Should New Mexico End Summer Break For Children?

February 9, 2017 by Leave a Comment

desert-rainbow

Apparently NM Senator Joseph Cervantes (D) was never a child. He must have miraculously appeared in adult form one day and skipped a human experience known as “childhood.” You may think I have finally lost my mind, but I beg you to read SB 256 and come to a different conclusion.

Senator Cervantes sponsored SB 256, which is designed to increase school days for New Mexico’s children. He isn’t just calling for another week of school…he wants the children to go to school for 27 more days! That is 5.5 more weeks of school.

SB 256 will increase the required number of hours per school year for kindergarten through fifth grades from 990 hours per year to 1127 hours per year. (It also removes half day kindergarten)

The bill also includes a minimum requirement of 205 days of instruction per year. Let’s put that in perspective. In school year 2016-17, the Albuquerque Public School calendar included 178 days of instruction. The school year began August 11, 2016 and ends May 25, 2017. By my calculation, the extra 27 days of school would make the last day of school in early July.

Wait…that’s not all. There is more fun to be had with this kid-friendly bill. Jolly Ol’ Senator Cervantes included the following restrictions:

“ Days or hours when no instruction is given due to lunchtime, recess, weather-related school delays or cancelations, in-service training, teacher planning and preparation or other events that are not educational programs…shall not count toward the calculation of minimum instructional hours or days.”

I know that schools have built-in school days for weather related cancelations. It just seems a little overboard to include this type of harsh language in this bill.

Lastly, the bill requires that, “School breaks shall be scheduled as evenly as practicable.” Really? How does propose that the schools do that with so few “off” days?

Obviously this is a “year-round” school proposal. I cannot stand the idea of any child, especially children in kindergarten through fifth grade, being required to be in school so much. I have a child and I want her to cherish fall, winter, spring and summer breaks as much as I did.

Hopefully I am wrong and Senator Cervantes was a child at some point. Maybe he will remember that your youth is only temporary and you never get it back. Let’s not take these moments away from our children just because we want them to be “competitive.” For the sake of the inner child in all of us, please do not let SB 256 pass.

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Veterans Don’t Matter? According to NM SB 103 & HB 108 they don’t

February 7, 2017 by Leave a Comment

voteno2

The New Mexico Legislature ignores Veterans again. Politicians love to use us during their campaign, but abandon us when we really need them. SB 103 & HB 108 are both silent on Veterans issues concerning the transfers of college credit gained from military experience. As a matter of fact, the proposed changes in the definitions of the Act may make it more difficult for Veterans to transfer credits.
SB 103 & HB 108 are identical bills that seek to amend the Post-Secondary Education Articulation Act. This Act is designed to create a unified method of transferring credits between New Mexico Institutions of Higher Education. Arguments exist for and against certain aspects of the bills, but both sides seem to miss the impact the measure will have on Veterans.
Currently, there is no unified system of determining how many credits a Veteran will be awarded for military training. According to the Legislative Education Study Committee (LESC) Bill Analysis for 2016 SB 153, military credit is transferred “solely at the discretion of the college or university.”
That may not seem like a big deal to most people, but for Veterans it is a headache. My wife & I can attest to that first hand. We are not new to college life as military Veterans.*

