Area schools grapple with teacher crunch
Bill Donovan
Staff Writer
GALLUP — It's become practically a dog-eat-dog world as school
districts around New Mexico and the nation vie for an ever-dwindling
number of teachers.
And Gallup is in the thick of the fight for good teachers.
"It's getting scary," said Gallup-McKinley County School
Superintendent Robert Gomez, admitting that it's getting harder and
harder to find qualified teachers who are willing to accept a position
within the county.
With a turnover rate of about 18 percent annually, the district has
to recruit about 250 teachers a year. This includes replacements for
between 125 to 130 teachers who resign annually and the 25 to 35 who
retire, as well as filling the 20 to 30 new positions created each
year.
Richard Johnson, director of recruiting for the district, said it's
getting harder and harder because every other school district in the
country is facing the same teacher crunch.
Johnson, who has been a recruiter for the past 15 years, said the
recruiting business used to be cyclical.
When the economy was good, teachers would go into the private sector
for jobs that paid more and were less stressful. But when the economy
was bad and jobs were scarce, they would come back to teaching.
But the nationwide shortage of teachers is so bad that not even a
downturn in the economy will make much of a difference now, he said.
Gallup-McKinley has about 30 vacancies scattered throughout the district,
more than a third of which are in the special education program. That's
been about the average for the past three years, Johnson said.
But Gallup is doing better than other districts in the state.
A survey done by the New Mexico Department of Education in October
revealed that close to 80 percent of the districts in the state say
they started school this fall with three times the unfilled positions
that they had in the past.
One of the main problems that Gallup and most districts in the state
face is salary.
Districts in other states pay beginning teachers $31,000 to $39,000
while Gallup's starting pay is $26,185. Some districts that are really
hurting, Gomez said, have even begun offering signing bonuses of several
thousand dollars to new recruits.
But what young teachers don't realize is that the cost of living in
many of these communities is a great deal higher, said Paula Garcia,
director of personnel for the Gallup schools. For example, while rentals
here average between $400 and $500 a month, it's not unusual to see
rentals in major cities go for $1,000 or more a month.
"All the young teachers see is the dollar sign," she said.
But Gallup does have a number of positive attributes that help in
recruiting. These include being a small town, being located in the
Southwest, and being in the middle of diverse cultures, she said.
Taking a job in some of the rural schools also allows teachers to
get cheap rent at a teacher compound, where rents go from $50 to $200
monthly, with the first two months free.
And new teachers burdened by staggering school loans may qualify for
getting as much as 10 percent of the loan forgiven annually, depending
on what kind of loan they acquired.
Johnson said another factor that is in Gallup's favor is the class
size.
"I get that question what is the
class size? more than any other," he said.
The district limits the size of classes to 15 in the elementary grades,
22 in the intermediate grades and between 26 and 28 in the high school.
Another factor that has helped Gallup in recent years is the UNM-Gallup
teaching program, which provides about 40 new teachers a year to the
district.
And what's also good about this is that these teachers are from the
local area and are more likely to make a career in the Gallup district
rather than just staying for a year or two, Garcia said.
In the old days pre-1990 or so districts were able to go after people
in the private sector with a lot of education or expertise in a certain
area and recruit them as teachers.
That's become more difficult in recent years as the state began requiring
that people without any education background make a commitment to
take nine hours of education courses a year in order to be allowed
to teach.
This rule has sharply decreased the number of non-education degree
teachers in the state districts and Gomez said he would like to see
if he could get the state to loosen up on these requirements a little
so that school districts could go after these people again.
Much of the recruiting in past years has been done by Johnson and
district principals going to job fairs held throughout the
country but even here the pool of potential candidates is decreasing
while the number of districts going to the fair is increasing.
During the past couple of years, the district has been looking more
and more to the Internet as a way to find out who is
interested in working for the district.
Its website www.gmcs.k12.nm.us provides a ton of information from
salaries and living costs to area attractions and the district is
finding more and more potential candidates this way.
The district also has a 24-hour toll-free number (800) 842-5587 that
lists the various vacancies in the district and provides information
on how to apply.
