October16 2013 Issue

Wednesday, October 16, 2013 Volume 45, Issue 3

Etera

By Justin David Tate Life and Arts Editor

Ken Balvin keeps returning to the same stretch of road on Greenville Avenue.

He looks for potholes. He picks up rocks. He inspects every crack of the road over and over again, because in three days, the Eastfield scuba instructor is going to carry the Olympic torch down this route. And he doesn’t want anything to ruin this moment.

“My thought was, ‘You could drop this thing,’” Balvin said.

More than 120,000 people applied to partici-pate in the 2002 Winter Olympics torch relay across the country. Only a tenth of the applicants were chosen. Balvin was proud to be one of them. Because of the timing of the relay, Balvin found a special meaning in the event.

“This was after 9/11,” Balvin said. “It was only three months after [the anniversary of 9/11], De-cember 12. September 11th devastated the United States. Everyone’s spirits were low, and [the torch relay], as it traveled around the country, really illuminated people. Lots of signs, flyers, crowds lining the streets to celebrate something positive. It was very uplifting.”

Divinginto Scuba

See BALVIN, page 5 ➤

Students soak up skills from master diver

2Wednesday, October 16, 2013 www.eastfieldnews.com The Et Cetera

News

CalendarPut it on your

October

The Perfect StormCommon Book author finds inspiration amid chaosBy Justin David Tate Life & Arts Editor

Writer Chitra Divakaruni was about to get the brainstorm of a lifetime in the form of a real storm: Hurricane Rita.

As Divakaruni and her family raced toward In-terstate 10 to escape Houston, fear engulfed her.

“[Hurricane] Katrina had devastated New Or-leans, so we all knew what a hurricane could do,” Divakaruni said. “We took this hurricane very seri-ously.”

So did more than four million other Houston residents who tried to flee the city at the same time, resulting in a massive interstate traffic jam. What would usually have been a three-hour drive to San Antonio became an impossible journey. Divakaru-ni and her family left their home at 7 p.m. and were still inside Houston at 2 a.m.

Tires were blown and engines were failing. Cars ran out of gas. With no movement in traffic and passengers in vehicles getting hot with no air con-ditioning, people began exiting their cars.

The result was a mass of arguments and fistfights as radio announcers told people the hurricane was fast approaching.

Divakaruni typically has a writer’s notepad at-tached to her like a fifth limb, but she displaced it while rushing to leave the city. So she took mental notes of everything she saw, including one group of people who did not succumb to their volatile sur-roundings.

“I noticed that not everyone was behaving in this [unruly] manner,” Divakaruni said. “A few people, it was like a crisis had brought out the best in them. They were going around trying to calm people down. They were sharing food and water with the elderly or people with children, and they were just trying to make things better.”

Upon seeing this, something clicked in her writ-er’s mind.

“I thought, ‘How interesting. Here we are, we’re all in this same situation of fear and panic, but some people can rise above it and they can do these good things, like grace under pressure,’” Divakaruni said. “I thought this was really worth exploring. And if Rita doesn’t come down this road today and wipe us all out, I’ll get to write a novel about it.”

That novel was “One Amazing Thing,” which was chosen as the college’s common book this year and also has been optioned to become a feature-length film.

The book tells the story of nine diverse charac-ters ranging from a black American combat veteran to a Chinese grandmother and granddaughter, who become trapped in an Indian visa office during an earthquake. They each share one amazing thing about themselves while fighting to survive.

Divakaruni, who teaches creative writing at the University of Houston, believes she needed to go through her experience of being trapped on I-10 to write “One Amazing Thing.”

“Sometimes we go through painful experiences and we don’t like them when we’re going through

them, but they make us grow and they make us into better people than we would be otherwise,” she said.

While working toward her doctorate in English at the University of California, Berkley, Divakaruni endured another difficult time when her grandfa-ther passed away. It was the middle of the semester and she could not get away to attend his funeral.

“He was the one who told many stories from my culture, old Indian tales that became a part of my life, so I was very sad,” she said.

One night, while lying in bed thinking of her childhood years when she would visit her grandfa-ther’s house in the Indian countryside, she realized she could not remember his face. She closed her eyes and still could not visualize it.

“That made me realize how much I was forget-ting my childhood, my growing up in India, people

and places that were important to me,” Divakaruni said. “As I was getting more involved and busy with my life here in America, those things were slipping away, and I didn’t want to lose them. They were an important part of who I was and my heritage and culture. I thought to myself, I’ll start writing things, because if I write them I won’t forget anymore.”

Divakaruni discovered that she could recall memories better through writing. Things she thought she had lost forever were dug up from the recesses of her mind.

She continued to write in private, describing herself as, “a closet writer” for years before she grew enough confidence in her work to put together po-etry collections and eventually novels.

When Divakaruni delivered the Common Book Keynote address at Eastfield on Oct. 10, she en-couraged students to write often and read often to become better writers. “One Amazing Thing” was used as a catalyst to get students to write about themselves and their own amazing stories.

One student, Sarah Hunt, wrote a short memoir for her English class. The memoir gave her a chance to open up about her life.

“It was very freeing to put that on paper and give it to other people and let them read something that I had been through,” she said.

After receiving a score of a 99 on the memoir, Hunt entered her work the Common Book writing competition, “Your Amazing Story.” More than 100 students entered a true or fictional story of under 1,300. Hunt decided to write a true story that hit close to home.

“When I was a kid, [my stepdad] beat the crap out of my mom on a daily basis,” Hunt said. “He had a shotgun and shot at us. It was just like five horrifying years of my life, and it’s something that people don’t know about me because I don’t talk about it.”

When Divakaruni announced the 15 writing contest winners during her visit, Hunt was one of them. When she stood, her knees buckled a little and her hands trembled. She had not expected to hear her name.

“I forget that I am a good writer because I don’t feel that I am,” she said.

Divakaruni was greeted by a standing-room-only crowd, including more than 100 dual-credit students from Samuel High School.

Common Book Committee co-chair Pebble Bar-bero was impressed with the response to the event.

“I’m totally happy with the support and the turn-out,” Barbero said. “The students’ enthusiasm, the teachers’ enthusiasm, it just makes it worthwhile.”

This enthusiasm is something Divakaruni be-lieves comes from the desire of people to hear each other’s stories. She says magic happens when sto-ries are told.

“One of the things that happens when we hear each other’s stories is we know we’re not alone, that someone else has gone through a difficulty and overcome it,” she said. “It gives us encouragement to deal with our own problems. I think that’s been true of storytelling for a long time. ”

Wed 16

A recital series featuring Dr. Enric Madriguera, UTD faculty, and Eddie Healy, Eastfield faculty will be held in F-117 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Thur 17

As part of Hispanic Heritage Month, the Common Book committee will show “Stand and Deliver” starring Edward James Olmos in G-101/102 from 5:35-7:35 p.m.

The Men’s Empowerment Club is hosting a Latino Leaders Serving the Com-munity panel in G-101/102 starting at 12:30 p.m.

