Taste of Italy

Review: Swedes cook up an atmospheric sound

Photo by Devin Courtright/The Advocate

Café Tuesday April 19

Soup and Sandwich FairRoasted Red Pepper Bisque $3Chicken tortilla soup $3Vegetable Beef Soup $3Brie and Apple Panini $6Chipolte Chicken Sandwich $6All American Roast Beef dip $6Peach Cobbler $3

Administrative assistant for Humanities Garie Zordich, le� , tastes the chicken fettuccine alfredo while Media and Public Relations executive secretary Barbara Howell enjoys the meat lasagna at noon � ursday in the Jazz Café.

Seatings at 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Reservations required

For reservations, call 503-491-7230.

Menu

APRIL 15, 20114 LIVING ARTS

Theater students spring into first roles as directors

"Dead Man's Cell Phone" College Theater

April 28, 29 and 30 Tickets: $10 adults $5 student

Box Offi ce: 503-491-7154.

By Wally ShrinerMHCC instructor

During dark days, whether due to clouds or poli-tics, fl ashes of beauty, no matter how brief, are pre-cious gifts. Today, cheered by sun, the students of FW253, enjoyed the fl ash of gold from a fl ock of yellow-rumped warblers as they used the wil-lows of Salish Ponds to refuel for their migration north. High in a still leafl ess alder, a pileated wood-pecker perched proudly, seemingly soaking in our adoration.

His prehistoric call proclaimed his territory and in reply the sweet notes of a song sparrow did the same.

Equally precious were the smiles and laughs of

the students, friends and colleagues in this grand adventure of education. Certainly, it would have been hard to remain unaffected by the mood and en-ergy of today’s fi eld lab, but in reality the moments of beauty do not have to be grand to be powerful.

May the sun of today, and the beauty of spring, refuel your own spirit, just as the insects and fl owers of our community fuel our feathered friends as they move through our yards, parks and campus.

— Wally Shriner is an MHCC ecology, evolution and wildlife biology and writes a monthly column on the connection be-tween our life and the rhythms of nature.

Guest column: Eye on Nature

Signs of spring bringsprecious gifts of nature's beauty

Photo by Anevay Torrez/The Advocate

Cherry blossoms line the upper walkway west of the academic center on the Gresham campus.

Photo by Anevay torrez/The Advocate

Directors Marietta Walker Red and Joseph Johnston pose a� er hanging out in the green room.

By Anevay Torrez The Advocate

Since the theater director retired last year the college has made it so students are more involved in more as-pects of the spring plays this year; including directing.

The fi rst spring play is “Dead man’s cell phone,” which students Marietta Walker Red and Joseph Johnston will be directing for the fi rst time.

“I’m quite fond of ‘Fiddler on the roof ’ I saw it here at the college fi ve years ago and it kind of inspired me to get back into theater,” said co-director Johnston about his favorite theater production.

Co- director and medical billing and coding major, Red about her experience with theater, “Three years ago my theater group did ‘The di-ary of Anne Frank’ so that’s’ kind of near and dear to my heart.”

After taking a one term to learn about di-recting and then going into directing Red said, “It’s been pretty confusing for someone to just step in and not know what they’re doing and just do it,” said Red. “I’m used to being on the acting side so learning to being more of a disciplinary.”

Johnston said, “One thing I’ve found I really enjoy is when we fi rst get the actors up and doing the blocking and movements. Seeing the words you’ve read so many times come to life; it’s really inspiring just watching.”

Red said, “I’ve been in a commu-nity theater in Eastern Oregon for 11 years and I got to a point where I thought I knew it all, and I thought I can do that I want to get up there and I want to be able to say this is where you go and that’s where I want you to stand, it’s been a little different than what I thought it was going to be…it’s a lot harder.”

Thinking about his directing techniques he brings to the play Johnston said, “Since this is my fi rst time directing I’m relying a lot on the skills of the actors because I know that some of them actually have more directing experience than me so I’m king of giving general ideas and taking suggestions and mixing it together.”

“That’s kind of what I’ve done too, I have an idea in my mind, I put it to my actors but I tell them I want their feedback,” said Red about her directing techniques as well.

“We’re very proud of our cast they’ve done a very good job. We have a really great cast and

wonderful production manager, they’ve been real troopers for us inexperienced people,” said co-directors Red and Johnston

Red said with the time consuming directing of the fi rst spring play there’s hardly time to do anything other than homework, “Off time, I’m looking forward to good

weather so I can do some hiking and I like to dance.”On his off time Johnston said, “I listen to music a lot, I’m trying to learn the guitar I haven’t had much time at the present for

practicing but I’ll get back to that.” After a day of school and directing Red

said, “I have my shows I have to watch, like Dancing with the Stars.”

