By MATTHEW WESEMAN I have failed 14 classes. Now let me tell you a little secret: I’m going to graduate this spring. Five years ago, I was a 17-year-old high school senior, pudgy and awkward and tragically unsure of myself. Like my peers, I shouldered one of life’s most unwelcome burdens, a single...

By ALYSSA R. FULLILOVE In recent years, certain behaviors and beliefs, such as homosexuality and women’s reproductive rights, have become more acceptable within American society. However, many stigmas remain that should not exist. One is the stigma of mental illness. While mental illness awareness...

BY MICHAEL MORRIS JR. Donald J. Trump has proven on multiple occasions that he is unfit to be president of the United States of America. Since he has made it to office, he has gotten more than 100 detained at airports, because of his immigration ban which has stopped students from Muslim countries to return...

By CAITLIN PIPER On an otherwise gloomy Friday in Washington, D.C., former steak tycoon and “Home Alone 2” star Donald Trump descended the stairs of the United States Capitol to address the world as the 45th president of the United States, proving once and for all that anyone can persevere in the face...

BY DAVID SILVA How is it possible that the most important global dilemma our generation has inherited can be refuted due to party alignment? On Inauguration Day, President Donald Trump affirmed that he would specifically target former President Obama’s Climate Action Plan, according to a statement...

By JON-MARK TAMEZ When I first heard Donald Trump on the campaign trail talking about his vision for a better America, I was drawn in. He was not speaking in ideological terms or rhetoric. He was speaking about real issues and problems faced by Americans on both sides of the aisle. President Trump...

BY BRIANNA HARMON It’s college football bowl season — arguably the best time of the year. But for the college football playoff selection committee, you could say it’s the toughest. The committee must decide who plays for the national championship. The existing playoff system was put in place...

BY MACKS PREWITT On April 25, 2014, I was sitting at my computer when I happened upon one of the most distressing articles I have ever read. Disney announced that they would be retconning the vast majority of the “Star Wars” Expanded Universe. Retcon, or retroactive continuity, is when previously...

BY LANDON WILLIAMS Everyone is looking for the cheapest way to get what they want. That’s why Black Friday exists. It would be easy to go off on a tangent and talk about how ironic it is that everyone rushes to get the best deals on things they don’t need the day after being thankful for the things...

By David Silva The Black Lives Matter movement must eliminate and disavow violence from their protests in order to succeed as a civil rights group. I don’t quite remember how I reacted when I heard about the death of Trayvon Martin. I can’t say I felt strongly about the situation. I didn’t...

By Avery Williams Get ready for high school freshmen to join you in your next class here at Eastfield because the rules are changing. Texas House Bill 505, passed in the last legislative session and signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott, lowered the age of students eligible for dual credit courses...

To the Editors: In the time I have been teaching at Eastfield, I have watched our student newspaper grow and improve. The Et Cetera has done some top-notch work in the past few years, and the awards and accolades it has received are well-deserved. But I must express great disappointment in the overwhelming...

By CAT DYSON @TheEtCetera It’s safe to say that couples might piece together Joker and Harley Quinn costumes this Halloween. Even before the release of the DC movie, however, the Internet was full of people who are sold on the idea that the Joker and Harley Quinn are what a couple should strive...

By KACI GONZALEZ @TheEtCetera In just the past century, women have altered the stereotype that they cannot do a man’s work. We can think of the obvious and suggest that women are not built with the same strength, nor stamina, nor capacity to have free thoughts and ideas as a man would. But...

Water is essential to life, which is why the North Dakota Access pipeline created by Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners Oil Company should be discontinued. Thousands of Native American tribes including the Standing Rock Sioux, who started the movement, have been fighting to protect their sacred...

By Keturah J. Hill President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama visited Dallas July 11 to speak at a memorial service in the wake of the July 7 attack on police. The service was held at The Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center to honor the five Dallas and DART police killed in the attack. Even...

By Emily Martinez In 2007, W.W. Samuell High School in Pleasant Grove faced the prospect of closing down. The school had a graduation rate of 36 percent. At that point, the closure seemed inevitable. But Jennifer Tecklenburg said developing an early college program with Eastfield helped turn the school...

By Gabriel Flores When I sit back and think about watching my little sister walk across the stage nine months ago, I don’t remember the look of joy and nervousness on her face or the roar of the crowd as the announcer rattled off name after name of college graduates. All that comes to mind is how the day was ruined...

By Andrea Carrizales I was scared of going to college; I still kind of am. When I walked into Eastfield for the first time, I was so scared of the place that I begged my dad to come with me. We were trying to learn how to register for classes. I was frightened and confused about enrolling in college,...

By Karina Dunn In-home care allows patients to receive treatment from the comfort of a familiar setting. Professionally trained nurses and therapists can ease recovery or help patients cope with long-term health issues at their convenience. Home health care, a similar but unique service, includes...

By David Silva In my attempt to pinpoint the importance that Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival has in my life, I first had to fully come to grips with my illegal status. I’ve never felt like an “illegal” person, so accepting it was daunting. I had difficulty understanding the fragile situation...

By David Silva Not many documentaries have changed popular perception as much as 2013’s “Blackfish,” directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite. The film unapologetically unveils the consequences of keeping orcas, or killer whales, in captivity and shows how SeaWorld executives ignored the threat that...

By Mickey Smith It is a difficult decision to make when the security given to us by our electronic devices has conflicted with an ongoing FBI investigation. Should we allow our privacy to be tampered with? The FBI has recently requested that Apple create a backdoor, or a way to disable security...

By Mickey Smith The United States has always been a leader in the world. We are one of the largest world powers for a reason. We have always accepted those who flee from war-torn and poverty-ridden countries and taken in those who wanted the opportunity to make something more of themselves. Throughout...