Education
Native kids at risk
A report released late last week concludes that the Bureau of Indian Education is "dangerously unprepared to prevent violence and ensure the safety of students and staff." The 17-page report was prepared by the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of the Interior, which visited nine BIE schools, including three in New Mexico that were surveyed in April
The science of green little men
Half a world away, the University of Melbourne in Australia announced this week it is bestowing its first doctorate degree in ufology to a man whose research took him to the three places in the world most key in the history of the subject. The No. 1 spot listed? You guessed it: Roswell, N.M.
In a press release, the university announced:
Martin Plowman, from the School of Culture and Communication, investigated hundreds of UFO sightings and interviewed dozens of ufologists as part of his PhD thesis.
Mr. Plowman will become Dr. Plowman next Saturday (August 9) when he is conferred with a Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Melbourne.
As part of his research Mr. Plowman visited key sites in the history of ufology, including Roswell, New Mexico; crop circle hotspots in Wiltshire, England; and the Valley of Elqui in the Chilean Andes, and examined the links between UFO sightings and religion, politics, national security and popular culture.
That stubborn achievement gap
The latest achievement gap results announced by the state Public Education Department were both positive and negative.
The achievement gap, of course, refers to the difference between the academic performance of the majority of students compared with racial, ethnic as well as a few other subgroups.
The PED reported some positives such as a continued increase in the reading scores of disadvantaged students and an increase of more than 12 percent of Hispanic eighth-grade students scoring proficient and above on state standardized tests. Also math scores improced by 15 percent for Native American students over the last four years.
Historic Santa Fe Indian School in ruins
The turn-of-the-century buildings at the Santa Fe Indian School have been a part of the drive along Santa Fe's Cerrillos Road for the duration of the lifetime of virtually everyone alive in Santa Fe today.
So it's easy to relate to the shock described by those who witnessed their demolition without warning over several days last week. I felt it just seeing the pictures, several of which were posted by George Johnson on his blog, The Santa Fe Review, under the apt title "Indian Ruins."
Not making the grade
The state released its Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) report today. As in years past, it paints a bleak picture. Only 23 of Albuquerque Public Schools' 157 schools made AYP this year, versus 46 last year. In Rio Rancho, two elementary schools met the standard versus six of the district's 15 schools last year. All told, 245 of the state's 770 schools met AYP, compared to 368 last year.
Year-round school? No, thanks!
My friends, I'm here to tell you: Summer in New Mexico is officially over.
How do I know?
a. There's a crisp bit of chill in the morning air.
b. Clothing stores are filling up with bulky fall merchandise.
c. The sun has crossed the celestial equator from north to south, and day and night are of approximately equal length.
d. I drove past the marquee at my son's school and it said "Meet the Teacher" day is next Thursday.
As all parents of children in Albuquerque Public Schools know, the answer is, of course, d.
N.M. History 101
Former Lt. Gov. Roberto Mondragon and educator Georgia Roybal have worked for 17 years to get a textbook of New Mexico history published and distributed in schools statewide. It will become a reality this fall. Mondragon’s and Roybal’s nonprofit group, Semos Unlimited, is rejuvenated and back to the task of completing the textbook. It will be published as a pilot project at the Atrisco Heritage Academy (AHA) high school this fall.
World-class cave is found in southern NM, but research money is sparse
If you're claustrophobic you may not want to think about it too much, but as it turns out southeastern New Mexico is home to what many consider a world class cave formation called Snowy River. At four miles long so far, it's the longest known continuous calcite crystal cave formation in the world.
Volunteers with the Fort Stanton Cave Study Project are given credit for discovering the crystal river in 2001, which one researcher calls a "beautiful anomaly." Penny Boston, New Mexico Tech professor and associate director of the National Cave and Karst Research Institute, told the Associated Press that the cave provides researchers an extreme environment within which to explore life on the fringes. She likens it to practicing for Mars--around three dozen new microbes have been discovered so far.
TODAY'S TOP STORIES: Realtors challenge proposed Santa Fe tax.
A realtors group and three property owners have filed suit to thwart Santa Fe's effort to tax high-end home sales, the Santa Fe New Mexicans reports.
The Clovis News Journal reports that the backers of a proposed racetrack in Tucumcari pitched the idea to the New Mexico Racing Commission, saying that it would bring dollars to the state from Texas as Texans attend events.
In a sign of the times, Albuquerque Public Schools teachers will get a 2 percent raise, but some of that will go to pay for higher health care premiums, the Albuquerque Journal reports.
NM to adopt first-in-nation Navajo-language school textbook
New Mexico's Public Education Department announced today that the state will become the first in the nation to adopt a Navajo language textbook on Tuesday at the Instructional Materials Bureau Advisory Council meeting in Santa Fe.
A press release from the education department says:
The textbook is Dine Bizaad Binahoo’aah (Rediscovering the Navajo Language), written by Dr. Evangeline Parsons Yazzie (Navajo), Professor of Navajo at Northern Arizona University, and Dr. Margaret Speas, Professor of Linguistics at University of Massachusetts.
The textbook will be used in ten school districts that provide Navajo language instruction and by Bureau of Indian Education schools. In 2006-07 seven Native American languages were taught in New Mexico public schools throughout the state. Navajo language classes served the highest number of Native language learners totaling 5,024 students in 2006-07.
