U.S. secretary addresses veteran’s concerns

By: Joel Gilleland, Staff Reporter | Photos By: Joel Gilleland

Veterans who attend CNM and UNM were invited to a round table discussion with United States Secretary of Veteran Affairs Eric K. Shinseki to dis­cuss concerns and obstacles in using veteran benefits.

The May 24 discussion was followed by a press con­ference during which Shinseki discussed those concerns and his proposed VA budget plans for 2013.

“The discussion came to a question and answer session, and basically he wanted to know if there were any prob­lems that people were having with their benefits, said student Ian B. Scott, who also works in the financial aid department as a VA Tech III.

Scott said that he was only able to ask one question which was about student veteran work-study pay. He said that he asked about veteran work-study paperwork not getting pro­cessed in a timely manner and checks coming late. Secretary Shinskei was very upset that this was happening, said Scott.

“He went off the handle and said ‘That is unacceptable.’ He started holding people account­able and he told one guy, ‘I’ll be in D.C. tomorrow morning at 11:30 a.m. and I expect an email with an answer by the time I get there,’ ” said Scott.

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Oversight leaves student information vulnerable

By: Jonathan Gamboa, Layout Designer

The current employee email system allows all employees, including work-study students, to access emails contain­ing personal student information such as student I.D. numbers, W-2 records, tax return transcripts, social secu­rity numbers and other information pertaining to a student’s educa­tional records.

The CNM chronicle has discovered that thou­sands of emails sent to many offices across campus, including Financial Aid, Cashiers and Enrollment Services dating back to 2003 are available through the Outlook email system, which is a violation of the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

FERPA is a federal law that protects the pri­vacy of student education records in all schools receiving federal fund­ing, such as CNM, from the U.S. Department of Education, which is stated on ed.gov.

“We take student information very seri­ously. We know that the Financial Aid office deals with sensitive doc­uments and if sent over email, there are only a small number of offi­cials who do have access to them,” said Assistant Director of Financial Aid Sarah Elliot.

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Winograd: Faculty and staff receive one-time raise

By: Stefany Olivas, Business Manager

All full and part-time faculty and staff recently received a raise last to reward dedication and hard work, said President Katharine Windograd.

The one-time, non-recur­ring raise of $900 for full time staff and a pro-rated amount for part-time employees was approved by CNM’s Governing Board in April 2011, when funds became available at the end of the fiscal year, she said.

Over the past three years enrollment rates have increased while state fund­ing has decreased, but faculty and staff have remained com­mitted to the college and stu­dents, said Winograd“This was a way to show great appreciation for our employ­ees. The compensation increase is an important investment in our faculty and staff. ” said Winograd.

Full-time SAGE instruc­tor and Union President Andrew Tibble said that union members are happy that the raise was approved.

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Editorial: Reconnecting the dots

 

CNM Connect is a prime example of a func­tional, sustainable system that includes individuals who are mutually depen­dent upon each other and the school. The office’s “no wrong door approach” puts the staff in a position to successfully assist stu­dents with the problems encountered throughout their college career. CNM Connect operates on almost all the levels that adminis­tration does: getting stu­dents’ course advisement and financial aid and devel­oping grants and programs which CNM can use to better the education expe­rience. Systems within soci­ety are constantly develop­ing, which is often neces­sary because society and its environment are constantly in the process of changing. Everything and everyone is in a constant state of trying to reach equilibrium from the individual, to their coworker, boss, or prede­cessor and the people who depend on their services. The more people who make it a point to be aware of the changes, the more likely the final product will be functional and productive. Although the hole may seem deep pathways are already being made within CNM to improve the situation. Unity and understanding as individuals and as groups can help reconnect gaps and improve the college environment for everyone. When you see something that is not working, the thing to do is recognize and act on it to begin to make changes. Yet it is vital to also recognize and act when you see something that does work- acknowledge, utilize and expand it.

