Tag: Westside Campus

Westside Campus Housing Nocturnal Flying Friends

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Story and Photo

By Mark Graven

Staff Reporter
The CNM Westside Campus owls have moved, but not too far, since they apparently like the neighborhood, according to CNM security officers.  
The owls had been making their home on the Michael J. Glennon Building  (MJG building), and a prominent yellow sign at the front of the building still announces  their nesting activity.


About two months ago, security officers noticed the mama owl sitting atop an egg on a second- story window sill of the MJG Building.  They blocked off the window, so people inside the building would not frighten the owls, according to CNM Security Officer Jamison Meyer.


Meyer said shortly after that officers found that the egg had rolled off the window sill, and was broken on the ground below.  
Now the owls hang out in the pine trees to the north of Westside II, Meyer said.  Meyer says he has only seen two owls, and he suspects they are mates.  They are both a little larger than a football in size, and have the feathers that look like horns on their heads.


Meyer said he regularly spots the owls on his patrols.  “I look at them; they look at me,”  said Meyer.  “No one says anything.”
Meyer said that sometimes the owls roost in the same tree:  sometimes they roost in separate trees.  Meyers said, with a laugh, that he suspects they seek separate trees after they have had an argument.


The famous owls of CNM Westside campus made local headlines four years ago, when their baby fell from his nest in a tree by the MJG Building.


Hawks Aloft, a non-profit group that takes care of all kinds of birds, arrived at campus to check the owlet and give it treatment, in addition to providing a new nest.
Gail Garber, executive director of Hawks Aloft, reached for comment by phone, said the owls would probably not try to build a new nest until next spring, but would stay in the area as long as the food supply is good.  Great Horned Owls range across North America, except where it is cold and treeless, she said. Owls, said Garber, are carnivores.  They will eat any kind of meat, including “your cat,” she said.


Meyer said he has seen bones from rabbits and squirrels around campus, so he suspects that the owls have enjoyed good hunting.
They become active after the sun goes down, swooping from trees and light poles as they stalk their prey,  Meyer said. 
Meyer said it relaxes him to spend time observing the owls.  “Especially in these times when so many bad things are happening . . . It’s good to get back to nature.”

West Side Owls

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By Wade Faast, Staff Reporter

On May 15, CNM security officers and employees of Hawks Aloft worked to help a fallen great horned owlet at the CNM Westside campus.

The owlet fell from its nest in a nearby tree, since the owlet remained on the ground in a high traffic area CNM contacted Hawks Aloft, said CNM security officer Ben Encinias.

Hawks Aloft, sent out volunteer Sophia Borowsky to check on the bird and check the situation. Borowsky gave the owlet a physical exam and determined it to be in good health with no obvious injuries, she said.

Shortly after placing the owlet in a tree to keep it out of harms way, Hawks Aloft raptor rescue coordinator Lisa Morgan arrived with the necessary supplies to build the owlet a new nest in a nearby tree.

Morgan explained that the nest the owlet had been living in was too small and inadequate for a bird of its size, which likely explains why it fell to the ground.

The great horned owl adults had taken over a roadrunner nest, Encinias said.

After deeming the owlet was indeed undersized, and was not receiving enough nutrients an amino acid solution was given to help hydrate and provide nutrition for the young owl, Morgan said.

The new nest was built in a tree located in the northwest corner of the campus courtyard and marked off with caution tape and warning signs.

When the great horned owl adults first moved into the courtyard about 2 months ago CNM security taped off a 30 foot perimeter around the tree they were inhabiting, said CNM security Lieutenant Michael Kerr.

“After the baby owl hatched we increased that perimeter to approximately 100 feet because our primary goal is protecting students, faculty and the wildlife,” he said.

Lt. Kerr advises that all students and staff respect the warning signs and caution tape, and give the owls the space they need.

The owls are protected by federal law, Morgan said.

