Author: Brittany Claramunt

Brittany Claramunt is a reporter for the Del Mar College Foghorn. She joined the staff in Spring 2016 as a first year college student. Brittany majors in Radio and Television and hopes to one day become an aspiring television news anchor. You can contact Brittany via e-mail at bclaramunt@foghornnews.com or follow her on Twitter @BrittClaramunt.
Campus

One story done another one begins

Brittany Claramunt

Brittany Claramunt @britClaramunt bclaramunt@foghornnews.com I knew I always wanted to go to college after high school. But when I graduated I didn’t feel ready to leave and be on my own. Taking AP and honors classes all four years of high school prepared me for the workload of college but personally and mentally it did not. When I first came to Del Mar I was not expecting to be so involved. I thought about not doing anything my first semester so I could get use to being a college student. But that really went out the window. Aside from doing…

Campus

Searching for a place to study for finals

Brittany Claramunt

Brittany Claramunt @BritClaramunt bclaramunt@foghornnews.com Whether at home or on campus, students are likely searching for a comfy, quiet place to study for finals. Del Mar College is a nontraditional school so it caters to students in a variety of situations. For Tabitha Claypool, a nursing major, a quiet place is hard to come by when trying to manage a full house. “I have four kids so I can put them to bed then I can go study in my bedroom,” Claypool said. Other students face a similar situation with kids but find peace and quiet on campus. “I have a…

Campus

Advising process helps students

Brittany Claramunt

Brittany Claramunt @britclaramunt bclaramunt@foghornnews.com The end of the semester doesn’t just mean finals, but also the rush to select class for the next semester. With a certain amount of credit hours and no advising holds, students can register on their own. However, it can lead to mistakes like not selecting the right class or taking an unnecessary class. “Seeing an adviser is better so the students can be getting the right classes for their major,” said Juli Propp, enrollment specialist. For liberal arts major Zoe Rhodes, seeing an adviser was helpful in planning what classes to take. However, it did…

Campus

Del Mar students help Harvey victims

Brittany Claramunt

Brittany Claramunt @BritClaramunt bclaramunt@foghornnews.com Del Mar College’s Social Work Student Association gave the residents of Refugio one more reason to be thankful last month when the group delivered holiday meals in the town, which is still recovering from Hurricane Harvey. “Gathering everything was kind of a coalition with our Social Work Student Association and the local Communications Workers of America Union. We got to gather about 15 turkeys, six hams, drinks and lots of sides,” said Kayla Bush, president of the Social Work Student Association. Bush said the group wanted to help victims of Hurricane Harvey. “They are still unable…

Campus

Faculty finds fire system alarming

Brittany Claramunt

Brittany Claramunt @BrittClaramunt bclaramunt@foghornnews.com Faculty and students in the Venters Building may have seen a security guard monitoring the building recently and wondered why. It’s because for several weeks, the fire alarm system has been offline. According to Robert Duffie, director of Physical Facilities, the fire alarm system is still functioning, but it is not being monitored by the monitoring company. “It is an older 1980s system for which parts are no longer available,” Duffie said. Other parts have been used to keep the system functional temporarily, Duffie said. Because the system cannot be maintained with original parts from the…

Community

Kicking off Veterans Day with a mixer

Brittany Claramunt

Del Mar College Veterans Services hosted a Veterans Day Mixer to kick off a week of celebration on Nov. 6 in the Retama Room. Participants received information on resources available on campus. Organizations that came by  to provide information included Goodwill Industries, Operation Homefront, Department of Veterans Affairs and Nueces County Veterans Services. On Nov. 10 at the Center for Economic Development, Army Veteran Jose Olivares, owner of Tejas Cable Construction, spoke to veterans during a luncheon. Olivares talked about starting and operating their own business through a veteran’s perspective.

Entertainment, Movies

Journalist sheds light on PTSD

Brittany Claramunt

Brittany Claramunt @BrittClaramunt bclaramunt@foghornnews.com One in 5 men and women in uniform come back home with some kind of brain injury. Often times their injuries are not visible — they are mental. These men and women defend their country but are also protecting their friends, family and people whom they have never met. The movie adaption of “Thank You for Your Service” by American journalist David Finkel focuses on real-life veterans who returned to Fort Riley, Kansas, following a 15-month deployment to Iraq in 2007-08. They return home and try to adjust to civilian life while dealing with post-traumatic stress…

Campus

Volunteers set up water stations

Brittany Claramunt

Brittany Claramunt @BrittClaramunt When the president of Del Mar’s Social Work Student Association heard about the horrendous journey of undocumented immigrants through South Texas, with many dying from dehydration, she knew the club had to help. “We got to see a few pictures of migrants that have died trying to come into the U.S. Their bodies bubble and rot from the heat and some people don’t find their family members until only bones are left,” said Kayla Bush, president of the association. The club has been focusing on human rights issues since it is a problem in the social work…

Book Review, Entertainment

A book that can bring a lot of light

Brittany Claramunt

Brittany Claramunt @BrittClaramunt bclaramunt@foghornnews.com Russian is not my first or second language, nor do I know much about its culture, but that didn’t stop me from reading “Shadow and Bone” by Leigh Bardugo. Shadow and Bone is the first book in a trilogy that follows a girl, Alina, who is saved from going to war because she learns she has the ability to create light. She is taken from the fields to Ravka court where she meets the Darkling, a powerful man who can create darkness. In a nation ravaged by darkness and monsters, her ability can help her nation…

Campus

Resets, unchanged passwords cause lockouts

Brittany Claramunt

@BrittClaramunt bclaramunt@foghornnews.com Every returning student, faculty member and employee got a notification over the summer about resetting their WebDMC password. While this is extra security, it might take some getting use to. Viking Key is a new feature Del Mar introduced this past summer. The college implemented the password change management system to better protect students’ and staff’s data. Students, faculty and staff must reset their passwords every 120 days or they will be locked out from their WebDMC and Canvas accounts. Students will receive an email with a direct link to Viking Key to facilitate the password change. The…