DAILY LOBO new mexico
December 1, 2011
Lakewood see Page 11
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DORM DETAILS WORRY STAFF
FANTASTIC CRAFTS
Campus housing contract contains unanticipated changes by Charlie Shipley
charlieshipley84@gmail.com American Campus Communities said the integration of ACC-run dorms and programs at UNM would be seamless, but one UNM housing official said the term “seamless transition” was used only to keep up appearances. “The University is working with ACC to most effectively make it appear seamless for students, and really that’s all, an appearance,” Interim Director of Student Housing Brian Ward said. “We’re trying to educate them about the different processes which would take place if you either wanted to live on campus or in ACC, or if you wanted to work in ACC or on campus, because they are very separate.” In a November 2010 meeting with ACC representatives, UNM Residence Life representatives expressed concerns about who would manage ACC’s buildings and whether UNM Res Life employees would be out of their jobs as a result of the transition. Residence Hall Association representative Amir Chapel said at that meeting that he was worried that ACC’s management team would take over the RHA. “There’s this scenario where ACC comes onto the campus and initially manages a building or a few buildings and then, over time, they take over the whole housing community,” he said. “Now ACC has their foothold here, and there is a possibility that they could spread and just take over all of Residence Life, as we know it today.” Associate Director of Student Housing Ruth Stoddard said that when ACC’s latest project, Casas Del Rio, opens on main campus in August 2012, it will, along with Lobo Village, be managed by ACC. UNM will manage Hokona, Laguna/Devargas, Santa Clara, Alvarado, Coronado, Redondo Village Apartments and the SRC apartments, as well as the student
family housing on Buena Vista Road. The ACC has tentative plans to demolish Coronado, Alvarado and Onate Halls, as well as La Posada dining hall, and build communities that will house up to 2,100 beds. Walt Miller, associate vice president for Student Life, said at that meeting that the University had no intention of eradicating RHA, but hadn’t figured out what the management structure for ACC dorms would be. Ward said the terms of the ACC contract weren’t explained very well originally, and it was believed that the transition would be seamless, with one contract and shared assignment functions. “They can’t do that because that would imply it’s University housing. The minute someone says that, it would change how crediting agencies would look at the University, and the University can’t afford that,” he said. Ward also voiced concerns about the amount of control ACC has. “They have things in their contract that … let’s say we had a lot of demand and I wanted to build a new building. I can’t do it without ACC approving it,” he said. “We can’t build competitive housing that hurts their product.” Stoddard said Res Life is one of the biggest on-campus employers of students. Financial consequences, Ward said, would include hiring fewer RAs, fewer custodians, fewer maintenance workers and office staff. “Unless more people just decide to live on campus, for every building that they (ACC) build, we’re competing for the same students. We’re in big trouble,” he said. “If we have 200 empty beds, that’s a million dollars.” Stoddard also said staff reductions are a possibility, and that the division was looking at how they could cut costs without sacrificing services. She
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LUNCH WITH THE FORMER MAYOR
Jessikha Williams / Daily Lobo Artist Lewis C. Wilson sits behind his display of glass sculptures at the 48th Annual ASUNM Arts and Crafts Fair on Wednesday in the SUB ballroom. Lewis has been making glass sculptures for more than 37 years and has been involved in the Crafts Fair 28 times. See Page 7 for full story.
‘We just ask for the same respect’ by Luke Holmen holmen@unm.edu
Dylan Smith / Daily Lobo Former Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chávez discusses environmental law on Wednesday with UNM alumnus Kristina Caffrey while having lunch with students in the SUB. A new student organization, Students for Marty Chávez for Congress, invited Chávez to campus.
Inside the
Daily Lobo volume 116
issue 70
Black Student Union President D’Andre Q. Curtis said the recent Title VI discrimination complaint filed against UNM reflects a reality at UNM: African Americans aren’t treated equally. “I feel discrimination has been an issue for a while (for students),” he said. “I know I’ve had my fair share of ordeals. When you speak out, you feel like your issues are thrown under the rug because professors aren’t as culturally sensitive to what you are going through. Being the minority in college is tough.” Curtis said discrimination at UNM isn’t always intentional, but misunderstandings of minority culture create an environment that negatively affects student learning. “African-American students are not only misunderstood, they are treated differently,” he said. “Caucasian students are generally more privileged, and that is not
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necessarily a bad thing, but what we want is fair treatment … a level playing field.” Curtis said he doesn’t want to be seen as complaining or demanding special treatment. “I don’t want it to be all about African-American culture, because then we are complainers,” he said. “We are not asking for special treatment, we are just asking for the rights we deserve and the things our ancestors have fought for. We aren’t asking for anything for free, we just ask for the same respect.” UNM released an African-American/Black Climate Review Report and an Equity Report in April calling for recruitment, promotion, and retention of AfricanAmericans, but Curtis said the documents have no real commitment behind them. “I want to see something concrete, not just a climate report where nothing gets done,” he said. “I want something with numbers and faculty and a timeline.”
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