By Dariush AzmoudehASSOCIATE EDITOR

dazmoudeh.advocate@gmail.com

For Contra Costa College students interested in finding a way to work out while having fun, a new Zumba class is being offered two days a week in the Gym Annex Building.

Zumba is a fitness dance class taught in thousands of dif-ferent locations with licensed instructors teaching students to dance in various Latin styles.

“We do merengue, salsa, reggaeton, and calypso,” Zumba instructor Desiree

Gunn-Young said. “It’s a lot of fun and it’s a total body workout; not con-centrated on one part — everything is moving.”

The class provides students a way to stay active while moving every part of their bodies and moving to the beat of the music.

Some prefer it as an alternative to going to the gym and lifting weights.

“I like being able to dance and exercise. I love to dance but I hate to exercise, so

this helps,” student Rosalyn Davis said. “Once you get the momentum going,

C M Y K C M Y K

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW B

C M Y K C M Y K

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW B

THE WEEKLY STUDENT VOICE OF CONTRA COSTA COLLEGE, SAN PABLO, CALIF.SINCE 19506 PAGES, ONE COPY FREE

VOL. 96, NO. 13WEDNESDAY, FEB. 16, 2011

ACCENTADVOCATE.COM

SigningAuthor to host presentation

Defensive leaderRay heads women’s basketball team

sports page 5◆scene page 6◆

Sebadohstill rocking

Band proves influential two decades after formation

campus beat page 4◆

Event

in Knox

Center

features

student

acts

in honor

of Black

History

Month

AFRICA CELEBRATED

SAM ATTAL / THE ADVOCATE

In spirit — A Fua Dia Congo dancer performs during the “Celebrating Blackness: From Africa to America” event held in the Knox Center on Thursday.

“It’s a lot of fun and it’s a total body work-out; not concentrated on one part — every-

thing is moving .”

Desiree Gunn-Young,Zumba instructor

Zumba fever grips class on campus

in brief

w A student was held at gunpoint and robbed on the night of Feb. 7 at the Bus Transfer Center.

w Two suspects approached the victim and her friends while they were walking out of class.

w After threatening her, the sus-pects stole her back-pack, con-taining $40.

w A suspect matching the description was appre-hended on Feb. 9, but has not yet been identi-fied as the attacker.

Missing watchdogsThe campus is feeling the low number of Police Services officers. The department needs to be returned to full force before more crimes are committed.

page 2

editorial

■ SEE ROBBERY: Page 3

Police Services apprehend one crime suspect

VIBRANT SMILENewdeal under review

Student robbed, attacked

By Sam AttalEDITOR-IN-CHIEF

sattal.advocate@gmail.com

Even though Police Services Sgt. Ryan Huddleston has rec-ommended walking in groups on campus to avoid becoming an easy target for a robbery, the strategy has not worked for some.

A student was held up at gun-point and robbed of her belong-ings as she walked with two others toward the Bus Transfer Center on the night of Feb. 7.

At approximately 9:30 p.m., 22-year-old Anudari Odgiiv and her two friends Odonnyam Shirendev and Khulan Buyanjargal were walking from the Liberal Arts Building to the Bus Transfer Center when two males began to follow them.

“Obviously, in this situation, (the suspects) were targeting someone,” Huddleston said.

When they reached the Bus Transfer Center, one man pulled out a semi-automatic handgun and demanded that Odgiiv hand over her belongings.

She instantly froze in shock and was pushed down by the second suspect who stripped away her backpack, containing $40 and her schoolwork.

The suspects then fled west toward Del Camino Drive.

In the police report, the first suspect is described as a 200-pound 6-foot-1-inch tall African-American man wear-ing a black hooded sweatshirt. The second suspect is described as 5-foot-10-inch tall African-American man and about 200 pounds. He was wearing a red hooded sweatshirt.

A person fitting the descrip-tion of one of the suspects was arrested after another witness to the crime reported seeing both suspects near the Bus Transfer Center on Feb. 9.

Officers approached a 20-year-old El Sobrante resident at the AC Transit Line 72 bus stop.

United Faculty finalizes staff negotiations

By Alexandra WaiteNEWS EDITOR

awaite.advocate@gmail.com

After several negotiating sessions discussing compensa-tion, benefits and leaves among other issues affecting faculty, a tentative agreement between the Contra Costa Community College District and United Faculty is now in the ratifica-tion process.

“It was the longest it took to reach an agreement,” United Faculty President Jeffrey Michels said. “The state budget is so unsettled, it was hard to come to agreement with the issues.”

The 2010-2011 tentative agreement focuses largely on working conditions for facul-ty, family medical leaves, sick leave donations and benefits for part-time faculty, Dr. Michels said.

Michels said, “We talked quite a bit about parity, a certain amount of money set aside by the state to increase the salary of part-time faculty. They cut that money a while ago, and we talked about whether faculty would have to take the pay cut or if the district will provide the money.”

Vice Chancellor of Human Resources Gene Huff said the agreement developed a cata-strophic family leave plan and a sick leave donation, already in place for full-time faculty but which can now extend to part-time faculty, both of which would run for two years.

The district will be trying to negotiate a vision insurance plan for part-time faculty, Huff said.

For the agreement to become effective, the United Faculty and the Governing Board have to vote for it by Feb. 23.

Michels said the United Faculty negotiates every year with the college district by open-

GEORGE MORIN / THE ADVOCATE

Dancing toward fitness — Zumba dance instructor Desiree Gunn-Young (left) leads the class in dance in GA-110 on Feb. 1. Zumba is a workout program that focuses on the entire body by dancing to different Latin musical styles.

By Rodney WoodsonSTAFF WRITER

rwoodson.advocate@gmail.com

February has traditionally been rec-ognized as Black History Month, giv-ing students and faculty a chance each year to share their experiences and learn about their roots.

African-American studies depart-ment Chairwoman Carolyn Hodge, social sciences department Chairman Manu Ampim, the African Studies Department and the Black Student Union presented the annual Black Heritage Month celebration entitled, “Celebrating Blackness: From Africa to America” Thursday at the John and Jean Knox Center for the Performing Arts from 6-8 p.m.

