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Grand unveiling of M building Mural: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

Lineth Murillo
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Grand unveiling of M building Mural: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

Long Beach City College celebrated the unveiling of the first mural on campus, “Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow” by artist Paul Botello during a commemoration of inclusivity, community, and diversity on Tuesday. 

LBCC’s first commissioned public art piece was unveiled on Mar. 12 at LBCC’s Liberal Arts Campus alongside the M building, catching the attention of faculty, students, alumni and city officials.

The unveiling included speeches from LBCC Board of Trustees members and artist Paul Botello along with traditional performances that encompass the diversity present on campus and the importance of representation followed by complementary food and refreshments. 

Commencing with a land acknowledgment that LBCC lies on traditional ancestral land as a result of painful genocide, this was one of many cultural recognitions made during the ceremony. 

“Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow” represents all of the academic disciplines offered at LBCC, the idea that “your voice matters,” and how every aspect of campus life and individuality is embraced and included. 

“It was a long process, but today we got the best result ever. I know that this is not the last time, and PCC campus will have a mural themselves. I think the commitment from the college to keep going shows that every single one will be fabulous,” said Griselda Suarez, Paul Botello’s former student and LBCC Art Council Chair.

A traditional blessing took place by Elder Virginia Carmelo, where she burned sage while audience members turned to face all four directions (East, South, West, North) to honor and remember ancestors and a Divine Creator. 

“It was wonderful to spend time with President Muñoz and hear his vision, he brought the perfect group together to advocate for students to be involved – which was the most exciting part, seeing them so engaged and committed,” Suarez said.

Anchor Art Collective Dancer Viccheany performing traditional Kumai dance during the “Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow” mural unveiling ceremony on March 13, 2024. (Alison Doherty)

“They had cultural stuff that I was not expecting. It was cool seeing other cultures like Asia being represented too,” said Inti Grijalva, LBCC student. 

A continuation of cultural embrace took place through a classical Cambodian dance embodying the art of the Kumai by the Anchor Arts Collective who shared their rich culture and blessed the audience with happiness, prosperity, and success.

Francisco Baldonado, a member of the Justice Scholars Program, assisted Botello in creating the mural. 

“When you love something, you do not feel it as something overwhelming because you are doing what you love. It feels good seeing people here because this is something I have been thinking of doing since I was a little kid and this inspired me to do more of what I love,” Baldonado said. 

The unveiling evoked excitement towards the progress within LBCC to call for more artistic presence on campus through the work of Paul Botello in his mural “Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow.” 

Softball cruises past East Los Angeles after 18-0 win

Ian Salazar
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Softball cruises past East Los Angeles after 18-0 win

Freshman Bayleigh Fry helped pitch a dominant 18-0 shutout giving the Viking a nine game winning streak as the team beat East L.A. on Tuesday. 

Fry pitched three innings allowing no hits and putting up three strikeouts.

“I’ve been doing way better. I’ve been having a lot more confidence. That’s been something I have been working on, I always have defense and the bats to help me,”  Fry said.

Fry had a perfect game going until an error was made in the third inning allowing East L.A. to reach base.

The Vikings put the pressure on early as the team scored ten runs against a struggling East L.A. pitcher.

Star pitcher Bayleigh Fry winding up a pitch at the top of the first. The Vikings beat East LA 18-0 that ended early after five innings on Tuesday. (Neil Gagna)

In the second inning the team added even more runs with a triple by Freshman Xiomei Geluz and a single by Freshman Robin Garia making the score 12-0. 

The Vikings added to their lead in the third inning as Sophomore Julianna Rosas doubled to make the score 14-0. 

Freshman pitcher Mariah Zapata came in for Fry in the fourth inning only allowing one hit and one walk. 

In the bottom of the fourth inning the vikings took advantage of a pitching change made by East L.A. by  loading the bases multiple times and scored four runs. 

Sophomore Renee Sena scored on a ground out by teammate Julianna Rosas making the score 18-0.

“It’s a team win, it’s a team effort. All of our players from the bench to our starters do a good job and we have faith in our pitching and our hitting, ”director of softball operations Megan Martinez said.

With this win the Vikings would extend their conference record to 6-0 and their overall record to 15-4 as they will play L.A. Harbor at home on Thursday at 3 P.M.

