Visitors wait outside the locked Santa Cruz Library, waiting for them to open. Administrators are working to complete a budget in the face of even more cuts. Photo by Morgan Grana.

They still use due-date cards and paste paper pockets onto the front pages of books. You’d think it was the 1990s. But it isn’t.

It is the sight you will see at any of the Santa Cruz Public Library system’s 10 branches, whose locations stretch from Boulder Creek to Live Oak.

“We lag way far behind,” Director Teresa Landers said. “This is the 21st century, and we’re probably at least 30 years behind the rest of the library world in terms of technology and infrastructure.”

The antiquated check-in and check-out system is just one in a long list of issues that library leaders will have to address by the June deadline to have their budget approved. Leaders will have to figure out how to weigh the priorities and needs of the library and community. Addressing future technological improvements will be among their top priorities.

At the same time, they will have to balance their budget in a tough and challenging economic climate that has seen a decrease in revenue and ever-shrinking funding in recent years.

“All of a sudden we got revenue reports coming back saying: ‘It’s dropping like crazy, you’re not going to get the revenue you thought you were going to get,’” said Barbara Gorson, chair of the Library Joint Powers Board.

Last year, leaders of the system went to the chopping block in order to respond to the loss of revenue. Operating hours were the first to be cut. Library leaders had to furlough employees and subsequently close on Fridays — a practice that began in February.

“We then took a 54 percent reduction in hours in July, and that meant cutting more staff,” Landers said.

In addition to hours, library leaders also cut money from their materials budget, a budget that goes toward new books, DVDs and CDs in order to help cover the deficit.

“That was over $1 million, and took a cut to $800,000 last year,” Landers said. “This year it will probably be about $500,000.”

Library leaders have also had to defer spending on new technology, vehicle maintenance and building maintenance, ranging from a driveway that needs resealing in Boulder Creek to a roof that needs replacing in Capitola. Programming was also cut.

“We’re at a point in time where we need to deal with the serious decline in revenue and develop a plan that will get us through the next three to five years without losing all of our patrons,” Gorson said.

Administrators formed the Strategic Plan Committee as their answer. Created in August 2009, the committee aims to develop a three-to-five-year plan to prepare for the future and address economic challenges. The committee includes Gorson, Landers and representatives from all levels of library staff, the Joint Powers Board and members of the community.

The committee members have been busy since August, holding several town hall and focus group meetings across the county and conducting online surveys to gather input from the community. The survey, which ends later this month, will help the committee determine which services matter most to the community.

“We’ve been data-gathering, and that ends in another week or two,” Landers said. “It’s putting us in a position where we are all on the same page.”

Since October 2009 they have held 11 town hall meetings across the county.

“This will help the board make decisions within an informed context,” Gorson said. “It will give us a fuller picture so that we are not making decisions that are ad hoc — in the heat of the moment.”

Library administrators are working diligently to prepare for their budget decisions. As they face tough cuts, they also struggle with whether or not they even have the breathing room to modernize an outdated system, which Landers says is no longer being used by any other library in the country.

While leaders prepare to make such decisions over the coming months, a morning crowd builds outside the central branch library on Church Street, a building that the director has described as an “old” and “tired” facility. They are waiting for the library to open.

Among this crowd is Hernan Morales, a Santa Cruz resident since 1993.

“I think it sucks,” he said of the library’s waning hours. “I need the library to be open — I need to search for jobs.”

Landers says people like Morales turn to the library’s resources during times of recession. Library users and the leaders of the public library system have one thing in common: they are both trying to save money. At the expense of whom is the question that remains to be answered.

UCSA President Victor Sanchez meets with Assemblymember Furutani during intermission. Photo by Arianna Puopolo.

California must pay. Schools, prisons, roads, welfare and — according to the 50-year-old Master Plan for Higher Education — the University of California are wards of the state.

The 2010 Joint Committee on the Master Plan for Higher Education (JCMPHE) met for the second time Feb. 2 in Sacramento. Based on the testimonies of California students, parents and higher education professors and administrators, the JCMPHE will recommend how the state’s budget should accommodate the Master Plan. The Plan set a precedent of tuition-free higher education in California.

The committee, co-chaired by Assemblyman Ira Ruskin (D-Redwood City) and Senator Gloria Negrete McLeod (D-Chino), will meet a third time before making its recommendation for the 2011 budget.

JCMPHE’s latest meeting focused on “Universal Access.”

“You cannot talk about [access] without talking about affordability,” said fourth-year Victor Sanchez, UC Student Association (UCSA) president and UCSC external vice chair, who made the drive to the Capitol to testify in defense of the Master Plan.

The 1960 Master Plan was tendered to the state legislature in a special session and passed. However, some aspects of the Plan were not put into law.

Among other things, the Master Plan mandates that the UC accept 12.5 percent of California’s high school graduating class and restrict enrollment on every campus to 27,500. Currently, Berkeley, LA and Davis violate this policy.

Dowell Myers, professor of urban planning and demography at USC, testified in the first panel: “The Importance of Universal Access.” He estimates that California gets a $3 to $1 return on investments in college students.

A primary concern of many witnesses was maintaining diversity at the UC.

Ruth Love, P.h.D., professor of education leadership at UC Berkeley and San Francisco State University, emphasized the importance of diversity at higher education institutions.

“Education remains the primary vehicle for social and economic mobility,” she said.

Sanchez shares similar sentiments, warning that current UC enrollment isn’t adequately reflecting the changing California demographics.

Love warned the panel against enacting policies that might contribute to the widening access gap, fearing that the continued reduced enrollment and curriculum is detrimental to students, academically and financially.

“I can’t think of anything more important today in higher education than quality of higher education, affordability of higher education and access of higher education,” she said.

Assemblyman Warren Furutani (D-Los Angeles) sits on the JCMPHE. He urges Californians to abandon their fear of taxes, because the 90 percent rise in fees over the last seven years are taxes incognito. However, unlike taxes, fees are not voted on and disproportionately affect middle-class students.

“Let’s not mistake what’s going on in higher education,” he said. “The middle class is getting taxed all to hell.”

