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$10,000 donated to Athletic Department Tolerance vs. Acceptance

ASO Hearts and Hands Pantry

NewsPage 2 | May 2012 | AVCExaminer.com

If you get hurt on campus, where are you supposed to go for help? What if you’re getting sick, but don’t have the time or transportation to get to a doctor’s office between classes and work?

Antelope Valley College has no permanent student health center.

The only medical help available comes in the form a mobile health clinic that arrives on campus every Thursday at 8:30 a.m.–1:00 p.m., known as the Care-A-Van.

A variety of services are avail-able on the Care-A-Van, including: flu shots, TB tests, pregnancy tests, blood pressure checks, and mental health assessments.

The Care-A-Van costs AVC $68,000 a year to run. “While this is a very generous amenity provided by Antelope Valley College, it has a few shortcomings,” Mat-thew Ellison, ASO Senator of Health Sciences said during his presentation to the Board of Trustees on April 9. (Ellison’s presentation is available for review on the AVC website in the April 9 board meeting agenda).

Students must contact Student Services to make an appointment at least one day prior to the van’s arrival.

“After talking with Student Services,” Ellison said, “I found out that the appointments are fully booked every single week” and the likelihood of being seen for a walk-in appoint-ment is slim.

Dr. Zimmerman, Dean of Student Services, said that the Care-A-Van has been consistently swamped “year af-ter year.” Even though AVC recently obtained a grant for a mental health professional to come on Mondays and Wednes-

days, only 10-12 students can be seen each week and there’s a waiting list.

“What we currently have set up is being exhausted and we need to expand the accessibility to our students,” Ellison said.

The Care-A-Van is not free for all students either. “If a student has a health insurance plan or does not qualify for

financially-free care, they have to pay a $10 co-pay every time,” Elli-son said. “If you go twice in one se-mester, you have to pay $20; for three times, $30.”

At the start of the spring semester, Ellison set out with two other ASO members and a Student Services faculty member to explore student health centers on other campuses. Ellison said that after visiting College of the Canyons and Glendale Community College, “It fired me up ... Our campus is truly missing out.”

Ellison dug deeper to find out how many colleges had health centers —

navigating through all 112 of California’s community college websites and calling about half of the schools for clarifica-tion. He found out that 96 of them have student health cen-ters. Even though AVC is in the top 44 percent of colleges in population size, our school falls into the minority of 16 colleges that do not have a permanent health center.

If AVC charges a $19 student health fee along with tuition costs every semester ($16 for summer and interterm) there will be enough to hire a full-time nurse practitioner, a full-time clerical worker, a part-time psychologist and a part -time medical doctor and still have about $250,000 available annually for equipment and materials, Ellison said.

“Students would only be paying 40 percent of a single unit a semester to have a permanent health center on campus,” Ellison said. Also, only those who solely depend on prayer

for healing and students attending community college under an approved apprenticeship program would be exempt from paying this fee, Ellison said.

Students with BOG waivers will have to pay. According to the Student Fee Handbook from the Califor-

nia Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office, Section 3.1, “A 2005 amendment to section 76355 eliminated the require-ment that low-income students (students eligible for a Board of Governors Enrollment Fee Waiver) be exempted from the health fee.”

“Because every student will have equal access and the abil-ity to benefit from the center, every student is expected to pay the health center fee,” Ellison said.

Health courses currently held in the Applied Arts and Al-lied Health Building (APL) will transfer to the new Health and Science Building when it opens in the fall, so there will be vacant rooms that the student health center could fill.

This new health center will be open five days a week. To reach as many students as possible, Ellison said it could be

Will Lofgren / ExaminerAVC’s only “health center” comes less than 5 hours a week.

Board votes 5-0 in favor of student funded health centerBy Kat WilsonStaff Writer

Recently, there has been campus-wide speculation about the future of the college swimming pool. Rumors circulated about its possible closure and impending — not to mention costly — repairs.

Many raised concerns about pool-orient-ed programs, including those for disabled students. There was general uncertainty about what was to be done conerning the high cost of repair.

“It was going to cost $800,000 to fix the pool. That was brought to the Board [of Trust-ees], and based on that figure, it was decided to shut the pool down,” said Newton Chelette, Dean of Kinesiology, Dance, and Athletics/Visual and Performing Arts.

A few weeks later, however, Chelette said Dr. Jackie Fisher, AVC President, informed him that the estimated amount was for total renovation, and that a smaller amount could be spent simply to maintain the pool for an-other semester instead of major repairs.

In protest to possible closure, students

and faculty collected 400 signatures and presented them to the Board on April 9. Though the decision had already been made, according to Chelette, the Board voted 5-0 to keep the pool open at least through fall 2012.

Board President Betty Wienke assured protesters that pool-oriented classes would continue uncut in the fall, but said the Board could make “no guarantees” about maintain-ing the schedule beyond that.

Despite the controversy, Doug Jensen, Director of Facilities Planning and Campus Development, said that he never reported that the pool needed to be repaired immediately.

Renovation of the pool, opened in 1960, was listed among several other facilities projects in a report that Jensen is required to present every December to the Chancellor’s Office.

“One of these projects [out of a list of about 12] was renovation of the pool itself,” Jensen said. “The way they build pools today is not the way they built them in 1960.”

The equipment and process of water treat-ment has changed and the pool needs to be updated to meet modern criterion. Jensen said there is a need for larger pipes, new plaster, and better filtration systems, costing an estimated $800,000. “Adminis-tration wasn’t sure, due to the budget con-

straints, that it was a project that should be going forward at this time,” he said.

Jensen said he is not sure of where the mis-understanding originated, but points out that his department deals with the planning of projects that could take four to five years to complete, not those that need to be immedi-ately repaired or funded.

“I think there was a lot of miscommunica-tion from the beginning; I don’t think it was looked at like a facilities planner,” he said.

Perhaps the biggest miscommunication of them all is the idea that the pool needs to be closed.

