Running for learning

Posted on February 14, 2012 by admin

By Dylan Burke

GROSSMONT COLLEGE –Andy Timm, a specialist in instructional computer systems, had his students who usually meets in a classroom, assemble at 4 p.m.,  Tuesday, Feb. 14, at the Griffins football field and track to run laps.

The exercise was to both gather information regarding the students’ heart rates, their pulse rate, their blood pressure and the amount of oxygen they were receiving prior to the run. After the run/jog was over, the tests were re-administered to compare the data.
According to Timm, his students will take this data and analyze the statistics.

“We try to make sure the students get used to thinking about these things [blood pressure, heart rate, etcetera] and while we’re down here we’re able to sponsor the runners and raise money for our program,” Timm said.

Nurses at the event said in the case of a generally fit person,  blood pressure will be somewhat higher for a short time after the run than it was before.  A person who is out of shape, on the other hand, will experience elevated blood pressure for a longer period.

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Burke, a health and science reporter for GC Summit, may be contacted at Dylan.Burke@gcsummit.com

 

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Movie Review: Buckle up Star Wars nerds

Posted on February 14, 2012 by admin

By John Weber

EL CAJON– Star Wars Episode 1: the Phantom menace in 3D made its debut in theatres on February 10. The movie was originally released in 1999 when this modern 3D (which stands for three dimensions) technology in theatres did not exist.

If you are a huge Star Wars nerd like me then you must go see this movie! Yes, I agree 20 bucks for a ticket is pretty ridiculous and yes, I agree Phantom Menace is the worst of the Star Wars movies, but it is completely worth the money!

Before you enter the movie, the theatres give you some sweet red and black Darth Maul collectible 3D glasses. If you are like me, you know that you can easily turn these into some awesome sun glasses that the ladies are sure to love!

Once the lights go down the most exciting sound in the world bursts through the theatre: the sound of John William’s masterpiece, the Star Wars theme. As the triumphant and heroic melody is playing, the opening words appear to scroll from right beneath you. It is one of the greatest phenomena any Star Wars fans must experience.

Continue reading →

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Newcomers need to learn basic information about U.S.

Posted on February 13, 2012 by admin

By Amir Al Tamimi

GROSSMONT COLLEGE–Many immigrants and refugees need to learn basic information and basic skills if they are to thrive in the United States..

Those from my native country of Iraq need to learn to speak English, which involves learning a completely different alphabet than the one Arabic speakers use.  Learning to type is also a major hurdle: many do not know how to type with two hands in any language, and, yet, this skill is necessary before attending computer classes.

Many immigrants need to know more about computers ,both in terms of  hardware and software.  They need to learn how to save or delete their work,  how to print them, and various other computer commands.

Besides learning to express themselves in a new language, they need to have some classes about American culture , which is  different than Iraq’s.  Not understanding American culture can become a big barrier to their learning progress .

In this regard, they need to be exposed to some community activities, not only religious ones. They need advice on how to be sustain their families in these difficult economic times, how to network, and how to work and live in America.

They also need to understand the American political system, and in this regard, I append for them a short explanation:

The United States has 50 states. Some of the states are, California, Arizona, New York, Michigan, Florida and so on.

Americans vote for the President every four years. The President may serve only two terms, for a possible eight years total.  Now our President’s name is Barrack Obama. He is a Democrat/  The people voted for him in 2008 and he became President in January 2009. The next national election is in November 2012.

Every two years we vote for members of Congress, with those elections scheduled in 2012,2014,2016 and so on. The US Congress has 435 representatives, elected by district, and 100 senators, elected by state.  Representatives have two-year terms, senators serve six-year terms. The Congress is a separate branch of government; some members of Congress will support what the President wants to do, others will oppose him.

Democrats in Congress typically support Democratic presidents.  Democratic presidents have included Obama, Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter ,John F. Kennedy and Franklin D. Roosevelt . Republicans have included George W. Bush,  his father George H. W. Bush, Ronald Reagan, Gerald R. Ford, Richard M Nixon, and Dwight D. Eisenhower.

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Tamimi is  student in Media Comm 132A.  He may be contacted at amir.tamimi@gcsummit.com

 

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Ventura sculpts his boyhood dream every day

Posted on February 13, 2012 by admin

Related story on veterans

By Andi Laurvick

GROSSMONT COLLEGE — Al Ventura, a ceramics technician on campus, recently was successfully nominated by sculpture technician Tom Fox  for the Chancellor’s Classified Senate Award for the last quarter of 2011.

In Ventura’s honor, a conga line led by Chancellor Cindy L. Miles wove through the school and ended at his office with an engraved award and a gift certificate for Barnes and Noble, presented to him on January 17.

