The Voice of Butte College
since 1997
May 16 print issue available now:
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Opinion Piece: Struggling Students
Dae Williams, guest contributor
As college students see the bad events of society unfold, they are starting to have less hope for their future, and they are beginning to have this hopeless mindset for everything in their life.
Finding professional help gets harder each day, and without the right help, living each day becomes more of a struggle.
College students today are now facing the issue of not being able to find the right type of help. With the prices of medicine and therapy, it's almost impossible to find a good therapist. The retail price for most mental medications can be hundreds of dollars if not more. Most college students don't have the time for a job with all of the schoolwork, and even with the schoolwork
it's causing stress. With the combination of all these stressors, it can cause a decline in mental health rapidly, and most of the time these people don't even have access to the right treatment.
A 2020 study by The Washington Post interviewed a couple of people at George Washington University asking them about the mental health crisis within their school. The student body president, SJ Matthews, explained, “She and other leaders who signed the letter say students
aren’t getting the near-immediate care they would normally receive on campus.” This further explains that students can get the type of professional help that they need.
When older generations complain about the issues of younger generations, they genuinely don't understand what we, as a society, have seen at such a young age in a short time. Although these issues may have been going on back then, they still are putting all the pressure on
younger generations to get it right.
Society tends to complain about how younger generations may not take their school as seriously as they should. When in all reality mental health can cause permanent mental and physical damage to the body. We should not put this stereotype on younger generations, simply
because everyone goes through their hardships.
When mental health issues spike like this, especially at a time when it's hard to find the right help, it's time to consider that it's not just something the younger generation is doing for attention. Society should start taking mental health a lot more seriously and making sure there
are safe spaces to bring up mental health if the right help isn't present. Some safe spaces could be student-made mental health groups or just one on one help with a student who may be experiencing the same thing.
When we come together as a society and listen to each other about what's going on, then society should come to an understanding of what generations have been through. Even though it may be hard to get everyone to hear us out, we might as well start with the ones who will listen and who will make a change.
The Last Man on the Street
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"Baby J" Back on the Scene
Madison Gillen, senior staff writer
On April 25, Netflix premiered its 5th collaboration with comedy John Mulaney to bring another hilarious special center stage.
Mulaney’s new show “Baby J” is a continuation of his tour “From Scratch,” not only taking some of those jokes and adding them to the special but incorporating new ones as well.
From interviews he doesn’t remember, his journey in rehab, to the reliability of quarantine, the special covers everything we’ve missed in the last three years.
In terms of John Mulaney’s other Netflix specials, I believe this is one of the best. Not only is the cinematography beautiful throughout the hour-long spectacle, but the jokes are witty, fast-paced, and a roller coaster to listen to as we follow John’s story.
I guarantee if you’re looking for a relaxing, comical night in, whether alone or with
friends, this special is the exact way to do it. So, make some popcorn and get ready to laugh your
night away!
One Year with the Pallet Shelter
Garrett Green, senior staff writer
"Over the past year, the city has continued to provide a safe, healthy living environment for individuals faced with homelessness at the shelter," claimed Chico’s Public Works Director Erik Gustafson.
Gustafson was speaking at a press event held Thursday, May 4, to mark the one-year anniversary of the opening of Chico’s Pallet shelter. Gustafson oversees Chico’s efforts to clear the campsites of unhoused individuals that are scattered across Chico. This process was originally halted in 2019 when a group of unhoused individuals came together to sue the city. The creation of a site dedicated to providing adequate shelter for the unhoused was a core requirement of that court case’s settlement. Chico’s Pallet shelter was created to satisfy those conditions.
In April of 2022, the Pallet shelter opened, and the Jesus Center was chosen to oversee and operate the site. According to Mayor Andrew Coolidge at the same May 4 press conference, the shelter "was the largest single location of tiny homes for homeless individuals in California at the time of construction." Mayor Cooldige went on to state that over the course of the past year, 401 individual assessments had taken place to determine whether or not people were a good fit for the shelter or an alternative site. Coolidge said that many of these individuals had chosen to relocate to the Pallet shelter and that 207 people were living there at the time.
The Pallet Shelter
On May 9, 2023, the Roadrunner staff sat down with Jesus Center and Pallet shelter Executive Director Amber Abney-Bass. While sitting in the shade of the site’s "hospitality tent," Abney-Bass explained her views on the approaches the shelter has taken, how the site operates, and the impact she feels the shelter has had over the past year.
The shelter offers several basic-needs services as well as additional resources. There is a security guard as well as staff members present 24/7. According to Abney-Bass, there are also case managers on site six days a week. These case managers are supposed to connect individuals with the services and resources that they need. Representatives from Butte Behavioral Health and the Department of Employment and Social Services both spend time on site. There are also Narcotics Anonymous meetings on a regular basis.
Abney-Bass said that the focus of the site is on providing stability as well as a sense of personal space and security to the inhabitants.
The Structure
The Pallet shelter, located in a large gravel lot adjacent to Chico’s fairgrounds, features 177 individual shelters, a large pavilion-style hospitality tent that serves as a dining area and gathering site, as well as parking spots, dumpsters, porta-potties, and an on-site office for staff.