“I don’t know where the closure of the pool came from, because there’s no reason to close the pool,” Jensen said. “The only rea-son would be to cut costs by eliminating that program … there’s nothing wrong physically with the pool.”

He said that no specific attention will be paid to the pool and that it will be main-tained as usual. Its renovation is to be added to a list of projects awaiting proper funding and approval.

Pool closure rumors swell into mass miscommunicationBy Natasha CastroStaff Writer

Krista Daly / Courtesy PhotoWienke said pool classes will not be cut in the fall semester.

see Health center, page 4

“What we currently have set up is being exhausted and we need to expand the accessibility to our students.”

Matthew EllisonASO Senator of Health Sciences

NewsN

ews

AVCExaminer.com | May 2012 | Page 3

On April 9, the Board of Trustees offi-cially rescinded the layoff notice previously sent to Bridget Razo, Executive Director of the Antelope Valley College Foundation and Institutional Advancement.

When the Board first announced they would send a notice to Razo on March 12, there was a lot of concern in the community and on campus about what would happen to the Foundation if Razo left.

The AVC Foundation manages financial support for the college’s various programs, services and student scholarships.

As of March 31, Razo reported to the board, that the total year-to-date donations for 2012 equaled $518,155, and $429,566 has already been expended back toward AVC in a “variety of areas from scholar-ships to program support and investment of the operations that are generating some of

the revenues.”More than 50 people flooded the special

board meeting on March 26 to show their support for Razo and speak on her behalf. (See the AVC Examiner’s blog post “Over 50 supporters for Razo filled board room…” at www.avcexaminer.com for more details).

Two members from the Foundation also spoke at the April 9 meeting before the board made their decision.

Dr. Gilbert Snow, a local orthodontist who serves as a Foundation Board Director and Chairman of the resource development com-mittee, said, “Right now there are several do-nors, including myself, who are holding back on the money they want to give to the college … We can identify over $300,000 that is just sitting there right now, holding back to wait and see what the Board of Trustees will do.”

Shirley Sayles, another Foundation Board Director who also serves as Chief Financial Officer and Chair of the finance and invest-ment committee, said the other directors

wanted to meet face to face with representatives from the Board of Trustees to discuss options for helping out the college in this time of financial crisis.

Betty Wienke, President of the Board of Trustees, said that the matter was “so important” that all five board members should be there and called for a spe-cial board meeting, later scheduled to take place on April 20.

The Board unanimously voted to renew Razo’s contract.

“I’m really grateful that they’ve given us the opportunity to continue with what we’ve built on,” Razo said in an interview.

“We appreciate the Foundation and what you’re doing,” Lew Stults, a member on the Board of Trustees, said. “We look forward to a long relationship.”

The board said that they have been explor-ing every possible way to keep AVC alive in the face of nearly $5.8 million in cuts from the 2011-2012 budget, and another possible $2.6 million next year.

Although the board retracted their decision to let Razo go, almost all of the members emphasized the fact that there will be cuts.

“There is no choice; there is no room left for this Board,” Steve Buffalo, one of the Board members, said. “We have managed through crisis … We can no longer do it with the budget constraints and the lack of flex-ibility in Sacramento.”

“I don’t want to cut anything. I don’t think anyone else up here wants to cut anything,” Buffalo said, “But … at some point, some-body is going to have to cut something.”

Buffalo warned that if AVC does not do something soon, the college could end up

like Cuesta College in San Luis Obispo. “They just made $3 million cuts last

Wednesday [April 4],” Buffalo said. “Mas-sive layoffs, position cuts, reduction of adjunct faculty, reductions of salaries — and they’re still $600,000 short.”

“Let’s face it,” Jack Seefus, Clerk for the Board of Trustees, said. “There isn’t one de-cision we’re going to make up here that is not going to be controversial and that we’re not going to get people after us for doing.”

Sandra Govin, Student Trustee, said that cuts need to happen in all departments “from Dr. Fisher down.”

Michael Adams, Board member, referred to a “fairness doctrine” the board discussed last year. “Every group is going to take what-ever percentage of cuts it takes to balance the budget,” he said. “If the Governor’s tax prop-osition doesn’t pass in November … I think the handwriting is on the wall.”

Adams continued, saying, “This college has been making cuts for four or five years now. We’ve made the easy cuts, we’ve made the medium-hard cuts, we’ve made some hard cuts, and now we’re going to have to make the very severe, very hard cuts.”

“Anybody who has solutions, anybody who has a way out of this without making cuts,” Buffalo said, “we need to hear a plan because we’re not seeing it.”

Bridget Razo is safe, but the rest of us might not beBy Kat WilsonStaff Writer

Will Lofgren / ExaminerAfter a month of uncertainty, Razo’s position is now secure.

A 17-year-old student from Lancaster High School, who has been simultaneously enrolled at Antelope Val-ley College since the 8th grade, has been accepted into the most prestigious universities in the nation.

John Graham flew through various levels of algebra, trigonometry and calculus at AVC. “I wanted to contin-ue learning higher math while at the same time setting myself apart from other students,” Graham said.

He said that he wants “to major in mechanical engi-neering and minor in business or physics.”

Out of the top schools Graham has been accepted to, he said that he’s leaning toward Stanford, Harvard and MIT. He added that he will most likely take on an Air Force ROTC scholarship at whichever school he decides to attend.

As far as his future goes, Graham said he wants “to fly planes in the Air Force and then get a job at a defense contracting company,” and that he hopes to start his own aerospace company down the road.

Courtesy PhotoJohn Graham = math genius.

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America’s top schools fight to get a 17-year-old AVC studentBy Geena BarretStaff Writer

NewsPage 4 | May 2012 | AVCExaminer.com

open in the morning for three days and open at night for two.

Jack Seefus, Clerk for the Board of Trustees, objected that there would be no vision or dental health offered at the center. Elli-son said that student health cen-ters usually form ties with local businesses where they can send or refer their students.

Board President Betty Wienke wanted to exempt students with health insurance from paying the fee, but state law does not exempt them from contributing.