Furutani attributes California’s aversion to taxes to mistrust of the legislature.

“The lack of confidence is there because they figure that any tax put on the table is going into this dark hole,” he said.

Until the JCMPHE meets again, Furutani urges students to consider the rationale of their actions.

He said students should put their energy into authoring legislation to generate funds for higher education.

“You can demonstrate all day long but it’s not going to generate any revenue,” he said.

Henry Powell, a representative of UC Academic Senate on behalf of the Intersegmental Committee of the Academic Senates (ICAS) addressed the committee in the second panel: “How Access Should Operate in an Ideal World.”

He said the decision to reduce enrollment across all three public higher education systems — the UC, the CSU and community colleges — has serious repercussions for students.

“Eligibility is being redefined on a campus-by-campus basis in order to manage enrollment,” he said.

Keeping in stride with the theme of the discussion, Powell asserted that access is not just about admissions.

“For students, the term ‘college access’ means more than acceptance into college,” he said.

Powell maintains that the state of California is breaking its promise to enroll qualified students, because students are meeting the standards laid out for them by the UC but — due to enrollment cuts — they are being denied.

UCSA President Sanchez posits that the state’s failure to financially support its students has monumental repercussions, which can best be articulated by the slogan, “We’re graduating with mortgage-size loans and no homes.”

Bob Meister, the author of “They Pledged Your Tuition,” spoke at the “Where do your fees go?” forum on Wednesday Feb 3. Photo by Morgan Grana.

University Council – American Federation of Teachers (UC-AFT) hosted “Where Do Student Fees Go?,” a budget forum, on Wednesday.

The forum, which drew a crowd, set out to clarify what UC-AFT and the Council of UC Faculty Associations (CUCFA) consider to be budget myths. The event also offered budget research that faculty have conducted as an alternative way of understanding UC Santa Cruz’s budget crisis.

“The number-one misunderstanding is that the budget crisis is driven by the state financial crisis, when really it is a crisis of priorities,” said Bob Meister, CUCFA president and UCSC professor of political and social thought.

Meister is the author of several controversial budget articles, including “They Pledged Your Tuition,” which says that student fees are pledged as collateral to increase university bond ratings.

Meister and Bob Samuels, UC-AFT president and writing lecturer at UCLA both gave presentations that brought attention to subjects including, but not limited to the distribution of educational fees among campuses, and expensive university investment decisions.

Santa Cruz Mayor Mike Rotkin, UCSC community studies lecturer and vice president of UC-AFT, facilitated an open Q&A session following the forum.

Samuels is the lead contributor to “Changing Universities,” a budget blog. The blog has a range of topics that address the UC’s priorities that come into play while making budget decisions.

“UC actually had a record year of revenue — even when it is saying that there is a crisis, it’s really a crisis of priorities,” Samuels said. “The UC could reallocate funding if it wanted to and it just chooses to spend funding on its pet projects.”

Edward Roseman, a first-year biomolecular engineering major from College Nine, attended the budget forum in hopes of getting more information to help form solutions.

“I am seeking information to try and find credible data to base strategy for dealing with the budget crisis,” Roseman said.

“The decision is made by UCOP [UC Office of the President] on how funds are distributed across the [UC campuses], which is much more important than even the deficit from state funding,” Roseman continued. “That confirms that we really need to take a close look at the school that we are in.”

UCSC Libraries are a prevalent location for student access and potential misuse of study drugs. Photo by Devika Agarwal.

Stress is one of the main factors that influence young, undiagnosed students to turn to ADHD medication for academic aid. Photo by Devika Agarwal.

Unknown to much of the public, study-drug deals typically take place in campus libraries. Photo by Devika Agarwal.

Would you take a pill if it could raise your GPA?

Right around the time of midterms and finals, the libraries overflow with students chugging Red Bulls like water and cramming like there’s no tomorrow. Various students, queasy from the overdose of energy drinks and Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, slip into bathroom stalls to make a discreet purchase. Within minutes, they are studying furiously as if training for an academic marathon.

ADHD medications, also commonly known as “study-buddy drugs,” have played a vital part in many students’ college experiences. We have learned to take the pill and get the grade without a second thought on how rapidly this phenomenon has grown.

The Medical

From Adderall to Ritalin to Concerta, many college students with or without an Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) diagnosis have dealt with these medications one way or another. Some take it to focus, some snort it at parties — ADHD medications have become the guilt-free version of cocaine.

And while countless students take study-buddy drugs every time a test or paper rolls around, there is much about the drugs, the diagnoses, and the industry that remains unexplored territory.

Craig Reinarman, UCSC professor of sociology, puts the blame for America’s obsession with ADHD on three sets of shoulders — parents, the pharmaceutical companies and society itself. According to Reinarman, while ADHD is certainly a legitimate issue, the culture in which we live has inflated it to the point where children are diagnosed left and right, snacking on prescriptions like candy.

“ADHD is a fairly recent invention,” Reinarman said. “When I was a kid they’d call it ‘having ants in your pants.’ After thousands of years of history, all of a sudden there’s a new disease.”

From the fast-paced flow of information online to the explosion of commercial industries, Reinarman believes that our “rapid-fire culture” has created an overstimulated environment for people to live in, adapting to an instantly gratifying, media-hungry, brainwave-melting way of life.

“Society has become a mass-consumption culture, and we have more and more rapid stimuli bombarding you,” he said. “I’m surprised more people aren’t overwhelmed.”

While Reinarman critiques our society’s cacophonous tendencies, the fact remains that whether or not ADHD is a socially constructed phenomenon, the issue still hits home for many.

David Tylicki, learning disability project coordinator at the Disability Resource Center (DRC), describes three different types of ADHD — inattentive, hyperactive and combined. And while many people have the combined type, it is possible to only have the inattentive or hyperactive type.

“ADD was an older term,” Tylicki said. “Some people use the terms incorrectly and the meanings have changed over time.”

Tylicki also explained that 268 people are currently registered with the DRC — which of course does not include all of the undiagnosed students on campus.

Tylicki explained that there are a number of different medications for ADHD, and the diverse selection is a good thing in order to suit different people’s needs.

