Tag: Jonathan Baca

Leading the blind; Visually impaired students succeed

cnmchronicleLeave a comment

By Jonathan Baca, Copy Editor | Photo by Jonathan Baca, and courtesy of Wikimedia.org

Courtesy of wikimedia.org The BrailleNote can translate websites into Braille
Courtesy of wikimedia.org
The BrailleNote can translate websites into Braille
Photo by Jonathan Baca Disability counselor Lucy Birbiglia shows off an audio book player for blind students.
Photo by Jonathan Baca
Disability counselor Lucy Birbiglia shows off an audio book player for blind students.

With a lot of determi­nation, a little help from their friends, and new tech­nologies, blind and visually impaired students are suc­ceeding at getting a college education at CNM.

Blind students have a whole different set of chal­lenges along with all the traditional ones that every college student faces, and although some new devices and technologies have made some things easier, there is no replacement for hard work, said Lucy Birbiglia, counselor for the Disability Resource Center.

“Technology is not a sub­stitute for the student’s work. Students with any disability have to work harder than other students,” Birbiglia said.

Early education major Francine Garcia has been legally blind from birth, and can see some shadows, but no faces or details, she said.

For the obvious chal­lenges to class work like reading and writing, Garcia uses several tools that make it much easier than it once was, she said.

For her textbooks, she uses a device called a Victor Reader Stream, an mp3 player specially designed for the blind, where she keeps all of her textbooks saved as audio books.

At the start of each semester, counselors from the Disability Resource Center help visually impaired students find solutions to their textbooks, whether they are audio files, PDFs that can be read aloud using a program called a screen reader that can read any text on a computer screen out loud, or for students with some lim­ited sight, a magnifier may be all that is needed, Birbiglia said.

Garcia also uses a piece of technology called a BrailleNote, a device that looks like a laptop with no screen, that Garcia can use to type notes and assignments using Braille. The device also has a line of refresh­able Braille, an area filled with tiny metal pieces that can pop up and form words of Braille.

Garcia said that she can read textbooks and assign­ments on her BrailleNote, and can even surf the internet with it, because the refreshable Braille line can translate any text from a website into the bumps and lines of Braille, line by line.

“It’s a really cool tool. It can also read text aloud, and can even translate stuff into Spanish and French. It’s pretty amazing,” Garcia said.

Joseph Diekmeyer, Social Work major, said that he did not go blind until 2003, when he was 23 years old.

Diekmeyer, who is an orphan, said that his glau­coma and the high doses of medications he was made to take caused his eyes to start bleeding heavily one day. He said that at the hospital, doc­tors gave him medication that forced him into a coma, and when he woke up, he was alone in a homeless shelter, com­pletely blind.

Since then, Diekmeyer has had to learn to live again without sight, never losing the determination and zest for living that he always had, he said.

“People look at me and just see the cane, they don’t see the man behind the cane. They let their eyes deceive them, and just assume they know what I can and can’t do,” Diekmeyer said.

Diekmeyer said he is extremely active and self reli­ant, using a cane and a talking smart phone with an advanced GPS application to get around town, and all over campus, on his own.

He began attending classes at CNM seven years ago, back when the accommo­dations for blind students were not nearly what they are today, he said.

“It was extremely diffi­cult because CNM was not set up for blind people as well as they had led me to believe that they were. They boasted about all these things, but when I got here it was not happening at all,” Diekmeyer said.

Diekmeyer said that things have improved a lot, but that there is still a lot of work to do, particularly around the subject of sensitivity training for instructors and staff.

Birbiglia said that there is no mandatory training for instructors on how to deal with the special needs of dis­abled students, although she would like to see some happen.

Each disabled student is given an Accommodations sheet that is created by their counselor, that describes the special needs that the stu­dent will have in class, like having chalkboard notes or PowerPoint presenta­tions read out loud for them, Birbiglia said.

But some instructors do not always do these things happily, and sometimes do not feel the need to do them at all, Diekmeyer said.

He said that he has brought up the problem sev­eral times to deans and admin­istrators, and that he takes it upon himself to personally try to educate people on how they can best interact with him and other blind students.

“I’ve said that I will per­sonally sit down and take the time to instruct people and show them. The school needs sensitivity training for the faculty and staff, and maybe even some of the students,” Diekmeyer said.

He said that he has fallen into open trenches and holes that were not properly blocked off, and that he has failed many classes because of the chal­lenges created by a system that is not fully prepared to deal with blind students.

“They have made prog­ress, but there needs to be a lot more progress. I do the best that I can, I try to be as self reliant as possible, I take it very seriously. I’d like to see the campus and the institution work a little bit more with me,” Diekmeyer said.

He said the main thing he hopes is that instructors and students will take the time to get to know disabled stu­dents, and not just assume that they know what they can and cannot do.

At First Glance; Student art show draws a crowd

cnmchronicleLeave a comment

By Jonathan Baca, Copy Editor | Photos courtesy of Danielle Rae Miller and By Jonathan Baca

Photos by Jonathan Baca (Left to right) Students Jennifer Skirvin, Emily Snell, and Candice Chavez stand with their art.
Photos by Jonathan Baca
(Left to right) Students Jennifer Skirvin, Emily Snell, and Candice Chavez stand with their art.
Photos courtesy of Danielle Rae Miller “@ First Glance” featured art from 24 different students.
Photos courtesy of Danielle
Rae Miller
“@ First Glance” featured art from 24 different students.

