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January 2021 – Page 2 – The Prospector

Month: January 2021

Categories
Entertainment

Troubled Blood: J.K Rowling’s Newest Display of Transphobia

K. Rowling’s new novel Troubled Blood takes another distasteful shot at the transgender community to bring her trans-exclusionary ideas to the bookstores.

Under Rowling’s crime-writing pseudonym Robert Galbraith, Troubled Blood features a cisgender man who dresses femininely in order to kill female victims. While this may seem like an innocent or even exciting serial killer plot, we cannot look past Rowling’s past transphobic comments and how this further allows her to demonize trans-women especially.

This was not the first time making trans-women out to be dangerous. In her 2014 novel The Silkworm, Rowling writes about an aggressive woman who later reveals she is a transgender. Readers have noted how when talking about this character, Rowling uses objectifying language and rhetoric that mimics common arguments for transphobia.

Most recently, Rowling has been called out on Twitter multiple times for transphobic comments. 

In December 2019, Rowling tweeted with the hashtag “#IStandWithMaya” in support of Maya Forestar, a former tax expert working at The Central London Employment Tribunal. Forestar was fired from her job after claiming trans-women should not be considered women and believe they are just men who are trying to fit into women’s spaces. 

On June 6th, 2020, she quote tweeted a post to an article titled “Opinion: Creating a more equal post-COVID-19 world for people who menstruate,” taking issue with the phrase “people who menstruate.” She said in her tweet, “I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?” Her comments were called out for disregarding the transgender men who still have periods, non-binary people, and transgender women who do not have ovaries to menstruate.

On June 10th, Rowling released an essay claiming she would be a trans-man if she was born 30 years earlier because of the misogyny and sexism she has faced. Her comments denounced biological females who transitioned to become a man solely for the purpose to not have to deal with the misogyny. Later in her essay, she made similar comments to Forestar, saying her single-sex spaces were being intruded by men who want to be women. 

Rowling preceded to tweet on July 5th in support of a woman who briefly identified as a transgender man. The woman claimed hormone treatment is similar to those with mental illness taking medication, describing it as “laziness”. Rowling continued further to compare forced gay conversion therapy to voluntary hormone treatment despite hormone treatment being known by scientists to help reduce dysphoria and saving the lives of transgender people.

These comments all encompass one idea: she does not believe trans-people should be allowed to identify as the gender they believe they are. Troubled Blood is a reflection of her statements quite literally. Her beliefs and actions of standing by those who believe trans-women are men who want to play dress-up is reflected in a character who is literally a man who plays dress-up. 

By making this man the killer, Rowling is insinuating transwomen are dangerous. As seen through her comments about feeling her women-only safe spaces are being intruded by men, she is perpetuating the idea that transwomen are out to harm others. While this is really the opposite of the truth as trans-women are large targets of hate crimes, she continues to perpetuate these harmful ideologies.

K. Rowling’s continuous transphobic comments need to be taken into account when talking about Troubled Blood. Her continuous demonization of trans-woman, especially in this book, is harmful to the transgender community and should not be celebrated.

Categories
Opinion

Among Us Helps Us Stay Connected

Among Us is the new quarantine craze as people try to stay connected in the midst of a pandemic. The simplicity and social aspects of the game allows players to connect while keeping physically distanced.

The game has recently become popular over the past month, spiking in interest the week of September 20th according to Google search trends. 

Launched in 2018 by indie game company InnerSloth, Among Us is a multiplayer social deduction game. Games are played between 4-10 players who are randomly assigned either the role of crewmate or imposter. Crewmates complete tasks as imposters try to kill them before all tasks are completed. As the game progresses, crewmates try to catch the imposter through meetings and decide who to vote out. 

Players are also able to join public servers with random players and private servers with friends. This has given people to meet new people and connect to friends they have not seen due to COVID-19 regulations. These socialization features as seen in Among Us have been especially important. 

