Good morning.

We are halfway through a challenging legislative session and thanks to a team effort that has included the entire UNM community, we can report some positive news.

While nothing is final yet, we’re making progress in restoring some of the funding that was reduced in the recommendations of the Legislative Finance Committee.

So far, I’m enthusiastic about reinstatement of full funding for our ethnic student service centers and for graduate research development. I’m pleased with the efforts of our UNM team on these priority items and especially with the responses of our Legislators to our arguments.

Altogether, we’ve so far managed to restore approximately $1.1 million in existing special project line items for student success and scholarship programs. We’ve also received another $200,000 for our BA/MD program.

Obviously, nothing is finished until the Governor signs the budget, and our economic situation is very much a moving target.

Nevertheless, thanks to the diligent work of our legislative team and our campus-wide effort, we’re seeing some light at the end of the budget tunnel in Santa Fe.

As of this writing, State Representatives are making progress in wrapping up House Bill 2, (the general appropriations act that funds state government, public education and higher education) and it has been a difficult effort for all involved.

The most recent revenue projections predict a worsening shortfall for next year (FY 2010), from $150 million to $283 million, so by no means are we out of the woods just yet. It’s more important than ever that we redouble our efforts, work together and provide a united front in Santa Fe.

I want to thank those members of the faculty who joined me and Dr. Breda Bova, my chief of staff, last Monday to share their observations and insights about how I could better serve the University community. I learned a lot from our informal give-and-take, which I believed was as informative as it was overdue. I also want to thank Dr. Bova for setting up the session, and hope the other participants found it to be as beneficial as I did.

I will redouble my efforts to conduct more listening sessions like this. As our University’s great friend Thelma Domenici has observed, we’ve had too much talking at UNM and not enough listening.

Let me extend my thanks to Dr. Juan de Dios Pineda from our Special Office for Latin American Initiatives for his highly effective and professional efforts in setting up UNM’s new relationship with former Mexican President Vicente Fox. Because of his efforts and those of Vice President Cheo Torres, UNM students will have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to study at the President’s newly-established “Centro Fox,” the first Presidential Library in Latin America and a center for the promotion of democracy in Mexico.

IN MEMORIAM. The University community suffered three great losses on Valentine’s Day, with the untimely deaths of associate university counsel Patty Blueitt, Maddie Vallejos, the wife of longtime staff member Chris Vallejos, and Patty Jennings, wife of State Senator Tim Jennings, who worked tirelessly with us on breast cancer and other health care issues. Our Provost, Dr. Suzanne Ortega, also lost her father very recently. Our thoughts and prayers go to all of them and their families. Please note that Patty Blueitt’s memorial service will take place this Thursday afternoon at the Alumni Chapel.

David J. Schmidly

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