On Friday, March 7, a crowd of students, friends, family and local art lovers crowded into the Freestyle Gallery in downtown Albuquerque for the opening night reception of “@ First Glance,” an art show fea­turing the best works from some of CNM’s art students.

The show will be running until March 19 at the Freestyle Gallery on 1114 Central Avenue SW, and each piece is for sale.

The walls of the gallery were filled with 24 paintings, drawings, prints and sculptures, each created by a differ­ent student from the Art Career Concerns class, a course that deals with the realities of making a living as an artist, said the Art instructor, Danielle Rae Miller.

“I think it’s really exciting, because most of the students here have not had a gallery show and it’s something that they’ve probably dreamed about. So tonight is the first moment where it’s like the fulfillment of that dream,” Miller said.

The show was one of the main focal points of the Art Career Concerns class, where Miller moves the focus from the techniques and skills of making art to the skills needed to make it in the competitive world of pro­fessional artists, she said.

“I usually start the class by telling them I don’t feel, for most of us, that it is a choice. It’s just like we have to do it, so you’ve got to figure out how you’re going to make a life like that. Because art does not necessarily sell, so how are you going to make it work?” Miller said.

In the class, which is only offered once a year in the spring, students present Miller with the best work they have produced in their life. Miller then selects one work from each student for the show, she said.

Then she hands the work off to the students, who break up into dif­ferent committees and begin the work of plan­ning and executing a real gallery show, something that most of them have little or no experience in, she said.

Studio Arts major, Sara Cooney was in charge of promoting the event, writing the press media outlets, and said that the skills she learned in the process will definitely help her in her dream of becomrelease, and contacting ing a comic book artist. ­

“We’ve learned how to be confident in selling yourself, building com­munity and relationships with other artists, organi­zation, and really getting into the mindset that my art can really be a lifestyle and I can make a living,” Cooney said.

In the process of put­ting on the show, students had to learn the logistics of the art business, like getting their work matted and framed, professionally photographed, and making promotional materials like business cards, Miller said.

Students were forced to solve real-world prob­lems on the spot, learning how to hang up the pieces on the gallery walls, where to put them, and the reali­ties of working with a gal­lery space, like lighting and organization, she said.

“They learn how to have a show, and then they actually put one on. It’s a great learning experience for them,” Miller said.

Aside from the real-world knowledge students get from putting the show on, Miller said that the opening is valuable for another reason exposing the students to Albuquerque’s larger art community, and also exposing that commu­nity to CNM’s art program.

“We’re producing some really amazing graduates, I think the students are stellar, the faculty is great. I think what we’re doing is actually really amaz­ing, and I think this is an opportunity to go out into the community and show it off,” Miller said.

The Semicolon project; Tattoo event promotes mental health awareness

cnmchronicle2 Comments

By Jonathan Baca, Copy Editor| Photos by Jonathan Baca

;2 ;1

It has been said that a pic­ture says a thousand words, and a group of Albuquerque artists and activists are trying to start a conversation about suicide with a very simple symbol; a semicolon.

The second annual Albuquerque, New Mexico Semicolon Tattoo Project is bringing together tattoo artists, mental health work­ers and the larger com­munity to raise awareness about the dangers of suicide, using the semicolon as their symbol, said former stu­dent and Project Manager Jon Cottrell.

“It is the way that we go ahead and address suicide, self harm and mental health, to raise the conversation. Because the more people that talk about it, the more people get treat­ment, not the other way around,” Cottrell said.

During the weekend of March 15, tattoo artists from eight different shops throughout Albuquerque will be giving tattoos of semicolons at a special fixed rate on people from all walks of life, in order to create consciousness around the issues of suicide, self-harm and depression, Cottrell said.

Tattoos will cost $30, and half the proceeds of each tattoo will be donated to Agora Crisis Center, which is a 24 hour crisis prevention hotline where volunteers answer calls from people who need to talk about tough feelings, and who con­duct outreach to schools around the city, discuss­ing mental health issues.

“We are an all-issues listing service that handles everything from having a bad day to more serious issues like suicide preven­tion. We are totally free and we’re totally confidential,” said former student Jenn Brown, outreach coordina­tor for Agora and organizer for the Semicolon project.

The group chose the semicolon as their symbol because in writ­ing, it is meant to signify a pause, before the writer continues with more of the story. In the same way, suicidal thoughts are a sign that one should stop, think, and talk to someone about their feelings, before continu­ing on with their own story, Cottrell said.

“The symbolism of the semicolon is; an author could use a period to end a sentence. Instead, an author used a semicolon to carry on in the same vein, joining clauses. So you can pause, but you carry on. We use that as a metaphor for people’s lives,” he said.

In addition to the tattoo portion of the event, there will also be a benefit concert at the Launchpad downtown on March 15, with perfor­mances from local bands, where the proceeds will also benefit Agora.

There will also be a poetry gala on the same night at ArtBar downtown, where local poets, artists and other assorted performers will be gathering and performing.

Last year was the first time the event was held, and in just six days, using only Facebook to advertise the event, the group was able to give out 148 tattoos, Cottrell said.

This year, he had six months to prepare, so he said he expects there to be an even bigger turn­out, and even more money earned to support Agora.

