Author: Cougar News Contributor

SCV’s Halloween Spirit

By James Gend As the Fall kicks off, the residents of Santa Clarita Valley eagerly await the return of the local trick-or-treaters and the spooks & scares thing bring along….

COC’s GSA Club presents Friday Night Bowling

By Travyan Suttle This week COC’s gay-straight alliance club will attend the Friday night bowling event. This event will be hosted by the Sociology and Psychology club, located at Valencia…

Opinion: How necessary Is higher education?

By Reiland Reantaso Millennials have been told their entire lives that the university system is the gateway to the American middle class. Acknowledging the raising cost of tuition and that…

Opinion: Stop ‘bleaching’ Hollywood

By Praditya Fulumirani Blackface, yellowface, redface—racism in Hollywood isn’t as blatant as it used to be, but by no means has it become any less hurtful. Whitewashing isn’t anything new, and…

Opinion: An industry goes up in smoke

By Cydnee Dos Santos In recent years, many changes came to the smoking world and it’s community when it comes to cigarettes. With vaping gaining attraction and sales in the…

Opinion: The news induced national regression

By John O’Donnell Since the birth of the first two political parties in the early 18th century, there has been an unending struggle between the righteousness of one over the…

The Stage Door; a local Venue that plays host to all artists and musicians.

The Stage Door is a small venue located inside Keyboard Galleria Music Center. It plays host to any and all local artist looking to showcase their talent on stage in…

Gaming for a cause

By Travyan Suttle This semester COC’s GSA Club will host its 2nd gaming tournament to raise money for the clubs cause. Proceeds gained from the gaming tournament will go toward…

Opinion: A Veterans Take on “Take A Knee”

By Matt Funicello, USMC Everyone and their uncle has put their two cents in about this NFL situation, so I figured I’d put mine in as well. I am a…

Men’s Cross Country Race hosted by COC at Central Park

By Diani Ellis After 7 years, COC’s Cross Country team host’s the So Cal preview meet at Central Park. Being the largest meet of the year, COC hosted 35 teams,…

COC Chancellor releases statement on DACA

The Trump administration officially announced today it is ending the DACA program which gave a deportation reprieve to an estimated 800-thousand undocumented citizens who came to the United States as…

Local club helps community and beyond

The blurriness is over. Hundreds of people in third world countries are seeing more clearly because of the Castaic Lions Club. In 1917, the Lion Club was started in Chicago,…

COC’s GSA Club: my experience of attending the GSA club for a semester

By Travyan Suttle As I sat down in my chair, anxiously waiting to know what the GSA Club meeting entailed, student introductions began. It was then I heard the introduction…

Social media’s impact on self-esteem

By Annie Bahena COC students face self- esteem issues affected by social media. Keeping a self- confident mind is hard to handle when there’s social media in between, highlighted by…

Jasmine Hall COC’s track star

By Diani Ellis Jasmine Hall, one of COC’s fastest sprinters, does something out of the ordinary when she leaves her four year ride to come back to a community college….

Precautions for dog owners this summer

By Vivianna Shields The sun is cooking the asphalt to a torrid 135 degrees. Fleas are thriving as they jump from host to host. Rattlesnakes are beginning to slither at…

How one coach is changing the athletics landscape at COC

By Tim Strong “He is amazing, he helps out so much.” “Coach Crater, love that guy.” Matt Crater is an assistant football coach at College of the Canyons, but his…

What to do when someone goes missing

By Stephanie Pillado A sea of faces glistened on black and white ink across a bulletin board in the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Office, all ranging between toddlers to adults. “Missing”…

What is Cultural Appropriation?

By Alondra Lopez Native American, Indian, Chinese, and Mexican, are some of the many cultures whose tradition’s significance have lost meaning by being used as costumes for Halloween, accessories for…

Syrian refugee now living in SCV

By Katherine Carmichael Once a little girl fleeing a war zone. Now a thriving 4th-grade student. Meet Floren, 10, who is making a new life for herself in the Santa…

Helicopter parents invade youth sports

By Marissa Scott You see a young kid go up to the mat to start his wrestling match. You can hear the whole crowd chanting each of their names, waiting…

How does art help senior citizens?

