Tent City residents have moved yet again – this time closer to UNM’s campus – while advocates hope to find a permanent solution to help them stay grounded. Tentatively called Camp Resurrection, the new lot is situated on a plateau on the Northeast side of Lomas Boulevard and I-25.
By Mychal Miltenberger, Kyle Lord and Scott McCoy The craft brewing industry is alive and well in Albuquerque. The city boasts 26 breweries and brewpubs, with reports of more on the horizon this year.
On the one-year anniversary of homeless camper James Boyd’s death at the hands of the Albuquerque Police Department, activists and community members gathered in a dusty downtown warehouse in search of a little street justice. Activist group ABQJustice, with help from other community groups, held the Albuquerque People’s Tribunal on Police Brutality on Saturday. The event, which was open to the public, featured the results of a six-month-long, street-level investigation of “prejudice and racial bias” in the APD. American Studies professor and ABQJustice member David Correia helped compile the investigation and presented the group’s findings at the tribunal.
In 2006 veteran Albuquerque Police Department officer Sam Costales testified in court against Bernalillo County Sheriff’s officers in a high-profile case involving the unjustified and abusive arrest of racecar driver and local celebrity Al Unser, Sr. After the case against Unser was thrown out, then-APD Chief Ray Shultz opened a new investigation — into Costales, for breaching the “blue wall of silence” and turning on fellow law enforcement agents. Costales said he was forced into retirement, but was eventually awarded $662,000 in a lawsuit against the city. Since then, Costales has become an activist, speaking out against the brutality and abuse of power he witnessed during his 20-plus years as an APD officer.
Two bills that could affect UNM’s lottery scholarship recipients are making headway in the state Legislature. Senate Bill 286, which would send forfeited lottery prizes to the scholarship fund, will advance to the Senate after the Senate Finance Committee approved the bill. And Senate Bill 355, approved with a 25-16 vote, would allow debit cards to be used to purchase lottery tickets. Supporters of SB 355 said it could increase lottery ticket sales and lead to larger prize amounts, which would in turn boost funding to the scholarship in the long run. However, the bill would also eliminate the requirement that at least 30 percent of lottery revenue be dedicated to the scholarship fund.
In the wake of recent attacks targeting Muslims on American college campuses and around the world, ASUNM unanimously passed a cautionary resolution at Wednesday’s meeting urging UNM administration to state their opposition to Islamophobia. Sen. Udell Calzadillas Chavez, who introduced Resolution 6S, said there is a widespread culture of fear and ignorance that perpetuates violence against Muslims. The purpose of the resolution is to provoke better understanding of Islam in the UNM community. “This is a proactive approach to events in the United States and around the world,” he said.
The fight to replace university observation of Columbus Day with the official celebration of Indigenous Peoples’ Resistance and Resilience Day garnered momentum on Wednesday with the unanimous passing of an ASUNM resolution urging UNM administration to make the change. Resolution 7S states that the move is actually in concordance with what the University stands for. “This resolution is in farther accordance with UNM’s mission statement, which commits to ‘discover and disseminate new knowledge and creative endeavors that will enhance the overall well-being of society,’” the document states.
ASUNM’s Lobo Spirit group threw the University a 126th birthday party at the Student Union Building on Wednesday. Around 200 students wearing cherry and silver participated in the annual student body photo that will hang in the SUB for a full year, ASUNM officials said. “Lobo Day is basically composed of a couple different parts,” said Ryan Lindquist, associate director for Students Activities Center. “We take the big large picture that hangs in the Student Union Building for the entire year. We sing the birthday songs. We have the photo booth and a couple of giveaways.”
A UNM professor has won a prestigious award for a lifetime’s work in physics, as the laboratory he started at UNM celebrates its 25th year. Edl Schamiloglu, a professor of electrical and computer engineering, was recognized for his contributions to the field of pulsed power and was awarded the 2015 IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Society’s Pulsed Power Science and Technology Committee’s Peter Haas Award. According to the NPSS website, The Peter Haas Award “recognizes individuals whose efforts, over an extended period, have greatly benefited the pulsed power field through the development of important applications or areas of activity including research, education and information exchange.”
