NMSU Panorama-Fall 2020

PANORAMA New Mexico State University Alumni & Friends Magazine

Volume 76 Fall 2020 • FREE

RAPID RESPONSE NMSU faces pandemic challenges

+ALSO INSIDE: Lou Henson remembered

Welcome Back The Pistol Pete statue outside of Corbett Center Student Union on the NMSU Las Cruces campus reminded visitors, students, faculty and staff to wear masks during the first day of the fall 2020 semester. Following the State of New Mexico’s health guidelines, the university required everyone to wear masks and practice social distancing of at least six feet in all public spaces. Students starting the semester acknowledged the “Crimson Commitment,” which reinforced guidelines about social distancing, maskwearing and hand-washing, as well as the requirement to report a positive COVID-19 test result immediately to the Aggie Health & Wellness Center.

PHOTO BY JOSH BACHMAN

Fall 2020 | New Mexico State University | Panorama

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HELLO, AGGIES!

A

s we near the end of our fall 2020 semester, our students, staff and faculty continue to do a tremendous job during this COVID-19 era. By working together, we continue to manage some of the biggest challenges the pandemic has brought upon our university, and remain committed to making decisions in the best interest of our students.

Among our biggest campus heroes are our Facilities and Services personnel, many of whom remained on campus throughout the spring and summer preparing for our fall semester. They spent countless hours disinfecting buildings, setting up outdoor classroom tents and installing vending machines that dispensed disinfecting supplies. Our staff at the Aggie Health and Wellness Center also worked tirelessly to make sure we are all well informed about the risks of COVID-19, and helped coordinate testing sites on campus. We appreciate these individuals, and the countless others at NMSU, for all of their hard work.

This semester, we also have been able to expand our research and outreach efforts to include monitoring the spread of COVID-19 on campus and in our community, providing solutions to COVID-19 health care responses and expanding testing capabilities for southern New Mexico through our TriCore Reference Laboratories branch lab. And our NMSU alumni and friends have been amazing in their efforts to continue helping our students and communities despite this ordeal. Thank you for your support, especially during the most challenging of times.

This issue of Panorama is produced by the office of Marketing and Communications, New Mexico State University, 575-646-3221.

Correspondences may be sent to Marketing and Communications, MSC 3K, New Mexico State University, P.O. Box 30001, Las Cruces, NM 88003-3590 or panorama@nmsu.edu.

Panorama is published two times annually.

ISSN 2470-0649 New Mexico State University is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer and educator.

The magazine can be found online at panorama.nmsu.edu.

Editor Tiffany Acosta Assistant Editor Adriana M. Chávez ’19 Art Director Gerald Rel Contributors Amanda Adame ’19, Vladimir Avina ’18, Josh Bachman ’07, Minerva Baumann ’13, Linda Fresques, Megan Hansen ’06 ’09, Andrés Leighton, Carlos Andres López ’10, Brenden Martinez Jane Moorman, Darren Phillips, Melissa Rutter ’17, Carlos Trujillo Chancellor Dan Arvizu ’73 President John Floros President, NMSU Foundation Derek Dictson ’98

Dan Arvizu, Ph.D. ’73 NMSU Chancellor

A

ggie faithful, 2020 has been a year for the record books. Despite the myriad challenges COVID-19 has posed, the NMSU community has worked hard to stay safe and diligent during this difficult time.

While we couldn’t gather together in Las Cruces for one of my favorite times of the year, I hope you enjoyed our virtual Homecoming celebrations.

From special recognitions for the Classes of ’70, ’95 and ’10 to a virtual NMSU campus walk-tour to Distinguished Alumni Awards recognitions, the Alumni Association staff worked hard to create memorable experiences for you for 2020. I want to thank them for their ability to shift from what we have always known to what we know now. Their dedication to engage alumni in different ways is appreciated.

While staying connected may be harder than ever, we have another issue of Panorama to share with you focused on inspiring stories about our alumni, students, faculty, staff and friends.

We show how COVID-19 has affected many aspects of the campus experience, and we remember one of my favorite Aggies, coach Lou Henson, whom we lost in July 2020.

Through a year of staying and working from home, Aggies, you have continued to impress me with your strength and generosity.

Stay well Aggies.

Leslie Cervantes ’86 Associate Vice President of Alumni and Donor Relations University Advancement 2 Panorama | New Mexico State University | Fall 2020

Associate Vice President of Alumni and Donor Relations Leslie Cervantes ’86 Associate Vice President for Marketing and Communications Justin Bannister ’03 ’13 Executive Director of Marketing, Web and Brand Management Melissa Chavira ’03 ’05 ’11 Director of Communications and Media Relations Amanda Bradford ’03 Director of Alumni Relations Rebecca Galves ’01 NMSU Alumni Association International Board of Directors Executive Council President Carol Smallwood ’83 President-Elect Michael Law ’05 Secretary/Treasurer Adam Thompson ’08 Past President Scott Sponseller ’96 ’98 Executive Council Members Kristin Graham Chavez ’93 ’94, Krista Madril ’01, Tony Martinez ’96 ’98, Erika Swan ’95 2020© New Mexico State University POSTMASTER: Send address change notifications to Panorama, MSC 3590, New Mexico State University, P.O. Box 30001, Las Cruces, NM, 88003-88001

AGGIE SPORTS ARCHIVE

22 LOU'S LEGACY

The beloved coach elevated Aggie men’s basketball to new heights, changed lives for decades

CONTENTS

FALL 2020

14

ADAPTING & RESPONDING On the cover PHOTOS BY JOSH BACHMAN A LOOK AT NMSU'S NEW NORMAL DURING FALL 2020

NMSU students, employees and alumni confront the difficulties of COVID-19

20

LESSONS IN LEADERSHIP Aggies take the lead in navigating challenges of a COVID-19 world

24

AGGIES UNITED

26

A NOBLE JOURNEY

Aggies Without Limits members strive to make the world a better place

28

A GAME-CHANGING ADDITION

NMSU’s first endowed professorship in mathematical sciences established

ALSO INSIDE 4 Around Aggieland 30 Alumni Connections 35 Pete's Corner 36 Aggie Pride

NMSU leaders see progress in movement for diversity, inclusion

Fall 2020 | New Mexico State University | Panorama

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AROUND AGGIELAND

NMSU named Sherry Kollmann as its first vice provost for digital learning initiatives in March 2020, a new role created by Provost Carol Parker to develop and drive an online and digital education strategy for the university.

Kollmann’s role is focused on driving the development of new digital learning initiatives, guiding a growing portfolio of online programs, overseeing the infrastructure and processes to support their success, and assisting with the development of the business models upon which these initiatives operate – all during a pandemic, when the university system’s digital learning infrastructure must be more agile than Kollmann ever before.

