Issue 22 Volume 19 – The CNM Chronicle

Local judge credits schooling for her success

November 5, 2013 cnmchronicleLeave a comment

By Nick Stern, Staff Reporter | Photo Courtesy of Willow Misty Parks

1.2 — Alumna Willow Parks started down the road to success at CNM.

Judge Willow Misty Parks is Bernalillo County’s only probate judge and she believes that CNM has played a large part in getting her to where she is now, Parks said.
In a speech she wrote for the Donors’ Appreciation Dinner on July 18, she said that without her interaction with CNM she would not have achieved the same amount of success that she has now.
“CNM propelled me forward. I can say with conviction that I would not be where I am today if it were not for CNM,” Parks said in her speech.
She considers everything she received from her experience to be indispensable, she said, from the support, encouragement, and care shown by her instructors to the value of persistence she discovered while working towards her associate degree.
In 2011, Parks was elected as a Probate judge and now handles informal probates, which involves the handling of estates after someone passes away, whether there is a will or not, Parks said.
She appoints personal representatives who are legally qualified to manage and settle the deceased’s affairs, according to Parks and the Bernalillo county website.
The personal representatives distribute the assets to the rightful recipients which could be heirs, devisees named in a will, or even creditors, according to the website.
As a Probate judge, Parks can also perform marriages within Bernalillo county, which she especially enjoys doing, she said.
She loves her job and agrees that it was initially challenging to be a director of a position where people have been working for many years, she said.
She has to develop relationships and support and was fortunate that the judge before her was a mentor and teacher she had met at CNM, which helped create a smooth transition for herself, she said.
CNM was actually Parks’ second attempt at college following her attendance at The University of New Mexico, she said.
She had attended UNM for a couple years and felt lost after having trouble finding what her interests were and having a loose grip on her classes, she said.
Then, in January of 1994 when her daughter was 1-year-old, she enrolled into CNM’s night classes in the Paralegal studies program, and soon she discovered her interests were in law and learning, Parks said.
In 1996 she earned her associate degree in paralegal studies and also realized that she wanted to become a lawyer, she said.
The idea to even push for a bachelor’s degree never occurred to her until her mentor, Merri Rudd, from her Wills class suggested the idea of law school to her, she said.
“On the last day of the Wills class, Merri gave all the students personalized cards. Mine read, ‘when you are ready for law school, I will be happy to write your letter of recommendation,’” Parks said.
Up until then, she had never even thought of pursuing anything beyond her associate degree and now realizes with each and every success at CNM, her aims and her dreams grew higher and larger, she said.
After a few years of practice, one of her former CNM instructors and the then current director at Metropolitan College asked Parks if she would like to teach paralegal studies, which Parks had never even considered doing previously, she said.
She ended up teaching at Metropolitan for close to two semesters until the school went bankrupt and closed, she said.
The experience helped her realize that she enjoyed teaching, and she then began teaching at UNM’s Anderson School of Management, University of Phoenix, and ended up giving back to CNM by teaching here, which she still does to this day, she said.
Parks believes that teaching at CNM is definitely a good way for her to give back for everything she received, she said.
She teaches in CNM’s school of Business Information Technology, a school that gets in touch with the business community and has a lot of interaction, which is important to her, she said.
“I really feel a strong connection to CNM and it is a way for me to bring back around the gifts and the inspiration that led me to start finding things that interest me, and paths and opportunities that were available,” Parks said.
Her simple advice for students is to show up to class and to do the reading and preparation that is required, because it is all meant for the student’s benefit, not the teachers’, she said.

Student struggles and succeeds

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By Stacie Armijo, Staff Reporter | Photo by Stacie Armijo