According to a survey done in April by Value Penguin, 47% of Americans were feeling lonelier than usual after the public was advised to stay home. 

To help ease the stress and create a sense of togetherness during a time apart, people have taken a special interest in games they can add friends and make new ones. Games with similar socialization features such as Minecraft and Animal Crossing: New Horizons have provided people with connection to others as loneliness increases.

Voice chat apps to talk to others during the meetings have also gained popularity such as Discord due to Among Us, showing a spike in interest September 20th on Google’s search trends as well. 

Among Us also presents a simple artistic style. The basic color choices and two dimensional art style is different from video games such as Call of Duty and League of Legends which includes three dimensional game play and heavily detailed graphics. 

This has greatly increased opportunities for exposure from fans. Even beginning artists can replicate the bean-shape characters; those with more experience have lots of freedom to play around with style and give their own spin on the game’s art. 

Content creators also contribute to the mass production of fanart and relatable memes, allowing people to connect. Being able to relate to others further allows people to feel a sense of togetherness. 

While the pandemic continues to separate friends, games such as Among Us provide the social connections many have felt they lost. Fighting loneliness with an amusing social game has provided many with the togetherness people have been chasing since social distancing was advised.

Categories
Opinion

Sac City Council Sets to Demolish Public Housing Community

On Tuesday the 25th of August, the Sacramento City Council passed the “West Broadway Specific Plan” (WBSP) which greenlights the demolition of New Helvetia, a public housing community that sits on Broadway adjacent to Seavey Circle.  

The passage of this plan officially opens the door for the introduction of “high-rise residential housing,” also known as commercially owned housing facilities that would encourage “Mixed-Income” residents. Housing officials hope that this changes the low-income status of New Helvetia and “integrates” low income residents with middle-class folks.

This proposal of demolition is staunchly opposed by New Helvetia residents and Sacramento activists, and for good reason — it would displace thousands during these already unprecedented times.

The demolition is part and parcel of a larger trend of gentrification which is gripping low income and working class communities across the city. This violent process of community “reorganization” materializes in the forms of big corporate conglomerates flipping properties, increasing rent prices, as well as the influx of affluent and expensive food and retail locations. Community leaders and activists point to Oak Park, Dos Rios, and South Sacramento as subject to gentrification that has often been greenlighted by City Council leadership.

Communities most affected by gentrification and complete demolitions of public housing structures are already vulnerable black, brown, and disabled communities. Gentrification and the systematic infiltration of white-middle class families distorts the neighborhoods that were predominantly black as a product of historic violent redlining practices and emplacement that forced black populations to survive in the inner cities despite constant policing and violent policy procedures. 

This demolition and reconfiguration of New Helvetia is being executed by the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency (SHRA). SHRA’s website parades around their mission statement of “Community Revitalization,” where they claim to “rehabilitate” the “disadvantaged communities” of Sacramento. They post the sparkling documentation of their work creating “safe and affordable housing,” but those words are a mere smoke screen for what the process of community revitalization actually looks like. 

WBSP says that demolition is “necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of its residents” which is in tension with the past actions of the Sacramento City Council which included the allocation of millions of dollars to the Sacramento Police Department’s (SacPD) budget for the purpose of surveillance and policing the public housing communities of Seavey Circle and New Helvetia. When has the city of Sacramento ever cared about protecting the “health, safety, and wealthfare” of poor black and brown communities.

WBSP and SHRA say that post demolition, they would ensure that there are still “751 available housing units,” yet the notion of “mixed-income housing” almost completely ensures that the same demographic of low-income people won’t be allowed to live in those “available housing units.”  

WBSP includes an ambiguous statement of ensuring “affordable housing” post demolition, but community activists and public housing residents are unsure as to what this looks like, and where they will be relocated when SHRA initiates the process of demolition. 