Ventura has been a very involved individual in the art industry. He said he became interested in art as a young boy and continued to pursue it as a man. His college major was in art and now he has the opportunity to do what he loves every day.

He recently described the act of ceramics and pottery as very calming, and a great way to channel emotion.  He and some art faculty members have helped develop the “Veterans Art Project” in which military veterans are encouraged to us their hands as a means to unwind with other veterans.

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Laurvick is a student in Media Comm 132A.  She may be contacted at andi.laurvick@gcsummit.com

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Ali Baba Restaurant evokes legends of the Mideast desert

Posted on February 13, 2012 by admin

Editor’s Note: Before he moved to the United States, Amir Al Tamimi served as an interpreter and field reporter for various American media in Iraq.  This is the first in an intermittent series of stories by Tamimi about the growing Iraqi community in the City of El Cajon, home to Grossmont College.

By Amir Al Tamimi

EL CAJON –Who could know that a car wash business in San Diego could lead to the establishment of Ali Baba, a popular Middle Eastern restaurant in this city that, after Detroit, has the second-largest concentration of Chaldean Iraqis in the United States?

The owner, who prefers to be identified as “Steve” because he fears for relatives still living in Iraq, arrived in the United States 20 years ago and started his his new life in Detroit.   Then he decided to move to San Diego County after one of his friends suggested that the community here is becoming bigger every day. Ambitious to make a financial success, he opened a car wash business with a couple of investors. Subsequently, he bought their shares to transform the car wash into a family business for his own .

After ten years of hard work and success, he decided to seek other business opportunities, including the Ali Baba restaurant.

The style and the decoration of the restaurant’s interior gives visitors the impression that they are sitting in a small tent in the wild desert of the Middle East, a tent filled with decoration and paintings.  The ambiance is enhanced by Arabic music and belly dancing pictures, evoking memories of the imaginative stories from 0ne Thousand and One Nights, as well as the ancient story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, who stole big treasures and hid in the mountains .

Steve’s friends originally discouraged him from taking on the restaurant, counseling him that there were more secure investment opportunities in local convenience stores and gas stations — a sector of the economy to which many Chaldean Iraqis have gravitated.

Nevertheless, Steve pursued the creation of the restaurant, and, keeping in mind his friends’ advice, made investments in other properties in the area so that he would have diversified income streams.

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Al Tamimi is a student in Media Comm 132A.  He may be contacted at amir.tamimi@gcsummit.com

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Anne Krueger named to District information post

Posted on February 12, 2012 by admin

Anne Krueger

EL CAJON (Press Release) — Anne Krueger has been appointed Communications and Public Information Director for the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District, effective March 1, Chancellor Cindy L. Miles has announced.

“Anne has been working as an hourly employee in District Services where her duties included serving as the District’s Public Information Officer,” said Miles.

“During her time with the District, Anne has moved us into the digital age, creating social media pages, and a monthly email newsletter that helps us stay connected with the community. She also worked closely with the Information Systems Department on the implementation of our redesigned District websites, including content and layout.

“Anne came to the District with extensive experience as a journalist, including a decade of covering East County for the San Diego Union-Tribune. Her communication skills and her knowledge of East County are an invaluable resource to the District.”

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Preceding provided by the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District

 

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Campuses close at 11 p.m. each night, reopen at 5 a.m.

Posted on February 12, 2012 by admin

GROSSMONT COLLEGE (Press Release)–The access gates on the perimeter of the Grossmont and Cuyamaca College campuses are secured at 11 p.m. daily, Joel Javines, GCCCD director of public safety, has announced.  All students, faculty, and staff must leave campus before the gates are secured, unless previously authorized.

The gates were installed to ensure the safety of the two colleges by restricting access and preventing unauthorized vehicles from coming on campus after hours, Javines added.

All perimeter gates  reopen at 5 a.m., seven days a week. Gates may also be closed in the event of an emergency.  If it is necessary to access the campus between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m., this may be arranged by calling the Public Safety office at (619) 644-7654.

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Preceding provided by the GCCCD Department of Public Safety

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Iraqi refugee masters English, cruises to 4.0 GPA at Grossmont

Posted on February 11, 2012 by admin

Hadil Safar

GROSSMONT COLLEGE (Press Release)–When Hadil Safar came to the United States four years ago, she couldn’t speak a word of English. Through hard work and determination, she now has a 4.0 grade point average in her second semester at Grossmont College — and a bright future ahead of her.

Safar, 19, was one of the students honored Saturday morning at the Grossmont College scholarship awards breakfast. She received a $1,500 scholarship from the Foundation for Grossmont and Cuyamaca Colleges, the merged foundation now serving both colleges in the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District.

