Features

The Word
Features

The Word

What’s the dumbest thing you have done?   Dennis Lemmon   Using the wifi 67 That would be something dangerous I tried to cliff dive like those acopoco divers into the ocean and I banged my head now I’m on the disability.   Eron Scarbrough Chilling 18 I threw a rock and I thought it was going to go over the ledge and it did but I guess someone threw it back because it hit me in the head     Hunter Bailey   Psychology   21 When I was 13 i broke into a construction site a bunch of people showed up and brandished guns and chased us around this site   Paloma McKenna Psychology 21 Not wear a belt I went to the movies and i needed to used the restroom and I jumped the guard rail and because my pants were loose and I wasn’t wearing a...
Testing, Testing 1 2 3. Is this thing on?
Features

Testing, Testing 1 2 3. Is this thing on?

By JOE GIDDENS Kim Stevens has been working for Pima Community College since 2000 in registration and admission seasonally.  Later, she became full time in 2003, and has been at the West Campus Testing Center and Testing Center as a student service technician ever since.  We sat down with Stevens for an interview about the West Campus.  Q: About how many people use the testing center?  A: “It varies … sometimes we have 100 or more. During the midterms and finals, we could have 300, 400.” Q: Are there any outside groups that have your proctor their tests?  A: “We do have other community colleges and universities that do use our campus because there’s a lot of online courses nowadays.” Q: So, online courses for like the University of Arizona might have you proctor an exam? A: “Yeah,...
Kratom vs. opiate addiction
Features

Kratom vs. opiate addiction

By: DANIEL VELASCO Deep in the rainforests of Southeast Asia lies an infamous plant.  With yellow flowers and evergreen leaves, kratom induces stimulant-like effects to its users, while causing opiate-like side effects to people who use it in high doses.  Kratom is primarily put into capsules and made into extracts and pills, but dried kratom leaves can be brewed into a tea. Traditionally, kratom is chewed, or in some cases eaten in food. Its side effects are where this plant gets interesting. When kratom is ingested, the chemical compounds (Mitragynine and 7-a-hydroxymitragynine) affect the brain’s four opiate receptors. These brain receptors control an array of different behavioral aspects including pain, depression, anxiety and addiction.  The most famous side effects are pleasur...
Donuts fit for a king
Stomping Grounds

Donuts fit for a king

On the outskirts of town, near Old Tucson, lies a cleverly hidden little donut shop. A donut you may say is fit for a king, Queen Donuts. It’s basically your local ma-and-pa-owned donut shop.  There’re no bells and whistles, no crazy outside decoration to flag you down. Just a yellow sign with their name that sits atop the coffee shop. You walk inside the bell rings and notice it’s appearance is nothing special. The décor is plain, but that in itself gives it a homely feel. The walls are plain white, aside from a couple paintings of Angkor Wat, a John Deere clock and a wall by the register covered with plaques. On the counter lie some American flags and a Cambodian riel (money). Then you’re greeted by Queen Donuts owner Sal Oum, a quiet, humble man who the community adores. Oum is a Cambod...
Features, News

Finding yourself in Spanish translation

By AMARIS ENCINAS The Translation and Interpretation Studies program remains a hidden gem at Pima Community College. The program is centered at the Desert Vista Campus with Susan Kuenzler, program adviser with the Division of Communication, and Jeffrey Gabbitas, Ph.D. and lead faculty for the Translation and Interpretation studies program. The program has 90 students. Its lone prerequisite is to score above 601 on the WebCape placement test to assess the student’s language proficiency. Next, there’s an hourlong consultation with Kuenzler and Gabbitas to understand what the program is about and how it can work with the student’s career goals. From there, students will pick classes based on whether they would like to be translators or interpreters. The program’s mission is to have stude...
Can you dig it?
Features

Can you dig it?

    By DANIEL VELASCO   Pima Community College’s archeology program is one that consists of the best aspects of science.   From working with peers to striving for greatness, Pima’s Archeology Club radiates the best things about the field. While the Archeology Club doesn’t have a specific goal, it does have separate values that the members hope to share with other Pima students.   “The club itself is a way to bring together people who have similar interests in both Archeology and Anthropology,” said Brittney Sandoval, treasurer of the Archeology Club and anthropology student at Pima.   Preservation is a common theme with the club. Because of the club’s preservation, many students make important connections and meet people who can help them find succes...
Worm your way through Pima’s bookstore
Features

Worm your way through Pima’s bookstore

By JOE GIDDENS Carla Durazo doesn’t want you to be scared of Pima Community College’s bookstore.   “I think they're just afraid to come in here because of the prices, but they shouldn't,” said Durazo, who has worked at the West Campus bookstore since 2014 as the assistant bookstore manager. “We have a lot of options for them.”   Those options include ebooks; textbook rentals; price matching; makeup; and even makeup.   “We try to do all these things where, you know, students can have a savings,” Durazo said. “They don’t bother to look to see what is available in the store and even on our pimashop.com site.”   Durazo recently sat down for a question-and-answer session about the West Campus bookstore.   Q: How long have you been working for the bookstore?...
What’s growing in your backyard?
Features

What’s growing in your backyard?

By: DANIEL VELASCO Rain brings the best things to Tucson on the rare occasion we receive it. Rain brings cool weather, earthy scents and vibrant colors. The rain also creates the exact conditions perfect for growing fungus. From yeast to athlete’s foot, fungus is everywhere and will inevitably in one way or another, eat us. With this threat heavily upon us, and finishing up monsoon season -- albeit a fairly dry one -- here’s a guide to some common fungi you might find at whatever cold, dark and damp place you hang out at in Arizona. While mushrooms usually grow in forested areas that receive plenty of rain, Arizona still is home to an array of mushrooms. From Fly Agaric (Amanita muscaria) to Valley Fever (Coccidioides), Arizona is home to multiple different mushrooms that yield a wide...
A man without borders: David Andres
Arts & Entertainment, Bernal Gallery, Features, Pima Arts

A man without borders: David Andres

David Andres in the Bernal Art Gallery. (Photo Courtesy the Bernal Gallery) AMARIS ENCINASPima Post David Andres paints his own vision for what the art world would be like if the sky was as wide as it was high. The painter has been the curator of the Bernal Gallery for the last 11 years and the instructor of the Gallery Museum Studies class at Pima Community College. Over the course of 27 years, Andres has traveled throughout Mexico, and his love for the country inspires a lot of themes that arise in his exhibitions. “We might be separated by borders, but it doesn’t make any difference,” said Andres when discussing the concept of “Separated by Borders.” “These are incredible artists that are living just south of us and haven’t had the opportunity to show here in Tucson.” ...
Juanito’s es bonito
Features, Stomping Grounds

Juanito’s es bonito

          By HANK ROBICHAUD Taqueria Juanitos is a delicious madre-and-padre Mexican restaurant. There are no chips and guacamole here, but it is the closest thing you will get to eating at a taco stand in Mexico. In Tucson, Juanitos, which is located in a building with a purple exterior on the corner of Grant Road and 15th Avenue, is a great place to unwind and get a filling lunch or dinner made from scratch. In 1986, Juanitos started as a food truck in Van Nuys, California, and grew into a free-standing building in 1987 in the San Fernando Valley. The concept was started by Juanito Sr., once of three generations of Juanitos. In 1996, Juanito Jr. started the Taqueria Juanitos in Tucson. The fast-casual restaurant’s variety of selections will leave y...