PCC Courier, October 10, 1996

E WS Breast cancer testing coming to cam¬ pus as part of Breast Cancer Aware¬ ness Month Women will able to have mammograms on cam¬ pus to combat dreaded disease. - news/features SPORTS Center offers career guidance for Lancers lose in second home game of the season Students Seeking jobs Fullerton College bests PCC 30-16 to hand the home team its Center eases anxieties for those looking toward third loss of the season, the future. 3 4 THURSDAY October 10, 1996 Trustees vote not to change grade BY DOUGLAS WILKIE Courier Staff Writer The Board of Trustees at its Oct. 2 meeting voted 4 to 3 not to change a student grade given by a professor for a fall 1995 course. The anonymous student first ap¬ proached Joyce Black, vice presi¬ dent of instruction, for reconsidera¬ tion of the grade after having been turned down by the instructor Gre¬ gory Lee, geography associate pro¬ fessor. After consulting with Lee, Black then recommended to the Board that the grade be changed based upon a “clerical mistake,” one of four criteria under which such action may be taken without the instructor’s consent. Voting in favor of the motion not to change the grade were trustees Richard Green, Susanna Miele, Walter Shatford and Beth Wells- Miller. Voting in support of the grade change, were Jeanette Mann, John Martin and Warren Weber. Shatford expressed regret at the way the dispute was resolved and the position that Lee had staked out. “I don’t think the activity here rose to the level of compelling us to change the grade, but I do feel that there was an inflexibility here on the part of the instructor,” he said. “I would have hoped that, as has been the case where there ’ s so much doubt, that the instructor would go along with making an adjustment in the grade,” he continued. Mann, after having voted to change the grade, emphasized that the Board exists to serve PCC stu¬ dents and to help them learn educa¬ tionally and personally. “I think it is very, very hard and unfair to impose such an extreme penalty on a student for such a minor mistake,” she stated. Martin said that he was advised by legal counsel not to vote in favor ofthegradechange. EchoingMann’s sentiments regarding the college’s mission, he said that he is “probably more troubled by this than I’ve been by many things that have happened in my years here.” Green, while voting not to allow the grade change, said that as a sci¬ entist, “I detest somebody that uses scientific principles to do something like this. But I can’t see a basis, legally, to turn it around and change it.” The California Teachers Asso¬ ciation had weighed in by raising the specter of illegality regarding the possible grade override. Some Board members were dis¬ suaded from voting to allow the grade change. Wells-Miller was one of those trustees. “I voted for it (the motion not to change the grade) because I didn’t feel that the evidence would come up to the level it would have to be in order for it to be legally possible to changeaprofessor’sgrade,” she said. “The law is very specific and the criteria, I didn’t feel, would permit that.” Miele expressed concern that stu¬ dents be graded on the basis of their knowledge rather than “a rigid kind of format.” (The student had alleg¬ edly failed to correctly fill out a scantron card for a final examina¬ tion.) Notwithstanding her senti¬ ments, she agreed with Wells-Miller Please see TRUSTEES, page 2. • PRESIDENT LISTENS TO STUDENTS JOSE CORTEZ / THE COURIER James Kossler, PCC superintendent president, (left) took time off from his busy schedule to meet students in the Quad and answere questions. Seated with Kossler is Jody Wymar, student trustee. AS president accused of threat BY DANIEL ARCHULETA Courier staff writer A student accused Forrest Poindexter, AS president, of threat¬ ening to cut M.E.Ch.A’s funding unless they “behaved “ during a recent political speech. The charge was made during the Associated Stu¬ dents meeting Tuesday. The dispute centers on the Oct. 2 speaking engagement of James Rogan, Assembly Leader. He has been on record supporting Proposi¬ tion 209, the initiative that seeks to eliminate affirmative action. His appearance prompted many anti-209 students, including members of M.E.Ch.A, to hold a protest. Manny Luna, M.E.Ch.A mem¬ ber, accused Poindexter of saying, “If you don’t behave during this event, I’ll cut your funding.” He repeatedly made the remark to Ben Escobedo, M.E.Ch.A community relations coordinator, just before Rogan’s