LBCC’s 3rd Annual Performing Arts Showcase Celebrates Black History Month

Mario Saucedo
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LBCC’s 3rd Annual Performing Arts Showcase Celebrates Black History Month

Long Beach City College hosted its 3rd Annual Performing Arts Showcase on Thursday, February 29, at the LBCC Nordic Lounge

The Performing Arts Showcase was one of many LBCC student run Black History Month celebrations that took place this academic year.

“It was just a beautiful thing to be able to see all of these creative students here at LBCC.” said Tianti Mhonaé, current LBCC student participant at the event.

Long Beach City College 3rd Annual Performing Arts Showcase. A Performing arts showcase honoring Black History Month took place on Feb. 29, 2024 at the LBCC Nordic Lounge. Students and staff participating in a dance. (Yesenia Zamora)

Tianti Mhonaé also known as “Concrete Rose” performed her spoken word and was one of many participants at the Performing Arts Showcase this year.

“I absolutely loved it from the music, to the dance to also some of the the other spoken word that was up there as well.” said Mhonaé

In addition to various spoken word performances, the event showcased multiple student art exhibits, dance interpretations, musical performances, and trivia, all paying tribute to Black History Month

The third annual Performing Arts Showcase at Long Beach City College, commemorating Black History Month, was held on February 29, 2024, in the LBCC Nordic Lounge. The event saw substantial participation from LBCC students and staff (Yesenia Zamora)

“The people that were here really were enjoying the atmosphere and the performances tonight,” said audience member Kimoji Brown.

“I really did enjoy the spoken word tonight. It was very eccentric and very dope to see.” said LBCC student Tremell Brooks.

Kyshia Hearns, Umoja club secretary and stage manager for the event, said, “Today’s event actually had the biggest turnout we’ve ever seen. We had performers from all over Long Beach City. Middle schoolers, former college student alumni, and current students all came to represent. It was crucial to have diverse Black representation, especially during this month.”

On February 29, 2024, Long Beach City College hosted its 3rd Annual Performing Arts Showcase in honor of Black History Month, taking place at the LBCC Nordic Lounge. The showcase featured a notable participation from LBCC students and staff (Yessenia Zamora)

“It made me feel special and appreciated for my work. I loved seeing the poetry slam and the rapping and art and us finishing the event off was really nice.” said LBCC dance group choreographer for the event Drew Bell.

“Today’s event was so inspiring. I am honored that they allowed me to get on the stage and share my art and have that opportunity to inspire others and move people through my words.” said Mhonaé after the event.

LBCC staff member Bree Pinkerton and Chrishaad Moye, Umoja counselor coordinator co hosted the 3rd Annual Performing Arts Showcase that piloted in 2022

“This is one of the biggest turnouts we’ve had. I think it went very well” said Pinkerton “Just seeing the work that we are doing, seeing it happen, we are putting words to action.”

LBCC looks forward to hosting other Black History Month celebrations for years to come.

Men’s volleyball breaks even in record after win against Antelope Valley

Ian Salazar
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Men’s volleyball breaks even in record after win against Antelope Valley

Freshman Anthony Wong-Orantes scored the game winning point in the third set to give the Vikings a 3-0 shutout against Antelope Valley on Friday.

“Means a lot to me. I thought that we all played well. I was feeling hot and I was lucky to have the setter set me at the last play,” Wong-Orantes said.

The offense came up big for the Vikings as it would help them again huge multi point leads against Antelope Valley. 

“We are growing as a team. Starting from the beginning of the season where we had a few hard losses in five, now we are a lot more confident even when we get to the top teams, we are playing at a much higher level than all of them,” head coach Angel Nikolov said.

The Vikings took the first set with a score 25-16, the second set 25-10 and third set 25–18.

Wong-Ornate puts in a multi point night scoring multiple times during the second and thrid set for the Vikings

Wong-Orantes wasn’t the only player on the team to have a multi point night for the Vikings. 

Sophomore Billy Veng also put up a multi point night scoring multiple times in each set for the Vikings.

The defense stood out in the first and second set but still seemed to lack communication at times during the third set. 

The Vikings block the Marauders’ skrike and successfully get the point. Men’s volleyball secures the 3-0 win against Antelope Valley on Friday. (Jorge Hernandez)

“That’s something that we are talking about in every practice, which is just trying to build up a leader on the court, someone who can lead the guys especially in the moments when we are struggling. It takes time, it takes experience but I until the of the year we can have someone who can help with that,” Nikolov said,

This allowed Antelope Valley to almost tie the game but the Vikings offense would get it together as they were able to complete the shutout.