The Harvester Theatre Company will premiere the play “You Can’t Take It With You,” part of the One Amazing Fall Season in the performance hall starting at noon. Tickets are $10 for adults and $7 for students.

Mon 21

A panel discussion on gen-der equality will be held at 12:30 p.m. in G-101 as part of Free Speech Week.

Wed 23

A special Hispanic Heritage Month concert will be held in the performance hall from 12:30-1:50 p.m.

Fri 25

Sat26

Sun27

A showing of “You Can’t Take It With You” will be held in the performance hall from 7:30-9:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and $7 for students.

A showing of “You Can’t Take It With You” in the performance hall from 7:30-9:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and $7 for students.

A showing of “You Can’t Take It With You” will be held in the performance hall from 2-5 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and $7 for students.

Tues 29

The Hispanic Heritage Month Read-in will be held in the performance hall starting at 11 a.m.

odessa leeper/The eT ceTeraCommon Book author Chitra Divakaruni speaks to students about her amazing story.

ABouT The cover:Photo By oDEssA LEEPEr

DEsignED By yoLAnDA rAmirEz

3 The Et Cetera www.eastfieldnews.com Wednesday, October 16, 2013

NEWS

By Kevin Cushingberry Jr. Editor in Chief

As the clock struck midnight on Oct. 1, with the House Republicans and Senate Democrats still unable to come to an agreement on the fiscal budget, the government shut down.

Only those federal workers whose jobs are necessary to protect against an imminent threat to life or property were allowed to work through the shutdown. As a result, more than 800,000 federal workers were furloughed.

The federal government also stopped funding some of its pro-grams including WIC, a program for pregnant women and young children. WIC funding impacts 9 million people per month, accord-ing to its government website.

Most students have not been di-rectly affected by the shutdown be-cause budgets for federal pell grants and students loans had already been solidified for the 2013-14 academic year.

Financial aid adviser Roshunda Jackson said that although many students received their FAFSA awards on time, those selected for tax verification have been unable to contact the IRS to get their tax transcripts during the government shutdown.

Also, students applying for feder-

al loans prior to the spring semester won’t be able to receive them if the budget hasn’t been passed.

TRiO/Student Support Services program coordinator Shatremeyia Porter said services in her depart-ment will continue because TRiO is funded every two years and the money has already been appropri-ated.

“Students in the program won’t be affected,” she said. “The shut-down would have to last until our funds run out in order to have an impact on us.”

Likewise, Upward Bound is funded every five years, so staff members said their students won’t be immediately affected either.

DCCCD Chancellor Wright Las-siter sent out a district-wide email on Oct. 2 detailing the effects the government shutdown could have on the colleges. Although the dis-trict does not rely on federal fund-ing, he said his staff is monitoring how the shutdown might impact financial aid and grant programs in the future.

“We all hope that this gov-ernment shutdown will not last long since we do not want to see further damage to the American economy and its services to the na-tion’s population,” he said. “Whatever the outcome,

we will be prepared, with support from our governing board, to take any required actions.”

Federal offices that have been ful-ly or partially closed include the De-partment of Education, Department of Labor, Department of Transpor-tation, Environmental Protection Agency, Equal Employment Op-portunity Commission, Executive Office of the President for special functions, Federal Trade Commis-sion, General Services Administra-tion, Treasury and Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Postal Service, federal endowments and foundations, mu-seums such as the George W. Bush Museum and Library in Dallas and the Smithsonian.

The last government shutdown happened under President Bill Clin-ton in December 1995 and lasted 21 days. Government professor Stacey Jurhree said the country has changed greatly since that time.

“The big difference between when the government shut down under Clinton and now is unem-ployment was under 5 percent,” he said. “Under [President Barack]

Obama, it’s 7 percent.”Another major difference,

he said, is the political cli-mate.

“Bill Clinton was able to get with the Republicans and compromise,” he said.

“Obama’s not budging, and he’s not dealing with people that will com-promise with him.”

Jurhree said many professors as-sume they will not be affected by the shutdown because their salaries aren’t provided directly by the fed-eral government. However, he said other factors could come into play.

“We’re paid by the county, but any tentacle of the feds is going to be affected,” he said. “If we’re still shut down four months from now, stu-dents won’t get financial aid. If there aren’t students in class, then we can’t teach.”

Obama called top congressional leaders to the White House on Mon-day in an attempt to avoid a U.S. debt default that would rock the econo-my. However, the White House later announced that the meeting was postponed “to allow leaders in the Senate time to continue making im-portant progress.”

On the Senate Floor, Senate Ma-jority Leader Harry Reid expressed confidence that a compromise would be reached sometime this week.

“I’m very optimistic that we will reach an agreement that’s reasonable in nature this week to reopen the government, pay the nation’s bills, and begin long-term negotiation to put our country on sound fiscal footing,” he said.

Government shuts downMany federal agencies affected, students safe for now

BriefsNEWS

DCCCD board of trustees appoints new chancellor

Dr. Joe May was nominated as DCCCD’s seventh chancellor by the DCCCD board of trustees on Oct. 7. Following a 21-day waiting period, May’s nomination can be approved with a formal vote. Should that happen, May will fill the position of retiring chancellor Dr. Wright Las-siter, who will make his retirement official on Dec. 31.

Former DCCCD chancellor Jan LeCroy dies

On Oct. 10, former DCCCD chan-cellor Jan LeCroy died in his home. He served as the DCCCD’s second chancellor from 1981 to 1987.

“Our hearts and prayers go out to Jan’s family. Please keep them in your thoughts,” Dr. Wright Lassiter, chancellor of DCCCD said in an email to the district.

HIV tests available by appointment to students and employees

HIV tests will be held in on Oct. 16 in rooms G-101 and G-102 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Appointments must be made beforehand by calling 972-860-7190 or visiting the Health Center Room in C-139.

STD tests available to students and employees on Oct. 22 and Oct. 29

STD tests for chlamydia, gonor-rhea, HIV and syphilis will be pro-vided by the Dallas County Health Department on Oct. 22 in the Pleasant Grove campus parking lot from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on Oct. 29 in the main campus E and 2-A parking lot from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. No appointment is necessary.

Campus hosts Health & Wellness Fair at no cost to students

On Oct. 23 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., the college will hold a free Health & Wellness Fair in C-135. Activi-ties include free health screenings and giveaways, in addition to free information from more than a dozen organizations, including the Ameri-can Red Cross and the YMCA.

Et Cetera staff brings home TCCJA awards for writing and design

On Oct. 4, Eastfield’s student pub-lications won 23 awards at TCCJA, including a Division I Sweepstakes and First Place in Overall Newspa-per Excellence.

— Compiled by Caitlin Piper and Justin David Tate

Wednesday, October 16, 2013 www.eastfieldnews.com The Et Cetera

NEWS4

By Kristen Dixon Staff Writer

Pouring rain, cold winds and small spaces didn’t stop hundreds of local residents from attending the fourth annual Harvest Fest Health Fair on the Pleasant Grove campus.

Organizers estimate that between 600 and 800 people, ranging from small children to senior citizens, crammed into the administration building for free screenings and other health-related services on Oct. 5.