The intention behind the event was to educate and inform the community about black history and African cul-ture.

“(The purpose of the event) is ■ SEE CONTRACT: Page 3 ■ SEE CELEBRATION: Page 3

■ SEE ZUMBA: Page 3

“I like to have the young folks from cam-pus express themselves.

(Their participation) was my favorite part of the

night.”

Carolyn Hodge,African-American studies department chair-

woman

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 9, 2011 ● VOL. 96, NO. 2

EditorialSafety

uncertainCampus needs

increased protection he neighborhoods and commu-nities surrounding Contra Costa College have long been known

as rough areas filled with high crime rates. It follows, then, that students should take precautions against the issues which sometimes can spew onto school grounds.

Do not flaunt valuables, do not walk with music blaring in your ears so loudly you can’t hear your surroundings and always remember there’s safety in numbers.

These are the steps Police Services Sgt. Ryan Huddleston has tried to drill into students’ heads, and are usually pretty safe bets.

What happens, though, when these measures aren’t enough?

In the past three years, the rate of rob-beries and assaults at the Bus Transfer Center has risen drastically. There are multiple reasons for this. The station is set apart from the rest of the campus and has a heavy traffic flow of both students and people from off campus simply tak-ing buses. Particularly at night, students are vulnerable to being attacked there.

This is so especially considering Police Services’ officers patrolling the campus have dwindled to just one between the hours of 7 and 11 a.m. and 7 and 11 p.m. due to budget cuts.

Sure, CCC isn’t a huge campus, but it’s definitely too big for one officer to patrol effectively. Spread so thin, how often must the officer check any given area? Once an hour or maybe each half hour? Even if he or she were to con-centrate more on places like the Bus Transfer Center, where there have been recent assaults, the rest of the campus would be neglected during those hours.

Yes, California is in a budget crisis. Yes, every department of the college is cutting back. But should something as paramount as campus safety be so severely strained to save money? Safety has a higher value than that.

Surely the one officer policing the campus during the mornings and eve-nings is doing an exemplary job of it, but with so little manpower, much has fallen through the cracks.

Already this semester, there have been reports of two students being robbed at gunpoint on different occasions. Both were at the Bus Transfer Center. During both instances, the victims were with other people. The buddy system failed them and Police Services cannot pos-sibly be everywhere at once while they are so understaffed.

Should CCC students start to hope that a masked vigilante adopts our cam-pus as his crime-fighting territory?

The budget needs to be re-worked and more funds need to be allocated toward Police Services. There is a need for more officers on campus all day to help students and faculty feel more secure.

T

“Well, I think black his-tory is criminally under-rated, and it’s good for it to be celebrated.”

Alex Moraundecided

CampusComment

Why do you think African-American history is important?

“Because it shows respect to the African-Americans who made a difference in society today.”

Tiyonna Moore-Howardcriminal justice

“The black culture is so important, and a lot of black historians are important.”

Myeshia Ellisonnursing

“We open the door for remembrance and opportunities for other immigrants and cultures to be celebrated.”

Steven Lockhartkinesiology

“Black history is impor-tant because we have been blanketed with 200 years of world his-tory from a Eurocentric perspective.”

Baron Copegeology

“It shows that African-Americans can do things in life.”

Brittney JonesEnglish

FAYTHE DEL ROSARIO & JESSE SUTHERLAND / THE ADVOCATE

Society stresses, scrambles true love

■ Romance

he Fable: she meets the man of her dreams, they

fall head over heels in love, get married, have children and live happily ever after.

In reality, relationships never really measure up to the “Disney Princess” standard. Personally, I wish I could ban fairy tale love story cartoon movies from the viewing eyes of young impressionable girls.

OK, maybe fairy tale love stories are not all to blame, but they certainly do not help things. I am a firm believer in telling children the truth rather than the “harmless” lies that parents often tell, such as Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny.

Why not just tell them the truth about it all? For example, a parent could say to a child, “Hey Junior, a fat dude in a red suit riding a sleigh flown by magical reindeer didn’t bring these presents. I went to Wal-Mart and bought them for you and your sister.”

As for the fairy tales, they lead our female youth to believe that Prince Charming will come to rescue them, take away all cares and wor-ries and that everything about love is beautiful. Love is lovely, yes, but it is also pain, suffering, heartache, stress and pressure.

Unfortunately the pressure and stress in relationships usually comes from women. For the most part it is the predetermined notion that once in a relationship, it is all about the woman and this in turn fuels females to turn into brats.

I have been in a few seri-ous relationships before and am currently in one now. We hardly ever argue, we enjoy one another’s company and I still enjoy “giving her the business.”

Yes, it has already been two years but it feels like six months and in this relation-ship, I have never felt less pressure. Why, you ask? Because we keep it “100” with each other, meaning we share all of each other with each other.

We understand where we are in our lives and our rela-tionship. While a lot of our peers are rushing to move in with their significant oth-ers, or to have children and get married, we realize (like responsible adults) that we are not ready for that yet. Taking things slowly we are, as Yoda would say, but I think that is what more Americans need to do.

Despite what society and religions say, I think each individual should sit down and think about who they want to be with and why.

Look what is going on in society: Jay-Z allegedly has to pay Beyoncé $5 million for every child of his that she bears. Seriously? It’s get-ting to the point where you have to pay your wife to have your kid? Or what about Kevin Jonas getting married? Maybe he is in love, but if

you ask me, I think the kid just did not want Disney to be pissed off at him for being with a girl openly after that whole “purity ring” thing, or maybe he just wanted to get laid.

People often forget that having sex is a part of nature, but really, Disney? These guys’ target audience has to be preteens and early teen-age girls and boys. I’m no genius, at least I do not think I am, but I do know that telling youngsters not to do something is just like telling them to do something.

Society is your worst enemy when dealing with personal affairs. Instead of believing everything we see or hear, we should look inside and believe ourselves. True love starts in the mir-ror, not out the window. In the immortal words of rapper Mannie Fresh, “Love your-self, go on a honeymoon and treat yourself.”

