New Mexico AMP Transfer Scholarship

What is the New Mexico Alliance for Minority Participation (New Mexico AMP)?

New Mexico AMP is a partnership representing the state’s public two-year postsecondary institutions, including federally funded tribal colleges, and the state-supported four-year universities. New Mexico AMP's goal is to increase the number of underrepresented minorities receiving B.S. degrees in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).

What is the Transfer Scholarship?

The New Mexico AMP Transfer Scholarship was developed to recognize the achievements of New Mexico AMP students transferring from a New Mexico community college to a New Mexico university to pursue a degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM). The scholarship provides transfer students with financial support during their first semester at the university.

What does the award package include?

Transfer Scholarships provide $1,000 for the semester immediately following transfer.

What are the requirements to receive a Transfer Scholarship?

§ You must demonstrate progress toward and intent to complete a B.S. degree in a STEM discipline with a declared major at the time of application. Community college transcripts will be evaluated to help assess academic progress and intent (e.g., clear evidence of success in math, science, English and pre-engineering courses). Letters of recommendation from community college instructors and/or New Mexico AMP Institutional Coordinators are also required.

§ You will be asked to sign a New Mexico AMP Student Agreement and Disclosure stating your commitment to major in a National Science Foundation-identified STEM discipline.

§ Before receiving your awards, you must provide proof of registration at the university indicating full-time enrollment in a STEM discipline.

Who is eligible?

Preference for the Transfer Scholarship will be given to minority transfer students from New Mexico AMP partner institutions that transfer as second-semester sophomores and above. Applicants must have a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or greater at the time of transfer and maintain fulltime status. Emphasis is placed on ethnic groups that historically have been underrepresented in STEM disciplines: African Americans/Black, American Indians/Alaskan Natives, Hispanic/Latinos and Native Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders. Recipients must be U.S. citizens or possess status as a national, refugee alien, or permanent resident alien in accordance with Section III C of Program Solicitation NSF 03-501.

How do I apply?

Complete the Application and Questionnaire. Please include a copy of your current unofficial transcript including your last semester at the community college and at least two letters from the New Mexico AMP institutional Coordinator and/or appropriate STEM faculty at your college. Be sure to indicate which institutions you are transferring to and from.

There are a limited number of Transfer Scholarships available. Priority will be given to qualified applicants who submit their applications by April 16th (fall semester transfers) and November 16^th (spring semester transfers) of each year. After the priority dates, applications will be considered as they are received. Awards will be made until the available number of scholarships has been exhausted.

When will the Transfer Scholarship be awarded, and when will I receive the scholarship funding?

If selected, you will receive an award letter stating that you are awarded, contingent on verification of full-time status and eligible GPA. This verification will occur after the last day of Drop/Add, in mid-semester. If you meet all academic requirements during your first semester after transfer, you will be notified that your scholarship will be released.

Where should I send my completed application?

Completed application packets should be sent to:

Transfer Scholarship Selection Committee

New Mexico Alliance for Minority Participation

MSC 3AMP

New Mexico State University

P.O. Box 30001

Las Cruces, New Mexico 88003-8001

If you have any questions, please call/email Josie Lannert, Student Programs Coordinator, at the New Mexico AMP office at (575) 646-3211/jlannert@nmsu.edu, or contact the administrative office at (575) 646-1847, Fax: (575) 646-2960.

Priority will be given to those applications for fall 2010 transfer that are submitted by April 16, 2010. Awards will be announced beginning April 26, 2010; however, all awardees are required to meet with the New Mexico AMP Institutional Coordinator at their respective university prior to receiving their scholarship funds.

200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training Program

University of New Mexico–Taos 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training Program: Yoga aspirants can now study the ancient tradition in the heart of the Southwest.

Taos, New Mexico—June 1, 2010— The University of New Mexico–Taos branch is now offering a comprehensive 200 hour level yoga teacher training certification in asana, pranayama, anatomy, mantra, chanting, Ayurveda, Yoga sutras, and complimentary holistic health disciplines.

