PCC Courier, May 27, 2004

VOL. 89, NO. 26 May 27, 2004 Movie Review Warner Bros.9 adaptation of Homer’s “The Iliad" Lancers Pride and Joy Jessie Barry brings the championship home for PCC The Courier has been SERVING PCC AND THE PASADENA COMMUNITIES SINCE 1915. On this date in 1937 In California, the Golden Gate Bridge was opened to the public. The bridge connected San Francisco and Marin County. . Do You Drink a Lot? Students reveal their drinking habits through a Courier survey Photo Illustration by “Slim ” Jim Comeau/Courier Does your liver cry? Recent studies show college drinking is declining, but PCC students would rather drink than study. Jaynita Carney Sports Editor Some students laughed, others joked with their friends about their favorite drinks and how much of it they drink while they filled out a drug and alcohol survey for the Courier. The Courier passed out 300 surveys to students all over campus. The overall conclusion of the survey showed that a lot of students drink heavily. One student even jokingly said, "If I take this survey will you give me samples?" It appears after talking to stu¬ dents on campus that college-age drinking is a very real problem that must be dealt with. While many students feel drinking in college is a rite of passage, some parents and friends reinforce that idea. One student said that when he graduated from high school his parents gave him and his friends a bottle of tequila and told them to go ahead and celebrate his new college life. While the college's policy states that unlawful posses¬ sion, use or distribution of illicit drugs and alcohol by stu¬ dents is prohibited, one of the students taking the survey boasted about how he had just finished drinking and was on his way to a "good buzz." He went on to say, "I have been getting a good buzz and drinking on campus since ninth grade. It's really easy. My favorite is to take vodka and put it in a water bottle. That way it looks like regular water." Contrary to a national survey that shows that only 47 percent of eighth graders verses 86 percent of college students have tried alcohol, an overwhelming number of students admitted they started drinking around the age of 9 or 10. One woman said that her mother would let her have a shot of whatever she happened to be drinking at the moment. Another said that he would sneak liquor out of his parent's cabinet and one said that his older brother would buy it See page and hide it in his room for him. The fact that knocks students Booze Politicians Educate Students on Voting Diane Garcia Staff Writer PCC's student lobby committee organized a town hall meeting in the CC lounge on Monday to inform students about the importance of voting and getting involved in the political process. Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard, California Republican party rep¬ resentative Angie Meyer, and Ted Brown, Libertarian candidate for U.S. Congress, 29th district, were all on hand to answer student questions. The meeting was organized by Jennifer Soto, chief justice for the associated students, as an informal session in which students and government represen¬ tatives could engage in open dialogue. Bogaard made his best attempt at being non-partisan while both Meyer and Brown openly advocated on behalf of their political affiliations. Brown fielded questions from the audience on his party's drug policies and anti-tax stance and the effect such policies might have on community college students if they were put into effect. Meyer answered questions concerning the war in Iraq and current policies of the Bush administration. An invitation was given to Bogaard to promote his Democratic principles but he politely declined, sighting the non¬ partisan office he holds. There was open discussion of the war on terror, drugs, the effects of recent budget cuts, and increased tuition prices, but promoted most heavily was the need for students to become involved in politics. Meyer, who lobbied on behalf of college students in her home state of Washington, advised stu¬ dents to "Fight for your rights, fight for your education." Initially the crowd was thin, but more students showed up as time wore on. Sadly, the room never filled up and most chairs sat empty. But most students who attended seemed to be interested in the topics being discussed. "I wish more people had come, but for the people who came it was informative," said Soto. Knarik Sevinyan, vice president for external affairs, said, "I liked [the meeting] because it was infor¬ mal. "We wish we could have gotten more people to come though." Political science major Chris Black said, "I thought it was good. The majority of people here don't care about politics or being politically active but it was good to hear from all sides." "Most people don't care," said student Andrew Gonzalez "but its good they can learn." Choose or Lose Kenny Kimura/Courier Knarik Sevinyan, candidate for v.p. for business affairs, handed "Free Food For Voting" to students who turned in their election receipts. The results of the student body elections will be posted later tonight on the college's web site at: www.pasadena.edu. Suspected