“You can’t harass, you can’t take, and you can’t pet the owls,” she said.

Three people have been attacked by the adult owls, two employees and one student, none suffered serious injury though, said Lt. Kerr.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Suicide Prevention and Awareness

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By Whitney Oliphant, Staff Reporter

CNM Westside Campus held a suicide prevention talk for students and staff on September 30, 2015.

The workshop is designed to help everyone understand warning signs and how to get someone help, Brown said.

The guest speakers included Mike Hillard, who is a full time psychology instructor, and Jenn Brown, who works at Agora Crisis Center.

Jenn Brown has volunteered at Agora for two years and has been on staff for three years and she now goes around educating the youth on suicide prevention.

New Mexico is a very at risk state for death by suicide and attributes and this is due to New Mexico being a very rural state and the poorest state in the country, she said.

“With New Mexico being rural this means that we are very isolated,” she said.

New Mexico is ranked 3rd nationally for death by suicide, she said.

For every one person who dies as a result of suicide around fifty people are then affected, Brown said.

The most at risk include older white men who are over the age of 60 but that does not mean that others are not also at risk, she said.

There are many different reasons as to why a person may be depressed, she said.

Agora Crisis Center is a confidential and free service for those who need help and need someone to listen, Brown said.

To reach someone at Agora the number for the Albuquerque area is (505)-277-3013 or statewide it is 1-866-HELP-1-NM.

Depression is a major factor in suicide, she said.

Depression is a chronic physical illness that affects our bodies and our brains, she said.

It is different from other illnesses in that it is not something that people can see, Brown said.

Chronic depression can last from months to years at a time, she said.

Depression can also lower your immune system and your ability to fight off infections, said Michael Hillard, CNM instructor.

“Imagine being in the deepest, darkest, moss covered well that you can’t get out of, that’s what depression is like,” Brown said.

Some of the warning signs of depression can include weight changes, lethargy, not leaving the house, and avoiding friends, she said.

Depression really is different for everyone, and will affect everyone in a different way, she said.

“Depression is not a one size fit’s all shoe,” Brown said.

It is important to realize if a behavior is abnormal or out of the ordinary for that specific person or there is a sudden change in what the person is interested in then that individual may be suffering from a form of depression, she said.

For instance if they have always enjoyed dance and now they want nothing to do with dance, then that may be a sign of depression said, Brown.

Self-injury types of behavior such as pinching, slapping, or hitting oneself could be a sign of depression as well, said Hillard.

It is important to recognize the behavior changes and warning signs and try to get that person help said, Brown.

There is a stigma behind asking someone about suicide or depression said, Brown.

It’s important to ask a person if they are thinking of killing themselves no matter how uneasy it may make the person asking feel, she said.

“It’s important to remember that you asking about suicide will in no way cause someone to commit suicide,” said Brown

Instead of asking someone if they are thinking about hurting themselves ask them instead if they are thinking about suicide, she said.

There a few different ways to help someone who is in that kind of a situation, she said.

You can tell them about Agora which is a confidential free service available to anyone who needs to talk or just someone to listen, she said.

Agora can help refer people to regular therapy sessions if the individual is interested.

“It’s also important to make time for yourself and to spend time with those that make you feel better if someone is going through a hard time,” Hillard said.

Westside campus puts on Arts Jam

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By Nick Stern, Senior Reporter | Photo by Nick Stern

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Arts Jam is back at Westside Campus for the spring and people have used the opportunity to express themselves in many different ways.

Arts Jam is an annual event that is all about arts and culture in which stu­dents and faculty alike get the opportunity to show­case their different talents and have a richer experi­ence within the college environment, Mark Love- Williamson, Religion, Humanities and Philosophy Instructor said.

The Arts Jam is one day a week for five consecu­tive weeks starting from Monday, March 24 until Thursday, April 10 and is exclusive to the Westside Campus within the Michael J. Glennon rotunda, he said.

