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Grad Issue: News of mother's cancer motivated student to take college seriously

Nichole Harwood | December 11

Mario Armijo graduated in 2010 but didn’t know what he wanted to do with his life until his mother’s battle with cancer inspired him to act. He is now graduating with a bachelor’s in business administration with a concentration in marketing. Armijo said while he had been attending college he didn’t know what degree he really wanted to pursue. He was taking only one physical education class when his mother called to notify him of her cancer. “That's when it kind of hit me like, ‘I really need to get it together,’ so I decided I wanted to go back to UNM. I wanted to actually try to get a degree and actually make an effort,” he said.

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Grad Issue: Entrepreneurial hopeful plans to use education to give his children a better life

Elizabeth Sanchez | December 11

Throughout Joseph Brasher’s life, he was a doer. Over the years, his titles have included: copier/fax/printer technician at the Duke City Typewriter Shop, service manager at Firestone, chemical equipment repairman for the military, dishwasher at the Sheraton Inn, truck driver, brother, son, husband, father, grandfather. And that’s just a start. But in 2008, he added another title to his résumé: full-time stay-at-home dad to his three sons, and caregiver to his wife who developed muscular sclerosis.

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Grad Issue: Unemployment turns into opportunity to pursue education

Robert Maler | December 11

Many non-traditional students have a difficult time adapting to college life and some never make it to the finish line, but one New Mexico student used a challenging situation as her motivation to graduate. Jessica Lucero, a 28-year-old liberal arts major, said she didn’t start her college career until an age when many people are finishing theirs. As a result, it was all very new to her. Stephen Becerra, Lucero’s stepfather and mentor, joked that she was the “little viejita — the old lady — of the class.”

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Grad Issue: Lobo springboards from UNM into working with Apple

Brendon Gray | December 11

A short two years after arriving to the U.S., Jorge Moukel — who will graduate this semester with a master’s in computer engineering — has already begun to make a name for himself in the tech industry. The Venezuela native immigrated to the U.S. after political unrest in his home country began. After getting his undergraduate degree in his country, Moukel began developing mobile applications, making around $200 a month. That initial interest has since blossomed into a much bigger opportunity: Moukel will be starting work at Apple next semester, developing debugging software for the technology giant. But his journey to success has been riddled with trials.

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Grad Issue: Mom hopes to use her college success as an example for her kids

Nichole Harwood | December 11

Angelique Maldonado is a mother of three boys who also worked full-time as she pursued her master’s degree in water resources. This semester. her hard work paid off as she will be graduating, an example of success she plans to use to motivate her kids one day. “(It was) definitely challenging, but rewarding at the same time,” Maldonado said. “It keeps me busy, but I’m pretty driven so it’s kind of nice to be able to set a good example for my kids and let them know the importance of school.” Maldonado works with Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority, which has been flexible as she worked on her studies, she said.

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Grad Issue: Student overcomes illness and depression to get degree

Sarah Trujillo | December 11

Monique Renee Curley, who recently graduated with her Master of Engineering this past summer, is a born and raised Burqueña with a story of persistence. “I'm convinced that anyone can do anything. I wasn't born with the greatest of resources, but I did what I had to do to seek them out and make them my own,” she said. “I've pursued my childhood interest in science and trained myself along the way to become a scientist. You can do anything you want, but you have to want it enough.” Curley said her mother had a drug problem dating back to her teens — putting her in a place where she was unable to care for Curley as an infant — and her father left soon after she was born.

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Grad Issue: Mom comes from Ukraine to pursue nursing career

Gabriela Garcia-Huff | December 11

16 years ago, Lyudmyla Kostyk left her home and travelled to New York City in the hopes of pursuing a degree in nursing. At the time, she left her two children, Oksana and Pavlo Vivchar, with her parents in their home — nearly 5,000 miles away in Ukraine. This week, Kostyk will be graduating with a Bachelors of Science degree in nursing from UNM. But she will not be alone. Kostyk’s daughter, Oksana, will be joining her mother on this highly anticipated day, with her own bachelor’s degree in biology.

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Grad Issue: Iraq veteran uses military experience to get through college

Audrin Baghaie | December 11

The most outstanding, vivacious rewards in life are seldom material. It takes time, effort and strife to realize ambition and achieve that level of personal satisfaction. On an individual basis, we’re all often trying to achieve the abstract; what is meaningful to one’s self. After serving in the U.S. Army for eight years and persevering through her nephew’s diagnosis of brain cancer, Esmeralda Moreno will be graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in psychology. Moreno was born in El Paso, Texas, and moved to Albuquerque during her middle school years. She joined the ROTC in high school and attended TVI, now known as CNM, to secure a liberal arts degree.

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Grad Issue: From mayor of a small NM town to UNM graduate

Matthew Narvaiz | December 11

Diego Montoya, a 29-year-old american studies major, will be receiving his bachelor’s degree after attending school on and off for nearly 10 years. Montoya, in the midst of pursuing his degree, has accomplished a feat most people in their twenties can't say that they've done, or even thought about. At the age of 25, Montoya was elected mayor of Magdalena — a small town located in southwestern New Mexico with a population of roughly 1,000 residents.

