NMSU Govie Gazette
November 2014
What’s your favorite non-academic book?
When I was a teenager, it had to be the Rothmans
Football Yearbook. It had every statistic you could
imagine about football (as soccer is called in the UK),
with all the league tables, scores, fixtures and size of
crowds at each game. Growing up in Liverpool, football
was a great passion for almost everyone and I could
rattle off dates, names and places of important goals,
games won and lost, across the UK and Europe.
What’s something you do to get your job off your
mind?
Student Opportunities
If you are looking for a way to get involved in
politics while also getting paid, boy do I have the
job for you! The Democratic Party of New Mexico is
looking for people to help us canvass in the
community the last two days of the election. We
need your help turning out voters. The job is 8
hours each day (4 in the morning, lunch break, and
4 in the evening). The pay is $75 per day.
Please contact Lydia Hammond at 575-649-3269
Know a Professor
Dr. Neil Harvey
What’s your favorite place to
visit, why?
San Cristobal de Las Casas,
Chiapas, Mexico. I have so many
friends and memories there, it’s
like feeling at home each time I
go back. I started my field work
there back in 1984 so I have seen
how it has changed over the
years. It is a colonial town that was founded in 1528 and
has many beautiful buildings and places to walk. It is
surrounded by pine forests and it smells so fresh in the
mornings when my wife, Wendy, and I would walk to
the market and buy fresh fruit and vegetables and eat
sweet bread with a cup of coffee brewed with
cinnamon.
I like swimming. I was always a good swimmer and
footballer as a kid, but got out of the habit. My office
overlooks the campus swimming pool so I really have no
excuses not to go.
Why did you decide to live in New Mexico (other than
necessity)?
Proximity to Mexico is really important for me and my
family. My wife was born and grew up in Mexico. We
met and got married there. We have lots of family there,
so it is easier to get back and for them to visit.
Tell us about any papers you’re working on?
I am working on a paper about the challenges facing the
Zapatista movement in Chiapas as it seeks to implement
new forms of local and regional governance by
indigenous communities. This movement rose up
against the Mexican government in 1994 and made
many demands for social justice, access to land, and
greater democracy in the country. One of the results is
the effort to work independently, without ties to
political parties or government institutions, but in
solidarity with other groups in Mexico and
internationally. Indigenous peoples have been very
active in building new organizations and contributing to
political change in several Latin American countries in
the past 30 years or so, and I hope to contribute to that
literature by examining what the Zapatistas have
achieved and what challenges they face.
Your greatest concern in current issues of
government/public administration?
The negative consequences of the “war on drugs”,
including attacks or threats against social movements,
journalists, human rights defenders, migrants and rural
and indigenous communities. The militarization of the
border and its impacts on communities on both sides.
Your greatest epiphany as a graduate student?
In the journals section of a small library in the basement
of the Institute of Latin American Studies in London,
around 1983. Finding a short article that described a
land conflict in Chiapas in a publication called Latin
American Newsletters. It sparked my interest in the
similarities and differences, and led me to write an MA
thesis proposal that led me to Chiapas for my first field
work trip there.
Dr. Thaddieus Conner
What’s your favorite place to
visit, why?
My favorite place to visit in New
Mexico is Santa Fe. More
specifically, the plaza. To be
even more specific, the bar and
restaurant in La Fonda. It’s kind
of like Cheers in there for my
wife and me.
What’s your favorite non-academic book?
I would have to go with Sherman Alexie’s book
Reservation Blues. However, it is a close second to
George Orwell’s 1984. This was one of the first
politically oriented works of non-fiction I read at the
tender age of 12 that got me thinking about
government and civil liberties. It also scared the crap
out of me. Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin
Schwartz is also tops on my list.
What’s something you do to get your job off your
mind?
Honestly, I watch sports. Football and basketball
(college or professional) always helps me relax and do
something non-academic.
Tell us about any papers you’re working on?
I’m working on a number of papers that are at different
stages of completion. My favorite one is a paper that I
am working on with colleagues at Indiana University,
the University of Oklahoma, and the College of
Charleston that explores how bureaucratic values
influence the types of decisions public managers make
in collaborative settings. We use cultural theory to see
whether managers with a more hierarchical, egalitarian,
or individualist worldview make different decisions
when working with stakeholders in the outside
community. I’m also working on a number of papers
related to Indian gaming, public opinion, and criminal
justice in Indian Country.
Your greatest concern in current issues of
government/public administration?
I must say that I am a little concerned about the
negative image surrounding public administrators (also
known as “bureaucracy bashing”) in the U.S. Most of
the time, the public is only aware of bureaucracy when
something bad happens and is spread rapidly through
social media.
Your greatest epiphany as a graduate student?
The art of skimming and reading with purpose.
If you hadn’t ended up a Professor what would have
been your profession?