New Mexico has the fifth highest rate of sui­cide deaths in the nation and climbing, and sui­cide is the second leading cause of death for youth aged 10-24, Brown said.

“More youth in New Mexico are killing them­selves than are being killed by others,” Brown said.

“We need to do some­thing to decrease the stigma around mental illness and suicide in particular, and I think this is a good starting point to have a conversa­tion about it.”

Former student Brian James got involved in the project after losing two long-time friends to suicide in the last year, he said.

James said that for him, the event and the tattoo have become personal, and in the past he has worked with Agora and with an outreach website called SuicideFindingHope.com.

James said he feels like the more people can talk openly about these issues, the easier it will be for people to come forward and talk about it if they are having thoughts about suicide or self-harm.

He said that one of his friends announced his suicide on Facebook, and he feels that if more people were aware of the warning signs and how to talk about this issue, the better chance we have of stopping these tragic deaths.

For him, having the tattoo of the semicolon is both a tribute to his friends, and hopefully a way to raise awareness about the issue, by starting a conversation with people who ask about what it means, he said.

“The symbolism to me is like, you are stop­ping and saying to your­self, is this what I need to be thinking about right now, and how else could I approach this? You’re still continuing your story, which is really important, but are you going to change the path of how you’re going to continue it?” James said.

English major, Sara Saucedo said she got her semicolon tattoo at the press event for the project on February 27, and that she encour­ages anyone who has been affected by suicide, depression, anxiety or any other mental health issue to go to the event and get their ink too.

She said that there is already a growing com­munity of activists and tattoo enthusiasts in Albuquerque, and that this project is the perfect meld­ing of these two groups.

She feels proud to be a part of the cause, and hopes that her tattoo will mean something to the people who see it, she said.

“I hope when people see it, it will kind of get the ball rolling on communication, being able to talk to people about your depression, or your sadness, your need to hurt yourself. I think that it is a cool little signal that says ‘hey, I got your back,’” Saucedo said.

For more informa­tion about the event, go to signalonethreeme­dia.com/semicolon, or check out the group on Facebook at facebook. com/semicolontattoo.

The Passion of Christo; Convict’s art changes his conviction

cnmchronicleLeave a comment

By Jonathan Baca, Copy Editor | Photos Provided by Eric Christo Martinez

martinez

From Albuquerque’s mean streets, to a six-by-nine foot cell in a federal prison, to the walls of the Albuquerque Museum, the life of local artist and former student Eric Christo Martinez has been one of inspiration and conviction.

After honing his artistic skills and craft behind bars, Martinez has emerged as a suc­cessful painter and tattoo artist, and now he is working to give back to the community, teach­ing kids and convicts that art can be a powerful release from the harsh realities of life.

Martinez struggled with crime and drug addiction from an early age, and at the age of 22 he was convicted of a drug crime and was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, he said.

In prison, he quickly dis­covered that he had a talent for drawing and he begin making paños, a classic form of prison art consisting of intricate drawings done on handker­chiefs, he said.

“It was a pastime, but also something I really started developing a love and a passion for. So I just kept drawing and draw­ing and it grew and grew,” Martinez said.

Then he was put into solitary confinement for six months, and he discov­ered that drawing was a powerful means of escape, spending countless hours practicing and honing his craft, he said.

Eventually, people began to notice how good his art was, and started asking if he would give them tattoos, he said.

Tattooing in jail is a unique skill, and Martinez quickly learned the tech­niques, building his first tattoo machines out of motors taken out of radios and sharpened guitar strings, and making his own ink from soot and baby oil, he said.

“I started out with fine line black-and-grey prison style, a style that has a lot of history. It was born behind bars, and it spilled out onto the streets and is really popular now, and it revolutionized tattoo art,” Martinez said.

Martinez was eventu­ally moved to a prison in Pennsylvania, where he was introduced to fine art and painting by another inmate, Hendrick Gil, who began men­toring him and teaching him the craft of painting, he said.

He also began devouring every book on art that he could get his hands on, learning the history and techniques of past masters from all different styles, he said.

“I do a little bit of every­thing, all styles. Whatever challenges me or takes me to a new place, it’s all about the art and growing as an artist, so I love new challenges and styles,” Martinez said.

Soon painting became Martinez’s main outlet, and he decided that he wanted to try his hand at becoming a pro­fessional artist when he was released, he said.

He was set free in 2010, and by then he had created an entire series of paintings titled “Conviction,” based on his time in prison, he said.

He got a few paintings into his first gallery show, and one of them, a self-portrait titled “The Passion of Christo,” was purchased and eventually displayed at the Albuquerque Museum, he said.

Since then, Martinez has made a successful career as a tattoo artist and painter, tat­tooing full time at Factory Edge in Coronado Mall, and he is currently working on designs for a new clothing line, he said.

Martinez said he has also been involved in outreach work for prisoners and kids in the juvenile justice system, showing them that art, culture and creativity can be a way out of a life of crime, drug abuse and prison.

“Being able to give back and share the art and my experiences, especially with the youth, is important to me because I lost my brother, and me and a lot of friends; we’ve been through a lot, so if I can inspire and plant some seeds, it means a lot to me,” Martinez said.

For more information on the art of Eric Christo Martinez, visit ericchristoart. zenfolio.com.