Those with insurance still have co-pay costs every time they visit a doctor, Ellison said, and this $19 is a one-time fee for four months of access to medical help per semester.

Zimmerman pointed out that “a significant number” of students with insurance do still go to the Care-A-Van because of conve-nience and other reasons. “A lot of students will not go to their primary care physician for birth control and those kinds of things … they might have insurance but don’t want their parents to know.”

“We have students who are hurting and who cannot get help,”

Sandra Govin, Student Trustee, said. “[The health center] means for our entire student body that we will be a healthier group of students.”

The Board had reservations about imposing another fee on top of the already increased tu-ition costs, but after deliberating they unanimously voted for a permanent student health center to be established on campus by the fall 2012 semester.

There is no funding for startup costs, however, and Wienke said, “Startup costs are not coming from the district.”

Bridget Razo, executive director of the AVC Foundation and Insti-tutional Advancement, said, “I’ve been talking with a lot of Kaiser doctors, and some other doc-tors in the Antelope Valley from AV Hospital, and they’re very eager once we get this program started to add onto what they can contribute and provide support for our students.”

“We got over the first big step by getting the Board’s approval,” Ellison said, and that now he’ll continue researching how other colleges got their health centers started successfully.

“In the whole scheme of things,” he said, “now I’m just happy that if someone has an ailment on the campus they’ll have a place to go.”

Upcoming EventsWednesday and Thursday,

May 2-3ASO Elections

Wednesday, May 9AVC Career Planning Workshop

BE 321, 1 p.m.

Friday, May 11Scholar in Residence Presentation:

Why does history matter?SSV 151, 7 p.m.-10 p.m.

Monday, May 14Spring Fest

Library Plaza, Time TBA

Board MeetingSSV 151, 6:30 p.m.

for open session

Thursday, May 17Scholarship ConvocationFine Arts Quad, 5 p.m.

Friday, May 18Amgen Bicycle Tour of California

Stage 6: Palmdale to Big Bear Lake Start Location: Marie Kerr Park, 2723 Rancho Vista Boulevard

Wednesday, May 23Finals Relaxation Day

Student Lounge, 11 a.m.

Thursday and Friday, May 24-25

Providence Hospital Blood DriveSC1, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

Monday, May 28Memorial Day - No classes

Friday, June 1Spring semester ends

On April 17, “Education Under Fire,” a documentary named after the human rights campaign it is a part of, was screened in the AVC board room. The film sheds light on the Iranian government’s persecution toward the Bahá’í Faith, particularly the ways in which its members are denied ac-cess to higher education.

Cosponsored by Amnesty International, the film brings attention to the struggles of the Bahá’í Institute of Higher Education (BIHE). Founded in 1987, the BIHE was started as a way of providing university-level education to those who would be ex-cluded for ideological differences.

The documentary reveals the fact that Iran’s discriminatory practices violate Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, of which it is a signatory. The article in question establishes educa-tion as a fundamental right for everyone.

After the documentary ended, a gradu-ate of the BIHE, Keivan Mohammad Has-san, spoke at length about his experiences in Iran and with the institute. Among other

things, Hassan, who was also featured in the film, mentioned various ways others can help. He said that one of the best ways to af-fect change is to bring attention to the aca-

demic community, which can be achieved by sharing the film and contacting academ-ic officials as well as teachers who may be interested in the campaign.

Aside from decades-long persecution, Hassan spoke of another problem BIHE students encounter. Because BIHE is not

officially recognized as an academic body by the Iranian government, students often find it difficult to transfer credits interna-tionally. Fortunately, it is still possible for

them to continue their education overseas.

Certain universities such as “Harvard and Stanford acknowledge BIHE and consider ad-mission,” Hassan said.

Hassan also said that Education Under Fire, both the campaign and film, have farther reaching consequenc-es. “At the minimum, we can use this as an opportunity to encour-age our youth,” Has-san said. “There are

people there [Iran] who are struggling for minimal opportunities that are taken for granted here.”

Anyone who wishes to help can visit www.educationunderfire.com and sign the “Drive to 25” petition, which will send an open letter to a number of Iranian officials.

Education denied for religious groupBy Omar CastellonStaff Writer

James May / Courtesy Photo“Education Under Fire” fights to defend fundamental rights.

Health centerContinued from 2

Photographs taken at the Lancaster Hoodie March and the Palmdale candlelight ser vice

AV community speaks out for Trayvon Martin

By Brandon Mann and Robert VillapuduaContributing Photographers

FeaturesFeatures

AVCExaminer.com | May 2012 | Page 5

Stepping into the Antelope Valley Indian Museum is like stepping straight into a por-tal to another time. From the get-go, you’re immediately surrounded by relics from the past, each one holding its own uniqueness, its own story. There are also creative recreations of materials, clothing, jewelry, and everyday possessions that would have been used back when Native American tribes still roamed these lands and called them home.

The museum itself is a work of art. The very rock and stone of the Piute Buttes is used as the foundation and walls of the museum. The structure is part of the land, with a trail wrapping around it so visitors can take a self-guided tour and experience for themselves, the beauty of the buttes and desert area that is full of history. The trail is specially designed with markers that designate significant areas and plant life so you won’t miss a thing.

The museum started out as the vacation home of Howard Arden Edwards, a Holly-wood set painter and self-taught artist, who loved the view that the Antelope Valley had to offer so much that he set out to make it his home. In 1928, he bought the land that the museum now stands on and called it home. The Kachina Hall in the museum was once Edwards’ living room, where he and his fam-ily enjoyed their leisure time. Now, the room is kept in its original fashion, giving off the sense that visitors to the museum are actually

visitors to the Edwards’ household. The Hall is adorned with hand-painted Kachina figures inspired by the Pueblo people, created by Ed-wards himself.

