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And the Oscar goes to UNM Students

Season 2
Episode #8
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It’s Hollywood’s biggest night for filmmakers and film stars, honoring the best of the best in the movie industry. Since the 1920s, the Oscars have separated actor nominees by gender, but nearly 100 years later, several students from the University of New Mexico’s Constitutional Law class are trying to change that. What began as a class research project in 2023 has evolved into a 99-page proposal submitted to the Academy Awards in California, arguing that the century-long tradition of separating nominees by gender may be legally and socially flawed. Today, we hear from Professor Lawrence Jones, the instructor behind the research project, and Senior Abigail McCoy, one of the students tackling the Academy Awards. In this episode, they explain why these University of New Mexico students are urging award leaders to establish an official task force for the Oscars from now on.

Learn more about the UNM proposal.

About Our Guest(s)

Lawrence Jones

Lawrence Jones is an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Political Science at The University of New Mexico and a former Superior Court Judge in New Jersey. He currently serves as the Vice-Chair of the New Mexico Supreme Court’s Commission on Statewide Alternative Dispute Resolution. Prof. Jones is also the co-creator and author of Point C, an educational tool for professionals and families going through contentious divorces. His research focuses extensively on constitutional law, domestic violence, family court issues involving children with autism, mediation, restorative justice/practice, and cultural competency/sensitivity.

Abigail McCoy

Abigail McCoy is a senior pursuing a double major in Political Science and Communication & Journalism at The University of New Mexico. After graduation, she hopes to attend law school at the University of Notre Dame, Duke University, or the University of Chicago, with aspirations of becoming a human rights or civil rights lawyer.

Hosted by UCAM's Alexa Skonieski

Carly Bowling headshot

From podcast listener to podcast host, Alexa Skonieski is a university communication representative on The University of New Mexico’s Communication and Marketing team (UCAM). She’s thrilled to spread the word on important research coming out of UNM, New Mexico’s flagship university. In addition to producing It’s (Probably) Not Rocket Science, she writes stories and creates videos for the UNM Newsroom, the university’s official communication platform.

Skonieski is a graduate of Central Michigan University’s School of Communication, Journalism, and Media (’19). She is a former news reporter/anchor who worked at TV stations in Michigan, Nebraska, and most recently in New Mexico at KRQE News 13, where she won a New Mexico Broadcasters Association award. She is passionate about academic research and wants its topics to be understandable and accessible to everyone. People should know the important role UNM plays. She hopes you’ll subscribe to the show and follow along!