Local News

By Margaret McKinney
Highlands University

New Mexico Highlands University social work graduate Gina DeLuca was featured in Bloomberg Businessweek for advocating to increase the sub-minimum wage for waitresses.

Congress is debating legislation that would increase both the national regular minimum wage of $7.25 per hour and the sub-minimum wage of $2.13 for workers who are tipped.

The Associated Press

PECOS — New Mexico State Forestry crews are battling a wildfire near Pecos in the Santa Fe National Forest that has prompted evacuations.

Officials say the blaze is burning Thursday evening about 10 miles north of Pecos and a mile west of the community of Tres Lagunas.

State forestry officials say the fire burning through pine forest has prompted an undetermined number of evacuations of homes and cabins north of the fire.

Lisa Darling, who has served as president of United World College-USA for eight years, is leaving the post “to explore other opportunities,” the school announced on its website Wednesday.

Darling and the school’s board of trustees agreed that it was time for new leadership as UWC-USA begins implementation of a strategic plan and other projects, the school announced.

District Attorney Richard Flores announced Thursday that he has asked a former prosecutor to step in and decide whether charges should be filed against various adults for their roles in an April 6 party and the resulting crash that left two girls dead.

Flores’ office is already prosecuting the alleged driver, Wayne Lovato, on charges of child abuse resulting in death, DWI and other offenses. Lovato is being tried as an adult even though he was 17 at the time of the crash.