South Valley farm makes it all about community

cnmchronicleLeave a comment

By Jonathan Baca, Copy Editor | Photos By Jonathan Baca

farm 1 farm 2

In Albuquerque’s South Valley, there is a farm that seems to be removed from time, where people are growing food and rais­ing animals the same way our ancestors did hundreds of years ago.

Anthropology major Elli Klein said this place is known as Erda Gardens, and members of the CNM community are hard at work here trying to pre­serve agricultural tradi­tions, protect the envi­ronment, and above all to produce high quality food in the most sustain­able way possible.

“We’d really like to see the South Valley, and all of Albuquerque, get restored back to its agricultural heritage,” Klein said, who lives on one of Erda’s prop­erties and is one of four main farmers.

Erda Gardens is spread out over about six acres on several sites around the South Valley that have been leased from the county, and the members of this collec­tive work the land by hand, using almost no gas or elec­tric powered tools and no pesticides or chemical fertil­izers, Klein said.

Full-time SAGE instructor, Jessica Mills, who has been on Erda’s board of directors for four years said the farm is Albuquerque’s oldest Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) opera­tion, a model where mem­bers pay or work for a share of the farm’s crop, and share equally in the bounty and the risk.

“It takes the burden off the farmer as being the only person who suf­fers loss in the case of a poor growing season. It spreads that risk out among many. You are committed to a farm, instead of just being a passive consumer, want­ing to just have the farmer serve you as a customer,” Mills said.

Members pay $600 for a full share, and this guarantees them a box of produce every week for six months. When there is a bountiful crop, mem­bers can receive more food than they need, and when the harvest suffers due to weather or other factors, they all share the risk, and the farmer does not go out of business, Klein said.

The CSA model, like the farm’s growing prac­tices, is aimed at sustain­ability and shared pros­perity and responsibility, values that have completely disappeared from the large scale, corporate monocul­ture model that has taken over the world of farming, Mills said.

“It assumes a complete paradigm shift in thinking. People who are involved with a CSA are no longer a customer who doesn’t have a voice. They are a member of a farming project; they are part of a community who are doing something together and collectively. So it is truly community building, and that in and of itself is priceless,” Mills said.

At Erda Gardens one can see a large variety of crops grown there, from leafy greens and vegetables to herbs and spices.

A larger orchard on the property provides peaches, apricots, and several other fruits, along with several kinds of berries and grapes.

Klein also helps to raise free range chickens, geese, and several bee­hives, along with a small but growing family of goats that produce milk.

Each week, the produce box that mem­bers receive is different; containing whatever crop is in season and is being harvested.

This type of system highlights the values of the farm, where members are partners with the farmers, and the farmers are partners with the land, Klein said.

“In the corporate structure of our food system, we have very little choice and very little power as far as what we get to eat. And so here we get to preserve native varieties, heirloom seeds, and try to produce crops that are well suited for our climate here. If you eat local food and plants from your environment, you’ll be more resilient in that envi­ronment,” Klein said.

Another important value at Erda is environmen­tally sustainable farming, and Klein said they are com­mitted to using zero pesti­cides and harmful chemicals, virtually no gas-powered tractors, and watering tech­niques that aim to preserve the limited resources of our state and climate.

Klein said that Erda is strongly opposed to genetically modified crops (GMOs), and that the farmers work hard to use heirloom seeds that have been passed down for generations, further preserving the area’s agricultural heritage as well as ensuring their members’ health.

Erda is also Albuquerque’s only biody­namic farm, a type of farm­ing developed in the 1920s that uses the movements of celestial bodies as a guide to planting and harvesting, in an effort to achieve greater harmony with natural cycles, Klein said.

“Biodynamic farmers use astronomical planting calendars, homeopathic preparations as well as special composts to opti­mize soil and plant health. This approach recognizes the spiritual effect of agriculture in our envi­ronment and utilizes the interconnections among soil, plant and animal life,” according to their website at erdagardens.org.

Although Erda’s model is based on being a small operation, Klein said there are several ways that the farm could grow without compromising their qual­ity and values.

Their major short term goal, Klein said, is to buy as much of the land they work on as possible, which is no small feat.

Klein said they would also like to eventually start a small elementary school, where kids would learn the skills and values of small-scale farming.

Mills said that small, community-based, envi­ronmentally friendly farming is the future, for the long-term sur­vival of the planet, as well as the health of individuals and communities.

She said that people can begin making small steps toward this future, by joining a CSA, shop­ping at co-ops and farm­er’s markets, and plant­ing backyard gardens. She said she feels that the extra effort is abso­lutely worth it, to ensure a happy and healthy future for everyone.

“It’s good for your health, it’s good for the environment’s health, and it’s great for building community. And the food tastes better, absolutely hands down,” Mills said.

To learn more about Erda, go to erdagardens.org, or to find out about volunteer opportuni­ties, students can email Elli Klein at openpalm­sesame@gmail.com.

New instructor contracts forbid ‘inflammatory’ statements

cnmchronicleLeave a comment

By Jonathan Baca, Copy Editor | Photo  by Jonathan Baca

cont

In the recently ratified contracts for full time and part time instructors, there is language that could be used to limit instructors’ ability to speak freely about “Union matters.”

The contracts forbid Union members from using college resources, includ­ing communication with “student media,” to discuss anything “inflammatory, derogatory, or disruptive to good labor-management relations,” according to the contract document.

