UNM has been crowned the “king of graduate schools” for Hispanics in the United States, according to a recent ranking. Hispanic Business magazine ranked UNM fourth in business, sixth in engineering and 10th in both law and medicine in its annual list released this week.
Radio Free America is trying to change the face of radio by encouraging listeners to join the conversation and air their opinions live through KUNM’s new interactive website. Kenneth Pushkin, the creator of Radio Free America, saw his program operational on the KUNM website, and he said it was rewarding to see his hard work pay off. “It’s been eight years, and today is the day we are finally on the air with Radio Free America,” he said. Pushkin said he feels optimistic about the program.
UNM’s Communication and Journalism department, in partnership with local media outlets, is using a $35,000 grant to create a platform where students can get their schoolwork published and read by thousands across the state. The department has established an online news portal called New Mexico News Port with the help of the grant.
The UNM Student Fee Review Board has made changes to the guidelines for organizations requesting funding for the new school year. The deadline for student organizations to submit their applications for funding has been pushed forward to Sept. 5, as part of a compromise set forth over the summer by UNM President Robert Frank. In a joint statement on Friday with ASUNM President Rachel Williams, GPSA President Texanna Martin said the two groups worked together over the summer to make changes that would adhere to the new guidelines.
Twenty-two Lobo women’s soccer players will serve a one-game suspension, and head coach Kit Vela will be suspended for one week without pay after last week’s hazing incident, New Mexico Athletics Director Paul Krebs announced Friday. As punishment for the Aug. 17 incident involving all of the team’s athletes, Vela is not permitted to have any contact with her team beginning today. Assistant coaches Jorge Vela and Krista Foo have been issued letters of reprimand; the two assistants will run the team’s day-to-day operations until the head coach’s return. “We believe the disciplinary measures we have taken today send a clear message about the gravity of the incident: that it is unacceptable and will not be tolerated,” Krebs said. “We feel we have a full understanding of what happened that night through the facts we received from the third-party investigation.”
The starting unit for the New Mexico volleyball team was sharp in lone preseason play, beating the alumnae team 3-1 on Saturday. Although the annual exhibition game is designed to brush off the cobwebs and show off some of the younger talent, head coach Jeff Nelson said the alumnae opponent boasted a stiff test.
Did the first week back at UNM monopolize your time? Miss any of the big news? Catch up with this week's episode of The Howl.
New Mexico Athletic Director Paul Krebs announced Friday that 22 women’s soccer players will be suspended for one game and head coach Kit Vela will be suspended for one week without pay for a hazing incident that occurred Sunday night. Vela is not permitted to have any contact with team beginning on Monday.
A UNM employee will face a grand jury on charges of second-degree murder after two previous failed indictment attempts. A date for a grand jury trial against Amy Herrera has not yet been set. She is currently out on a $100,000 bond. In July 2012, police were called to the home of Amy Herrera, a Health Sciences Center employee, where she and her husband Marc Herrera were holding a party for a UNM exchange student they were hosting, according to police reports.
This semester a new program will help students bring tutors into the comfort of their own home — electronically. Anne Compton, associate director of the Center for Academic Program Support, said CAPS will debut its new Online Learning Center on Monday, which allows students to receive tutoring from their own computer. The Online Learning Center, a combined effort of CAPS, Extended University and New Media and Extended Learning, will give tutoring to students who may be too busy, or too far removed, to physically go to the CAPS office, but still need assistance, she said.
Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry participated in the Ice Bucket Challenge to raise awareness for ALS Thursday in Civic Plaza. After getting doused with four buckets of ice water, the mayor called out five individuals to take the challenge — Ian Anderson, publisher of Albuquerque Business First; Kent Waltz, editor-in-chief of the Albuquerque Journal; Bill Anderson, general manager of KRQE News 13; Mike Burgess, general manager of KOB Eyewitness News 4 and UNM’s own President Bob Frank. Four out of five have accepted the challenge, including Frank, who will be releasing a statement Monday in the President’s Weekly Perspective.
When first-year defensive backs coach Charles McMillian started to breakdown film of New Mexico’s secondary, he had some serious questions about one player in particular. “He would just run mindlessly, as we would say, by just not going to the football,” McMillian said. “I wouldn’t have thought he was a football player.” That player turned out to be redshirt junior Brandon Branch, the Lobos’ starting free safety.
The New Mexico women’s soccer team did commit an act of hazing while attending several parties Sunday night, UNM Athletics Director Paul Krebs confirmed. During a nearly 40-minute press conference Wednesday, Krebs and head coach Kit Vela discussed the incident, which allegedly involved underage drinking and freshman players being sprayed with “soap and water.” Krebs said the incident involved the entire women’s soccer team, but that none of the players were forced to drink. The Athletics Department cancelled the team’s season opener at Texas Tech due to the investigation.
The City of Albuquerque will not pursue charges against UNM Associate Professor David Correia, according to court documents. Correia was charged with felony assault against an officer after being arrested while participating in a July 2 sit-in protest at Mayor Richard Berry’s office.
Sgt. Pete Padilla and Pfc. Manuel Mora, Albuquerque natives who died during the Vietnam Conflict, are still very much alive in the memories of friends, mentors and complete strangers. State Sen. Richard Romero said he grew up with Padilla and jumped at the chance in 2012 to help find the money to build the memorial for the two men.
UNM recently ranked on the Campus Pride network’s LGBT-Friendly Campus Climate Index, with a score of 4.5 out of 5 stars — the highest score in the state. The index awards scores based on eight separate criteria, including counseling and health, campus safety and academic life.
Most people dream of a quiet commute as they pass the Rio Grande day to day, yet it is that body of water that offers the most peaceful ride of all. Michael Hayes, the owner of Quiet Waters Paddling, said he has always loved taking people out onto the river. His objective has been to turn people on to what the mid-Rio Grande has to offer, he said. “Whitewater is about adrenaline and thrill, whereas the middle Rio is a very serene, scenic, laid-back experience that I’ve often equated to the act of meditation,” Hayes said. Neither experience is superior; paddling is more relaxing and allows for a broader audience, he said. “The other thing — and I hear this from families all the time — is that it’s such a mellow river that families are totally comfortable (bringing) young kids along,” he said. Hayes conceived of his paddling business after staying near the river at the Coronado Campground, he said.
Thanks to a $15.1 million grant to UNM Health Sciences Center from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, remote rural hospitals across the state will soon have the next best thing to their very own neurosurgeon. The grant, which is the largest UNMH’s Neurosurgery Department has ever received, will go toward setting up a telemedicine network that will allow emergency room doctors in rural hospitals to connect directly with neurosurgeons at UNM Hospital.
The New Mexico women’s soccer season opener has been cancelled due to an ongoing investigation into an alleged hazing incident, athletic director Paul Krebs announced Tuesday. On Monday, the UNM Athletics Department announced it was using an outside investigator to determine the details of the incident and interview team members. The game, originally scheduled for Friday at Texas Tech, would have been the season opener for both teams.
Albuquerque voters might have the chance to vote on whether or not marijuana penalties should be lessened. Late Monday evening The Albuquerque City Council voted 5-4 in favor of allowing a measure that will reduce marijuana penalties to be put on the ballot in November. This initiative seeks to reduce those penalties in the Albuquerque area to a civic penalty of $25 for anyone found in possession of up to an ounce of marijuana, regardless of prior transgressions for the same offense. According to current statutes, penalties for a first offense include a fine between $50 and $100, up to 15 days in jail, or both.
Solutions by The State News
