PCC Courier, November 11, 1999

CAMPUS SAFETY College revises harassment policy Administration attempts to safeguard faculty’s academic freedom while maintaining a working evironment free of sexual harassment By Audrey Allen Staff Writer What is sexual harassment? “It’s when someone approaches me or looks at me in an uncomfort¬ able way,” said a female student hurrying across the quad to get to her philosophy class on time. “I don’t like it when boys whis¬ tle at me, or when they come up to me, saying, ‘you’re looking fine, baby.’ I just want to be able to come to college and feel safe,” said another female student while she was taking a break to smoke a cig¬ arette outside the U Building. A male student also smoking a cigarette nearby the U Building, said, “I have no idea what sexual harassment is, it’s too vaguely defined.” According to Robert DeOcampo, the associated student president, the definition of “sexual harassment is a hostile work envi¬ ronment.” A girl might come into a room where some men are joking around in a sexual nature, and this could create an uncomfortable situ¬ ation for the girl, that might not be understood by the men. “I hug my women and I hug my men, because I love people,” he added. In order to clearly define sexual harassment, “the policy for the col¬ lege was revised last semester to clarify and give more specific out¬ lines,” said Sandy Lindoerfer, dean of human resources. A steering committee of about 13 college rep¬ resentatives revised and updated the policy. “It is important for people to understand, and talk about it,” said Lindoerfer. This semester, the poli¬ cy has been taken to “every divi¬ sion and every department,” in training sessions. These seminars explain the changes in the policy, and serve to answer any questions, and to make sure everyone has the same basic sense of what the policy is, and what sexual harassment is and what it isn’t. Because, once the instructors are trained, then they can help students understand, according to Lindoerfer. “I think we need two types of training: one which familiarizes everyone with the laws, both feder¬ al and state, which govern harass¬ ment, and one which provides a forum for discussion on how we can create a campus in which peo¬ ple feel free to express themselves while simultaneously feeling free from a hostile work or study envi¬ ronment,” said Hugo Schwyzer, New Policy, Pg. 5 ON THE RECORD “In the case of a charge of sexual harassment, it turns the power over to the student, and the instructor is automatically wrong.” -Professor Duke Stroud WWW.PCC-COURfERONLINE.COM www.pcc-courieronline.com SIJ^CM 1^1 ▼ Nation-Wide United States Nation-Wide CUMULATIVE CANINE STATISTICS SEPTEMBER 1998 THRU JUNE 1999 Pasadena City College TTiursclay, November 11, 1999 Volume 85, Number 11 Today: Sunny. High: 76° Low: 47° Tomorrow: Partly Cloudy. High: 89° Low: 50° Saturday: Mostly Cloudy. High: 74° Low: 49° Sunday Drizzle. High: 75° Low: 49° Little Theater Hosts "The Dining Room" The college's theater depart¬ ment presents A.R. Gurney's "The Dining Room," premier¬ ing this Friday at 8 p.m. The play features eight actors in 50 different roles tracing a family's life through several decades. Professor Duke Stroud directs the performance. Tickets are $5 for general admission and $3 for students and seniors. For reservations and informa¬ tion call the PCC Theater box office at 585-7485. Volleyball Team Takes on Diabetes Join the women's volleyball team next Wednesday for a match against Cerritos College benefiting the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. All proceeds from "Diabetes Night" will go to help young¬ sters suffering from this dev¬ astating illness. Game time is 7 p.m. in the M building gym. Cost is $2 plus any donations. CUMULATIVE CANINE STATISTICS BY CATEGORY September 1998 thru June 1999 Extended Trends Coverage Several of this week's enter¬ tainment articles are continued on the web for your reading enjoyment. We also apologize for the problems some readers are having accessing our archives. The web staff is attempting to correct the problem. Back issues should be available soon. ins Me This issue Embracing your challenges A 5-1 win against San Bernardino Valley College clinches a coveted playoff berth for Cherif Zein's outstanding team. Sports, Pg. 9 By Fred Ortega Staff Writer Students planning on bringing a little something extra to party with on college-sponsored field trips to Mexico might be in for a surprise visit from Beest, the contraband¬ sniffing canine. Beest’s employer, Interquest Detection Canines, Inc., provides security for over 30 campuses around the Southland, including PCC. Their dogs, mostly Labrador retrievers, are trained to detect a wide variety of substances, from ille¬ gal drugs such as heroin and cocaine to alcohol, prescription drugs such as Valium and even gunpowder. While Interquest’s duties at most of the schools it services range from locker and vehicle checks to random classroom spot searches, their con¬ tract with PCC is much more limited. “We use them to make sure no one takes contraband into Mexico,” said Phil Mullendore, campus police chief. The canines will be used to check students’ luggage on geology field trips. Speech provides inspiration and support to the college’s disabled students “We also use them for bomb threats,” he said, adding that the col¬ lege does not plan on instituting ran¬ dom locker checks or classroom searches. Logistical problems prohibit Interquest from expanding their operations on campus. Whereas vehicles and lockers can be easily inspected on high school campuses, the sheer number of students and vehicles at the college would make thorough searches nearly impossible. Violation of privacy rights is another problem. “There is an amendment to the state constitution that guarantees students the right to a safe environment at school,” said Mullendore. He explained that at K- 12 schools, where education is com¬ pulsory and the student body is made up of minors, there is a responsibili¬ ty for the administration to take dras¬ tic measures to ensure the children’s safety. ‘The younger the child, the greater the responsibility of the school,” he said. The environment here at the col¬ lege is radically different. The stu- Canines, Pg. 5 Courtesy Interquest Group, Inc. Richard ha vela / Courier Above, statistics detail Interquest's nation-wide alert records, with illicit drugs making up the majority of substances detected. At right, Handler Danny Rodriguez leads Beest down a row of lockers in his search for contraband. only a right hand, has embraced all sorts of challenges since. On Tuesday afternoon, as part of the first annual Disability Awareness Week, hosted by the Helpings Hands Club, Effinger was able to tell his inspirational story to the college community. “I learned at a very young age that I was different,” he said. “Most kids in the neighborhood let me know that early on.” But Effinger, 9 at the time, had other things to think about. His ulti¬ mate dream was to play little league baseball. It took some persuading by his father, a politician, to have one coach allow his son to play. “I was more like a mascot than a player,” Effinger said. He did not get a chance to play until the last inning of the last game of his second season. When he turned 11, he became a slugger with a .400 batting average. A year later, he came within a few Disabled, Pg. 5 Richard Favela / Courier Beest cocks his head, ready for action. By Luis E. Reyes Staff Writer He was 1 1 and could not tie his shoelaces. His father tried to teach him how to tie an otherwise simple knot, but learning was so difficult. One day, however, Lynn Effinger put all fears aside and, after what he called “a very long time,” he tied his shoelaces for the first time in his life. Ray Shui/ Courier Effinger, who was born with Lynn Effinger speaks to the Helping Hands Club about personal triumph. 1 Computer Gafi Opens After almost two years of logistical and funding problems, the facility finally opens its doors. Campus, Pg. 3 ADMINISTRATIVE BEAT CAMPUS BEAT Bring out the dogs College among canine detection agency’s clients