The needle pierces the fake plastic flesh of the mechanical man, his pulse races, his oxygen levels continue to fall; the nurses race to find another solution to his needs. At the Moorpark nursing program, up-to-date technology gives nurses-in-training the chance to practice without the need of a real patient. “Our faculty is mostly made up of working professionals, and I think that drives how we teach and interact with our students. We are all very enthusiastic and dedicated to our profession,” said Higashida. “We hold very high standards for our students, and I think that pushes students to high standards. We want to train them not only in safe care, but in quality care.” “Sim-man,” or simulation man, is one example of a device used to prepare and test students’ reactions to realistic situations they may encounter in the field. Teachers control the robots by altering blood pressure, oxygen levels, or adding other symptoms. Students must diagnose and treat the robot to the best of their knowledge. They were some of the first to try out My VCCCD and other innovations that later spread to Moorpark and the rest of the Ventura community college campuses.
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The first semester of the Year of Service ended with a presentation from a group that wants to give an educational tool to children in need. Caryl Bigenho, a support volunteer for One Laptop per Child, gave a presentation on Nov. 4 in the Forum to persuade the audience to start a university chapter on campus. One Laptop per Child provides children around the world with the XO, a ruggedly constructed green and white laptop computer that has a variety of educational programs as well as internet capabilities. Bigenho pointed out how the goal of the program was more than just giving away a machine. ”It’s an education project, not a laptop project,” said Bigenho. A university chapter would allow students to volunteer with the service to help repair the laptops, design programs, research and help write technical manuals that would be included in the machines.
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Themes of love and loss where explored in a fundraiser held by the Moorpark College forensics team at the Performing Arts Center Dec. 2. The national award-winning forensics team at Moorpark College held a fundraiser at the Performing Arts Center last Wednesday night. The team showed off their skills while raising money to pay for this year’s tournament expenses. The speakers performed stories and situations of love, loss, cruelty, and even the dangers of free speech. The team is led by coaches Rolland Petrello, Neal Stewart, Jill McCall, August Benassi, and Jim Wyman. For coach Petrello, his favorite part of working with these students is watching them learn.
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One Moorpark College professor feels that the educational system in California has a few flaws, and she plans to do something about it. Biology Professor Marie Panec is running as a Democrat for the US Congress in California’s 24th Congressional District, with the Congressional Election coming up in 2010. Panec feels that as an educator, she can bring a new mindset to her District. “I don’t think education has enough voices in our political system and I think as a result they’re seeing policies that are well intended but have a lot of repercussions that people don’t understand,” said Panec. Panec says that her three main campaign goals are to address the local economy, education and the environment.
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The story of one student's experiences with the transfer system
Kaitlin Gardiner drives to California State University, Northridge and makes sure she arrives early to class. She enters the classroom, sits down at a desk and begins studying. Gardiner transferred to CSUN for the 2009-2010 school year as a business management major after earning her associates degree in business administration at Moorpark College. The path to Northridge had its obstacles for Kaitlin, but she would eventually discover which direction she wanted her life to start heading. “I am glad that I went to a community college first," said Gardiner. "I learned a lot about myself in the process."
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America’s National Day of Writing left its mark on Moorpark’s campus with presentations by David Langness and Joanna Miller on Oct. 20.
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With $1.8 million raised from the Student Center fee, the Moorpark College Associated Students has decided it is time to dip into the well and give students a new place to study in a group atmosphere. The Student Service Fee, implemented in 2000, is the one-dollar per unit, per year fee that students pay for every semester at Moorpark College, according to AS President Ryan Krebs. “Our main plan is to finally use the Student Center Fee,” Krebs said. “We want to finally give students a place to hang out.” Among the list of things to be installed in the empty space, just outside of the Associated Student offices in the campus center, is to new carpeting, fresh paint on the walls, couches and add one or two televisions.
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The Moorpark College Gay Straight Alliance honored Transgender Remembrance Day in November with an informative celebration. The Moorpark College GSA held an event Nov. 19 in honor of Transgender Remembrance Day, which is meant to honor and remember transgendered individuals victimized by hate crime. The day is also meant to raise awareness of these crimes in an attempt to prevent their future occurrence.