Kollmann previously served as senior associate dean of business programs at Southern New Hampshire University and vice president of the School of Graduate and Professional Studies at New England College. Prior to her transition to higher education, she served as a business leader, where she collaborated and consulted with Fortune 500 organizations on workforce solutions.

She holds a bachelor’s degree from Bethel College, a Master of Arts degree from Concordia University, and Master of Education and Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma. Kollmann’s research specialties include digital learning, motivation in education, instructional design and integrated learning.

Amanda Bradford ’03

S

tudents in NMSU’s chapter of the National Society of Minorities in Hospitality captured a string of victories in 2020 that raised their profile in an organization that aims to educate, encourage and empower minority students interested in pursuing a hospitality career.

In February 2020, the chapter – comprised of students from the School of Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management – won four awards, including Chapter of the Year, at the The NMSU chapter of the National Society of annual NSMH Minorities in Hospitality celebrated winning the conference. The Chapter of the Year award and three other awards chapter also took during the annual NSMH conference in February. home the President of the Year award, honoring the work of the chapter’s current president and HRTM senior Alyssa Adams.

In June 2020, HRTM senior Diana Cook, who has been active in the chapter since 2018, was elected to the NSMH National Board as the national secretary for the 2020-2021 term.

“I am very proud of everything that they have accomplished this last year,” says HRTM faculty member Julie Correa, who serves as the chapter adviser. “They have worked very hard to raise the image of this organization and make it a group that others want to join. This has been such an awesome group of students to work with.”

Carlos Andres López ’10

COURTESY PHOTO

NMSU welcomes Anna, Age Eight Institute

Anna, Age Eight Institute co-directors Katherine Ortega Courtney (left) and Dominic Cappello. NMSU is now home to the institute.

4 Panorama | New Mexico State University | Fall 2020

NMSU’s Department of Family and Consumer Sciences is now home to the Anna, Age Eight Institute, which seeks to prevent adverse childhood experiences among New Mexico’s children.

Under an agreement with Northern New Mexico College, where the institute was established in 2019, NMSU is the institute’s new home, allowing for the institute to work with NMSU’s Cooperative Extension Service infrastructure to expand its services throughout the state.

“We are pleased to welcome the Anna, Age Eight Institute to its new home here at NMSU,” says NMSU President John Floros.

“The move will allow the institute to build on the good work that began at Northern New Mexico College to create a statewide network to support children and their families experiencing trauma and social adversity.”

Anna, Age Eight Institute uses a data-driven process focused on building the capacity of local government, non-governmental agencies and the business sector to provide the surviving and thriving services that community members need to strengthen health, safety and resilience.

For more information about the institute, visit annaageeight.org.

Adriana M. Chávez ’19

BRENDEN MARTINEZ

COURTESY PHOTO

Kollmann becomes first vice provost for digital learning initiatives

HRTM students garner national awards

Inaugural Faculty Fellows selected CARLOS TRUJILLO

Two NMSU professors will lead the university’s globalization and border relations efforts as the inaugural Provost’s Faculty Fellows.

Provost Carol Parker named Geography Associate Professor Christopher Brown as the Faculty Fellow for the Beyond Borders Community of Practice, and Sociology Associate Professor David G. Ortiz as the Faculty Fellow for the Center for Latin American and Border Studies.

As the Faculty Fellow for Beyond Borders Community of Practice, Brown will focus on international, hemispheric and border regions in alignment with the NMSU LEADS 2025 Global Challenge. He will work closely with faculty and academic leaders from across NMSU and with members of the external community.

Ortiz will serve as the leader, convener and fellow for a newly reinvigorated Center for Latin American and Border Studies, which will focus on promoting excellence in scholarship, research and creative works on topics and issues concerning Latin America, the U.S.-Mexico border and general border studies across NMSU.

Adriana M. Chávez ’19

COURTESY PHOTO

Brown

Ortiz

Gonzalez becomes highest MLB draft pick in Aggie history

ALTOONA CURVE

With the seventh overall pick in the 2020 Major League Baseball draft, the Pittsburgh Pirates selected Aggie shortstop Nick Gonzalez. A Vail, Arizona, native, Gonzales began his Aggie career as a walk-on.

In Gonzalez’ third and final season as an Aggie, Collegiate Baseball Newspaper named him National Player of the Year and first team All-American after he recorded a .448 batting average through the first 16 games of the shortened 2020 season. He ranked first in the NCAA in several categories, including home runs with 12. Gonzalez also owned a nation-best on-base streak of 82 consecutive games when the season was suspended in March 2020.

Additional postseason accolades for Gonzalez include second team Academic All-America honors from the College Sports Information Directors of America and Western Athletic Conference’s Joe Kearney Award for the top male studentathlete in the conference.

Tiffany Acosta

Athletics launches new collaborations

E

ven though fall 2020 sports were postponed, the Aggies’ Athletics Department has unveiled two new collaborations. Pistol Pete’s Crimson Legacy Cabernet Sauvignon from Lescombes Family Vineyards and Pistol Pete’s Six-Shooter Whiskey from Dry Point Distillers are now available.

“We are thrilled to collaborate with both Dry Point Distillery and Lescombes on these exciting new projects,” Athletics Director Mario Moccia says. “This puts NM State at the forefront of innovation in this category of licensed products and will be a revenue generator during a time when it is needed most. The cherry on top is we hope this will stimulate awareness and new sales/revenue when small businesses in New Mexico need it desperately.”

“My father and I started this business two years ago and would dream of a big NMSU spirit collaboration while we sipped drinks,” says Chris Schaefer ’08, Dry Point Distillers co-owner.

This collaboration is a first between the university and a spirit maker.

Brandon Young ’97 ’05, CEO at Lescombes Family Vineyards, says they were excited to work with NMSU on the Crimson Legacy project. It’s not the first collaboration, as they’ve teamed up before with the Cooperative Extension Service and the School of Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management. NMSU is among the first dozen universities in the nation to have a licensed wine.

“We are also proud to have a few Aggie alumni working here at Lescombes Family Vineyards, myself included,” Young says.

“Another inspiration was seeing what the team at NMSU and Bosque Brewing did with their Pistol Pete’s 1888 Ale and felt it would be fitting to have an official wine.”

Pistol Pete’s Crimson Legacy is available at all Lescombes locations, on its website at nmsu.life/CrimsonLegacy and can be shipped to 40 states. Pistol Pete’s Six-Shooter Whiskey is available at Dry Point Distillers in Mesilla and local retailers such as Pic Quik stores, Toucan Market and Kelly Liquors. Both Schaefer and Young hope to expand distribution to additional retailers in the state.

Tiffany Acosta

Fall 2020 | New Mexico State University | Panorama

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hame Camarena, a first-generation college student and native Californian, is the new leader of the NMSU William Conroy Honors College, having been named the college’s third dean in July 2020 by NMSU Provost Carol Parker.

