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Monday, Februar y 18, 2019 | Vo l u m e 1 2 3 | I s s u e 4 5
NM Senate confirms regent nominees By Danielle Prokop @ProkopDani The New Mexico Senate unanimously confirmed all five nominees Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham recommended to head the University of New Mexico Board of Regents on Friday. Sandra Begay, Douglas “Doug” Brown, Kimberly Sanchez Rael, and Robert Schwartz were confirmed as full regents, while Melissa Henry was confirmed as the student regent. Their terms start immediately. Five of the seven seats of the board were open due to the state Senate not holding confirmation hearings on any of Martinez’s regent picks since 2017. The terms for Regents Thomas Clifford, Suzanne Quillen, Bradley Hosmer, Michael Brasher and student regent Garrett Adcock had ended previously or just completed. Begay served as a UNM regent in 2005 and serves on the board of directors at the Science and Technology Corporation for UNM (STC UNM). Another former regent, Brown, was dean of UNM Anderson School of Management from 2010 to 2014. Both will be serving four-year terms that conclude in December of 2022. As student regent, Henry will serve a two-year term ending in December 2020 while she pursues
her doctorate in counselor education and supervision at UNM. Sanchez Rael and Schwartz were confirmed for six-year terms. Sanchez Rael worked on the New Mexico Board of Finance, which according to its website has “broad statutory responsibilities for general supervision of the fiscal affairs of the State, in addition to other regulatory and oversight functions.” Schwartz is a veteran law professor with a focus in Health Law and has a combined 40 years of teaching under his belt. He currently holds the Henry Weihofen Professor of Law Emeritus title at UNM where he has taught since 1976. Lujan Grisham instated advisory committees to facilitate interviews and vet candidates for regent positions across the state in late December 2018. Albuquerque attorney and former UNM regent, Roberta Ramo, led the search on UNM applicants. The advisory committees were described as a “first of its kind process.” While the process for selecting regents was unorthodox, Senators on the Senate Rules Committee remarked many times that they were “impressed by the candidates.” All of the candidates were introduced before the committee by a Senator on the Senate Rules Committee and faced questioning as a group. Sen. Mark Moores (R-Albuquerque) asked the nominees
The newly confirmed University of New Mexico Regents.
to list any conflicts of interest they may hold or “any potential conflicts” for the public record. Begay said she is a member of the Presbyterian Health Board. Presbyterian hospital is a competitor with the University of New Mexico Hospital. She said she served at (STC UNM) which had taught her to manage conflicts of interest between UNM and Sandia National Laboratories, where she also worked.
MENS BASKETBALL
Inconsistent play leads to loss
By Danielle Prokop/ @ProkopDani/ Daily Lobo
No other regents reported conflicts of interest except for Henry, who mentioned that she is employed by the University and will have to recuse herself from approval of matters related to salaries. Other lines of questioning from the committee centered on two issues: fiscal management and transparency. In 2018, both the University of New Mexico and the Board
of Regents received letters from the New Mexico Office of the Attorney General regarding their lack of transparency in releasing documents and making meetings public. Henry said she believes it’s due to a disconnect between the regents and the community that causes transparency lapses. “It’s really unfortunate we’re
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Bill would make UNM Foundation subject to IPRA
By Robert Maler
By Kyle Land
@Robert_Maler The University of New Mexico men's basketball team looked pretty good in California for at least one half when it faced Fresno State a couple of weeks ago, but saw the game slip away thanks to some lengthy scoring droughts and spotty play. New Mexico (11-14, 5-8 MW) probably liked its chances if it could be more consistent this time around. The Lobos did, and held a led deep in the second half, but saw the same outcome duplicated when it fell to the Bulldogs 81-73 on Saturday night at Dreamstyle Arena aka The Pit. The Lobos scored first in the game after junior transfer Corey Manigault got a layup to fall, but UNM fell behind early as both teams struggled to find its shot in the opening stages. New Mexico started just 2-of-11 from the field and trailed 10-4 a little over five minutes into the contest. Fresno State was transparent in its desire to be one-dimensional on offense, firing off 3-pointers at an unprecedented rate. The Bulldogs shot more attempts from beyond the arc in the first half, 21, than it had in some games this season.
@kyleoftheland
By Cameron Goeldner /@goeldfinger /Daily Lobo
Keith McGee dunks over Lazaro Rojas of Fresno State during the first half of Saturday’s game at Dreamstyle Arena aka The Pit. The Lobos fell to the Bulldogs 81-73. Feb. 16, 2019.
The steady diet of triples worked for much of the opening 20 minutes as the Bulldogs seized an eight point lead, 30-22, after New Williams buried Fresno State's sixth long-range shot of the half. But New Mexico surged ahead on the scoreboard after rattling off the final seven points of the half to seize a 38-35 halftime advantage. Deshon Taylor led the Bulldogs with 16 first-half points, but Vance Jackson erupted for a game-high 20 points in the opening frame — hitting three 3-pointers and going a perfect 7-of-7 from the foul line.
Braxton Huggins and Nate Grimes, a pair of Fresno State player who gave the Lobos fits in the first meeting, were held in check to that point — Grimes had two points, while Huggins was held scoreless, while being saddled with three personal fouls. New Mexico forced a quick timeout just 53 seconds into the second half after Manigault recorded a layup and senior guard Anthony Mathis nailed a 3-pointer to give UNM a 42-35 cushion.
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The UNM Foundation has long been critiqued for its opaqueness. Now, a bill making its way through the New Mexico Legislature is looking to change that. House Bill 29 would allow “organizations providing funds or property to governmental entities” to be accessed through the Information of Public Records Act (IPRA), a transparency law that makes all public records in the state of New Mexico to be accessible upon request. According to its website, the UNM Foundation acts independently from the University, but has its operation budget provided by UNM. Since the Foundation is a 501 c(3) non-profit organization, the public cannot request any of its documents or records. If passed, HB 29 would make the Foundation and other organizations like it open to the public. The bill’s only sponsor is Rep. Abbas Akhil (D-Albuquerque), but it has also received the support from Attorney General Hector Balderas and from the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government. In 2017, the UNM Foundation
Courtesy Photo
Photo courtesy of Office of the Attorney General.
was sued by journalist and blogger Daniel Libit, who runs the blog New Mexico Fishbowl, in order to challenge the Foundation’s assertion that they are exempt from IPRA laws. More recently, the Foundation was involved in the New Mexico Attorney General’s (NMAG) investigation into former-UNM Athletics Director Paul Krebs. The NMAG’s report stated that Krebs wrote an anonymous $25,000 check
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HB29
On the Daily Lobo website Land: UNM faculty declares desire to unionize
Goeldner: Paul Krebs charged by Attorney General
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