We have experienced the difficulties of transferring military credits between universities. Despite the fact that my wife had completed multiple years in the military and had an associate degree, UNM did not recognize all of her military education that was included in her Associate Degree. They only awarded her 3 credits for physical education. She had to take more credits to finish her BA than she should have needed. It was a waste of time and money, which could have been easily avoided.
Last year Senator Craig W. Brandt sponsored SB 153, which required the New Mexico Higher Education Department to “work in coordination with institutions of higher education to study, create and implement a policy and single articulation agreement regarding the award of academic college credit based on military training and experience.” Unfortunately, it was only a temporary provision that required HED to present a report to the Military and Veterans Affair Committee (MVAC) and the LESC on November 1, 2016.
The official minutes of the November 1, 2016 MVAC meeting are not available, but the November 16, 2016 LESC minutes are. At that meeting the HED Financial Aid Director, Dr. Harrison Rommel indicated that the department wants “military credits to apply towards a degree”, but as my wife and I both experienced, “the department has not seen that happen in the past.”
The changes to the Post-Secondary Education Articulation Act may make implementing a unified military credit policy more difficult. The bills both propose changing the definition of “articulation” from “the transfer of course credit from one institution to another” to “the transfer of courses that fulfill a graduation requirement for a student’s chosen degree program.”
HED admitted that they have not seen institutions apply military credits towards a degree. This means that even if one institution grants military credits there is no guarantee that another institution will accept them unless they “fulfill a graduation requirement.”
In addition to this change, the HED was quoted in the LESC Bill Analysis stating that “the development of a comprehensive, statewide transfer policy for military credit reflected on JST could be developed in parallel with the department’s existing work on articulation, transfer, and common course numbering.” The key word here is “could.” Why didn’t they use a word such as “will?” They used “could” because that gives them an out and leaves them uncommitted to the plan.
SB 153 did not have any substantive requirements for HED, nor did it have any implementation timeline. If our legislature truly cared about Veterans, they would require SB 103 and HB 108 to include language that requires HED to develop a “comprehensive, statewide transfer policy for military credit reflected on JST that will be developed in parallel with the department’s existing work on articulation, transfer, and common course numbering.”
They should also change the definition of “articulation” back to its original meaning or include another provision that excludes military transfer credits from these requirements.
The legislature is rushing HB 108 and SB 103 through without taking into consideration so many variables, including Veterans issues. I ask that you call your representatives and ask for them to vote “no” on HB 108 and SB 103.

* I served 15 years in the military and my wife served 12 years. We both gave up our careers to use of G.I. Bills and get an education. I was able to complete an Associate Degree in General Studies from Central Texas Community College, a BA in Business and Management from St. Martin’s University, start a MBA at UNM and get my Juris Doctor from UNM School of Law. My wife completed her Associate Degree in General Studies from University of Maryland University College, was the first student in UNM history to earn a BA in Chicano Studies, is in the process of finishing her MA in American Studies at UNM, and has started her PhD in Visual & Cultural Studies at the University of Rochester.

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UNM is Dreaming of a White Male Administration…Just Like the Administrations They Used To Know

December 24, 2014 by 2 Comments

UNMREGENTS

***Current UNM Board of Regents and President Frank***

Yesterday, Governor Susana Martinez announced her picks for three new Regents at the University of New Mexico. As per usual, none of the Regent selections were people of color.

That makes a Board of Regents at UNM that is completely lacking in diversity and does not accurately represent the student body. (Oh yeah… Regent Koch resigned, but was reappointed to fill Regent James position. Let’s not forget that 482 out of 492 faculty member’s voted no confidence in Regent Koch in 2010)

This should not come as a surprise to anybody. Just a few months ago, UNM’s first InnovateABQ board was selected and…you guessed it…none of the members were people of color or women. They were a bunch of older white males.

The public was outraged and UNM was forced to “expand” the board from 6 members to 11 members. One of the old white guys on the original board was furious and actually resigned his position. (He claimed that an 11-person board would be ineffective)

Now, you need to understand the process of getting selected for the InnovateABQ Board to understand why white males were selected in the first place. The Board of Regents reviews applications and makes the selections. So is it any surprise that a non-diverse Board of Regents selected a non-diverse InnovateABQ Board?

The University’s old, white, male President Frank is so excited about the expansion of the Board (maybe it has something to do with the city threatening to withhold $2 million unless the Board is expanded). He stated, “This makes up for our lack of diversity the first time…” Wow…I guess we should be grateful that they considered diversity after they were forced to do so.

This is just the tip of the non-diverse iceberg. There has never been a Hispanic, Black, or Native American Student Regent (in 20 plus years) and there are very few people of color in faculty positions. This total lack of diversity is sickening when you realize that 56% of New Mexico’s population is people of color and over 50% of the student body is people of color.

The sad fact is that the old white guard continues to control the establishments of America. They are not going to give up control easily. Racism, sexism, exploitation of the poor, and brutality (by the police and military) will continue as a means to retain power.