“I am excited for the opportunity to build on the exceptional foundation of high-quality honors education already offered by the William Conroy Honors College at New Mexico State University,” Camarena says. “At this time of historical crisis, I understand the importance of ensuring that the Honors College serves the needs of the whole university, while supporting students in the honors community so they can aim higher and achieve more meaningfully.”

Camarena has more than 15 years of administrative experience, most recently as director of the Central Michigan University Honors Program, a position he held for the past 10 years. Camarena says that as leader of the Honors Program at CMU, he drew upon his personal experiences as a firstgeneration college student in an honors program.

“Honors education helped to transform my life and now it is my sincerest privilege to continue that same spirit of transformative learning as the dean of the William Conroy Honors College,” Camarena says.

Adriana M. Chávez ’19

JOSH BACHMAN

First-generation college student chosen to lead William Conroy Honors College

JOSH BACHMAN

Sanchez aims to cultivate new opportunities for Physical Science Lab

6 Panorama | New Mexico State University | Fall 2020

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eamwork and trust are two important components to leading an organization.

Retired Army Brig. Gen. Eric L. Sanchez ’87 plans to apply that philosophy as the new director of NMSU’s Physical Science Laboratory. Sanchez began his tenure at PSL as deputy director in October 2019 after three decades of military service.

He was appointed director in June 2020 after Jim Chavez ’81 stepped down.

One of Sanchez’ goals is to empower and encourage PSL’s employees and students.

“In order to create new opportunities, which is what we are trying to do, you also have to invest in your organization,” he says.

Other goals include reviving student programs and enhancing faculty interaction. A student talent development program for junior and senior year students, the Classified Ready Employee Workforce program, allows students to gain national security experience and a security clearance, was launched in fall 2020.

“We’re looking for opportunities for research with faculty and also looking at potential joint appointments,” Sanchez says. “We’re trying to bring in different faculty researchers, so they are not afraid to walk across the street and have conversations with us.”

Founded by NMSU in 1946, PSL has supported various government and private sector scientific and technical activities throughout the United States and the world through contracts and research agreements—a tradition Sanchez plans to continue.

Tiffany Acosta

COURTESY PHOTO

I

n fall 2019, the Chaparral Outreach Program in Chaparral, New Mexico, kick-started the STEM Sisterhood program to encourage seventh- and eighth-grade girls to explore STEM careers and pursue their education at NMSU.

While the program was met with a successful start, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought progress to a halt. NMSU College of Education staff members Erika Acosta, Michelle Sterling-Rodriguez and Yomara Rios-Laurenzana ’19 are hopeful they can secure funding to continue the program.

The STEM Sisterhood began in November 2019 as a pilot project at Chaparral Middle School with 90 girls. However, 200 girls at the school expressed interest in participating.

“Since we were going to take the girls to in-person labs on the NMSU campus, such as the robotics lab and the flight simulation lab, we could only accommodate so many girls,” Acosta says. “We were looking into continuing the program with 2020 summer camps, but then COVID happened.”

The initial funds that made the STEM Sisterhood possible were part of legislative funding given to the Chaparral community to raise STEM awareness among teachers, students and families. The funds paid for transportation for students to the NMSU Las Cruces campus, meals at Taos and special T-shirts for the girls. The kickoff included a forum featuring a diverse group of current NMSU female students in STEM-related degrees, then continued with various hands-on workshops in the College of Education, College of Engineering and Doña Ana Community College.

The funding also helped the outreach program give scholarships to more than 65 Chaparral High School graduating seniors to help pay for registration and orientation fees.

“What we found in talking to the teachers is a lot of times, we don’t have the time or resources to be able to help students who need guidance with higher education and career exploration,” Acosta says. “Some of these girls had never stepped foot on a college campus before, and with this program they were able to walk around campus and see themselves as future Aggies.”

Rios-Laurenzana, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from NMSU, says seeing the girls participate in the STEM Sisterhood was inspiring for her as a student.

“It was my senior year in college, and I don’t think you realize how much you need a role model to follow until you’re older,” Rios-Laurenzana says. “I think the STEM Sisterhood was an amazing example of keeping these girls moving forward as women in STEM.”

To learn more about STEM Outreach Center programs visit stemcenter.nmsu.edu/funding-sources.

Adriana M. Chávez ’19

COURTESY PHOTO

Girls from Chaparral Middle School learn about STEM, life as future Aggies

Top: The Chaparral Outreach Program in Chaparral, New Mexico, began in fall 2019 with 90 girls at Chaparral Middle School.

The program, created by staff members in the NMSU College of Education, encouraged girls to pursue STEM careers and higher education studies at NMSU. Bottom: Members of the STEM Sisterhood at Chaparral Middle School participated in labs on the NMSU campus in fall 2019, including the robotics lab and the flight simulation lab at O’Donnell Hall. The program was poised to continue through 2020 until the COVID-19 pandemic threatened funding and participation.

Fall 2020 | New Mexico State University | Panorama

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8 Panorama | New Mexico State University | Fall 2020

Camila Prieto (left) and Madison Baker check the temperature of red wine recently pulled from barrels during a winemaking course, which is open to students and community members.

“Many of our students, especially through the Extension workshop, just want to gain an understanding and appreciation of what it takes to make a bottle of wine.

“

B

efore you can swirl, sniff and sip a glass of New Mexico wine, someone has to grow, crush, press and ferment the grapes, bottle the wine and get it to consumers.

NMSU offers a class that teaches both the science behind wine production and the business skills and theories needed to create a successful small winery or vineyard in New Mexico.

“Winemaking is an art,” says Dale Ellis, College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences agriculture business adjunct instructor. “It’s science-based, but there is an art to it. I get to teach the fun part, the art of creating something new out of raw grapes.”

The academic course and Cooperative Extension Service workshop has been offered since 2008. Instructors Ellis and Daniel Goodrich, viticulture program coordinator in NMSU’s Cooperative Extension Service plant science department, have been involved with the program since 2014 and 2010, respectively.

“The class originally targeted hobby and amateur winemakers, but has evolved to include people involved in the industry, which includes 80-plus licensed wineries,” Goodrich says.

“Many of our students, especially through the Extension workshop, just want to gain an understanding and appreciation of what it takes to make a bottle of wine,” Ellis says.

The class participants harvest grapes from the College of ACES vineyard at the Fabian Garcia Science Center and create wine.

“We have more than 60 varieties of grapes in the vineyard, so we are able to experiment with different blends,” Goodrich says.

“Last year we made a white wine from Malbec red grapes,” Ellis says. “It was different for us because we hadn’t done a white wine out of red grapes.”

Annually, wine created during the class is entered in the New Mexico State Fair competition and is judged by the New Mexico Vine and Wine Society.

“For the last six years, every wine that we have submitted has won bronze or better medals,” Ellis says. “Our entries are in competition with the commercial wineries and about 400 wines are submitted.”