Each room offers unique insight into the past lives of the Native American tribes of California. The Antelope Valley Room was created to show how American Indians adapted to the environment in the Antelope Valley. The room displays artifacts and rock art from different cultures such as the Pueblo cultures of Arizona and New Mexico, as well as those from the California coast and Great

Basin areas. The California Hall, which was once the

site of Edwards’ original Antelope Valley In-dian Research Museum, still holds many of Edwards’ original exhibits from the 1930s that display an interpretation of American Indian cultures and how they have evolved through the years. The Great Basin Room depicts how the people of the Great Basins might have used their knowledge of the land and animals to acquire food, gather material for making baskets, homes and clothing. It also shows an interpretation of what Antelope Valley life

would have been like in the same sense. The Southwest Room, originally Edwards’

dining room, contains exhibits that depict the lives of different Native American cultures such as the Hohokam, Navajo people of the Arizona and New Mexico regions, and the ancestral and modern Pueblo tribes. These exhibits are meant to reveal how American Indian cultures were interpreted in the 1950s.

The Sun Room, which was once a library and sitting room, is now the museum gift shop. Here you can buy anything from children’s books based on Native American folklore, ar-rowheads, handcrafted American Indian jew-elry, Kachina dolls and pottery, like taking a small portion of the past home with you.

Each of these rooms is specially designed to transport you into a completely different time, back when people were one with the land. It is an extreme culture shock to look at everything that these individuals accomplished with the resources around them.

Walking in there myself, I felt embarrassed at my lack of knowledge and completely taken by surprise at everything these American In-dians accomplished.

Going to the Antelope Valley Indian Mu-seum is an educational experience that will leave you in awe.

Unfortunately, the museum is in great need of volunteers and they are on the foreclosure list of museums that are set to be closed due to lack of funds. Help keep the museum alive; visit and absorb everything that this unique institute has to offer.

A blast from our past: The Antelope Valley Indian MuseumBy Maria CortesStaff Writer

Will Lofgren / ExaminerThe museum, which was originally the family vacation home in the Antelope Valley, was built by Edwards along with his wife and teenage son in the 1920s.

Warren Scherich has found a way to make a statement that will resonate millions of years from now. Local artist and intellect, Scherich said he approached stonework sculpting as a way to document his ideas far beyond his years.

“It was a very archival way to express my ideas,” he said. “I like the idea of them living on.”

Scherich said he considers himself first and foremost a painter, but also described himself as a pluralist, meaning that he works with many mediums. As such, he said, “the ideas determine the material.”

He has been pursuing art full-time for almost 30 years and his style in both stone and painting is reminiscent of Matisse and Picasso.

Sometimes the stones he works with in-spire the content of his pieces, but often he said his works are a “conglomeration of body parts, faces and sexual organs.” The

themes of evolution, human dynamics, and the forces that drive human beings carry out in almost all of his artwork.

Scherich said he is also influ-enced by Mesoamerican and Mayan work, making the Central American image another “primitive” theme of his works.

He works with both locally col-lected and bought stones in varieties including marbles, granites, basalt, and lavas.

Some of the stones he works with are fossilized, adding texture and his-torical qualities.

For example, Scherich explained

that he bought old fence posts from Kansas, all with nails and bolts remaining, as well as some fossilization. He said he left the posts as-is and carved around the nails and fos-sils, giving it pre-historic, historic and contempo-rary value.

“It’s really a multi-media event,” he said.

Scherich works in a home, which he converted into a studio in Quartz Hill. He dedicates the space solely to his endeavors, where he paints, sculpts, welds, and works with ceramics and stone.

“One of the beauties about being an art-ist is that when I come into my studio as a painter or a sculptor, I’m actually living in the future,” he said. “Because as [an artist], you’re an image maker, and the images come before you know what they’re about.”

This forward thinking has also inspired Scherich to exclude a signature on his pieces.

“What is it we want the future to take in; is it my name, which would be meaningless? Or is it my ideas?”

Currently a math teacher at R. Rex Par-ris High School, Scherich said he hopes to retire in four to five years and be able to dedicate his time to making and promoting his art.

Warren Scherich: High school teacher, sculptor at homeBy Natasha CastroStaff Writer

Robert Villapudua/ Courtesy PhotoExamples of his Mesoamerican inspired art

Robert Villapudua / Courtesy PhotoPictured here, Sherich dedicates this space, a former home, to his art.

FeaturesPage 6 | May 2012 | AVCExaminer.com

The music scene in the Antelope Valley is in-teresting to say the least. While not nearly as sparse and limited as other areas, we are still developing overall as an artistic community. Even though we have had artists past and pres-ent spring up from our valley (Captain Beef-heart, Frank Zappa, The Great Tortilla Heist, etc.), the places musicians can play out here is somewhat limited. Unless it’s been unprofes-sional establishments that treat the artists hor-ribly, house parties, open mic nights, or at small venues that stopped shows for whatever reason, good places to play have always been in short supply. One place that has remained open and provided places for local and touring groups to play is the Cedar Center.

The Cedar Center has had a long history of being a musical hub of our community. While it has not always been in the best shape or had the best reputation, it has been revamped it with new management, Lancaster Park Rangers for security guards, and most recently, the use of new sound equipment donated by Nate Dillon, an AVC music instructor. With the new edition of this gear, the Cedar Center has the potential to rise up and become a professional venue all artists will be able to enjoy.

Dillon is a man who has always been active in the local music community. He has worked with and been in dozens of bands, teaches the Beginning Rock Band course on campus, is a sound engineer, started his own independent and local record label No Exit Records, and has recently finished building his home recording studio. Needless to say, Dillon is a busy guy. Even with all of his projects and commitments, he still took the time to donate new equipment, set it up and run sound for the Cedar Center. The list

of equipment includes a new PA system (including speakers and stage monitors), power amplifiers, noise gates, road cases, and many other pieces of gear.

“I have lived in the Antelope Valley for a long time. The Cedar Center has gone through different management over time but has always lacked a sound system big enough for rock shows. I love the Cedar Center so much; I even decided to get married there … I lent Z [Isaac Grajeda, the current event coordinator and founder of Z Shows] the gear when I found he had taken over booking the weekend shows there. He was a former student, and I knew I could trust him to treat the equip-ment with respect. Up until that time, I

didn’t really know or trust anyone who had been managing shows there. Ultimately the reason I lent him gear is because I want to help the AV music scene as much as possible,” Dillon said about his donation.

