Editor,
The recent debacle involving the fight over light between the parking structures and the astronomy department has inspired me to write a short piece that I hope will benefit students, faculty and staff members.
This piece calls upon us to summon a moment of great introspection, to be reasonable.
Some may have read about the astronomy department’s compromised ability to see various stars and nebulas in the night sky because of the parking structure lights’ brightness. What is interesting is that when we contrast the two sciences involved, astronomy and engineering, we have the rivalry between those who want to learn more about what is beyond the world and those who want to make our own more safe and secure.
While I do believe the structure’s lights must be altered and more sensitive to the needs of the astronomy department, I feel the rivalry at play here is far stronger than it need be.
Astronomers and engineers are actively using science to improve our world. If you can’t understand what lingers in the heavens, how then can you fully understand how those objects interact with Earth?
Conversely, how can an astronomy observatory function without the architects and engineers to construct it? The hostility between constituents of the school and their inability to interrelate is precisely the pattern I have been seeing at the University the past six months.
For instance, the Athletics Department and school administration have come under deep financial burden on how to handle budget cuts.
The unpopular President David Schmidly has taken his share of criticism.
Every time head coach Mike Locksley is paid a high salary to not win games, the school is done an injustice, but the Athletics Department gives us the camaraderie we need on the weekends when we see the games with our friends.
But please, administrators, do not cut off important resources from departments, particularly those in social sciences and the humanities, because you couldn’t devise a financial plan that could keep our school functioning as an educational institution.
I presume the administration is smart enough to foresee the unintended consequences of such an irrational action.
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Our wonderful school is not a great big competition, and no department is out to get another.
And as difficult as it may be to believe, the administration is not out to get the students. We all know this yet have acted otherwise — in our words, attitudes and suspicions.
This even boils down to stereotypes assigned to college majors. “You’re pre-law? OK, so you just want to make money.” Or “You’re a music major? So what does that entail? You just play music all day?” You can see where I am going with this.
The bottom line is: An academic institution works best when there is cohesion, solidarity and an appreciation for what our amazing school provides. In case you didn’t know, New Mexico does not enjoy the best reputation in education the past few years.
Let’s band together, as a University, to prove the naysayers wrong. At the very least, this is the thing we should be doing regardless.
Jeremiah M. Wall
UNM student