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We MUST Fight: 4 More Reasons NOT To Vote For Susana Martinez

August 22, 2014 by 7 Comments

MartinezBigOil

If we do not do something quick…Be afraid…very afraid. Recent polls show that Governor Martinez has a comfortable lead over Gary King. WHY??? How can any person in their right mind vote for her? I have decided to continue the attack in hopes that the People will rise up and defeat Susana this year. Here are 4 more reasons NOT to vote for Susana Martinez:

1.  She and her “Friends” are rich and believe that “the rich should get richer”

Susana Martinez vetoed a minimum wage increase in 2013 because she believes that $8.50 per hour is just way too much money to pay poor people. She blamed the Democrats for the veto because she was willing to compromise with $8.00 per hour and they wouldn’t budge fifty cents.

How stupid can she be?? She wasn’t willing to give the most vulnerable group of people in her state fifty cents more per hour. That amounts to $20 more per 40 hours of work. That’s it. The fifty cent difference wouldn’t even pay for a full tank of gas in most cars, but good ol’ Susana thinks that she was being fair by compromising at $8 per hour.

She whined that $8.50 per hour was more than our neighboring states were paying poor people. She was basically making an argument that an elementary school student would make: “It’s not fair! Why should I have to do it if they don’t?”

The reality is that in real dollars, the federal minimum wage was actually $10.56 per hour in 1968. How can she complain that $8.50 per hour is too much money now just because some other republicans think the same way as her? She is just a lemming following the GOP narrative.

minimumwage1938_2013

 

A vote for Susana will make the poor even poorer. How could anyone vote for a politician who would do that?

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2. Susana could care less about the education of New Mexico’s children

Susana has been running around bragging about the improvements in graduation rates. Although that is good, the reality is that even though more students are graduating, they are still unprepared for college.

A report by the NM Legislative Finance Committee indicates that 51% of NM high school graduates are not prepared for higher education. If I do the math correctly, that is 1 out of 2 kids that have received a poor educational foundation in grades K-12.

Yeah…that is something to brag about. Way to go Susana. You can spray Febreze on a pile of crap to make it smell better…but it’s still a pile of crap. Our kids deserve better and Susana will not provide it.

3. Susana is declaring war on unions like a good Koch Brothers soldier 

Staying on the education subject, we need to address Susana’s war on teachers and the union that supports them.

Susana believes that union dues should not automatically be deducted from public employee pay. Why? The unions were created to give the working class a collective voice when dealing with the elite class. The union dues are used to help maintain a functioning union and to give the union a voice in the political process.

So why does Susana hate union dues so much? Because the Koch Brothers hate union dues. The Koch Brothers have declared a war on unions in Wisconsin, Michigan and and other states.

The Koch’s have contributed almost $10,000 to Susana and her PAC this year because they want their puppet to dance. They even pulled her strings as the guest speaker at a secret Koch Brothers function held in Albuquerque.

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4. Susana believes in saving money at the expense of educating New Mexico’s children

To make matters worse, the little fireball Susana believes that overworked, dedicated, and amazing teachers make “too much money”. In a secret recording, Susana can be heard saying:

“During the campaign, we can’t say it, I guess, because it’s education, but I really keep going back to that . . . keeping the teachers from feeling the pain when they already don’t work, you know, two and a half months out of the year or three months out of the year but earn salaries at the same rate of people who do work 12 months a year.”

How can she belittle the people who are responsible for the future of New Mexico? Has she ever had to deal with an over-crowded classroom full of noisy kids all day? Has she had to deal with their equally loud parents? Has she had to grade papers all night?

Teachers work extremely hard for very little compensation. In reality, they should be highly paid professionals responsible for improving the future of this wonderful state. They deal with our most precious investments in the future on a daily basis.

Maybe we should evaluate the soaring salaries of administrators and shift the money to the teachers. Susana is out of touch with reality and is more worried about oil than children.

Fight, Fight, Fight

The recent poll scares the hell out of me and the expected low voter turnout is just as demoralizing. BUT we can do something about it. We may not have $5 million dollars of Koch Brothers and Big Oil money to spend brainwashing the general public.

BUT…

What we do have is the power of social media. It is free and easy to use. Continue to fight her by developing an online war that she cannot defeat with money. If we spread the truth and energize voters, WE WILL WIN!!