With this new upgrade of equipment, the Cedar Center has the potential to become a truly great place to play. For too long in the Antelope Valley, artists and fans have been subject to disrespect and bad shows by current and past venues. With this last missing piece added, I think local art and music can really flourish with little to no limitations.

I think Dillon summed it up best when he said this:“It’s important that the community is healthy. There is no more time or room for

people who bad-mouth our scene or treat our artists unfairly. Eventually though, I see things really changing for the better … Hopefully we can make things easier for future artists to play shows and be treated with proper basic respect by the city and by local venue owners/promoters.”

The Cedar Center recieves generous equipment donationBy Jesse DavidsonContributing Writer

Baron Schaefer / Courtesy PhotoLocal band Order 66 and fans enjoying the new sound equipment.

FeaturesFeatures

AVCExaminer.com | May 2012 | Page 7

Upcoming Events

Saturday and Sunday, April 28 & 29

The Emperor’s New Clothes AVC Performing Arts Theater

1 p.m. & 3 p.m. Tickets $5

Monday, April 30Lancaster Community

OrchestraLancaster Performing Arts

Center7:30 p.m.

Tickets $15

Friday, May 4Concert: Exploding Dog,

Progmatic Enzyme, Odolwa, Fictious, M-31

Industry Theater 7 p.m.

Tickets $10

Sunday. May 6Sandy Hackett’s Rat Pack

ShowLancaster Performing Arts

Center7 p.m.

Tickets: Balcony seats $31Orchestra seats $36

Thursday - Sunday,May 10 - 13

One Act FestivalBlack Box Theater

8 p.m. on Thurs. - Sat.2 p.m. on Sun.

Tickets $5

Friday and Saturday,May 18 - 19

Little Red Riding Hood and The American Dance

ExperiencePalmdale Playhouse

7:30 p.m. on Fri.2 p.m. on Sat.

Tickets: Children $8

It was a long wait for a free taco when the Associated Student Organization (ASO) served students on Cinco de Mayo a couple of years ago, but when one young woman fi-nally got her food she only took two bites be-fore wrapping it up and putting the rest away.

Everyone else was enjoying their tacos, but Sandra Govin, Student Trustee, said she noticed the young woman’s strange behavior.

Govin said she recognized her from one of her classes and that the same woman had called that morning to confirm the food would be free. “I knew she was hungry, so I went to her,” Govin said.

Govin asked if the food tasted bad, but “she said, ‘No … we haven’t had any food at our house for two days, and I have a little four-year-old girl at home … This is what she’s going to have for dinner.’ That did me in.”

There had been talk about creating a food bank of sorts on campus, Govin said, but this incident “attached the problem to a face” for her.

Soon afterward, Govin found out there were homeless students who would pitch tents in the desert, sleep behind Denny’s or live out of their cars and shower in the gym.

“That just pushed us that much harder to get the pantry established,” she said. A team of students worked to make the pantry a re-ality, Govin said, but that she was the one who really pushed for it.

The ASO Hearts and Hands mission statement says the pantry is “designed to as-sist current AVC students who are making forward progress in their academic pursuits

and are homeless and/or hungry and in cir-cumstances where supplemental nutritional snacks will benefit their academic success.”

In spring 2011, the pantry started small with a Brown Bag project and a budget of $5 every two weeks. Now, one year later, the pantry has grown to host two distribution days on the second and fourth Wednesday of every month with about $400 worth of food and hygiene items given out each time.

“The pantry is kind of a community ef-fort,” Govin said. Donations come from students and community members from the Antelope Valley. Administration, classifieds staff and faculty members can also donate to the pantry as part of a payroll program where they give $10 or $20 a month so that ASO members can have a steady budget to shop for food.

ASO economizes as much as possible in the pantry. “Our items cost between 20 cents and $1,” Govin said. “Most of them fall under 40 cents.”

On average, ASO helps 75 people every distribution, and “that includes mothers with children,” Govin said, “so we have over 50 people that have been approved and we make children’s bags for up to three chil-dren as extras … [with] inexpensive but kid-friendly food.”

On April 11, however, $85-$100 worth of food items was stolen from the pantry when someone neglected to lock the pantry door. (Visit our news blog site at avcexam-iner.com for details on the robbery). Alpha Iota students are holding a food drive until May 9 to help compensate for the loss, and donations can be dropped off in SSV 180.

The ASO Hearts and Hands Pantry ap-

plication form is also available in SSV 180 and on the AVC website. There are some qualifications students must fulfill, includ-ing a 2.0 GPA with a 50 percent comple-tion rate.

Students can submit applications at the office of Dr. Jill Zimmerman, Dean of Student Services. They are processed, and then students are later notified if they qualify or not.

Once students are approved, Govin said, “It’s our goal not just to provide them with food, but to provide them with people on campus who can be … a network of friends.” She said they also try to help the students with any trouble they are having in tutoring or different programs.

“We’re not only feeding their body, we’re feeding their brains so they can do better in academics,” Govin said. “What I tell people when they’re making donations of food and [hygiene] products, is: ‘Donate something that you would particularly need or want if you were homeless or hun-gry. I put it in that perspective. ‘Would I eat this?’”

The pantry focuses on providing nutri-tional snacks, such as cheese and crack-ers, nutrition bars, tuna crackers and fruit snacks (with real fruit).

“No matter how hungry they [students] are, if it tastes really nasty, they’re not going to eat it unless they’re desperate,” Govin said, and added that sometimes stu-dents are desperate, but donations are bet-ter spent on better items.

“Today you might be helping a student in these situations, but tomorrow it might be you,” Govin said.