For the wine enthusiast, the course allows them to discover the fine nuances of the different wines during the tasting profiles.

“We try to demonstrate to people that there is a broad spectrum of wines,” Ellis says. “We try to give them a good appreciation for what they are really getting when they buy a bottle of wine no matter what the price.”

Jane Moorman

JOSH BACHMAN

Course offers art of winemaking with a dash of science

–DALE ELLIS,

College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences agriculture business adjunct instructor

AGGIE MILESTONES 70 years The Carlsbad Instructional Center, the first community college in New Mexico, is created by an agreement between the New Mexico College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts and the Carlsbad Board of Education in 1950. Ten years later, the center was renamed as a branch campus of New Mexico

130 years

In September 1890, the cornerstone was laid for McFie

Hall, also known as “Old Main.” The building was named for prominent Las Crucen and judge John R. McFie and was destroyed by a fire 20 years later. The cornerstone still stands on the NMSU Horseshoe, next to the flagpole.

State University.

65 years

Clyde Tombaugh, who discovered Pluto in 1930, arrived as a faculty member at the New Mexico College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts in 1955. He was instrumental in designing and obtaining funding for NMSU’s Tortugas Mountain Observatory.

60 years

New Mexico State University of Agriculture,

Engineering and Science shortens its name, officially becoming New Mexico State University in 1960.

45 years

The first NuMex plant varieties were released. The NuMex Big Jim chile, a popular type of chile pepper developed by chile breeder Roy Nakayama in 1975, was the first NuMex cultivar of any sort.

Fall 2020 | New Mexico State University | Panorama

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AROUND AGGIELAND

AGGIE BRAGGING

rights

Creative Media Institute programs rank in top 25

TOP TIER

NMSU receives top tier designation

For the sixth consecutive year, NMSU has been recognized as a top tier university according to the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges for 2021 rankings. NMSU is tied for 241 for national universities, tied for 117 in top public schools and tied for 119 for top performers on social mobility.

Additionally, NMSU is tied for 145 in undergraduate engineering programs, tied for 171 in undergraduate computer science programs, a new category, and tied for 201 in undergraduate business programs. The rankings are based on outcomes, faculty resources, expert opinion, financial resources, student excellence and alumni giving.

10 Panorama | New Mexico State University | Fall 2020

The Animation Career Review ranked NMSU’s animation and visual effects program 22nd among the country’s public animation schools and colleges for 2020.

The Creative Media Institute program also ranked sixth among the top 10 animation schools in the Southwest.

CMI’s animation curriculum includes focus on the art, craft and business of storytelling as well as 2D animation, 3D animation, character design and development, digital illustration, drawing for animation, modeling, rigging for 3D animation, screenwriting, sets and environment, 2D and 3D production studio, visual effects and writing for animation.

Programs earn graduate schools ranking

Several NMSU graduate programs have been recognized on the U.S. News & World Report’s Best Graduate Schools 2021 rankings. Graduate programs in the College of Education, College of Engineering, College of Business, College of Health and Social Services and College of Arts and Sciences were ranked.

U.S. News & World Report ranks professional school programs in business, education, engineering, law, medicine and nursing along with area specialties annually. The rankings are based on two types of data: expert opinions about program excellence and statistical indicators that measure the quality of a school’s faculty, research and students.

Studio G among most successful university business incubators

Arrowhead Center’s Studio G, NMSU’s student business accelerator, is featured in Forbes’ “Which colleges produce the most start-ups.” Universityrelated business incubators are one metric for how colleges can lead to successful startsups. Research has shown that university incubators have a lasting impact on a startup growth, which helps more new companies reach viability. The piece referenced UBI Global’s university business incubator rankings, which looked at factors such as the program’s impact on economic growth, access to network partners and access to funding.

Faculty

Regents Professor receives second national Fellow designation

NMSU Regents Professor Bernd Leinauer has been nominated and elected as a 2020 Fellow of the Crop Science Society of America. The award is presented for outstanding contributions to crop science through education, national and international service, and research. The fellow designation is the highest recognition bestowed by the Crop Science Society of America. Only 0.3 percent of members have an opportunity to be elected as a fellow.

Leinauer has been with NMSU since 2000 as the turfgrass specialist in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences Cooperative Extension Service.

The award is especially noteworthy because Leinauer was named American Society of Agronomy Fellow in 2017. Being recognized as a fellow by two separate societies is an accomplishment that very few scientists achieve.

In addition to his work for NMSU, he also holds the endowed turfgrass chair position at Wageningen University in the Netherlands.

Jane Moorman

COURTESY PHOTO

NASA grant allows astronomers to analyze Jupiter’s atmosphere

A $283,800 grant from NASA’s New Frontiers Data Analysis Program will allow NMSU astronomers to investigate the Juno mission, which is currently in orbit around Jupiter.

“We proposed to analyze some infrared images and spectra of Jupiter’s atmosphere to try to understand the circulation patterns and the waves, and the transition between orderly and chaotic circulations in Jupiter’s atmosphere,” says Nancy Chanover, astronomy professor and principal investigator on the project.

The team of researchers working with Chanover (right) includes co-investigators Jason Jackiewicz, astronomy associate professor; Wladimir Lyra (left), astronomy assistant professor; and Ali Hyder (center), astronomy Ph.D. student.

Like the sun, the atmosphere of Jupiter is made up of mostly hydrogen and helium gas. Each professor will approach the data differently: Chanover from the upper cloud deck of Jupiter; Jackiewicz from the interior and vertical motions within the atmosphere; and Lyra from numerical simulations of fluids of all astrophysical kinds.

Minerva Baumann ’13

Air Force ROTC commander promoted

AMANDA ADAME

DARREN PHILLIPS

Successes

Wendy Woodard joined NMSU’s Air Force ROTC Detachment 505 Pistoleros as a commander and community builder in 2018.

Her duties include leading and overseeing all training activities and academic courses for all current cadets. Woodard is also the department head of aerospace studies.

Woodard came to NMSU from Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, where she was a lieutenant colonel and an instructor pilot. After just two years at NMSU, she was promoted to colonel and will continue to mold the characters of AFROTC students.

“Having a third year with them means I get to see and hopefully impact their continued development as officer candidates, students and citizens,” Woodard says. “This is a true gift because I am able to continue building relationships with the community, university and especially the cadets in Detachment 505 at NMSU.” Amanda Adame ’19

Fall 2020 | New Mexico State University | Panorama

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W

hen Stephanie Hernandez’s husband died in 1998, the young mother of one was devastated.

Not knowing exactly what she had in mind for her life, Hernandez ’02, ’03, ’06, ’19 enrolled at NMSU Alamogordo, where she was introduced to a career in business and cultivated a passion for higher education.

Hernandez is Alamogordo’s assistant city manager and speaks highly of the benefits of having NMSU Alamogordo in her hometown.

