By Greg Zeman
The Guardsman

All of the Guardsman editors had a recent meeting where we came up with this crazy idea for our editorial: What if everybody in the United States was protected by some kind of law that ensured their right to freely practice the religion of their choice, regardless of the opinion or prejudice of the majority? I know, it seems like pretty radical stuff—we all thought the same thing at first—but we discussed it endlessly and, in the end, it seemed only fair.

So imagine our surprise when we discovered there is a document called “The United States Constitution” that has been around since 1787. And guess what, it already provides the kind of religious freedom we agreed to advocate at our editor’s meeting.

Needless to say, we were as disappointed as we were shocked by the discovery of this “Constitution,” which beat us to the punch on our “religious tolerance” idea by over 200 years, but we have since decided to embrace it.

Furthermore, we have pledged to let the people who don’t know about the religious freedoms guaranteed to them know:

1. “The Constitution” does exist
2.  It does protect people of all religions
3. People of all religions include Muslims.

The Torment of Sisyphus

Those of you who have taken (or are now taking) a mythology course are familiar with the agony of Sisyphus—the ancient, Greek king doomed to roll a boulder up a towering hill in Hades again and again for all eternity as punishment for thinking he was so damned clever.

Having said that, you are hereby informed that I have returned to The Guardsman as Editor in Chief, despite my well-documented declaration that I would, “never work at that [expletive] paper ever again, even if they paid me in gold and gefilte fish.”

Which, for the record, they most definitely are not doing.

Clever Subhead

We’ve got some brand new content in the paper this semester, like “Escape From City College,” our own Op/Ed Editor Nick Palm’s record of his continuing efforts to… well, actually, the title is pretty much self-explanatory.

I appreciate Mr. Palm’s razor wit, wry humor and keen eye for absurdity, but what I really appreciate most is that he’s giving me the opportunity to run a picture of Kurt Russel as “Snake” Plissken in the 1981 film Escape From New York.

Thanks Nick, you’re A-number-one.

But we also have the return of a Guardsman classic. That’s right; after months of waking up at 2:15 a.m. to the sound of him slurring desperately into the receiver of various payphones throughout the city, and more recently, watching him burst into bitter tears in front of two young women in the newsroom, I have decided to allow banished Sports Editor Bontá Hill to resurrect the Water Cooler.

I’m sure my bookie is already salivating over all the losing sports bets I’ll be placing now that Mr. Hill is once again gracing our pages with his athletic expertise. Thankfully, I held on to my crutches from his “stone cold lock” on the Colts against the Saints in last season’s Super Bowl.

And as an extra treat to our readers, I didn’t bring back Suite/Street 415. Enjoy.

—GZ

By Matt Gomez
The Guardsman

New amendments to the Clery Act will change the way colleges across the country report hate crimes and develop and execute emergency plans.

The amendments require schools to have an emergency plan, practice a drill annually to determine the plan’s success and give more details when reporting hate crimes.

Due to the lack of on-campus housing, City College is not required to follow the provision concerning missing students.

According to the Department of Education’s Federal Register, hate crimes must be reported if they “manifest evidence that the victim was intentionally selected because of the victim’s actual or perceived race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity or disability” .

The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act is a federal law that was passed in 1990 after 19-year-old Jeanne Clery was raped and murdered at Lehigh University in 1986.

The act mandates that any college or university with federal financial aid program keep a public and up-to-date crime log concerning crime on or near campus. The log is supposed to be updated within two business days of when a crime happens.

“There are a lot of things that would make it a lot easier and a lot more efficient,” said Public Information Officer Rachel Hakes. “But we’re doing the best we can.”

Additionally, crime logs must be current and contain incidents for the last 60 days. For crimes older than 60 days, logs must be made available with two business days if requested.

“We’ve been doing crime logs for years,”Hakes said. “It’s always kept up to date on our website.”

By Alyssa Laurel
The Guardsman

After nearly two years of construction, the new Multi-Use Building on Ocean campus is open, but delays in other construction projects have stalled the completion of its exterior.

Construction of the building was supposed to be complete by mid-July, said David Liggett, director of facilities planning and construction.

Much of the work on the east and north sides of the Multi-Use Building is temporary and will be redone when construction of the Performing Arts Center is complete. At that time, permanent landscaping, trees, and furnishings will be added.

Liggett said that the new Performing Arts Center was supposed to have broken ground last year, but the state failed to pass the necessary construction bond in 2008. The district had to wait for state funding to start construction.

“The building is substantially complete,” said Liggett.

Despite the unfinished exterior, the building is in use and is not disrupting ongoing courses.