Antelope Valley had their chances but seemed to lack offense and defense as they would miss play the ball multiple times allowing the Vikings to maintain their lead.

With this win the vikings would have a four game winning streak, extend their conference record to 4-0,  their overall record to 5-5 as the team are playing another conference game at home against El Camino Wednesday starting at 6 P.M.

Opinion: LBCC’s parking problem needs fixing

Andrea Lawrence
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Opinion: LBCC’s parking problem needs fixing

Since the reopening of Long Beach City College campuses after the pandemic shutdown, more in-person classes, campus engagement such as different campus events, as well as ongoing construction closing multiple parking lots, has made parking at the Liberal Arts Campus almost impossible at certain times.

 In the 2024 spring semester, LBCC sent out an email to students stating that early arrival was encouraged and that there would be a bigger limit because of the construction.

However, arriving early isn’t always possible for students; and it still does not guarantee that a student can find a space in time before their class starts.

LBCC also encourages students to park at Veterans Stadium. However, parking that far can be dangerous for students and staff members who are on campus all day. 

Students that park so far away from campus might feel nervous to walk all the way back to Veterans Stadium at night alone. Not to mention that some students and staff just might not be able to get to campus from such a distance because of different disabilities they might have.

The easiest solution would simply be to add more parking options around campus. However there are other options LBCC could explore that have worked for other colleges.

One option is to incentivize commuting and to provide more commuting options. While LBCC does offer TAP cards that can be used on LB Transit and the Metro, the TAP card isn’t something that students automatically receive. 

Instead of having to apply for a TAP card, LBCC should automatically send bus passes in the beginning of the semester for students to enable and use at their discretion. 

Then when students use the pass, or use other ways to commute to campus besides taking their cars, there could be some sort of incentive.

Programs like this have been effective at other colleges. At the University of Arizona, students who commute in different ways such as biking, bus or carpooling receive prizes such as emergency ride vouchers, gift cards and more.

Another option that LBCC could explore is better staggering class times on campus. 

Class schedules are currently only staggered by a few minutes, which doesn’t leave enough time for students to walk to their vehicles and leave so another student can get the space. 

With a more staggered schedule, for instance fifteen or twenty minutes in between classes students would have time to get to their cars and leave, allowing other students to park and get to class.

Students shouldn’t have to worry about coming to campus thirty minutes earlier just so they can get to class on time. LBCC should be trying to find ways to make parking easier and quicker for its students.

Quezada’s 4-4 leads Vikings to 16-8 victory

Neil Gagna
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Quezada’s 4-4 leads Vikings to 16-8 victory

Long Beach City College scored a total of 18 hits, led by designated hitter AJ Quezada’s 4-4 day in the Vikings’ 16-8 victory over Rio Hondo.

Quezada kept his hot start to the season going with a two-double performance while also driving in two runs.

“I just had to hit the ball hard somewhere and hope it falls. Baseball is a game of failure, so 4-4 is definitely something to be proud of and something to work towards,” Quezada said.

Through the first 16 games of the season, Quezada has been outstanding at the plate with a .379 batting average with 11 hits, four doubles, and only three strikeouts through 29 plate appearances.

Another key hitter of the game was center fielder Xander McLaurin as the leadoff man went 3-5 including a two-run home run in the seventh inning

“I gotta stay hot and keep doing the same thing. That’s my third bomb in four games so I gotta keep doing what I’m doing,” McLaurin said.

Aside from McLaurin’s three homers in four games, he’s been on an absolute tear so far this season, batting .342 with four home runs, 19 RBI, and eight stolen bases.

LBCC currently stands in first place in the conference with an undefeated 4-0 conference record and an outstanding 13-3 overall record.

This game also marks four out of the last five games with ten or more runs scored, making LBCC a scary opponent when the team steps up to the plate.

“We can hit, we’ve hit all year, and that’s a big win for us. The pitcher they (Rio Hondo) started has won every game he’s pitched in our conference, so when we beat their best guy when other teams didn’t, it gives us a jump on the conference standings,” Vikings head coach Casey Crook said.

The Vikings will look to continue their hot streak as they face L.A. Harbor in an away game on Tuesday.