From being a widow with a child, to happily married with five children, she earned associate and bachelor’s degrees in accounting and economics, and master’s degrees in economics and educational leadership. She is now pursuing a doctorate degree in educational leadership and administration with an emphasis on government.

“I may work for the city now, but higher education has always been my thing,” says Hernandez. “I try to get as many people as I can to just take a class, even if they don’t keep on going to obtain a degree.”

The way forward for Hernandez took her and her daughter to Las Cruces, where Hernandez could continue her education while supporting her child.

After earning her bachelor’s degree in accounting, she worked in NMSU’s budget, accounting and Foundation departments for 20 years while completing her other degrees.

“A community college provides so much more than what people realize,” she says. “It is a valuable Stephanie Hernandez displays her Aggie pride in her office at the City of Alamogordo. asset that provides a huge service to the community in many ways.”

Besides bridging the gap from high school to college, community colleges provide certificate training as the region’s economic development shifts.

“I never want to downplay certification programs, because they are so important,” Hernandez says. “There are certifications, not tied to a college degree, that are important in the community, such as auto mechanic, and, probably, are more valuable in some instances because of the community’s need.”

Hernandez has established an endowment in her maternal grandparents’ name, Pomposo G. and Josefina R. Misquez Endowed Scholarship, for first-generation college students attending NMSU Alamogordo as an additional way to encourage others to continue their education.

In honor of her husband, Cruz Hernandez’ 20-year service in the military, the couple has established the Perfecto Ben “Chico” Segura and Cruz Hernandez Veteran’s Endowed Scholarship at NMSU. Segura was Cruz Hernandez’ boxing coach.

Jane Moorman

12 Panorama | New Mexico State University | Fall 2020

COURTESY PHOTO

NMSU Alamogordo courses sparked passion for higher education

Partnership begins work to expand health care workforce in New Mexico

JOSH BACHMAN

related services in communities across the state.”

In fall 2020, CHSS began awarding the scholarships created through the BCBSNM gift to students in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing and the Bachelor of Social Work programs. The recipients have each pledged to gain health care-related employment in New Mexico immediately following graduation, preferably in behavioral health, and remain employed for at least one year.

Carlos Andres López ’10 ANDRÉS LEIGHTON

U

nder a mission to develop and expand the workforce of nurses and social workers in New Mexico, a new partnership between the NMSU College of Health and Social Services and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico began to take shape in fall 2020.

Through a $500,000 gift from BCBSNM, CHSS created a new faculty position in the NMSU School of Nursing and funded 40 scholarships for seniors in undergraduate nursing and social work programs who have committed to working in New Mexico for at least one year after graduating.

“Expanding the workforce of nurses and social workers in New Mexico is critical in providing access to care and promoting the health of our state’s Medicaid population,” says Sharon Huerta, BCBSNM vice president of New Mexico Medicaid Operations. “The new faculty position at NMSU will play a key role in training the students who will soon be serving our communities as nurses and social workers.”

The new Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico Nursing Professor of Practice is dedicated to preparing nursing, nurse practitioner and social work students for New Mexico’s workforce. Elizabeth Kuchler, a board-certified family nurse practitioner who has been a faculty member in the School of Nursing for the past five years, was appointed to the position in August 2020.

“Dr. Kuchler is a dedicated teacher, student adviser and mentor. She has close to 40 years as Kuchler a registered nurse with a focus in public health nursing and has specialized in the care of children and adolescents as a nurse practitioner for the past 15 years,” says Alexa Doig, director of the School of Nursing.

In addition to continuing her work as a nurse educator in the Doctor of Nursing Practice program, Kuchler now serves in the role of the director of Clinical Placements for Nurse Practitioner Programs, engaging in community outreach focusing on nursing workforce development.

“I am both proud and humbled by this opportunity to be the bridge between the College of Health and Social Services and the School of Nursing and our community partners,” Kuchler says. “With our combined efforts, we will prepare nurse practitioners and social workers for the benefit of all New Mexicans. These health care and social services providers will be able to improve access to health care and

Left: Elizabeth Kuchler was appointed as the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico Nursing Professor of Practice in the NMSU School of Nursing and will prepare nursing, nurse practitioner and social work students for New Mexico’s workforce.

Top: Sharneece Pratt (left) and Stephen Montoya earned bachelor’s degrees in nursing in 2019. A donation from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico is funding 40 scholarships for students in bachelor-level nursing and social work programs and the new faculty position as part of a new partnership with the College of Health and Social Services.

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ADAPTING RESPONDING From innovations to donations to transformations, the NMSU community has found ways to help each other and communities handle the once-in-a-century pandemic.

Here’s a look at a slice of life in 2020.

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NMSU students, employees and alumni confront the difficulties of COVID-19

Facilities and Services staff work to reduce COVID-19 risks

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ince the COVID-19 pandemic forced NMSU to move its instruction and many of its operations online in March 2020, Facilities and Services staff have worked tirelessly to mitigate the risk of the virus’ spread on campus.

During the spring and summer months, the 120-person Facilities and Services crew remained on campus as essential employees, disinfecting all 136 buildings on campus. In preparation for the return to campus for faculty and students in August 2020, crew members were busy installing distance markers and safety shields, making modifications to classrooms, and putting up signage reminding campus employees, students and visitors to wear masks.

Staff also installed vending machines containing face masks and supplies designed to make it easier for faculty, staff and students to do their part to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

“Every day, I’m hearing about how members of our university community across the entire NMSU system are doing incredible, heroic work,” says NMSU Chancellor Dan Arvizu. “These Facilities and Services workers are on the front lines of NMSU’s fight to minimize the impact of this virus on our Aggie community, and I’m truly grateful for their dedication.”

Adriana M. Chávez ’19

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Engineers supply personal protective equipment

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hen COVID-19 became an unfortunate part of life, NMSU College of Engineering Aggie Innovation Space employees and students added the design and production of personal protective equipment to their workload. Since then, they have supplied the Las Cruces community and the NMSU campus with much needed gear.

They have produced more than 2,000 face shields for hospitals, nursing students and police, and child-sized shields for students who require face-to-face services in public schools. Protective plexiglass desk shields were produced for various campus high-student traffic locations, such as the Natatorium and Activity Center, and academic offices.

AIS student employees are working on the development of a sanitizing mister, which is difficult to find.

Senior Mechanical Technician Taylor Fresques and student innovator Veronica Gurrola say the projects have given them great experience and the reward of seeing their work benefit others.

Since its official opening in 2014, the Aggie Innovation Space has been an avenue for students to have access to stateof-the-art resources, receive hands-on experience and cultivate innovation and entrepreneurship. For more information, contact innovate@nmsu.edu.

Linda Fresques

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Recording the experience

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hen personal protective equipment for health care workers became scarce, Roadrunner 3D, a subsidiary of Westwind Computer Products, Inc., began producing 3D-printed face shields, mask adjusters and hands-free door controls using groundbreaking technology.