Old Mother Hubbard has something in the cupboardBy Kat WilsonStaff Writer

Brandon Mann/ Courtesy Photo( Left to right ): Matthew Ellison, ASO Senator of Health Sciences; Sandra Govin , Student Trustee; and Victoria Jenne, ASO Treasurer

FashionPage 8 | May 2012 | AVCExaminer.com

Eye on FashionBy Maria Cortes

There are moments in my life when I meet someone so fashion savvy that I have to turn around and figure out

who this fashion fireball is. Hilari Racey, 27, is definitely one of those people.

Racey is so confident in her fashion moves; she doesn’t let her clothes wear her. She steps out into this busy world and dominates every outfit with an air of carefree liveliness. That is why she is AVC’s Best Dressed Girl. “I think that my style says that I like to have fun

with fashion,” Racey said. “I think what you dress yourself with in the morning sets your mood for the whole day. If you feel good in your outfit, then you’ll have a good attitude and confidence all day.”

Racey isn’t afraid to be a bit offbeat. Her friends often describe her style as quirky, which falls perfectly into place with her admiration for singer and actress Zooey Deschanel.

Racey’s style also falls in perfectly with her fun life, being a happy mother. She advises other mothers not to forget about themselves. “It’s important to take care of yourself, too. A happy mommy makes for happy children,” she said. “You don’t have to spend a lot to be fashionable either. Mix and match and you can create many different outfits with the same pieces. Wear outfits you feel confident in.”

There are certain fashion trends that Racey is very much a fan of this season. “I really like sheers. I like tops and dresses that have detail in the back. I also like high-waist shorts and skirts.”

There are some things that she is trying to stay far away from. “I’ve noticed that the MC Hammer pants are trying to make a comeback and I think those are ridiculous,” she said. “I also like colors, but I definitely stay away from all the bright neons.”

If you don’t know Racey, be sure to keep an eye out. She is definitely someone worth recognizing.

Two AVC guys put their own twist on the classic “Bad Boy” look!

This is the famous “Rebel Without a Cause” inspired look. It embodies the vintage greaser style that was all the rage in the 1950s. Its main basis is the tough quality of rock ‘n’ roll music. The look is simple to pull off. You can do it with a black V-neck and aviator sunglasses or a white T-shirt and dark blue jeans. It’s all up to you.

Being a bad boy doesn’t mean you have to go to extremes. The “Casual Bad Boy” look works just as well, if not better. The casual look shows that you are laid back and easy going, but still have a bit of a rebellious side. The great thing about it, is that there is no right or wrong way to dress. Add your own unique qualities to it.

Hilari Racey: Fashion Fireball

Photography by Robert Villapudua

OpinionO

pinionAVCExaminer.com | May 2012 | Page 9

Our recently re-elected mayor got on his moral high horse yet again, continuing his crusade against the allegedly vile poli-cies that allow unscrupulous characters privileges to Section 8 housing. Unfortu-nately, the horse’s legs are broken, andf that helpless nag should have been shot and processed as glue a long time ago.

For those who don’t know, Section 8 housing is a program instituted by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which provides vouchers to low-income or disabled persons in for low-cost housing. The newest decision makes it possible for newly released felony pro-bationers and parolees to endure a shorter process when applying for these vouchers.

According to R. Rex Parris, whose criti-cism was sharp and zealous after the board of supervisors’ vote on April 3, he is “ab-solutely appalled and disgusted that [they] would allow felons to cut the line for Sec-tion 8 housing benefits. People who have played by the rules, lead a clean life and have waited years to qualify for Section 8 housing now have to wait until criminals who are just out of prison take these valu-

able government-subsidized vouchers.” Somewhere along the way, someone

neglected to inform our dear mayor that the pressure of low income and homeless-ness often turn people to crime in the first place; funny how that works. This isn’t new, either – the Section 8 housing issue has been a thorn in Lancaster’s side for a quite some time now.

There have been accusations of strong-arm Gestapo tactics, discrimination based on race, poor handling of policy enforce-ment, just to name a few. So Parris decided to do us one better. The moral here is that parolees do not deserve a leg up on account of their past. Charitable, isn’t it? Convict-ed felons don’t need the help, apparently, what with unemployment for recent parol-ees continuing to be a problem that might just make a man commit a crime for the undeserved ability to, you know, survive.

We’re not just spouting rhetoric here. The Correctional Education Association’s recent tri-state recidivism study states that less than half of released inmates are able to secure a job after rejoining the commu-nity. Even more damning is the fact that

10 percent of new inmates are homeless before they are arrested, and are at risk to commit crimes based on this fact. These people are most likely to add strain to pub-lic services by attending shelters. Worse, these people are likely to utilize shelters again upon release. The new Section 8 policy will break that cycle, allowing pre-vious offenders a reasonable opportunity to reintegrate into society. To be fair, it is important to note that while 10 percent is a steep number, it is not necessarily reflec-tive of whether the crimes are misdemean-ors or felonies.

So even if Parris had a nag-leg to stand on concerning the validity of parolees and released felons as hopelessly condemned to repeat offenses, the state of homelessness almost exclusively assures the fact. Have you ever heard of a self-fulfilling proph-ecy? How about a self-fulfilling policy?

The good news is that he doesn’t have a hand in the legislation, because otherwise things would look dire for people who might want to do something crazy like get on with their lives.

It’s also important to note that prisoners

are more susceptible to health issues such as asthma, hypertension, hepatitis, and tu-berculosis – not to mention a wellspring of mental health issues, of which about half of the Californian inmate population has been attributed.

Inquiries made by the RAND Corpora-tion (which provides analysis on a variety of topics) on the part of health care pro-viders showed that a range of desperately needed, basic services make the process of serving health concerns more problematic. Little things, like transportation, employ-ment and housing. Inmates are thus more likely to seek out public health organiza-tions, putting more stress on their budgets.

This is particularly amusing when Parris cited health reasons as part of his concerns regarding the Section 8 housing system on March 16. “They’re sending people into the Antelope Valley,” he said, “knowing that a large number of them are going to die because they don’t have the medical care they’re going to need.”

So cool it down on the judgmental, prejudicial and damn-near fascist rhetoric, will you?