Other than a musketeer (j/k), I would have pursued a
career with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. This was my
original intention upon entering the MPA program, but I
quickly learned how much of a difference can be made
with research.
What was the last thing you learned from a student?
That planking is a thing
now. Seriously.
Quick Hits
Joshua McDermott,
MA Candidate, represented political organization
Aggie Solidarity in the “Great Debate”. He took a
second to share his experiences with us:
“I was in the “Great Debate” representing the far left
student group Aggie Solidarity. I was disappointed in the
debate’s format; it was more like a panel for the
different student groups to state their positions (in one
minute or less) on various political topics, rather than a
debate.”
“Still, it was a good experience, and hopefully an
educational one for the audience and the participants.
Uzi Marte made aggressive gestures to me from the
audience when I criticized the Democrat student group.”
Impressive…
Did you know…?
 The GGSO took part in Aggie “Keep State Great”
event and together picked up 1,247 errant
pinecones along Triviz Drive. You are welcome!
 Rylee Stenberg was recently recognized as a
promising women leaders in student government
and featured on MSNBC at
http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/women-politicscollege-edition-new-mexico-state-university
 A recent NMSU Government Department graduate
is a current recipient of a Fulbright scholarship.
Learn more about Sara Casson at
http://business.nmsu.edu/2014/10/02/nmsugraduate-awarded-competitive-fulbright-grant-toteach-in-colombia/
Papers in Progress
The First Annual
Government
Department Camping
Outing was held last
month at Rockhound
State Park. Attendees
included Chris Kincaid,
MPA Candidate......and
his nephew Hunter. No thundereggs were discovered.
 Chris Kincaid’s (MPA) paper on police militarization
is accepted to present at the 2015 Western Political
Science Association Conference.
What is Dr. Medina doing?
Dr. Christina Medina, MPA Program Director, has been
on sabbatical since the end of the Spring Semester.
What has she been up to? (edited for brevity)
“I'm definitely working on research and on having some
fun in between. I think it can give a new notion to R&R
which is usually the acronym for revise and resubmit!
Dr. Chand and I are working on a project to help with
the racial profiling literature. The project analyzes local
law enforcement agencies which find themselves
playing increasingly larger roles in immigration
enforcement in recent years. But no studies have
attempted to empirically determine if empowering
police officers with immigration enforcement powers
can result in racial profiling. The study’s examination of
a participating police department finds that officers are
far more likely to approach Latinos and Asians (both of
which represent rapidly growing immigration
populations) for acting “suspiciously” than other ethnic
groups.”
“For my sabbatical I have been doing research in
partnership with the Buechner Institute for Governance
at the University of Colorado in Denver School of Public
Affairs. It is also my alma mater! I'm looking at
performance based management: teacher evaluation
systems in Colorado and New Mexico.”
“For fun, I have been attending lots of live
performances and catching up on my music. I went to
Juarez this past weekend to listen to Sonido Cachimbo
(Salsa, Merengue, and Cumbia) and this week I'll be in
Santa Fe to watch Ziggy Marley perform some famous
Reggae songs of his late father Bob Marley. As soon as
it snows I am going to hit the ski slopes in Colorado and
Utah!”
Put the book down
Quote of the Month
“When someone sticks a knife into my back nine inches
and then pulls it out six inches they haven’t done me
any favor. And if they pull that knife which they stuck in
my back all the way out they still have not done me any
favor. They should not have stabbed me in the back in
the first place.” Malcolm X
Need help?
There is a NMSU Library Page designed just for
Government Students that you might want to
bookmark at http://nmsu.libguides.com/govt.
This page includes quick links to news, political science,
and legal resources you might need for your next
government exam or paper. Happy Hunting!
Special Events
Dia de los Muertos: If you’re looking for something fun
and interesting outside the house, come to Dia de los
Muertos this Friday and Saturday, November 1st and 2nd,
from 12-8 PM!
Student Surveys!
Joshua McDermott
What’s your favorite place to visit and why?
The Tetons - they are beautiful and close to home
What’s something you do to get school off your mind?
Study radical politics. . .
What in government/public administration are you
most interested in studying?
West Africa
True hometown?
A small town called Rigby, Idaho. Birthplace of
television!
Your greatest concern in current issues of
government/public administration?
Race for resources in Africa
If you hadn’t majored in government, what else did
you want to study?
Poetry
Thea Quigley-Trejo
What’s your favorite place to visit and why?
The Rio Grande River. Because it has water... most days.
What’s your favorite non-academic book?
Would it be terrible to say that I don't have one? I'll just
say it's Les Miserables by Victor Hugo. Classic.
True hometown?
Albuquerque, NM.
Your greatest concern in current issues of
government/public administration?
Austerity in the global economy.
If you hadn’t majored in government, what else did
you want to study?
I would probably study paleontology, because why not?
And just in case you failed to
notice it is Halloween…
This is the page we still can’t dispose of without
destroying our format, look for it next month….