The college holds the annual event to help people in the Pleasant Grove community who don’t have health insurance or transportation to larger health-related events in the Metro-plex. The event also helps the college connect to the community.

“That’s what we’re trying to do in Pleasant Grove, to really reach the people who need it the most,” said PG Executive Director Javier E. Olguin.

Area residents are able to to the health fair and receive the services they can’t obtain otherwise.

“We came to check mine and my dad’s health,” said Angel Castillo. “We usually go to the doctor, but we don’t have health insurance. We’ve applied but haven’t heard anything back, so it’s easier to come here.”

The health fair offers a variety of services including HIV and STD testing, flu shots, glucose and choles-terol testing, blood pressure testing, mammograms and dental and vision checks. All of the services are free.

“We started with just a few resourc-

es and now we have about 50 different vendors and community resources representing us here today,” said Mar-tha Camarillo, Health Fair committee co-chair. “Our purpose is to provide services for the children and the se-niors of Pleasant Grove.”

Those who participated in the fair were able to receive health informa-tion, Medicare packets and assistance with setting up a health plan for their families. Several of the families came to the event because they did not have insurance or the money to pay for a

doctor’s visit. The fair opened for testing at 9

a.m., but there was already a line wait-ing. People began arriving as early as 7 a.m.

“This is the first time we’ve been to this event,” Luz Ordaz said. “It’s easier

for us to come here since we don’t have insurance or a family doctor.”

In addition to the screenings and medical information, there was also entertainment for all ages. Zumba dancers, kindergarten and senior Folklórico dancers and the Way of Truth church choir entertained the crowd.

Rain disrupted the event at about 10 a.m., forcing the whole fair to quickly move inside the campus’ ad-ministration building. Booths were set up in the main hallway.

The space was crowded, but the fair was able to continue, and the people got the resources they need-ed. Around 500 attendees partici-pated in the screenings and health workshops.

There were also special activities for the children. Several of the booths featured games, toys and candy. A bounce house in the parking lot was a popular attraction before the event was forced inside.

Event sponsors included Parkland Health and Hospital System, South Texas Dental, DART, Skin Angel Center, Bear Creek Family Dentistry, the Dallas Police Department, Buena Suerte, McDonalds, Mi Doctor, Unit-ed Health Care and Amerigroup Re-alSolutions.

Every group participating donates some kind of financial assistance to the college.

“That’s how we’re able to fund this,” Camarillo said. “Any money that we have left over from the event goes di-rectly to the college for scholarships.”

Health fair serves hundreds at PG campus

By Karina Dunn Staff Writer

Students ages 17 to 70 are banding together to experience what it means to be active lead-ers through the college’s Communication Club.

The club, which is the largest on campus, offers opportunities for students to serve the community through various service events coordinated by Dr. Mary Forrest, the club’s adviser since its inception. The organization, which has been around since Eastfield was founded, has helped thousands of people over the years through its charities.

“All the work that we have to do is well worth it for serving all members,” said sopho-more Rosa Cueeas, the club’s vice president of administration and an education major.

Cueeas works closely with club president Maria Garcia to ensure the organization runs

efficiently and offers a good experience for members. With the help of her fellow club offi-cers, Garcia organizes meetings and activities such as Trash Bash, where students clean up litter in the community to learn about philan-thropy. Art for a Cause, a fundraiser that sup-ports club activities, teaches self-sufficiency.

“Seeing the skills [members] take from the club take them further in their own life is one of my goals,” Garcia said.

Forrest said she has always felt a need to give back to her community and to help oth-ers. The campus club provided a chance for her to reach out to students.

Forrest credits her mentor, Sue Cook, with motivating her to help her community. Cook approached Forrest after seeing her in a school play and wanted to help hone Forrest’s talent and charisma. She mentored Forrest from sec-ond grade through college.

Forrest said she took what she learned from

Cook and incorporated that into the Commu-nication Club.

“She gave a lot of energy and time to me,” Forrest said. “She was my first example to be a role model to students.”

A community that is now approximately 40 students strong each semester, the club is becoming increasingly diverse. Forrest attri-butes the success of the club to the students and their determination to succeed.

“The Communication Club at Eastfield works to be proactive and interactive,” she said. “I like that they are so engaged. I love their positive energy. We are leaving the coun-try in capable hands.”

Secretary Sonya Battle said all members, particularly the younger ones, express confi-dence in their roles and work to accomplish their goals.

“What stands out to me is how everyone works together,” Battle said. “There is no gen-

eration gap between older and younger club members. It feels like coming home.”

Individuality and fellowship provide a foundation for the Communication Club. Members note a cycle of self-betterment that expands as all members make a conscious ef-fort to pass on what they have learned.

“In Communication Club we form a bond between members,” Garcia said. “We are all in this together. All this is one team, serving to the best of our abilities.”

Students interested in joining the Com-munication Club are welcome to attend club meetings on Mondays from 12:30 to 2 p.m. in N-107. Applications are also available in the Office of Student Life. Place the application in the Communication Club mailbox and an of-ficer will contact the applicant.

Officers said students who are motivated, who work hard and who stay engaged should join the club.

Communication Club promotes leadership, community service

kristen dixon/the et ceteraVolunteer preps attendees’s arm for a flu vaccination during the Harvest Fest Health Fair Oct. 5.

The Et Cetera www.eastfieldnews.com Wednesday, October 16, 2013

NEWS 5

Balvin makes waves in students’ livesThe 2002 Winter Olympics torch relay was

organized by Coca-Cola, Chevrolet and the Salt Lake Organizing Committee.

Each got to choose a third of the 12,000 people who would represent their community, run six-tenths of a mile and then pass the torch to the next person.

Coca-Cola chose Balvin based on essays from his former Eastfield students detailing how he embodied the Olympic spirit.

“When I found out they would take the time to write that I have been an inspiration in their lives, and that I was chosen, that’s very emotional,” Balvin said. “That’s like real special stuff.”

Balvin has been a physical education instructor at Eastfield for 37 years. The courses he teaches include triathlon fitness and scuba diving, his pas-sion since the age of 16.

“Water has always been my home,” Balvin said. “I was captain of the swimming team in high school. Scuba diving [was] a natural progression.”

Though life appears to be smooth sailing today, Balvin’s journey to Eastfield was a rough voyage.

In the mid-1970s, the state of New York laid off 100,000 of its teachers. Balvin, a Long Island native, was one of them, despite the success he had brought to his high school’s swim team.

“It was strictly [based]on seniority, so even though I coached the swimming team, I had the first winning team that they’d ever had, and we were doing exceptionally well and everybody liked me, it was strictly, ‘We love you, but we can’t keep you.’”

Balvin looked for teaching jobs everywhere, but found as many as 500 applicants vying for a single job. A few times, Balvin made it to the final three, but his Master of Science degree and years of teaching counted against him.

“They would say, ‘Would you take $15,000 less?’” Balvin said. “They wanted me for all that I had and my credentials, but they didn’t have money. They would say, ‘We have this guy, Ken Balvin, but then we have this guy fresh out of col-lege.’ So they would always take the cheap one.”

