DAILY LOBO new mexico
The Independent Student Voice of UNM since 1895
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Lottery makes a big difference
thursday Februar y 27, 2014
TAKING ANOTHER STEP
Student who get funds graduate at a higher rate by Ardee Napolitano news@dailylobo.com @ArdeeTheJourno
The Legislative Lottery Scholarship is effective at getting students through college, a new study has found. According to a UNM study conducted by the Office of Enrollment Management, 62 percent of New Mexico high school graduates who receive the scholarship graduate in six years, compared to 10 percent of those who graduate in the same time period who have not received the scholarship. The study also found that 56 percent of students who are eligible for Pell Grants and receive the scholarship graduate in six years. On the other hand, 11 percent of Pell-eligible students who do not receive the scholarship graduate in the same time period. “The study illustrates that students with financial needs and who receive the lottery scholarship graduate at much higher numbers than those who do not receive it,” said UNM Provost Chaouki Abdallah. “The results validate other studies showing that many of our students do not succeed due to financial reasons.” The study was conducted among 2,000 freshmen who started at UNM in the 2007-2008 academic year, according to a press release on UNM Today. Abdallah said the office completed the study about a month ago. He said the University chose to use the 2007 freshmen cohort as a foundation for the University 2013 graduation rates. The lottery helps students academically because it relieves students of crippling financial stress, Abdallah said. “The simplest answer is that it probably allows them to focus on their studies rather than having to get a job, or more than one,” he said. UNM freshman Iris Risvik, who studies psychology, said she agrees with the provost. Risvik, who receives the scholarship, said that despite financial hardships, she is able to attend UNM without having to get a job. ”Without it I wouldn’t really be able to go here,” she said. “It helps me in my studies because it helps me focus more on my classes and less on how I’m going to pay for school. I have more time to study instead of working.” Risvik said although she would have taken a different
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approach to the scholarship’s solvency issue, she is ultimately glad that the scholarship will not cease to exist at the end of this fiscal year. “I would have liked it better if they raised the GPA,” she said. “I’ll still have it for that time, at least. It would be nice to keep having (the scholarship) for other people.” Last week, state legislators passed Senate Bill 347, which raised the credit-hour requirement of the lottery from 12 to 15 credit hours while maintaining the GPA requirement at 2.5. The bill will shore up the scholarship with money from the state general fund this fiscal year, and will use funds from the state liquor excise tax in subsequent years. Abdallah said the change in the scholarship requirements will help students graduate even faster. “Our own efforts to make the minimum required hours for graduation equal to 120, in conjunction with 15 hours per semester and the lottery scholarship, complement each other to allow students to graduate in four years,” he said. “There are of course some students who are not able to do so for a variety of reasons, but I believe that under the solvency limitation of the lottery scholarship, going to 15 credits is a wise strategy.” Abdallah said the University will continue to advocate for the scholarship in the state Legislature in the following years. But he said that as demand for higher education in New Mexico increases, there will be higher demand for the scholarship in the future. This is why preserving the scholarship is important, he said. “One only needs to look at the college enrollment prior to having the lottery with what happened since to see that the lottery has opened opportunities for college access to many more students,” he said. “The challenge to the educational institutions is to make sure that students succeed in graduating from college.” Abdallah said he is optimistic that the Legislature will find a long-term solution in the coming years. “The lottery scholarship has been one of the most successful legislations in state history,” he said. “I am confident that a combination of new funds, limited awards amounts, as well as different eligibility criteria, will eventually be agreed upon for a long-term solution.”
William Aranda / Daily Lobo Lydia Johnson Gallegos dances to “Todo es de Color” during a rehearsal for the Vertical Road: Faculty Dance Concert at Rodey Theatre on Wednesday night. See full story on Page 8.
Road games still too tough Fouls, missed shots continue to stymie women’s basketball team
by Thomas Romero-Salas sports@dailylobo.com @ThomasRomeroS
New Mexico women’s basketball head coach Yvonne Sanchez has talked about how ill-timed fouls have plagued the Lobos this season. UNM’s last foul at Utah State on Wednesday exemplified that problem. After Lobo guard Brea Mitchell missed a potential game-winning
3-pointer, USU rebounded the ball with 12 seconds remaining. Six seconds later, USU guard Jennifer Schlott was fouled by point guard Bryce Owens. Schlott made both of her ensuing free throws to give the Aggies a 67-65 victory over the Lobos. Guard Antiesha Brown paced UNM (9-17, 4-11 Mountain West) with 18 points along with nine rebounds and five assists. Forward Deeva Vaughn was the only other Lobo in double figures, re-
cording 17 points. Schlott led all scorers with 33 points, while guard Makenlee Williams had 21 points. UNM closed out the first half on a 16-8 run for a 36-28 lead at halftime. The Lobos have only won one road game this conference season, a 76-73 win over San Jose State on Feb. 1. USU (11-15, 5-10 MW) shot almost 10 percent better than UNM did from the field (45.3 percent versus 35.8 percent).
Law group to be audited by Ardee Napolitano news@dailylobo.com @ArdeeTheJourno
After months of investigation, UNM’s Internal Audit Department has decided that a Law School group’s case regarding public money misspending deserves a criminal investigation. Earlier this week, the department finished preliminary investigation and has forwarded the Student Bar Association’s case to the UNM Police Department and to the Office of the New Mexico State Auditor. But Evan Blackstone, chief of staff of the state auditor, said his office has not received the final report of the internal audit investigation. He said he expects to access the final report by the end of this week or early next week. “They notified us this week that the report is forthcoming, that they have referred the information to the UNM Police Department,” he said. “They will
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forward us the internal audit report, as well as keep us updated regarding the results of the criminal investigation.” Blackstone said UNM officially notified the state auditor’s office in October. “There is some irregular and suspicious activity related to this particular student account that UNM believed warranted an investigation,” he said. Internal Audit’s investigation of the SBA arose after UNM Law School student Christopher Dodd filed a public records request asking for “any document indicating the approximate total dollar amount believed to have gone missing from the UNM School of Law Student Bar Association’s bank accounts” and obtained a list of bank statements on Oct. 26. The bank account was created by the SBA at New Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union, according to an earlier report by the Daily Lobo. The account was
closed last year. The statements, which showed the account’s transactions from April 2012, included expenditures at various stores, such as a $200.83 expenditure at Tiffany’s in San Francisco, a $146.74 expenditure at a Hyatt Hotel and repeated expenditures at Zen Nail Spa totalling $118. The statements also showed repeated transactions in bars, such as a $66.89 total bill at Zinc Wine Bar, and in coffee shops, such as a $51.01 bill at a Satellite. Utility and insurance transactions, including repeated expenditures at Qwest totaling $250.83 and a $202.70 expenditure at Geico, were also present. Cash withdrawals, the single largest of which was $303.21, were also listed in the statements. Blackstone said the SBA might face “criminal prosecution for inappropriate use of public funds” depending on the results of the criminal investigation.
see Investigation PAGE 5
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