Remaining parking lot lights should be installed next week, and the construction fencing will also come down at that time.

“The fencing is the only thing that’s kind of inconvenient,” said Lisa Smith, a sophomore at City College.  “It’s just in the way. Nothing else about the building is really disruptive.”

“I think the work, including all the contractors punch-list work, should be done by the end of September. In checking with occupants on the first day of classes we have identified few problems. The facilities [office] is working with the contractor to fix these issues as soon as possible.” said Liggett.

The building, which  will house childhood development, teacher preparation and health education programs, is part of a 10- to 15-year construction plan for City College.

By Kwame Opoku-Duku
The Guardsman

In September, City College will replace the synthetic turf used for the football field with a non-toxic, 100 percent recyclable turf, becoming one of the first schools in the area to do so.
This new replacement turf – made up primarily of recycled crumb rubber and polyethylene – has garnered much attention after Potrero Hill residents organized against a plan to install the same kind at the Potrero Hill Recreation Center in 2008, citing health and environmental concerns.

“When you look at the field now from a distance, you see just as much black as green,” Football Coach George Rush said. “No one knows about the long-term effects this might have on the environment, but I know we want our kids playing in an environment that isn’t going to hurt them. I don’t want to be breathing in carcinogens and I sure don’t want my team doing it.”

Although several organizations – including the California Office of Environment Health Hazard Assessment and San Francisco Environment – have found the safety hazard of the rubber and polyethylene play fields to be low, the arrival of a non-toxic playing surface will be sure to ease the fears of those still on the fence about unnatural playing surfaces.

“We’re looking forward to it starting,” Athletic Chairperson Dan Hayes said. “It was time to replace our current turf, which we’ve had since the early 2000s, and to be able to make it more green-friendly is great.”

The new turf, Developed by an Italian company called Mondo, may signal a new beginning in the turf debate by offering a product that has greater durability than grass, is free of carcinogens, and doesn’t threaten the environment.

Mondo turf also boasts lower surface temperatures, which reduces the “heat island effect” that comes with black rubber granules, which in time may oxidize the polyethylene fibers that comprise the turf’s “grass” making it more like a carpet than a field.

“We did our homework,” Rush said. “Money-wise, when someone comes to pick up the turf we have now, we’re going to have to pay them to dispose of it. In ten years, when this new turf has run its course, someone is going to pay us because it is 100 percent recyclable. Really, this is cutting edge stuff. It can drain 600 gallons of water in an hour, although, let’s hope that never has to happen.”

With it being  40 percent  more dense than traditional black rubber granules, the overall performance of the turf will improve as well,  providing a more uniform and stable field designed to decrease the risk of turf-related injuries.

“For us, it’s really about three things: safety, performance and environment,” Rush said.  And this is the best thing out there yet.”

By Tania Cervantes
The Guardsman

By a vote of 9-0, California’s Board of Education approved the adoption of national common core standards Aug. 2 in an attempt to win a federal grant for education.

The adoption of these standards, which are lower than California’s, would give the state more points in the application for a Race to the Top federal grant, an Obama Administration backed program that is part of the Recovery Act and holds an investment of $4.5 billion for education in the US.

According to a press release by the Department of Education, the Race to the Top criteria requires states to document their past successes and outline their plans to extend their educational reforms; build a workforce of highly effective educators; create educational data systems to support student achievement and turn around their lowest-performing schools.

“I am very suspicious of lowering the standards,”  said Gus Goldstein, President for the American Federation of Teachers Local 2121.

“But it all depends on what you are getting funded to do. To prepare students to pass tests is a questionable enterprise in itself. If you’re funded to give better education with our students, getting prepared for college and then lowering standards does not mean lowering the quality of education our students should get.”

News website Education Week showed in its 2009 California State Highlights Report, the state is ranked 47th in the nation for amount of dollars spent per pupil, and 37th on overall spending for K-12 education from state taxable resources.

“It almost doesn’t matter what standards you adopt if you don’t adequately fund education,” Goldstein said.

Currently California’s standards have been noted as some of the best and most rigorous in the country, yet 8th graders rank below national average in proficient reading, according to Education Week.

Among the 35 state applicants for the second round of grants, California is a finalist. The first round contained 41 applicants, with Delaware winning over $100 million and Tennessee $500 million to implement their education reform plans over the next four years.

“My take is that teachers need to be able to feel passion for their students and the material they are teaching. If the standards are a barrier to either of these passions, then they are bad standards.” said Dave Keller, a Piedmont high School social studies teacher.