Since March 2020, Roadrunner 3D has produced more than 40,000 pieces of PPE for health care workers across the country, according to Westwind President Steve Hull ’87 and Westwind CEO Frances Jaramillo ’84, ’86.

“It’s amazing to see how technology can come into play in a variety of Hull ways. Our partnerships al-

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low us to provide support to those on the frontline of the COVID crisis, and we couldn’t be prouder,” says Hull, who joined Westwind in 1998 and became its president in May 2017.

“Westwind focuses Jaramillo on total solutions. With Roadrunner 3D, we wanted the same ‘total solution’ focus for 3D-print customers. Our team rallied to create PPE solutions in support of health care workers and educators here and around the country,” says Jaramillo, a former public school educator who joined the company in 2016 and became its CEO in 2017.

Carlos Andres López ’10

WESTWIND

Alums pivot to personal protective equipment production

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hile 2020 may not be a year some people will want to remember, the NMSU Library Archives and Special Collections staff knows how important it is to record life during the COVID-19 pandemic, and established a COVID-19 archive for the local community.

“While the traditional archival collecting model waits for events to run their course before documentary evidence is acquired, archivists around the country are creating rapid response collections to document this historic event,” says Dylan McDonald, political papers archivist and special collections librarian. “Future scholars, historians, scientists, health experts and students will want to understand how we in 2020 reacted and experienced this pandemic.”

Archives and Special Collections is focused on collecting digital materials and hopes to post submitted materials on its digital repository for public viewing by the end of 2020. Submissions from students, faculty, staff, retired faculty, alumni, writers, poets and residents across New Mexico include student assignments on the educational and collective impact of the pandemic, short films, an original song, photos, poems and journal entries.

Community submissions are still being accepted online at openstacks.nmsu.edu/covid19.

Tiffany Acosta

Roadrunner 3D, a subsidiary of Westwind Computer Products, Inc., produces 4,000 3D-printed face shields a week.

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COVID-19 contact tracing app developed for campus

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COVID-19 contact tracing app for smartphones is available for those on the NMSU campus. It identifies whether users are are within six feet of a COVID-19 positive patient for at least 15 minutes if the user allows the app to track their GPS location.

The application developed by NMSU computer science graduate students Fabio Tardivo and Thanh Nguyen, along with undergraduate computer science student Long Tran, will allow those on campus to directly self-report positive COVID-19 results to the Aggie Health and Wellness Center. That report will trigger a number of features in the application.

If the user doesn’t allow the GPS to track them, but connects with the wireless network on campus, that data can be used instead or people can register through the online self-check portal. The data generated through the app is reported to the Aggie Health and Wellness Center, which follows New Mexico Department of Health notification protocols.

Minerva Baumann ’13 NMSU Computer Science students Long Tran, Thanh Nguyen and Fabio Tardivo developed a phone app that will aid the NMSU community in contact tracing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Extending a helping hand

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hen a community found itself in need of help, Michael Ray, director of NMSU’s American Indian Program, didn’t waste any time stepping up to the plate.

Located nearly five hours from Las Cruces, the Navajo community of Crownpoint can be found on the northwestern side of New Mexico in McKinley County. The community’s small size and remoteness meant that access to food and supplies could sometimes be a challenge. With the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, that limited access became increasingly problematic.

Ray says bigger relief agencies can miss small communities like Crownpoint, so he reached out to Crownpoint COVID-19 Relief for help. Ray and his wife were able to make various trips, and more than $30,000 was raised on a GoFundMe page thanks to the NMSU community. Ray is hoping to start a trend among other diverse communities to help each other when the time comes.

“Aggies look after Aggies,” he says.

Melissa Rutter ’17

NMSU's American Indian Program partnered with the Crownpoint COVID-19 Relief to address the need for supplies unavailable in nearby stores in Crownpoint, New Mexico. Tracie Benally, an English teacher at Crownpoint High School, founded the organization.

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Toheeb Mustapha, a public health graduate student, looks over consent forms turned in by participants of the joint study between NMSU and Electronic Caregiver on a COVID-19 monitoring system. The study evaluates the feasibility of an automated telehealth system that monitors COVID-19 symptoms.

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Testing lab established on campus

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A temperature probe is part of a monitoring system given to participants in a study at the College of Health and Social Services. A team of public health researchers at NMSU launched a study in summer 2020 in partnership with Las Cruces-based Electronic Caregiver to evaluate the feasibility of an automated telehealth system that monitors COVID-19 symptoms.

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new testing lab based at NMSU’s Las Cruces campus allows for faster processing of tests for the novel coronavirus infection.

The partnership with TriCore Reference Laboratories to establish a branch lab at Foster Hall also will create internship and collaborative research opportunities for students and faculty in the future.

“This will allow us to conduct very broad testing across our campus at a very low cost in our efforts to help manage the spread of this virus,” says NMSU Chancellor Dan Arvizu.

NMSU received funding from the New Mexico Department of Health to support the lab, which will provide much-needed testing capability in the region.

Albuquerque-based TriCore provides expertise with CLIA regulations, scientific validations, medical directorships, policies and procedures and lab operations, and other critical elements that allow the laboratory to function. The Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine at NMSU also is a lab partner.

Adriana M. Chávez ’19

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Aggies step up

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n fall 2019, the President’s Office partnered with the NMSU Foundation to create the Aggie Student Emergency Fund in the Office of Dean of Students as a resource for students who experienced emergency financial need.

When COVID-19 caused NMSU to change to an all online instruction format for the reminder of the spring 2020 semester, the NMSU Foundation partnered with the Office of Dean of Students to generate support for the Aggie Student Emergency Fund, which provides vital financial assistance for students experiencing hardship. Donations support students with critical resources such as utilities, food, housing and technology upgrades.

Through the CARES Act, NMSU received $7 million for emergency financial aid grants for students. Since not every student was eligible for CARES funding, donors raised almost $19,000 for the Aggie Student Emergency Fund, which offered another option for assistance.

In April 2020, members of the NMSU Foundation hosted a benefit concert to raise awareness and support for students.

On May 5, 2020, the NMSU Foundation participated in #GivingTuesdayNow, a new global day of giving launched in response to the unprecedented need caused by COVID-19.

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Staying connected

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hen course instruction transitioned to an online format in March 2020, NMSU leadership used online town hall meetings as a way to provide valuable information to the community and a forum for faculty, staff, students and parents to ask questions and express concerns about COVID-19 precautions and regulations on campus.