Dianne Layden, a part time English instructor who has 40 years of experience in labor relations and stud­ies, and previously worked as Assistant County Manager for Labor Relations, said that the language in the contracts is unethical, is a restriction on instructors’ First Amendment rights, and shows an attempt by the college to suppress any dissent among faculty.

“This is a gag order,” Layden said.

The full contracts can be found at cnm.edu/fac­staff, under “collective bar­gaining agreements.”

In the contract for part time instructors, Article 26.6 states: “Nor shall College resources (including but not lim­ited to the use of College student media) be used for any union business of any type, a political cam­paign for an individual candidate, an issue or an organization. In the event the College believes a vio­lation of this provision has occurred it shall be brought to the attention of the Federation President and the distribution in ques­tion will be halted until the parties agree on how to proceed (Emphasis added).

In an official statement to the Chronicle, adminis­tration addressed this article: “The language in Section 26.6 of the Part-time Faculty Collective Bargaining Agreement was agreed upon by the part-time faculty union and administration. It addresses the operations of the part-time faculty union, not an individual’s right to freedom of speech. It is intended to articulate that college and taxpayer resources are not to be used for union organizing or lob­bying, or political activity.”

But the broadness of this language could be problematic, and while administration said that it would not limit an individ­ual’s freedom to speak, any concern that an individual union member has con­cerning their work could be construed as “union business,” Layden said.

“An instructor can have a matter that is a person­nel matter. By definition, because that instructor is covered by the collec­tive bargaining agreement it also becomes a union matter, but it didn’t gener­ate there,” Layden said.

Another point of con­cern is whether faculty now has limits on their right to speak freely to the Chronicle, whether the Chronicle is a “college resource,” and whether administration reserves the right to halt the distribution of the paper if it contains communication that violates these provisions.

A document obtained by the Chronicle showed that during the negotiating process, there was language put forward by the college that specifically named the CNM Chronicle as one of the resources union members could not use to distribute “inflammatory, derogatory or disruptive” statements.

That language was changed, and the CNM Chronicle is not named specifically in the final con­tracts, which now refer to “student media.”

“The CNM Employees Union and the College did have some long, spirited dis­cussions about the school newspaper and whether it was a ‘college resource’ or an independent entity, as those questions relate to the rights of faculty and the union officers,” said Andy Russell, History instructor and Vice President of the CNM Employees Union, who was part of the bargaining process for the full timers’ contracts.

In their official state­ment, the school denies that the language is meant to refer to the distribution of the student paper.

“The sentence that includes the word ‘halted’ would not apply to the opera­tions of the CNM Chronicle. It is intended to refer to fliers with disputed content that would be posted on bulletin boards at CNM locations,” according to the statement.

However, the broadness of the language in the provi­sion is worrisome to many, and shows that the school has a definite attitude toward the paper, Layden said.

“Maybe CNM was conveying a message to the bargaining team that they don’t like it when faculty members talk to the Chronicle reporters,” Layden said.

Frank LoMonte, Executive Director of the Student Press Law Center, pointed out that regardless of whether a school contributes money to a student-run news­paper; they do not have the right to control the content and distribution of the paper.

“I’ve never heard any­thing like that, that singled out any particular method of communication, any particular media organiza­tion or type of media. It is worrisome both for the rights of journalists and the rights of the faculty. That’s really remarkable,” LoMonte said.

Although the Chronicle was not named specifically in the final contracts, the restric­tions on instructors’ speech made to “student media” is still in the contracts, and could theoretically be used to limit what the paper prints, LoMonte said.

Since the Chronicle was not part of the negotia­tions, the contract cannot pertain to how it oper­ates or communicates with instructors, he said.

“If anyone ever tried to restrain the distribution of a student publication on the grounds of a faculty con­tract, that person would be committing a four-alarm fire violation of the First Amendment. There is no more blatant violation of the First Amendment than to restrain the distribution of a publication,” LoMonte said.

LoMonte also pointed out that words like “inflam­matory” and “derogatory” are not really legally recog­nized terms and lack clear definitions like libel or slander, and that the inter­pretation of these words could cause problems when enforcing the contracts.

“I think it is completely inappropriate as a matter of academic freedom for the college to make that request, to ask the union to make that concession,” LoMonte said.

The school’s official statement said the Labor Board, which consists of a union rep, a member of man­agement, and a neutral party would interpret the agree­ment and make determina­tions and recommendations.

Russell said that the “complicated” agree­ment still needs to be tested on many different levels, especially con­cerning communication between union officers and Chronicle reporters.

“The officers of the FT faculty bargaining unit must now be more careful about issuing any statements that are ‘inflammatory, deroga­tory, or disruptive to good labor-management rela­tions’ when communicat­ing via channels CNM claims some control over (on-campus e-mail, bul­letin boards, mailboxes, and now ‘student media’),” Russell said.

The school’s official statement did not mention any plans to reevaluate, clar­ify or change any contract language any time soon.

Suncat Chit Chat

cnmchronicleLeave a comment

By Jonathan Baca, Copy Editor | Photos By Jonathan Baca

What do students think about all the spam mail that is sent every week to school email addresses?