Tolerance Week is in our midst. It is an en-tire week promoting good will, love, happi-ness, and togetherness for everyone. Or is it? I mean it is “Tolerance”. I tolerate my brother when he is shouting in my ear about want-ing to watch cartoons. I tolerate that horrible driver in the parking lot who decided last minute to slam on the brakes for the invis-ible herd of elephants he saw.

Do I like them? No. But I tolerate them. See where I am heading with this? You tol-erate those small nuisances that manage to ruin your day for that fraction of a second. The word tolerance itself means the act or capacity of enduring. As if you are enduring someone’s behavior for as long as you can without snapping like a mad man.

You shouldn’t tolerate someone’s behav-ior. With the messages of togetherness that this week always promotes and the vibes of equality and peace that float around us, shouldn’t acceptance be the better word to use? When you accept someone for who they are, that means that you are taking one look at them and saying, “You’re alright, kid.” When you tolerate someone, you are shout-ing out, “Look, you can do whatever it is that you like doing, just don’t go overboard and don’t get too comfortable around me.”

“The word tolerance has a somewhat negative feeling to it,” said Tina McDer-mott, instuctor of Intercultural Communica-

tions professor here at AVC. “It says, ‘I could put up with these people, I guess, if I have to.’ It does not give the feeling of something pleasant or desired, but something you just have to learn to live with.”

Using the word tolerance for an event with such a moving message, sends the wrong mes-sage out. We are trying to pro-mote acceptance of the people around us who are different, so why are we telling them that we are only tolerating their odd be-havior for this single week?

Chip Bell, author of the book “Customers as Partners” about customer service, mentions that tolerance-based relationships are exercises in long-suffering.

Unfortunately, they assume superiority by one party. Let’s go back to the example of my brother. I tolerate him screaming in my ear for cartoons because he doesn’t know any better. I am the rational one in the situa-tion, which means that I tolerate his irratio-nal behavior.

Is that the message we are sending out, that we are the rational ones who have to tolerate people’s irrational behavior? It is only irrational because we have not taken the time to understand and accept them as people.

On this train ride of human acceptance,

we make three different stops. First off, we acknowledge people; they are now on our ra-dar. Then we tolerate people, which means we have no clue what’s going on, but we put up with them anyway.

Finally, we accept people, meaning that we actually took the time out to get to know them and are embracing them for who they are. We, as a society, have stopped at toler-ance and never bothered to move forward.

Tolerance takes less time and strength than acceptance. To accept someone we would actually have to remove our faces from our laptop and cell phone screens, sign off Facebook, stop texting and actually have a face to face human interaction. You

know, the one with words and sentences and eye contact.

“Living in a culturally diverse world pro-vides us with a richness of life experiences that we can’t have by always sticking with our own kind,” said McDermott. “If you only tolerate those experiences with others, you are not open to what can sometimes be eye-opening, enlightening or even transforming opportunities when meeting and getting to know people who are different from you.”

With the message that Tolerance Week is trying to send, the only appropriate thing to do is change the name to something better

Parris wallows in his own moral juices over Section 8

A week of toleranceBy Maria CortesStaff Writer

See Tolerance week, page 10

The AVC Examiner editorials are the unsigned views of the editorial board

Will Lofgren / ExaminerTolerance is a fair and objective attitude toward those whose opinions differ from one’s own.

OpinionPage 10 | May 2012 | AVCExaminer.com

suiting. McDermott proposes possible names like “Diver-sity Celebration Month” and “Embrace Everyone Month.” I believe that celebrating “Diversity Celebration Month” would make much more of an impact on our community than just telling people to tolerate each other for a desig-nated amount of time.

Editor in ChiefNatasha Castro

Managing Editor Ben Fassett

News Editor Kat Wilson

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Features EditorMaria Medina

Fashion EditorMaria Cortes

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Dear Online Editor,

The AVC Examiner website is very efficient in its func-tion. I was able [to] view it on my Blackberry, which is nice in a world full of iPhones and Androids. I was able to keep informed about the news, as well as Dodgers updates, which is quite convenient. I will in the future visit the site again through my mobile device.

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Tolerance weekContinued from page 9

Corrections from April Issue

Page 6: The actual dates of the One Act Festival are May 10-13.

Due to layout issues, Rendle Burditt’s review of the Top 5 American roadtrip films was cut short. To read the full story, visit avcexaminer.com/2012/04/features-top-five-american-road-films.html

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SportsSports

AVCExaminer.com | May 2012 | Page 11

On April 20, the AVC Marauders faced off against Chaffey in one of the hottest games of the season. Nicole Peters took the hill for AVC. She has started almost every game for the Marauders this year.

The Marauders looked to avenge their loss to Chaffey, who beat them in Rancho Cu-camonga by the score of 11-9 on March 28. The softball team looked to score more runs and also to pitch and play better defense in order to win the game.

Peters pitched a solid first inning and only allowed one hit, but no runs. The scoring started when Chaffey’s leadoff hitter Saman-tha Springer gave Chaffey their only run and lead of the game with a homerun to dead center field. That was the only mistake Pe-ters made all game. The bottom of the third inning is when AVC tied the game. Shaunna Purkey reached on second with an error. Des-tinee King bunted for a single. Jessica Sal-dana hit an RBI single that scored Purkey to tie the game at one.

The bottom of the fifth inning is when the

Marauders took the lead for good. King hit a single, Farinas walked and Saldana hit a single which loaded the bases for Michelle Cannon. Cannon looked for a good pitch to hit, but was patient at the plate and drew the walk to force in King, which increased the score to 2-1. This was a lead that the Maraud-ers would not give up the rest of the game. Brooke Farrell drove in another run which increased the lead to 3-1. Autumn Bedford pinch hit for Mandy Dale and hit a two run single which Cannon and Farrell both scored that put AVC up 5-1.