Balvin had a new home, an infant son and no job to support either. After nearly a year struggling to find a job, he and his wife decided to move to New Hampshire where both took jobs working at a ski resort.

His wife worked at a children’s day care for resort consumers while he worked as a manager of The Barn, a bar and restaurant on the resort. Though it helped pay the bills, Balvin hated not being able to work in water.

“It was devastating,” Balvin said. “I had to rent my house out. I had to leave it to strangers. I had to pack up my family and go to a cold place, but we made it fun.”

Balvin spent time skiing at the resort, but his first athletic love was always water. He worked as a lifeguard every summer on the beaches of Fire Island, N.Y., for 30 years.

But in 1976, as he lived and worked on Loon Mountain, N.H., away from the warm lakes and infinite oceans he once surfed and swam, Balvin

looked into a publication called the Chronicle of Education for a job that would lead him back to his love of water.

“I would find places to go and that’s where I found this place in Dallas County Community College, Eastfield,” Balvin said. “I said, ‘Misqueet, huh? What the — well it’s close to Dallas, it can’t be that bad,” Balvin said.

Balvin and his family moved to Texas after he was hired as a physical education instructor at Eastfield in 1976. Upon arrival, Balvin started the scuba diving program at the DCCCD, teaching such instructors as Mike Miles, a physical educa-tion instructor at Richland College.

“I fell in love with [Texas],” Balvin said. “My daughter was born here. It’s always been good, because I can get away in the summers and always get to the ocean. I can spend my summers diving and doing triathlons with family.”

One of Balvin’s students, kinesiology major and college lifeguard Gio Guzman, credits Balvin with changing his life.

“Ken’s one of those very few professors who you not only actually learn something [from], but carry with you throughout your life,” Guzman said. “Some of these professors lecture and at the end of the semester, you don’t even remember half the stuff they talked about.”

During a recent campus event called Discover

Scuba, students and faculty were invited to try scuba diving to see how they liked it before joining Balvin in his spring semester class.

Balvin patiently instructed all who came, slowly leading them from shallow waters to the 14-foot end of the pool. Library assistant Jesse Brown said he grew up idolizing scuba divers on TV, but never thought he would be able to try it until he met Balvin.

Since it was his first time, Balvin walked Brown through diving in simplistic terms.

“For a first-timer, I feel like a vet now,” Brown said. “I’ll definitely see him in March.”

Balvin enjoys being patient with his students and said he has always been that way. Even after they become certified divers, Balvin wants to help them become great divers, which he says will take time.

Balvin invites his former students to take trips with him all over the world, from Belize to Cozumel and even the Philippines, to dive into oceans beyond the U.S.

“I took 25 down to Belize last summer,” Balvin said. “I take people all over. We just travel as cheap as possible. I organize it and we all go and have a great time and take over the boat. So that’s the next part of it, too. My students become my close friends. We travel and they’re not my students anymore, they’re my buddies.”

Odessa Leeper/The eT ceTeraScuba diving instructor Ken Balvin walks a student through her first dive during Discover Scuba.

Students test scuba fins for Health Week By Bailey Hawkins Contributing Writer

Prospective students strapped on masks and fins recently to see if scuba diving might make it into their future class schedules.

On Oct. 1, 10 prospective students showed up at the pool ready to dive into Discover Scuba, taught by pro-fessor Ken Balvin. The free event was part of Health Week and Eastfield’s Amazing Race.

“[Scuba diving] teaches about a healthy lifestyle,” said Balvin, a dive master who has been teaching at Eastfield for 37 years. “You need to be fit in order to dive. You have to be fit in order to enjoy it. Health Week: It’s about life.”

Balvin said some people tell him they didn’t know Eastfield had scuba lessons. Others tell him that they didn’t even know there was a pool at the college. They all take scuba for different reasons.

“Some people get it off their buck-et lists,” Balvin said.

That afternoon the sun was blind-ing and the water was perfect. Some beginning divers appeared to be ner-vous, but others were smiling. Patty Stephan was one of the nervous ones.

“I’m still pretty anxious, breath-ing underwater, but it was better than what I’ve done before,” she said “I have to get past this anxiety and work through it.”

Balvin showed a lot of patience. “You try to have a little fun and

disarm them,” he said. “I think I’ve always been [patient].”

Stephan said Balvin worked with her one on one and calmed her down when she would freak out and get out of the water.

“He convinced me to stay in, and I’m glad I did, because then I did get used to it,” she said. “He was very en-couraging, even before you get into the pool.”

Nick Flores, one of Balvin’s diving assistants, is working on becoming a dive master himself.

“He’s the best,” Flores said of his mentor.

Balvin held a discovery dive last semester, and said he plans to host another one in the spring.

Balvin said he was pleased with the outcome this semester.

“It was actually a very good group,” he said.

Continued from page 1

6 The Et Cetera Wednesday, October 16, 2013

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7

By Gereneicia Foster Staff Writer

The time had come again for Cody Dziak to compete in the state championship race at the Metroplex BMX track in DeSoto. It was a familiar yet frustrating venue.

He had won many races in his young career, but never this one. Now it was his time to win.

Dziak loved the sport. He was a natural. He had been racing since he was 8 years old. He was ranked third in the nation in his age group and graced the cover of “The BMXer” magazine. He even beat Kyle Bennett, a profes-sional rider and member of the United States’ first Olympic BMX team, to the first turn in a pro-am practice race.

However, a win at the state championships is what he really wanted.

He felt confident waiting at the start line. Some of the best BMX riders in the state were here, including his arch rival, the same kid who introduced him to racing.

“He was a superstar when I was a nobody, and now I was up to his level if not past his level,” Dziak said. “It was a big thing for him, and it was a big thing for me to beat him.”

Dziak had come in second place at the state championships several times. He was within half a wheel from winning once. He needed to win this race. It would be his defining mo-ment.

Dziak was completely focused as he waited for the race to start. Then, in an instant, the light flashed from red to green. He raced to-ward the first straightaway, rode smoothly over the first jumps and approached the turn.

The crowd was roaring. Dziak was in the lead with his archrival following closely be-hind. He zoomed down the last straight away and approached the last corner.

Then it happened. His arch rival cut him off at the turn, and Dziak fell to the ground. Other riders zoomed past him, and his rival raced to another victory.

“I could taste the dirt,” he said. “I got the wind knocked out of me from falling so hard. I was cut up and scarred.”

Dziak didn’t quit. He got back on his bike as the crowd stood and applauded. He finished last. The state championship had slipped from his grasp once again.

What Dziak didn’t know was that this would be his last race. Three slipped disks in his back from excessive practicing forced him to give up the sport. His accident at the state championship was “the tip of the iceberg.”

“It was a real shame to go out right when I was starting to [excel],” he said. “I had always been fast, but I was really starting to turn the turbos on there. But stuff happens.”

Dziak didn’t let his injury hinder him. He never let anything discourage him.

“You might get me down, but it doesn’t mean you are going to stop me from what I’m going to do,” he said.