“I always insist that my students get outside experi­ences. So the motivation was to enrich campus life and enrich the students’ experience,” Love-Williamson said.

Everyone who partici­pates is allowed to perform an array of arts that include music, poetry reading, novel read­ings, dramatic readings and art shows, he said.

Love-Williamson said that students were so involved in this event that even the pro­motion posters were designed by students who were inter­ested, he said.

The Anthropology Club also has workshops that are a part of the event and explains many different prehistoric skills from making pinch pots to rubbing sticks together for a fire, Love-Williams said.

Students and faculty are the primary performers while many faculty members brought their entire class to either per­form or to watch and support other performances, he said.

“Many faculty will bring their class, like an English class will come and the stu­dents will take turns reading. We encourage faculty to bring their classes or to suggest that their students come down and check it out,” he said.

Arts Jam is part of the student organization known as Novel Slam which is sup­ported by the college and throws the Novel Slam cel­ebration during every fall semester as well, he said.

Currently there are no plans to host similar events related to the Arts Jam or Novel Slam anywhere other than the Westside Campus in the future but the event will keep on being held every year and does play a large role in creating the campus’ identity and is highly anticipated by many in the Westside commu­nity, he said.

“It helps establish that this is unique to Westside and it helps establish a sense of community and identity here. Students and faculty who have been here a while look forward to Arts Jam and Novel Slam each year and it is our thing, but I would be willing to help other people get started someplace else,” Love-Williamson said.

Communications and Education Major, Charles Sanzone-Wood is part of a theater class that attended the Arts Jam this year and read from several different plays for the experience, and of course — extra credit, he said.

The experience has always been cherished by him and he believes that the event is important to people in the the­ater department because the performances can help build a sense of confidence among shy students, he said.

“It is always really cool but it is especially cool in theater because it is hard for some people who are not used to speaking in public to go out and read in public. You have to project and speak loudly and it kind of sounded like a bunch of people whispering, but next time they go up there, they are going to have more con­fidence,” he said.

Westside Campus and Nature

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Nick Stern, Staff Reporter | Photos by Nick Stern and Rene Thompson1.3

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The Westside campus is favored for its environment, not only among students, but among various wildlife as well, Instructional Technician, Melanie Archuleta-Hallquist said.
There are many roadrunners which, in the spring, can be seen building their nests in different spots around campus, Archuleta-Hallquist said.
R e f e r e n c e Specialist at the CNM Westside library, Amy Baker, believes that the nature environment of the campus is a big part of what attracts people to it, she said.
In the morning hummingbirds can be found all over campus while in the evening rabbits can be found everywhere and if one were to take a three minute walk to the west end of the campus, they would find themselves completely surrounded by the desert, she said.
“It is like you are really living at the cusp of the urban sprawl where nature meets city. You really feel like you are in nature. I think that this campus feeds off of that energy and I think it makes staff, faculty, professors, and students a lot calmer,” Baker said.
Besides rabbits, hummingbirds, and coyotes, there has also been an occasional snake will show up on campus, and recently a venomous snake was seen on campus and had to be dealt with by animal control, she said.
“I was told not to go to my car because there was a snake in one of the bushes and animal control was on their way because it was a venomous snake. Security would not let me go to my car,” Archuleta-Hallquist said.
A coyote once walked right up to the front door of the Michael J. Glennon building and then walked away when it became uninterested, she said.
A family of skunks used to live on campus as well and anyone could smell them when on campus, and after living on campus for about a month the skunks were captured and relocated by animal control, she said.
There is a cat that lives on campus that is known as the campus’ “feral” cat but is prob¬ably not feral at all and has been fed by people, she said.
“I have seen the cat and I have tried to feed it and it ate. I do not think it is feral. I think it belongs to somebody and it just got lost on campus and does not want to leave because there is free food. It is like an all-you-can-eat buffet of lizards and bunnies,” Archuleta-Hallquist said.
Incorporating nature into the architecture at Westside has also been accomplished very well and the new WS1 building is made with walls that are all glass to look out at the great scenery the campus has to offer, Baker said. So on one side of the building there is a vast view of the sprawling desert while on the other side there is a vast view of the Sandia Mountains, and people tend to be attracted simply by how nice it is there, Baker said.
With so many windows and such amazing views of Albuquerque, students are constantly rejuvenated and calmed by every¬thing beautiful there is to see, she said.
“I think they are really trying to make it seem like-instead of working against nature-we are really working with nature,” Baker said.
Another thing that is nice about the campus is the desert inspired fountains that can be found when walking through the campus, she said.
The fountain in the middle of the WS1 courtyard does not use too much water but just enough for some¬one to hear nothing other than the soothing sound of water trickling on the edge of rock, she said.
The shrubbery and landscaping used for the campus also consists of strictly native plants to New Mexico, which is all xeriscaped and consists of what would be found in the desert, she said.
The dedication to natural and native aspects within the campus plays a huge part of maintaining a calm learning environment for students and at the same time, attracting local wildlife of all sorts to the Westside campus, Baker said.
“I think the architecture of this building (WS1) is influencing students to just feel more calm, more Zen, more at peace and I think that is why we are seeing more wild¬life interacting. Part of the reason the hummingbirds probably still come on campus is because they are using native plants,” Baker said.