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Balloon rally a soaring success
Weather perfect; merchants stay busy
Tanya Brazil
Staff Writer
GALLUP — With perfect weather and wind velocity on their side,
officials from the Red Rock Balloon Rally said this year's event came
off without any accidents to balloon pilots, their crews or equipment.
Last year, wind, clouds, mud and precipitation prevented balloonists
from flying on the first day of the rally, though conditions cleared
the next two days and the balloons were able to go out.
Karl Lohmann, vice president of the Red Rock Balloon Rally Association,
attributes the success of the rally to its volunteers who developed
and polished the event and the city at the same time, making Gallup
and its residents look good this weekend.
In addition to ballooning, he said, the event provided significant
educational venues through the Youth Festival, search and rescue training
and participation from organizations such as the Civil Air Patrol,
the Gallup High School Pompom squad and the Stagecoach Elementary
School Drill Team.
Lohmann said he considers Red Rock State Park a balloon park not unlike
how a skateboard park is specifically designed for skateboarding because
the park combines all the features balloonists would want magnificent
scenery, an accessible road system and a combination of air and topography
that makes for prime steerage on the part of the balloonists.
On Sunday, Lohmann said, balloonists were able to fly into the canyon
and then come back and land at the original launch site an extremely
rare occurrence.
Almost 180 balloons filled the skies of Gallup Saturday while spectators
watched in awe from both the launch site and high above on the rocks
surrounding Red Rock State Park.
A father from Sundance, Jerome Clarke, 37, and his two children Laurisa,
6, and Jalen, 7 watched from a small hill near the launch site as
the balloons floated west and over the canyons.
Clarke said this was the first time he has watched the balloons from
the park, that for the past 10 years he has watched the balloons from
his home.
He said his experience watching the balloons from the park was really
nice and different, that he enjoyed watching his children's eyes light
up as the balloons flew overhead.
The children said their favorite balloons were "Jesus, The Hot
Air Balloon" and "Arky," although Laurissa expressed
a particular fondness for a traditionally shaped balloon decorated
with orange leaves.
In addition to the two Christian-themed headliners, the Prisoner of
War/Missing in Action balloon was on hand, as were two pink pigs and
a stagecoach from Wells Fargo, Humpty Dumpty, a green alien head and
a myriad of multicolored, traditional balloons.
Rexann Allen, 32, of Gallup, brought her children, niece and nephews
to watch the balloons for the first time.
Allen, who has been to the balloon rally before, said she never has
flown in a balloon and, although it would be pretty to take pictures,
she prefers watching them from the ground where it is safe.
Her son Joshua, 7, however, expressed interest in taking a balloon
ride although his mom said no maybe when he is older.
Balloon rally officials do not yet have the hard numbers concerning
the amount of spectators the event drew over the weekend, but Lohmann
said more people attended on Saturday than on Sunday when he observed
the parking lot was full and people were parked bumper to bumper on
the frontage road.
Lohmann said with restaurants packed and motels full throughout the
weekend, he predicted merchants would report high sales.
At one point, he said, a balloonist from Indiana told him he was planning
on doing all of his Christmas shopping in Gallup so that he could
give Native American arts and crafts as gifts for his family and friends.
When the out of towner asked where he should shop, Lohmann said he
pointed him in the direction of certain places, but when faced with
a long list of merchants who sell Native American crafts in Gallup,
he became overwhelmed with answering such a question.
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2 men indicted on sex charges
Children were victims
Tom Purdom
Staff Writer
GRANTS — Two men face first-degree charges for allegedly having
sex with children.
The Cibola County grand jury last week indicted David Ortega, 50,
of 1112 Houston, Grants, for criminal sexual penetration in the first
degree of a female under 13 years of age. He reportedly had sex with
the girl between June 16 and June 20.
In the second case, Paul Leonard Serna, 19, of 304 Redondo Lane, Grants,
was indicted on charges of criminal sexual penetration in the first
degree with a male under 13 years of age and criminal sexual contact
with a minor in the third degree with a child under 13. The crimes
allegedly happened Sept. 18.
The grand jury indicted Ortega on Friday and Serna on Thursday.