 

Ruining childhood for fun and profit

By: Carrie Ratkevich, Staff Reporter

A review of “Battleship”

What happens when you mix a beloved childhood game, $200 mil and 30 years of alien movie clichés? 131 minutes of a slow sink into the sea of stupidity.

“Battleship,” based on the beloved Hasbro game, is the type of film that makes the world worse simply by having been filmed. Not even A-list stars like Liam Neeson (“Taken”, “Star Wars Episode I – The Phantom Menace”) could turn dialogue that bad into something decent. What should have been an inspira­tional speech just before the final battle was instead, “Let’s go get those mother [expletive deleted]!” For a movie rated PG-13, there is a lot of curs­ing. Worse, the “You sank my battleship!” line spoken by Neeson in the trailers was cut from the movie.

Rhianna’s film debut as Petty Officer Cora “Weps” Raikes is a failed attempt at playing the bad-ass female character. Instead, she comes off as a woman in over her head who swears a lot.

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Asian Grill serves up a tapestry of flavors

By: Steve “Mo” Fye, Copy Chief | Photos By: Steve “Mo” Fye, Staff

Asian Grill is a great place to go when the urge for Asian food hits, but no one can decide which style to eat. The menu is extensive, with offerings from regions span­ning most of Central and Southeast Asia, and is sure to include something to excite even the most jaded palate.

The restaurant is tucked away in the southwest corner of Albuquerque’s “International Zone,” sharing a parking lot with the Pan- Asian supermarket, 99 Banh. The restaurant still sports the fixtures of the Souper Salad that formerly held the spot, but there are touches of Asian influence in the décor.

On our first visit, we were greeted by the owner, Thai Nang, who is known to his many regulars as “Mr. Thai.” Thai graduated from CNM (T-VI at the time) in 1993 with a double degree in laser technology and instrumentation control. He worked in the tech industry for some time before follow­ing his passion and opening Asian Grill.

Before we could be seated, some regulars nearby insisted we try the Wonton Soup, which they declared to be the best in New Mexico.

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Singapore Chow Fun Noodles, Mongolian Beef, Malaysian Chicken, Grilled Chicken Bun are just some of the options availble at Asian Grill.

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Album Review: Rachel Sage, “Haunted By You”

By: Jyllian Roach, Managing Editor

Artist: Rachel Sage and the Sequins | Album: Haunted by you | Label: Impress Records | Sounds like: Mumford and Sons, Sarah McLachlin, Regina Spektor, Ani Difranco

The tenth album by singer/songwriter Rachael Sage is hard proof that this indie artist’s star continues to rise. The deceptively titled album “Haunted By You” is not break-up themed, but is instead about passion and choosing between passions.

Through her music, and especially this album, Rachael conveys herself as the quirky big sister who breaks into song every time she shares a bit of learned wisdom or one of life’s secrets. Plus, she seems like she’d be a blast at a party.

The combination of well-balanced accompaniment and carefully chosen phrasing has become a trademark of Rachael’s music. The guitar – which Rachael plays herself – is remarkable and a welcome new addition to her musings. It’s also exhilarating to hear her unusual word choice – breathing new life into out-of-fashion words is the mark of a great lyricist.

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Gallery connects artists and aficionados

By: Jonathan Gamboa, Layout Designer | Photos by: Jonathan Gamboa, staff

The Artists of New Mexico and Beyond Galleria provides an opportunity for all art­ists to promote and sell their work in a community oriented fashion, said gallery owner Bambi Cordova.

Since its opening on April 5 at the corner of Mountain Rd. and Rio Grande, the gallery has received an overwhelming amount of community support to help build up and maintain the site, she said.

“We accept and sell art­works of all types. Everything under the sun is what we try to have to accommodate anyone that walks in to our gallery,” said Cordova.

She said that the galleria has been a continuous pro­cess for three years, begin­ning as the Balloon Fiesta arts and crafts tent. Cordova knew she needed a more per­manent venue because of the increase in artists wanting to sell more of their works with her, she said.

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Several local artists display and sell their artwork at Artists of New Mexico and Beyond Galleria each weekend.

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