News

Story and photo by  KYLE MCDANIEL If you’re in the military and are looking to continue your education after your service, there’s the Veterans Upward Bound Program.  It’s a program that helps you continue your education after and sometimes during your service.  This is the second year of the five-year grant, and the program recently was awarded an $11,217 increase to continue offering educational resources to veterans. This goes along with the $250,000 to $300,000 that’s already received each year. This program needs more exposure, especially for those who are looking for help.  “I think a program such as this may help some people but I don’t know much about it,” said Justin Terpstra, an Iraq/Afghanistan war veteran. “Everyone has different passions and dreams, and some of those inv...

Story and photo by PARKER BROCK   Pima Community College is building the Aztec Resource Center and Food Bank and everybody is getting on board.  The ARC is a student-driven initiative to provide more for students in need and is located at the West and Desert Vista campuses. The initiative is headed by Rachael Lord, adviser for the Student Social Services organization at West Campus, and Donald Harp at Desert Vista Campus. Social services students have supported the project for the past year. They have been collecting food and going to community members asking for donations. The project is working to receive ServSafe food bank certification, which is needed to distribute goods from the food bank, as transporting, storing and distributing food and donations isn’t a simple process....

By JOE GIDDENS The Northwest Campus was placed on lockdown March 7 after Pima Community College Police was informed by the Tucson Police Department that someone was making threats to the college by live video on social media. The Tucson Police Department took the suspect, Christopher Ramirez, into custody about 9 p.m. March 7.  Normal operations resumed at the Northwest Campus the next day, and the suspect, who was a student at Pima, has since been suspended according to a Pima Public Safety advisory.  Ramirez was identified to Pima Police, according to Michelle Nieuwenhuis, Pima Police operations commander.  “We responded to that location along with the assistance of the Pima County Sheriff’s Department,” Nieuwenhuis said. “About midway through checking the campus for the individua...

Story and Photo  by ALEXZANDRIA MARTINEZ Colleen Ford, instructional faculty for the nursing program, was the first speaker for the semester Speaker’s Series, Feb. 5, at the community board room at Pima Community College District Office.  Ford discussed upcoming changes for nursing in the healthcare and medical field. Nursing is evolving into a more tech-savvy environment and has evolved into a more comprehensive and advanced career.  Nursing also has a lot more responsibilities while dealing with patients. Essentially, nursing is the “backbone” for the healthcare industry.  In addition, the nursing industry offers a variety of opportunities that can be later specialized for advance opportunities for specific branches in the medical field.  Ford primarily teaches lectures, skills lab...

By AMARIS ENCINAS On March 7, the Downtown Campus hosted Speaking Out: A Day of Inquiry and Exploration, which was an event that focused on the featured work of American writer Audre Lorde.  To kick off the event, Sandra Shattuck, Pima Community College instructor in Communications, shared some words about the late Lorde and how she changed the way people discuss social justice issues.  “I just want to give everyone a round of applause for ever everyone here today because showing up today is 90 percent of the work,” Shattuck said. “Audre Lorde developed theories, analyses and practices of intersectionality before the term existed, so to use a Western African political designation she is the Queen Mother of Intersectionality. She’s not alone, but if she were here today, she would say t...

By ALEXANDER LOPEZ An Oro Valley man and adjunct instructor of two online history classes for Pima Community College has been arrested in connection with the murder of his wife, Oro Valley police said. Trevor Draegeth, 37, was teaching The Holocaust and Introduction to Western Civilization at Pima this semester, according to class schedules at pima.edu. Those classes will be covered by other instructors, according to a statement released by Pima. Draegeth is being held in Pima County Jail on a $10 million bond and is awaiting his next court date March 18, according to online records. He is being charged with first degree murder in the shooting death of his wifeLaurie Draegeth, 40.  A police report stated that about 12:30 a.m. Feb. 12, an altercation between the Draegeths turned physica...

By JOE GIDDENS Pima Community College Communications Department will stir your spirits to graduate by hosting the inaugural “Day of Inspiration” April 3.  Staff that teach all of Pima’s writing courses, foreign language and English as a Second Language will be donning graduation caps and gowns to raise awareness of the importance of finishing your studies.  Additionally, pizza and popcorn will be served and games will be played at the Downtown Campus from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. “For me, A Day of Inspiration is really a day to kind of celebrate the idea that we are all here for the purpose of helping everyone to succeed and move forward through all the supports that we have at Pima Community College,” said Ken Chavez, Pima’s dean of communications.  Now is the time for students to start app...