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"I Didn't Pay $7,000 A Year To Sit At Home" - Valley Students On Learning From Home

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Angela Christiano is a nursing student at Fresno City College. She's in her final semester, but says the Coronavirus and strict clinical hour requirements might keep her from graduating.
Courtesy of Angela Christiano

We recently asked a few students for audio postcards about how the pandemic is affecting them. Today, we’re going to hear Selma High School senior Mia Salinas who says she’s missing out on prom, her final season of track, and the chance to say good bye to her teachers and friends.

Mia Salinas is a senior at Selma High School. She says it's hard to miss out on the "last experiences" of high school, after schools closed so abruptly.
Credit Courtesy of Mia Salinas

We also hear from Fresno State student Julianna Mazziliano. She’s in her second semester as a liberal studies major and works two jobs, both of which have cut hours due to the pandemic. She says she “didn’t pay $7,000 a year at Fresno State to just sit at home.” 

Julianna Mazziliano, a Fresno State student, says the pandemic has not only affected her classes, but both of her jobs.
Credit Courtesy of Julianna Mazziliano

Our third postcard is from Angela Christiano, a registered nursing student in her final semester at Fresno City College. Christiano explains that while some states have loosened the clinical hours requirement to help students like her move quickly into the medical field, California has not.

If you’d like to share a story about how the coronavirus pandemic is affecting you, let us know. Record a voice memo on your phone and send it to talk@kvpr.org. You can also just write us an email.

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Laura Tsutsui was a reporter and producer for Valley Public Radio. She joined the station in 2017 as a news intern, and later worked as a production assistant and weekend host. Laura covered local issues ranging from politics to housing, and produced the weekly news program Valley Edition. She left the station in November 2020.
Alice Daniel was News Director for KVPR from 2019-2022. Daniel has a master’s degree from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism and more than 25 years of experience as a print and radio journalist.