On October 5, 2009, UNM-Taos became a Yoga Alliance-approved Yoga Training

School, offering its first 200+ hour Yoga teacher training program for yoga aspirants who wish to teach or deepen their studies and knowledge.

The courses are offered through the Holistic and Healing Arts Program at UNM-Taos and presented in weekend intensives and 8 & 16 week course formats, which can be taken at the student’s desired pace over the course of one to two years, with sufficient time for reflection and integration.

Because the Yoga teacher program is being taught through an institution of higher learning, UNM-Taos can offer the training in a flexible, low cost, yet high contact hours format to both in-state and out-of-state students. Total Contact Hours for the program equal 210 hours, and the entire program costs less than $1100. Financial aid is available through UNM-Taos.

UNM-Taos is located in northern New Mexico, an area known for its high desert beauty and sacred traditions. Taos is home to the Sangre de Christo Mountains, Rio Grande Gorge, and the Taos Pueblo, the only living Native American community designated both a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and a National Historic Landmark.

For yoga program details visit: http://taos.unm.edu/academies/YogaTeacherTrainingProgram.html

The faculty includes:

Monique Parker, MFA, ERYT-200 is the Yoga Program Coordinator at UNM-Taos, where she also teaches English Composition and Creative Writing. She has been studying yoga for fifteen years and teaching since 2001. A personal student of A.G. and Indra Mohan of Chennai, India, long-time private students of Sri T. Krishnamacharya, Monique’s aims to transmit the teachings of yoga in a way that honors the individual needs of the aspirant, while adhering to yoga's ancient and authentic principles. www.classicyogaofindia.com

Kirstie Segarra, MA, LMT, has been practicing yoga for fifteen years. She directs and teaches in the Integrative Massage Therapy Program at UNM-Taos. Her yoga studies started with her Balinese Traditional Massage trainings in Bali, Indonesia.

UNM-Taos Yoga Teacher Training

June 1, 2010

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Her teaching incorporates her knowledge of structural bodywork, specifically Myofascial meridians with modified ashtanga vinyasa. She also utilizes energy work, Tantra, traditional Chinese medicine and Buddhists traditions. www.balinesetraditionalmassage.com

Michele Marien, R.N., B.S., E-RYT began studying with Satanada in 1989 and completed her yoga teacher training in 1994. Michele has been teaching Hatha Yoga classes at Taos Spa and Tennis Club for the last seventeen years. She has trained with "Yoga of the Heart,” Children’s Yoga, Restorative Yoga, Rama Joyti Vernon, Richard Freeman and Nischala Joy Devi. She serves the Taos community as an RN at Holy Cross Hospital utilizing both her allopathic and holistic knowledge in direct patient care.

Patrick Shaw is a graduate of the Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, NM where he studied with Dr. Vasant Lad for two years. He offers a combination of advanced bodywork modalities: Thai Massage, Cranial Sacral Therapy and fascial-release techniques. He has been practicing therapeutic bodywork since 1991 as a graduate of the National Holistic Institute in CA. He has specialized in Traditional Thai Massage for over fifteen years. www.dancingelephantstudio.com/healingart/

For More Contact:

Monique Parker

Classic Yoga of India

575-770-8210

monique@classicyogaofindia.com

The UNM-Taos Report

By Bill Knief
For publication 05/13/10

WITH AN EDUCATION, THE WORLD OPENS UP

We call it graduation because it celebrates the completion of a degree or certificate. We call it commencement because it sometimes signifies the first step in an entirely new journey. Call it what you will, it is happening Friday, May 14 at 6 pm at the Bataan Building on Civic Plaza Drive, when UNM-Taos recognizes its 2010 graduates.