There are billions of peo-ple on this planet, which is one in our large solar system, which is one in this universe. Do not limit your world to whether or not someone else makes you happy; that is your job.

And ladies, when it comes to relationships, you should be more like men. Think a little bit more with your brain instead of your heart. In today’s world you will be better off. Trust me, I know from experience.

Rodney Woodson is a staff writer for The Advocate. Contact him at rwoodson.advocate@gmail.com.

FAYTHE DEL ROSARIO / THE ADVOCATE

rodneywoodson

T

THE ADVOCATE l WEDNESDAY, FEB. 16, 20112 OPINIONQuotable

“We write to develop consciousness, not to

entertain; there’s enough entertainment going on.”

Tess Onwuemeplaywright

1988

Sam Attaleditor-in-chief

Dariush Azmoudeh

associate editor

Lamar Jamesassociate editor

Cassidy Goodingopinion editor

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Jermaine Harrison circulation manager

Paul DeBoltfaculty adviser

Staff writersChristopher Clausen

April HalogHilberth Ibarra

Jazmaine MitchellIris Jett

Horace JordanAngelina Rucobo

Janit SaechaoJesslyn Sherrod

Parris WashingtonRodney Woodson

Staff photographersHanan Ayyad Qing Huang

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Staff illustratorsJared Amdahl

Faythe Del Rosario

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ONLINE EXCLUSIVE

■ FRESHMEN

Event welcomes new students

Contra Costa College will host a “First Year Experience Convocation” in the Fireside Room today from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The event will be held to famil-iarize new students with the cam-pus and provide them with infor-mation on how to graduate.

For more details, contact Kelly Ramos at 510-235-7800, ext. 4407.

Newsline

Tuesday, Feb. 8: Officers responded to a ver-

bal dispute between a male and female student in the Student Service Center. Both subjects have restraining orders and are trying to determine who has the right to be at school.

Wednesday, Feb. 9: Three students were approached

at the bus stop by two suspects who brandished a weapon and took one of the student’s backpack.

Officer conducted a pedestrian stop on a possible suspect in Lot 10. The suspect was found to be in possession of a loaded firearm and was arrested.

Thursday, Feb. 10: An officer responded to a report

of a male student fainting at the Student Service Center. Upon the officers arrival the student was alert and conscious and declined medical attention.

A student was cited for using a handicap placard on a vehicle that did not belong to him or her in Lot 6.

Friday, Feb. 11: A student reported that an

unknown female stole her purse from her backpack while in class in the Physical Science Building.

— Malcolm Lastra

CrimeWatch

■ FROM: Page 1

RobberyCAMPUS BEAT WEDNESDAY, FEB. 16, 2011 l THE ADVOCATE 3

“He acted very nervous and fidgety,” Huddleston said.

After officers searched him, they found a gun matching the description of the one used to rob Odgiiv.

The suspect was transported to Martinez Detention Facility and has been charged with carrying a concealed weapon, bearing a loaded firearm in public, being in possession of a firearm on school ground and for disguising a danger-ous weapon.

Detectives are currently investi-gating if the suspect is connected to the robbery.

Huddleston said the crime was not reported until Feb. 9 because the victim and the witnesses were in shock after the incident. Odgiiv, Shirendev and Buyanjargal are from Mongolia and are part of the International E d u c a t i o n P r o g r a m . They first told program Coordinator Sui-Fen Liao of the inci-dent who then referred them to Police Services.

“ T h e s e people are going to tell others in their country that this college is unsafe,” Liao said.

“It’s going to affect the image (of the college).”

She said although the students are already registered with the school’s program, they hope to take classes at another school.

“It’s tragic,” Liao said.” They need more (officers to) patrol over that area.”

On the night of Feb. 2, anoth-

why stop? It’s fun and cheaper than 24 Hour Fitness.”

Zumba is taught every Monday and Wednesday from 1-2 p.m. and 7-8 p.m. in GA-10. The class is not currently credited, but Gunn-Young said that it’s on a trial and if enough people get interested, it might continue as a credited class.

“Everybody is on the same page and you come in with your own pace. I like it, it’s better than aerobics,” student Christine Sanok said.

Gunn-Young said that Zumba originated in Colombia, created by Alberto Perez. Perez is an aero-bics teacher who one day was on his way to teach his class when he realized he forgot his aerobic music tapes.

He decided to improvise by using the music he had with him, such as salsa, and created a new workout routine.

In the class, Gunn-Young instructs the class through each move, step-by-step, moving each part of the body to a certain beat. Each song has a different rhythm that calls for movement of different

parts of the body. Gunn-Young shares a connec-

tion with the students in her class and said that she sees them more than just students; also as friends.

“Once everybody knows the routine, it’s like you’re hanging out with your friends,” she said.

Not too long ago, Gunn-Young was a student of Zumba. She liked it so much that she decided to teach it.

“This is my first class as an instructor, but I have been doing Zumba since last year. My daugh-ter took me to one of the classes at 24 Hour Fitness. I fell in love with it,” she said.

“Sometime around September, I decided that it is something I want to do. Dancing has been a passion of mine, so I decided to get my license in it and instruct it.”

Everyone in the class said Zumba is a great way to relieve stress after a hard day.

“I enjoy the dances, the music, the movement and the instructor,” student Korey Davis said. “It feels great. If you have a hard time at your job, you come here and relieve the stress.”

Crime scene

A student was robbed of her belongings at gun-point at the Bus Transfer Center on the night of Feb. 9.

er student was robbed at the Bus Transfer Center at gunpoint by two suspects with similar, but not identical, descriptions to the recent case. More than $1,000 in mer-chandise was taken.

Huddleston said if students ever

feel like they are in danger, they should go inside a building and ask college employees to call Police Services.

“Removing yourself from the situation is key,” Huddleston said. “We’re here to make sure

everybody can come to school in peace.”

He also urges students to leave tips, which can be anonymous, on the district Police Services silent witness line at 510-685-1230, ext. 1999.

Celebration | Heritage, passion illuminated

Zumba | Dance class

to raise the awareness of the importance of African and African-American contributions to the world,” Ampim said. “We want to express the greatest part of black exports in fields of writing, medicine, mathematics, architecture and dance.”