Measles is making a comeback nationwide, and one UNM Hospital pediatrician is urging parents to vaccinate their children. Dr. Randall Knott, assistant pediatrics professor at UNM, said there is yet to be a reported case of measles in New Mexico, but the national average is currently at 170 cases, approaching a record high in recent decades.
Edl Schamiloglu, distinguished professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UNM, has been recognized with the 2015 IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Society’s Pulsed Power Science and Technology Committee’s Peter Haas Award. Schamiloglu, director of the School of Engineering’s COSMIAC center, received the award in recognition of his contributions to the field of pulsed power, according to a UNM press release.
If the capital outlay bill circulating the legislature is approved, UNM will receive $500,000 to complete design and planning of the Interdisciplinary Science Education Building that has been in the works for years. The new building is a necessity if the physics and astronomy department is going to continue competing effectively and creating viable research, said Wolfgang Rudolph, chair of the department.
UNM’s Department of Communication and Journalism will host 16 students from Denmark and India during spring break as part of an exchange program. The students will attend a course titled “Intercultural Engagement” and will visit different cities of New Mexico, said Lillian Kelly, professor and coordinator of the exchange program.
At a legislative workshop held at UNM on Thursday, former state Rep. Rick Miera gave a piece of advice that seemed so simple on the surface, yet made a profound effect on legislators when advocating for an issue. “Send a letter, but don’t send it typewritten. The most important and effective letters you can send are handwritten,” he said.
By Lena Guidi When Rosa Isela Cervantes was a senior at Bernalillo High School, her friend brought her to El Centro de la Raza at UNM — known as Hispanic Student Services at the time — to meet with an advisor and get scholarship information.
Many know New Mexico for its unique culture, but one UNM professor is trying to generate local popularity for a certain dance with an English flair. Erik Erhardt, president of FolkMADS and a professor of statistics, said contra dances have been held in the SUB since September and will continue into the foreseeable future. Contra dance is an American folk dance that has evolved from English country-dance, like those typically seen in “Pride and Prejudice”-style movies, he said. Newcomers are highly encouraged, with lessons for beginners starting at 7 p.m. and the actual dance running from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m., he said.
The University is taking steps to simplify the resources and reporting process for sexual assault victims on campus, in response to an internal assessment that found the process confusing. UNM’s Sexual Assault and Awareness Task Force is working with the Provost’s office and Dean of Students office on “coordinating and streamlining the University’s efforts to combat sexual violence on campus,” according to a press release. “There are too many options, too many places to go, too many people,” said UNM President Bob Frank. “You get good help at all those places, but they don’t always lead to the same channels, and it can lead to problems for both victims and people who get accused of being involved in these kinds of events. We’re working on it, and we hope to have significant progress here in the near future.”
Feb. 15: UNMPD was dispatched to the UNM North Golf Course in reference to a fight. According to the report, the victim told police that he was hit in the head with a golf club by the suspect. According to UNMPD officials the victim had a cut on his head, however, the suspect alleged he was defending himself and never struck the victim with a golf club. UNMPD submitted the case to the district attorney.
An English professor by trade, Finnie Coleman served as the Africana Studies Department’s administrator at UNM in 2005 before he became the dean of University College. Coleman has recently completed a book that is 10 years in the making. The book, which contains chapter titles such as “Am I White Enough For You?”, touches on a variety of subjects including hip-hop culture, authenticity, identity and post-racial America. As Black History Month nears its end, the Daily Lobo sat down with Coleman to talk about issues of race in America.
Members of the Student Union Building’s joint advisory board are in the early planning stages of what could become the SUB’s first major renovation in at least 10 years. Vice President of Student Life Walt Miller, who is spearheading the process, said the long-term needs of the SUB are their top priority. The current stage involves collecting data and conducting analysis of who uses the SUB and for what, to determine if a renovation is a part of those long-term needs, he said.
Solutions by The State News
