Kung fu instructor Jamal Morris kicks academia out the door and uses life experiences to teach his students the ancient martial art. Hardship is necessary to learn kung fu and have a happy life, he said.
Kevie Butler attended the Navajo Studies Conference at the SUB on Thursday to create a Navajo curriculum for students at his high school.
For some people, Halloween is more about the tricks than the treats. UNM had its share of Halloween mischief, with two groups of students threatened with handguns and the 10th-straight day of a graffiti spree that has cost the University $10,000 so far.
UNM graduate Anna Badiei Rostami was not allowed to take the dental school admissions test at a Thomson Prometric testing center Saturday because she was born in Iran, she said.
Being the president of a university is like standing in a cemetery, said Samuel Schuman, former president of two colleges. "You're on top of everyone, but it's hard to get any of them to move," he said.
Author Robert Rosen said a history professor invited him to speak at UNM, but the department withdrew the invitation and left him with the bill for his airfare. Vera Norwood, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, reinstated his invitation on Oct. 17 to honor the commitment made in the original invitation. Noel Pugach, a history professor, invited Rosen to speak at UNM about his book, Saving the Jews, even though Pugach disagrees with the book's argument, Rosen said. Pugach declined to comment. Pugach sent a letter to Rosen on Oct. 9, stating the history department instructed him to withdraw the invitation. The book is controversial because of issues concerning plagiarism, citations and use of sources, Norwood said.
The United States isn't interested in gaining power by peacekeeping in developing countries, said Charles Snyder, former assistant secretary of state for African Affairs in the U.S. State Department. "It's not about power politics," he said. "It's to set the stage and open the doors for development for a better world." Snyder spoke in Mitchell Hall on Tuesday. The United States plays an integral role in peacekeeping negotiations, he said.
Although congressional races are getting most of the attention in this year's elections, UNM has an $18.5 million stake in another part of the ballot. The 2006 Bond B for Education would give money to the University for new buildings, including $7 million for a math and science building. The money is important for students, said Susan McKinsey, University spokeswoman. "It's not for salaries and it's not for benefits," she said. "It's for infrastructure, which will benefit students directly." The bond is on the ballot every other year.
Elizabeth Henderson Sophomore Undecided What do you want to major in? I was thinking about dance but decided against that - just too hard of a life to lead. And so now I am just thinking about hotel or restaurant management. Why not dance? It is really hard on your body. It is frustrating. You can't ...
If student Kristin Casper gets her way, trees and grass won't be the only green things at UNM. She is petitioning for clean and renewable green energy use in all University buildings, she said. "It's about making sure that UNM stays on the cutting edge of technology, and at the same time addressing one of the biggest threats to the world today," Casper said. Green energy produces less air pollution and other environmental problems than conventional energy, such as the burning of fossil fuels, she said. Casper is a first semester law student with an environmental studies degree from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Ore. She said the petition had 300 to 350 signatures by Monday. Casper said universities should construct "green buildings," which are built with nontoxic materials and are designed to save energy. Such buildings take advantage of natural light by using solar panels and large windows to allow heat to come through, she said. "They're buildings that people want to live and study and work in," Casper said. "It's not only good for the environment; it's good for the people."
New Mexico Public Interest Research Group is sponsoring a public debate today at noon between members of the College Democrats and College Republicans to get students involved in the electoral process. Katryn Fraher, director of the NMPIRG's student chapter, said she is excited about the event.
Bob Watada said his son joined the army in early March 2003 to fight the war on terrorism. However, Ehren Watada refused to deploy to Iraq because he didn't see a connection between terrorism and Iraq's government, Bob Watada said. "The president said there is al-Qaida training going on in Iraq," Bob Watada said. "There could have been no connection to Saddam (Hussein) and Osama (bin Laden)."
The Albuquerque Fire Department is investigating the burning of 10 to 12 vehicles in neighborhoods around UNM that caught fire Friday morning, said Patrick Baca, spokesman for the department. Baca said the cause of the fires is under investigation by the arson division. The burned vehicles are probably worthless, he said.
Student Ben Mills was at boot camp when the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, happened. "We were all in there and kind of cut off from the world for 20-some days. The instructors came in and asked if anyone had family in D.C. or New York. We didn't have any clue what it was," he said. "One of the chaplains came in and told us what happened, and they showed us footage for about 10 minutes." Mills said it was hard to deal with because they were so isolated at camp. "Everyone was pretty shook up by it," he said. "We didn't really get the full understanding of what had happened."
Dylan Talley-Bailey Freshman Undecided I think they are going to lose more business than they expect just because that's the place for most kids to go late at night on the weekends, whether they are drunk, or stoned, or just looking for something to do or hungry. I go there at least once a week, ...
Student enrollment may be down for the second year in a row, but Provost Reed Dasenbrock said it's important to keep the decline in context. The freshman class nearly doubled over a 10-year period before this year's 1.76 percent decline, he said. In 1996, the beginning freshman class had 1,629 students. In 2005, it had 3,095. Terry Babbitt, associate vice president for enrollment management, said enrollment is reaching a plateau after so many years of increase. "I don't think one year of more what I would call a leveling off, as opposed to a drop, is necessarily bad," he said. "We certainly don't want to be in a downward trend." Curt Porter, associate vice president of planning, budget and analysis, said he does not expect tuition to increase as a result of the decline. "Nobody's talking about that," he said. "It would probably cause enrollment to go down more."
People are illegally selling magazine subscriptions on campus, and some of them may be scam artists, said Lt. Pat Davis, spokesman for UNM Police. The Dean of Students Office sent an e-mail across UNM Webmail on Wednesday, warning students of a potential fraud involving magazine subscriptions.
Drunken brawls in and around Frontier Restaurant caused the business to end its 24-hour food service on weekends, said Dorothy Rainosek, co-owner of the restaurant. Starting Friday, the Frontier will be closed from 1:30 to 4 a.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. It will stay open 24 hours the other days of the week. The restaurant started its 24-hour service in 1991. Rainosek said the crowd that comes in after the Downtown bars close is to blame for the change in hours. "They tend to be drunk and belligerent and disruptive," she said. "You don't want to jeopardize any of your employees or customers." The most recent incident occurred Saturday at about 2:50 a.m., she said. Daniel Suazo, a Frontier employee, said he was working when Saturday's fight started. "They started throwing plates, silverware, salt and pepper shakers and glasses," he said. "One guy got hit in the face."
Last week's closure of Zia Lot has had mixed results. Joshua Kavanagh, associate director for Parking and Transportation Services, said the change was a good idea that was poorly executed.
Solutions by The State News