Dziak is a first-semester student at East-field studying biology and kinesiology. He graduated from Poteet High School last year with a 4.0 grade-point average. He made the academic excellence honor roll in 2010-11 and was voted Mr. Poteet for 2012-13. He received a host of other academic awards.

This year, Dziak was one of eight recipients of the LeCroy Scholarship. The scholars pro-gram was created in 1988 by DCCCD board member Mike A. Myers to honor former chan-cellor Dr. R. Jan LeCroy for his leadership in the community and education.

To receive this scholarship, recipients must

have a 3.0 grade-point average, letters of rec-ommendation and strong leadership qualities in school and in the community.

But his academic success didn’t come easy. Dziak has battled dyslexia his entire life.

Because of his struggles, he never enjoyed reading, especially if the subject didn’t interest him. He had to read text repeatedly to reach a full understanding of the material. Spelling was also a battle.

“It was just hard for me. With some words I’d get stumped,” Dziak said. “I’d catch myself sometimes putting an e on ‘had.’”

Dziak was determined to succeed, no mat-ter how long it took to master a subject. Taking the TAKS test was one of his biggest hurdles. One time he began a testing session at 9 a.m. and finished at 9 p.m.

“I knew it was just what I had to do to get the grade I wanted to get,” Dziak said.

Yet Dziak never used dyslexia as an excuse.“I don’t have a quitting attitude,” he said.

“It may take me a little bit longer to do some-

thing, but I won’t quit at it.” Dziak’s mother Stephanie said his struggles

weren’t because he didn’t know how to do the work. He just worked at a different pace.

“Cody knows that some kids might do things in 10 minutes while it may take him an hour,” she said. “But he never let that deter him.”

He still struggles with dyslexia but he has developed his own strategies, especially with writing. He approaches all of his subjects me-thodically.

“I’m old-fashioned,” Dziak said. “I like to use paper for everything, whether it is science, English, math or history. I like to map it all out.”

Biking and schoolwork aren’t the only plac-es where Dziak excels. He takes pride in being a leader. He was captain of his cross-country team during his junior and senior years in high school and is one of the youngest ush-ers at his church. His sister Lindsay has Down syndrome, and last year he was the assistant coach of her Special Olympics basketball team.

“When you’re a leader, you take control over what’s happening,” he said. “You can control your own destiny.”

Dziak also received the Knights of Colum-bus scholarship from the ushers at his church, and he was awarded the Justin Lynch Memo-rial scholarship at Poteet High School.

“All of his hard work from high school, it’s like it paid off,” Stephanie Dziak said. “It defi-nitely makes you feel good.”

Peggy Courtney, a family friend, said Dziak should serve as an inspiration to other stu-dents suffering from dyslexia.

“They could really look up to him and say, ‘Wow, look at this guy. Look at how far he has gotten,’” she said.

Dziak plans to pursue a career in the medi-cal field after college, possibly nursing or sports chiropractic medicine. He said he chose this career path so he could spread awareness to other athletes about the importance of not just practicing but letting their bodies rest. He was injured after years of playing sports and not getting adequate rest.

“I saw this happen to me and I don’t want it to have to happen to anyone else,” Dziak said.

Dziak also encourages other students with dyslexia to set their goals high. He said learn-ing disabilities can be a barrier, but there are ways around them.

“Just always strive towards success, how-ever you define success,” he said. “Don’t let it hold you back.”

Driven student overcomes life’s hurdles

Life&Arts

Kristen Dixon/the et ceteraCody Dziak, who plans to pursue a career in the medical field, studies in the library.

Rough Rider


Life&Arts8

By Justin David Tate Life and Arts Editor

Massive turkey legs and ferris wheel rides are what the average person pictures when they think about the Texas State Fair. The problem for college students is that the cost of a turkey leg and ferris wheel ride is nearly $20.

Photographer Kristen Dixon and I each de-cided to limit ourselves to $15 in tickets, which means we’ll have 30 tickets each to play with. In the process, we’ll see if we can find some free things to do alongside the more outrageously overpriced things. Here’s how our day went:

2 p.m. – We avoid the $15 parking by driv-ing across the street from Gate 11 on South Fitzhugh Avenue to a sign that reads $5. We park on a grassy lot, where an elderly parking attendant hands us Jehovah Witness material.

Cost: Me Kristen

2:20 p.m. – Fair tickets normally cost $17, but we decide to take one of the many routes to a discount. On Thursdays, moviegoers who ar-rive with a Cinemark ticket stub can get in for free. Just make sure the ticket has the date, time and name of the movie on the stub.

2:30 p.m. – Over the next four hours, we are going to do as much as possible as cheaply as possible. We find a few promotional booths near the entrance where we stuff handfuls of free peanut butter crackers and free 5-Hour

Energy drinks into our personal bags. The 5-Hour Energy booth even has free carnival games that resemble a knockoff of the Wheel of Fortune, and we win 10 sets of headphones.

3:48 p.m. – After waiting in a long but brisk line, I hop into the new 2014 Corvette Stingray at the Chevy Ride & Drive. Out of all the vehicles I have test-driven so far, includ-ing a 2013 Camaro, the Stingray has the best handling. I can see why people pay $20,000 just to bump their name up on the waiting list to own one. It’s a nice car to whip around corners on a short track before being forced to hand the keys back.

4:17 p.m. – We fly in a free U.S. Air Mission helicopter ride. It was basically a metal box that jiggled a little while we watched bad actors tell us what mission we were accomplish-ing. The first-person perspective switched from a jet to a motorcycle to a satellite above the Earth. It’s fun for the price I paid for it.

4:20 p.m. – Sometimes observing the ac-tions of others can provide free entertainment, especially when strolling through the fair.

The gong at the top of a high striker rings as flashing lights and Nintendo noises indicate a special occurrence.

“I got a winner. I got a winner. Winner! Winner! Winner!”

The game operator hops up and down before awarding a stuffed creature that resembles a shorter alien member of “Duck Dynasty” to a man bewildered by his sudden success. I’m

positive I’ve witnessed a rarity. It’s fun to see someone actually win something for a change.

4:36 p.m. – In a dark, dreary place called the Scary Park, a black woman stands in a Southern gothic dress as if to suggests she could be a witch or voodoo priestess/witch doctor. The fearful atmosphere is disrupted by the sounds of the “Cupid Shuffle” and the voo-doo priestess’ subsequent dancing. Funny? Yes. Scary? No. Entertained for free by the random acts of strangers? Yes.

4:48 p.m. –As much as we love free stuff, it’s time to buy some tickets and eat some fat-tening fried foods.

Cost: Me Kristen

5:04 p.m. – Kristen shares her fried Oreo with me and my mind is blown. I was skeptical, but then an explosion of chocolate, melty goodness made me a believer. For eight tickets, they could have given her more than three. But it seems they are about the only food that costs less than 12 tickets. Kris-ten also got a bottle of water for six tickets, while I brought my own gallon.