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Grad Issue: Student overcomes addiction to succeed

Matthieu Cartron | December 11

Throughout most of her life Jennie Noriega was a drifter, searching for a place where she could belong, somewhere she would feel wanted. She said she was the little girl who felt neither Hispanic nor Native American, running away from home to smoke marijuana on rooftops. She was the middle schooler who was dragged to California to live in horrific conditions. She said she was the teenager and young adult who dealt illegal drugs in New Mexico to earn herself a spot on the New Mexico FBI’s most wanted list. Suffice to say, Noriega’s life has been anything but ordinary.

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Grad Issue: Student pursues his passion for rural medicine

Cathy Cook | December 11

Clement Jose is graduating this semester with his master’s in health education and a concentration in community health. Jose said, while he planned to go to continue his education immediately after finishing his undergrad, he was accepted by four medical schools, but turned them all down. “A week after I graduated my brother passed away,” he said. “All of the schools that I got into were far east. So it was New York, Virginia and then there was Kansas. So I decided, ‘You know, I don’t want to leave my family.’”

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Grad Issue: Hodgkin's Lymphoma can't stop Lobo from graduating

Megan Nyce | December 11

Thanh-Lan Thi Sena will be graduating this fall with her master’s degree in public administration, despite the hardships she has faced dealing with cancer. As it turned out, her battle could have, and should have, started much earlier than it did. Born and raised in Albuquerque, the cancer survivor was diagnosed with stage four Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in 2011 while attending UNM. Sena described Hodgkin’s Lymphoma as a twin to Leukemia.

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New Native American scholarship at UNM

Gabriel Garcia-Huff | December 8

The Indigenous Nations Library Program recently introduced the Michael and Enokena Olson Memorial Scholarship for full-time Native American students attending UNM. The scholarship is comprised of two $250 awards per semester, and targets both graduate and undergraduate students who may need further financial assistance throughout the year. Kevin Brown, program specialist for INPL, said through this scholarship the department hopes to alleviate some of the financial burden of those attending the University.

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Crime Briefs for Dec. 8

Elizabeth Sanchez | December 8

Battery on healthcare personnel at UNMH On the morning of Nov. 24, a UNMPD officer was sent to UNMH in reference to a patient-on-nurse incident battery, according to a police report.

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Wolf Tracks Podcast Ep 4: Milo Yiannopoulos

Jonathan Baca and Robert Maler | December 8

On this episode, we sit down with Ryan Ansloan, the chairman of the UNM Young Americans for Liberty, who has invited controversial alt-right blogger Milo Yiannopoulos to speak at UNM in January. We also visit the 53rd annual ASUNM Arts and Crafts Fair, and talk to some of the artists about their work. And finally, sports editor Robert Maler gives a wrap-up of last weekend's Lobo men's and women's basketball games.

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Giving Tree event promotes helping local community

Gabriela Garcia-Huff | December 7

ASUNM’s Community Experience is partnering with Albuquerque Public Schools, UNM Hospital, and the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department this year to put on their annual Giving Tree event, as the student governing body hopes to encourage the spirit of giving this holiday season. Students interested in participating in the event can take an ornament from the Christmas tree — located in the SUB atrium. Attached to each ornament are gift tags with specific items listed that students can donate to the participating organizations.

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Provocative speaker plans to visit UNM

Johnny Vizcaino | December 4

Self-styled journalist and “alt-right” figurehead Milo Yiannopoulos has accepted an invitation from UNM’s Young Americans for Liberty to speak in the SUB on Jan. 27. However, “due to the partisan nature of Milo’s talks,” UNM College Republicans will be the group that officially plays host to the speaking engagement, according to UNM College Republicans Chairman Ryan Ansloan, who is also UNM YAL vice president.

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Anonymity and Usability: A look into UNM course feedback

Shelby Perea | December 4

With the semester nearing its end, students are starting to see emails from “UNM Course Feedback” urging them to evaluate their courses and instructors from the fall semester. The email reads, in part: "Student feedback is highly valued and extremely important! Student feedback provided through course evaluations is crucial in order for Faculty to improve their instruction as well as other aspects of their courses. All responses are completely anonymous.” However, students had questions about just how anonymous and vital those course evaluations are, with UNM having transitioned from paper, in-class evaluations to online evaluation surveys two years ago.

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What is a "sanctuary campus" anyway?

Elizabeth Sanchez | December 4

Last Friday, UNM students, faculty and staff joined forces during a teach-in at Ortega Hall, which entailed a panel discussion on the potential steps the University can take to protects its undocumented students. The discussion focused on the current state of DACA — or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals — and the ongoing campaign to make UNM a sanctuary campus. But what exactly does the concept of “sanctuary campus,” entail, and how could it tangibly help undocumented students?

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Scribendi hopes to persevere through defunding

Nichole Harwood | December 4

Despite having lost its UNM funding, Scribendi is determined to publish this year, as staff members of the student-produced magazine are reaching out to the local community for help, emphasizing the importance and role that Scribendi has within the student community. In terms of student publications, Scribendi has helped put UNM on the map in its 30 years of existence. Alexandra Magel, the magazine’s editor-in-chief, said many students and instructors from all across the country have UNM on their radar because of it.