Book Burgler Busted Man believed to be involved in other thefts Diane Garcia Staff Writer A man was arrested by PCC police officers in the Shatford Library at 9 a.m. on Friday, May 21 on suspicion of burglary. The sus¬ pect, Wesley Daniel Scott, was arrested in connection with a crime that took place that morning when someone rifled through a woman's bag and took some belongings. Police believe Scott may be involved in eight other incidents of textbook thefts in the library over the past two months. "[Scott] is a transient from the Sacramento area, and he claims to be dating a woman who works part time on campus. We haven't interviewed her yet, but we will," Lt. Brad Young said. Scott is not a resident of the Pasadena area or a PCC student. His last known address was in Ventura. The victim, Wan Hua Zeng, said she was returning from the bath¬ room when she noticed her belongings askew in the cubicle where she had left them. When she found her wallet and several other items missing, she contacted campus police. A witness pointed out Scott, who was still walking around the library, Young said. The Courtesy of Campus Police Campus police escort Scott to the county jail. police followed Scott to a men's restroom where they found Zeng's belongings in a trashcan. Police said they found heroin and a hypodermic needle in the suspect's backpack. Scott admitted to being a heroin user according to the police report. The police report said Scott attempted to sell textbooks for cash at the Book Mart located across the street from PCC. Ignacio Medrano , See Pa9e who works ArT6St at the store, Dean Position in Math Division Hlled Five instructors also added to faculty Hudson Hou Staff Writer The college will officially wel¬ come its new math division dean on July 1, three days before Independence Day and more than two weeks into the summer ses¬ sion, the board of trustees decided at its May 19 meeting. The board's decision to hire Dr. Gary Isham to replace interim math division dean Richard W. Chamberlain comes at a critical time as the division sees its third dean in five years and the college continues to adjust to the demands of the 16-week calendar. Dr. Jackie Jacobs, vice president of instruction, whose office makes recommendations to board, believes Isham will fit in "wonder¬ fully" at PCC. "We're really looking forward to his coming," Jacobs said. "He brings broad education and expe¬ rience to give good leadership." The challenges as dean are to "learn all the faculty and know the curriculum," Chamberlain said. The math division has 31 full¬ time and more than 71 part-time instructors. Although he predicted that the incoming dean will face many chal¬ lenges, Chamberlain expressed confidence that Isham will meet them with pur¬ pose. "He can 5ee page do it because he Dean Automated System to be Tested During Summer Priscilla Moreno Managing Editor The first day of school for some students is stressful, especially for those who have to add a class. This means having to wait for the instructor to give permission to add and then standing in long lines at the registration and cashier offices. The college is trying to change all that and actually make adding a class easier for students. PCC announced the use of an automat¬ ed pilot program to be tested dur¬ ing the Summer 2004 intersession. The automated program allows students to add a class using an exclusive code instead of standing in line at the registration office. Lisa Sugimoto, vice president for student services, said that the pro¬ gram would make it easier for stu¬ dents and faculty come registra¬ tion time because only those stu¬ dents with codes will be able to add classes. PCC hopes to have the plan ready to go campus-wide for the fall semester. Margaret Ramey, associated dean for admissions and records, said that if there were any problems over the summer, they would work them out during the fall and com¬ pletely implement it for the Winter intersession. Classes such as English 1A and two library skills classes will be the first introduced to this new system. The Summer session begins on June 14 and ends on July 24. Normally, students wanting to add a class go to the first class meeting and ask the instructor to add. The instructor signs add slips the students take the slips to the registration office and are added to the instructor's roster. According to Amy Ulmer, dean of the English division, under the new system, when the instructor adds a student, a label with a spe¬ cial number on it will be given. Ramey said that a temporary ros¬ ter would be given to instructors at the beginning of the session. They will be given unique codes for their classes. The student will be able to go online or use phone registration and enter the code to add the class. This should relieve some of the lines in the registra¬ tion office. Ramey said that instructors should keep track of whom they give the codes to. "The number cannot be replicat¬ ed," said Ulmer. "The instructor will have taken the student's informa¬ tion on the first day of class." She said that if stu¬ dents try to use someone else's code $ee page to add a class, they Codes i