SHRA and the City Council have nodded to the possibility of placing people in various motels across the city during construction, yet a specific plan for this idea is rather unclear. Recent clarifying statements released by both SHRA and the City Council seem to indicate that the timeline for demolition can potentially be changed and altered at the will of SHRA. SHRA can also reportedly choose to not demolish New Helvetia, but instead make extreme alterations to the housing community that still allows for the “integration” of “mixed-income” families. 

The Sacramento City council quietly approved the WBSP plan, and thus, granted power to SHRA to make policy and construction determinations that will affect thousands of people. 

The extreme autonomy that is given to SHRA, a private corporation, who has no incentive to protect the residents of the public housing community that they are bulldozing, should trigger public outrage. Why has the liberal and seemingly neutral Sacramento City Council approved this detrimental project? Are these the same public figures who tweet “Black Lives Matter” and “Protect Black Youth?” 

Where is the outrage of the white liberal families from the suburbs that after attending a single BLM protest washed their hands clean of a need to dismantle the institutional inertia that systematically attacks black populations?

We, the white people of Sacramento, have to stop “stanning” liberal politicians simply because there’s a (D) by their names. Gentrification is still anti-black racism only disguised as “community improvement.”

Categories
Entertainment

Sarah Paulson’s Chilling Appearance In Netflix’s “Ratched”

Over the past 6 months, the amount of time that people have spent watching Netflix has increased due to the pandemic. Due to the closing of movie theaters and entertainment venues, more people have been forced to watch movies and television shows at home. Netflix offers a variety of different genres including their latest drama series, “Ratched” which premiered September 18th.

Sarah Paulson is widely known for her captivating lead role in the thrilling American anthology horror, “American Horror Story.” She is now starring in this mind-boggling drama as nurse Mildred Ratched. 

I invested a week into the first season of Ratched and all I can say is “Wow,”– it’s definitely a jaw-dropper. We follow an asylum nurse known as Mildred Ratched who seeks employment at a Northern California psychiatric hospital in 1947. Sarah Paulson’s character Mildred is based on the central character in Ken Kesey’s 1962 novel “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.” 

Mildred, a former army nurse with mysterious motives, plans to get into the Lucia Psychiatric Hospital where her brother, Edmund Tolleson was recently admitted for viciously murdering several priests, including one he believed to be his biological father. Mildred pretends to be a licensed nurse only to save Edmund from the electric chair. 

The big plot twist of the series is when Mildred plans to kill her brother by euthanizing him in order to give him a quick and painless death, instead of having the state do it by what Governor Wilburn calls, “Old Sparky ”, otherwise known as the electric chair. 

Viewers who were captivated by American Horror Story would likely enjoy Ratched. However the storyline of Ratched does consist of rather graphic depictions of violence such as dunking patients in boiling water as a form of gay conversion therapy, patients committing suicide, and unpleasant surgeries.

The series also dives deep into Mildred’s childhood life, and depicts the deepest trauma that she experienced through multiple vivid  flashbacks. One specific flashback focused on a puppet show that Mildred and her brother Edmund watched as orphans who bounced around the foster system, as they lived with many families who abused them both sexually and physically. Edmund had killed their last foster parents allowing Ratched to escape, which is why Ratched felt she should return the favor by helping Edmund escape the psychiatric facility.

According to VanityFair, “Ratched” is described as wretched and nonsensical. While I agree that the show is very scattered and somewhat confusing, it is certainly a feast for the eyes with all the colorful cinematography and great acting. This series was very mind-boggling, and always surprised me in a good yet terrifying way. 

Overall this was a really interesting series. Even though I have my criticisms, the series did an excellent job showing the depths of Milldred’s life, and how that trauma has affected her as an adult. I would definitely recommend it.

Categories
Features

Luis Guerrero: Math Teacher by Day, DJ by Night

Mr. Luis Guerrero is a math teacher at Mcclatchy high school entering into his 2nd year as a math teacher. Mr.Guerrero is a Sacramento native born in south Sacramento. He was a former basketball coach for the Freshman basketball team at McClatchy, and DJ at previous homecomings.

