Letters to the Editor: On NMSU's victim advocacy work
These letters to the editor were published in the Feb. 26, 2023 edition of the Las Cruces Sun-News.
On NMSU's victim advocacy work
College campuses across the country are taking steps to support victims of violence by the best means necessary.
For victims and survivors of sexual violence, dating and relationship violence, and stalking, this means having confidential victim advocates on-campus for students, faculty, and staff. A 2019 study surveyed 820 colleges and universities and found 55% of campuses had on-campus advocates, and that number has only grown. Advocates provide an essential support service to victims after they have been attacked.
Currently the only confidential support that NMSU has available on campus is the Aggie Health and Wellness Center through crisis-counseling, which is a critical service. However, counselors are not all experts with the nuances of Title IX and New Mexico law, and they are not always familiar with the community resources that these victims of violence need.
This is to be expected, as this is not their specialty. It IS an advocate’s specialty. Confidential advocates are the first person that victims and survivors connect with, the first person they speak to in an official capacity on campus. Advocates tend to the holistic needs of victims and survivors, and explain in-detail all available options and next-steps.
It is fully in the victim or survivor’s hands to make the choices that are best for them. That may include reporting to Title IX, the campus police, city police, getting a rape kit done at a hospital, seeking residential support, or none of the above. Title IX and the police are not confidential and meet specific needs outside of support services. UNM meets victim and survivor needs through the LoboRespect Advocacy Center, and NMSU should do the same.
Jessica Schulz
Las Cruces, N.M.
On air quality in Las Cruces
The Weather page of the Sun-News includes a daily Air Quality Forecast derived from data from the EPA and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. I am puzzled why on many days it shows "today's air quality" in Las Cruces will be "moderate" while that of El Paso, Albuquerque, Midland and even Farmington will be "good."
How can that be with a much larger El Paso sitting right across the border from Juarez and Farmington being in the middle of one of the largest oil and gas production regions (the San Juan Basin) in the nation.
Is it the methane and ozone pollution from the hundreds of oil and gas wells in New Mexico? Is it wind-propelled dust or smoke from wildfires and burning of pecan tree debris?
The EPA and New Mexico Conservation Division need to figure it out for all of our sakes. The quality of our environment and health is at stake.
Rob McCorkle
Las Cruces, N.M.
On CRT and the Las Cruces School Board
Las Cruces parents and concerned citizens were taken aback by the front-page article in the Las Cruces Sun-News, January 25, 2023 entitled “Movers & Shakers: Dulcinea Lara leads the way through new Ethnic Studies program at NMSU”
The key quote from the article is this: “Lara said the concepts behind CRT can be scaled down to apply to K-12 students, and she’s been working with school districts across New Mexico to do just that.” “You can teach Critical Race Theory concepts to kindergarteners,” Lara said. But there’s a huge problem with Dr. Lara’s comments. They forgot to get the “note” to Dr. Lara to keep up the “no mention of CRT” in K-12. What this means is that Las Cruces parents have been purposely deceived by the LCPS School Board, the NM PED and NMSU for 2 years now, since 2021.
Go back to the Spring of 2021, when Las Cruces parents vociferously opposed Policy JBC, Equity. In the end it passed, and all the while the LCPS Board repeatedly assured us that no “CRT” was contained within the Policy, which passed in May 2021.
But the LCPS School Board weren’t the only ones twisting themselves into pretzels obfuscating around the term “CRT”, please consider the following regarding the newly adopted NM K-12 social studies standards. Ethnic studies are a key component of the new standards.
The NM Public Education department, in a Mar 4, 2022, AP article by Cedar Attanasio, deceived the parents, key quote: “The response to those criticisms stated that: 'Critical race theory is suited for graduate school-level discussions, and is not contained in the standards.'”
Similarly, former NM PED Secretary Kurt Steinhaus. From a Feb 02, 2022 Albuquerque Journal online article, key quote: “In a committee hearing before the confirmation vote, Steinhaus, responding to questions, said critical race theory isn’t part of New Mexico’s social studies standards and won’t be incorporated into them in the future.”
Similarly, former NM PED Deputy Secretary Dr. Gwen Warniment. From a LCPS School Board meeting presentation on Oct 19, 2021, key quote: "CRT should not be in the space of K-12 education, purposely it is not in the SS standards... “
And this just in, more recent chaos: from KOB online, Feb 03, 2023, SANTA FE, N.M. — New Mexico Public Education Department Deputy Cabinet Secretary Jacquelyn Archuleta-Staehlin has resigned after just eight days. Former PED Secretary Kurt Steinhaus retired last week. He served a little over a year and was the third appointee since 2019.
The CCIA Education has lost trust with the LCPS School Board, the NM PED, and NMSU by its constant deception regarding CRT. The newly adopted NM Social Studies standards, Ethnic Studies and the Culturally Responsive pedagogy of the NM PED are not credible.
Rick Reynaud
Education Committee, Coalition of Citizens in Action (CCIA)
This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: Letters to the Editor: On NMSU's victim advocacy work