“I would actually be very upset if there was only one kind of medication,” Tylicki said.

And while Reinarman acknowledges the positive aspects of ADHD medication for those who need it, he said that pharmaceutical companies are the main reason why many have abused the medications.

“The pharmaceutical industry has invented a bunch of crap which they market,” Reinarman said. “‘What kinds of problems can we highlight to market the cure?’”

Though countless students rely on study-buddy drugs to focus, Tylicki explained that their effect on someone without ADHD is completely different from their effect on someone with the disorder.

“If you do not have ADHD or you take too much, it pushes you into the hyperactive range and so at that point it’s no different than taking amphetamines,” Tylicki said. “It can give you decreased appetite, sometimes it can make you jittery, it makes it hard to sleep. There can be some extreme side effects.”

And while ADHD medications are FDA-approved, there is still always a chance of overdose. According to a New York Daily News article published in August 2009, the number of calls to poison control centers about young people overdosing on ADHD medication increased 76 percent over the course of eight years. There were four deaths evaluated among the cases in the study.

With all of the spare pills floating around from student to student, at parties and libraries and dorms, Tylicki explained that there is clearly something off about the diagnoses.

“I’ve seen statistics that range anywhere from 4 to 12 percent of children in the country that are diagnosed, but then you get into adults, and it’s like 4 to 6 percent,” Tylicki said. “That’s just a clue to show you that there’s something wrong with the diagnoses here. People are either being overdiagnosed right now as children, or have been underdiagnosed previously.”

The Students

Richard Bagley* goes to the gym as often as he can. The UCSC fourth-year is well-built, with muscular arms and still no sign of the 20-something male’s common fate: the beer belly. Bagley has been on and off ADHD medications since elementary school, and in order for him to keep his energy up after his medication wears down, he heads to the gym for intensive exercise.

“I’ve run the gauntlet with ADD meds, from Concerta to Adderol to Focalin,” Bagley said. “I was switching up based on my needs.”

Bagley is one of the thousands of Americans diagnosed with ADHD as a child. On the other hand, Reinarman points out the problematic nature of diagnosing children early in their schooling.

“Kids in elementary schools are being measured on how well they ‘work,’ but they’re children,” he said. “And with No Child Left Behind forcing teachers to produce results based on tests — a kid 10 or 20 years ago would have been thought of as normal.”

Bagley, who is now prescribed both Vyvanse and Focalin, alternates between medications depending on whether he needs prolonged alertness or if he only needs to focus for a short period of time.

“Vyvanse is an extended release and lasts about five hours, and Focalin is the short-acting one,” Bagley said. “A lot of it is dictated by my school schedule.”

Reinarman explained that although many cases like Bagley’s require prescriptions, the parents are mainly at fault when it comes to overdiagnosing children at an early age.

“There is a huge number of middle-class parents who are perfectly ready to name their kids learning-disabled,” Reinarman said. “Millions of dollars have been spent on ads for anxious parents. They get the magic bullet, and it absolves them of any responsibility.”

According to a survey done by the Center for Disease Control, 4.5 million children between 5 and 17 years old have been diagnosed with ADHD as of 2006, possibly pointing toward a pattern of unnecessary diagnoses.

And while Bagley — who saw a specialist before his diagnosis — feels significantly less attentive without medication in his system, he says he wouldn’t take the pills if he could help it.

“When I’m not on it, I’m definitely less engaged,” Bagley said. “[But] I don’t particularly like the way I feel when I’m on [my medication].”

Joy Midvale*, on the other hand, enjoys the sharp and smooth high she gets from the study-buddy stimulants. A UCSC fourth-year, Midvale is not diagnosed with ADHD but uses the drugs both academically and for pleasure. Like many other college students, she buys pills from her friends and classmates.

“For finals I was in a time-crunch and some people were selling [Adderall] in the library, so I bought a couple of pills,” Midvale said. “It was like all of those distractions that I usually have go away.”

Midvale recalled a recent night, when she was partying with some friends and decided to add some ADHD uppers to the mix of drugs and drink.

“I took Focalin recreationally and I snorted it,” Midvale said. “It just makes you feel super-sociable. You’re able to think of things quickly, and it gives you a big energy boost so you can party longer and harder. … It was kind of like cocaine, but cheaper.”

Every midterm and finals week, Paul Gringott’s* phone lights up with text messages asking for the best time to pick up some “addy” for a late-night study session. A UCSC fourth-year, Gringott is one of the many students who deal ADHD medication in library bathrooms during a time when students’ highs are at an all-time low.

At most universities, ADHD pill hookups run rampant throughout student life, leaving it almost impossible to identify a study-buddy drug dealer because they could virtually be anyone, with or without a prescription.

“That’s how it happens — someone has a prescription and then they give it to you,” Gringott said. “I only dealt when people had finals. You have to think of the demand.”

Gringott, a quiet yet sociable guy who lives his life like any other student, does not consider himself a “drug dealer,” but feels that he is only safely catering to people’s needs. Their need for speed, that is.

Gringott took ADHD drugs for the first time in his sophomore year to stay up writing a paper, and began selling pills sometime in his junior year. He explained the common price range per pill, which varies by dosage.

“For milligram dosage it starts at about $3 and goes to about $16,” Gringott said. “There’s 2, 5, and then up to however much dosage you really need. I’ve seen 60, but I’ve never taken 60.”

He also explained that although many students prefer long-lasting Adderall or Focacin, the fast-hitting, short-lasting pills are higher in demand during peak study hours.

“Time-release pills are more expensive,” Gringott said. “The small pills are what people want because they work right away.”

Shireen Nawawi, a UCSC student and pharmacy technician at the Health Center, explained that along with depression and anxiety medication and birth control, ADHD medications are among the top prescriptions dispensed at the Health Center. However, Nawawi stated that in order to receive a prescription, one must first be evaluated and diagnosed by a psychiatrist.

“You have to be evaluated by a psych doctor and diagnosed, and then given a prescription,” Nawawi said. “Out of all of the ADD medications, Adderall is the most popular and then Concerta is the second one.”