When the play is done Red said, “I just want to hear them say I enjoyed that. It’s a real different play, it was real hard for me to get into it and see the humor in some of it so I’m just hoping we’ve done a good enough job that the audience sees that humor.”

And Johnston said, “To me this play is about relationships how people relate to each other how they care about each other and how technology is having an effect on that and I want people to enjoy

the play too. With this play I’d like to see people come away with a renewed interest trying to connect with each other and try-ing to consider how technology has affected the way we work with others.”

APRIL, 15 2011 LIVING ARTS 5

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Food, dance and music highlight spring events

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Photos by devin courtright

Photo 1 by devin courtrightPhotos 2 and 3 by Riley Hinds

Featured artist Emily Braden and her bassist perform in the Visual Arts � eater April 8.

Aztec dancers organized by SAB move through the Main Mall in full costume Tuesday.

Student Events and Special Projects Coordinator Pam Kuretich places chips out for hungry students on Tuesday in the Main Mall.

Orchestra students playing at a bene� t concert perform Brandenburg Concerto No.5 by J.S. Bach Monday. � e instruments were remade to look like the original Baroque instruments and used strings made of animal innards. Stephen Garney sits far le� .

Members of MHCC vocal jazz group Genesis sing in the Visual Arts � eater April 8.

Students enjoy the food and beverages o� ered by SAB during the Club Fair in the Main Mall Monday a� ernoon.

An Aztec performer dances in the Main Mall Tuesday, at noon.

APRIL 15, 20116 NEWS


More than a year after an electrical malfunction caused shutdown of the Gresham campus, the status of the pit dug between the College Center and the Visual Arts Center remains uncertain.

The hole was dug in the fi rst week of April 2010 after water entered the main electrical cabinet, shutting down the system and forcing a closure of the campus.

Maintenance workers dug the hole to divert water from electrical conduits that provide power for the college.

“We have no (immediate) plans for the hole,” said Dick Byers, director of facilities management, on the future of the pit. “There has been no discussion between facilities (department) and the administration,” he added.

Asked about this strategy, Byers said, “We are engaged in developing an electrical system replacement design and any work performed on that hole now could be money wasted when the new design is realized and installed.”

According to last year’s estimate from Portland General Electric offi cials, replacing the college’s electrical system could cost upwards of $2 million.

In a budget forum last year, President John Sygielski said the PGE of-fi cials recommended that work on the electrical system be done soon, saying repairs might occur in summer 2010.

Asked about a timeline for this new system or repairs, Byers said, “That depends on what type of phasing or plan the board might approve. It could be any time between September of this year and next year.”

As for any problems that might arise from the hole being exposed to the elements, Byers said complications are “not likely.”

By Riley HindsThe Advocate

Horns honked and middle fi ngers waved from the windows of passing cars during a protest Wednesday of the new Planned Parenthood offi ce on MHCC campus.

Despite the fact that none of the services they were opposing (physical abortions and the chemi-cal abortion pill: mifepristone, commonly know as RU-486) are offered in the Planned Parenthood offi ce at MHCC, the bunch was bound and deter-mined to voice their opinion.

“We had a contest to see who got the most mid-dle fi ngers,” said protest organizer Liberty Pike. “I think I got 40-something.”

The students seemed prepared for the negative reception.

Pike, at one point, shook a sign saying, “Don’t hate me because I (heart) babies” at vehicles.

After the event, Pike said she thought 30 people had shown up to the event.

“Our turnout is usually small. A lot of people are scared. Confrontational and judgmental are words I hear from people.”

Protestor Mariann Pike, sister-in-law of the or-ganizer, said, “I’ve been with a few different groups protesting things. It’s very rewarding and I think a lot of people just don’t understand that.”

Another protestor, Liberty Pike’s younger sis-ter Varity Grant, said, “It’s not their right to offer abortion services on campus.”

Liz Delapoer, public relations person for Planned Parenthood, said, “We do not offer, nor do we intend to offer, nor have we ever claimed to

offer any kind of abortion services on the MHCC campus. That offi ce provides: annual exams and pap tests for women, comprehensive birth control, family planning services, screening for women for breast and cervical cancer, testing and treatment for S.T.D.’s, emergency contraceptives and free pregnancy tests.”

According to the opposing group’s (MHCC Pro-Life Alumni) petition on www.thepetitionsite.com: “This alleged “health organization [Planned Par-enthood] actually harms it patients. Most of them — innocent babies- — do not leave the clinics alive. Adult patients leave with lifelong psychological scarring and guilt, if not physical harm, including increased cancer risk.”

