President's Message

Each year, our freshmen showcase their ideas, knowledge and talents during the annual Research Quest Day. It is their opportunity to display their work through posters, oral presentations or creative performances. The 4th annual event is tomorrow Nov. 3 starting at 9 a.m. in several locations in the Student Union Building. We encourage you to come to campus to see students' work and thanks to the faculty and staff who have mentored their research.

On Wednesday, Nov. 4, UNM Career Services teams up with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management and the NM Consortium of Career Educators and Employers to host a Public Service Career Showcase. UNM is one of only five campuses in the country that OPM has given funding for federal career days for 2009. So this is a great opportunity to see what's out there when it comes to jobs in this sector. Come by the SUB ballrooms between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.

The Student Veterans of UNM are raising money for a newly-established scholarship fund. Once again, they host the "mile of coins" on Smith Plaza on Veterans' Day Nov. 11. They're asking students and UNM organizations to begin collecting coins that can be placed side-by-side.

November is also American Indian Heritage Month and the opportunity for all of us to learn more about the significant contributions the first Americans made to the establishment and growth of the United States. The campus observance kicks off Tuesday, Nov. 3, at 10 a.m. in the SUB Atrium, but there will be a variety of educational, social, cultural and artistic programs to attend throughout the month. The calendar of events, all of them free and open to the public, can be found at: http://www4.unm.edu/aiss/November/calender.html.
I look forward to meeting with the faculty this week as we continue our conversation about shared governance and improving communication across campus. We'll also be talking to the faculty about the current budget situation and how this most recent recession will affect our university.

During the recent special session, the NM Legislature approved cuts of 4% for higher education instructional and general (I&G) budget for the current fiscal year, coupled with a 6.5% decrease in funding for special projects. To somewhat offset the pain, lawmakers returned the equivalent of 2% of I&G cuts in one-time stimulus funding. The Governor has ten days to consider this solvency plan, but now is the time for us to finalize scenarios for consideration by the Regents. Provost Ortega and the deans have been planning for the inevitable for several weeks. Our goal is to preserve as much as possible services that impact students.

On a positive note, UNM's sustainability efforts will soon get a boost. Earlier this month, Governor Richardson announced that more than $24 million in stimulus funds will go to schools, colleges, tribes and agencies to improve energy efficiency. UNM will be getting $358,000 of that amount for energy efficient lighting and for solar system upgrades.

The Parent Association honored its first scholarship recipients at its general membership meeting during Family Weekend. The recipients are: Joy Marquez, Pharmacy, Sasha Pellerin, Political Science, and Mariela Leyba, Dental Hygiene.

The UNM College Enrichment Program is celebrating 40 years of support to UNM and its students. The milestone was observed with a reception and a recent luncheon keynoted by Public Education Secretary Veronica Garcia.

Our 2009 United Way campaign has kicked off with the theme "UNM Lives United." Our goal of $1 million is the same as last year, but what we seek is more participation from our campus community. Donors can designate dollars for UNM programs.