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Poets, photographers, storytellers and creative types from all disciplines will seize the opportunity to be published this coming spring in Moorpark College’s award-winning annual creative arts magazine, the “Moorpark Review.” Moorpark College offers courses in a wide array of artistic forms, from ceramics to graphic design, to creative writing and painting. The “Moorpark Review” serves as a valuable outlet to these varied programs, providing a place for the talents of students, alumni, staff and faculty to be showcased. Hart Schulz, who co-founded the “Review” in 1998 along with fellow English Professor Tracy Tennenhouse, calls the magazine a “testing ground” for developing artists looking to experience the thrill of seeing their work in print.
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The group Love, Honor, Cherish came to the Moorpark Gay Straight Alliance to appeal for assistance in collecting signatures to repeal Proposition 8. The Moorpark College GSA was hosted by Michael Perl and Bahman Ghahremandi of the pro-gay marriage Love, Honor, Cherish. They are campaigning to get the issue onto the 2010 ballot. Ghahremandi believed that the time is now to take a course of action. “We can’t wait for the right time, we must make the right time,” said Ghahremandi.
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You can see students browsing the web and taking notes on laptop computers at anytime on campus. On other parts of the planet, a child is lucky if he gets to see one in his lifetime. One Laptop Per Child hopes to raise awareness of this problem on Dec 4., with a presentation in the Applied Arts Forum, according to Year of Service Co-Chair Kathryn Adams. OLPC’s goal is to give children in developing areas a durable laptop for educational needs. “One Laptop Per Child helps students not just have computers to play with, it’s about giving them access to learning,” said Adams.
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We are the Moorpark College Associated Students, and we are working for you. We do so much more then just issuing Student ID cards. Among other things, the AS manages campus clubs, has giveaways, and serves as a voice for MC students at the local, state and national levels. If you have been to our office recently, you may have noticed that the cubicles are gone. We removed them last month, and plan to fill the area with a "Mini student union" (Which we tentatively named "Raiders' Cove") in which we plan to install TV's, couches, and areas to study. We hope that this addition will give students a place to hang out and relax between classes. On top of that, we plan to install student art on the walls there as well. This project is being funded by the Student Center fee, and we expect to complete it by the beginning of the Spring Semester.
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Art as Resistance
Photos by Jake Henderson and Kyle Ray
Moorpark College students use their artistic abilities to protest war.
The artwork on the stage, created by determined veterans, set a picture in the viewer’s minds that will never be forgotten. The blood, sweat and tears that were shed bled through that profound artistry. It was a fitting backdrop for a presentation by Dahr Jamail, an embedded independent journalist, who spoke on campus Friday night about his experiences in Iraq and using “art as resistance.” The program was presented by the Year of Service at Moorpark College, which aims to encourage “an attitude of service-an approach to life that integrates understanding, caring and taking action,” according to its mission statement.
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A man believed to be homeless was arrested Nov. 3 at Moorpark College for attempting to steal two textbooks from a student’s backpack in the Campus Center.
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After living at Moorpark College’s Exotic Animal Training Zoo for 30 years, Schmoo the sea lion passed away on Wednesday. Schmoo’s health had steadily declined leading up to her death. The cause of death is not yet known, but according to zoo operations supervisor Michyln Hines, it is believed to be complications from old age. Hines went on to say that most sea lions live to be 30-years-old when raised in captivity, which was approximately Schmoo’s age. Despite this, the animal’s passing still came as a shock. “It did not come as a surprise,” said Hines. “But anytime you lose an animal it’s a shock. It’s like losing family.”
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The Iraq Peace and Reconciliation College Tour presentation was the first Year of Service (YOS) event held this semester on Monday, Feb. 1.
The college tour is an interactive forum aimed at building relationships between the next generation of leaders of the United States and Iraq. Mark Manning, the Executive Producer of this project, was the presenter for the first event of the YOS.
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Students will see a new addition to campus when the Academic Center hosts an array of classes in the fall.
The building will house additional classrooms for the Math, English and Natural Sciences departments, among others, while supplying students with the latest advances in teaching tools.
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