Nawawi explained that the generic name for Adderall is dextroamphetamine salt, and that it is basically an amphetamine. Concerta is the brand name for time-released Ritalin, which is chemically known as methylphenidate. While she knows of students who use study-buddy pills every now and then, she sees no real issues manifesting.

“I hear of a lot of people using it, but I don’t really think it’s a problem,” Nawawi said. “Everybody has difficulty to an extent in paying attention.”

So who is to blame for the overdiagnosis and often unnecessary dependence on the drug? Whether we choose to blame parents, pharmaceutical companies or society in general, it all comes down to the fact that as long as there is ADHD, there will be always be Ritalin, Adderall, and other pills to alleviate the distracted and the hyperactive.

“Some people need it, other people abuse it. I don’t really judge them,” Gringott said. “I try not to.”

* Names have been changed.

Stepping into boutique Shimmy Bang is like stepping into an trendy glamour den, where Chloe sunglasses line the shelves, and fashion icon black and whites decoupage the walls.

Store Owner Taylor Abbate presents an array of designs mainly from London, New York, Los Angeles and Australia.

A UCSC Alumna, Abbate moved to L.A to boost her fashion chops and returned to Santa Cruz to open a shop of her own this past July.

Abbate includes designer pieces as well as her own personal stash of vintage garb. From derby hats to to neon tanks, Shimmy Bang’s wardrobe harkens images of Clarissa Explains It All at the races, with all of the trendy pieces in between.

Abbate’s inspiration? The casual yet edgy vibe of the current youth culture, or what she refers to as “street-style fashion with a rock ‘n’ roll twist”.

With studded vests that echo 80s punk rock bravado to bejeweled flower hair clips, Shimmy Bang’s eclectic style provides both the sweet and the sassy.

To draw inspiration for her clothes, Abbate looks to UK fashion magazines and various fashion blogs to find out what’s hot in the streets, and not necessarily what’s on the runway.

Shimmy Bang’s prices range from $10 for vintage tees, to $220 for premium denim—an appropriate range for fashionable slugs who want to spoil themselves.

And while Abbate’s dream is to dress UK tv personality Alexa Chung, her dream of owning and managing her own boutique has finally become a reality. Lucky for us, Shimmy Bang isn’t going anywhere, and us shopaholics can continue our guilty-pleasure shopping binges at the fashionably chic boutique.