Protesters line up on Kane Drive Wednesday to voice their concern about a Planned Parenthood clinc being established on the MHCC Gresham campus.Photo by Anevay Torrez/The Advocate

Planned Parenthood clinic draws negative reaction

MHCC's 'Grand Canyon' to remain open for near future

APRIL 15, 2011 NEWS 7

By Jen AshenbernerThe Advocate

Candidates in the May 17 election for the MHCC District board include some familiar faces at the college.

Running for position seven, an at-large seat, is current board member Ralph Yates. Yates is a family and sports medicine physician in the Gresham area and has served three terms as an district board and serves on the Oregon Medical Board for three years.

His opponent is Jenni Simonis, an MHCC web design major and organizer of a labor negotiations student move-ment on campus. Her governmental background includes serving on the City of Gresham Fire Subcommittee, Rental Inspection Task Force, a north-east Gresham neighborhood association president, and was elected as a precinct committee person from 2000-2010.

Other open seats include: Zone Three, previously occupied by Duke Shepard who resigned in February due to person-al reasons prior to the end of his term; Zone Five, occupied by Bob Morris and

position six by Beverly Russell, neither of whom has fi led for re-election.

Candidates confi rmed from the Mult-nomah County Elections website include the following:

Zone ThreeMaggie Nelson: a retired teacher and

previously elected precinct committee person and house district captain.

Paul Capell: program manager for HDR Engineering, who has served on the Prineville City Council and as mayor in 1997-98.

Eric Flores: ESL/social studies teach-er.

Zone FiveRobert Coen: president of BCI Group,

Inc. since 1990.B. Anthony Smith: U.S. Bancorp Fi-

nancial SalesPosition SixDiane C. Noriega: retired teacher

and previous interim college president of California State University-Monterey Bay

James Zordich: retired curator of technological history


The MHCC District board spent Wednesday night accounting for operating losses from the college Aquatic Center, being scolded by stu-dents regarding the possibility of a faculty strike and deciding how much to pay the interim college president.

Board members sat silently as MHCC students made statements reacting to a strike vote taken by faculty April 6.

After gathering 955 student signatures on a petition to present to the board, Jenni Simonis, organizer of the petition, stated her case to the board.

“Many students have become very concerned,” said Simonis. Talk-ing points by Simonis included making an example of college president John Sygielski’s recommendations in 2009-10 to eliminate fi ve admin-istrative positions, which actually resulted in the board “salting” the school’s wounds by adding eight administrative positions.

Simonis also pointed out that after the board has claimed there was no money to negotiate with faculty, they have approved: expenditures in the amount of $400,000 for a new phone system “that still doesn’t work, a month after installation;” $310,000 for an “overhaul on the website, outsourcing, instead of providing competent and able students an internship, or web-design staff an opportunity;” $175,000 for the master plan and remodel of the college when “we have no money;” and $275,000 for an attorney to “tell the faculty something like, ‘Here’s our offer, take it or leave it.’”

No board members responded to statements by Simonis.Another item on the agenda was operating costs for the Aquatics

Center and a decrease in revenue since 2006. In a proposal submitted by the aquatics staff, the calculated operating costs for 2009-10 were more than $1 million.

“With revenues just over $300,000, the Aquatic Center experienced a net loss of approximately $700,000 during 2009-10,” according to the proposal. Board member Ralph Yates said, “We’re in a time when peo-ple aren’t taking swimming lessons, which makes revenue go down.” Board member Dave Shields said the report is preliminary and any action taken in regards to the pool would be like “shooting in the dark without accurate numbers.”

The board unanimously directed the aquatics department to explore ways to increase revenue from already scheduled swim meet contracts through 2014, evaluate a cost benefi t analysis of contracting with the National Swim Center Corporation (NSCC), and review the existing contract with Mt. Hood Aquatics (MHA) to explore ways to increase revenues for both MHCC and MHA, all to be completed by June.

The aquatics department is also authorized to analyze the operating costs of shifting swim meets and events scheduled at the outdoor pool to the indoor pool and evaluate not installing the dome cover on the outdoor pool during winter months. A report is due back to the board by September.

The board also approved a salary for incoming interim college presi-dent Michael Hay. The board granted Hay a $2,500 salary increase salary for May and then a $3,000 increase from his current salary for June. His starting annual salary as interim college president will be $160,000 beginning July 1. He was also authorized an auto allowance of $700 per month.


The administration will present its offi cial 2011-12 budget proposal at Wednesday’s MHCC district board meeting at 6 p.m. in the boardroom.

College President John Sygielski will present his MHCC balanced budget proposal at the meeting and has assured the community he and the administration have “left no stone unturned” when building this proposal.