If found guilty and sentenced to the maximum for the first-degree
charges, the defendants could spend 18 years in prison. The third-degree
charge carries a maximum sentence of 18 months in prison and/or a
fine of up to $5,000.
The two sex crimes were investigated by the Grants Police Department.
In another matter:
A trio of Albuquerque people visiting someone at Western New Mexico
Correctional Facility in Grants should have checked their car before
checking into the prison.
Leonard Marquez, 23, Stephanie Tafoya, 25, and Lucas Tapia, 19, all
of Albuquerque, apparently had a 9mm semi-automatic pistol, some marijuana
and a hash pipe in their possession when they went through the gates
at the prison on Lobo Canyon Road on Sept. 16.
Each is charged with two counts of bringing contraband into a jail,
a third-degree felony; conspiracy of bringing contraband into a jail,
and use or possession of drug paraphernalia.
In grand jury action:
Herman Montoya, 62, of Bluewater, was indicted on charges of driving
while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, driving while his license
was suspended or revoked, and failure to maintain a traffic lane.
Montoya was stopped by the Cibola County Sheriff's Department on Oct.
6.
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Kirtland tops loaded field
Carrie Loretto
Sports Editor
GALLUP — The Kirtland Central Lady Broncos proved they were the
best of the best, capturing the 26th Annual Gallup Girls Invitational
championship.
Kirtland, whose only loss was to the Bengals nearly two weeks ago,
bested Gallup 59-46 in overtime Saturday night for their third straight
victory over a perennial state power.
"That was big,"Kirtland coach Dan Scroggins
said of having to face Sandia, Winslow and Gallup in their side of
the eight-team bracket."The girls have come together in three
games like I've never seen them come together. The competition was
rough, but it paid off for us."
Kirtland (4-1) beat Class AAAAA power Sandia in their tournament opener
then outdueled last year's 3A Arizona state runner-up Winslow in the
semifinals to advance into the finals. The Bengals (4-1) defeated
Window Rock and Onate on their road to the title game.
Winslow routed Onate 64-34 for third place and Sandia beat Window
Rock 60-38 in the fifth place game. Albuquerque Academy beat Tohatchi
67-62 for seventh place.
"We had a lot of breakdowns - on defense, rebounding, and passing
- that cost us the game,"Gallup coach John Lomasney said."But
a good team made us do it, they wanted it a lot more than we did in
the second half."
The Lady Bengals came out strong and pulled out to a 23-14 lead on
a three-pointer by Candace Roanhorse late in the first half. Two free
throws by Shantel Begay made it 23-16 at halftime.
Vanessa Hubbard hit a shot from the perimeter to open up the second
half, but then Kirtland went inside to senior post Shantel Begay for
three points which opened things up from the outside for the Lady
Broncos with Nadia Begay hitting a pair of threes.
A display of athleticism by Hubbard, who scored from the inside on
a pair of assists from Tanya Bailey and Roberta Tahe then picked up
a loose ball and drove along the baseline before pulling up for a
jumper, kept the Bengals ahead by eight points, 31-
23.
However, Begay's second three-pointer and another by
Jaimey Tanner brought Kirtland within two, 31-29 prompting a Gallup
timeout.
Gallup missed a pair of three-point attempts before putting Kym Simpson
at the free throw line. She made both to tie the score with 1:21 left.
Candace Roanhorse regained the lead for the Bengals scoring after
a steal, but Kirtland ended the third quarter with a three-pointer
by Simpson which put them up 34-33 going into the fourth.
"We hit our outside shot (in the third quarter) and that saved
us,"Scroggins said.
Kirtland, which averaged five three-pointers in its first four games,
finished with six.
Begay hit her third trey to open the overtime period and give Kirtland
the lead for good as Gallup turned the ball over six times and went
scoreless from the field in the extra period.
"We played a good first half, but a lack of leadership cost us,
we had none from the third quarter on,"said Lomasney.
After losing point guard Roberta Tahe to her fifth foul, Gallup watched
Kirtland add to its 47-44 lead as the Bengals turned the ball over
five of their last six possessions. Two free throws by Bailey with
12 seconds left was the only scoring Gallup managed in the overtime
period.