talk. Poindexter denied saying that but, Escobedo verified Luna’s statement. He said, “Poindexter said it.” Catherine Hazleton, coordinator of external affairs, said after the meeting, “We heard rumors about what could happen, so we didn’t want another protest like at Cal State Northridge,” But she wanted it to be clear, “It was not a M.E.Ch.A pro¬ test.” Luna attended the meeting with Robert DeOcampo, Phi Alpha Delta president, to try to have the AS hear a request to fund an upcoming con¬ ference that their club wants to go to. Poindexter ignored several at¬ tempts by Luna to be recognized and that annoyed Luna consider¬ ably'. An exchange of words ensued with Luna accusing Poindexter of making threats to cut funds. This caused Poindexterto adjomthe meet¬ ing. Neither Luna nor DeOcampo was given the chance to discuss their club’s proposal. В ecause Poindexter ignored them, Luna used the opportunity to vent his frustration over Poindexter’ s reported comment regarding cutting M.E.Ch.A. ’s funding. He said after the meeting, “Poindexter can’t go around saying things like that to people; he doesn’t have that kind of power.” Poindexter said, “I can’t believe Luna would do something like this. He did approach me with an agenda item, but I said no. I just can’t give every club the money they ask for; there are just too many clubs. He also said, “Luna should take it up with the Inter Club Council.” Phi Alpha Delta did not receive its annual money allocation from the Student Services Fund Committee, and the club could not meet the pay¬ ment deadline for the conference. Thats why Luna and DeOcampo wanted to address the board. Hazleton, speaking for the AS board, said, “Cutting M.E.Ch.A’s funds is not our goal.” She said she is shocked that they would make the accusation. “I brought Proposition 209 to their attention. I want to help them as much as I can.” Other news from the meeting: the board granted $350 to help pay for the annual “I’m going to school day” for fourth graders from nearby Cleve¬ land Elementary School. The AS also approved $3,000 for a cross- cultural retreat. Malaysian educators study PCC facility and technology BY DANIEL ARCHULETA Courier Staff Writer A group of 20 representing the Malaysian Ministry of Educa¬ tion came to campus Oct. 2 to learn about the techniques and technologies used by western colleges to educate students. The trip was to gather information which will be used to modernize that country’s educational sys¬ tem. PCC was selected for the tour because of the computer tech¬ nologies available in the Shat¬ ford Library. The visitors also studied KPCC the college’s ra¬ dio station, and all of the offices located in the media center. Joe Moreau, supervisor of the instructional resources, demon¬ strated the PCC homepage to emphasize the essential role the Internet plays in education to¬ day. Not only did the group focus on the college’s technological systems, but also studied the ven¬ tilation and lighting services in campus buildings. The Shatford Library build¬ ing also interested the Malaysian contingency. They studied the cost-effective construction. They said they hope to duplicate the same results in their future projects. Campus facilities embody what Malaysian architect Zainal Fitri Hassan termed as, “world class standards.” He said of the library, “I’m very impressed, and I wish we had more time to see everything.” Shabudin Man, vice consul from the Malaysian consulate in Los Angeles, said, the visit was to increase the number of techni¬ cally competent people in that country. As of now there is a lack of qualified employees in Malay¬ sia. Education needs to keep pace with the booming economy in order for the country to become a global manufacturing nation, said Man. Presently there are nine institutions, of higher education, all of which need to be updated to modern standards. Along with the technological information, officials also wanted to learn about how to implement programs for part-time students. Malaysian colleges do not allow part-time students. Mark Wallace, PCC’s direc¬ tor of public relations, said, “This kind of trip happens all the time. Just last summer representatives from the Hunanprovince of China also visited the campus.” He said the reason PCC plays host to these types of visitors is because of the campus’ high level of technol¬ ogy- The tour was conducted by Wallace, Moreau, Jack Schulman, construction consultant; Mary Ann Laun, director of the library; and Robert Cody, assistant dean of