According to Abney-Bass, staff are on site 24/7.
"The goal here is to offer stability and predictability of services," the kind of thing that people don’t get while living on the streets, Abney-Bass shared.
Haven of Hope on Wheels provides shower services Monday through Friday, while a laundry unit is brought on site on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Three meals are served each day, and the staff keeps track of who gets food during those meal times. According to Abney-Bass, keeping track of who eats what helps the staff gauge what meals are more popular as well as whether or not people are engaging with services.
The staff monitors who uses all of the shelter services so that they can be aware of anyone who might need assistance. "If we see that somebody has come on site but we haven’t had any action from them in 48 hours, then we can do a welfare check in their unit to make sure that things are okay." Abney-Bass explained.
Residents can come and go whenever; however, if they disappear from the facility for 72 hours, then their units are considered abandoned and that case is classified as a failure to return. If a resident fails to return, their belongings will be held for 14 days in case they eventually return for them; however, they will have lost their spot at the shelter. Abney-Bass did say that residents who left can potentially get the chance to return and that it is not unreasonable to assume that a lot of people will need multiple chances.
For the first six weeks of a resident's time at the shelter, they are required to pass weekly inspections; afterwards, the inspections will be conducted each month. These inspections screen for any contraband items and potential fire or health hazards. Cooking items are not permitted because the site’s policy is that if residents cook in their individual units, it could pose a fire danger. Any illegal items that residents might possess, such as drug paraphernalia, are not permitted. An "Amnesty Box" exists at the front of the property for residents to store any contraband items.
A Resident’s Perspective
Ashely Threewit moved to the Pallet shelter, along with her husband Kevin, roughly two months ago. Threewit is appreciative of the shelter site, particularly of the resources offered there. When talking about the fact that the shelter provides regular showers, Threewitt said "certain things like that are definitely an up from Eaton," the location of the site the couple had lived at previously.
However, Threewitt expressed some concerns and criticisms about the shelter. While Threewitt was appreciative of the basic needs that the site offered, she felt there was an issue with transportation. Threewitt shared that the shelter is located far from several important places, which makes it difficult to keep appointments.
Case managers are able to issue bus passes to assist residents with transportation; however, Threewitt said that it has been difficult to get a hold of one. Threewitt claimed that within one of the couple’s first weeks at the shelter, there was a time when no case managers were on site for an entire week. This made it impossible to get a hold of a bus pass, and while shelter staff attempted to help, they were not allowed to issue bus passes without a case manager.
In addition to location and transportation concerns, Threewitt shared several security concerns. The couple acknowledged that the shelter is safer from outside harassment than other sites. "We don’t have the anxiety of someone coming by and shooting at us in the middle of the night," Threewitt said. However, the couple is worried about their belongings being stolen, something they say they did not have to worry about while at the Eaton campsite.
The couple shared that the frame of their pop-up canopy tent had been stolen, that they had been warned about bike theft in the past, and that they are aware of someone who had their bike stolen recently, but that the process of accusing someone is complicated and has to be handled through the staff. Threewitt also expressed concerns about the presence of drug users. Threewitt claims that there is a known group of fentanyl users on the site. "While these activities are prohibited, staff don’t have a way of stopping it without catching persons in the act but it is getting onto the property" Threewitt claimed.
The Impact
"People are coming out here and there is change happening in them" Abney-Bass recognized. While not all the residents are necessarily succeeding in growth, and while Abney-Bass was quick to point out that success is defined differently by each individual, the executive director feels that the Pallet shelter is making a positive impact on many residents.
Abney-Bass shared that within the first year of the site's operation, 11 individuals moved from the site into some form of long-term housing, and many are on the waiting list for upcoming low-income housing developments.
Abney-Bass said that with 200 unique individuals occupying the site, it is not easy to run, but the staff is doing their best. "We are challenged to get more and more creative and more and more patient." The executive director feels that they are truly making a difference. "Our staff has opportunities every day to speak life into people."
While she recognizes that there are some inhabitants who disagree, Abney-Bass feels that the majority of the people living at the Pallet shelter look at it as an incredible opportunity, just as she does. For Abney-Bass, it is not just about fulfilling the requirements of a settlement; it is about helping people take the next step towards supporting themselves in a safe and secure environment.
Find us right now!
Pottery Article
Alexandra Enos, staff writer
On April 25, Netflix premiered its 5th collaboration with comedy John Mulaney to bring another hilarious special center stage.
Mulaney’s new show “Baby J” is a continuation of his tour “From Scratch,” not only taking some of those jokes and adding them to the special but incorporating new ones as well.
From interviews he doesn’t remember, his journey in rehab, to the reliability of quarantine, the special covers everything we’ve missed in the last three years.
In terms of John Mulaney’s other Netflix specials, I believe this is one of the best. Not only is the cinematography beautiful throughout the hour-long spectacle, but the jokes are witty, fast-paced, and a roller coaster to listen to as we follow John’s story.
I guarantee if you’re looking for a relaxing, comical night in, whether alone or with
friends, this special is the exact way to do it. So, make some popcorn and get ready to laugh your
night away!
