PCC Courier, December 08, 1994

OPINION FEATURES SPORTS Ban on gum is a sticky issue. Page 2 Musical Theater Workshop performs Sondheim’s music with enthusiasm. Радев Demetrius Collier leads men’s basketball team with a 25 point-per-game average. Page 6 PASADENA CITY COLLEGE PASADENA, CALIFORNIA VOL. 80 No. 14 ™E C OURIER THURSDAY Implementation of Proposition 187 on hold for now By CARLOS LEMUS COURIER STAFF WRITER The college will not implement Proposi¬ tion 187 until otherwise advised by the Comminity Colleges Chancellor’s office. The reason for this is a temporary restraining order placed on the measure that has been extended until Feb. 8, 1995. After this date, a hearing will be held to decide what to do about its implementation. Kyle Orr, public information officer for the Community Colleges Chancellor’s of¬ fice, said that although the provisions of Proposition 187 are being challenged in different courts, the extention resulted from events coming from San Francisco Superior Court. “On Nov. 28 the court accepted the stipulation of all parties involved to extend die temporary restraining order on the imple¬ mentation of Proposition 187, “ he said. Among those agreeing to the stipulation were the Attorney General, the University of California and California State University Systems, the Department of Education, and the Board of Governors of the Comunity Colleges. Dr. Jack Scott, PCC president, said that according to instructions from the Chancellor’s office, “The College should not take action to implement the provision until advised otherwise by that office.” Adding to the same sentiment, Ernestine Moore, dean of students services, said that for such reason students should not be con¬ cerned about the implications of Proposition 187. “It will be business as usual for the spring semester unless we are told other¬ wise,” she explained. Currently, there is no particular policy regarding the handling of enrollment of ille¬ gal immigrants at PCC. Since they are not legal residents, they are only required to pay full tuition, just as out-of-state students are required to. The difference is that legal out- of-state students can pay regular tuition after they have been in the state for a year and a day. Illegal immigrants, however, have no legal document that could prove such eligi¬ bility. According to Moore, if applicants indi¬ cate that they are citizens on their admis¬ sions application, even though they might not be, they are taken at their word. No verification is required, unless an applicant indicates that he is an eligible resident, in which case a resident alien card needs to be provided. Please see PROPOSITION 187, Page 6 ANITA NARDINE/THE COURIER Centennial Square at Pasadena City Hall was illuminated by 8,000 candles during the sixth annual Posada last Sunday. Story on Page 3 AS removes another officer By GILBERT RIVERA COURIER STAFF WRITER In a week as turbulent as the sea itself, a final wave has hit the Asso¬ ciated Students (AS) Board. The Board voted 4-1 -1 at its last regular meeting of the fall semester on Monday to approve an appoint¬ ment for the vacant position of vice- president of student services. On the same day, however, they officially removed the coordinator of campus acitivities. Janelle Gonzales, a member of the AS since last year, broke atten¬ dance by-laws and was promptly dismissed from the AS Board for the second lime this semester. The at¬ tendance policy states that no officer may miss more than two unexcused meetings per semester and no more than three total absences per semester. Gonzales, who was previously re¬ moved less than two months ago after having three unexcused ab¬ sences, made an appeal for reinstate¬ ment to the Board on Nov. 2. After a 4-1-0 vote, she was reinstated with the stipulation that if she missed another meeting during this semes¬ ter, excused or unexcused, she would be dismissed from the Board. She collected her fourth absence of the fall term on Monday. A letter written by AS Adviser Carrie Afuso was sent to Gonzales to inform her of the Board’s decision. Afuso stated that she would not rec¬ ommend that the Board reinstate her if Gonzales appealed again. “The problem with our AS Con¬ stitution is that it doesn’t say how many times someone can appeal to the Board for reinstatement,” said Afuso. “She very clearly knew when she was reinstated the first lime, that if she were to miss one more meeting this semester, she would be out. Please see AS Board, Page 3 