Share: “How do we know dark matter exists?” This was the question keynote speaker and Carnegie Scientist Dr. Andrew Robertson posed to rows of curious and eager PCC students packed like sardines in the Creveling Lounge. On Tuesday, May 13, Dr. Robertson gave an in-depth lecture on the evidence that he has helped research suggesting that dark matter, “a mysterious substance that affects and shapes the cosmos,” (NASA) exists as the final lecture of the Carnegie Science Observatories Lecture Series for the 2024-2025 school year. …
My Territory: An Eagle Rock education taught me how to soar with sympathy
Share: The city of Eagle Rock is where it all started for me. Living and growing up in a safe, close-knit community where the neighbors knew your name, all because you were a student attending schools in the Eagle Rock area. From attending preschool all the way up to high school in this suburb, Eagle Rock was my original stomping ground. After playing with my friend, Miranda, in the preschool’s playground on a beautiful, bright, and sunny day, my mother would pick me up from …
‘We’re not a monolith’: PCC celebrates APIDA Month with dance and dining
Share: Bamboo poles thump against the ground as dancers weave in and out between the poles. Music fills the area as the dances switch into one of color and fabric, called cariñosa. Colorful dresses, fans, and handkerchiefs flow in the air as pairs of dancers get lost in the movement. The Reunited Organization of Pilipinx Americans (TROPA) performed at the second celebration for Asian Pacific Islander Desi American (APIDA) Heritage Month this past Thursday, May 8. The event featured traditional Filipino folk dances, tinikling, and …
My Territory: A walk through Hansen Dam showcases Pacoima’s scenic and cultural charm
Share: Located in the San Fernando Valley, Pacoima is a neighborhood deeply rooted in culture and history. Known for its vibrant Latino community, its strong Mexican-American heritage seeps through each and every pore of its local businesses, colorful murals, and neighborhood festivals. Understanding the history of Pacoima adds a layer of depth to my experience here. Originally inhabited by the Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians, Pacoima has a legacy that dates back centuries, reflecting the resilience and spirit of its people. The Tataviam tribe …
Armenian Heritage Month celebration unites a scattered people
Share: Joyful Armenian pop-style music filled Galloway Plaza as Armenian students, faculty and vendors gathered to celebrate Armenian History Month while dancers from Lilia Dance Studio dressed in colorful clothes to perform traditional Armenian dances to the delight of the crowd. With a chef on-site to teach everyone how to make traditional Armenian dishes, the activities demonstrated the many aspects of Armenian culture. Last Tuesday, April 29, PCC’s Joint Armenian Network (PCC JAN) presented an Armenian Market as the last event celebrating Armenian Heritage Month …
Endgame for Pasadena comic shop: Distributor bankruptcy, tariffs close the book
Share: For more than 30 years, Comics Factory stood as Pasadena’s fortress of solitude for superheroes, manga, and all things nerd culture. But in recent weeks, its front windows are no longer covered in comic posters or lit by neon signs. Instead, stark “STORE CLOSING” signs plaster the face of a beloved local cornerstone, a quiet casualty of a collapse far larger than it first seemed. “Diamond Comics, one of our big distributors, declared bankruptcy,” Comics Factory owner George Huang said. “It [would] be very …
A family bond forged by fire: Inside PCC’s first Wildland Fire Academy
Share: “You really do become family.” That’s how Madeline Woodman, class leader of Pasadena City College’s first Wildland Fire Academy, or Wildland Fire Academy 1, described the eight relentless weeks of training — weeks that, in her words: “pushed every one of us physically, mentally, and emotionally,” forging a group of strangers into a unit shaped by fire. On the morning of April 12, that unit, 38 strong, gathered into the Creveling Lounge to celebrate what they’d accomplished. As friends and relatives filled the room, …
PCC alum uses poetry to find strength through struggle
Share: The first of April was a warm and welcoming afternoon as students made their way to the Writing Success Center eager to indulge in poetry. Words filled the room as author Adrian Ernesto Cepeda recited poems from his book, “La Belle Ajar,” a book with pages and pages of inked-out poems inspired by the iconic book written by Sylvia Plath, “The Bell Jar.” On Tuesday, April 1, the Writing Success Center hosted a reading, Q&A, and writing experience in celebration of the start of …
My Territory: A love letter to Griffith Park
Share: It’s 2:37 p.m. on a Tuesday; my room is scattered with school work and books; my brain is overflowing with words. I stand up, grab my keys, walk out to my car, and pull out onto Riverside Drive. It’s 78° and sunny, and all my windows are down. The smell of wood and laurel sumac fills the car as my hair gets tangled in the wind. Songs by the Eagles are blasting throughout the interior as I speed down the road. I turn onto …
My Territory: The Rose Bowl inspires my Pasadena pride
Share: The wind starts to pick up on a warm summer night, and the sweat beads on my face prickle as the breeze blows by. It’s Independence Day, the summer of 2015, and my son and I are sitting in the parking lot of the Rose Bowl Stadium alongside dozens of rows of tailgaters and other spectators eagerly awaiting the traditional light show. An eerie silence falls amongst us as we anticipate the first sounds. Boom! Boom! Boom! We hear the fireworks shoot towards the …