Maxfield Morris
Guest Writer
Photos by Sonora Rairdon
The Student Senate meeting is tense. Proverbial sweat is beading on foreheads as the docket is pulled up. With a drawling grind, the meeting is called to order.
Suddenly, the tension is released like a bowstring. There’s a presence here that is confident, pleasant and even a little humorous. That’s Raymond Concha.
Concha, 20, is the vice president of the Student Senate. He served as a senator during the spring 2016 semester, and he comes across as a very approachable fellow.
This will be Concha’s sixth and final semester at City College. He’s received UC transfer acceptances to Davis and San Diego, where he plans to study international relations. As he describes his future, his voice rises excitedly, but there are bittersweet emotions there.
“The hardest thing to say goodbye to?” Concha pauses. “Everyone, I guess. I can walk down campus and see people I know. I won’t be able to do that any more.”
City College might not know it, but they’re losing an invaluable resource as Concha exits. He describes his time on the Student Senate with immense respect for the student governing process, and with utter transparency, Concha explains how governing is helping people.
“This is the job. I get to put myself out there on the line,” Concha says. “I like to represent people. It isn’t just 12 people in a room, it’s supposed to be all 23,000 people at City College in a room.”
Ansel Chan is the former Student Senate vice president, and one of Concha’s good friends. Over their time working together, they discovered a shared interest in Marvel Comics. Concha’s father had introduced him to the graphic novels, and Chan is purportedly the biggest fan of Captain America in the entire Western Hemisphere.
Together, Chan and Concha unknowingly started an online mystery, centered on their love for comics. A copy of the Student Senate minutes from 2016 had been posted online. The content was largely benign, typical procedure and discussion, until the very end of the document. There, in a solitary paragraph, was the two-word phrase “Hail Hydra.”
This was deeply unsettling. For those unfamiliar with Marvel Comics, “Hail Hydra” was the greeting sign of the covert, sleeper cell, fictional shadow organization tasked with subverting America: Hydra. Had the group made the jump from the comics into City College? How deep did this go? What business did Hydra have in student government at a community college?
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As it turns out, the culprits behind the phrase were none other than Chan and Concha. It was a game they played, hiding the phrase in each other’s school essays, forms and minutes. This was the first time it hadn’t been caught, and it made its way into the World Wide Web.
“There’s probably three people that know about that,” Concha laughs. “No one ever checks the minutes.”
All jokes aside, Concha has clearly put a lot of thought into his role as a leader.
“That’s the hardest thing to do. Have fun, and represent 23,000 students,” he says. “I can’t just say, ‘Hey, what’s up guys? Let’s go party!’ I’m representing Sacramento City College.”
Student Senate President Melody Jimenez worked closely with Concha, and thinks he strikes a good balance between work and fun.
“I feel like he’s sort of like an anchor in our meetings,” Jimenez says. “He pro-
vides a nice balance of lightheartedness and also, like, a strict business side of him.”
Georgia Sherman, secretary of the Club and Events Board, also sing Concha’s praises. “Overall, Raymond is one of the most supportive people you would meet,” says Sherman. “He’s always there, trying to be a voice for all the students.”
That Concha ended up at City College was a bit of a journey. Born in Southern California, Concha has been in the area for the past 11 years. He went to high school in Davis, amid a very competitive academic environment.
When he graduated, and he was faced with the choice of where to go, he thought of his younger brother.
“Personally, I thought he had a better chance of getting into college than I did,” Concha says. “I decided to save money with community college.”
It was a difficult choice for Concha to make. His friends were headed to four-year colleges, UCs and other schools across the country. He decided to stick around and attend City College.
“If I had to choose, I’m most proud of making the decision to come here,” Concha says. “I believe it has shaped the person I am today.”
As he enjoys the remainder of his time on campus, Concha has a piece of advice for the students of City College before he leaves.
“Enjoy it,” he says. “Just try to find something that you love. Learn about it as much as you can here.”