After President John Floros requested Milton Hall for the town hall broadcasts, staff from Instructional Media Services facilitated the operation and provided on-site tech support. Town halls were conducted for 10 consecutive weeks until the summer when Multi-Media Specialist David the broadcasts moved to twice a month. MultiChavez provides on-site tech Media Specialist David Chavez ’07, not only assisted support for the NMSU leadership town hall broadcasts. with the town halls but also was among the many staff members, including Frank Sage, Frank Altamirano and their student technicians from ICT Classroom Technologies, who spent part of summer 2020 preparing classrooms by mounting cameras and microphones.

“This was and still is a team effort from these units,” Chavez says. “ICT Classroom Tech, Academic Technology and Instructional Media Services all work very closely with each other to guide faculty on how to operate the technology, give strategies to instructors on how to teach students both face-to-face and remotely, and of course, give tips on how to use the many tools in Zoom.”

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NMSU Chancellor Dan Arvizu spent the first day of the fall 2020 semester greeting students and employees including Laura Hernandez of NMSU Dining Services.

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hether it’s overseeing a university system with more than 25,000 students, or administering one of the most consequential elections in United States history, or helming the kitchen of a new restaurant, Aggies are at the forefront of navigating the challenges of a COVID-19 world.

“Frankly, I think it is a test of leadership because there is no playbook,” says NMSU Chancellor Dan Arvizu ’73. “I’ve got 40 years of career experience, and I’ve never seen anything like it in my entire history of leading change and leading institutions and being part of something bigger than myself.”

At NMSU, Arvizu and President John Floros assembled the university’s COVID-19 Rapid Response Team, headed by Vice Chancellor Ruth A. Johnston. They tasked the team with collecting and evaluating the influx of evolving information surrounding the coronavirus and ultimately developing the framework for the #NMSUReady Plan, which outlines NMSU’s return to on-campus operations.

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LESSONS in

LEADERSHIP

Aggies take the lead in navigating challenges of a COVID-19 world

By Carlos Andres López ’10

NMCO PLAZA HOTEL PIONEER PARK

Doña Ana County Clerk Amanda López Askin and her staff worked hard to prepare for the 2020 primary and general elections.

Chef Andres Padilla puts the finishing touches on dessert plates during the June 2020 opening of Ambar Restaurante in the newly-renovated Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park in El Paso.

data-driven, and to a large degree, inspirational because so many people have stepped up into the breach,” Arvizu says.

“Our first priority is the health, well-being and safety of our staff, our faculty, our students and our community,” he adds. “At the same time, we have a mission to continue academic progress and educate our citizens through instruction, research and outreach.”

Arvizu says one key to getting NMSU off to a strong start in fall 2020 is the partnerships the university has sought out with the state, the city of Las Cruces and community business leaders.

Doña Ana County Clerk Amanda López Askin ’99, ’02, ’16 watched as voters in places like Wisconsin and Georgia waited in long lines to cast ballots in primary elections.

Those images were “disheartening,” López Askin says, and put into greater focus how the pandemic could potentially affect elections in Doña Ana County during a presidential year.

“For the average person election day is one day of the year, but for those of us who work in elections and administering elections, it never stops,” says López Askin, who was appointed to the clerk’s position in 2018. “Since March, we have been working on election official recruitment, making sure that our office is fully staffed, that we have all the supplies we need, and that we have all the equipment we need.”

Since her appointment, López Askin has administered a mid-term election in 2018 and directed local elections in 2019 for all municipalities in Doña Ana County, including Las Cruces’ first election using ranked-choice voting. Her third election was the June 2020 primary, which saw a record number of absentee ballots.

Despite the pandemic’s devastating toll on the restaurant industry, award-winning chef Andres Padilla ’03 played a leading role in opening Ambar Restaurante in the newly-renovated Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park in El Paso during summer 2020. Padilla, a New Mexico native who spent 12 years working in restaurants in Chicago, including with celebrity chef Rick Bayless, relocated to Las Cruces in 2019 to oversee Ambar’s kitchen and develop its menu of modern Mexican cuisine.

“It’s changed the direction of this entire industry,” Padilla says of the pandemic. “All of us around the country, in restaurants and hotels, were thinking about what it means to open during a pandemic, especially a pandemic as serious as this one, and how you do it safely.”

After the June 2020 opening of Ambar, Padilla saw promising signs that people wanted to immerse themselves in the restaurant experience again. He encourages students who are entering the industry to look on the bright side.

“The industry is not completely dead,” he says. “I think that there’s a huge opportunity coming, and we’re hoping that we get restaurants to get back on track.”

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NMSU LIBRARY ARCHIVES & SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

Lou's

LEGACY The beloved coach elevated Aggie men’s basketball to new heights, changed lives for decades

By Tiffany Acosta

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ith a paper napkin and a pen, Lou Henson ’55 ’56 shared his thoughts and diagrammed a 2-3 zone during breakfast with William Keys ’00.

“When he talked about basketball, he just lit up,” Keys says. “He was a pure genius when it came to coaching and getting the best out of young men. His temperament was amazing.”

A men’s basketball assistant coach at Northern New Mexico College, Keys pursued coaching after playing for Henson for two seasons and 14 years as a professional.

Henson, who passed away in July 2020, was the all-time winningest men’s basketball head coach in Aggie and University of Illinois history.

He spent 16 seasons and two stints as the Aggies’ leader. As one of Henson’s Aggie assistant coaches from 2000-06, Tony Stubblefield also served as interim head coach when Henson missed the 2004-05 season due to a battle with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

“One thing I’ve really carried from coach was how to treat people and building relationships and maintaining relationships,” says Stubblefield, who is a men’s basketball assistant coach at the University of Oregon. “It was always much bigger than basketball for coach Henson. He treated people with respect from the janitor to the president of the university. Coach Henson always made people feel very important. I learned a lot of life lessons and I wouldn’t be where I am today without lessons that I learned from coach.”

Henson’s college coaching career began in 1962 at Hardin Simmons University in Abilene, Texas, a position he only accepted after HSU agreed to integrate the institution.

“He took a lot of young players, a lot of African Americans from the inner city, from tough backgrounds and mentored them. I came from one of those tough backgrounds,” Keys says.

Henson, who recorded 779 career victories, was one of only 15 coaches who have guided two programs to the Final Four, the Aggies in 1970 and Fighting Illini in 1989.

Off the court, Henson and his wife, Mary, supported many causes in the Las Cruces and Champaign, Illinois, communities for decades.

The Hensons helped revitalize the Boys & Girls Club of Las Cruces when they agreed in 2009 to become the face of its signature fundraiser, the Lou & Mary Henson Community Breakfast.

“To say that we are grateful for all that coach and Mary have done for us seems so inadequate to truly express our gratitude, and I honestly don’t

know where we would be without them,” says Ashley Echavarria, Boys & Girls Club of Las Cruces CEO. “Their support translates to thousands of young lives being guided and impacted along the way. Coach’s spirit will forever live on through our Clubs programs, and through the Henson Breakfast.”

“We took it tough with his passing but we knew he took every inch out of his life,” Keys says.