LBCC students gain career edge with the Public Service Corps

Marty Triplett
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LBCC students gain career edge with the Public Service Corps

Some LBCC students are getting an edge on career prospects through a newly formed fellowship program.

The Long Beach Public Service Corps is a paid fellowship program that provides local college students and recent graduates with hands-on experience working for the City of Long Beach and exploring careers in public service. 

Students can earn $22 an hour and can work up to 400 hours in one of the city’s  departments, such as, the Health Department, Economic Development, Community Development, the Police Department and the Mayor’s Office, to name a few. 

The program’s goal is to provide students with various options.

Upon completion of the program, participants can choose to apply for a city job, receive an employment opportunity with a City department, or apply for graduate school.

Mario Martinez, a second-year fire sciences major, started his first work week at the Long Beach Fire Department in mid-February.

“I am amazed and honored to have this opportunity. The whole reason why I wanted to become a firefighter in the first place is because they save lives.” Martinez said.

Firefighters made a strong impression on Martinez when he was young, as he recounted a fateful experience when his family’s car had flipped over on the freeway as they returned from a trip to Mexico.

“Firefighters saved me and my family that day, and ever since then, I have wanted to repay that somehow, and I have found my calling,” said Martinez.

Martinez reports working in department uniform and learning the various duties from his assigned Community Services unit, which includes Alexander Munguia, Sergio Castillo, and Jack von Arx.

Uniformed professionals like firefighters, police, and public works are generally the most visible public service jobs, but there are plenty of other opportunities for career exploration throughout the city’s various administrative departments.

Michael Burns, a Business Administration student, was curious about public-sector jobs. When he was accepted in the program, he was elated, as it would serve as his first job opportunity. 

Burns is assigned to the city’s Parks and Recreation department, where he is currently learning about the department’s events and permitting process.

Burns plans to transfer to Cal State Long Beach, and feels that the Corp program will add distinction to his application as he learns how the city conducts business with the public.

“From what I’ve experienced so far, everyone has been very welcoming, and it’s a great work environment. I would encourage any student interested to take the opportunity if offered,” Burns said.

While the first cohort is well underway, more are planned in the upcoming fall semester. 

Students embrace the sudden rise of analog media

Lineth Murillo
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Students embrace the sudden rise of analog media

Students at Long Beach City College are well-supported in their artistic ventures by photography professor, Brian Doan, who understands the difficulties associated with the rising costs of shooting film in 2024.

Doan believes students want to continue keeping analog alive because of what it means to take the time to do things like film, to physically turn a record over, and how electronics take that away.

“A phone is a multi-tool [..] I think people just want to do one thing at a time, not combine other things, to me it’s more romantic, it’s like love,” said Doan.

According to Doan, Long Beach City College is one of the few colleges in California that has a working darkroom that students frequently use.

Nick Eismann’s roll of film lays on the workspace. A lot of photos are first looked over by peers and instructors before enlarging. (Sam Villa)

“You put your focus onto the person and you forget anything else, it’s important for you to dedicate yourself, like film,” said Doan.

With the demand for analog media and film being seen among young adults, companies are following the trend lead, such as the camera company Pentax coming out with 4 new film cameras for the first time since the early 2000s.

Along with film, things like vinyl and more traditional forms of art have caught even more attention in the eyes of LBCC students.

“I want to study traditional forms of art, things that make me feel away from digital media like painting and drawing, and of course theater being the biggest one,” said theater major Olivia Khale.

Maintaining the traditional arts is increasingly important to young adults as the world enters the age of digital art and artificial intelligence sources like Chat GPT and OpenSource AI.

“It’s so easy to make an image of the sea in AI, to go back and do everything by hand with all the chemicals, you’re taking time….. it’s a reconnection,” said photography major and aspiring photojournalist, Alex Toledo.

“It (AI) looks pretty, but it cannot compare to the landscape of like Ansel Adams or a master that trains from portraits, from music, from literature, or from being American, Japanese, Vietnamese, human,” stated Doan.

The desire to learn analog media is about much more than just the fear of AI for some students.

“I’m here, honestly, for the vibes, the look of film and vinyls heals something in me and I really like the aesthetic of it,” said LBCC student Malaysia Springer.