Mr.Guerrero is an alumni of the class of ‘09 at McClatchy. He then enrolled in Sacramento State, where he received his Bachelor’s degree in Engineering as well as his teachers credential.

Transitioning careers from an engineer to a math teacher was not an easy choice to make. Mr. Guerrero was working as an audio engineer, before deciding to enter the educational field as a math teacher. Guerrero stated, ‘’[I]… recognized that I needed to be in the classroom because representation matters. It is hard to imagine what you don’t see. I decided to do what I felt right.”

His approach to teaching is quite unique and unlike the average classroom environment, ‘’One strategy I use in a math classroom is playing music in the background during warm-ups, independent practice and group activities. There are many university studies that highlight the impact of background music and academic achievement’’.

Like many teachers, there have been a lot of new hurdles to tackle with distance learning– new in and out’s that everyone has to get used to. Mr. Guerrero commented on this, saying that, “The pandemic has impacted everything about teaching and learning. I don’t like that we are doing distance learning, but I am doing everything in my power to make it the best that I can. One thing that I really like about working online is that I am able to communicate with all students outside of the classroom.’’

 But he doesn’t spend all day in the classroom. By night he is a DJ as well as an audio engineer. Mr.Guerrero got his start with music and sound by working at his cousin’s sound company at 13. There he witnessed what being a DJ was like, and immediately was inspired, “I was instantly hooked on how the DJ;s would mix and manipulate the music… I was given a pair of turntables and records from a family friend and that’s when it all started. .” 

Guerrero exercises his DJ skills working as an audio engineer for the Sacramento Kings as well as being the DJ every Saturday night on Fuego 103.5 FM here in Sacramento. 

When asked about his plans for his career as a teacher in the future Mr.Guerrero said “I am currently a masters student in the College of Education at Sacramento State. I plan on teaching until I enter a Phd program in education. Ultimately, I want to become a professor in teacher preparation at the university level.”

Categories
Entertainment

WAP: Feminism or Misogyny?

Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s new song has sparked major controversy across the internet. On August 7, 2020, the rappers collaborated on a new song, “WAP.”  In the song, they graphically describe sex as well as their own bodies. The lyrics as well as the music video, have been seen as overly sexual by many.

Even prominent political commentator, Ben Shapiro, had something to say. Shapiro is known to be conservative as well as antifeminist. He does not support the WAP song music video. In his reaction video to the song, Shapiro sarcastically states, “This is what the feminists fought for.  This is what the feminist movement was all about.”  

I don’t know why his opinion matters when it comes to feminism. As a man, he does not get to dictate what women did or did not fight for. While his opinion may be valid, it should not be the deciding factor on what women can or cannot do with or say about their own bodies. 

An argument frequently brought up against “WAP” is that it is anti-feminist because it showcases women pushing towards the standard put in place by men. This standard is an overly sexualized woman. Something many do not think about before bringing this up is the fact that this song has nothing to do with men. Women do not exist to reach or avoid male desires.  Many women dress or act provocatively simply because they feel confident in doing so.  

Now let’s look at the reaction to WAP in comparison to how the internet reacted to another popular rapper’s song. In Eminem’s song “Criminal”, Eminem raps about his own genitalia as well as sex.  

Seeing as this song came out 20 years ago, one would expect the reaction to be even more negative than WAP’s. However, not much was said in the media about the sexuality of the lyrics. 

In The Rolling Stone review of Eminem’s album “The Marshall Mathers LP” by Touré, Eminem is described as, “the most quotable MC alive, both consistently funny and ridiculously far over the top.”  The author mentions nothing critical about Eminem being overly sexual.  This is much different than the response to “WAP”.

By comparing the media’s reaction to both of the songs, one can come to the conclusion that people only have a problem when female rappers rap about sex. Instead of trying to bring down two female rappers singing about their own bodies, we should be focusing on the different ways we choose to judge people based on their gender expression.  