All of the students at the breakfast held in the Griffin Center had a moving story, many of them overcoming disabilities or a troubled home life to reach their scholastic achievements. Safar has come far to reach her academic success at Grossmont College.

She was born in Iraq and lived in a small town there with her family. In 2003, her young brother and one of her friends were killed by terrorist bombs. She and her parents, five sisters and a brother finally escaped the violence and fled to Lebanon, where they lived for a year until they were able to come to the United States.

Safar spoke no English when she started at El Cajon Valley High School, but that didn’t stop her. She was on the honor roll every semester.

“I was ambitious and I studied hard,” she said. “My teachers were so proud of me.”

Safar also worked with residents at a care center who suffered from dementia. She said she would like to become a pediatric nurse, and plans to enter Grossmont College’s nursing program before she transfers to a four-year college.

She had high praise for her instructors at Grossmont College.

“Their life is just to give — they want to give their knowledge to their students,” she said. “They give us many opportunities to make our future brighter.”

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Preceding provided by Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District’s public information office.

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‘The Jazz Kitchen’ fills Griffin Center with sweet music

Posted on February 10, 2012 by admin

-Staff Report-

GROSSMONT COLLEGE — The sounds of improvisational jazz filled Griffin Center on Thursday, Feb. 8, in a celebration of Black History Month which also saw the Griffin Grill offering such “soul food” dishes as rice and gumbo, corn bread and sweet potato pie.

“The Jazz Kitchen” program featured Patrick Escalante, trombone; Neil Monteleone, keyboard; Eric Pratt, drums; and Dave Votel, bass. All are students of jazz studying with Derek Cannon of the Music Department.

John Weber, a student in Media Comm 132A, captured a portion of the performance.

Dr. Patrice Braswell, a member of the committee of faculty, students and staff, who participated in planning Black History Month, said jazz reflects the experience of African-Americans living in the southern U.S.

The genre has been so popularized it is played by musicans from many diffrenet ethnic groups.

Mmm-mmm - Joi's sweet potato pie (Photo: Lisa Gibson)

While “soul food” was the offering this Thursday, other cuisine reflecting the Black experience will be served at future events, according to Braswell.

“This campus is very focused on diversity and inclusivity,” she said. “This is befitting of that.”

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Weber is a student in Media Comm 132A. He may be contacted at john.weber@gcsummit.com

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Lady Griffs look for strong finish to season

Posted on February 10, 2012 by admin

By Jimmy Spillane

GROSSMONT COLLEGE– Guard Stevi Cooper led the way with 22 points as the Griffins routed Palomar College 67-41 in a women’s basketball game Wednesday evening, Feb. 8. The victory, which brought their season record to 14-13, illustrates how the Griffins have  the ability to bounce back after a tough loss thanks to strong coaching and great team camaraderie.

Last year the  team  went 20-8 and tied for the Pacific Coast Conference championship, and four players returned this year from the starting lineup: Cooper, Ashleigh King, Nicole Harris, and Angel Limbo.  However, the team suffered a big loss when starter and all conference guard Ashleigh King went down due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). The Griffins have held it together thanks in part to their teamwork and resiliency. Added to this year’s starting lineup were freshmen Shantae Woods and Sam Silva

Grossmont head coach Karen Caires stated “this team has speed, pressures the ball for 40 minutes, and likes to win.”  Nevertheless, The Griffins this year have had some unfortunate losses, none more so than a heartbreaker  to Mesa College. The game was tied until center Andrea Bird hit a free throw to give the Griffins a one point lead with less than a second to go. The crowd assuming the game was over rushed the court and Grossmont was assessed a technical foul. Mesa College then sunk two free throws giving them the victory that left the Griffins in a state of shock.   According to Forward Nicole Harris ”The Mesa loss was the most devastating because the team had nothing to do with it and it was unfair”

Although the Griffins have been shorthanded all season they have found a way to win their share of games and recover from bitter defeats. Their biggest win came against Imperial Valley, which was a quality opponent that came right after the upset loss to Mira Costa College.  The game see-sawed back and forth with  several ties and lead changes. The Griffins’ ability to get rebounds and second-chance opportunities eventually gave them the upper hand in a 71-68 nailbiter.  Harris said she felt it would go the Griffins’ way, “ I knew we were going to rebound and not lose to Imperial Valley.”

The Griffins have two more games left on their schedule visiting Southwestern College and hosting San Diego City College. When Harris was asked how they would fare she smiled and said simply “We’ll demolish anyone left in our path.” If the most recent game against Palomar College was any indication truer words have never been spoken.

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Spillane is a student in Media Comm 132A.  He may be reached at jimmy.spillane@gcsummit.com

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