Proposed calendar changes prompt criticism, support “I cannot see how having a class that lasts 10 minutes longer and a week less is going to make a student that much less bored. ” Sue Talbot, ISSU president By SUSAN LYNN SWANN COURIER STAFF WRITER A faculty-proposed calendar which would cut the semester from 18 to 17 weeks will be discussed next Monday at a meeting of five unions representing all school em¬ ployees. The groups are meeting to¬ gether to clarify misunderstandings about the calendar proposal. The faculty is hoping to imple¬ ment the changes starting next Fall, but the proposal met with the resis¬ tance of some classified employees who fear job losses. While the fac¬ ulty and classified representatives exchanged accusations, it is not clear what students think about the issue. They were last polled in May with contradicting results, and will not be polled again until next semester. “We are waiting to hear all sides of the issue,” said Devena Johnson, AS vice president of academic af¬ fairs, who is in charge of the poll. Johnson said she already invited a faculty member to the AS Board to explain their point of view, and a representative of the classified staff will do the same soon. “Based on all these information, we’ll put together apoll sometime in the Spring semes¬ ter.” A written statement released by the classified staff union stated that “The more time that faculty and students are not on campus, the greater the possibility that classified staff assignment will be cut.” Philip Ricards, chair of the Fac¬ ulty Senate Calendar Committee, strongly criticized the document as well as other remarks made by Susan Talbot, president of the Instructional Support Services Unit (ISSU). “Talbot claims that no classified staff has been involved in the com¬ pressed calendar com mittee proceed¬ ings, yet there was an agreement among the faculty senate that amem- ber of the classified staff has been included on the committee since its inception three years ago, ’’Ricards said. In a memo dated Nov. 30, Ricards accused Talbot of “maligning the integrity of the PCC faculty, pre¬ sumed to tell us how to teach our students, falsely claimed that we have not been responsive to other commu¬ nities on campus, persisted in misin¬ terpreting the history of calendar discussions. . .” Ricards was referring to a quote from Talbot that appeared in the Nov. 10 issue of The COU¬ RIER, in which she said, “The fac¬ ulty claims that an 18-week calendar ‘bores’ students. My feeling is that if that is true, instructors should change teaching methods, they should learn to teach better. I cannot see how having a class that lasts 10 minutes longer and a week less is going to make a student that m uch less bored.” Ricards disagrees. “The faculty will be working harder. There is no reduction of fac¬ ulty work load in the compressed calendar,” Ricards said. But what irritated him the most is what he called “apoint of principle.” “It is the commission, responsi¬ bility , and duty of the PCC Faculty to see to the education of our students in the most superior fashion pos¬ sible. Who determines how teaching should best be conducted at PCC? While realizing that this is not an issue solely at the disposal of faculty, it does not seem appropriate that even our highly valued support staff should dictate how students get taught.” Talbot defended her statements by saying, “I said what 1 said and wrote what I wrote for two reasons: One was to provide information to the entire campus about the poten¬ tial effects on the ISSU staff, and two, as a criticism of the procedure used by the faculty senate calendar committee to propose the compressed calendar.” Happy holidays! Ho! Ho! Ho! anta’s energetic bellow echoes across the Quad as he pays PCC a visits PCC this week. Left, little Candice Smith whispers her wish list to Santa Claus (Bob Cagle of the InterTribal Student Council). Below, Kent Yamauchi, assistant dean of special services, is caught stuffing a pillow down his pants as he dresses up as Santa Claus. “Gosh, how embarassing," Yamauchi is overheard saying. “I feel like Tim Allen. AGS (Alpha Gamma Sigma) must have been pretty desperate when they asked me to be Santa.” Students can have their pictures taken with Santa for $3 in the Quad until tomorrow. The event is sponsored by AGS. There will be no issue of THE COURIER next week. The next issue will be on Jan. 26, 1995. The staff wishes everybody a safe and happy holiday season. Good luck with finals!