Looking at the lyrics, “WAP” should be seen as a feminist song because it shows women that they can be powerful and provocative while still maintaining self-respect and confidence. This song has nothing to do with men, and everything to do with how women can see themselves.

Categories
Opinion

If You’re Boycotting Mulan, You Shouldn’t Watch Stranger Things Either

Disney’s live-action Mulan was boycotted for filming in the same province as Uighur detention camps. Filming in the same state as ICE detention facilities needs to be held to the same standard.

After being released on Disney+, Mulan was heavily criticised for thanking Chinese government officials for helping to arrange filming in the province of Xinjiang, where millions of Uighur people have been imprisoned. The US has condemned China for Uighur detainment, with the Department of State publishing a webpage on the Human Rights Abuses in Xinjiang. The page makes a point to highlight population control, among other things including forced labor and violations of religious freedom. 

The reaction Mulan received was totally warranted. It is completely unethical to film a movie or TV show in the same place where people are being imprisoned and abused. Americans oftentimes turn their attention to problems happening around the world instead of addressing those happening right under their noses. Even though Americans spearheaded the Mulan boycott, they also ignored the human rights abuses happening in ICE detention facilities. 

Meanwhile, Georgia has become a hub for filmmaking with hit shows like Stranger Things, Ozark, and The Walking Dead all being filmed in and around Atlanta despite being set elsewhere. All three of these shows have filmed and been released since 2018, which is when disturbing issues surrounding ICE came to light–including pictures of children being kept in cages with nothing but aluminum blankets. If the producers knew about the horrifying conditions of detainment centers near their filming locations, why wouldn’t they move? If fans knew, why wouldn’t they speak up?

These facilities have become notorious for the abuse that their detainees face. The ICE website keeps a running list of people who die in their custody, and of the 30 plus people, 20 have died in the 2020 fiscal year. ICE has also reported that 5,700 detainees have been infected with COVID-19, and at least three people have been sexually assaulted by ICE officers at the El Paso facility alone.

Dawn Wooten, a former nurse at a Georgia ICE center, made headlines this month after exposing a history of forced hysterectomies on female detainees. She along with Project South have been reporting on the forced sterilization of at least five women and the lack of medical care provided by the facilities. The women who had forced hysterectomies often did not know what was happening and started calling the doctor responsible the “uterus collector”.

It’s confusing that everyone has been able to find their voice with Mulan, yet excuse the same behavior when inside of the US. Why is everyone willing to excuse one filming location and protest the other? After all, the US Department of State recognizes the population control of the Uighur people as a human rights abuse. Why won’t they protect migrants and refugees in our country from the same abuses? 

It is important to understand that both the Chinese treatment of the Uighur people and the US treatment of ICE detainees are terrible human rights violations. When we criticize another countries’ actions, we must remember to reflect upon our own. If you support boycotting Mulan, then you should boycott Stranger Things too.

Categories
News

How The VAPA Program is Adapting to Distance Learning

Due to COVID-19, school is quite a different experience this year with the move to distance learning. 

Everyone is adapting to distance learning the best they can, including C.K. McClatchy’s VAPA (Visual andPerforming Arts) program. 

Normally, VAPA classes are interactive and hands-on. VAPA offers visual arts classes such as ceramics, 2D art, and photography as well as theatre and dance classes. 

Mollie Morrison is the VAPA coordinator and teaches 3D art, advanced and AP sculpting, and after school theatre. When asked about how her classes have changed this year, she said, “I mean, zoom, for one. I did a ton of research to decide what applications and what collaborations to use…. It has just been about getting to know students and really making sure everyone understands. I can’t see what they’re making and what’s going on.” 

Art classes require more materials than other classes and Morrison faced the challenge of ensuring that students have the materials they need. When asked how that is actualized, she said, “We created art kits for kids. It’s a lot easier for 2D art. With sculpture, you need so many things. They needed rulers and templates for their first project. Everything they would normally have in the classroom, they now need at home. They all need different materials for AP too. It’s a constant making sure every student has supplies.” Morrison has to create art kits for each student for every project, which students pick up from the school. 