UPDATE:The Washington Free Beacon wrote a story about “We MUST Fight: 4 More Reasons NOT To Vote for Susana Martinez”! The ONLY negative comment that they could come up with is the poorly made picture of Susana as the Wicked Witch. I guess the actual facts of the story are just to dead on to argue with. http://freebeacon.com/uncategorized/gary-king-posts-story-attacking-martinez-as-the-wicked-witch-of-the-west/

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Why New Mexicans Should Fear Conrad James

July 31, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Conrad James

The battle for the New Mexico House of Representatives is shaping up to be a battle for the ages. Republicans have an opportunity to take control of the House for the first time in decades. They are foaming at the mouth and throwing money around the state in rapid-fire fashion. House District 24 pits Democrat incumbent Elizabeth Thomson against Republican Challenger Conrad James. Conrad James must not win the election.

Conrad James was the state representative for District 24 from 2011-2012. He lost his re-election bid to Rep. Thomson by less than 300 votes. During his time in office, Conrad James waged a war against state workers, women, and undocumented immigrants. He believes that social programs should not be funded by income redistribution and that industry should be deregulated.

War on Children and Women

In 2011, Mr. James irresponsibly sponsored HB 380, No School Health Center Reproductive Services. This bill would have prohibited all advice or health care related to contraception, abortion, sexually transmitted diseases or reproductive process and functions!

Was he out of his mind? New Mexico has the highest rate of teen pregnancy in the country. According to a Legislative Finance Committee report, teen pregnancy costs New Mexico $590 million per year. Children born due to teen pregnancy have an increased likelihood to be incarcerated or live in poverty.

Here are some startling statistics from hhs.gov:

  • 68% of teenage parents in New Mexico are Hispanic
  • 5% of New Mexico girls have had sexual intercourse before the age of 13
  • 11% of New Mexico girls have been physically forced to have sexual intercourse
  • 87% of teenage pregnancies occur out of wedlock
  • The teenage abortion rate in New Mexico is 17 per 1000, which is lower than the national average of 18 per 1000
  • 11% of female and 18% of male high school students have had sexual intercourse with 4 or more partners
  • 15% of New Mexico teenagers chose not to use protection during their last sexual intercourse

Many of these children do not have anybody to turn to for help or advice concerning sexual intercourse. Their only option to get help is at school. If Mr. James believes that sexual education and advice is evil or immoral, he needs to wake up! New Mexico has been ranked as the worst state to raise a child even under the best of circumstances.

War on State Workers

State workers are the only people Mr. James seems to hate more than teenagers, immigrants, and the poor. In 2011, Mr. James sponsored a bill to prohibit payment for accumulated sick leave for state workers.

Wow! This would save the state of New Mexico millions of dollars right? Wrong! Most state workers are authorized paid sick leave every year. To reward workers for attending work, the state passed legislation that would allow workers to cash in sick leave if it was unused. It was an incentive to come to work and be productive.

By taking away the cash-in option, Mr. James’ bill would force state workers to use all of their sick leave and miss work. This would dramatically reduce the already pathetic efficiency of state government. Why should a state worker let the sick leave accumulate if there is no incentive to do so? The bill was idiotic and shows a lack of understanding of state government.

On top of that, he voted for a bill to increase the retirement age of state workers. Apparently, he believes that people should be forced to work until they die to get any type of benefit.

Undocumented Immigrants

Obviously, a man who grew up in Ohio, lives in a predominantly white district, and makes ridiculous amounts of money has very little sympathy for immigrants who risk their lives to make a better future for their families.

He voted to restrict driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants. It seems strange that a man of African-American decent would vote to restrict the rights of a people who are marginalized, discriminated against, and treated as outcasts of society.

On top of that, he is a member of the Board of Regents at the University of New Mexico. He is in control of the academic future of many undocumented immigrants and students who have family members that are undocumented.

War on the Poor

Mr. James believes that “Tax policy should not be used to redistribute wealth, choose economic winners and losers, or to engineer society. Taxes should be kept low, simple, broad, and predictable.” That should be translated to say that state- run social programs to help the poor should not be funded! This is a typical economic ideal of someone who resides amongst the societal elite. Their rallying cry should be “Don’t take our money to pay those lazy bums in the South Valley and rural New Mexico.”