“I want every item to be special,” Abbate said. “Not just an addition to someone’s wardrobe.”

~~~~~

Photos by Alex Zamora.

Illustration by Kiri Rasmussen.

The University of California, Santa Cruz promises a world-class education. Let’s hope the whole world speaks English.

As the globe is becoming ever more connected and dependent on cross-border communication, the UC is regressing to a place where foreign language skills are deemed worthless.

Language programs are becoming vulnerable to budget cuts on all UC campuses. Next year the Russian, Portuguese, Hindi/Urdu and Hebrew programs at UCSC will be in danger. The most popular languages, such as Spanish, French, Italian and German, may face huge cuts to their classes.

Cuts are nothing new for UC students. It’s a familiar pattern: we hear about cuts to a program we care about, feel upset about it, and then blame administrators. Transparency and openness on the part of decision-makers is a legitimate demand. But placing blame on some distant figure also makes it easier for students to justify complacency.

The cuts facing foreign languages at UCSC are not yet certain. There is still time to make a difference. It’s up to students to speak up for foreign languages.

Dean of Humanities Georges Van Den Abbeele is making efforts to be transparent in his decision-making process. On the Division of Humanities website, students can submit comments with their opinions on language department cuts. The dean has expressed sincere regret at the task he is faced with, suggesting that he values undergraduate education.

Even if some cuts must be made, our input can help them be made in a way that is least damaging to the quality of our education. Language faculty have begun circulating a letter that students can send to UC administration, voicing their support for languages they care about.

Language students and non-language students alike should show support for these programs, because they are important for all of our futures. Cutting foreign language education for UC students will not only deprive us of opportunities to learn about other cultures, but will also directly damage our ability to succeed in today’s extremely competitive global economy.

The UC administration constantly engages a rhetoric that prioritizes diversity. Chancellor George Blumenthal has recently created a Diversity Advisory Commission to promote diversity on campus. And yet one of the primary aspects of cultural diversity, language, is currently being put on the chopping block.

Even those who place little value on cultural diversity must recognize that the ability to communicate globally is an economic asset in this world. One look at online job listings is evidence enough to show that an education without foreign language is insufficient to compete in California alone. Many jobs today require Spanish fluency. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, at least 1 in 5 California residents speak Spanish. Many other jobs ask for French, Vietnamese or Chinese.

As UC students, we should have the opportunities to educate ourselves for success. As jobs become more and more scarce, we should focus on becoming more proficient in communication, not less. Those of us competing for jobs in government, technology, business, finance, health care, or practically any other field may be beaten out by others if they can speak a foreign language and we cannot. Regions such as the Middle East and China are building ever-stronger and more complicated ties with the U.S. as their economies boom. We will need people who can communicate with them, both for economic reasons and for diplomatic reasons, to preserve peace and understanding.

But there is no point at all in having a university that calls itself one of the best in the world if it sends its graduates out unprepared.

It’s up to students to demand support for foreign languages, and other programs that matter to them.

So if you look forward to that song in Spanish, that French conversation and Nutella party, or a Japanese poem, tell someone that it is important to you. If California doesn’t want to pay for our foreign-language education, we will all pay the price when our culture becomes homogenous and our degrees are worthless.

Even Georges Van Den Abbeele, Dean of Humanities, cannot predict the exact amount of money that will be cut from UCSC’s language programs. Photo by Devika Agarwal.

Four major world languages are at risk — Russian, Portuguese, Hindi/Urdu and Hebrew.

Termination of entire language programs is just one among dozens of proposed options to counter budget shortfalls and structural inequalities within the Division of Humanities at UC Santa Cruz. To eliminate these languages would ultimately save $182,000 per year.

The division, which comprises 20 percent of UCSC’s students and faculty, faced a permanent funding cut of about $1.1 million in the past year and a half, and now braces for an additional loss of $1.4 to $1.6 million for this fiscal year. These cuts have been so deep that the division must resort to cutting core education.

“We took so much in cuts last year, there is nothing left to cut except instruction,” Dean of Humanities Georges Van Den Abbeele said. “At some point, you are not only cutting into the bone, you’re amputating limbs. So we need to figure out which limbs will go.”

This year, the languages program has lost 11 of its 200 classes. Italian lost two classes, 11 percent of its total. Possible cuts this year could eliminate or reduce 35 to 40 classes, about 20 percent of the program’s total.

Although UCSC is the only UC without a general education language requirement, language study is a requirement for the major programs of language studies, global economics, anthropology, Latin American and Latino studies, and health sciences. Starting next year, the literature department will implement a new language requirement as well.

How does one prepare a division that represents one-fifth of UCSC’s academics for budget cuts? What should be prioritized? Should departments emphasize breadth or depth of subjects?

In order to help answer these questions, Van Den Abbeele established an advisory task force within the division to help brainstorm solutions to the budget problem.

The majority of instruction in foreign languages and writing is offered by lecturers, not ladder-ranked faculty, which makes the program vulnerable during budget cuts. Ladder-ranked faculty cannot be laid off, but any lecturer who has worked less than six years can be let go at any time.

Some of the options laid out in the task force’s report include: integration of language curriculum with other departments or programs; moving the writing program to the colleges; and merging the administrative functions of the American studies, feminist studies and history of consciousness departments.

From now through Feb. 15, Van Den Abbeele is seeking consultation and feedback on the report from students and faculty with the goal of reaching some kind of consensus by April.

“This should not be viewed as a blueprint,” Van Den Abbeele said. “… No decisions have been made.”

Some lecturers on campus are concerned with how the proposal deals with cuts to languages.

Suggestions include reducing courses offered, eliminating languages that have little connection to existing majors, giving priority enrollment to majors, hiring graduate student instructors to teach in the program, and switching French, Portuguese and Spanish to a five-quarter sequence.

“The university does not seem to want to commit funding for the language program,” said Italian lecturer Giulia Centineo. “They’ve been shortsighted, to say the least. In Italian, we are back to the number of sections of 1989, while there are many more students and the demand for language has increased.”

French lecturer Angela Elsey is also concerned. With the help of other professors, Elsey wrote a letter she hopes students will send to administrators.

“We cannot just sit by and see our program cut and destroyed,” Elsey said.

Eric Porter, professor and chair of American studies, feels that language is essential for any well-rounded undergraduate education.

“Languages are a fundamental part of education and creating informed world citizens,” Porter said.

Porter also said it is important for students to give feedback, because these changes will have a campus-wide impact.