“The National Standards are not as detailed as California’s — adopting them may seem as a dumb-down of California’s – but I think as far as skills are concerned, they are not. When it comes to content, there are no specific requirements only guidelines for choosing the right content.”

Keller mentioned that the national standards do not require English teachers to teach Huck Finn, but they do say teachers have to choose a book as complex and as well written. This gives teachers, schools and districts a lot of responsibility to choose the right content, but it also gives them the freedom to teach what they and their students are passionate about.

According to the Common Core State Standards Initiative website, “while the standards focus on what is most essential, they do not describe all that can or should be taught. A great deal is left to the discretion of teachers and curriculum developers.

The aim of the Standards is to articulate the fundamentals, not to set out an exhaustive list or a set of restrictions that limits what can be taught beyond what is specified herein.”

The new standards are expected to be in place by the 2013-14 school year.

Iran opens first domestic nuclear power reactor

Iran’s first civilian nuclear power reactor opened in Bushehr on Aug. 21. The reactor is being loaded with low-enriched uranium, which was supplied by Russia. The plant will be under United Nations monitoring and could start producing electricity later this year or early next.

The Obama administration said the plant will serve as a solution to the Iranian nuclear dispute: Iran will benefit from the nuclear energy it is entitled by international law and since the fuel comes from outside sources it will negate Iran’s need to produce its own uranium rods, which can also produce highly-enriched uranium for nuclear bombs.

The Iranian government is planning to build at least 10 more nuclear plants like the one in Bushehr.

—

Pakistan flood aid not enough

Pakistan is seeking aid from the international community following massive flooding that has swept through one fifth of the country. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the U.S. will help provide aid for the nearly 20 million displaced Pakistanis. Currently the U.S. has donated $96 million, while Great Britain and China have pledged $50 million and $9 million respectively. The United Nations has also pledged to raise $460 million in relief, but have only raised 70 percent of that amount so far.

While pledges have been made to aid Pakistan, it will not be enough to cover the billions of dollars needed to repair the country.

—

Skepticism over peace talks widespread in Mideast

After nearly two years, a new round of peace talks between Israeli and Palestinian leaders will resume Sept. 2. While the Obama administration heralds the new round of peace talks between Israel and Palestine, others remain skeptical.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will face opposition from coalition and party members if he agrees to some of the compromises the Palestinians expect from peace talks which include an Israeli pullout from Jewish settlements.

Palestinian officials said talks with Israel have been more difficult in recent years but believe peace is possible if the Israeli government were more willing to negotiate. The U.S, Russia, United Nations and European Union have declared support and hope that a settlement will be reached.

—

Parcel tax could raise funding for City College

City College is exploring the idea of a parcel tax to help generate additional revenue for the college to cover operating expenses, building upkeep and school programs. It has not been determined exactly how the funding will be used.

The Board of Trustees approved a resolution to contract Godbe Research to conduct a public opinion survey to assess if San Francisco voters would oppose or support a parcel tax as well as determine the feasibility of a parcel tax that voters will approve.

By Bontã Hill
The Guardsman

No, say it isn’t so? The Guardsman picked up the Water Cooler for another semester?

I know it’s shocking, mind-boggling and hilarious all in one thought. Yet, after watching newly appointed Editor-in-Chief Greg Zeman embarrass himself by begging me in front of two little hotties to bring this column out of retirement, I figured, “what the hell, more pub for me.”

All right, I admit I can be a little delusional at times and think that the Guardsman will never be able to move on without the ‘Cooler, but over the break, writing this column was the farthest thing from my mind.

As I went through summer announcing at the San Francisco Summer-Pro-Am two times a week, arguing with my roommate routinely about who knows what, and then, reinvigorated by writing for an up and coming high school sports website, I was looking forward to my retirement from the Guardsman.

However, after walking by bungalow 214 and getting a whiff of old newspapers, plus Zeman pleading with me like I was the Brett Favre of journalism, not even my participation of being in the nuttiest fantasy baseball league ever could stop me from being duped to sign on for eight more issues.

OK, so it’s not the worst feeling in the world. I could be the assistant coach who got slapped by Matt Barnes at a Pro-Am game (classic).

At the end of the day though, I am happy to announce: The ‘Cooler is back.

Speaking of coming out of “retirement”, guess who clinched his fourth straight “diva of the year” award (here at the ‘Cooler, we have awards for everything imaginable) and dominated ESPN for the last week?

If you guessed Favre you’re right.