Mike Wilson Communications major “It’s going to happen whether you want it to or not. If it’s really too much of a hassle for people to click ‘delete’ if they don’t want to read it, then that’s their problem.”
Mike Wilson
Communications major
“It’s going to happen whether you
want it to or not. If it’s really too
much of a hassle for people to click
‘delete’ if they don’t want to read it,
then that’s their problem.”
Elliot Reddinger Welding major “I don’t like it. It just clogs up my email, and then you look at it and it’s usually the same thing multiple weeks in a row. It’s just kind of pointless, because it’s never anything that really involves the students very much.”
Elliot Reddinger
Welding major
“I don’t like it. It just clogs up my
email, and then you look at it and it’s
usually the same thing multiple weeks
in a row. It’s just kind of pointless,
because it’s never anything that really
involves the students very much.”
Elizabeth Torres Liberal Arts major “I read some of it that I feel pertains to me. It doesn’t annoy me at all. There is enough email that I get from any other place, so I kind of just pick and choose.”
Elizabeth Torres
Liberal Arts major
“I read some of it that I feel pertains
to me. It doesn’t annoy me at
all. There is enough email that I get
from any other place, so I kind of
just pick and choose.”
Briana Martinez Nursing major “It’s moderate. I don’t really look at it though. I read what it says on the subject line, and if it doesn’t seem like it’s really important, then I just delete it without opening it.”
Briana Martinez
Nursing major
“It’s moderate. I don’t really look at it
though. I read what it says on the subject
line, and if it doesn’t seem like it’s really
important, then I just delete it without
opening it.”
Arsenio Gallegos Culinary Arts major, work study employee “It’s a little excessive. It’s not bad, I mean some of it is useful, but I don’t ever use most of it. Some of it is useful, but there is a lot that isn’t.”
Arsenio Gallegos
Culinary Arts major, work study employee
“It’s a little excessive. It’s not
bad, I mean some of it is useful, but
I don’t ever use most of it. Some of
it is useful, but there is a lot that
isn’t.”
Alexander Volak Nursing major “I honestly don’t check it. It’s not excessive, I just don’t really pay attention to it unless it’s like a reminder for renewing stuff.”
Alexander Volak
Nursing major
“I honestly don’t check it. It’s not
excessive, I just don’t really pay attention
to it unless it’s like a reminder for
renewing stuff.”

Breakin’ Hearts; Former students organize street culture festival

cnmchronicleLeave a comment

By Jonathan Baca,  Copy Editor | Photo courtesy of Facebook.com

5.1

For the past 12 years hip-hop has had a home here in Albuquerque, and every b-boy, break dancer, DJ and MC in town has known where to go when they want to show their skills and earn the respect of their scene; Breakin’ Hearts.

Scheduled for Saturday, Feb 15 at Warehouse 508 and Sunday, Feb 16 at the Heights Community Center, the Twelfth Annual Breakin’ Hearts hip-hop festival will bring dance competitions, street art, rap battles and free vendor space to the Duke City, celebrating hip-hop culture in an all-ages, family friendly extravaganza.

Former student and Event Coordinator, Cyrus Gould is part of the United Hip Hop Family (UHF) Krew, a competitive dance crew that shares their love of b-boy culture with Burque’s youth in workshops and dance classes, and has helped put on Breakin’ Hearts and other hip-hop events locally for more than 15 years.

“It’s a really great, positive event, and it can change a lot of stereotypes,” Gould said.

Over the past 12 years the event has grown from a small, tight-knit community to a huge, two day event, with exhibitions and competitions that encompass every facet of street culture, Gould said.

On Saturday at Warehouse 508, there will be a 2 vs. 2 dance battle with a $1,000 prize, along with $100 prizes for a live painting canvas battle and a beat box contest, and a $50 prize for “Freshest Dressed.”

On Sunday the party moves to the Heights Community Center, where the one-on-one open style and pop n’ lock battles will be held, each with a $100 prize.

Each night also has a 21-and-over after party, at Art Bar on Saturday and Sister Bar on Sunday. Saturday’s after party will also have MC and DJ battles.

Throughout the weekend there will be performances from hip-hop groups like Diles, the 2bers, and L’Roneous, and dance exhibitions from the UHF Krew and their youth group, Jr. UHF.

“There’s all these chances to really be involved in a meaningful way as opposed to just being a spectator. I think it gives people an opportu­nity where maybe there was none before. People like to get a little bit of the limelight,” Gould said.

Former student and Event promoter “Shuga” Shane Montoya said that UHF Krew and Breakin’ Hearts has always been about creating a positive, creative scene for kids and people of all ages, by focusing on education, com­petition and reflection.

“It’s nice to be able to share what you love to do with other people that really get into it. We see a lot of shifts and changes in people’s lives too, where maybe they are a little more outgoing. Because it’s hard to get out there and dance,” Montoya said.

In addition to all the performances and compe­titions, and in the spirit of education, there will also be free community work­shops starting on Friday and continuing throughout the weekend, where local spray paint artists, dancers and DJs will be teaching their crafts, Gould said.

They will also be offer­ing free vendor space at the event, where anyone in the community can sign up for free space to sell whatever they want, Montoya said.

In the past, people have sold their handmade art, jew­elry, screen printed t-shirts and clothing, b-boy acces­sories like head spin beanies, handmade hip-hop dolls, and anything else, Montoya said.

Dancers can sign up the day of the event, and the only entry fee is the cost of the admission.

“Just come early, sign up, and get ready to battle,” Montoya said.