Challenges the college faces during the next budget cycle, which be-gins July 1, include cuts being made to community colleges by the state Legislature, increases in P.E.R.S. (Public Employee Retirement System), and the projection of fl at enrollment.

Proposed solutions include layoffs of full-time faculty, part-time fac-ulty, and some administrative positions. The proposal may also include a $50 parking fee for students per term and possible tuition hikes.

The board will hear public input after the proposal has been presented.

Administration to present 2011-2012 budget proposal Wednesday night

Raising money for a good cause

MercyCorps and Japanese Club sold 43 shirts as of Wednesday at $10 a piece. � e money goes towards disaster relief for those a� ected by the Japanese earthquake and tsunami. Another ra� e fundraising event will take place next week. Center: Corie Mallen, who lead the project. Far Right: Ruby Harris. Second from le� : Ryan Watkins. Far le� : Dan Stewart, � rst-year English major.


Board adopts plan to curb lossesat Aquatic Center

Board election set for May 17

THE ADVOCATEAPRIL 15, 20118 NEWS

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By Laura KnudsonThe Advocate

Rho Theta was honored as fi rst runner up for Most Distinguished Chapter at the annual Phi The-ta Kappa International Convention held in Seattle April 7-10.

Rho Theta walked away with seven awards. The awards were: Distinguished Chapter Offi cer Team, Distinguished Chapter Adviser, Distinguished Col-lege Project, Distinguished Honors in Action Proj-ect, Distinguished Honors in Action Issue, Distin-guished Chapter, and Most Distinguished Chapter Finalist

“Rho Theta has never won anything at the Inter-national level, so to come home with seven awards was amazing,” said Onjalai Flake, vice president of scholarship and Division IV vice president.

Other team members include Jackie Vitron, Brian Arrell, Max Seiler, Katie O’Donnell, Rae Nichelle-Peres, Toyoko Akiyama-Becker and Van-essa Bishop.

More than 3,500 faculty advisers and students attended the conference, representing more than 500 chapters.

Asked of her expectations at the convention, adviser Beth Sammons said, “The offi cers should expect to come home inspired, exhilarated and ex-hausted.”

Flake said she was looking to gain knowledge, bond with her fellow offi cers, have fun and “if we just so happened to win an award or two, that would be awesome.”

At this year’s convention, Hilary Pennington of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation spoke about college completion. Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson gave a presentation titled “Modern Skepti-cism in the Internet Age.”

It “was both hilarious and thought-provoking,” said Sammons.

General sessions were held in a meeting hall at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle. Sammons said, “The lighting, stage settings, four huge screens, music and cheering crowds do have a bit of a rock concert feel.”

The team also attended educational forums where they learned about applying to colleges, in-creasing membership, fi nding scholarships, under-standing offi cer’s roles and managing fi nances.

Sammons said her role as adviser is rewarding.

“There’s nothing quite like being at the formal in-duction ceremony in May and hearing a student say, “I’ve never been an honor student before and it means so much to me to be invited to join Phi Theta Kappa.”

Flake said, “I feel this was a timely morale boost. There is nothing that motivates any team better than recognition.”

Sammons said she hopes “the excitement of the convention will help Rho Theta bring attention to the importance of college completion.

Phi Theta Kappa is a leader in the national Com-munity College Completion initiative, and we want to help develop a culture of completion at Mt. Hood Community College.”

Flake said, “Three years ago, my father paid the $60 membership fee and I haven’t had any regrets yet.”

Next year’s convention will be held in Nashville. Membership of Rho Theta is granted by invita-

tion to those who meet requirements. A 3.5 GPA is needed.

Orientation sessions will be held April 28 from noon to 12:50 p.m. in AC 1553 and from 4 to 5 p.m. in AC 1251.

"Without our instructors, we're not able to get certified. We took out loans for this and now they're (the college) pushing it back for us. We still get our credits, but won't get certified and then we can't work. Some of us have families. I just got married and have a kid and need to support them."

"It's really between the union and the board. Students are taking a hit. If faculty was really for the students, then they'd take a cut."

-Greg Cameronautomotive technology

-Bramdon Vogelpohlautomotive technology

Continued from page 1

Honors society takes seven awards at international meet

Deadline is today for ASG postsBy Mike MataThe Advocate

Filing deadline for presi-dent and vice president of the MHCC Associated Student Government elections is to-day and application packets are due to Student Events & Center Coordinator Meadow McWhorter in the College Center by noon.

“We haven’t received any packets yet, but I have seen several students collecting signatures,” McWhorter said Thursday.

There were 50 packets handed out in the last two weeks, though the list of can-didate names was unavail-able at Thursday’s press time.