Favre’s reason for coming back is that he feels he “owes it to the fans and Minnesota Vikings,” to play for one more season and try to lead the franchise to its first Super Bowl victory.
When the news was broke that Favre was on his way to Vikings headquarters in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, my homey, French Bread Picot Jr. threw a question out on Facebook, “Who’s the biggest diva of 2010?”

A. Beyonce
B. Lebron James
C. Chad OchoCinco
D. Brett Favre

After 19 comments, seven agreed LeBron was the biggest diva, and only three went with Favre. The rest were about who was cute, the OchoCinco show, etc.

I agree, Lebron’s “decision,” – the over-hyped, hour-long ESPN special – was unfathomable and he lost some stock in my book.

You can make a case for Lebron being the biggest diva, but Favre has been pulling this wishy-washy act for the last five years.

One week, Favre says his “heart is not in it,” the next month he gets the “itch back” to play football again.
It’s a slap in the face to backups Sage Rosenfels and Tavaris Jackson. They take the all the off-season repetitions, and then get this egotistical attention-grabber who just one day says, “Hey, I want to play.”

Yet, head coach Brad Childress doesn’t mind, as he sent three of his team leaders – Steve Hutchinson, Jared Allen and Ryan Longwell – down to the deep south to convince him to come.

Also, two assistant coaches lied for Childress, telling the media that the three players were inside the practice facility, when in fact Hutchinson and company were strong-arming Favre into a decision.

Last year, Childress had to go down to lovely Hattiesburg Mississippi (never been, nor do I plan on going), to convince Favre to play himself.

Yes, Favre is 40 and is a living legend, but to let one man decide to take off mini-camps and two weeks of training camp and create another pointless media circus (did you really think he was retiring?), is hypocrisy all around.

In my 20-plus years of watching sports, I can’t ever recall seeing an act like this. Can you imagine Peyton Manning or Tom Brady doing this?

One day Favre will a be a hall-of-famer, and be looked at as one of the top-ten quarterbacks of all time. But because of what he’s done off the field the last five years – making franchises hold their breath and pray for him to play – I’ll forever look at Favre as the king diva.

By Hannah Weiner
The Guardsman

An “Open College” proposal by City College’s General Assembly has been approved for the summer and will offer free lectures, workshops, labs, food and open discussions.

The event will be on three days, June 2, July 14 and Aug. 4, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Science Building on Ocean campus. Student sign-up and outreach is set to begin soon on Rams Plaza.

“We have had an overwhelmingly positive response from faculty,” General Assembly student member Felix Cabrera said. “Teachers are eager to teach the subjects they love, students are willing to learn, and everyone sees the positive and powerful statements that can come out of an event such as this.”

Lectures will also be given about the education budget deficit and how to fight it.

“The budget is really what is determining our future,” Leslie Smith, associate vice chancellor of governmental relations, said. “They will be talking about advocacy in terms of student empowerment and how to make changes to the education system.”

“It’s the first time summer school was canceled in over 30 years and I think people felt the need to keep in touch with the school over the summer,” Smith said. “The idea really resonated with folks.”

Cabrera, whose role is to focus on outreach and follow-up for the event, said almost everyone the General Assembly has talked to has agreed to help in some capacity.

“We have contacted teachers, administrators and unions to ensure the possibility of the event,” Cabrera said. “Once we get a teacher who is interested we need to make sure they stay informed of the developments as they happen.”

While the Open College will provide free courses in various subjects, students will not receive credits for the classes they attend.

“The teachers are going to be working for free, with no obligation other than the love of teaching,” Cabrera said. “I kind of like to think of this as an event like a concert where people come because they really want to, not because they have to.”

Katryn Wiese, earth sciences department chair will be helping students organize events and will teach a workshop at Open College. Education is valuable whether it’s formally structured or not, she said.

“I’m supportive of any opportunity to reach out to the community and provide open educational workshops and experiences,” Wiese said. “We will demonstrate that our education lies in our own hands — that we don’t have to let our education stop simply because the formal piece, credit, pay, etc., isn’t available.”

The General Assembly, as well as other supporters of Open College, are hoping the event will make a widespread political statement about the state of education in California, and enable collaboration between students and faculty.

For more information visit www.ccsfagainstthecuts.org or write to ccsf.generalassembly@gmail.com.

By Resyl Joy Bejasa
Contributing Writer

Sports reporter Matias Godinez (left) and Operation Manager Assistant Jerry Weatherford debate baseball teams during The Red Zone commercial break on May 7. RAMSEY EL-QARE / THE GUARDSMAN

City College’s radio station, KCSF 90.9 FM, held its first live remote broadcast in 30 years of operation on May 7.

Students who normally work for the station in the Ocean campus Arts Extension building broadcast their programs from Ram Plaza.

