It's Tuesday, October 17, 2017.
Altered state standards
Over the course of several hours, not a single person of the hundreds who gathered at a public comment hearing rose to speak in favor of proposed changes to science standards for New Mexico public school students. The hearing, along with a written comment period that ended last night, is the only chance the public has to sound off about the standards, which were quietly released—with notable changes—on the department's website after half a decade of consideration. The controversial standards omit language about evolution, human-caused climate change and the age of the earth. Secretary of Education Christopher Ruszkowski did not attend.
Time for me to fly
Santa Fe is losing its airport manager after less than two years. Cameron Humphres will leave the $92,000-a-year job at the end of the month to take another job in New Mexico, though he declined to say where just yet. The city recently completed a federally required airport master plan that charts improvements to the airport over the next 20 years, including the site for a new terminal. Airport officials bemoaned his departure and praised his professionalism, which was a sizable step up considering his predecessor was fired after police say she trashed a hotel gift shop at a conference.
City ponders SFUAD site
As the months march toward the closure of the Santa Fe University of Art and Design at the end of the academic year, the city of Santa Fe needs a plan for what to do with the place. It's all owned by the city and ideas for what to do with it have ranged from multi-family housing to another school to a mix of those two to a movie studio. There are two more public hearings at city committees over the next week.
Pearce’s pile
Steve Pearce, the Southern New Mexico congressman who is running for governor, wants to use his federal campaign cash for the state governor's race. The secretary of state says that's not allowed for any candidate, but Pearce disagrees. He's taken her to court and a federal judge will soon decide if it's allowable for Pearce to transfer a large pile of campaign cash to help his state run. Her decision would impact Democratic congresswoman Michelle Lujan Grisham, who is also running for governor.
The money race
Antoinette Sedillo Lopez is among the eight Democrats looking to take Lujan Grisham's place in Washington, DC. She came out ahead of the rest of the field in the latest campaign finance reporting period, which is often seen as a test of viability this early in a campaign cycle. The former UNM law professor and current head of a nonprofit is a political presence, but hasn't been among those mentioned with the usual group of candidates.
Nabbed
Police in Colorado have caught up with Tranquilino Valencia, who got in a car crash up there and was arrested when officers realized he was wanted for robbery and carjacking charges for alleged crimes in and around Pecos over the weekend. New Mexico State Police are still looking for a teenage girl whom they believe was his accomplice.
New Mexican perishes in wildfires
Lynne Anderson Powell, who played the flute in the former New Mexico Symphony Orchestra, was killed as she and her husband fled their home in Santa Rosa, California, trying to escape the wildfires that have claimed more than 40 lives and thousands of homes. Her husband says the couple was rounding up their pets and leaving when the smoke and flame overcame Anderson Powell.
Thou shalt remove the monument
A stone monument depicting the Ten Commandments outside City Hall in Bloomfield will have to go after the US Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal by attorneys on behalf of the city. That means a lower court ruling will stand and the city has to remove the biblical statue. Councilors planned to meet behind closed doors last night to decide what to do.
Thanks for reading! The Word is fairly certain garden gnomes are still considered protected speech. At least in your own garden. For that matter, so is your own Ten Commandments monument.
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