It is nice that Mr. James has money to put food on his table, hire a nanny, send his children to elite private schools, and live the life of his dreams. Unfortunately, the majority of New Mexicans cannot. People need food stamps, subsidized child care, school funding, and other programs to survive. How does Mr. James propose that we pay for these programs? My guess is that he does not have a plan to help the poor.

The status quo of the elite and powerful will be safe as long as he gets elected. It is unfortunate that somebody like this is on the Board of Regents at UNM. Many of his students come from families who are poor and rely on social programs.

Environmental Assassin

The title of this category is a little harsh, but not unwarranted. Although Mr. James has not directly passed or sponsored any environmentally dangerous bills, his record shows that he favors deregulation. His official stance is:

“Regulation policies should be focused on protecting citizens and the environment and not used to punish/reward particular industries or micromanage the private market. I will continue to work to ensure that more energy is safely produced in New Mexico.”

It is funny to read that he wants to “protect citizens and the environment.” Mr. James is funded by multiple out-of-state oil and energy companies who are salivating at a chance to cash-in on New Mexico. On top of that, he received a $1000 campaign contribution from Monsanto! I will not go into an in-depth analysis of how wrong it is to accept money from Monsanto and still claim that you want to protect people and the environment.

Just Say No!!!

These are just a few of the reasons to make sure that Conrad James loses his election bid. They even call into question his position as a Board of Regent member at UNM. He is supported by the NRA and is a prototype Koch Brother clone. He must be stopped! Take some time to look at his campaign contributions and his legislative history. It should shock you. He has clearly demonstrated that he is out of touch with the realities of New Mexico and does not understand those who are not amongst the elite. His ignorance should not be a complete surprise considering the fact that District 24 is 60% Caucasian. He should stick to what he is good at…working for Sandia Labs.

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The UNM Video Proposal for the New College of Social Transformation!

July 30, 2014 by Leave a Comment

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Undocumented Students benefit New Mexico and need a pathway to citizenship

December 11, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Julio Salgado

New Mexico has the highest rate of children living in poverty in the nation, the highest rate of food insecurity for children, and has been deemed the worst state to raise a child. These statistics are based upon documented children whom the government can track. Unfortunately, there are many undocumented children in this state who are not counted in the analysis. These undocumented children attend New Mexico schools and graduate from accredited state high schools.

The state of New Mexico allows these undocumented children to attend state funded universities and colleges. The children are also allowed to use a state funded scholarship known as the Lottery Scholarship as long as they meet certain qualifications. This unique relationship is in danger of falling apart if the state funded Legislative Lottery Scholarship Fund ceases to provide enough money to pay tuition. Undocumented children are not allowed to apply for federal aid and rely on the Lottery scholarship to get a higher education.

In reality, the Legislative Lottery Scholarship Fund is doomed and these children need another alternative. The answer to the problem is to include a path to citizenship for children in the new Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill. If these children can become U.S. citizens, they will be eligible for federal financial aid.

According to a Pew Hispanic Center Report, in 2010 there was an estimated 85,000 undocumented immigrants living in the state of New Mexico.(Pew Research Center) That means that there are roughly 20,000 undocumented children living in New Mexico. Fiscal Impact Report for 2005 New Mexico Senate Bill 582 estimates that 10% of the Hispanic children graduating from New Mexico high schools are undocumented. (Fiscal Impact Report, SB 582)The Report estimated that there were 812 undocumented high school graduates in the state of New Mexico during the 2003-2004 school years. The Report states that only 69% of New Mexico high school graduates attend universities, therefore 560 undocumented graduates would attend a university.(Fiscal Impact Report, SB 582)

It is estimated that New Mexico spends $717 million annually on undocumented immigrants. Every taxpayer pays an average of $1000 annually to cover the expenditure.(Federation for American Immigration Reform )The study breaks down the amounts to:

K-12 for children of undocumented immigrants……………………………..$438 million

English as a Second Language………………………………………………… $54 million

Unreimbursed health care/ social assistance programs………………………..$108 million

Justice/ Law Enforcement costs………………………………………………. $ 76 million

Public Services…………………………………………………………………$ 42 million

By allowing the high school graduates to attend a university and become U.S. citizens, the state will increase tax revenue and decrease the annual burden on individual tax payers. If only 40% of these students graduate every year, there will be 200 new taxpayers added to the economy each year and 200 less undocumented immigrants for the taxpayers to cover. The cumulative result of allowing these individuals to be productive members of New Mexico should be the motivating factor for passage of a path to citizenship.