The event was held to promote the station and raise student awareness of it.

“A lot of people here don’t even know we have a station,” KCSF Executive Assistant Jerry Weatherford said.

KCSF is an entirely student-run FM station that provides hands-on experience in programming and operating a modern radio station. The staff of KCSF is comprised of students from three overlapping broadcast classes that meet together twice a week — radio management skills, radio production and radio news and public affairs.

As General Manager of KCSF, Cecil Hale shares his broad industry experience — including employment as a radio DJ, station manager and Capitol Records executive — with students.

“The main objective of KCSF is to train people to understand radio,” Hale said. “To equip them so they can go out and be employed.”

Hale has worked with the station for 20 years and played a major role in transforming KCSF into a state-of-the-art facility when it updated to an all digital format three years ago. He provides students with guidance and an environment that encourages professional growth and teamwork skills, but otherwise he stays out of the way.

“Dr. Hale let us think for ourselves as a radio station,” KCSF Operations Manager Angelica Nevarez said. “He lets us provide our own content and we work from there.”

Nevarez came to City College in fall 2007. She took several broadcasting classes, and by the next year, she was part of a team that strives to run KCSF as a commercial radio station.

“KCSF was previously just known to be a class where students come in, do their air shifts and leave,” Nevarez said. “Now we think outside of the box and we’re trying to be bigger.”

There is a broad range of programming on KCSF including “Dead Air,” a news-based comedy program; “Urban Update,” a show that couples local and international news with spiritual and relationship advice; “Dispatches from the Underground,” a music show that promotes local bands; and “The Red Zone,” a City College sports broadcast.

“We have more students than we’ve ever had, it’s grown,” Hale said.

Last Fall, KCSF held a food drive for the San Francisco Food Bank, an organization which delivers food to about 400 nonprofit organizations in the city. They collected over 200 pounds of food.

“KCSF is here to speak for the people and give back to the community,” Nevarez said.
The station is currently working closely with local businesses and companies such as the San Francisco Giants, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and 2b1 Multimedia to receive promotional items and funds.

The San Francisco Giants provided a Tim Lincecum bobblehead as a raffle prize at the live broadcast event, along with CDs and DVDs as giveaways.

A new KCSF station in the Mission campus is on its way. With brand new equipment, the staff of the Ocean campus will eventually merge with the sister campus and work closely to promote the station.

“Once Dr. Hale gives us the OK, we’re going to work closely with them and show them what we know,” Nevarez said.

KCSF will be holding a talent show contest on May 14, 2010 in the Ocean campus cafeteria. Any special talent is welcome. There will be live bands and performances by other talents from the KCSF staff and City College students.

KCSF can be heard on 90.9 FM and streams on-line through the campus website, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

By Jessica Luthi
The Guardsman

In these difficult economic times, everyone is tightening their budgets, including City College.

The monthly financial report, which was delivered at the April 29 board of trustees meeting, brought grim news of City College’s current budget. Peter Goldstein, vice chancellor of administration and finance said there are still more hardships ahead.

“It will be an extremely difficult year,” he said about the 2010-11 fiscal year.
In addition, the college will have to wait until mid-May for the governor’s May budget revision to determine the severity of the shortfall.

“Both the best and worst case scenarios have shortfalls, with the best case being $4 million and the worst $12 million,” Goldstein said.

City College could stand to lose even more money if base enrollment is not met.

The base enrollment is the minimum number of full-time credit students needed per semester. For City College, it means approximately 36,000 students. If the college does not meet the base enrollment, it could stand to lose millions of dollars.

“Part of our budget strategy for next year requires us to add money for adding more classes both during the fall and spring and the summer,” Goldstein said on building enrollment.

Chancellor Don Griffin said it is important to add more classes next year despite the financial situation City College is in.

“The reason we have to add classes is because this year we are under base,” Griffin said. “And if we don’t add classes next year, we’re going to lose even more money.”

To save money during the 2009-10 fiscal year, the college eliminated summer school, cut classes and reduced the operating hours for student services.

Over the last 24 months, City College has struggled to come up with $26 million for both the 2008-09 and 2009-10 fiscal years, Griffin said. He added that the college could be looking at a $7 million shortfall each year if conditions don’t improve.

Trustee Chris Jackson said the college needs to look at all avenues for revenue, including a parcel tax.

The college also began a campaign to solicit donations to help save classes that have been eliminated, or are on the chopping block. A contest was also started asking for ideas on how to save the college money.

“This situation can’t go on,” Jackson said. “We can’t continue to do more with less money.”