Contra Costa College student Tony Villagra said, “It was a good show. I liked it a lot and learned a lot about other cultures. The quote (from one of the presenters), ‘Make things last forever,’ touched me. It made me realize that I should slow down and work harder and I’ll enjoy school more. I give this event an A-plus.”

“It was an interesting event. I enjoyed the artwork and I appreciated how they showed the trueness of black culture,” student Torrie Pierre said.

She also said she learned that it’s important to know one’s heritage.

College Bookstore customer service clerk Erika Greene hosted the event for the third time. She was not only the hostess but also one of the main preparers of the event.

“We started working on the event in December by planning a theme. We thought about who we wanted as presenters and what new information to bring to the community,” she said.

The difference from this year’s event and the events in the past was the involvement of the students.

“We tried to have the students perform the event.” Hodge said. “I like to have the young folks from campus express themselves. (Their participation) was my favorite part of the night.”

The evening began with a welcome address

to the audience by the energetic host, Greene. Following her was the singing of “The Black National Anthem,” and “Lift Every Voice and Sing” originally by James Weldon Johnson.

Greene then returned to the microphone to present to the crowd of about 130 people an educational segment about Dr. Carter G. Woodson and the history of African Heritage Month. Third semester student Jihad Vinson spoke of the impact that African-American studies have had on his life.

“‘Celebrating Blackness: From Africa to America’ raises awareness about African and American culture and history. I’ve always been proud to be of African descent and this event really shows how powerful our people are,” Vinson said.

Simetrius Stokes was supposed to follow with a sign language dance to Marvin Sapp’s “You Saw the Best In Me,” but a slight audio malfunction postponed her performance. While things were sorted out, Greene entertained the crowd with her personality and she also informed the people about books that illustrate African and African-American Culture.

The show continued as the next perform-er, Ptah Mitchell-El recited three poems that moved the audience, which gave Mitchell-El a loud applause as he left the stage.

The technical difficulties subsided as Stokes finally took the stage to perform. Her emo-tional performance captivated the audience. She yelled out to them and cried for them to feel and understand the words of the song. After her per-formance, Stokes received a standing ovation.

Among other presentations and performanc-es was a slideshow presented by former CCC student, Jasmyn Oliver, which depicted histori-cal Egyptian findings and artifacts. The slides included photos of Pharaoh Amenemhet III, Hesy-Re Chief dentist, the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus, originally written by Ahmose and the three great pyramids of Gizar.

CCC student and poet Kena Bates recited her original piece entitled “Beauty Queen.” She said her motivation for the poem was understanding the struggles of black women and beauty in America and finding her own identity.

Tanya Tigner and the young women of the Dimensions Dance Theatre received great applause after their performance, but the per-formance of the night was the African dance and drumming of Fua Dia Congo.

“My favorite part of the night was the last performance. I think it shows where hip-hop (music) came from,” Pierre said.

Villagra said, “My favorite part was the (African) dancing and drumming at the end. It was very entertaining, I could feel the action, the crowd was feeling it, I’m glad I came.”

Hodge also said she enjoyed the Fua Dia Congo performance.

“We want to express the great-est part of black exports in fields of writing, medicine,

mathematics, architecture and dance.”

Manu Ampim,social sciences department chairman

■ FROM: Page 1

“It’s tragic. They need more (offi-

cers to) patrol over (the Bus Transfer Center).”

Sui-Fen Liao,international educa-

tion coordinator

ing up just two of the 26 articles in the contract for discussion.

“In general it’s a modest agree-ment, but it does protect everyone for another year,” Michels said. “We’ve developed one of the healthiest negotiating relationships in the state.”

One of the major changes in the agreement was the clarification of Medicare reimbursement eligibility language, Huff said.

“Financially, the Medicare lan-guage changes are a big deal,” he said. “We have allowed people to stay on both our district paid medical plans after they retire, and the district would reimburse them for Medicare costs. The district has paid all of those expenses, and we have about a million dollars in premium.”

The medical language clarifi-cation makes it so faculty has to either participate in a medical coor-dinated plan or go on Medicare, but they cannot be on both.

“(The additional medical ben-efits are) a very expensive thing to have in place that doesn’t jus-tify the cost, bottom line,” he said.

“Eighty-eight percent of all dollars in the college district go to pay for employees’ salaries and ben-efits and retirees’ benefits, it makes more money for active employee benefit increases,” Huff said.

Some significant changes were made in the administration, accu-mulation, and usage of bank load.

Bank load is a way for faculty members to teach additional cours-es in one semester to offset how much teaching they have to do in upcoming semesters, Michels said.

“(The tentative agreement) is not an eventful agreement,” Michels said. “When there’s so many money cuts, it’s hard to make new plans.”

Huff said the district believes it is a fair agreement for both sides and hopes it will be approved.

“We do sometimes have a hard time competing with San Francisco and other local colleges that pay better than we do, so in that sense we did a good job,” Michels said. “We think that the students’ learn-ing conditions are important, so it’s important that faculty gets paid well.”

■ FROM: Page 1

Contract | Faculty■ FROM: Page 1

■ MEMBERSHIP

BSU hosts first meeting of year

The Black Student Union will hold its first meeting to connect and get involved with students on Thursday in LA-105 from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

For more information, con-tact Simetrius or Barbara at ccc.bsu@gmail.com

■ CINDERELLA

Department presents play

The drama department will present “Cinderella,” a play writ-ten and directed by Clay David, on March 2 through 5 in the Knox Center at 8 p.m.

Admission for children under the age of 10 is $5, $10 for stu-dents/seniors, and $15 general admission.

A matinee showing is scheduled for March 6 at 4:00 p.m.

■ GUEST SPEAKER

Author to give presentation

A presentation by author Andrew Lam will be held by The Friends of the Library in LA-100 on Feb. 23 from 9:45 to 11 a.m.

Following the presentation, Lam will be at the college Bookstore signing books until 12:15 p.m.