1.3
Liberal Arts major, Lupe Fuentes, loves CNM so much, that even after graduating with a degree in Integrated Studies, she is staying on to get a second degree in Liberal Arts, and was recently hired as a full-time administrative tech in the Facilities and Planning Department, she said.
“I love coming to CNM for the sense of community,” she said.
Although Fuentes has been taught math, science, and English, what she really learned in college is the strength within herself, she said.
Fuentes admitted when she first came to college she was terrified, but with the help of the faculty and staff she found the confidence she needed, she said.
“I got the courage and confidence I needed to pursue my dream,” she said.
Once she finishes her Liberal Arts degree, Fuentes plans on attending UNM to obtain a bachelor’s degree in studio art with a minor in art management, she said.
Fuentes has taken several art classes here at CNM and found a passion for it, despite the fact that she was not very experienced with art before, she said.
“I am not a natural born artist. I am not the kind of person that can go in and draw a beautiful picture,” she said
Eventually, Fuentes learned the techniques she needed to know, and now she can draw and paint because of the patience of her art instructors, she said.
“The instructors here bring out the best of you,” she said.
Fuentes credits her teachers for inspiring her to get involved with school, she said.
Among those teachers are Peggy Brock, Jack Ehn, and Rebecca Aronson, she said.
“They made school interesting, and are near and dear to my heart,” she said.
Fuentes is a nontraditional student, because she came back to school after all of her children had grown, and had some problems with classes when she first came back, she said.
But Sally Moore from CNM Connect helped Fuentes get in touch with a one-on-one tutor, so Fuentes could move ahead academically, she said.
“She recognized that I didn’t learn the traditional way and needed a little extra help,” she said.
Fuentes said that the tutors at ACE are all great when you need general help, but some students like herself just need a little help from one consistent person.
For Fuentes, that person was Steve Severance, who helped her one-on-one to succeed in her class, she said.
“I ended up finishing math statistics with an A because of him,” she said.
Fuentes said at one point she was getting a little frustrated with school, homework and the time spent at school, which was taking away from her family.
Fuentes has four children, aged 27 to 32, and six grandchildren, all of whom she wanted to spend more time with, she said.
“I wanted to devote time to my children, grandchildren and boyfriend. I learned that everything is a journey and if I do what I am supposed to, show up to school every day and do my best I would be rewarded with something valuable for life,” she said.
She stuck with school, however, and was rewarded with an education, she said.
Fuentes said she thinks that although it may be hard to stay in school sometimes, and that sometimes financial burdens can be overwhelming, if one is patient and works hard, it will all be worth it in the end.
“Everything good comes with time. If everything came quickly we wouldn’t appreciate the journey,” she said.
Fuentes said that coming back to school was one of the best things she has ever done.
“I have learned that anything is possible and there is always time to follow your dreams,” she said.

Editorial Cartoon Issue 22 Volume 19

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ED.Cartoon

Editorial Issue 22 Volume 19 | Yet again…

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Editorial
By The Chronical Editorial Board
There have been a number of devastating shootings, and our government needs to take these situations seriously and start building reform for mental health in America. On Friday Oct. 1, at LAX airport, shooter Paul Ciancia pulled a .223-caliber assault rifle from a bag and shot TSA officer Gerardo Hernandez and then went from person to person asking people if they were TSA agents, according to cnn.com.
Another incident recently occurred right here in Albuquerque. Christopher Chase died in shootout and car chase with police that ended at Fourth Street and Montano Road on Saturday, Oct. 26, according to KOAT.com.
It is almost infuriating that the media is so concentrated on the suspects and their motives, down to what tattoos a suspect may have had. It is redundant the way media covers these issues, instead of speaking with the victims, and finding out how these incidents really affect the people who are injured or forced to be witnesses to such crimes.
No one should have to be subject to such atrocities; it is because our government does not care either way, and pretends not to have the capability to change how these individuals are treated mentally. Gun laws will always be an issue, but mental health is something that has not been addressed in this country since the 70’s, and this editorial board thinks it’s high time the government took responsibility for the people it governs by giving better and more accessible facilities to people that truly need help, before incidents such as these occur again, which they will, and hopefully the government will see that change is truly needed in mental healthcare fields before it is too late.

CNM Monster Mash

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By Rene Thompson, Editor-in-Chief | Photos by Rene Thompson

Second place winner Addams Family at job connection services with 126 votes.

The Breaking bad crew from Information Services won with 195 votes.

The Monster Mash Halloween costume contest that spanned over all seven campuses brought everything from pirates to the Iron Man, and at least 82 entries were put up on the school’s Facebook page for voting with a chance to win CNM swag and individual prizes, said Marketing Coordinator Katy Boyles.
Voting for the costume contest closed Sunday Nov. 3 and voting was determined on Monday Nov. 4 with “The Breaking Bad crew” from Information Services wining with 195 Facebook like votes.
Here are some of the winners and Chronicles favorite costumes from the Halloween Monster Mash 2013 contest.

Mascaras de la muerte

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By Nick Stern, Senior Reporter | Photos by Jonathan Baca

4.2.8 4.2.7 4.2.6 4.2.5 4.2.4

Drafting major Alma Vega’s mask was this year’s winner

4.2.2 4.2.1
Alma Vega, Architect Engineering major, enjoyed the spoils of victory in the fourth annual Dia de Los Muertos mask competition, winning a gift certificate to a local restaurant of her choice and bragging rights in her class, Jim Johnson, psychology instructor said.
The competition was part of Johnson’s Psychology of Death and Dying class, in which students are required to give presentations on a variety of topics, including Dia de Los Muertos, he said.
Masks were expected to incorporate creativity, ingenuity, design, and effort, and some students used gauze or plaster of Paris on their own faces, while others used decorated masks made of paper or purchased templates, he said.
Johnson’s class covers all the aspects of death in American culture including the history of the funeral industry, hospice, suicide, homicide, genocide, grief and bereavement, as well as much more, Johnson said.
Students were made aware of the project near the beginning of the semester, so they had nearly 10 weeks to complete their masks, he said.
Below are a some of the winners and Chronicle favorites from the fourth annual Dia de Los Muertos Mask competition.

