DAILY LOBO
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monday
April 18, 2011
The Independent Voice of UNM since 1895
Faculty: Penalize absent teachers
MAXIMUM EFFORT, MINIMAL ART
by Luke Holmen holmen@unm.edu
Junfu Han/ Daily Lobo Art Studio student Hernan Gomez works on his minimalist sculpture project for Sculpture I class in 3D lab at the Art Building on Sunday. Minimalist sculptures are created with a minimal amount of value, color, shape, context or reference.
Report: UNM vital to local economy by Alexandra Swanberg aswanny@unm.edu
A Business and Economic Development report provides hard data that proves UNM’s significance to the state economy. The Office of the President and the Office of Research’s most recent economic impact report indicates the University brought in $1.1 billion in out-of-state revenue to New Mexico in the 2010 fiscal year. Julia Fulghum, vice president of the Office of Research, said it’s crucial for the University to explain its contributions to the state economy in this difficult economic climate. “I think in this critical budget time it is part of our job to continually make the case as to why the flagship university is important and why supporting us is important,” she said.
Overall, UNM campuses spent 70 percent of out-of-state funds in ways that directly and indirectly impact the local economy, said Doleswar Bhandari, a business research scientist who drafted the report. “There is direct spending on employee compensation, purchases and construction,” he said. “Because of that, employees buy stuff from the market and pay their rent. The vendors also have to purchase from other suppliers, and it introduces a kind of ripple effect into the economy.” The 2010 report also found that UNM provided more than 25,000 jobs, or 2.3 percent of the state’s salary employment. This includes all branch campuses, the UNM Health Sciences Center, UNMH and anyone else on the UNM payroll. Bhandari said UNM jobs are funded through local and out-of-state
funds, such as grants. He said it’s hard to determine how much impact UNM jobs have on the economy because out-of-state funds have the greatest effect on UNM’s yearly economic influence. “If there is no UNM, that (local) money might be spent somewhere else in creating jobs and other economic opportunities,” he said. That’s why we don’t consider the local dollars. The New Mexico economy is facing a challenging situation, and the University provides stable jobs. Those are not fluctuating over time.” Lee Reynis, director of the Bureau of Business and Economic Research, said UNM’s economic impact is less recognizable than its educational and research contributions. “What is not always appreciated is how UNM is able to leverage this state
appropriation and other state and local revenues to bring millions of dollars into this state that support additional economic activity,” she said. The report is missing information that could change the analysis of UNM’s impact, such as out-of-state students who live off campus and UNM contractors not included on the payroll, Bhandari said. He said the data for one year does not portray the University’s impact in the long run. “This impact is just a snapshot for fiscal year 2010, and there is a bigger, dynamic long-term impact that the analysis cannot capture, because it is more complicated,” he said.
To read the fiscal year 2010 economic impact report, visit bber.unm.edu
The Faculty Senate passed a resolution last week to create a harsher disciplinary system for faculty who violate University policy. Faculty Senate President Richard Wood announced the measure at the Board of Regents Audit Committee meeting Thursday. The University has no system in place to punish minor faculty offenses, Wood said, and the measure would increase accountability for faculty who commit minor breaches of policy. “Rules for strong disciplinary violations exist, but a good policy for addressing less severe offenses does not,” he said. The measure will go before the board for approval in May. Wood said the policy would set disciplinary standards for teachers who consistently miss class or abuse University funds. Wood said the policy includes possible pay reductions for teachers who violate University policy. He said a committee would examine each infraction individually. “It’s a progressive discipline system, meaning initial measures are smaller but would increase with severity,” he said. Student Amanda Garcia said the disciplinary system doesn’t address broader issues among UNM faculty. She said the overall quality of instruction at UNM is poor, especially in lower-level classes. “My classes this semester are so much better than the 100 and 200 levels I was taking last year,” she said. “It’s not that the professors or TA’s did anything wrong; they just weren’t good at teaching.” Garcia said the disciplinary system doesn’t matter to her if it won’t translate into better instruction. “The students just want to be taught,” she said. “They want some way of getting rid of bad teachers, and I feel like those evaluation forms we get at the end of the year don’t do anything.”
Police call for info in unsolved UNM murder by Kevin Forte kforte@unm.edu
The UNM Police Department is reaching out to the community for leads in the only unsolved murder in campus history. Lisa Wortman’s body was found in a manhole June 1994 near The Pit. No solid leads have surfaced since 2006, according to UNMPD. This homicide was termed “Case of the Week” last week and the department hopes renewed interest will
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help solve the 17-year-old case. A Daily Lobo report from June 9, 1994, said a man walking his dog found Wortman’s body at the bottom of a manhole. He said the dog was sniffing the area, and that when he approached it he noticed dried blood and bones around the manhole. He moved the manhole cover and discovered human hands at the bottom of it. The body was cut into 13 pieces. The Daily Lobo reported in 2002 that at the time of her death, Lisa
“It’s almost a personal crime. It’s not typical.” ~Robert Haarhues UNMPD Spokesman Wortman was no longer attending UNM, was addicted to drugs and had been arrested in the past for prostitution. The Office of the Medical Investigator discovered
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traces of cocaine in her heart tissue, according to the report. UNMPD spokesman Robert Haarhues could not be reached for comment, but told KRQE news he thinks the victim knew her killer. “It’s almost a personal crime,” he told KRQE. “It’s not typical. If someone randomly kills someone they could have just dumped her anywhere. Because she was dismembered, they make it seem like they didn’t want her to be found. There is usually a connection there.”
Investigators hope technological advancements and community help will lead to an arrest.
If you have any information about Lisa Wortman’s case, you could be eligible for a $1,000 reward. Call Crime Stoppers at 843-STOP.
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