Help CNM Recycle Their Way to the Top!

Every year, over 600 colleges in the United States and Canada participate in the annual Recyclemania Tournament. And this year, Central New Mexico Community College is the only entry in the state of New Mexico, competing against colleges from all around North America.

Starting February 2 and lasting 2 months, all of the recycled material collected by CNM locations will be weighed by waste management and tallied up.

You can learn more about RecycleMania at www.recyclemaniacs.org:

“We decided to partner with faculty and Service Learning  to offer the RecycleMania Tournament as a great Service Learning option for the Spring term and to become more systemic in our sustainability efforts as we move forward,” said Luis Campos, executive director of the Physical Plant. “We’re hopeful that RecycleMania will help our students, faculty and staff get even more excited about the impact they can have on protecting the environment and increasing sustainability. And RecycleMania will provide benchmarks for our recycling efforts, but this is only the start of a larger effort.”

“I think Mount Trashmore will be a great learning experience for everybody,” Campos said. “We are doing well with recycling on our campuses, but there are a lot of recyclables that end up in our trash. We hope that this event will bring awareness to that issue and motivate our students, faculty and staff to be even more diligent about what can and should be recycled.”

And halfway through the competition, one entire day’s worth of trash from CNM’s main campus will be piled in the parking lot, creating a “Mount Trashmore” that students will sort through, separating recyclables from waste.

For more information, please contact Asa Stone at astone10@cnm.edu, Sharon Gordon-Moffett at sgordon@cnm.edu or Luis Campos at lcampos@cnm.edu.

Shakespeare Coming to an ABQ Theater Near You

It could be said that in 2014, Shakespeare is a bit under-appreciated. Sure, you might have spent hours upon hours in high school analyzing Romeo & Juliet, but so many of today’s most popular TV shows and films have Shakespearean themes that it’s hard to ignore Shakespeare’s influence on our culture.

If you’ve never seen live Shakespeare here in Albuquerque, your chance is coming soon! At the renowned Duke City Repertory starting March 6, 2014, you’ll be able to see a Shakespeare classic: A Midsummer Night’s Dream. You can get more details including how to buy tickets on the theater’s website.

Here’s a synopsis of the play, courtesy of ABQ Newscastic:

When the Duke of Athens commands Hermia to marry Demetrius or “get thee to a nunnery,” Hermia and her true love, Lysander, take refuge in the woods--and run right into a magical free-for-all between Oberon, the Fairy King, and Titania, his Fairy Queen. Stubborn lovers, a band of aspiring players and the mischievous Puck round out this unpredictable Midsummer's Night.

Dr. John Hardy (Poe, A Christmas Carol, Oedipus the King), returns to direct his potent adaptation, and seven actors take on twenty characters in DCRT's teasing, hilarious and magical production of one of Shakespeare's most beloved plays. The cast features five company members reuniting for DCRT’s annual Winter Classic. Among them, Artistic Director Amelia Ampuero was recently honored as “Best Actor” runner-up in Albuquerque the Magazine’s “Best of the City” poll.

Come see why Duke City Repertory Theatre was also voted “Best Theatre” three years in a row, and why this production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be an experience to remember.

Trick Yourself into a Good Diet!

If your New Years Resolution involves losing weight, there’s more to reaching your goal than just exercising. On the other hand, you certainly don’t want to starve yourself, either.

Losing weight requires a delicate balance of discipline, diet, and exercise. On the diet front, there are some simple rules that you can set for yourself to make your dieting process a whole lot easier.

Are you prone to the occasional late night meal or eating too much? Last week, Sploid offered a helpful list of 10 interesting ways you can stop yourself from overeating. Here’s their list!

1. Use smaller plates (fooling the brain.)

2. Use your non-dominant hand to snacks (I really can't understand that, but research shows you eat 20% less.)

3. Use tall glasses instead of short fat ones (ok, that's just physics, but good point.)

4. Place mirrors in your kitchen and fridge door (shame yourself, clever.)

5. Chew fruit-flavored gum when you feel hungry (mint flavor is not as good.)

6. Put your fork or spoon down after each bite (to eat slower).

7. Use red plates (must be something about red meaning stop in our culture.)

8. Don't watch TV when eating (a classic.)

9. Take photos of the unhealthy food you eat (not sure if that works for the Instagram generation).

10. Cut down on the variety of food during a meal (the less you want to try different types of food, the less you will eat.)

Click here for the full article, over at Sploid.

Support Your Future with the Savings Challenge

Here at The Courtyards, we like to support local students with our 3% monthly student discount program. So when we heard about the Central New Mexico Community College Suncat Savings Challenge, we thought we’d pass it along.

The Suncat Savings challenge allows students to invest in their careers through a matched savings account known as an Individual Development Account (IDA). So every contribution made to that account is matched by various institutions that help students save toward their tuition, home, or business.

Here are some eligibility requirements, from CNM.edu:

Are You Eligible?

To Qualify, You Must*:

Be enrolled in 6 or more credit hours at CNM

Be at least 18 years of age

Have someone in your household who is currently employed

*There are additional income and asset qualifications which you can learn more about at the orientation including:

- Adjusted gross income must fall under 200% of the national poverty level

- Net worth of the household (excluding one home and one vehicle) must fall under $10,000

Click here for the rest of the qualifications, including how to apply.

New Aviation Jobs Coming to Albuquerque

Albuquerque is known for its diverse economy that has been gathering steam in the science and technology sectors in recent years. And soon, over 100 new manufacturing jobs will be coming to town, thanks to Eclipse Aerospace, a local aviation company.

According to Governor Martinez and Mayor Berry at a press conference at the Albuquerque International Sunport, the project will be coming here due in part to the city’s Economic Development action fund and state Local Economic Development Act funds.

This is certainly great news for our community. Not only will it add 100 new jobs, bring the total to 270 for Eclipse, but it will also be great for the local economy. The mayor noted that the company, the city and the state collaborated to bring the jobs here, with the state contributing $397,000 in LEDA funds, and the city pledging $238,000 in EDACT funds.

What does Eclipse Aerospace do, anyway? They are an Albuquerque-based American aircraft manufacturer that makes the Eclipse 500 and 550 fleets. You can read more about what they do on their website.

Click here to read more about the new jobs coming to ABQ!