The bottom of the sixth inning was when the home-run hitting started. Farinas hit a towering home run to left field which in-creased the lead to 6-1. Saldana also followed up Farinas with a homerun of her own, which increased the score 7-1. Cannon hit a double and later scored on a passed ball which in-creased the score to 8-1. The offense definite-ly did their job and the defense played great. The Marauders won by a score of 8-1.

“It feels great to beat Chaffey; last time I felt that we could have beaten them and it was good to blow them out. My arm feels great. It feels good all the time. I have not been hurt

all this year; my arm keeps going. I feel that we can mercy San Bernardino Valley. We did it at their place, now we can do it our place,” Peters said.

“Nicole pitched a great game. I helped her confidence with her pitches and we commu-

nicated really well. I got a single in the sixth inning and it helped that the top of the line up got it going for us,” Cannon said.

“I think we played great, one of our best

Although all 112 of Califor-nia’s community colleges are still suffering from massive state budget cuts, the Antelope Valley College Athletic Department got a reprieve when they received a much-needed donation from the Klassen Corporation.

The privately owned architectur-al and construction firm — located in Bakersfield, California — wrote a check for $10,000 on Feb. 15. Phil Klassen presented the check to President Jackie Fisher and Athletic Director Newton Chelette prior to the Marauders’ softball game against the College of the Desert Roadrunners on April 9.

The Klassen Corporation is responsible for AVC’s West Campus Expansion project, which includes the renovation and ex-pansion of the Physical Education Fields and the Marauder Stadium, expected to be completed by July of this year. The project also added 600 new parking spaces with the expansion of Lots 1, 2 and 3.

“With all the athletic fields they’ve designed and built, they thought that [the donation] would be a way of giving back to the col-lege,” Chelette said.

Coach John Taylor of the men’s basketball team also spoke highly of Klassen.

“He’s a very generous man,” Tay-lor said. “I think it’s just wonderful that he gives back to the school and our community.”

The Klassen Corporation is known for their generous donations that total tens of thou-sands of dollars annually. Some of the college foundations that the firm has donated to in the past in-clude the College of the Canyons

Foundation, the College of the Se-quoias Foundation and the CSU Bakersfield Foundation.

Although the money was donated specifically for the athletic depart-ment, there are no specific plans on how the money will be used yet.

“That money went into the Ma-rauder Athletic account and it will remain there until we have a need to use it,” Chelette said. “With the way that the budget is going right now, that could be tomorrow, that could be next year.”

Still, AVC’s coaches are confi-dent that the money will be put to good use by the department.

“We are all pretty good in terms of sharing,” Taylor said of the different sports teams at AVC. “Certainly we will all benefit from that donation.”

Coach Barry Green of the wom-en’s basketball team also expressed his confidence in the department’s exercise of their donations. “New-ton does a good job of filling the needs of each athletic sports team,”

Green said. “I think it will be used properly to benefit all sports on campus.”

While the money is being held in the Marauder Athletic account at the moment, coaches will be able to pitch ideas on how to put the money to use.

“When coaches don’t have the money in their district funds to purchase equipment or things that they need, they come to me with a presentation and we try to buy it for them out of the fundraising money,” Chelette said.

Since the basketball season is over and the baseball and softball seasons will soon follow suit, the donation will mostly likely not be put into use until the beginning of the football season and other sports in the coming fall semester, according to Chelette.

Profits from AVC’s sporting events go to the Associated Student Organization rather than athletic department itself, so the donation will help the athletic department in the fall.

“The cost that we incur comes from the district budget that is pro-vided by the district for the athletic contests,” Chelette said of the costs of each event. “The income at the gate goes to ASO.”

AVC Athletic Department receives a $10,000 donationBy Benjamin MinStaff Writer

Women’s softball wins 8-1 in a slaughter against ChaffeyBy Ravi SurampudiStaff Writer

Steven Standerfer / Courtesy PhotoAntelope Valley College’s President Jackie Fisher, Sr. (left) and Athletic Director Newton Chelette (Right) pose for a photo with Phil Klassen (center) of the Klassen Corporation and his donated check of $10,000.

see Donation, page 12

see Softball, page 12

James May / Courtesy PhotoBrooke Farrell, third baseman, stands on first after getting an RBI single for her team.

SportsPage 12 | May 2012 | AVCExaminer.com

games this season. Everyone on defense stepped up and we did not make any errors. It is all we practiced for. I don’t mind being the leadoff hitter. I will have all summer and fall to rest my shoulders. I don’t picture myself playing infield, but I could see it happening.

I just play where the team needs me to play. I feel we can end the season on a good note,” King said.

“They played relaxed today, a really good game, the best outing all year. The defense was strong behind Peters. We hit enough. They played their hearts out and our defense was strong. Nicole is our number one; we are go-ing to ride her till the end of the season. It was a great run with the con-ference championships, but we will be back next year to take con-ference,” Coach Cindy Vargas said.

As the season comes to an end, the sopho-

more players will decide where they will be transferring to in order to continue their athletic careers.

The time has finally come for Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder.Predictions for the upcoming NBA playoffsBy Benjamin MinStaff Writer

Upcoming Events

Thursday, April 26Baseball

at *San Bernardino Valley2:30 p.m.

Friday, April 27Baseball

vs. *San Bernardino Valley12 p.m.

Saturday, May 5Men’s and Women’s Track

at SoCal9 a.m.

Saturday, May 12Men’s and Women’s Track

at SoCal12 p.m.

Friday, May 18Men’s and Women’s Track

at State MeetTime TBA

Saturday, May 19Men’s and Women’s Track

at State MeetTime TBA

*Conference Game

The money provided by the district is used to cover the costs of each sporting event held at AVC. This includes the cost of referees, shot clock operators and other staff involved in the event.

Although the athletic department is not burdened with the costs of every sporting event, the donation will help each team get what they need in the future.

DonationContinued from 11

Follow Benjamin Min on Twitter@AVCSports

SoftballContinued from 11

Follow Ravi Surampudi on Twitter@RaviSurampudi

James May /Courtesy PhotoNicole Peters pitched for all seven innings in a complete game.