INFOGRAPHIC BY SAM ATTAL / THE ADVOCATE

By Christopher ClausenSTAFF WRITER

cclausen.advocate@gmail.com

Selected as one of the top six ensem-bles in the nation, Contra Costa College jazz ensemble Jazzanova has the oppor-tunity to prove itself worthy to perform at the 54th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.

“It’s a great honor,” tenor singer Daniel Hernandez said.

In April, they will perform as part of the Next Generation Competition that is hosted by the Monterey Jazz Festival.

If the judges like them enough, they will be given the chance to perform at the festival in September for a second year in a row, as well as win a monetary prize.

Jazzanova was started three years ago by music department Chairwoman Stephanie Austin.

THE ADVOCATE l WEDNESDAY, FEB. 16, 20114 CAMPUS BEAT

Chancellor volunteers pay cut

Music group invited to jazz festival

Benjamin

In a district Governing Board meeting held on Jan. 26, the district chancellor volunteered to take a 5 percent cut to her salary in an effort to help bal-ance the budget. Governing Board members commend her.

in briefw Andrew Lam will be in LA-100 on Feb. 23 from 9:45 to 11 a.m.

w Lam has authored the award-win-ning “Perfume Dreams: Reflections on the Vietnamese Diaspora,” and “East Eats West: Writing in Two Hemispheres.”

w From 9:45 to 11 a.m., Lam will host a pre-sentation about immigration open to stu-dents, faculty and community members.

w After the presentation until 12:15 p.m., Lam will sign copies of his books in the college Bookstore.

w Lam shares a connec-tion with ESL students, as he moved to America in his childhood and had to adapt to the culture.

w Lam’s nov-els both have strong personal themes and draw from his experiences in both hemi-spheres.

BOOKBYTE.COM/CCC

ADVERTISEMENT

By Lamar JamesASSOCIATE EDITOR

ljames.advocate@gmail.com

Dr. Helen Benjamin, chancellor of the Contra Costa Community College District, has voluntarily taken a 5 per-cent pay cut and an additional cap to her health benefits.

The decision came at a time when the district is expecting millions of dollars to be cut from the budget. Benjamin proposed to take the pay cut at a Governing Board meeting on Jan. 26.

Benjamin said, “Under the circum-stances we are in, I just thought it was the right thing to do.”

She said the board agreed the district will not continue to pay into her health benefits; instead, she will now pay from her own pocket.

Jeffrey Michels, president of United

Faculty of Contra Costa Community College District, said the union respects her decision to take the pay cut.

“We encouraged the board to thank her for the gesture,” Michels said. “The board appreci-ated her ges-ture and voted to accept her pay cut.”

H owe v e r , they also want to make sure her pay was not being cut too drastically.

“We don’t want her to be underpaid because she really does a great job. We wouldn’t want (another college district) to steal her away from us,” Michels said.

According to the agenda from the Governing Board meeting on Jan. 26, 2011, “The Chancellor is seeking to voluntarily reduce her salary by approx-imately 5 percent, from $272,328 to $259,356, effective July 1, 2011. This

represents a reduction to what her sala-ry was on July 1, 2009. In addition, she is foregoing any merit-based increase she would have otherwise been eligible to receive on July 1, 2011.”

Assuming the Chancellor receives an evaluation of at least “satisfac-tory” for 2010-11, she would have received a 5 percent merit increase. In combination, these actions constitute a

voluntary reduction in potential salary of over 10 percent.

Brandon Amargo, student trustee, said, “This was a very honorable thing to do. This shows great leadership and she is really setting the example for what a leader should be.”

He said Benjamin was in line for a raise and would have received one, but she took a cut to her pay.

Sheila Grilli, Governing Board trust-ee, said, “She (Benjamin) just decided to do this. It was not forced upon her; it was her will to do so.”

Grilli said this will not have any great impact on the district but it shows great leadership and is a symbolic ges-ture.

“The situation we are facing is very grim. And in a time when she (Benjamin) was supposed to get a raise, she took a cut. She is an excellent chan-cellor and we value her,” Amargo said.

He said board members did not want to cut Benjamin’s pay because they realize the hard work she does, but in the end, they agreed to do it because it is what she wanted to be done.

Grilli said this is a time when layoffs can and may happen, and for her to do this shows she is thinking about all the possible ways of combating this bud-get crisis, even if it means penalizing herself.

“She is doing what she thinks is right and we all think this is the right thing to do, as well,” Grilli said.

Benjamin sacrifices salary to aid funds

Jazzanova selected to perform at contest

“The situation we are facing is very grim. And in a time when (Benjamin) was sup-

posed to get a raise, she took a cut.”

Brandon Amargo,student trustee

Author to visit, present novels

By April HalogSTAFF WRITER

ahalog.advocate@gmail.com

The Friends of the Library will host a presentation by author Andrew Lam in LA-100 from 9:45 to 11 a.m., who will then sign books in the college Bookstore until 12:15 p.m., on Feb. 23.

The presentation is on the topic of immigration and is open to stu-dents, faculty and members of the community.

Lam has written two books. His first book, “Perfume Dreams: Reflections on the Vietnamese Diaspora,” is a collection of per-sonal essays that explore his lifelong s t r u g g l e with being a Vietnamese immigrant in America.

The book won the Pen A m e r i c a n “Beyond the M a r g i n s ” award.

His second book, “East Eats West: Writing in Two Hemispheres,” was recently pub-lished in September 2010.

His second book focuses on how the East and West have changed and how they have changed each other.

He is set to release a third book, titled “Birds of Paradise,” a collec-tion of short stories, later this year.

“He is a good role model, espe-cially to (English as a second lan-guage) students; he was an ESL student and now he is a successful writer,” Liberal Arts Division Dean Helen Kalkstein said.

This is not the first time Lam has come to Contra Costa College. He has visited the campus a few times before, appearing in ESL

conferences, and has done a pre-vious signing for his first book. Bookstore manager and president of Friends of the Library, Janis Walsh, said that Lam connects with ESL students since he was an immigrant himself.

Walsh also commended his book, “Perfume Dreams: Reflections on the Vietnamese Diaspora,” as deeply moving and “beautifully written.”

Lam and his family immigrated to America from Vietnam when he was 11 at the end of the Vietnam War.

