News

News

Parking citations help fund maintenence

Robert Salas | February 26

Parking citations are a universally disliked part of attending UNM, and most students have no idea where the money goes. Citations have gradually increased over the past two years, producing relatively substantial amounts of revenue for the Parking and Transportation Services Department. According to PATS, there have been 40,988 citations given out in fiscal year 2014 and 40,083 distributed in fiscal year 2013. At $20 to $25 a citation, the total fines for 2014 add up to $1,096,255. However, the actual revenue owed from the fines is $926,934 and about 85 percent of that is actually collected.

---

News

ASUNM affirms lottery bill stance

David Lynch | February 26

The Associated Students of UNM unanimously passed a resolution to further affirm its stance opposing possible lottery scholarship cuts. Resolution 5S comes in the wake of a New Mexico Senate bill that would remove the mandate ensuring the scholarship 30 percent of lottery profits. If passed, Senate Bill 355 will allow the 30 percent minimum to be done away with in favor of an increased amount of money going to the promotion of the lottery as well as lottery prizes.

---

News

Community rallies behind part-time faculty

Jonathan Baca | February 26

As part of Wednesday’s National Adjunct Walkout Day, community members from CNM and UNM gathered at the corner of University Boulevard and Coal Avenue to protest proposed right-to-work legislation and, what the demonstrators called the exploitation of part-time faculty. The group, which consisted of around 30 people at the height of the protest, carried signs and informed passersby about the plight of part-time instructors. Those adjunct professors make up around 70 percent of the community college’s workforce, according to a press release issued by the protest organizers. According to the release, adjunct or part-time professors teach 63 percent of classes at CNM. They receive an average of $1,000 less for each class than full-time instructors, and adjuncts are only compensated for four hours a week per class, regardless of the total time they spend creating curriculum, grading assignments and helping students outside the classroom.

---

News

Campus briefs for Feb. 25, 2015

February 25

Dr. Pope L. Moseley, professor and chair of the Department of Internal Medicine at the UNM School of Medicine, has been named dean of the College of Medicine and executive vice chancellor at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock, according to a Health Sciences Center press release. Moseley, who joined the faculty at the UNM Health Sciences Center in 1995, is a School of Medicine distinguished professor, and he has also served at the UNM Health Sciences Center as an associate dean for research and chief of the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, the statement said.

---

News

Women's Resource Center offers professional development

Robert Salas | February 25

The Women’s Resource Center launched the first part of its Women and Leadership Series on Wednesday, which aims to help female students break through the glass ceiling and land the job of their dreams. The series debut focused on the importance of first impressions during a professional interview and allowed participants to practice their approach to creating a personal story.

---

News

Support from credit union continues

Marielle Dent | February 25

UNM President Bob Frank delivered words of praise about the numerous financial donations and community partnerships between the University and Nusenda, the new name for the former New Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union, at an unveiling of the new sign at its Lomas location across from campus on Tuesday. UNM has maintained a partnership with Nusenda for more than 25 years, and the credit union has designed many programs to help students manage their finances, according to a press release. The credit union also has a location in the SUB.

---

News

Campus food pantry provides assistance

Steve “Mo” Fye | February 25

While students and other New Mexicans continue struggle with food insecurity, UNM has programs to help students and members of the University community. The Lobo Food Pantry, which was initiated a year ago, offers a food bank several times a year. Headed by Lisa Lindquist, a student affairs specialist in the Dean of Students Office, the pantry has worked with Roadrunner food bank since February 2014. Roadrunner sends a truck to a mobile food pantry — usually once a month during the spring and fall semesters — to assist those students, staff and members of the UNM community who need help in stocking their kitchens, Lindquist said.

---

News

History event highlights professional opportunities

Jonathan Baca | February 24

The UNM History Department is working to prove to students that the value of an advanced degree in history is not a thing of the past. In partnership with the American Historical Association and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the History Department will be putting on a two-day seminar titled “What Use Is History? Scholarship, Skills and Careers,” from Feb. 26-27.

---

News

DelCampo selected as Innovate Academy's director

Sayyed Shah | February 24

UNM’s Office of Academic Affairs has appointed Robert DelCampo, aprofessor in the Anderson School of Management, as the director of Innovation Academy. Innovation Academy, the academic arm of Innovate ABQ, is scheduled to launch in the fall. The Innovation Academy will essentially consist of a program of ongoing classes across many different majors, with a focus on entrepreneurism, President Bob Frank said.

---

News

Student one giant leap from Mars mission

Jyllian Roach | February 23

Kids often say they want to be astronauts when they grow up, but graduate student Zach Gallegos has never wavered from that dream. And now he’s closer than ever to getting that chance. After surviving two elimination rounds, he’s made it into the final 100 candidates for a mission to Mars. “It’s definitely a feeling of excitement and fulfillment. It’s like my life’s work, my life’s plan, paid off,” Gallegos said.

---

News

SANE head defends background check policy

Matthew Reisen | February 23

Amidst criticism from advocacy agencies, the Albuquerque Family Advocacy Center is defending its policy of requiring sexual assault survivors to undergo background checks, or safety assessments as they are now called, before being treated by specially trained nurses and receiving other services that only they provide. Teresa D’Anza, program director at Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners, said she agrees with the policy, and that it has never come up as an issue for those who come seeking services. SANE, which is housed within AFAC, provides important medical services to sexual assault survivors, such as rape kits used to identify assailants.

