The afternoon was festive on Sept. 10 at the Associated Students welcome back barbecue. With a few hundred students in attendance, the event, held in Plaza Vaquero, featured various food, music, and game activities to welcome students to the beginning of a new year.

The Associated Students is the student government organization at GCC, composed of 21 elected leaders. Meetings are held weekly to coordinate programs and activities and determine expenditures.

“The whole purpose of the event is to invite people back, [and for] those who are new, to get used to the campus and make sure that they know they are welcomed here and [for] those who are coming back for their second year or third year.. We are here for them and want to open up a new year as best we can,” said Jessica Gabrielian, ASGCC Senator of Finance.

The event opened to the sounds of a duet by Byron and Clare Delto, faculty members in the department of music. They sang an array of songs.

There were a variety of booths at the event. There was a booth of bread donated by the La Brea Bakery. Included were ciabatta, raisin and French breads provided for the attendees. One of the highlights were the free hot dogs with a variety of condiments. In addition, there was a coffee truck from Francisco’s Specialty Gourmet Coffee giving out free coffee.

Different foods and drinks were sold throughout the day. For those with a sweet tooth, there was a pink cotton candy machine. Another booth was selling snow cones, which was a perfect way to cool down in the September heat. There was a booth selling shirts ($10), lanyards ($5), and bracelets ($3), proceeds from which went to the speech and debate team. Also at the event were students passing out informational handouts about the calendar of events for the new school year.

Thoughts on the barbecue were favorable. “It’s cool. It’s to promote ASGCC,” said Natalia Restrepo, a current student at GCC.

Later in the day, students, along with faculty from the speech and debate team, formed a band to promote their activities and began singing ’50s and ’60s songs. Michael Miller sang “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band,” by the Beatles. He also sang “Dock of the Bay,” by Otis Redding. The band performed “One Fine Day” by the Chiffons, “Stand By Me,” by Ben E King, “Great Balls of Fire” by Jerry Lee Lewis and “Jailhouse Rock,” by Elvis Presley.

Students played games such as tug of war against some of the faculty. Those who won received a thermos mug as a prize. In addition, there was an egg toss game. Lilia Avagyan, Trustee and President of ASGCC said, “We want to make sure that there is an interaction between students, staff, administrators, and faculty.this is the first time that faculty, students, and staff can be together.”

The plan for the welcome back event developed when Dr. Dawn Lindsay, Superintendent and interim President of GCC, proposed the idea of a social gathering to Avagyan.

The funding for the event was provided by the Student Services fee, part of which goes to ASGCC. Those in attendance appeared to have had an enjoyable time as they considered the many activities available.

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ASGCC Positions Available

The Associated Students of Glendale Community College (ASGCC) student government has two committee vacancies to fill this semester.

The positions are for Representative of Finance and Representative of Campus Activities.

To qualify you must be enrolled in at least nine units and have a 2.0 GPA.

For more information call Tzoler Oukayan(818) 240-1000, ext. 3033