After high school, Lam attend-ed many prestigious colleges in the area.

He went to study journalism at Stanford University from 2001 to 2002.

He also received a master of fine arts in creative writing from

San Francisco S t a t e Un ive r s i t y and a bach-elor’s in bio-c h e m i s t r y from UC Berkeley.

Lam is the editor and co-founder of New America Media, an association of

over 2,000 ethnic media organiza-tions in America.

His essays have been featured in newspapers such as the San Francisco Chronicle, New York Times, Baltimore Sun and The Chicago Tribune.

He has been a regular commen-tator on National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered” for many years.

His work also has been featured in several magazines including In Context, The National and San Francisco Focus.

Lam was also featured in a documentary chronicling his jour-ney back to Vietnam, called “My Journey Home.”

The documentary was aired on PBS in April 2004.

Vietnamese story teller will speak, sign book copies

“He is a good role model especially to ESL stu-

dents; he was an ESL stu-dent and now he is a suc-

cessful writer.”

Helen Kalkstein,Liberal Arts division dean

FILE PHOTO / THE ADVOCATE

Funky sounds — Jazzanova, a jazz ensemble comprised of a handful of Contra Costa College music students, blends diligence and a passion for music.

Every year, students interested in joining the vocal ensemble must go through a three-day audition.

This year, all the members of Jazzanova are brand new to the ensemble.

So when it came to the Monterey Jazz Festival, no one was too certain what was going to happen.

“It’s crazy. I didn’t think we were going to get it,” Chris Xie, also a tenor of Jazzanova, said.

The Monterey Jazz Festival has eight stages and takes place over three nights and two days.

Hundreds of artists and musicians per-form at the festival every year, some more well-known than others.

According to Xie, it’s a lot of hard work and a huge commitment being a part of the ensemble, but in the end it’s well worth the effort.

“It teaches you a level of professional-ism,” he said. Dr. Austin makes sure that everything within Jazzanova is taken care of in a professional manner.

She described her method of leaving the students to learn new songs on their own, as it

is expected of them to be able to read music and to learn quickly.

She also said that the students are a won-derful bunch and have worked very hard.

Jazzanova has also been entered for the competition in the College Vocal Ensemble Division.

By Horace JordanSTAFF WRITER

hjordan.advocate@gmail.com

The men’s basketball team beat College of Marin in double overtime in its last game of the season behind aggressive defense and stellar play from exiting sophomore guard Bobby Ward by a final score of 79-76 in the Gymnasium Friday.

It seemed as if everything was going wrong for the Comets (2-20 overall, 2-10 BVC) in the first half, down 36-20. But Contra Costa College was able to regroup.

“We started to get the ball to (forward) Kent Owens and (guard) Bobby Ward and they started to knock down shots (in the second half) and we played good defense,” coach Miguel Johnson said.

“I feel great about the way we came back. We put our hearts out on the floor. I can’t do anything but respect my teammates,” Ward said.

Ward led both teams in scor-ing with 32 points.

The game started badly for the Comets as they displayed poor effort, lack of aggressive-ness and committing several turnovers.

“Turnovers and just no energy led to us being down early,” Ward said.

The Comets had 18 turnovers opposed to the Mariners’ 10.

Early on, the Comets only bright spot was Ward who scored seven of the Comets’ first nine points of the game.

After a brief timeout, things did not

SPORTS WEDNESDAY, FEB. 16, 2011 l THE ADVOCATE 5

By Dariush AzmoudehASSOCIATE EDITOR

dazmoudeh.advocate@gmail.com

When a team mainly consists of freshmen players, it is a sopho-more’s experience that makes him or her the best candidate to step in and take a team’s leadership role.

In the case of the Contra Costa College women’s basketball team, forward Monay Ray has done that this season, piloting a small team of eight players, comprised of six freshmen and one other sopho-more.

“Playing for the Comets has definitely been a new experience for me,” Ray said. “Especially after taking a year off and being one of the two sophomores (on the team).”

Teammates describe her as an aggressive player on the court, as well as a leader who can bring the team together and give encourage-ment. She is also known for her rebounding and great defense.

“She’s a strong player; she brings morale to the game and hypes up the team before games,” Comet guard Janelle Rucobo said. “She’s aggressive and knows how to box out and get rebounds for the team.”

Coach Paul DeBolt said when he went to recruit her at Emery High School in 2008, he immedi-ately knew she would fit well into his team.

“She’s a great role model with the way she carries (herself) on the court and off,” he said. “She listens and takes criticism well. I enjoy having her in the (women’s basketball) program. Players look up to her a lot and respect her.”

She has been a solid defensive player, averaging 11 points and 11 rebounds per game, DeBolt said.

SOPHOMORE LEADS TEAM

CCC victorious in overtime duelSquad obtains second win during last game

SAM ATTAL / THE ADVOCATE

Tough shot — Comet guard Bobby Ward (left) attempts a layup over Mariner forward Caio Ferreria (middle) and guard Lorenzo Bynum (right) during Friday’s game in the Gymnasium. The Comets won 79-76 in double overtime.

SportShortSeason questioned for softball program

Now six games into the softball preseason, the Comets have yet to play a single game.

CCC, which had one of its best seasons last year (16-22, 12-12 in the Bay Valley Conference), had to cancel all six of its games so far this season due to an insufficient number of players, and unper-formed physical examinations for some of them.

Coach Ed Miller said he struggled to gather enough players for the season after a fight among the players at the end of the fall semester resulted in several new and returning players being kicked off the team.

“We had a couple of cancerous cells on the team and it didn’t make right for a positive (experience), so I had to get rid of those players for the sake of the program,” Miller said. “We’re basically start-ing over again and it’s going to be a challenge this season.”

Several players agreed that the offseason was tough because of the altercation.

“I’ve never been on a team where there was so much drama. At one point the team turned into cliques,” freshman pitcher Cori Maloney said. “I never had to deal with that and I don’t feel a team should (be) like that.”

Freshman shortstop Myesha Ellison said that she was involved in the altercation and felt the situ-ation should have been handled better.