Isaiah Pacheco isn’t graduating---yet

---but he has some strong opinions about education. He is in his second semester now at UNM-Taos after graduating from Cyber Magnet, a branch of Taos High. He is the first person in his family to attend college and his plan is to complete the nursing program here before going to law school. “Education,” he says, “is absolutely paramount to me. I’m in it for the long haul. It literally gives you a different dimension of thinking. It’s hardly worth living life if you can’t fully grasp what’s going on around you.”

“I have this love for Taos that I realize a lot of people my age don’t have,” he explained. “I was so happy to be able to start at UNM-Taos because I would have had an incredibly hard time adjusting to anywhere else.”

Nikki Moyer is graduating Friday with a BA in Elementary Education. She is a mother of four and the Financial Aid Officer at UNM-Taos, and she says it took five or six years for her to finish her degree.

“I started classes right out of high school but it wasn’t for me then. But a few years later they brought the education program to UNM-Taos and it was perfect timing. With the help of my mom, my family and my friends I was able to go to school full time. I am thankful to all of them that they have supported me. If I could take my mom and my kids up there with me on the stage to get my diploma I would, because I feel like I wouldn’t have done it without them and their support. I totally did it for my kids. It’s better for us and it will be better for our future.”

Like most students, Arseñio Arellano’s education plan has changed over the years.
“I am getting a certificate in Culinary Arts, but now I am probably going to do something with a Bachelor’s in Mathem

atics with a minor in Computer Science. I attended Taos High but when I was a junior I just felt it was a waste of time. I just wasn’t making any progress so I dropped out. I was working at the Ski Valley and I was making money and having a blast. I took my GED tests and passed them the first time. I started at UNM-Taos the next fall so I could get the lottery scholarship---I didn’t want to pass that up. It’s better to keep it fresh and keep it going. Why not get it done, get it behind you? Nowadays, the economy and the job market are pretty bad out there, so you need to have a significant resume.”

Enrique Gonzales, who is a kindergarten teacher at Ranchos Elementary, will be getting his Master’s in Administrative Leadership. He credits the discipline and focus he gained at New Mexico Military Academy as factors in his academic success, and feels that he can serve as a role model for his young students.

“We want to show that it’s not just something you do for 12 years and you’re done.

Education is a continuing learning process and something they need to value. I speak to my kids about how it provides options. As we’ve seen with our financial situation how jobs are being lost, I think many people are starting to look back and say you know what, maybe I need to go back to school. It’s never too late to start.

“My wife (Patricia Gonzales, UNM-Taos Enrollment Office Director, who also holds a master’s degree) and I speak constantly about how there is a difference between having a job and having a career. Once you get that education you recognize the benefits of having a career.

“The world opens up.”

One last thought: the Literacy Center is moving the week of May 17 from its location on Salazar Road to the Administration building at 115 Civic Plaza Drive. Those interested in GED, ESL and Adult education should contact Judy Hofer at 758-5904.

UNM Taos Library Newsletter

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Student Services May Newsletter

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UNM-Taos Klauer Campus now has free bus transportation

After more than five years of hope, talk and negotiation the UNM-Taos Klauer Campus now has bus transportation from the heart of town at the Guadalupe parking lot next to Guadalupe Church. The long awaited public transportation was made possible by an addition to the county-wide gross receipts tax, thanks to support from the County Commission, the Town of Taos and our legislative delegation.

Since its January 19 startup, the Big Blue North Central Regional Transit District bus has been making six round trips per day to match class times at the community college. In addition, it makes 12 stops a day in Ranchos de Taos---six going north and six going south. The twelve passenger coach is fully outfitted with a bike rack and wheelchair access.

In these tough economic times, students facing an hour’s drive round trip have begun getting on board in larger numbers each day. Some go over notes or visit with fellow students. Some snooze. Some just watch the scenery go by. But they all appreciate the free ride. The next time you have an hour to make the full circuit, jump on board!

Click Here to See the Bus Schedule