Wind-energy classes offered at Mesalands Community College
By Joel Gay 07/21/2008
Tucumcari may be where Al Gore and T. Boone Pickens find common ground — in the wind.
The former vice president last week called for a 10-year, man-on-the-moon commitment to wind and other forms of alternative energy, while the former Texas oilman has been promoting a similar message as he invests billions in the largest wind-energy project on Earth.
And Tucumcari? The little town on the eastern New Mexico plains is emerging as one of the few locations in the United States where someone can learn to master the giant turbines that have captured the minds of many, including Gore and Pickens. The first classes at the North American Wind Research and Training Center (NAWRTC) begin Aug. 25.
Dodd to honor Domenici in Las Cruces
By Heath Haussamen 07/21/2008
Chris Dodd, a former presidential candidate, will join a prominent and bipartisan group of politicians who will travel to Las Cruces in August to speak at a New Mexico State University conference honoring retiring Sen. Pete Domenici.
Dodd will join former Secretary of State James Baker, U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman, Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, former U.S. Rep. Manuel Lujan Jr. and Gov. Bill Richardson at the inaugural Domenici Public Policy Conference to be held Aug. 20-22 at NMSU, according to a Friday news release from the university. The other speakers had been previously announced.
Dodd, a Democrat from Connecticut, and Domenici, a Republican, have worked together on mental health issues in the Senate.
Albuquerque high schools go from big to small, reflecting a trend
By Barbara Armijo 07/17/2008With its 90,000-plus student enrollment, Albuquerque Public Schools is anything but small. It's one of the largest in the nation, in fact. But starting this year $9.1 million in federal dollars will help make the district a little more intimate. The money will go toward nestling Small Learning Communities -- an educational model that has been slow to arrive in New Mexico -- within seven APS high schools, officials said.
TODAY'S TOP STORIES: Bandits target immigrants in home invasions
By Barbara Armijo 07/17/2008
There's growing concern about a gang of bandits who are invading Albuquerque homes and may be targeting Mexican immigrants too afraid to go to the police, according to KRQE-TV, Channel 13.
In Las Cruces, a group that monitors the academic performance of student athletes has suggested shortening the college basketball season. At its June 17 meeting, the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics called on the NCAA to shorten the season in an effort to lessen the strain on players who miss classes while on the road, according to the Las Cruces Sun-News.
The Santa Fe Reporter this week continues its coverage of Public Regulation Commission candidate Jerome Block Jr. and how he is running his campaign. The story details Block's father's ties to Mescalero Apache Telecom, Inc., a PRC-regulated corporation. It poses the question of whether the ties have created a conflict for the younger Block.
Governor: Special session will go beyond health care, pocketbook issues
By Trip Jennings 07/16/2008
Gov. Bill Richardson said in a news release today that he plans to announce ideas tomorrow for putting money into New Mexicans' pockets during these tough economic times. These ideas and health care reform will dominate the upcoming legislative special session that is proposed for September, his office said Wednesday.
"Health care will be the top priority," spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said. The governor's office even has an acronym for these ideas -- CARE, which stands for Cash Assistance Relief Effort. The package "will focus on expanding health care coverage and boosting family budgets by putting money in people’s pockets," the release from the governor's office said.
Gallegos then went on to say the special session agenda will "go beyond those two things" -- health care reform and putting money back into people's pockets.
Gallegos declined to say what these other proposals would be.
Mexico notebook: Obama on bilingualism
By Denise Tessier 07/15/2008 | 1 Comment"Instead of worrying about whether immigrants can learn English -- they'll learn English -- you need to make sure your child can speak Spanish. You should be thinking about how can your child become bilingual."
After reading Barack Obama's above response to a discussion about "English-only" legislation, my traveling companion said his view of the presidential candidate "just went up."
I'm guessing impressions of Obama went up for people all over the world.
What Obama said merely points out the obvious in the eyes of many outside of the United States. He said: "We should have every child speaking more than one language."
How is New Mexico's `Educonomy?'
By Barbara Armijo 07/14/2008
Lt. Gov. Diane Denish sees New Mexico's future depends on its "educonomy." That's where education meets economic development, and it's where the state has often fallen short of expectations, she said during a recent meeting with business and community leaders, educators and many youth from around the state.
"I'm tired of hearing that our best and brightest students had to leave the state to get the kinds of jobs they want," she said. "I'm tired of hearing from business leaders who say they can't bring their type of industry to our state because there are not enough college graduates or trained workers to hire. We have to do something so that we are ready for the future."
McDonough won't take reins at NMSU
By Heath Haussamen 07/08/2008
James McDonough won’t be New Mexico State University’s interim president after all, the university announced today in a news release.
McDonough’s withdrawal is due to a health concern he wasn’t aware of when he accepted the job last month, according to the Albuquerque Journal, which was quoting from the news release. No other details were released.
Charting a new way
By Barbara Armijo 07/08/2008
What started in 1988 as an idea outlined on a napkin at an educational conference in Minnesota has grown into a full-fledged educational revolution touching thousands of students, parents, and teachers across America.
Cradles of hope, with love to Africa
By Denise Tessier 06/24/2008 | 2 Comments