Miller said, “It got to a point where some girls didn’t want to play (for the team) and players were even academically ineligible, so our numbers were extremely short. I went from thinking I was going to have 15 to 17 players (to where) I only had about five or six players.”

Despite the offseason controversy, Miller and players still believe that the softball program will have a team this year despite the squad cancelling six games.

“(So far) I haven’t been able to get the best play-ers in recruiting, however we’re going to take it a day at a time,” Miller said. “We’re going to have to teach the new recruits the fundamentals (of the game) and strengthen their abilities.”

— Malcolm Lastra

ScoreBoard

Comets 79Mariners 76

Season over: 2-20 overall, 2-10 in the BVC

By Dariush AzmoudehASSOCIATE EDITOR

dazmoudeh.advocate@gmail.com

An early scoring advantage and solid defensive play led the women’s basketball team to an 81-59 vic-tory over College of Marin on Friday at home in the regular season’s closing game.

Contra Costa College (13-13 overall, 9-3 in the Bay Valley Conference) opened an early 8-0 lead with two consecutive 3-pointers by guard Shay Mendes and a layup by for-

ward Monay Ray. The Comets kept the lead throughout the entire game and their defense was able to prevent the Mariners (9-14 overall, 6-6 BVC) from catching up.

“We definitely played smart on defense except for all the fouls. But it could have been tighter,” Comet center Chaz Ross-Reed said.

CCC’s defense caused Marin to take bad shots and turn the ball over, which result-ed in Marin trailing 39-26 at the end of the

first half. “Marin plays hard and physi-

cal. We were able to take control early and had a pretty solid effort from the team,” coach Paul DeBolt said. “In the first half we were very effective defensively. We were really solid in the first 15 minutes of the game.”

The Comets used Ross-Reed’s post presence against the Mariners’ man-to-man coverage as the squad used her height to score close bas-kets. She totaled for 21 points for the night.

Ross-Reed said that one of the key’s to the Comets’ victory was their ball movement and her teammate’s trust in her to play in the post.

“We had a size advantage and

we were stronger,” DeBolt said. “When they tried to go man-to-man on us, we would go to the post. We were taking advantage of the post.”

DeBolt credited the victory to balanced team scoring and having role players.`

Ray and guard Janelle Rucobo were defensively sound as they were able to grab rebounds and create steals.

“We did well,” Comet guard Natalie Coss said. “We could have performed better but overall we achieved our goal and got the win.”

The victory kept the Comets in fourth place in the conference, thus

taking the fourth seed in the BVC playoffs. They faced fifth seeded Marin again at home on Tuesday, after press time.

“Our chances are pretty slim (for getting to the post season),” DeBolt said. “In the power ratings, we are currently ranked 20th and only 18 teams (can) get into the state playoffs.”

Despite the 9-3 BVC record, DeBolt said a poor preseason record took a toll on the team’s power rating.

“We made a good run at the end. We beat the teams we needed to beat,” he said. “But we had a tough preseason schedule.”

Comets destroy Mariners, win 81-59

ScoreBoard

Comets 81Mariners 59

BVC playoff games take place this week

GEORGE MORIN / THE ADVOCATE

Leader — Forward Monay Ray brings veteran leadership to her Comet teammates.

change for CCC as the squad continued to display poor defense in the half court and miss shots on offense, which left it trailing at halftime.

“We weren’t rebounding or capitalizing on second shot (chances),” Johnson said.

At the beginning of the second half, things seemed to remain the same for CCC until it began to get aggressive on rebounds and play better on defense.

“Fire and desire led to us all being more aggressive and just us doing the right things, because when you do the right things, good things happen,” Owens said.

The Comets closed the scoring gap late in the half as Ward hit a 3-point shot to give the team its first lead of the game.

“I wasn’t surprised that we came back. I knew we would make a run, I just didn’t know when,” Ward said.

The Comets had a chance to win the game in regulation, but a poor shot by Ward rimmed out, sending the game into

overtime.In overtime, Marin still had

no answer for Ward as he drove to the basket, scoring at will.

“They were so worried about me pulling up and shooting that they left driving lanes open for me all night and I just took advantage,” Ward said.

With the Comets leading by three points in overtime, it seemed they had the game won. However, the Mariners were able

to knock down a 3-point shot which sent the game into double overtime.

In double overtime, with solid defense, the Comets pulled out the win.

“I’m just happy we came out with energy, aggressiveness and great execution because it’s what we needed to win the game,” Owens said.

In addition, she is averaging more than three assists a game.

When it comes to playing bas-ketball, Ray credits her interest to her older brother by 13 years, John Hester, who took her to the park to teach her how to play.

“My brother influenced me to play,” Ray said. “He took me out to the park and stayed on me (about the sport). He motivated me on and off the floor.”

She began playing basketball in the ninth grade at Emery High School in Emeryville. There she won First Team All-League and Second Team All-League awards.

“Once the coaches saw how into it and serious I was, they put me on the varsity team,” Ray said.

Growing up in the East Bay, Ray said it was stressful as her single mother raised her and her two older brothers, but she knows she can always count on them for their full support and encourage-ment in whatever she decides to do in her future.

“They helped me, cheered me on and stood behind me with what-ever decision I made,” she said.

Looking beyond basketball, she is hoping to transfer to a four-year college this fall and eventually earn a bachelor’s degree in psychology. She has applied to California State-Sacramento, California State-Chico, California State-Monterey Bay, Saint Mary’s College and Dominican University.

Besides being a great defensive player and rebounder, her hard work ethic has kept her and her teammates going strong through-out the basketball season.

“She’s always encouraging peo-ple,” Comet guard Shay Mendes said. “She keeps us together to help us work as a team and is always trying to push us (to get better).”

By Parris WashingtonSTAFF WRITER

pwashington.advocate@gmail.com

Those expecting to see just a reg-ular retelling of a children’s story in drama department Chairman Clay David’s production of “Cinderella” should think again.

Everyone knows how the fable usually goes; a young woman is mistreated by her cruel stepmother and stepsisters, gets magical inter-vention from her fairy god-mother, and ulti-mately falls in love with Prince Charming.