Tickets Left: Me – Kristen –

5:07 p.m. – “Black or White” blasts from the Coca-Cola stage and is soon followed by “Billie Jean.” These are not the versions I grew up listening to on my cassette player in grade school. A quartet of singers with troubled vocals do Michael Jackson a disservice and proceed to butcher Justin Timberlake and Prince, too. But as much of a train wreck as the group’s performance is, it’s also free. Free train wrecks can be fun.

FA IRFA IRSTAT E STAT E Awesome, even on a $20 budget

PHOTO belOw by laurie dOdd; rigHT by KrisTen dixOnBelow, two fair attendees scarf down Fletcher’s corn dogs during their trip to the Texas State Fair.

9 The Et Cetera www.eastfieldnews.com Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Life&Arts


5:54 p.m. – We arrive upon the best treat of the fair, a bowl of funnel cake fries. They are actu-al funnel cake pieces cut into the shape of French fries and doused in powdered sugar. I sit down and relish the awesomeness that costs a measly 10 tickets, even if it means dirtying up my jeans with powdered sugar. And yes, I let Kristen indulge in

the sugariness too.


6:24 p.m. – We check out the Birds of Prey, and it’s an awesome show. A bird perched atop the ferris wheel is called down to the open stage by his trainer. The trainer rewards him by toss-ing food into the air, which the bird snatches with ease and grace. It breaks my heart to learn that this show will be the show’s final season at the Texas State Fair after 25 years. It will now be joining the Dallas Zoo, which is really cool. I can’t wait to visit the show there.

6:36 p.m. – The trainer brings out a sing-ing parrot and tells it to sing. It vocalizes

in a humorous tremor that proves endearing to the audience.

Before the parrot exits, it blows a kiss into the

microphone.


7:15 p.m. – Kristen and I decide to get pretzels and lemonade to finish off our tickets. I know, I know. We should get exotic food, but after noticing that a Cuban Roll costs 16 tickets and turkey legs costs even more than that, a pretzel with cheese and large cup of lemonade for the same price sounds better. Somehow the lady miscounts my tickets and gives me back seven instead of four.


7:21 p.m. – Kristen notices a large assort-ment of well-lit floats that are connected and beginning to glow brighter as the sun disap-pears. They are scooting down the road as hun-dreds of onlookers begin to huddle along the pathway. I follow the spectacle, which includes a butterfly-winged princess on a Children’s Hospital float and a giant ladybug whose eyes glow in the dark. The parade also includes a replica of Big Tex, cotton candy creatures and a glowing dragon lantern. The coolest thing, without a doubt, is the stilt-walkers, a trio of people on stilts standing at least four feet off the ground, including a friendly-looking scarecrow (think Raggedy Ann on steroids).

7:57 p.m. – I decide to head to the bar to finish off the last set of my tickets. I want a margarita, which costs 12 tickets, but I only have seven. The bartender shows pity on me at the end of the night and gives me the fruity alcoholic beverage. Turns out, the bartender is a former reporter for the Dallas Times-Herald. He saw my photographer snapping pictures throughout the day and me taking notes be-side her. It is a nice experience to meet a fellow journalist and swap war stories over a drink.


We’ve had tons of fun, but now the night has dragged on too long. I begin to yawn. Kristen appears ready to go too, so we make our exit out Gate 11. I’ve spent a total of $20 with parking included. Kristen has only spent $15. That means two people can enjoy end-less peanut butter crackers, endless 5-Hour Energy drinks, endless test drives of Camaros and Corvettes, endless U.S. Army helicopter simulator rides, an order of fried Oreos, an order of funnel cake fries, two pretzels, one with cheese, two cups of lemonade and a bottle of water for $35 on a Thursday, so long as you bring a Cinemark movie ticket. The bank has not been broken. Our wallets can rest easier tonight.

Awesome, even on a $20 budget

PHOTOS BELOW BY LauriE dOddBelow left, a fairgoer hikes across the Midway with her prize in tow. Below right, a young girl enjoys cotton candy during her trip to the Texas State Fair.

the sugariness too.


10 LIFE&ArTS

Cast readies for ‘You Can’t Take it With You’

By Braulio Tellez Contributing Writer

Metalheads rejoice. Your movie is here.

Nimrod Antal’s “Metallica: Through the Never” premiered this month and blew out my ear drums, as well as my perception of heavy metal concerts.

I wasn’t too familiar with Metal-lica’s music and had only heard their radio hits, but that didn’t matter. Anyone who is a fan of live music will fall in love with this heavy rock-er flick.

The concert takes place inside a sold-out sports arena on the brink of one of Metallica’s sold-out shows. The film follows Trip, the lone mem-ber of the cast, a young metalhead and member of the band’s road crew.

As the band begins its mind-melting stage set with the song “Ec-stasy Of Gold,” Trip is pulled away from the crowd and handed the task

of retrieving a stranded truck in the middle of the city that is carrying something Metallica needed for the show.

He is given a gas container, keys to a van and is quickly sent on his way. What follows is a twisted and surreal trek fit for any thrasher.

The film has no real plot and in-stead uses the scripted scenes as a sort of music video to accompany the live stage show. Trip would head down a street and suddenly run into an angry mob of metalheads fight-ing cops in full riot gear, then the movie would jump back to the band pumping out killer guitar solos.

Viewers should treat the loose mashup of scenes as a compliment to the bigger show and not try to make sense of it because, to be hon-est, it doesn’t make any sense.

The main attraction is definitely the performance.

“Through The Never” is in IMAX 3D, which only adds to the already awesome experience that is a live Metallica concert.

The band plays in the middle of a nameless football arena on top of an awesome stage made of what looks like dozens of TV screens. The py-rotechnics are like something I have never seen in my life. Explosions, lasers and intricate stage props are used throughout the performance.

When the band starts playing “Ride the Lightning,” a giant electric chair and a huge pair of electric coils are lowered from the ceiling of the arena and start shooting off bolts of lightning, an easy but enjoyable ex-ploit for 3D.

All in all, the movie makes a great statement for the band and its fol-lowers. It gives an older generation of Metallica fans something to go nuts about and the new generation a taste of how truly awesome this band is.

By Emma Hahn Staff Writer

Now that the semester is fully underway, the Eastfield theater de-partment is wrapping up rehearsals for the first production of the year, “You Can’t Take it With You.”

With the opening-night perfor-mance only about two weeks away, things behind the scenes are peace-ful despite the stress and responsi-bility.

Cast members have been scram-bling to prepare for opening night, but they said the experience has helped them grow closer.

“It’s kinda like we’re our own little family even though none of us knew each other before,” freshman cast member Ashley Vessels said. “But now it’s really easy for us to get along.”

Fellow actor Stephanie Booth said one reason she auditioned was because of the social aspect.

“It’s a good opportunity to meet people,” she said. “It’s my first se-mester, and it’s a good way to make friends.”

“You Can’t Take it With You,” set in the 1930s, tells the story of Alice

Sycamore, who falls in love with the rich and powerful Tony Kirby. The only problem is that her family is anything but normal.

The comedy features every-thing from homemade (and illegal) fireworks to a boisterous Russian dance teacher.

