Letters from the Editor
Welcome back to campus!
Over the last two years, a global pandemic has made online classes the norm. Change began to happen when the Fall 2021 semester started and in-person classes returned. For some, it was their first time on campus and not staring at a screen. For others, it was a return to something familiar. As many return to campus, we are seeing new faces and meeting new people.
For the 13th edition of IMPACT, we wanted to focus on the people that make Palomar College, which include students, athletes, professors, staff, and coaches. Those featured here show the different types of people who are a part of Palomar, and tell their stories. The IMPACT team has been working to bring you these stories.
The students and staff are what make Palomar College what it is, and we at IMPACT want to highlight these people.
Sincerely,
Giovanni Vallido, Editor-in-Chief
20/20 is perfect vision. However, none of us could’ve foreseen the trials and obstacles the world would face in 2020 and forward.
Over the past year and a half, the pandemic has headlined news around the globe and turned each and every one of our lives inside out. For IMPACT Magazine, it’s been a strange and challenging journey, having a staff that has only met through the harsh glare of a screen–and it’s even more unusual to think that some of us may never meet in person. Our lives have all been connected solely by technology, but we adapted and survived a full year of countless virtual calls, endless WiFi problems, and innumerable interruptions from family members and pets alike.
As a result, our staff is excited to introduce the 12th edition of IMPACT Magazine, featuring a collection of local small businesses in communities that many Palomar students call home. Every mom-and-pop donut shop, comic book store, and photography business from Temecula to Scripps Ranch is significant to the individuality and culture of our community. Unfortunately, these businesses have encountered unthinkable conditions due to the shutdown like everyone else.
Image of Summer Aguirre, Editor-in-Chief of IMPACT, Spring 2021.Despite the circumstances, many persisted in the face of adversity and declared business as usual, living to tell the tale. Their stories of dedication during this time of uncertainty are a reminder of our ability to persevere, and we hope they inspire you like they did to us.
Sincerely,
Summer Aguirre
IMPACT Editor-in-Chief
Fall 2019, No. 11
A city’s cultural landscape is defined by the people who live there, and each city is diverse in their own individual way. From the deserts of Anza Borrego to the beaches of La Jolla and the downtown hubs and everything in between, the city is rich with culture.
If you were to take a day to explore all San Diego County, what would you see? Maybe some skateboarders breezing through the bustling downtown streets, or surfers heading to the beach to get some waves, or even some artists painting a mural inside a local park as a group of classic cars drift by.
I was no more than seven years old the first time I stood in the sands of a San Diego beach. Admittedly, I don’t remember much, but I can remember the feeling of awe I had. I spent the first eight years of my childhood living in western Arizona before my family decided to make San Diego our forever home.
For this issue of IMPACT Magazine, our staff decided to focus on some of the aspects that makes San Diego so unique, from food, to art, architecture, and more. We wanted to take a closer look at the things that everyone who lives here might have a basic understanding of, and show it in a new light. We wanted to showcase local businesses, community events, and places that are making an impact in our community, both large and small.
Whether you’re San Diego born and raised, or a slightly displaced local (like myself), or simply a traveler who picked up this magazine, and it is our hope that you get a grasp on the diverse landscape that is our city. Don’t be afraid to lose yourself in something new, or something familiar, and have an adventure of your own.
Victoria Price
IMPACT Editor-in-Chief
Spring 2019, No. 10
Ten. That is how many years IMPACT magazine has been sharing stories about the impact of Palomar College and surrounding community. We have had 10 years of stories about interesting people, places and events. We are proud of what we have done and wanted to celebrate our 10th anniversary by doing even better.
With so much access to the entire world at our finger tips it is sometimes hard to see the light through a veil of negativity and discourse. Faced with an onslaught of fake news, violence, homelessness and poverty, we forget that there are the hands of community, hope and dreamers on the world.
That is why this year IMPACT is looking in a new direction. Sometimes it is important to take a break from negativity and look for positivity. To take time to believe that the future can be better than what we see right now.
In light of our 10th edition, our staff has selected 10 individuals who are making an IMPACT in their community. People who saw a need and actively worked to change it. We feature people who save animals, provide for food shelters, battle cancer or even turn a child’s death into a way to give back. Each story is a celebration of their lives and the difference they have made in the world. Their small acts of kindness have made them heroes.
We hope to inspire you to go out into your community and make a change, to be kind, and to find what you see wrong with the world and dare to change it.
Sincerely,
Bethany Nash
IMPACT Editor-in-Chief
Spring 2018, No. 9
Image of Bethany Nash, Editor-in-Chief of Impact Spring 2018
A people’s culture is a collection of thoughts and beliefs that cultivate an attitude of togetherness. It is culture that defines our identities as part of a grand community. However, in a world inhabited by over seven billion people, not everyone fits in the broad strokes created by mainstream culture.
That is why this year’s IMPACT, is focusing on subcultures and stereotypes. Because whereas mainstream culture provides people with identity through community, subcultures provide people with identity through individuality. Mainstream culture would like to stereotype these subcultures, and put them in a box. But that won’t fly.
Our writers were tasked with the responsibility of unboxing these subcultures. Each writer has spent time investigating, studying and embracing a circle outside of their own. From the head bangers of punk music lovers, to the religious followers of the secluded cult “The Twelve Tribes.”
College is a place to experience new ideas. We hope that by exposing these subcultures and tearing down these stereotypes you will be inspired to experience the world in a brand new light.
Bethany Nash
IMPACT Editor-in-Chief
Spring 2017, No. 8
Life isn’t grouped within periods of time connected by an overarching theme. There wasn’t a single motif permeating the collective thoughts of our writers and designers in creating these stories.
This year, IMPACT has no theme. Instead, IMPACT is a passion project–a collection of stories, such as our communities of transgendered youth or the transformation of one former gang member’s life. The stories our journalists found have resonated within them through their reporting and design to make the same Impact on our readers.
We all have different passions and different interests, even as journalists. We sought to capture the lives of the students on our campus not only physically within this institution, but the impacts they face outside the relative educational safety neatly confined by Comet Circle. From the discrepancies in pay our graduating women will face outside this college to the hashed-up recipes we make on measly budgets to sustain our daily activities, these stories will find a home within your own lives and hopefully resonate within it.
In college, and in life, new concepts and ideas can be overly complex. In the given moment of its introduction, we overthink our understanding of it into a simplified thought that’s then easily digestible. These collections of stories are our attempt at synthesizing the thoughts and feelings of a complex topic and creating a human element that is not only relatable, but its impact can be felt despite its complexities. As IMPACT has affected our lives, we look to this publication for it too to make an impact in your own world.
Sincerely yours,
Kirk Mattu
IMPACT Editor-in-Chief