---

News

'Black and blue' panel examines cultural rifts

Fin Martinez | February 23

In the wake of numerous deadly encounters between police and African Americans across the country, an intense national debate has been raging about the intersection of police brutality and race. Last week UNM students joined the conversation by inviting black police officers to share their experiences on the front lines of this battle. On Feb. 19 the UNM Black Student Union held a conference titled “Do You Know Your Rights?”, an event held in conjunction with Black History Month featuring a panel of African American police officers answering various questions about law enforcement issues and the difficulties of being both an African American and a police officer, or being “black and blue.” “For me, being a black law enforcement officer is one of the most challenging things I’ve ever faced in my life,” said officer Dajun Clark. “Just for the simple fact that when we walk into a room we don’t get the benefit of the doubt, and that’s one of the major things that I’ve noticed.”

---

News

ASUNM puts Columbus Day decision on hold

David Lynch | February 20

Several impassioned students voiced their anger during Wednesday’s Associated Students of UNM meeting over the tabling of a resolution that would have encouraged the University to no longer recognize Columbus Day, and instead celebrate Native American resistance to colonization by the explorer. Emotions flared during the portion of the meeting devoted to comments from the packed gallery. Several students and some community members expressed their disappointment at the student governing body, hurling remarks such as “racist,” “evil” and “ignorant” at the senators and urging them to “change the damn name” of the federal holiday. Although members of the KIVA Club, which promotes Native American issues and identity, and other organizations criticized the student governing body for being ignorant, the backlash may have fueled by misunderstanding.

---

News

Campus group celebrates gun rights

Marielle Dent | February 20

UNM’s Young Americans for Freedom rallied on Thursday to celebrate the recent failure of state legislation that would limit citizens’ access to firearms. The group also educated students on gun rights laws with the hope of gaining support for its organization. The Firearm Transfer Act, or House Bill 44, would have criminalized non-dealer firearm transfers at gun shows, according to the New Mexico Legislature website. The so-called “gun show loophole” currently allows any person to buy a gun from a private seller without undergoing a background check or being subject to other regulations.

---

News

Lawsuit: UNM botched rape investigation

Thomas Romero-Salas | February 20

A former UNM student who alleged that two New Mexico football players and a third man raped her last April filed a lawsuit on Thursday against the University, alleging violations of Title IX regulations. The lawsuit states it is “arising out of alleged willful indifference of UNM in the manner in which it responded, or failed to respond, to her report of a gang rape on and near campus committed by UNM football players.” Crusoe Gongbay and SaQwan Edwards, who were UNM football players at the time, as well as CNM student Ryan Ruff were arrested on charges of rape, which was alleged to have occurred in Ruff’s BMW. The charges against the three were dropped on Aug. 12.

---

News

UNM searches for better LGBTQI resources

Moriah Carty | February 19

New research on campus may widen UNM’s resources for a minority group – the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning and intersex community. Kristopher Goodrich, program coordinator and assistant professor of Counselor Education in the College of Education’s Department of Individual, Family and Community Education, is researching how to add diversity within counseling sessions at UNM. The program focuses on understanding the best ways to counsel LGBTQI individuals. People within the LGBTQI group are an important part of the community on campus, he said.

---

News

Academic dishonesty not clearly defined

Moriah Carty | February 19

A college degree can mean the difference between earning a livable wage and living paycheck-to-paycheck — but that degree hangs on academic honesty. Syllabi handed out at the start of each semester often include some reference to plagiarism and the punishment that stems from such writing violations, but the boundaries of what is and is not academic dishonesty are still unclear. Each campus department handles possible plagiarism differently, said Robert Burford, student conduct officer in the Dean of Students Office. Some departments have a specified policy teachers should use. Others let faculty decide for themselves. No matter who makes the decision though, the policy should match up with UNM’s Academic Policy, he said.

---

News

Online business offers coffee tree adoption

Sayyed Shah | February 19

For many people, the idea of getting coffee from their own coffee tree is a wild fantasy. But for customers at one student’s new online business, it’s a reality. At Apasionado Coffee, customers adopt a tree on the coffee farm and get specialty coffee straight from the adopted tree to their cups, said Emily Lilo, an associate scientist at the UNM Prevention Research Center and co-founder of Apasionado Coffee. The venture is one-of-a-kind and, Lilo said, completely sustainable – for every tree people adopt, farmers plant a second one to support conservation and reforestation of the cloud forests of Bolivia. “We are not a coffee shop. We skip the coffee shop and bring the coffee straight from our farm to your door,” she said. “Only members can get this coffee. It is exclusive access. Once you have adopted a tree you can order as much coffee as you want when you want it, roasted to your taste and brewing preferences.”

---

News

Scams on UNM's international students on the rise

Sayyed Shah | February 19

Scams targeting international students are on the rise again, and the Global Education Office has alerted students not to pay any money nor provide personal information to anyone claiming to be a public official on the phone. Again this year, the international students at UNM and throughout the U.S. are being contacted by individuals claiming they work for U.S. government entities like the Internal Revenue Service, said Linda Melville, associate director for international student and scholar services for the Global Education Office. “The most recent reports involve individuals pretending to be IRS agents telling students that they have reported the student to Homeland Security and the Police Department. Students have also been told that if they don’t wire money immediately, they will be in trouble,” she said in an email to students.

---

News

AIDS awareness seminar to offer free testing

Fin Martinez | February 18

As part of Black History Month, the New Mexico Department of Health is collaborating with UNM African American Student Services and UNM Black Student Union to take measures in aiding the prevention of HIV/AIDS and to educate the community about the virus. The two UNM groups will hold a National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day seminar in the SUB on Feb. 19 where there will be educational presentations and talks from a panel of people who are living with HIV.