There will be mandatory candidate meetings on Mon-day in the Council Chambers; candidates may attend either the 1-2 p.m. or 5-6 p.m. meet-ing, with the biographies of candidates due on Wednesday by 5 p.m. via email.

Offi cial campaigning be-gins April 25. There will be a candidate meet-and-greet April 28 in the College Center from 12-2 p.m.

The vice presidential de-bates will take place May 3 from noon-1 p.m. in the Main Mall, with the presidential debates following the next day at the same time and place.

Read these and more stories at

www.advocate-online.net

Students Sound Off

APRIL 15, 2011 NEWS 9

Ready to transfer?Interested in thecreative arts?

Join us for an information session:

Saturday, May 14 at 9 a.m.Marylhurst campusBP John Administration Bldg., rm. 200

Register for this free event [email protected] or 503.699.6268.

Academic excellence since 1893 www.marylhurst.edu17600 Pacific Highway (Hwy. 43)—10 miles south of Portland

MARYLHURSTU N I V E R S I T Y

ARTmarylhurst.edu/art

MUSICmarylhurst.edu/music

INTERIOR DESIGNmarylhurst.edu/id

CREATIVE WRITINGmarylhurst.edu/english

FILMmarylhurst.edu/culturalstudies

Solving the mystery

of why people procrastinateBy Jen AshenbernerThe Advocate

It’s there and you know it.It might be buried in the dark nooks beneath your subconscious to-do list, but it’s still

there festering until you face it head on. You have allowed weeks to go by, but you know

that it’s coming and perhaps out of fear you have let everything else take priority.

Even cleaning your shoes becomes attractive compared to the task that has been pushed aside.

Procrastination, says Jessica Jozaitis, MHCC education major, is something she does quite a bit and regrets once she realizes it.

“I ask myself, ‘Why did I do this,’ ” she said.Jozaitis might procrastinate for many rea-

sons but it is more commonly related to fear, according to Larry Gilius, MHCC’s Learning Success Center coordinator.

“Procrastination is the habit of putting pain-ful things off needlessly,” said Gilius. “You could be putting them off not for any real reason or you may have a good reason, but it’s more than likely out of fear of something.”

The fear could be resulting from a bad child-hood experience, growing up in a negative en-vironment or, the most common, fear of failure.

“You might be afraid of failure,” said Gilius. “You might think people are watching your ev-ery move, waiting for you to fail.”

Simply feeling overwhelmed and uncomfort-able with success are also common reasons why people put off things.

Gilius presents student success seminars on avoiding procrastination and said “negative thinking and self-talk” are common triggers that lead to students avoiding what they know they need to do.

“They could be telling themselves, ‘I don’t re-ally care about this project’ or ‘I’m not going to do well anyways,’” Gilius said.

Journalism major John Tkebuchava said he relates to this. “If it’s something I want to write about or I’m passionate about, I’m much less likely to procrastinate and will stay on top of it.”

Negative self-talk is harmful to one’s image of themselves, according to Gilius, which re-sults in infl icting pain. “It’s human nature to avoid pain,” he said. “We often put off pain, not wanting to deal with the painful things until later.”

“The opposite of that is making a conscious plan to do what you need to do sooner rather than later,” said Gilius.

“You have a choice of turning stuff in last minute and stressing about it, which builds up the anxiety, or you can get it done early and re-lieve that anxiety,” he said.

“We should always be thinking of doing the hard and painful things sooner,” says Gilius. “The simple reason is to get it out of the way.”

MHCC psychology instructor Stephanie Cramm says procrastination is a defense mech-anism brought on to help cope with situations that create anxiety, stress or worry.

“By nature, defense mechanisms are subcon-scious or preconscious, and tend to distort real-ity,” Cramm says.

Denial is a factor of procrastination and Cramm says it is backed up with another de-fense mechanism: rationalization.

“Rationalization is particularly used if a per-son procrastinates too long and is stuck then facing the music,” said Cramm.

Cramm said other psychological components to procrastination may include a social expla-nation.

“Procrastination is tolerated as something

many people do,” she said. “In cultures where procrastination is not tolerated in this way, it is a rare event. Individualistic cultures have more procrastination than collectivist cultures.”

Another aspect is people continue to pro-crastinate because the behavior is rewarding in some way.

“It could be positive reinforcement, gaining the reward of having fun doing something else that out-weighs the consequences of procrasti-nating, or it could be negative reinforcement, the removal of the noxious experience -- so that one feels better or less stressed out by avoiding facing or doing the task (which) has been per-ceived as causing the stress/anxiety,” Cramm said. “Like a phobia, one feels relief every time they evade the fear, thus strengthening the avoidance behavior.”