“Essie thinks she’s going to be a ballet dancer, but in reality, she sucks,” Booth said of her character Essie Sycamore. “It’s really fun that I get to dance around the stage and let loose.”

The cast and crew have devoted a lot of time to perfect the play. Cast member Garvin Locket said they are putting in three hours of rehearsal every night.

“[After that] you have to go home and learn your lines,” Booth said. “It’s hard work, but it will pay off in the end.”

The play will be held in the per-formance hall at noon and 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 17, and at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 19. It will also show at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 25 and 26, and at 2 p.m. on Oct. 27.

Tickets can be purchased at the box office before the show or in ad-vance from the business office.

odessa leeper/The eT ceTeraPerformers rehearse their lines on the set of “You Can’t Take it With You.” The first performance is at noon Oct. 17.

3D Metallica movie entertains metalheads from past, present

Carnival madness

odessa leeper/The eT ceTeraTevin Whitaker lines up a putt during the festivities at the SECC Carnival on Sept. 30. Proceeds from the carnival went to a scholar-ship fund for students.


Mexican-born artist Carlos Donjuan was just another kid with a spray paint can when he started honing his graffiti skills on the streets of Oak Cliff. Now he’s noticed in countries as far away as Italy, where his work will be displayed in February.

On Oct. 3, Donjuan spoke about his progress-sion as an artist during a guest lecture in G-101. Two of his works are in Eastfield’s permanent collection, so Gallery Director Iris Bechtol asked him to speak about his art.

“Two summers ago we were given a budget to go buy a bunch of artwork,” Bechtol said. “Our focus was to find artists who had ties to the re-gional area, and that’s when we found Carlos.”

During his lecture, Donjuan showed exam-ples of his graffiti and paint work. He discussed how his work has traveled across America in the past year.

“I’ve gained a bigger following in California,” Donjuan said. “Cheech Marin [from Cheech and Chong] started collecting my work, so that brought a lot of attention my way.”

In his earlier work, Donjuan’s subjects wore masks on their faces, a choice that some viewers have misinterpreted in the past.

“A lot of them were graffiti artists, so when I

would take their picture they would always cov-er their faces,” he said. “They wanted to remain anonymous, so that’s the way I painted them.”

When he paints, Donjuan said he tries to show his academic training, as well as what he learned while doing graffiti in the streets.

Donjuan is now a professor himself. He teaches drawing fundamentals and beginning painting at the University of Texas at Arlington, as well as a Saturday painting class at El Centro.

Donjuan has lived in the United States since the age of 3, but he said he’s still viewed as a Mexican here. When he goes to visit relatives in Mexico, they view him as an American.

“I always felt a little weird being accepted here because I was born in Mexico,” Donjuan said. “But then I always felt weird being accepted in Mexico because I lived here. So I always felt like I didn’t belong.”

When he was growing up, Donjuan often heard people use the phrase “illegal” and never knew what it meant. As he grew older, he real-ized they were talking about him.

“It was heartbreaking to know that I was who they were talking about,” Donjuan said. “As I got older, I started to revisit that idea [in my art] and tried to show what illegal aliens truly looked like.”

Many of Donjuan’s portraits are set in a desert similar to the one his parents brought him across

when they entered the country. “When my son was born, my work started

to change drastically,” he said. “The idea of hav-ing my son around made my work friendlier. I started to wonder what he would think of my paintings.”

Donjuan often thinks about different age groups and how they will interpret his work. He said he doesn’t remember seeing any murals that inspired him as a kid. Now, he has a chance to inspire people of all ages with his art.

Donjuan recently won a $50,000 grant from the City of Dallas to paint a large mural in the Oak Cliff area.

“They have these in major cities like Los An-geles and New York,” he said. “This will be one of the first in Dallas, and it gives a new sense of hope to artists in the Dallas area.”

During his presentation, Donjuan showed the audience a painting of a man with his limbs am-putated. He drew this to symbolize kids who try to hop on trains and ride from Central America to Mexico and are thrown off.

“Paintings like this help me to remember to keep pushing,” Donjuan said. “Someone else is in a much worse place.”

Tomas Renteria, an intern with Donjuan’s Sour Grapes collective for five years, said Don-juan still works swiftly because of his past as a graffiti artist.

“You have to be real quick, keep it hidden,” he said. “It’s like those pictures with their faces covered. They didn’t want to be caught for doing graffiti.”

Art student Janeth Quintero said she was in-spired by Donjuan.

“What I picked up from him was do what you love and be happy about it,” she said. “I learned to keep control and do what you want to do. Put your work out there, push yourself. Never stop doing what you love.”

Former graffiti artist discusses his artistic progression with studentsFrom Mexico to Milan


11LIFE&ArTS

odessa leeper/The eT ceTeraCarlos Donjuan chats with a member of the audience after his art lecture.

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Etera

Single men and women everywhere regularly browse online dating sites in search of com-panionship.

So it’s no won-der why advertisers stay in the business of selling love.

Commercials showing men and women holding hands, hugging and smiling constantly pop up on the Internet. “Find love at last,” or “We’ve got the right match for you,” they say.

I was sold, and thought I would try it. Why not? I’m single, and the websites are supposed to be 100 percent trusted, free and safe.

I chose a very popular dating site and created my profile. I filled out a questionnaire asking me if I was single, divorced, widowed or married. I answered lots of questions. This was like a background check. I uploaded a few decent pictures and received many messages. But when I tried to open my messages, I was asked to pay a monthly fee.

What happened to “free?”I didn’t want to pay, so I didn’t. A few months passed,

and I decided on a different, more popular site on my friends’ recommendations.

This site actually was free with no hidden fees. I creat-ed a profile and answered the same questions. I received messages within 24 hours. I chatted, browsed photos and networked. I connected with a few potential dates whose profiles and conversation interested me.

I met a man at a trendy restaurant for our first date, but all he talked about were his financial issues, baby mama drama and seven kids.

His profile said he had two kids. I guess he forgot about the other five? Delete.

I continued to chat and meet people. I met a gentle-man I will call “Mr. X.” After corresponding with him for about a month, I decided to take up his offer and meet him for dinner. It was wonderful.

He called to make sure I was got home okay. We talked and texted during the day and said goodnight every night. A week passed as our conflicting schedules prevented us from having another date.

Then I received a text message from an unfamiliar phone number. The message read, “Do you know my husband?”

I responded, “You have the wrong number, I don’t know this person.”

“Yes, you know him,” the text said. “He goes by a dif-ferent name. The two of you met on a single’s site. I’m his wife.”

I was shocked. After I picked my mouth up off the floor, I apologized. I guess this is why Mr. X was so busy.

I never heard from him again. I reported the incident to the site. His profile stayed up, but I decided to delete mine.

Online dating just wasn’t for me.

OUR VIEW

12

The Et Cetera Wednesday, October 16, 2013

U.S. leaders should grow up, take control of nation

On Oct. 1 — the first day of the 2014 fed-eral fiscal year — the U.S. government entered a partial shutdown after Congress failed to pass a spending bill in an effort to delay the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. This resulted in the suspension of a number of services and the furlough of more than 800,000 government workers.