Tickets are $15 at the door each day, and two-day passes can be purchased before the event for $25, and are available at Caps Paint Shop, LA Underground and Silver Skate Shop.

Gould and Montoya have been sharing their love of dancing and the hip-hop scene since 1999, when they first formed UHF Krew, Gould said.

The crew has com­peted all over the coun­try, and they are pas­sionate about community outreach, teaching the skills of break dancing to kids with their Urban Summer Hip-Hop Camp and regular dance classes at Marshall’s Performing Arts Conservatory, Montoya said.

They have also worked closely with groups like Children, Youth and Families Department, the Southwest Organizing Project, the Youth Detention Center and Title 1 Homeless Project.

“We work closely with a lot of these organizations, and they really believe in what we do,” Montoya said.

Montoya said that the crew learns as much from the kids as they teach, and that it is this cycle of learning and growing that is the most rewarding part of the job.

“Working with these guys has really been a blessing. It’s amazing to see what they can do,” he said.

Although hip-hop and street culture has often been sighted by many as being a bad influence on youth, Gould said that if people could see what they do and how much of a positive impact their work can have on kids, they would change their minds.

“I would just encourage people to come to the event and make their own judg­ments and opinions. Come out and have a good time, see how much of a family event it is and how great it is,” Gould said.

A brief history of love; The Chronicle looks at the evolution of Valentine’s Day

cnmchronicleLeave a comment

By Jonathan Baca, Copy Editor

We all know that Feb. 14 is a day for sending out Valentine’s Day cards, whis­pering sweet nothings, or buying flowers and boxes of candies and giving them to our sweethearts, but it was not always this way.

The Chronicle spoke to Mark Love-Williamson, Instructor of Religion and Humanities, to tell readers a little bit more about the his­tory of Valentine’s Day.

The modern holiday that is loved by couples and dreaded by singles today seems to be a commercial creation, but ancient, pagan celebrations of fertility had been cele­brated on Feb. 14 long before sugar hearts and bouquets of roses were given, Love- Williamson said.

In the early Christian church there were many martyrs named St. Valentine, and it seems that they were all lumped together and the church celebrated the feast day for this new creation on Feb. 14, Love- Williamson said.

But St. Valentine was never associated with the roman­tic love that is celebrated today, at least not initially, he said.

“No one really knows why St. Valentine’s feast day got associ­ated with roman­tic love,” Love- Williamson said.

One story that was created was that St. Valentine liked to send little love let­ters to people in his church or people he had converted, where he would use romantic lan­guage and sign the let­ters “from, your Valentine,” Love-Williamson said.

But during this same time and long before it, a different celebration existed that was much more erotic in nature, he said.

In ancient Rome, a pagan fertility festival called Lupercalia was conducted from Feb. 13 to 15.

During this festival, aris­tocratic families would travel to a nearby cave and make a sacrifice. After this, the men would s t r ip naked and run t h r o u g h the streets of the city carry­ing whips.

The women would hold out their hands, arms, and even their bare breasts, and the men would run by and whip them, in order to ensure their future fertility, Love- Williamson said.

Lupercalia was cel­ebrated well into the 600’s, after Rome had officially become a Christian city, because, Love-Williamson said, many of the older fami­lies still identified with it as part of their past culture.

There may have been an effort by the Church to try and stamp out Lupercalia and replace it with St. Valentine’s feast day, he said.

“The Christian bish­ops, particularly in Rome, were always saying ‘why are you guys calling yourselves Christians and you’re still having these ancient festivals?’ So having a feast day could have been a way of kind of taking the wind away from the pagan festival,” Love- Williamson said.

Even after this, Valentine’s Day was just like any other feast day, and for a period of hundreds of years, there was no connection to romance associated with it at all, he said.

Then, in 1382, the English poet Chaucer wrote what most scholars consider to be the very first Valentine poem, “The Parliament of Foules,” in which he wrote the lines:

“For this was on St. Valentine’s Day; when every bird cometh there to choose his mate.”

The poem described Valentine’s Day as a special day of love, when all the birds chose their mates, and this was the first known ref­erence to Valentine’s Day as a romantic occasion, Love- Williamson said.

The next major refer­ence in literature came in Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, when Hamlet’s lover Ophelia speaks of the day as being a special day for love and for lovers:

Shakespeare was one of the earliest and best known of the roman­tic poets, who Love- Williamson said helped to create the ideal of roman­tic love, and many of his sonnets are among the western world’s most pop­ular love poems.

L o v e -Wi l l i ams o n pointed out that Hamlet, however, was not particu­larly romantic; in the play Hamlet seduces Ophelia and then dumps her.

“Of course Ophelia and Hamlet didn’t get along, and in the end they both die,” Love- Williamson said.

The modern version of Valentine’s Day didn’t really begin until the 1700’s in England, when people began giving out the first printed cards to their loved ones, he said.

But the craze of printed Valentine’s Day cards really began in the early nineteenth century, when they also became very popular in America.

“It took two things; cheap printing and a good, cheap postal service,” Love- Williamson said.

In 1847, Esther Howland received an English Valentine’s card from a friend. Her father was the owner of a book and stationary store, and Howland seemed to love the card, and saw it as a lucra­tive commercial opportunity, Love-Williamson said.

“She thought, ‘I could make money off of this.’ And it was wildly successful,” Love-Williamson said.