 Beyond just material resources, Morrison has found that distance learning led to “Students not feeling connected to other students. It’s hard to build a connection….It would be so much easier if we could see and interact….” 

“Most are participating so that’s cool. The first project was due this week and the work was stellar! I just want to know them! It’s heartwarming,” she added.  

Morrison is also working on VAPA’s annual Haunted Theatre. Normally, the Haunted Theatre is an interactive haunted house experience. Morrison says that there are some obvious changes this year, “We are doing a horror film on Zoom. We have created scripts and storyboards. We are making goodie bags and film suggestions for Halloween too.”

In addition to her normal classes, Morrison is teaching after school theatre, which is still putting on a fall production. “We are trying to do Much Ado About Nothing live, which is bananas….. It’s like a big giant puzzle and it’s so much fun,” she said. 

Michael Alongi (‘21) is the student director of the fall production. The show is an abridged, 80s themed version of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. The show will take place over zoom and be in mid December. 

Auditions were simplified and held in the form of a table read where people were assigned roles from there. Alongi said, “The table read was incredible and amazing to watch. We put together a cast list based on who worked well together and we wanted to push people and gave them roles they wouldn’t normally have.” 

The tech side of the production had to adapt and find a way to conduct the show over Zoom. “The normal jobs had to be transferred to Zoom. Set construction will set up the Zoom instead. People will paint backgrounds so all the actors have similar backgrounds. Lights and sound will figure out the mics over zoom. Costumes and props will figure out what people will wear and how to get it to them. Shoutout to tech, I love them,” said Alongi. 

“Our goal is to make fun art and give people something to look forward to. We are finding ways to make it relevant to today. It will be fun and a geetar will be featured!” added Alongi.

VAPA’s music program led by Jorge Munoz has also drastically changed with the move to online class, “The ensemble music classes – band, choir, and orchestra – are in a different situation.  Distance learning has made traditional collaboration and interaction all but impossible. As one might imagine musicians see these as the most important aspects of making music. Our ensembles, like many others, have resorted to having virtual rehearsals and performances.” Munoz added that slow internet or bad audio can make it really difficult to transfer the music over Zoom. 

Munoz says that students still remain determined to produce their work, “spend(ing) their asynchronous time practicing, perfecting, and recording their individual music parts. The goal is to have all members make the best recordings of their music then combine all of the individual recordings to form a unified ‘virtual performance.’ We are currently on track to present a virtual fall concert on November 12,”  said Munoz. 

The music classes are trying their best to adapt and continue to collaborate and make music anyway they can. 

“Not being able to make music with one another on a daily basis takes a lot of the joy out of being enrolled in the class. We are all getting through this the best that we can, but I’m sure I speak for all of the students when I say that we are hoping to return to in-person instruction soon,” added Munoz.

Distance learning has drastically altered the experience of art classes, but VAPA is doing its best to adapt and keep students engaged and creative. Distance learning limits the substance of art classes, but students are still able to express their creativity via some exciting annual VAPA events that will be executed virtually.

Categories
Opinion

Coming Out Shouldn’t Be A Thing

As the LGBT+ community and their allies celebrate National Coming Out Day, people must not forget the implications of what “coming out” means, and it’s contribution to a hetero- and cis-normative culture. 

National Coming Out day was celebrated on October 11th to commemorate those who have come out and people who are still working on it. “Coming Out” is the phrase used to describe when an LBGT+ person reveals they are not heterosexual or cisgender.

Coming out experiences range in many different ways. Some have supportive families and peers, but others live in unsupportive communities and are met with LGBT+ phobia.

Anti-LGBT+ practices such as conversion therapy are still legal in many states. Practices at conversion therapy include constant LGBT+ phobic rederect, physical abuse such as shock therapy, and enforcement of gender roles in order to convince somebody being LGBT+ is a choice that they do not want to make.