In May 2013, the Immigration Policy center published a report in which they stated:

“ Moreover, Latinos and Asians (both foreign-born and native-born) wield $25.1 billion in consumer purchasing power, and the businesses they own had sales and receipts of $7.6 billion and employed more than 60,000 people at last count. At a time when the economy is still recovering, New Mexico can ill-afford to alienate such a critical component of its labor force, tax base, and business community.”

(Immigration Policy Center, NEW AMERICANS IN NEW MEXICO)

The same study pointed out some startling economic facts:

–          Unauthorized immigrants in New Mexico paid $101.5 million in state and local taxes in 2010, according to data from the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy,which includes:

• $8.7 million in state income taxes.

• $8.7 million in property taxes.

• $84.2 million in sales taxes.

–          Unauthorized immigrants comprised roughly 5.6% of the state’s workforce (or 50,000 workers) in 2010, according to a report by the Pew Hispanic Center.23

–          If all unauthorized immigrants were removed from New Mexico, the state would lose $1.8 billion in economic activity, $809.1 million in gross state product, and approximately 12,239 jobs, even accounting for adequate market adjustment time, according to a report by the Perryman Group.

(Immigration Policy Center, NEW AMERICANS IN NEW MEXICO)

With that type of economic strength, the businesses and government of New Mexico must listen to the demands of the people. Many of the individuals who make up this statistic either know or are related to an undocumented child. These children live in their communities and go to school with their children. By supporting Comprehensive Immigration Reform that includes a pathway to citizenship for children who attend college, business’s can show their commitment to the community.

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New Mexico: Reclaim the Promise of Public Education–Our Schools, Our Solutions

December 9, 2013 by Leave a Comment


New Mexico wants great neighborhood public schools that are safe and welcoming, are fully funded and have teachers who are well-prepared, are well-supported, and have manageable class sizes and time to collaborate. We want our schools to be centers of our communities and ensure that children and families have access to wraparound services to meet their social, emotional and health needs. We want curriculum that focuses on teaching and learning, not testing, and that includes art, music and the sciences. We want to put the public back in public education.

The top-down policies of the last decade have not worked. It’s clear that austerity, competition, division and hyper-testing have not and will not help our students. Top-down edicts, sanctions, mass school closures and denigrating teachers will not move the needle in the right direction. Our children and our schools deserve better.

We want a new direction for our schools. Nationally, educators, students, parents, community organizations, civil rights advocates and faith leaders recently met in Los Angeles and together endorsed “The Principles that Unite Us.”

Following the meeting in Los Angeles, New Mexicans created Keep the Promise for New Mexico’s Future, a coalition of organizations, educators, parents and students who want to see public education in New Mexico thrive. Coalition members have already shared stories of education challenges and suggestions for solutions with more than 10,000 people in telephone and in-person town hall meetings across the state. Members of Keep the Promise will travel around New Mexico on a statewide bus tour Dec. 9-13 to continue working on taking back our public education. Check out http://www.promisefornewmexico.org to see when Keep the Promise will be in your community.

I urge you to sign on to “The Principles that Unite Us” and the “Keep the Promise Vision Statement.” We need our leaders to stand with us, united around a common vision for our schools.

Read more about “The Principles that Unite Us” at http://www.reclaimpublicednow.org/principles.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN THE PETITION: http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/reclaim-the-promise-of-5?source=s.em.mt&r_by=9634038
For Keep the Promise’s vision statement, local events and opportunities to participate, visit http://www.promisefornewmexico.org.
There are currently 1,671 signatures. NEW goal – We need 2,000 signatures!

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