“Humanities is put in a difficult position by having two programs — writing and languages — which serve the entire campus,” Porter said.

Community studies field coordinator and Santa Cruz Mayor Mike Rotkin urges students to take action on issues which are important to them.

“There needs to be a fight and response to this at every level,” Rotkin said. “Students need to make demands, get organized, put pressure on the administration and involve their parents.”

Italian lecturer Centineo also encourages students to save the language programs.

“Students should demand to keep the language programs. It’s your university, you’re paying for it,” Centineo said. “Write letters, demand that priorities be instruction and not administration.”

Students can voice their opinion by submitting feedback on the dean of humanities’ website.

“The dean of humanities is open and transparent about his budget,” Rotkin said. “He just doesn’t have enough money to fund the existing writing and language programs. He’s facing a hard decision [and] he is doing his best with limited resources.”

]]> http://www.cityonahillpress.com/2010/02/04/slug-comics-16/feed/ 0 http://www.cityonahillpress.com/2010/02/04/who-the-hell-asked-you-14/ http://www.cityonahillpress.com/2010/02/04/who-the-hell-asked-you-14/#comments Thu, 04 Feb 2010 09:54:44 +0000 City on a Hill Press http://www.cityonahillpress.com/?p=8674 Question: What alternate name would you have given the iPad?

(from left to right)

“I would call it the iTablet. It sounds more ancient and mythical.”
Christoffel Engelbrecht
Second-Year, Merrill
Language Studies

“I would call it the iPhat… with a P-H.”
Andrew Altercotte
Fifth-Year, Cowell
Business Management Economics

“iWill be obsolete in two weeks.”
Arielle Poblador
Second-Year, College Nine
Sociology

“I’ve been following its release for a while, and I think I would call it the ‘iAm Disappointed.’”
Saahil Khandwala
Second-Year, College Nine
Business Management Economics

Compiled by Ben Gevercer and Isaac Miller.

Illustration by Kenny Srivijittakar.

Ah, the Super Bowl. A day when people across America come together to cheer on their favorite football teams, chomp on chips, swill beer… and watch anti-abortion ads?

This year CBS is set to air a pro-life advertisement during the Super Bowl. This signals the end of the network’s policy of barring advocacy ads from sporting events, and ensures that Game Day will create a divide among spectators that is about more than the Saints and the Colts.

The commercial, paid for by the conservative Christian group Focus on the Family, will feature college football star Tim Tebow and his mother Pam. The ad will address Pam’s decision not to have an abortion when she was pregnant with Tim in 1987, despite the fact that it was recommended by a doctor due to her illness. This choice led to the birth of Tim, who went on to win the Heisman Trophy in 2007 and the BCS Championship in 2006 and 2008 during his college football career at the University of Florida.

While you may or may not agree with the message this advertisement is sending, one thing that pro-choice activists and anti-abortionists should be able to agree on is that these politically charged commercials have no place at the Super Bowl.

This is especially true considering CBS is picking and choosing which causes to give airtime to, which is evident from their decision to nix two pro-homosexuality commercials that were submitted for consideration.

An ad from GoDaddy.com, which stars a fictional former football player who becomes a fashion designer and launches a lingerie line upon retirement, was deemed to “have the potential to offend viewers,” according to the network. In addition, CBS discarded a Super Bowl commercial from ManCrunch, a Toronto-based gay dating website, which featured a kiss between two male football fans after their hands touch in a bowl of potato chips. Their reasoning? It apparently did not meet the quality deemed necessary by their Standards and Practices Department.

In response, Jarrett Barriors, president of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), issued a statement saying, “CBS has a problem when they do something like this at the same time as they allow an anti-gay group like Focus on the Family to place ads during the Super Bowl. The network should come clean to the public about what’s going on, because this seems to be a homophobic double standard.”

The network has faced similar accusations in the past, such as in 2004 when they rejected an advertisement by the United Church of Christ that emphasized its open stance regarding homosexuality.

Some questions that arise from these decisions: What are CBS’s standards? What makes them decide to include a blatantly anti-abortion advertisement in their Super Bowl lineup, but not a commercial that includes a football player turned fashion designer or two men kissing? Why do they think these ads “have the potential to offend viewers,” but apparently don’t think the same of a pro-life commercial sponsored by Focus on the Family founder James Dobson, a man who once said that gay marriage will “destroy the earth”?

While it is true that everyone has a right to free speech, the members of a single department at CBS should not be able to have the ultimate say in deciding what is and isn’t appropriate for the general public, especially when these choices show support for one political sect of the country over another. By limiting the free speech of certain groups by not allowing their advertisements to air during the Super Bowl, CBS is presenting itself as a discriminatory network, a portrayal that is not good to have during this tough economic time — or ever.

The Super Bowl is an event that is supposed to unify the country for a day. It is seen as a welcome break from a typical day in the news cycle, when talk of healthcare reform and war dominates the airwaves. But when blatant advocacy ads find their way into sporting events, it reignites the red state/blue state divide of the nation and brings politics into sports, where it does not belong.

So please, CBS. Keep your politics out of my Super Bowl.

(from left to right)

“No, because the drugs don’t make you smarter or able to absorb more, they just make you focus better.”
David Faris
Fourth-year, College Ten
Language studies

“I don’t think it’s cheating, but I don’t think it’s very good for you. It could be giving you an unfair advantage, but there’s still that baseline where you know the info or not.”
Rachel Fabian
Graduate student
Ocean sciences

“Honestly, in today’s times with so many students doing it, and with our almost impossible workload, it doesn’t seem like cheating.”
Malgosia Kostecka
Second-year, Stevenson
Environmental studies

“I’m going to say no, because drugs change the way you think and act, but from what I’ve heard it’s not like doing marijuana.”
Eric Romero
Third-year, Porter
Sociology

Compiled by Julie Eng and Rosario Serna.

This is the second year in a row UCSC has seen unprecedented numbers, and Michelle Whittingham, the associate vice chancellor of enrollment management, says the trend is indicative of further overall growth.

“We are definitely continuing our upward trajectory,” Whittingham said of the school’s overall reputability.

This year 34,630 students applied to UCSC, marking a 5.4 percent growth from last year’s 32,847 applicants.

UCSC’s target enrollment is 3,200 new freshmen, which is a number similar to last year’s frosh enrollment of 3,214. With a larger pool of applicants and the same number of spots available, an even more selective year is on the horizon for UCSC.

UCSC’s admission percentage — that is, the percentage of applicants who were accepted — went from 83 percent in 2007, to 74 percent in 2008, to only 63 percent last year.

The growth can be seen most dramatically in the 25-percent increase of transfer applicants. Last year, 5,616 applicants were prospective transfers, comprising 17 percent of the total applicants. This year the number rose to 7,007, accounting for 20 percent of the total applicants.

“We had hoped for an increase, but this was remarkable,” Whittingham said.

This trend is reflected across the state, as the UC saw an overall 17 percent increase in transfer applicants systemwide. Considering the dismal forecast for the state budget, this may be a lasting effect as more students begin their education at less-expensive community colleges.

