- Athletics increase
At the Board of Regents’ annual budget summit Tuesday, regents approved a measure to allot a $900,000 increase in student fee money for Athletics for the fiscal year starting in July. This means an increase of $33.45 per student, which will result in $165.20 in student fees total per student, up from the current $131.75 total per student. The Daily Lobo asked students for their reactions to the increase.
Emma Pindra, sophomore, biology:
“It’s not like we’re a big athletic school. I mean, I know our basketball team is a big deal, but it just seems like a lot to me, and I’m sure there’s other departments that require funding. I know there’s schools where their athletics department is a big deal, however it’s not the most important thing about college.”
Jonathan Morgan, sophomore, mechanical engineering:
“A lot of the way that UNM is going to get attention and probably more funding is probably through sports and us performing well at whatever competition we go to. I guess it’s a little bit surprising that there’s an increase, but I wouldn’t say it’s unwarranted.”
Dominica Barabe, second-year graduate student, physical therapy:
“I think Athletics is a great program to have at a school because I think it draws a lot of people and it puts the school’s name out there. Coming from a graduate-school standpoint, I think a lot more of that money should be allocated to research.”
Dominic Serna, senior, exercise science:
“I guess it is what it is, but they shouldn’t be offering such big contracts to coaches, like Alford. Yeah, he did a good thing for the school, but we should be focusing on the education aspect of things too.”
- Lottery scholarship
Legislators have agreed on a short-term solution to shore up the dwindling Lottery Scholarship funds. For now. Gov. Susana Martinez signed a bill on April 5 that channels $10 million from the state’s tobacco settlement fund to support the scholarship. However, the long-term future of the scholarship is still uncertain, as legislators did not agree upon any permanent fixes. The Daily Lobo interviewed students about their reactions to the approved initiative.
Jennifer Sublasky, freshman, physical therapy:
“I’m going to school on the Lottery, so if I didn’t have it, I wouldn’t have been able to go to school. I have to pay my own tuition and my mom is paying her own bills, so I have to figure it out myself. We should make more efforts to save it because it’s the reason that many students are able to go to school right now.”
Caitlin Pace, junior, communications:
“It doesn’t seem like it would affect me because I’ll graduate next year. But it’s just only going to delay the problem. If they don’t come up with a plan now, it’s just going to be trouble next year. I think they should change the GPA requirement (in order to be eligible for the scholarship): It’s pretty easy to get a 2.5, so maybe they should increase it to 3.0.”
Laura Aguayo, senior, secondary education:
“I’m very happy to know that because it is a great help, and it certainly has helped me. I’ve been on the Lottery ever since I started college, so it’s good to know that other people will be fortunate enough to have the opportunity to use the scholarship for their higher education.”
- Tuition increase
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On Tuesday, the Board of Regents approved a tuition increase that will take effect in the fall. Tuition will increase by 6.6 percent for students taking 15 to 18 credit hours, while tuition will increase by 13.2 percent for students taking fewer than 15 credit hours.
Levi Turner, junior, biochemistry:
“I understand that bills need to be paid on UNM’s side, but this does kind of suck for us students. I’m going to have to find out a way to come up with those extra dollars, whether working more hours or spending time looking for scholarships. I wish it wasn’t happening, but it makes me more studious to hunt for scholarships.”
Kendra Crooks, senior, media and communications:
“I’m a senior, so it doesn’t really affect me, but a lot of people do attend the school because of cost benefits. We don’t have to pay that much to attend school because of the Lottery Scholarship. With these increases, we’re going to see a drop in the attendance at the University. But because of the state that we live in, it’s really detrimental for our kids to be (not) going to school.”
Luis Gomez, junior, accounting:
“It could impact students’ grades negatively. They’re going be working a considerable amount more just so that they could afford their education. When it comes to having to dedicate yourself to your studies, it definitely takes a toll. The University should have more resources as far as financial aid goes.”
Jazmin Rojo, freshman, speech and hearing sciences:
“What if a person is working a lot and they can only do 12 hours? It’s kind of unfair for those people. I think the increase should be based more on the person’s GPA. If they can only do 12 hours but they have a good GPA, their tuition shouldn’t be raised. But if they have a bad GPA, even if they take 15 or 18 credit hours, that doesn’t really make sense.”
- Salary increase
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez signed into law on April 5 a bill that increases all state employees’ salaries by 1 percent. The Daily Lobo spoke to UNM faculty and staff for their reactions to this pay raise, the first in four and five years, respectively.
Laura Valdez, senior program manager at University Advisement.
“I am happy because it’s been since 2008 (since the last pay raise). It definitely should be higher, but the state has been cutting back on so much, I can definitely empathize with the legislators who are trying to make the budget.”
Marvin Sedillo, grounds and landscaping, Physical Plant Department.
“One percent is not enough. It’s kind of a slap in the face after five years without a raise. It doesn’t feel fair at all. We might as well have gotten nothing. If they gave a little more, pride would be better, there would be more sustainability and the quality of work would be better. You get what you pay for.”
Max Mizner, professor of law and associate dean of faculty development.
“Everybody recognizes the budget situation is complicated. Personally, I am glad the staff increase was included. Our staff works very hard.”
Richard Holder, professor of organic chemistry.
“We don’t want to pretend that (1 percent) is nothing. But it’s not enough to make up for four years. Compared to peer universities, we are among the worst paid. A study of 15 peer universities showed we came in 14th out of 15.”