As the shutdown enters its third week, Americans are growing increasingly con-cerned about its impact on both the U.S. economy and its citizens.

We believe Congress’ act of enabling the shutdown is childish and a major overreaction to not getting their own way.

Major parts of the government were shut down because one faction of Congress pro-tested a law it did not agree with.

To put this behavior in perspective, imagine if college administrators enacted a new rule that did not sit well with the faculty. In response, all professors decided to leave their jobs, placing the education of students campus-wide on indefinite suspension.

In their efforts to protest this new rule and

improve the college, the professors would actually harming the students, making it worse for everyone involved.

Faculty members would lose their jobs and sources of income, while students would be losing valuable time that could be spent furthering their education.

Similarly, this shutdown is helping no one. Almost a million federal workers have

temporarily lost a source of income and mil-lions of others no longer have access to vital government services.

As the shutdown continues with no sign of a guaranteed compromise between the oppos-ing factions, its negative impact on the U.S. economy continues to increase.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, while controversial, legally passed through the legislative process. It was not an executive order.

Congress has no excuse for its actions. Its opposition to the act is directly harming the American people.

It’s time for our lawmakers to stop throwing temper tantrums and start doing their jobs.

Online dating has serious drawbacks

opinion

Kametra Loud


On Oct. 7, Dean of Social Sciences Mike Walker and history professor Matt Hinckley gave a presentation in C-295 highlighting the impact Latinos have made on American sports.

Mel Almada“The first Mexican to play in the MLB was

Mel Almada in 1933,” Hinckley said. “He didn’t have that long or distinguished of a career, but the most interesting thing about him was that in his second to last season he hit safely in 54 consecutive games and came two games short of Joe Dimaggio’s 56-game hitting streak.”

Roberto Clemente“Roberto Clemente, he’s an important guy,

not just because of his incredible skills as a baseball player, but he was also a great humani-tarian,” Walker said.

“Eighteen thousand people, I’m told, showed up on the beaches of where the plane crashed and claimed they thought he was going to walk up out of the water. Baseball decided after about two months that they were going to put him into the Hall of Fame.”

Lou Molinet“The first Latino to play in the NFL was Lou

Molinet,” Hinckley said. “For years it was be-lieved that Jesse Rodriguez was the first Latino in the NFL. However, in 1999 Molinet’s grand-daughter found a professional football contract that Molinet signed in 1927.”

Tom Flores“Tom Flores was the first

Latino to play quarterback in the NFL,” Hinckley said. “He was drafted in 1960 by the Oakland Raiders. He later went on to become the head coach of the Oakland Raiders and won two Super Bowls, be-coming the first Latino coach to win a Super Bowl.”

Jim Plunkett “Although he doesn’t have

a very Hispanic-sounding name, Jim Plunkett was Mexi-can,” Hinckley said. “He is the first player to win the Heis-man trophy and a Super Bowl MVP. In 1971, he became the

first Latino to be taken No. 1 overall in the NFL draft and remains the lone Latino to this day.”

“With the Raiders, he won two Super Bowls. Tom Flores was the head coach when Plunkett was the quarterback.”

Jim Plunkett is the only quarterback who started and won two Super Bowls and is not in-

ducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Tom Flores is the only head coach to win two Super Bowls to not be inducted into the hall of fame.

“There is a general dislike for the Oakland Raiders that’s out there, but there’s also an un-derlying sense of racism,” Hinckley said.

Ozzie Guillen“Ozzie Guillen was the shortstop for the White

Sox as I was growing up in Chicago,” Hinckley said. “He came back as the manager, and in 2005, led the team to a World Series victory, becoming the first Latino manager to win a World Series.”

“In 1987 my dad and a group of people were going to a White Sox game,” Hinckley said. “My dad won a drawing to throw out the opening pitch and he said ‘Matt I want you to do it.’ I was 10 years old. The one thing I think about that picture is how Mexican my dad looks.”

“Ozzie Guillen basically quit on the White Sox in 2011 and went to go manage the Miami Marlins,” Hinckley said. “Before he even man-aged his first game he got into a lot of trouble with the fan base in Miami for praising Fidel Castro. Miami is filled with lots of people who fled Cuba after Castro took power, and that was like a slap in the face to them.

Educators highlight Latinos who excelled in sports

Courtesy of Matt HinCkleyHistory professor Matt Hinckley, center, poses with his dad, left, with Ozzie Guillen, right, before an 1987 White Sox game.

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PART-TIME PACKAGE HANDLERS $9.50/hr. to start

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13Sports Oct. 17 Soccer at Richland 5:30 p.m.Oct. 17 Volleyball vs. Brookhaven 7 p.m.Oct. 21 Volleyball at North Lake 7 p.m.Oct. 25 MAC Volleyball Tournament TBA

The Et Cetera www.eastfield.com Wednesday, October 2, 2013

14sports

With a

goalin mind

The Lady Harvesters soccer team have clinched a spot in the Metro Ath-letic Conference postseason tournament.

Eastfield’s first-round game will be Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at Richland Col-lege. Richland is currently ranked sixth in the national poll.

The Lady Harvesters, who will be the fourth seed in the tournament, won two of their last four games in order to qualify for the playoffs. On Oct. 2, Eastfield defeated Southwest Adventist University 3-0. On Oct. 4, the Lady Harvesters defeated Mountain View 3-0.

Their two final wins improved the Lady Harvesters’ record to 3-11. Their first win came 6-2 against Southwest Adventist University on Sept. 18.

Coach Dustin Stein said the Lady Harvesters making the postseason tour-nament was a result of the hard work they have put in this year.

“This team has come a long way in a very short amount of time,” Stein said. “Each week the girls improve, and you can see their confidence grow-ing. We are excited to be the underdogs entering the tournament and would love to end Richland’s season on Thursday night.”

— Kevin Cushingberry Jr.

Above, from left, Kristy Herrera, Jessica Gallardo and Jacqueline

Diaz pursue the ball in a game against Southwest Adventist

University. Right, freshman Jessica Flores fights for the

ball against a defender from Southwest Adventist University.

Bottom left, Aracely Murillo chases after the ball in

the Harvesters’ first home game of the season against Paris

Junior College. Bottom right, Chasity Turner makes a move as a PJC defender hesitates.

Kevin cushingberry/The eT ceTera

Odessa leeper/The eT ceTera

Kevin cushingberry/The eT ceTera

The Et Cetera www.eastfield.com Wednesday, October 16, 2013

15

Short Thoughts BY ALEX HERNANDEZ

Wrapup

Trivia BitsI’m-a-gonna let you finish, but whom did

Kanye interrupt at the 2009 MTV VMAs, so that he could say that Beyonce had one of the greatest videos of all time?

A) AdeleB) Kelly ClarksonC) Miley CyrusD) Taylor Swift

Trivia Answer Taylor Swift was rather irked to have Kanye West jump up on stage.

16 The Et Cetera Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Documents

October16 2013 Issue