Since then, the greeting card industry has become big business in America, and Valentine’s Day would forever be a celebration of romance and love, created as a commercial holiday and marketed by businesses like flower shops and candy makers, he said.

Although the holiday has caught on in some other parts of the world like Taiwan and Japan, there are some parts of the world that do not recognize it, and some cultures who do not even really appreciate the idea of romance, he said.

“Marriage in so many other cultures has nothing to do with romantic love. It is very much an economic rela­tionship between two fami­lies. You’re supposed to make kids, you’re supposed to support the older generation, you’re supposed to carry on the family traditions,” Love- Williamson said.

So next time you buy a box of chocolates, eat a candy heart or receive a bouquet of roses; stop for a moment and remember the long and strange his­tory of Valentine’s Day.

Cheap meals on wheels; New food truck class brings fresh food to campus

cnmchronicleLeave a comment

By Jonathan Baca, Copy Editor | Photo by Jonathan Baca

4

Some Culinary Arts students are getting out of the classroom and into the new food truck, serv­ing up fresh homemade soups and sandwiches to Main Campus students and beyond.

The Street Food Institute Food Truck is the product of a new partner­ship that provides students with credits toward their degrees, along with some real world experience in the challenges of running a restaurant on wheels.

Every Tuesday and Thursday, the food truck will be parked on Main campus, in the parking lot just south of Smith Brasher Hall, and students are already enjoying the new dining option.

All CNM students receive a 25 percent dis­count, and just have to show their student ID’s.

Computer Informations Technology major, James Brice said “The Cubano sand­wich is great; I’ve already had it twice. It’s just nice to have another thing to eat besides the cafeteria food.”

David Sellers, who is an Executive Chef and Program Director for the Street Food Institute, a part of the Simon Charitable Foundation, said his goal is to train young chefs to be future entrepreneurs and small business owners, also to have students help boost the local economy.

“I wanted it to be really simple. Great quality food but in simple sandwich form using really good ingredients, and we’ve had great reviews so far,” Sellers said.

The food truck itself is the hands-on portion of a new Culinary Arts class, Mobile Food Operations, where students learn the basics of running a food truck, including the cre­ation of a menu, food costs, preparation and service, as well as setting up and tearing down the truck, Sellers said.

The new class is a pilot course being offered for three semesters, with the ultimate goal of creating a three-term food truck certification pro­gram, Sellers said.

Culinary Arts major, Jake Morgan said he was excited to be one of the first eight students to take the new course.

“I was really interested in it because I want to run a food truck. You don’t have as much overhead or costs at the beginning. I mean you are only paying for a truck, not a brick and mortar building,” Morgan said.

Morgan said that he would enjoy creating a unique concept for the truck, because one of the greatest advantages of having a food truck is the ease that one can change the menu and style of the cuisine, due to the low overhead and versatility of a mobile restaurant.

Another advantage that working in a food truck offers over a traditional kitchen job in a restaurant is the personal, face-to-face interactions that they get to have with their cus­tomers, Morgan said.

“You get to relate with people immediately. You can usually tell right away if some­one is disappointed with what they got or not,” Morgan said.

The initial menu was designed by Sellers, and includes turkey, barbeque pork, grilled cheese and Cuban sandwiches, as well as several soups and side dishes, which are all made from scratch, and with a student discount makes these dishes a steal, Sellers said.

“It is already reason­ably priced, so a 25 percent discount is quite cheap actually, especially for the quality,” Sellers said.

Sellers said he strives to use as many local ingre­dients as possible, includ­ing produce from Green Tractor and Romero Farms, and that he is working on creating a long-term part­nership with Agricultura, a local student-run farm­ing project.

Culinary Arts major, Sara Green does not work in the truck, but takes the partner class, where she helps prep food for the day.

Green said she thinks the thing that makes the food truck a better alter­native for students is the fresher, homemade ingre­dients that students get to serve there.

“I think the truck is a good option for students to go to. I know for most students, they don’t like to necessarily eat the other food that is offered on campus, and at the truck we make most of the stuff basically from scratch,” Green said.

Much of the menu is handmade and fresh, including the salads, the sandwich spreads, lem­onade, and their unique spiced parsnip potato chips, she said.

The food truck stu­dents even make their own pickles and spice, and roast the turkey that they use on sandwiches, which all contributes to a more flavorful, enjoyable eating experience, she said.

“I think it’s the food that makes it. Once people try it and like the food, they are going to come back,” Green said.

Culinary Arts major, Erik Newlander who has worked as a sushi chef, said he signed up for the class because he has dreams of someday starting a food truck that sells sushi.

Newlander said that the team has gotten a lot of positive feedback, and that the truck has had a very solid opening with few problems.

“The menu is going pretty good, people really seem to like everything on there,” Newlander said.

While the first menu concept was created by Sellers, he said that once the class is out of the pilot phase, the plan is for students to help create an entire concept from the ground up, creat­ing a menu, sourcing and buying ingredients, and managing the operation of the truck themselves.

“That’s when you throw the ball into their court and see what they can come up with. It’s a great sort of multi-faceted program,” Sellers said.

Sellers said he is excited about the future potential for the Street Food Institute, as food trucks are becoming more popular in Albuquerque.

“I think right now we’re kind of hitting it at the perfect timing. The scene is just really starting here, so it’s a great oppor­tunity for people to start something,” he said.