A journalism student, Jordan Tichenor, said he often fi nds himself procrastinating. “The only thing I can ever fi nd to help is setting up short-term deadlines for small progress on whatever I’m working on. Instead of saying, ‘I need to have all of this done a week from now,’ I say, ‘I need to get a third of this done in two days.’ “

Gilius said the Learning Success Center offers assistance to people who have an issue with procrastination. They can help narrow the possible causes of someone resorting to procras-tination and provide tools and techniques for the “cure.”

An “Avoiding Procrastination” seminar is offered once every term. Gilius said steps sug-gested by Gilius in the seminars include stu-dents realizing they are delaying something unnecessarily and recognize when they are doing it, fi gure out why they are doing it and argue against those reasons, then take immedi-ate action.

“It doesn’t have to be big action,” says Gilius. “Cut out some small pieces of a project and ask yourself if there’s something you can do for 10 minutes to help me start that research paper. Usually you will end up doing more than what was planned.”

Gilius said it’s important that students not only say to themselves they are going to do something, but that they commit to it by jotting it down on a planner.

“Don’t just say you’re going to start the pa-per — schedule it, commit to it, and keep what-ever momentum you have going,” Gilius said.

Utilizing friends and family can help keep students committed to their goal as well, ac-cording to Gilius. “Tell them the plan and that you’re depending on them to keep you respon-sible,” he said.

“Say to yourself, ‘If I study for 30 minutes from 6 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., then I can go out with my friends tonight,” said Gilius. “Recognizing your progress will increase your energy and boosts self-esteem.”

Describing herself as the “queen of procrasti-nation,” Jozaitis says, “I don’t think there could possibly be a cure for procrastination.”

Gilius agreed, saying, “There is no one tech-nique that will be the cure all. Students should just take small steps to overcome procrastina-tion.”

APRIL 15, 201110 SPORTS

By Chanel Hill The Advocate

Heels dug into the dirt. Eyes looking straightfor-ward to home plate. Composed and focused, Kayla Anderson’s expression never changed.

MHCC’s sophomore ace pitched a nine-strikeout no-hitter Tuesday afternoon in the second game of a doubleheader against the Chemeketa Storm.

Anderson, who didn’t realize she pitched a no-hitter until receiving a call from head coach Meadow McWhorter late Tuesday night, didn’t want to jinx herself. “I thought that something was happening, but I didn’t want to say it,” said a modest Anderson. “I just took it one pitch at a time.”

One pitch at a time, An-derson, who has one no-hitter under her belt while at Bar-low High School, set down the Storm hitters one-by-one, walking only one player and allowing two on base.

With one out in the top of the seventh inning, a Storm player hit a slow chopper past Anderson that freshman shortstop MacKenzie Samu-elson saved in the nick of time to make the second out of the inning and keep the no-hitter alive. “Behind every no-hitter there is excellent defense,” McWhorter said Tuesday night. “You’re not going to strikeout everyone.”

The next play and fi nal out resulted in a routine

infi eld fl y. “I’m super proud that our defense stepped up. It shows how hard we work,” said Anderson, “We need every person to play the game. I didn’t do that by myself.”

The 4-0 home victory followed a game one 7-0 vic-tory by the Lady Saints behind the fi erce pitching of sophomore Chelsea Schriber who went the distance, striking out 11 players and scattering four base hits.

Anderson who shares a friendly rivalry with fel-low pitcher Schriber, knew she had to bring her A-game on the mound. “We’re really competitive with each other. When she succeeds, it pushes me to succeed; if she puts in extra pitches, I put in extra

pitches,” said Anderson, “If there’s anyone that pushes me, it’s Chelsea.”

The Saints softball team, after four straight rainouts, is making up for wlost time, sweeping their last four games in South-ern Region play and now sharing a three-way tie for fi rst place.

The Saints, who also have been plagued by in-juries, seemed unaffected Tuesday by their slow sea-son start.

“Through the adversity, we learned a lot of les-sons and applied them,” head coach Meadow Mc-Whorter said Tuesday night, She said that in pre-season play, “We were committing four or fi ve errors a game. Now, we’ve been errorless. We’re putting

the pieces of the puzzle together.” Tuesday’s double-header sweep over Chemeketa

(1-12, 0-4), showed proof of a team beginning to hit its stride, highlighted by the dominant performance by Anderson in game two.

“I’m always really nervous,” the sophomore said after the game. “I think all athletes get those nerves until you get going.” Going is exactly what Anderson was, as the Storm batters were swinging relent-lessly and in vain.

The team wasn’t taking anything for granted. “There was momentum coming off the fi rst game, but we always talk about how important the sec-ond game is,” said McWhorter, praising the stand-out pitching performances of Schriber and Ander-son, “Both girls did a great job getting ahead in the count, working off-speed pitches, and keeping the ball in the core.”

