Category: Crossroads

Documentary Poetry/Feminyx/Intergenerational
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Unthawed Nightmare

by Vontress Ortega

Strolling home from work, careless and free
Headed home to make my bed, clean sheets off the line,
What a shame to do at bedtime.

Entering my home, I notice no one, I see, I hear nothing
Suddenly attacked, impaled throughout my body
In and out, with such malice.
Forcibly violated, and left cold as ice.
Floating in a pool of my lineage as it drained from my veins.

Taken from me my spirit, stolen; my spirit.
What gave you the right to me?
Robbing me of my safety, my life, my future?
Who told you it was ok to play God and decide when?
When my last breath was taken, my last moments with family.

42 years I lay frozen, forever a 20 year old with the world at my feet.
Shattered in a moment of impulse.
42 years until my family would rejoice, “I feel like I can go on with my life now.”

The terror, pain and heartache frozen with me
Unthawed as handcuffs squeeze your wrists.
My soul set free, my nightmare unthawed.

 

Written by Vontress Ortega | Photo by Manjari, Pexels

Vontress Ortega smiling with long black hair and legs crossed
Vontress Ortega is a Journalism major at Sierra College and published author. She plans to transfer to Sacramento State University and continue in the major in fall 2022.
Education/Embodied Mind/Feminyx/Life Cycle/Money
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The Period of Change

by Jessica Mananquil
empty laundry basket on bathroom floor with paper sign in it, 'if you need one, take one, if you have one, give one'

College students spend thousands of dollars on tuition, living expenses, food, gas, etc. but have little room for anything else. What if you had to choose between period products and groceries? This situation occurs more than people may think. A new study found that 14.2% of college students experienced this problem known as Period Poverty in the past year.

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Community/Culture/Environment/Local/News/People of Color/Politics/Social Movements
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Bends and Banks: Communities, Water, and the American River

by CalHumanities 2022 Emerging Journalist Fellows

Bends and Banks: Communities, Water, and the American River, is a set of five stories produced by a team of journalist fellows in Spring, 2022. The team includes four student journalists: Madalyn Wright, Vontress Ortega, Katelyn Vengersammy, and Aviana Loveall. They were all awarded through the California Humanities “Emerging Journalist” Fellowship with the Journalism program at Sierra College.

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Local/News/Politics/Working Class
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Fast Food Fights Back

by Madalyn Wright

The year 2020 redefined the word, “essential.” Home essentials, health essentials, work essentials, but most notably essential workers. Though the Fight for 15 movements began in 2012, the COVD-19 pandemic brought a new wave of unionizing movements to fast-food chains across the nation. After years of unsafe working conditions, low wages, lack of accessible healthcare, sexual assault, sexism, and racism, fast-food workers of the Sacramento area are fighting back.

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Crossroads/Feminyx/Working Class
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Cultivating a Modern Family

by Madalyn Wright

Parenting and family planning have evolved in countless ways over the years. Some things have stayed the same; the pride of first steps, hearing first words, art created on walls, and learning quickly to never be caught without a snack. Others have changed dramatically, such as balancing passions and hobbies with the duties of work, college deadlines, and what we define as our family. How is anyone supposed to “balance” it all? What does “balance” mean? To Ryan Moskun, a claimed father by our 5-year-old daughter, Thea, that balance lies in priorities.

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Environment/Pathways/Sports/Visuals
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Adrenaline Addiction

by Lexi Young
rock climber

Rock climbing, snow sports, and anything semi-dangerous was what fueled my childhood. Living in Sacramento allowed my family and I to be just an hour and a half away from some of the coolest places, such as Lake Tahoe and John Muir Woods. Choosing to study at Sierra College allowed me to stay close to amazing places like these, with the opportunity to take classes even closer to the mountains at the Nevada County Campus.

The Environmentally Concerned Organization of Students (ECOS) is a club at Sierra College that I was lucky to join. It helps educate students on the importance of sustainability and the principles of Leave No Trace. Thanks to ECOS, I was able to participate in outdoor activities and meet people who feel just as passionately about the earth as I do.

Alexis Young
Lexi Young in Tahoe National Forest. Young is an Environmental Science and Journalism major at Sierra College. She plans to transfer to San Francisco State in Spring 2022 and continue in her dual major. Photo by Mckenzie Gerbitz.

Written by Alexis Young 

 

Crossroads/Documentary Poetry/Education/People of Color/Politics/Work
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Motherhood and Me

by Vontress Ortega

Becoming a mother at 17 was scary to me. I thought that I would ruin my children’s lives before they ever had a chance. Following in the footsteps of my mother and determined to break a cycle. Just a teenager not knowing myself or even who I would be. I did not understand the responsibility that I was taking on, not for just one child, but six.

I had to strive to be better than I’d ever been and understand that mistakes would potentially put me and my children in a bad position. It was up to me, and only me, to ensure that my children had everything under the sun, no matter the curve balls thrown in my path.

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Audio & Video/Campus/Education/Expression/Media & Tech/Pathways/Work
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Journalism and Communications: Reaching your Dream Career

by Hayley Repetti

In this 8:22 minute video, Journalism and Communications: Reaching your Dream Career, viewers hear from KFBK reporter with iHeart Media, Nikka Magahis, and Sierra College Communication Studies professor and consultant, Tara Franks, PhD, on their paths into journalism and communications careers. Each describes their unique journey into an evolving field that touches on radio, writing, multimedia, performance, teaching, and higher-education.

 

Hayley Repetti is a Journalism major at Sierra College. She served on the Editorial Team of Roundhouse News & Review in fall 2020. She plans to transfer to CSU Sacramento in fall 2021 and continue in the major.

Video by Hayley Repetti 

 

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