During the beginning of this year, the joke (and real fear) of going to conversion therapy camps created by Vice President Mike Pence, supporter of conversion therapy, was popular on social media apps like Tik Tok during Trump’s impeachment process. Right now, many non-cishet individuals are joking if Trump wins the upcoming election, they are just kidding about being LGBT+.

Because of the fear of being met without support, coming out is often described as “scary,” even amongst those who know they will be accepted by their closest communities. Knowing there are others who condemn LGBT+ people deters many from expressing who they are.

When individuals do decide to tell others, coming out advice is often along the lines of making sure that person has financial stability if in case they are kicked out of their residency by their family and to come out when it is for sure known they will not be hurt physically.

Once somebody comes out, being “out and proud” is often rightfully celebrated. However, the need for LGBT+ people to come out shows the how society still sees heterosexuality and cisgender as the default setting for every individaul– you are cishet unless you say otherwise.

People should not have to fear being kicked out of their house, forced to enter conversion therapy, or their rights being taken away just for being who they are. LGBT+ people should not have to walk on eggshells and question when they are able to safely express themselves.

By not being able to just bring home the person you love as a straight couple would or expressing the gender you are as a cisgender person would, LGBT+ is continuing to be seen as the abnormal. 

There should be no fear when it comes to expressing who a person is, and coming out keeps LGBT+ hiding who their true selves until they reveal they are not the default setting. The presence of anti-LGBT+ voices and having to come out continues to show how there is progress to be made when it comes to social acceptance of LGBT+ individuals.

Categories
Features

Meet CKM AP Mr. Zarate

This year C.K. McClatchy hired new assistant principal (AP) Mr. Zarate. Mr. Zarate was born and raised in Denver, Colorado. There he went to George Washington High School, and competed on their soccer team. 

After high school Zarate decided to come to Sacramento, and started attending Cosumnes River College. From there he transferred to Sacramento State with a soccer scholarship and an intended major of criminal justice. Zarate said that he liked college and that it was a very new experience for him, “My favorite part was the diversity and the different people. Coming to college stretched me mentally… (it was) great to meet people from different backgrounds, a whole nother experience for me and helped me grow as a person.” 

At the time he wanted to be a probation officer, and ended up working at the Sacramento county probation department and juvenile hall. He worked there for three and a half years before deciding that he wanted a change. 

Zarate then attended National University, a private university in San Diego. There Zarate earned a Masters in educational counseling, and a PPS credential (Pupil Personnel Services credential) in educational counseling. 

Zarate first got his start in SCUSD through the credential program that was required to complete his PPS, “In the credential program there is a need to finish internship hours. I got an internship at Sam Brennen [elementary] school, and I actually took a risk and left my job and went to work at Sam Brennen as a per diem. I did that counseling job for six months and at the end of the six months I ended up securing a job working with at-risk youth.” 

After working at Sam Brennen, Assistant Principal Zarate got the job offer to work at California middle school as Vice Principal. After six years at Cal middle, along with the opening at McClatchy, Zarate adds that the move from VP at Cal middle to AP at McClatchy was only natural, “Next thing you know there’s an opening and so it was kind of natural…a change of scenery and new challenges, an opportunity to learn…” 

Assistant Principal Zarate is ready to get hands on with the school. He adds that he is actually going to school every day, getting to know the campus and the staff members.

 When asked what he was most looking forward to when school reopens, he said, “I’m looking forward to learning what makes CKM so special… I want to dedicate myself to keep it the best school and improve CKM. Not to mention all the great sports at McClatchy, I’m a sports fanatic and I love school spirit. I want to experience the ROAR.”

Outside of school Zarate likes to lay low, and spend time with his family: “My enjoyment is my two kids and my wife. I kind of like just to hang out. I don’t like to be too busy. TV mainly consists of sports so Sundays are a good day for me especially when my Broncos are winning.