The Saints, tied for fi rst in the Southern Region with a 4-0 record (6-4 overall), still have many games to play, including a series with the rival Clackamas Cougars (4-0, 8-1). Still, the Saints are confi dent in their ability to turn it on and get it done. “This team is awesome,” said Anderson. “Seeing how good the girls play, and knowing we’re solid in each position, it defi nitely makes pitching easier.”

In fi rst game, the top of the lineup struggled, but the bottom of the lineup picked up the slack and sophomore pitcher Chelsea Schriber racked up 11 strikeouts. On offense, Guy had a single and a double and freshmen Samuelson and Alexis Cline helped push the Saints to the 7-0 victory.

Anderson said, “Our defense was awesome. We are defi nitely small but mighty.”

“I thought that something was happening, but I didn't want to say it.”

Kayla Andersonpitcher for the Saints

Saints sweep Storm, Anderson pitches no-hitter

Clockwise from le� : Sophomore Kayla Anderson pitches a no-hitter Tuesday vs. Chemeketa Storm; Saints huddle a� er sweeping the Storm 7-0 and 4-0 ; Anderson relaxes Tuesday a� er pitching no-hitter; sophomore Chelsea Schriber delivers during her 11-game strikeout performance in game one against � e Storm.

Photos by: Devin Courtright/The Advocate

APRIL 15, 2011 SPORTS 11

Off to the races: Zeller and Co. show up big at meets

By Jon FuccilloThe Advocate

The South’s No. 1 Saints over-came their recent offensive woes Tuesday afternoon in Oregon City as they lit up the Clackamas Cou-gars for 26 runs on 31 hits in a dou-bleheader sweep.

The two victories, by scores of 13-5 and 13-2, extended the team’s win streak to six games.

The Saints are now 8-2 in South-ern Region play (12-5 overall) while the Cougars are now 3-7 in confer-ence (9-13 overall).

Sophomore outfi elder Matt Nylen torched the Cougars staff in game one to help Saints freshman starting pitcher Isaac Henslee (1-0). Nylen pieced together a four-hit performance, including two singles, a double and his second homerun of the season.

The bat he used to hit his home-run was only good for two hits be-fore it snapped.

“He (Nylen) bought a cheap bat from Big 5 and used it kind of as a joke because he liked the way it felt,” sophomore infi elder Grant

Fink said Tuesday night. “He said it felt good and hit a homerun and a double with it — and then it broke.”

Nylen said, “My dad got the bat for me and said, ‘Hit a bomb with it and if it breaks, it’s not a big deal.’”

Fink said he feels the Saints of-fense has caught stride and can match the strength of their pitch-ing.

“It was incredible,” Fink said of the high-scoring offense. “We were hitting like crazy. It was a rival game and we’re better than them. We knew what we had to do.

“We expected to win,” Fink added. “Now it’s time to forget about these games and move on. Leave the past in the past and worry about the fu-ture and make a run at this thing (Southern Region championship).”

Sophomore ace Jeremy Bur-right (3-0) did his part in taming the Cougars in the second game after the Cougars jumped out to a 2-1 lead after the fi rst inning. The Saints offense responded in the top of the second by piling six runs. The Saints went on to score three runs in both the fourth and sixth innings.

“We’re hot right now,” freshman infi elder Trevor Cass said Tuesday night. Cass ended the night 5 for 7 with two doubles and three RBIs.

“We knew our hitting would come through,” Cass added, “It just took a little time. Our confi dence was al-ways there. It just took a couple of games to get hot.”

Cass also praised the pitching staff.

“Our pitching is always good,” he said. “We have a great staff and pitchers who can command games. The way we see it, if we score three or more runs, we think we will win.”

Nylen said, “Our pitching staff is the best in the South.”

Sophomore outfi elder Jared Chase said, “A good day for the Saints today. It’s going to be hard to beat us this year.”

The Saints return to the dia-mond Saturday as they head south to Albany to face the Linn-Benton Roadrunners (11-11, 5-5) in a dou-bleheader. On Tuesday they travel to Eugene to square off with the Lane Titans (11-11, 6-4) for a dou-bleheader.

Saints sweep third straight doubleheader

Photo by jon fuccillo/the advocate

Saints sophomore Matt Nylen, shown earlier in the season, had a four-hit game in the Saints 13-5 game one victory over the Clackamas Cougars Tuesday a� ernoon in Oregon City.


Freshman Tyler Callahan broke the MHCC jav-elin record for the third time last weekend and sev-eral Saint athletes became auto-qualifi ers for the NWAACC heptathlon and decathlon events earlier this week to cap a bustling series of competitions.