Third place Winslow 64, Onate 34
Led by all-tournament player Francine McCurtain, the Winslow Lady
Bulldogs jumped out to a 12-2 lead and never looked back as Winslow
coach Don Petranovich used the opportunity to play his bench.
"We still turned the ball over way too much,"he said following
the easy victory."That's what's hurting us."
Petranovich felt turnovers hurt the Bulldogs in their first season
loss to Kirtland in the semifinals.
McCurtain finished with 22 points, seven rebounds, three assists and
two steals. Twelve players scored for the Bulldogs.
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Hopi Tribe sets up $10 million scholarship
fund
Staff Report
KYKOTSMOVI, Ariz. — This holiday season, the Hopi people will
have 10 million more reasons to celebrate.
In unprecedented action, the Hopi Tribal Council unanimously passed
Ordinance 54 establishing the Hopi Tribe Education Endowment Fund.
In its action, the council transferred $10 million into the fund which
will be kept separately from other funds.
In his opening statement to the council, Hopi Chairman Wayne Taylor
spoke about the fund as a form of community investment.
"The future of the tribe depends on the future successes of our
children. We must do all we can to help our children succeed. The
fund can help make that success more likely. Ten million dollars speaks
loudly about our commitment to our children," he said...
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Boards approve roads, mileage
Jim Maniaci
Diné Bureau
WINDOW ROCK — County supervisors in the Arizona portion of the
Navajo and Hopi Reservations have approved several projects with far-reaching
effects for reservation residents.
Navajo County is proceeding with the design of a new permanent center
in Kayenta its first on the Navajo Reservation to serve the northern
portion of the county.
Apache County's Board of Supervisors raised the mileage reimbursement
rate from 31 to 32.5 cents a mile to match the official state rate.
Coconino County's board renewed the joint agreement on hauling and
to find road repair materials for the Fourth and Fifth Districts,
which cover the county's portion of the reservation...
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Grants works to lure tourists
Tara Drolma
Staff Writer
GRANTS — Alma Whittington, tourism director of the Grants/Cibola
County Chamber of Commerce, describes Grants as the "nucleus
of history."
That's the message Whittington took to the National Tour Association's
2000 annual convention in Salt Lake City two weeks ago. The six-day
convention attracted 3,000 travel professionals including tour companies.
It was the tour companies Whittington most wanted to attract.
Right now, Whittington said, the tour buses drive right by Grants
and "My goal is to get the buses to stop and spend at least
two nights."
One of the main events at the convention was the Tour and Travel
Exchange, which was a forum for buying and selling travel services.
The exchange gave Whittington an opportunity to promote Grants to
tour companies. She developed a six-minute presentation and a one-page
brochure to give operators...
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2 held on drug charges
Staff Report
GALLUP — Two men have been arrested on drug charges following
an investigation by the Gallup office of the Region II Narcotics Enforcement
Task Force involving sales of cocaine and counterfeit cocaine to an
undercover officer.
An arrest warrant was issued for the first suspect, Louis Fernando
Ortega, 38, of Belen after agents said on two separate occasions in
August he sold small amounts of cocaine to an undercover police officer
inside the Pal Joey's Lounge.
New Mexico State Police arrested Ortega last Monday in Gallup. He
was booked into the McKinley County Adult Detention Center on two
counts of trafficking cocaine.
The second case involved the single sale of a white powder substance
represented as cocaine by Cody Cannon, 25, of Gallup, to an undercover
police officer...
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Groups question marina plan
Staff Report
MOAB, Utah — A coalition of eight Native American and environmental
organizations called on the National Park Service (NPS) Friday to
suspend contract and other work on development of the proposed Antelope
Point Marina near Page, Ariz.
In a letter to the NPS, the groups asked that an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) be prepared before approving
construction contracts for the project at Glen Canyon National RecreationArea
(Lake Powell reservoir).