By: Teresa Juarez Art has many benefits, and it can even help senior citizens as they get older. For them, it gives them a goal to strive for and helps…

Former COC volleyball coach talks about major career change

By Marissa Scott Lisa Hooper, former head coach of the women’s volleyball team at COC, made the decision to become the curriculum chair last year. Hooper was the head coach…

A reflection of society

To some art is a means of expression, a way to show others how they perceive the world around them. At College of the Canyons they take an interest in…

Experts, former addicts discuss path to sobriety following heroin overdose rash

By Leon Jones Bradley Bolek was a welding student who also had interest in the music industry while attending College of the Canyons. However, in solitude he was battling a…

COC students look ahead to their future

By Ryan Toledo Summer is approaching fast, and with that comes a two-month break until the next semester. For many students this is a transitioning period from junior colleges to…

Newhall man rooftop suspect captured by deputies last wednesday night

By Monica Rodriguez A Newhall man kept Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies busy last Wednesday night. 21 – year – old Hector Gonzalez was seen armed with a knife in…

Local Gibbon Center

By Ian Murray While many COC students view the Santa Clarita Valley as another suburban hamster cage filled with nothing but shopping malls and white picket fences, the area actually…

Volunteers needed for Santa Clarita Cowboy Festival

By Emily Giordano The city of Santa Clarita is rounding up volunteers to help with the Santa Clarita Cowboy Festival this spring. They are looking for men, women and children…

Six Flags Magic Mountain is water wise

By Matt Lavelle The state of California has been suffering through a drought that has forced counties through out the state to cut back on water usage. In Santa Clarita…

The Nasty Practitioners play Drifters

Although Santa Clarita is often seen as barren ground for young rock bands, Drifters Bar and Cocktail Lounge as become a sort of oasis for original, local bands looking to…

Hart High School’s Major League success

By Marissa Scott Not many high school coaches can say they watched two of their former players square off in one of the most important and popular games in any…

Film production rescheduled due to weather

A production crew with a plan to film on the campus of College of the Canyons had to move their schedule to an earlier day to accommodate the heavy rain….

Opinion: Do college campuses embrace LGBT?

By Emily Mahler Community college’s definition is in the tittle, community. With people coming from different backgrounds to learn it is like a big family and according to Columbia University’s…

COC fails to provide proper coverage for film students

By Ben Bashor VALENCIA – “Role sound. Role Camera,” was the last thing I said before being interrupted by the roaring engine of the approaching park ranger SUV. Even though…

Distracted driving among teens in Santa Clarita

By Michelle Blinder Drunk driving is a critical issue in the Santa Clarita Valley, causing an abundance of fatalities annually; luckily, there is a program called ‘Every 15 Minutes’ to…

Canyons baseball attractive to locals players?

By Andrew Sabedra College of the Canyons has had countless players play for their program and go on to transfer to Division 1 colleges, but is it attractive to kids…

The rise of unisex bathrooms at COC

By Travyan Suttle Did you know that a bathroom for both men and women exist on campus? Thanks to the upper management at COC, students of all sexual identities can…

The growing concern of colony collapse disorder

By Maddy Julien “The rule of thumb is one in four things that you touch in a day basically result of bee pollination,” said Fortune. Nearly everything we come into…

COC safety and suicide knowledge

By Mellanie Jinadasa College Of the Canyons takes suicide seriously, so those who self-harm or feel mentally unstable can get help on campus. COC focuses on helping their students during…

My Generation, My Fight

By Monica T. Rodriguez Upon visiting Thailand, Breezy Thomson’s eyes were opened for the first time. “Through the two week trip I was exposed to [ZOE] mission” to rescue children…

More than just a concrete wall

By Michele Lutes A blank concrete wall at Saugus High School, standing 15 feet by 16 feet, has now turned into a way for Saugus Centurions to honor alumni serving…

Business is booming in award-winning Santa Clarita

By Amanda Gamsu Santa Clarita students have more job opportunities than they realize, especially in high-profile, high-paying industries like entertainment and technology. The city isn’t just a quiet hometown- it’s…

“Drop Zone” rocks Santa Clarita

By Zach Ferber For 15 years, Drop Zone has been giving classic rock fans a chance to come out and watch them perform some the greatest rock hits. Drop Zone…

Zach Sergey Spotlight

For some running is a hated task to do, it can also be a great form of exercise, for others it is more of a way of life. One of…

Young Knox Spotlight

By John Natheniel Young Knox is a hip hop artist born and raised in Los Angeles California. Stemming from a musical background with his father, Knox at an early age…

Who Does It All At Your Local Floral Shop?

By: Diani Ellis It never hurts to buy your loved one flowers. As I stopped by the local Vons I noticed how lovely the floral department looked. I got the…

Placerita Canyon Nature Center faces effects of the Sand Fire

By Jazz Piatt The Santa Clarita Valley is continuing to work toward recovery from the effects of the Sand Fire, which engulfed more than 40,000 acres this past July. The…

Claire’s Cake & Supply Shop

By Alahna Martinez As the holiday season comes around, what people love more than exchanging gifts with loved ones and family, is the food! The dessert table is almost irresistible during…

Students carry a misbelief about political discussion

By Ardyss Hawley Many COC students express they have been told by their professors that political discussion in the classroom is against the school’s Code of Conduct, despite the recurring…