Day of the dead comes to life in South Valley

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By Jonathan Baca, Copy Editor | Photos by Jonathan Baca

A huge skeleton with a first class seat.

The Lost Tribes of Mardi Gras have been preforming at Marigold for 13 years.

Lupe Garza rocks his giant skill mask. “It’s healthy celebration of life and death. Its one and the same.”

A crew on stilts, high above the crowds.

Dia de los Muertos is a big deal in the Land of Enchantment, and for the last 21 years in the Duke City, hundreds of people don their best skeleton face makeup and celebrate the delicate balance of life and death at the South Valley’s Marigold Parade.
This year, spectators lined a stretch of Isleta Boulevard and watched as dozens of floats and classic cars decorated with colorful flowers and political statements rolled by, and parade members threw candy into the crowd.
The parade ended at the Westside Community Center at 1250 Isleta Blvd. SW, where musicians, vendors, and food trucks waited for the painted crowds.
The Chronicle was on hand to document this year’s spectacle.

Up in vape; Student helps lead e-cig revolution

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By Jonathan Baca, Staff Reporter | Photos by Jonathan Baca 8.1 8.2 8.3
There is a new wild west in the world of nicotine consumption filled with billowing clouds of vapor, where the choices seem endless, and smokers everywhere are waking up to a lot less phlegm in the morning.
This is the world of electronic cigarettes, or e-cigs, and on the edge of this new frontier is the specialty shop Vapor Space.
Vapor Space sells nothing but e-cig products, and manager and CIS student Luke Merry, owner Freddy Olsen, and assistant manager Jordan Tronolone said they have been hard at work here catering to the growing “vaping” community since June.
“What sets us apart is our genuine enthusiasm for vaping. It sets the stage for a high level of customer service. We really want people to get the most out of it,” Olsen said.
E-cigs are a new alternative to traditional cigarettes that proponents, including Merry and his coworkers, believe to be far safer and less harmful than other tobacco products, he said.
Most e-cigs consist of a battery and a small tank with a heat source, which literally vaporizes a flavored nicotine solution, or e-liquid, resulting in a cloud of odorless water vapor, Merry said.
“You can’t say that it’s harmless, but it’s a thousand times less harmful than smoking,” Olsen said.
Vaping has exploded in popularity in the last four years, and in the beginning Merry said he and Olsen were simply enthusiastic converts to the new technology, quickly embracing it and making the switch from real cigarettes in a matter of months.
They both came from computer and technology backgrounds, and soon they began tinkering with the seemingly endless stream of new innovations, and eventually began mixing their own e-liquid, Merry said.
Early on the two had ideas about opening their own store, even though neither of them had any experience owning or even managing a business, Merry said.
“It kind of started out as a joke, like ‘we could make some money selling this stuff,’” Merry said.
Their knowledge and excitement about e-cigs continued to grow, and they started seeing the steady business that other shops in town were getting, so they finally decided to give it a shot, said Merry.
They began to scout out these shops, doing research, testing new gear and deciding on the kinds of products they wanted to sell, Olsen said.
“That consisted of Luke and I doing hours and hours of internet research, and sitting around my kitchen table until 11:30 at night, pretty much five nights a week,” Olsen said.
Eventually, Olsen asked his brother Tronolone to join the team, partially because Tronolone had some business experience from managing several restaurants, he said.
Being a small business owner for the first time is a huge undertaking, however, and Olsen said he still gets nervous about the whole thing from time to time.
“It’s still scary. I still wake up and go ‘holy shit, I own a vapor store,’” Olsen said.
Olsen said his shop tries to cater to every customer, from the first time e-cig user to the seasoned enthusiast who is looking to find the best possible vaping experience.
For those hardcore customers, Vapor Space seems to have found a niche, offering the more advanced, hobbyist level devices, he said.
These high-end models, which can run up to $100, offer seemingly endless options, with variable voltage and wattage, different Ohm resistances, digital displays, and re-buildable, customizable atomizers, Merry said.
“Those are for people who are chasing a better experience. We made a commitment to sell quality equipment only. A lot of shop owners aren’t really mindful of that, so there is a lot of crap out there,” Merry said.
Though Olsen said he understands this view, he thinks that the health benefits of vaping as opposed to cigarettes far outweigh the negatives.
“We fully believe that in a sense this is saving lives,” Merry said.
The FDA has said that they will release an in-depth study of e-cigs soon, but until then, Merry said the whole e-cig business is in a legal limbo of sorts.
Although there are no laws currently governing their sale, Vapor Space chooses not to sell to minors, and enforces their own quality control in mixing their e-liquid, Tronolone said.
“Personally, I think that law should be put in place. We want that kind of regulation,” Tronolone said.
Whatever happens, the guys at Vapor Space will keep doing what they love, Olsen said.
“We believe in this. We’ll roll with the punches,” he said.