computing services. • KING AND QUEEN TO BE CROWNED DURING FESTIVITIES Veronica Yanez Jody Wymar PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE MEDIA CENTER Tanisha Buchanan David Peabody Not pictured: Leila Jerusalem, Sassoun Aghoshian Shacristala Jackson Homecoming will kick off next week BY JOSE INOSTROZ Courier Staff Writer Students will not be seeing, Robert Deniro, Joe Pesci or Sha¬ ron Stone. However, they just might have the opportunity to rub shoulders with royalty if they attend “Casino Nights” on Oct. 19. “Casino Nights” is the theme of this year’s Homecoming fes¬ tivities which will begin next Monday and continue through Saturday. Although, Prince Charles, Princess Di and Princess Fergie will not be in attendence, a King and Queen willbe crowned during the half-time when Saddleback College visits the Lancers for PCC’s traditional homecoming football game. A Royalty title will be be¬ stowed upon either Sassoun Aghoshian or David Peabody. Tanisha Buchanan, Shacristala Jackson, Leila Jerusalem, Jody Wymar and Veronica Yanez are all in the running for Queen. A committee made up of 13 students and faculty has been planning homecoming activities for over two months, according to Levi Jackson, associated stu¬ dent coordinator of campus ac¬ tivities. Beginning Monday, Oct. 14, students will have the opportu¬ nity to participate in a Ping Pong tournament to be held at noon either in the Quad or in the Women’s Gym (the location had not been determined at press time.) Jackson said there will be prizes awarded for first, second, third, and fourth place finishers. The Homecoming Court will be introduced and PCC’s Gospel Choir will perform at noon in the Quad on Tuesday at noon. For those unable to participate in the Ping Ping tourney on Mon¬ day, they will get a second chance at trophies on Wednesday, Oct. 16. A three-point, shoot out / slam dunk contest is scheduled to be heldinthe Men’s Gymatnoon. Students can sign up for either or both competitions at a table in the Quad or by visiting the Stu¬ dent Activities in the CC Lounge. Students will be entertained by PCC Band and the Pep Squad on Thursday at noon in the Quad. AS president Forrest Poindexter will present the Lancer Football team to the crowd. On Saturday Oct. 19, the Lanc¬ ers will meet No. 1 ranked Saddleback College at Horrell Field beginning at 6 p.m. During halftime, the King and Queen will be crowned. Following the game, students and their families will be invited to attend the “Casino Nights” postgame reception which will be held in the CC Lounge until mid¬ night. A DJ is scheduled to pro¬ vide music for the reception. “You have to bridge all the gaps and make diversity work. Every time you get people to¬ gether for games and activities, all races, colors and sizes are no longer a concern,” said Jackson. Survey to choose parking fees BY YUSEF ROBB Courier Staff Writer Students who parkinPCC’s park¬ ing lots will be surveyed next week concerning a proposed new parking fee system. The plan under consid¬ eration would cut the cost of a regu¬ lar permit by $9 but limited permits would be eliminated. Students would be charged $55, instead of the $64 now charged per semester. The proposal is being made in an effort to streamline the current park¬ ing system, which is “cumbersome to administer,” said Philip Mullendore, director of police and safety services. Students who currently hold four or five day permits, about 55 percent of parkers, would save money under the proposed new system, as would those students who buy a daily per¬ mit from a machine. Students now can purchase one, two or three day permits, which rep¬ resent eight percent, 23 percent and 13 percent of parkers respectively, their fees would increase. The survey will ask students about their transportation habits as well as which type of permit they use. It will also give students an opportunity to choose between the new system, the old one, or a system that consists of machine-dispensed daily permits only. Beginning Monday, police cadets will be stationed at the driveways to all lots, and will hand the surveys to entering students. The surveys will be passed out Monday through Friday at 8 a. m. , 1 0 a.m., 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. in order to get a wide sampling of students. A total of 5,000 surveys will be distributed. Cadets will only hand out 400 surveys at a time in order to minimize congestion. Students will be asked to return the surveys to the cadets as they exit. '4 У