And on March 2-5 at 8 p.m. and March 6 at 4 p.m., David will unveil his latest spin on a classic tale in the Knox Center.

Along with 80 Contra Costa College stu-dents ranging in age from 3 to 50, David has been working hard to bring “Cinderella” to life with all the fantasy and magic one would expect in a fairy tale, but with a serious twist.

This time around the focus is less on the cutesy, lovey-dovey and magical, and more on the politi-cal, social and economic problems society faces today.

Though still based in the mythi-cal land of Magdalena, David brings it all home in a way that will have the audience feeling that it’s based in America, or even closer to home in the Bay Area.

David said the story is real-ly about class systems that go on around the world in order to emphasize the underlying themes of the story.

He has crafted a plot that inte-grates philosophies of 20th century leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Sir Thomas Moore, Ghandi and St. Luke.

“Joined by love, separated by greed, reunited by a revolution…it all begins with a ball,” David said.

With a rap sheet in theater span-ning more than 35 years, David said, “I have seen theater change people’s lives every semester. Working in theater builds team-work, discipline and focus.”

That team-work definitely shows in the elaborate set they’ve been working on.

“I teach them the paint-ing techniques, I see their hearts and determina-tion. They’re here all the time (and) they love to paint,” David said.

W h i l e working on “Cinderella,”

students have found David to be a pleasure to work with.

Prince Charming himself, Amani De Paoli said, “Clay is a great director, direct and precise. He’s all about technique and his-tory.”

Tickets are $10 for students and seniors, and $15 for the gen-eral public. There are no reserved tickets.

The box office opens 45 min-utes before curtain and tickets are sold on a first-come first-serve basis.

THE ADVOCATE l WEDNESDAY, FEB. 16, 20116 SCENE

Games

CDs

DVDs

Movies

This week:“Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son” (PG-13)

“I Am Number Four” (PG-13)

“Unknown” (PG-13)

“I Am” (UR)

Unleashed

Editor’s note: This column lists popular new (and upcoming) releas-es for the week.

Genre pioneers remain lively

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This week:“Waiting for Superman” (PG)

“Unstopp-able”(PG-13)

“Middle Men” (R)

This week:Bright Eyes: “The People’s Key”

Beans: “End It All”

Cowboy Junkies: “Demons”

The Deers: “Degener-ation Street”

Ginuwine: “Elgin”

This week:Marvel vs. Capcom (PS3, XBOX:360 — PG)

Hyperdimen- sion Neptunia (PS3 — G)

Tactics Ogre (PSP — PG)

Wicked Monster Blast! (Wii — G)

Dungeons (PC — PG)

Hard Corps: Uprising(XBOX:360 — M)

The Silver Lining Ep. 3(PSP — G)

Play rendition hopes to bring big audienceDrama students showcase tale of ‘Cinderella’

By Alexandra WaiteNEWS EDITOR

awaite.advocate@gmail.com

Walking onto the dimly lit stage, the late-30 and early-40-year-old musicians came off as meek, yet cultivated.

Bassist Lou Barlow and guitar-ist Jason Loewenstein were the only original members of Sebadoh to play during the show on Feb. 8 at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco.

After fumbling through a couple songs at the beginning of the set, they let it be known

it was only their second time play-ing together, a fact that many audience members would later doubt.

They began with a fairly slow song, but that mel-low sound quickly faded as the set progressed.

Before playing the song, Barlow

and Loewenstein quipped about how it wouldn’t feel like a real Sebadoh tour unless they played “We Worship.”

They further built up the antici-pation as they made a couple false starts, joking about who plays first. The song starts off slow and melodious with a bouncy drum-beat, until at some point in the middle Barlow plays a louder and more fast-paced guitar, which gets the audience ready for what is to come during the rest of the set.

Barlow and Loewenstein repeatedly switched between bass and guitar throughout the show, which often made for small breaks to joke with the audience as they tuned their instruments. The longest running joke was about San Franciscans’ hatred of

“Remembering

Time Tour”

★★★★★Headliner: SebadohWhere: Great American Music Hall

eventreview

Band amazes fans with energetic set

SPECIAL TO / THE ADVOCATE

Still influential — Indie rock band Sebadoh proved that age is not a factor in how well the band members perform. The 1980s indie rock group played a dynamic show at the Great American Music Hall.

Working in theater builds teamwork, disci-pline and focus. I teach (students) the painting techniques, I see their hearts and determina-tion. They’re here all the time (and) they

love to paint.”

Clay David,

Los Angeles, and Barlow told of memories had in San Francisco when he was younger, most humorously about its once unique-ly strong marijuana.

Though the appearance of the musicians was humble and laid-back with attire combined of button-up shirts, basic tees and loose-fitting jeans, their use of instruments greatly contradicted that image.

As they played each song, the feelings and emotions internalized in the musicians became evident and vivid through each force-ful stroke on their instrument’s strings. Their body gestures also externalized the feeling put into the music as they leaned back and forth almost to the point of fall-ing, and bobbing their heads to the notes.

Sebadoh managed a set of near-ly 30 songs, the majority of them being short and ending abruptly, leaving the audience longing for more. Songs were played off of the albums “Bakesale” and “Harmacy,” which were both released in the early to mid-90s.

The name for the band’s February West Coast tour, “Remembering Time Tour,” proves to be accurate considering it con-tinues to sound just as authentic as it did on its first albums, even with newcomer Bob D’Amico on drums.

Sebadoh is an indie rock band formed in 1986 and is considered one of the pioneers of lo-fi music, a subgenre of indie rock distin-guished by low-fidelity recording techniques.

The band’s long history made

for a refreshing variation in audi-ence members that ranged from teenagers to folks in their 60s. Regardless of age, everyone appeared to have a good time either by smiling and nodding or jumping around.

The rather small, old-fashioned style venue added to the cozy and warm atmosphere of the show.

This is only the band’s third tour since going on hiatus in 1999. Along with maintaining its origi-nal youthful and energetic sound, it also brought forth a mature feel to the songs with naturally deep vocals.

By the end of the show, after an encore and a string of songs with-out any breaks, it almost seemed impossible that the band fumbled so much at the beginning after a seemingly flawless set.