The Glen Canyon Action Network (GCAN) of Moab and the Diné
Medicine Men's Association of Window Rock are leading the effort,
with support from environmental groups Diné CARE, Bluewater
Network/Earth Island Institute, Colorado Plateau River Guides, Flagstaff
Activist Network, Grand Canyon Private Boaters Association, Utah
Environmental Congress, and Wild Wilderness.
The "Development Concept Plan & Environmental Assessment"
for Antelope Point was completed in 1986, but did not acknowledge
the project's significant impact on the environment. The inadequate
and now-outdated plan does not satisfy legal requirements of the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)...
Deaths
Mary Peshlakai
MARIANO LAKE — Services for Mary Peshlakai, 106, will be held
at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 5, at Rehoboth Christian Reformed Mission.
Pastor Robert Jipping will officiate. Burial will follow at Rehoboth
Mission Cemetery.
Peshlakai died Dec. 2 in Gallup. She was born May 10, 1894 in Mariano
Lake into the Towering House People Clan for the Red Running into
the Water People Clan.
Survivors include her daughters, Marie Arviso of Crownpoint and Alice
Gonzales, Etta Tom and Irene Warner all of Mariano Lake; 13 grandchildren,
41 great-grandchildren and 23 great-great-grandchildren.
Peshlakai was preceded in death by her parents, Jake and Mary Anderson
and son, Wayne Peshlakai.
Pallbearers will be T.J. Anderson, Jason Arviso, Corwin Henry, Garylle
James, Michael Jeff, Sr. and Vernon Warner.
Rollie Mortuary is in charge of arrangements.
Dave Gilmore
GALLUP — Services for Dave Gilmore, 77, will be held at 10 a.m.,
Tuesday, Dec. 5 at Memorial-Emmanuel Baptist Church, Boardman, east
of University of New Mexico-Gallup Branch. Pastor Mike Kleeberger
will officiate. Burial will follow in Santa Fe National Cemetery,
Santa Fe.
Gilmore died Nov. 30 in Gallup. He was born Jan. 9, 1923 in Pittsfield,
Mass.
Gilmore served in World War II with the U.S. Army in South Pacific.
He served as a crew chief on a B-25 bomber and served in Korean Conflict-First
Sergeant. A member of Elks Lodge, Gallup Airport Commission. Employed
for American Airlines as senior mechanic, former part owner/manager
of Ranch Kitchen Restaurant and former manager of Woodard's Indian
Arts and Crafts and retired from Butlers Office and Printing.
Survivors include his wife, Frances Gilmore of Gallup; son, Bruce
E. Gilmore of Phoenix; daughter, Gretchen Kierstead of Los Alamos
and four grandchildren.
Preceded in death parents, Benjamin and Sara Gilmore; brother, Charles
Gilmore and sister, Helen Landoll.
Pallbearers will be Chris Lambert, Arthur Marra, Darrell Olson, Wallace
Phillips, Herb Taylor and James Whitfield.
Rollie Mortuary is in charge of arrangements.
Wilson B. Terry
WIDE RUINS, Ariz. — Services for Wilson B. Terry, 56, was held
at 10 a.m., today, at Saint Anne Catholic Mission, Klagetoh, Ariz.
Father Flann O'Neill will officiate. Burial followed on Family Land,
Wide Ruin, Ariz.
Terry died Nov. 30 in Phoenix. He was born March 22, 1944 in Ganado,
Ariz. into the Meadow People/Water Edge People Clan for the Blacksheep
People Clan.
Terry was employed with Scottsdale Airojet Services, the Navajo Nation
Computer Services and the Navajo Nation Air Transportation. He served
in the U.S. Army with an honorable discharge, was a paratrooper with
the 173rd Airborne division, received the National Defense Service
Medal, Good Conduct Medal and Infantry Badge.
Survivors include his wife, Charity Y. Terry; sons, Marcus J. Terry
of Denver, Colo., Karl Wilson Terry of Phoenix and Dion Evans Terry
of San Diego, Calif.; parents, Betty Terry; seven brothers; three
sisters; and five grandchildren.
Terry was preceded in death by father, Tom Terry.
The family will receive friends and family after the burial services
at the Family Residence, Wide Ruins, Ariz.
Tse Bonito Mortuary is in charge of arrangements.
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