Softball shutout win against Cerritos extends win streak to eight

Ian Salazar
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Softball shutout win against Cerritos extends win streak to eight

Freshman Bayleigh Fry pitched a complete game shutout as the Vikings defeated Cerritos 3-0 in a game dedicated to Women’s History Month on Friday.

Fry would pitch seven innings posting 11 strikeouts but would give up three hits and one walk.   

“It feels great. I have never faced this team before. Being a freshman here and getting the starting position as a pitcher is very overwhelming, today was such a special day being Women’s History Month and I think our team did a great job, ” Fry said.

The Vikings held a ceremony before the game honoring some of the women who have made a difference on campus including Board of Tustee’s President Vivian Malauulu who threw out the ceremonial first pitch.

The team would also hold a tailgate before the game with free food and drinks such as hotdogs, popcorn, chips, water and soda.

The offense for both teams did not come out swinging as the Vikings were held scoreless until the bottom of the fifth inning.  

“We have a good rhythm right now 1-22. I feel confident in all of our pitchers and all of our hitters. We have a bench that’s always ready to go, I’m just excited about the rhythm that we have right now, ” Director of Softball Operations Megan Martinez said.

Freshman Anaya Togia started the scoring in the fifth inning with a double to give the Vikings a 2-0 lead. 

Freshman Anaya Togia rounds third base and heads home to score the first run for the Vikings. Softball defeated the Cerritos Falcons in a 3-0 shutout at home on Friday. (Izzy Juarez)

“I knew how to come up big for my team because it was one of the last innings that we were going to play and I knew that I had to get it done,” Togia said.

Earlier this week Togia was named player of week by the California Community College Fastpitch Coaches Association. 

“It’s a big accomplishment here. I have been working hard, I’m also a freshman, it’s just a big deal to get player of the week,” Togia said. 

Sophomore Jordan Villanueva singled and advanced to second on the throw shortly after during the fifth inning to extend the lead to 3-0.

With this win the Vikings extended their winning streak to eight games, their conference record to 5-0, their overall record to 14-4 as their next game will be against East Los Angeles College on  Tuesday at home at 3 p.m.

LBCC Lyrical Workers take on New Orleans Conference

Mario Saucedo
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LBCC Lyrical Workers take on New Orleans Conference

The Lyrical Workers, Long Beach City College’s jazz ensemble, had the experience of a lifetime traveling to New Orleans last month to perform and take in all of the Jazz history that the city has to offer.

The ensemble attended the Jazz Education Network Conference that is held every year where teachers, professionals and recording artists come together to showcase their work and take workshops. 

The trip was a total of seven days with the conference taking up three of those days. 

Sara Cooper, Angelique Cheung and Lessly Lopez are singing in rehearsal for their next performance. The Lyrical Workers are rehearsing for their next Spring concert coming up in June. (Kyra LoRe)

Lyrical Worker, Angelique Cheung said, “I’ve been thinking about how far I’ve come since my first attendance of the Network Conference, my first time at the conference I was just a spectator and now I was there as a performer.” 

The group performed for 20 minutes on stage with the theme being “LA to LA,” meaning Los Angeles to Louisiana, having all of their songs be composed by local Long Beach composers. 

They sang a total of four songs in their set, one of them being an arrangement from the group’s director, Professor Andrea Calderwood called “In the Hall of The Mountain King,” where she added a section to the song to nod to a local jazz musician. 

Along with the conference the Lyrical Workers attended, they spent a lot of time in the French Quarter, where Jazz music is prevalent and performances are on every quarter. 

Raimundo Farmer, Jaime Araiza, and John Gonzalez learning their new sheet music together. The Lyrical Workers are rehearsing for their upcoming spring concert in June. (Kyra LoRe)

“It was a complete culture shock for these students to travel to New Orleans. The city has a mix of culture that has been protected in some ways and there’s things that have just been forgotten over generations that are still very prominent and more traditional there compared to where we live,” said Professor Calderwood. 

The trip was entirely funded through the student’s fundraising, LBCC and the Ella Fitzgerald Foundation. 

Professor Calderwood has noticed a large shift in the students ever since being back from their trip, both emotionally and musically. 

“They learn their music quicker, they’re more focused in class, they’re motivated, I hear it in how quickly they learn their music versus music we learned in the fall. There’s excitement in them that has increased in them since last semester,” said Calderwood. 

The Lyrical Workers are excited to hold their spring concert on June 2 at 2 p.m. in the LAC auditorium.

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