On Friday, the track and fi eld team headed up to Western Oregon University for the John Knight Twilight Meet — and Callahan blew away the com-petition with a javelin throw of 215’ 11’’.

Callahan was the only individual to throw over 200 feet, with the next best throw coming in a cou-ple inches over 199 feet

This is the second time Callahan has broken his own record after setting a new school record in the beginning of March at the Eric Anderson Icebreaker meet.

Callahan’s record-breaking effort highlighted an all-around day of successes for the Saints at Fri-day’s meet.

Freshman Erica Drake placed second in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.52, freshman Laura Knudson placed third in the 400-meter dash (1:01.08), freshman Terra Zodrow placed third in the long jump (best jump of 5.13 meters) and freshman Robert Hanke’s won the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 55.01 seconds.

“The weather was pretty good. A little breezy, but not too bad,” said head coach Matt Hart, something that has become a rarity as the spring

sports have b e e n plagued this year w i t h endless bouts of rain.

“We had some anxiety. We’re slowly gaining ex- p e r i e n c e . We had several really strong mid-seasons,” said Hart.

One of MHCC’s standout ath-letes, Chris Zeller, was pulled from some of his events. He passed on the 400- and 200-meter dashes, where he ranks second and fi rst in the NWAACC, respectively, after some hamstring issues arose.

But pushing past injury, Zeller came back in full force at the Mt. Hood Multi Meet on Monday and Tuesday where he placed fourth overall with 5,656 points in the decathlon.

Sophomore Zach Young, and Hanke also com-peted in the decathlon and freshmen Terra Zodrow and Whitney Swenson competed in the heptathlon on the women’s side.

Young placed sixth (missing fi fth by one point) and Terra Zodrow placed second in the heptathlon.

Swenson, who was in fi rst place after the fi rst day’s events, was forced to pull out after some health issues arose.

“Whitney had an awesome meet the fi rst day. Ap-parently she went to the doctor and toward the end of the day she said she had strep throat,” said Hart.

Swenson said, “If I had competed (Tuesday), I

could have qualifi ed for NWAACC (for heptathlon).”Though Swenson wasn’t able to compete Tues-

day, she placed seventh and said she was excited to try something new, “It was my fi rst time doing it. I liked it. It’s fun to do all the events,” she said.

In the 10-event decathlon (males) and the fi ve-event heptathlon (females), competitors participate in a variety of sprinting, throwing, jumping and distance events ranging from the shot put, to the 1500-meter run.

Hart said, “It’s the best of all worlds. It’s the best athletes on the track,” said Hart of the decathlon and heptathlon events.

Zeller said, “It was a lot of fun, but defi nitely a challenge. It was a lot of fun doing stuff that I’ve never done before and trying new things.”

“I’m defi nitely going to do it again. I’m for sure going to do it at the NWAACC (championship meet).

With such big performances early on in by ath-letes, it begs the question of whether these individu-als might peak early.

“Peaking is a myth. Peaking doesn’t exist in a good program,” said Hart, “Right now, we’re transi-tioning from a fi tness stage to a speed stage.

“Their level of fi tness is higher than it has ever been in their lives. We’re not anywhere close to peaking right now.”

“I’ve got about 16 years of experience doing this and its highly prevalent that our athletes have big PRs at the end of the season,” he said.

“I anticipate the same this year.”

Le� : Saints sophomore Chris Zeller high jumps Monday during the � rst day of competition at the Mt. Hood Multi Meet.


Offense comes to life

THE ADVOCATEAPRIL 15, 201112 THE FLIPSIDE

Actually, they just got started thinking about it.What about interruptions to your spring term?The College has assured you that your education will be “seamless”.

Here’s their solution: “...students will receive all the required hours... by adding a week or two to the end of the term...” —email from top-level administrator

Seamless. Really? Spring term into July?

Besides impacting your summer plans, the Administration is making other short-sighted decisions that risk: •youraccreditation •yourcertification •yourgraduation •youreducation

Tell the MHCC Board to put YOUR education first.

Your MHCC Faculty do not want to strike, but will if necessary. Your actions and your voice could make the difference between a strike and a settled contract.

Paid for By the mhcc faculty association find out more @ www.Be-informed.net

iF THe BOaRd FORCes a sTRike, is THe COllege ReadY?

Brian Freeman, Board Chair: [email protected]

Beverly Russell: [email protected] or [email protected]

Rod Monroe: [email protected]

Bob Morris: [email protected]

Dave Shields: 503-666-6167 [email protected]

Ralph Yates, D.O.: [email protected] or [email protected]

The Advocate, Issue 24, April 15, 2011

Documents

Transcript of The Advocate, Issue 24, April 15, 2011