DAILY LOBO new mexico
You’ve got mail see Page 7
wednesday January 30, 2013
The Independent Student Voice of UNM since 1895
Lawmakers start work on Lottery Scholarship by John Tyczkowski and Megan Underwood news@dailylobo.com
UNM students found that when they attended Tuesday’s legislative session, there was very little mention of UNM on what was supposed to be UNM Day, and very little change in topics discussed from previous years. For the second year in a row, students planned to lobby for causes such as Lottery Scholarship solvency, efforts to keep UNM graduates in state and capital outlay projects involving the renovation of University facilities. Students broke into groups to speak one-onone with legislators. But due to the morning roll call of the House and Senate, which required representatives and senators to be present on the floor, many student groups were unable to find legislators to talk to. One group of students managed to talk to Rep. Miguel P. Garcia (D-Albuquerque), a UNM alumnus, about Lottery Scholarship solvency. The scholarship’s funds are expected to dry up by July of this year. “It’s definitely a priority, it’s very integral to pursuing a degree,” Garcia said. “Without it, a lot of kids wouldn’t be able to graduate from college or even go to college.” Senate Majority Whip Timothy Keller (D-Albuquerque), a major proponent of Lottery Scholarship solvency, also weighed in on the issue, saying that legislators are working to draft a bill addressing the issue. Keller said that both parties’ majority leaders are looking to freeze the amount a student receives from the scholarship each year. “Let’s say that when you started, the lottery gave you $10,000. The state would continue to give you $10,000 each year that you’re in school,” he said. “Right now the $10,000 actually changes. So if tuition goes up, then we pay you $12,000, for example. So by the time you graduate, we’re paying you $15,000 because of tuition increases.” Keller said this freeze will keep the scholarship from running out and make universities think twice before instituting tuition hikes. “We think that the lottery is sometimes taken advantage of by universities because it’s basically easy money,” he said. “They can have a tuition increase and the lottery will pay for it.” On Tuesday evening, Representative James White (R-Albuquerque) introduced House Bill 309, also known as the Lottery Scholarship Solvency Program, into the House Education Committee. A hearing date had not been set as of press time. The bill would make significant changes to the Lottery Scholarship structure, effective July 2013, requiring the scholarship maintain a balance of $10 million at all times, as well as mandating additional requirements. In addition, the bill would reduce the amount of time a student has to receive his or her degree while receiving scholarship money from eight semesters to seven. The new guidelines would apply to students who have completed five semesters or fewer as of fall 2013. In addition, the bill would raise the minimum number of credits a student would have to have in order to be eligible for the scholarship from 12 to 15. The bill also contains additional guidelines for students pursuing associate’s degrees and professional certification programs at community colleges. Students who have received scholarship money for two or fewer semesters as of fall 2014 would be eligible for only three more semesters of money while working toward their associate’s degree or toward a transfer to a four-year college. The 15 credits per semester guideline would also apply to these students. For more photos from UNM Day, visit DailyLobo.com.
Inside the
Daily Lobo volume 117
issue 90
Aaron Sweet / Daily Lobo UNM students march through the snow to the Capitol Building in Santa Fe for UNM Day to meet face-to-face with their representatives and lobby for their University. Though the most important topic of the day was Lottery Scholarship solvency, other topics included capital outlay and providing incentives for students to work in-state after graduation.
Student creates LGBT program by Antonio Sanchez news@dailylobo.com
UNM student Alray Nelson said an incident of school bullying while he was a junior at Ganado Middle School in Arizona changed his life. “My junior year in high school was the first time that someone called me a fag and I remember during that time, nothing was done, there were no resources. I was questioning myself and it was hard,” Nelson said. “Suicide was an option for me at that time because no one would listen to me.” Nelson, now a senior at UNM, is the founder of We Are One, a nonprofit organization that aims to create safe zone programs to promote a friendlier environment for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual (LGBT) students in schools throughout the Navajo Nation in Utah, Arizona and New Mexico. Nelson said he is pushing for more school safe zones because there are no school policies for bullying in Navajo Nation schools. He said with a rise in teenage suicides during the past few years, safety zone programs are needed. “I have seen an increase in suicides in Navajo Nation. I’ll never know if any of those students were LGBT or not, we will never know that,” he said. “All that we know from here is that regardless of someone’s sexual identity or sexual orientation, a life is a life.” Nelson’s interest in starting We Are One began after he worked as a student intern for U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in Washington D.C. in spring 2012. He also spent the semester studying at George Washington University, and while he was
there he applied and joined the Young People For (YPF) fellowship, which encourages members to get involved with their community in progressive movements. Nelson said that after speaking to a few members of the fellowship in April, he was able to start his nonprofit organization. Nelson is the only New Mexican student who is a member of the national organization. Nelson returned to New Mexico after spending last week in the nation’s capital to promote his organization at the 2013 YPF National Summit. He was supposed to meet President Obama, but because the president was too busy, Nel-
son presented his organization to representatives Obama sent. Nelson met with his personal mentor Dolores Huerta, who is a recipient of the Medal of Freedom, and the White House Associate Director of the Office of Public Engagement Ronnie Cho. Nelson said he is working with high school principals in Arizona, Utah and New Mexico to implement the We Are One program. Nelson said he is proud that Ganado High School will be the first to implement his program. “It means no student will have to question
see YPF PAGE 2
William Aranda / Daily Lobo Student Alray Nelson, a senior and political science major, founded his own non-profit organization, the We Are One Campaign, which advocates for the LGBT community in the Navajo Nation. Nelson had the chance to travel to Washington to promote his program on a national scale.
Super fashion
Joy with toys
see Page 5
see Page 6
TODAY
46 |25