Beloved Westside icon says goodbye

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By Nick Stern, Staff Reporter | Photo By Nick Stern4

Cheryl Downs, Supervisor at the Westside campus café will be leaving her career at CNM after six years of dedicated food services provided to students. The cafe Downs supervisies has been at the westside campus for more than seven years in the Michel J. Glennon building.
After Downs’ mother beat cancer twice, she is suffering from cancer once again, and Downs has decided it is time to go back home so she can help provide support for her mother, she said.
She is leaving the state on August 15 to be with her family who will all be together for the first time in thirty years, she said.
She is happy to go home but she will miss the Westside campus and all the faculty and students, she said
“I enjoy doing what I do. I enjoy the students. I enjoy the staff. I love my job and I couldn’t ask for a better company,” Downs said.
Downs makes each customer’s food with love and she always makes sure her snackbar is stocked with all the food that everyone likes, she said.
Downs not only serves good food that is healthy, but she is always there for her customers who she considers to be friends and family, she said.
Students have cried on her shoulder, asked her for advice, asked her for hugs, and students know that they will always be treated with much love by her, she said.
If students have a test, Downs reminds them to chew gum five minutes before class and to drink some water, then she lets them know that they are going to be just fine, she said
Downs has also recruited and trained everyone that has worked at the café and made sure to teach her values to each new employee, she said
Chad Willis and McKinley Smith both work with Downs at the café and will miss her dearly, both said.
“Cheryl has built a very interesting relationship with students and employees. She treats customers she does not even know like they’ve known each other forever and they soon become friends,” Smith said.
Willis and Smith both agree that working with Downs has been a great experience, and that the way things were with her in charge, will never be the same once she is gone.
“Everyone will know she is gone either through the food they are tasting, the day they are having, or walking inside and not seeing her,” Willis said.
Willis is positive that wherever she ends up going, the people she meets will be lucky to have her in their lives, he said.
Education major, Sonnita Baird, is one of the many students who feel that Downs’s departure is a sad one as she will be missed greatly by everyone, she said.
When Baird began going to CNM she met Downs and they became close friends quickly, she said.
Baird said that she cannot see the Westside campus the same without her and had nothing but nice things to say about Downs.
“She is incredible. She is loving, giving, and everything beautiful about the Westside campus. No one says, ‘let’s go eat at the café.’ They say, ‘let’s go see what Cheryl’s got today’, she is just that iconic,” Baird said.
Baird believes wholeheartedly that the campus will not be the same without Down’s presence, she said.