“I think this is a trend we will see for years to come,” Whittingham said.

Also notable in the overall increase of freshman applicants is the increased presence of underrepresented ethnic groups. The number of African-American applicants swelled from 986 last year to 1,105 this year, a 12.1 percent increase. Similarly, Chicano/Latino applicants rose from 5,366 last year to 5,843 this year, an 8.9 percent increase; and applications from American Indian students rose from 207 last year to 267 this year, a 29 percent increase. The number of Asian-American applicants also rose.

“What you see is the applicant population reflecting the high school graduate population,” Whittingham said. “Demographics having been changing in the state of California, and you can see those changes in both sets of data.”

To Rosalee Cabrera, director of the Chicano/Latino Resource Center and interim director of the American Indian Resource Center, these changing demographics are a positive movement for the university.

“It is important, because we exist in California in broader numbers than are showing up on the campus,” Cabrera said. “I feel that it is critical for a university to represent its people.”

While the economy and societal demand for higher education explain the statewide trend, they do not explain why the increase in transfer applicants was so much more noticeable at UCSC in particular. Whittingham attributes the dramatic increase to outreach efforts.

“We have worked really hard to reach out to students and help them achieve their dream of a UC education right here in Santa Cruz,” Whittingham said.

Budgetary restrictions have limited outreach, which previously involved a more extensive physical presence at campuses statewide. But according to Ebony Lewis, outreach coordinator and regional representative for UCSC, this has allowed the university’s outreach efforts to embrace the changing technological climate.

This year, UCSC was one of several UC campuses to host “University of California Day,” a virtual college fair where students could live- or text-chat with Lewis and other members of the admissions staff.

“Because of the budget we cannot travel as much, and this is something new and different,” Lewis said of UC Day. “We’re trying to find ways to connect with students, and you have to go where they are.”

Daniel Friedman, UCSC professor of economics, welcomed the public to hear his research on the financial crisis. Photo by Devika Agarwal.

If the global financial system is a planet, then the implosion in 2008 was just its surface.

“It looked like a Rube Goldberg type of device,” said Daniel Friedman, Ph.D., an alumnus and professor of economics at UC Santa Cruz who delivered the 44th annual Faculty Research Lecture on Monday at the Music Center Recital Hall.

The Faculty Research Lecture, annually awarded by the Academic Senate, is a foremost research honor for UCSC faculty.

Friedman, an economist who received his doctorate in mathematics from UCSC in 1977, has been teaching at his alma mater since 1985. He recently published a book, “Morals and Markets,” and was an honoree at UCSC’s 2009 Founders’ Day event.

His lecture “Beyond Fear and Greed: The Moral Roots of Financial Crises” was Friedman’s narrative on the calamities of the global economy, using insight from his own research in experimental economics.

Friedman runs the Learning and Experimental Economics Projects (LEEPS) of Santa Cruz, a research lab that does experiments with human subjects involving money, testing the actual motivations of economic activity. The lab has been open since 1986 and is at the forefront in the new field of behavioral economics, a field that combines cognitive science and psychology with economics.

“[He] works on an incredible number of projects. [LEEPS] involves many fields and many disciplines,” said Alessandra Cassar, a professor of economics at the University of San Francisco and co-director of LEEPS.

Friedman explained the layers of the financial system using metaphors of planetary geology.

“I want to give a tour of ‘Planet Finance,’” he said a few days before the speech.

Friedman began his lecture by outlining the events that led up to the 2008 crash. This is the crust of Planet Finance, Friedman explained, describing it as similar to a “seven-ring circus.”

Friedman said that in the early 2000s a housing bubble grew. Prices on homes went up, and anyone — even those without income — could take out a mortgage on a house.

These mortgages were traded like stocks or bonds, using advanced mathematical formulas developed by astrophysicists. When housing prices fell in the summer of 2007 the bubble popped, investors lost millions of dollars, and the financial system froze. The snowball effect only worsened the crisis until the global economy itself was impacted.

The details of this ultimate crash of the global financial system are known by most: bailouts with taxpayer money, loss of state revenue and a 10 percent unemployment rate almost two years later.

To better understand Planet Finance, Friedman pushed further below the surface. Just below the crust is the mantle, and Friedman compared this to underlying trends in the global economy: globalization of finance, complex financial innovation, and deregulation.

At the center, or planetary core, is the origin of our finance and its function. Friedman explained that the core of our financial system grew out of a desire to provide for the future. This core involved promises and cooperation — a system that could efficiently turn people’s savings into others’ investments. This system failed in the 2008 crash because finance became more of a tool of excessive greed than a way of distributing resources.

“There are important things they haven’t dealt with yet,” Friedman said. “Before we’re done, we are going to need more thorough reform.”

He warned against the human instinct to only punish bad bankers, saying Americans should also implement more transparency in Wall Street and find a way to measure firms that are a systematic risk to the whole economy.

Friedman’s lecture gave a stratified look at the 2008 global financial crisis, and how people underestimated its far-reaching effects.

As Friedman said before the lecture: “My worst-case scenario, in my own thinking, was about half as bad as it turned out to be.”

Photo by Kathryn Power.

Nonprofit organization Save Our Shores uses one of its many beach clean-up events to show that despite the presence of trash cans on the beach, littering still remains a problem. Photo by Kathryn Power.

Nonprofit organization Save Our Shores held close to 400 beach clean-ups last year in Monterey Bay alone, preventing 79,000 pounds of trash and recycling from entering the ocean.

This year members expect similar results from their volunteer program, the steward/docent training program, which kicks off on Feb. 23 and continues through April.

After the prospective stewards/docents finish their training in subjects like marine conservancy and marine life, they are required to complete 50 hours of volunteer work by December.

Volunteer work generally includes hosting beach and river clean-ups, quantifying trash, and educating community members about their impact on marine life.

“We’re really looking for leaders and people that can represent Save Our Shores in a professional way,” said Kate Purcell, the program’s volunteer coordinator. “We’re looking for mature professionals.”

The class and training program meets weekly to hear lectures on subjects like Monterey Bay habitats and pollution prevention.

Steve Pleich, a graduate of the steward/docent volunteer program, supports the program’s goals for a healthier ocean and intends to work with Save Our Shores for many years to come.

“Every day that you do something for Save Our Shores is a day that the marine sanctuary is protected,” Pleich said.

Save Our Shores was founded 31 years ago and has been hosting its steward/docent volunteer program for the past 15 years. The organization has held monthly beach clean-ups since its founding, and encourages the public and the university to participate. It also offers for-credit internships to college students.

“There aren’t a lot of other opportunities that allow people to get connected very physically doing community service or volunteer work,” Purcell said. “Not only are we educating people, we are also engaging them in a solution.”

