News

The public is invited to an art opening called “JuarezX: Dragged Across Borders”, opening Friday, October 16 at 5:30 p.m. in the McCray Gallery. The exhibit features work by artists from Juarez who have been literally and conceptually dragged across borders. “We are invited to reflect and question the intersections of race, class, gender, sexuality, migrant status and being,” said Peter Bill, McCray Gallery Director. “The artwork explores the U.S. Mexico border as a place in its own right, a dreamland, a laboratory, a labyrinthine maze whose walls are filled with poetic language and images.” The artists include Yorch, an urban artist presenting graffiti art on panel highlighting life on the border; Gabriela Hernandez, an undocumented Seaburry Fellow and NMHU alumna, whose work features a series of banners representing the struggle of the LGBTQ community; Pulso Ans, a graffiti artist by night and art gallery owner by day, commands spray paint canisters to produce...

Huachas is a traditional game played in Hispanic communities and fans of the game will have the opportunity to participate in a Huacha Tournament on Sunday, October 11 at Old James Stadium. The tournament will begin at 11:00 a.m. and space is limited for participation. Participants can pre-register for $20 per person or for $25 at the event. The two member teams must check in by 10:30 a.m. “This tournament is a fun way to encourage more Hispanic alumni from WNMU to participate in our Homecoming activities,” said Patricia Cano, retired WNMU professor and event facilitator. “The game of huachas, which is similar to horseshoes, is played by pitching washers into a cup which is 30 feet away.” Participants earn points by making the washer in the cup, having the washer lean against the cup or by hitting a board. The double-elimination tournament, organized by Fidel Quintana, Vice-President of the Chicano Alumni Chapter, will donate its proceeds to the Chicano Alumni Chapter...

Western New Mexico University is partnering with the Silver City Care Center and Help New Mexico to offer certified nursing assistant courses to the public. The courses will begin October 13 and run through November 10. Interested applicants may qualify for financial aid assistance and a pre-employment screening is required. Prospective students should contact Susa Montoya with Help New Mexico at 575-538-3737 to make an appointment and check for necessary qualifications. The courses will be administered through the Department of Community and Workforce Development at Western New Mexico University with the partnership of the Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act. For more information, please contact Kathy Sorells at...

The dream of Patricia Cano, a retired Western New Mexico University professor who taught Chicano Studies for 25 years, is finally coming true during Homecoming Weekend on October 9. The Chicano Conference will be a reunion for all Hispanic students who graduated from WNMU including those who were members of Chicano organizations such as Los Estudiantes Unidos and MEChA. The conference will be an opportunity for the students to be back at their alma mater, serving as panelists and discussing current social issues affecting the Chicano community. “In the early 1970s, Los Estudiantes Unidos, the first Chicano organization on campus, was organized and became very active,” said Cano. “The students demanded that the university offer courses that were culturally relevant to them.” During that time, Dr. Bonnie Buckley-Maldonado and Dr. Art Martinez began teaching the first Chicano Studies courses. Workshops were conducted on campus with professors from nearby universities....

Political cartoonist Lalo Alcaraz, who has been described as perhaps the most prolific Chicano artist in the nation, will be on the Western New Mexico University campus as part of the Raza Alumni Reunion for Homecoming 2015. On Thursday, October 8 at 7:00 p.m., Alcaraz will give a presentation at the Global Resource Center on campus. He will speak about his experience as a writer and then premiere the first episode of Bordertown, an upcoming American adult animated sitcom. The premiere will be followed by a Q&A opportunity. In November of 2013, Alcaraz was announced as a writer for Bordertown, created by Family Guy writer, Mark Hentemann, with Seth MacFarlane as the executive producer. Since then, Alcaraz was named a consulting producer for the series and he has traveled around the country promoting the series with special showings of the first episode. The 13-episode first season will premiere on Fox in January of 2016. It is the story of two families living in a Southwest...

Western New Mexico University is partnering with the Mimbres Region Arts Council to host international artist Rose B. Simpson for the inaugural Edwina and Charles Miler Women In The Arts Lecture Series on October 8 and 9. The lecture series event begins Thursday, October 8 with an artist reception at 5:30 p.m. at Light Hall Theater patio. It is followed by a presentation and lecture at 6:30 p.m. A 15-minute Q&A session will close the event. Rose B. Simpson is an internationally active mixed media contemporary artist from Santa Clara Pueblo, New Mexico. She will present her work and collaborate with students during a workshop on Friday, October 9. The “Can Control” mural workshop begins at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, October 9 at the entrance of the McCray Gallery. Rose and Watermelon7, an aerosol artist from the Isleta Pueblo, New Mexico, plan to introduce techniques and design methods for aerosol mural painting to students. The public is invited to attend to observe the...

Fans of fiction and magical realism will have first dibs on a new novel by J.J. Wilson, Writer-in-Residence at Western New Mexico University, during a book signing on Friday, October 2 in Light Hall Theater. The 5:00 p.m. event will include a short presentation and the opportunity to purchase a signed copy of Damnificados, Wilson’s first novel.   Damnificados is loosely based on the real-life occupation of a half-completed skyscraper in Caracas, Venezuela, the Tower of David. Wilson’s idea to write the book originated during a visit to Venezuela in 2013. The Tower of David was erected in 1990 and abandoned in 1994 when the Venezuelan government ran short of funds to complete the project due to the country’s banking crisis. More than 2,500 people moved into the structure until they were eventually relocated in phases through July 2015. In this fictional version, 600 “damnificados” – vagabonds and misfits – take over the tower and set up a community including schools...

More than one hundred golfers will tee up at Scott Memorial Park for the annual WNMU Alumni Scholarship Golf Tournament held during Homecoming weekend on October 9. The event is estimated to raise at least $8,000 in scholarship money for current WNMU students. Organized by the Office of Alumni Affairs, the tournament is set up as a four-man scramble with a shotgun start time of 9:00 a.m. Breakfast begins at 7:30 a.m., prepared by the Club House. Registration is $400 as a team, or $125 per individual. Businesses can support the event by purchasing a hole sponsorship for $55 a hole. “For alumni, this event has become a signature event for Homecoming weekend,” said Cari Lemon, Director of Alumni Affairs. “We are always encouraged to see alumni and other community members coming together to support our students financially.” Nearly $50,000 has already been raised from this even through the last three years. The proceeds will benefit four specific scholarships including...