Besides their monthly scheduled clean-ups, volunteers also educate in classrooms and at special events, including the city’s Independence Day celebration. Volunteers who graduate from the program can look forward to helping out on the biggest clean-up of the year.

“It’s a really emotionally charged day because the beaches are just piled high with trash,” Purcell said.

The stewards and docents spend all day on July 4 walking around the beach handing out bags and encouraging people to pack their trash. They spend July 5 collecting the trash that was left behind. For marine life and ocean livelihood, this is very important.

“They not only collect, they quantify what kind of trash is being collected,” said Steve Lonhart, senior scientist and researcher for the marine sanctuary in Santa Cruz. “So if you’re getting lots and lots of one kind of debris, then you inform the public about that and ultimately it brings around a change in practice.”

Lonhart said the main animals affected by the mass quantities of trash being dumped into the ocean are birds that mistake shiny plastics for krill, and turtles that mistake trash bags for jellyfish.

But it’s not just plastic that’s being collected. In fact, cigarette butts are the most prevalent type of marine debris found at beach clean-ups by Save Our Shores stewards.

“Any effort to reduce the input of foreign material into the ocean is a good thing,” Lonhart said. “If they didn’t do it, all that material they collect … doesn’t degrade very readily. That can have very dire consequences for the birds and turtles.”

And most stewards like Martel Anderson, who is a graduate of the 2009 class, are very dedicated to ocean conservancy. Last year for her birthday, Anderson wrote to all her friends and family, asking them to donate to Save Our Shores instead of buying her gifts. That charitable act alone raised almost $600 for the program.

“Most of us have the ocean on our list of things to be thankful for,” Purcell said, “but Save Our Shores offers people the next step to give back.”

CITY

Burglars break into City Hall, steal mayor’s laptop

Jan. 28, 2:32 a.m. — Security at Santa Cruz City Hall found a window screen cut and a rock thrown through a window. Unknown suspects stole Mayor Mike Rotkin’s city-issued laptop computer. Police have no suspects, nor any reason to believe that the mayor was specifically targeted.

Suspected drug dealers arrested in Pogonip Park

Jan. 28, 10:30 a.m. — Officers arrested three suspects, all Santa Cruz area transients, on drug-related charges in Pogonip City Park. Alfonso Marquez, 23, was arrested for possession of 10 grams of heroin with intent to sell, and being under the influence of a controlled substance. Rey Antonio, 23, was found to have methamphetamines and marijuana on him. He also had several outstanding warrants and was in violation of his probation. John Pitts, 31, was arrested for various felony drug warrants.

Car owner catches woman breaking into vehicle

Jan. 30, 9:03 a.m. — Kelli Ringer, 45, was caught breaking into a car on the 200 block of Third Street. As the owner approached, the suspect pulled a screwdriver on her and kicked her in the chest. When officers arrived, the suspect was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and auto burglary.

Man arrested with stolen gun

Feb. 1, 9:19 p.m. — Officers stopped Juan Mendoza, 23, at the intersection of Grandview Street and Arroyo Seco for allegedly running a stop sign. Officers found two bags of marijuana and a stolen, loaded semi-automatic handgun in the car. The suspect was arrested for possession of a loaded firearm and possession of marijuana.

CAMPUS

Forgery of parking permit

Jan. 28, 9:29 a.m. — A parking enforcement officer noticed a car parked at Kresge with a fake parking permit. The parking officer booted the car and left a note for the driver to bring the permit down to the police department. The car’s owner, Vanessa Cerna, 22, admitted to authorities that she had scanned a friend’s parking permit and Photoshopped her vehicle information on it. The suspect was cited for forgery and referred to the District Attorney’s office for prosecution.

Vandalism

Jan. 31, 12:05 a.m. — Officers responded to a report of someone throwing a rock through the window of a residence in the campus trailer park. The unknown subject was described as a white male, 5’10” and wearing all-black clothing. The occupant reported nothing stolen, and the motive remains unknown.

Photo by Nita-Rose Evans.

Motiv
Where: 1209 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz (map)
When: 2 p.m. to midnight

Looking for the after-party? Go no further than the super-chic Motiv, which offers an opportunity to get down after the game. DJs and leather chairs will provide a hip atmosphere for those looking for a good time during and after the match-up. A huge sound system, two 55-inch HD screens and a 99-inch HD projector will surround the dance floor, which is sure to be crowded with all sorts of partygoers and football fans.

Photo by Nita-Rose Evans.

99 Bottles
Where: 110 Walnut Ave., Santa Cruz (map)
When: 11 a.m. to 12:30 a.m.

99 Bottles is a downtown Santa Cruz restaurant where you can find alcoholic beverages for those of age, but without the bar atmosphere. On Super Bowl Sunday they will be offering food that corresponds to the regions from which the Colts and Saints hail (Indianapolis and New Orleans, respectively). It doesn’t just stop with the food — the establishment will also have beers that correspond to the teams. With this special menu and a big-screen TV on the upper floor, 99 Bottles is sure to be a winner for local football fans this Sunday.

Photo by Nita-Rose Evans.

Rush Inn
Where: 113 Knight St., Santa Cruz (map)
When: 8 a.m. to 2 a.m.

This is the quintessential “dive bar” in Santa Cruz — simple with no frills. However, for the Super Bowl they will be spicing things up with their Salsa Cook-off. First-prize winner gets $25, second place wins $15, and third place gets $10.  It’s sure to be a heated competition, much like the game. The Rush Inn will also offer great bar food, cheap beer prices and a pool table for some good old-fashioned bar fun.

Photo by Nita-Rose Evans.

Crown Fireside Lounge
Where: Crown College
When: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

If you’re down to walk up those killer stairs and appreciate a wondrous spread of Costco food, Crown’s Fireside Lounge will play host to a handful of rowdy kids watching the Saints vs. Colts game on Sunday. Tabitha Chirrick, a second-year student associated with the college, explained it would be just a casual gathering. “We’re going to get together, buy some food and watch the Super Bowl,” she said. “Come have fun, eat food and watch football. It’s open to everybody, but I expect mostly Crown kids.”

Photo by Nita-Rose Evans.

Stevenson Event Center
Where: Stevenson College
When: 3 to 7 p.m.

Stevenson residents are welcome to head over to the Stevenson Event Center to watch the big game in an event sponsored by the Stevenson Student Council. The spacious room and oversized projection screen make for the perfect location to gather and watch the Super Bowl. A large viewing space allows for a sizeable crowd, but the audience is intimately related through college affiliation — thereby giving students a family atmosphere that feels like a home away from home.

Men’s Basketball
1/22 vs. Chapman (away), 79-60 (loss)
1/23 vs. La Sierra (away), 56-55 (win)
1/24 vs. University of Dallas (away), 58-57 (loss)

Men’s Tennis
1/29 vs. Cabrillo (home) 9-0 (win)
1/29 vs. Lewis and Clark (away) 8-1 (win)
1/30 vs. University of Idaho (away) 6-3 (loss)
1/30 vs. De Anza (home) 9-0 (win)
1/30 vs. Whitman (away) 8-1 (win)
1/31 vs. Linfield (away) 9-0 (win)

Men’s Volleyball
1/29 vs. Baruch (home) 3-2 (win)
1/30 vs. Baruch (home) 3-1 (loss)

Women’s Basketball
1/28 vs. Bethany (home) 63-46 (win)

Women’s Tennis
1/31 vs. CSU Bakersfield (home) 5-4 (win)

{Upcoming Athletics}

Men’s Basketball
2/6 vs. UC Merced (home) at 8:30 p.m.

Men’s Tennis
2/6 vs. University of Nevada-Reno (home) at 9:30 a.m.
2/6 vs. Westmont (home) at 1 p.m.

Men’s Volleyball
2/5 vs. Stanford (away) at 7 p.m.

Women’s Basketball
2/4 vs. Simpson (away) at 7 p.m.
2/6 vs. Pacific Union (home) at 6:30 p.m.

Women’s Tennis
2/6 vs. NDNU (away) at 2 p.m.