“He lived his life to the fullest and did things the right way. While it was sad to see him go, he’s definitely going to be with us for the rest of our lives.”

To help continue Henson’s legacy, memorial contributions can be made to the Lou and Mary Henson Endowed Scholarship at nmsu.life/ Hensonfund or to the Boys & Girls Club of Las Cruces at bgclascruces.org.

Left: After beginning his coaching career at Las Cruces High School, Lou Henson returned to NMSU as men’s basketball head coach in 1966. With two stints as the Aggies’ leader, Henson coached and mentored young people throughout his life.

Top: Lou Henson (front row, center) led the Aggie men’s basketball team to the Final Four in 1970. He also guided the University of Illinois to the Final Four in 1989, making Henson one of only 15 coaches to lead two programs to the Final Four.

Bottom: Henson, accompanied by his wife, Mary, was honored during a banner unveiling in December 2016 at the Pan American Center. In 2002, the court at the Pan American Center was renamed Lou Henson Court.

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AGGIES

united

NMSU leaders see progress in movement for diversity, inclusion

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By Carlos Andres López ’10

MSU Black Programs marked a milestone in 2020, celebrating five decades of uniting students of African-American, Caribbean and African descent by increasing the awareness and appreciation of Black history through educational, cultural, social and academic programs.

The anniversary, however, comes as the nation is once again reckoning with race-related turmoil, exacerbated by incidents of police brutality against Black Americans and a pandemic that has disproportionally affected communities of color.

But even amid recent challenges, NMSU leaders driving the

Several hundred people participated in the first on-campus Juneteenth celebration at NMSU in June 2020. It was a collaboration between Black Programs, the Black Student Association, the NMSU Police Department, ASNMSU, the dean of students, and other campus and community partners.

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movement to eradicate racism and discrimination throughout the university, and create a diverse, welcoming educational environment for all students of color, say they’ve witnessed reassuring signs of progress.

“I am optimistically encouraged by what I have seen from young people,” says Kimberly York, interim director of Black Programs, a role she started July 1, 2020.

“Is everybody on the same page with what we believe and what we know to be true regarding racism? Absolutely not,” York adds. “But right now, the focus and the efforts are on those who want to help us move forward.”

Patrick Turner, director of NMSU’s First-Year Initiatives and York’s

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predecessor as the head of Black Programs, says the events of the past year – mass rallies in support of Black men and women beaten or killed by police brutality – have led to “a tipping point.”

“I’m hoping this energy maintains as we move forward and keep putting pressure on our politicians and our colleges,” Turner says, “because if they’re going to represent us, they need to represent all of us.”

At the height of the protests demanding justice for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and other victims of police violence, York and Turner held the first on-campus Juneteenth celebration, a collaboration with the Black Student Association, the NMSU Police Department, ASNMSU, the dean of students, and other campus and community partners. The celebration drew a diverse crowd of several hundred participants.

York describes seeing that inaugural event come together amid national calls for racial justice as a “perfect storm.”

Juneteenth is an annual commemoration of when enslaved people in Texas received news of their liberation in 1865 – two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.

“It was profound because it wasn’t just about Black people – it was about humans coming together to support us,” York says of the celebration.

“The whole idea was to bring people from different cultures, different backgrounds, different sexual orientations, different religions – all those things together – and say, ‘We can celebrate together,’” says Turner, who also founded the Men of Color Initiative. “I am very optimistic about moving forward.”

The Juneteenth event also served as a starting point for deep, sometimes uncomfortable conversations about systemic racism and the push to attain greater diversity and inclusion, specifically in the recruitment of students of color. York and Turner, for example, both participated in one online forum dedicated to looking at the movement beyond the protests.

Turner says there are many steps people can take to help push the movement forward, noting that NMSU is doing its part by hiring a new vice president-level diversity leader.

“I always say take your talents – whatever that is – to fight for everyone’s rights,” he says. “Right now, I think the most pressing issue is voting. Voting is important all the time, but right now it is very critical and it’s very serious.”

At this moment, York sees NMSU Black Programs as a conduit for progressive conversations that lead to actionable items, as well as a catalyst for change.

“Our young people, led by the Black Student Association, are energized and invigorated, and leading us in directions that typically we would not explore,” she says.

Several hundred attendees listen to speakers during the first on-campus Juneteenth celebration, a collaboration with the Black Student Association, the NMSU Police Department, ASNMSU, the dean of students, and other campus and community partners, in June 2020. The celebration included guest speakers Karen Dykes (top), executive pastor at Destiny Family Christian Center in El Paso, and Christopher Brooks (middle), then president of NMSU's Black Student Association.

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A NOBLE

In summer 2020, Christine Shank and Aggies Without Limits members built a fence and two retaining walls for a children's play area at the Boys & Girls Club of Alamogordo, New Mexico.

Aggies Without Limits members strive to make the world a better place

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he first time Alessa Ibanez boarded an international flight, it wasn’t for a sightseeing excursion or beach getaway. It was to help a developing community with a sustainable engineering project as a member of the Aggies Without Limits.

“Guatemala was my first time traveling internationally, and it was a humble experience helping a community have

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By Tiffany Acosta access to water, a basic human need,” says Ibanez, Aggies Without Limits president.

“We traveled to Guatemala in May of 2019 to build a potable water system for a rural community of 350 members. Despite the hardships and obstacles and with the support from the community, we finished the project ahead of schedule.”

Founded in 2007, Aggies Without Limits, a student nonprofit organization in the College of Engineering, works on local and

international projects each year. While COVID-19 altered the group’s plans for 2020, Kenny Stevens, Engineering Technology professor and Aggies Without Limits adviser, says he was proud of how the members responded and found other ways to help.

In summer 2020, Aggies Without Limits members helped the Boys & Girls Club of Alamogordo, New Mexico, build a 400foot fence and two 90-foot retaining walls to create a secure area for children to play.

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JOURNEY

Member of Aggies Without Limits helped the Boys & Girls Club of Alamogordo, New Mexico, build a fence and two retaining walls in summer 2020 to create a secure area for children to play.

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During fall 2020, Aggies Without Limits members also worked on a pedestrian bridge for the Alamogordo Fairgrounds with a projected completion date in November 2020.

“There’s no shortage of enthusiasm, even though it’s 70 miles away instead of 7,000 miles away,” Stevens says. “It takes away some of the romance from it, but in the terms of the students who want to do something for somebody else, it hasn’t slowed them down.”

Even though the summer 2020 trip to Oyanca, Nicaragua, was postponed, the Aggies Without Limits members continued to work from Las Cruces on a project to improve the efficiency of hydraulic ram pumps to provide residents with potable water. The group advised residents on material lists and corresponded via email.

Oyanca is the fifth project for Aggies Without Limits in Nicaragua. Projects in other international locations have included Puerto Rico, Bolivia and Mexico. Local projects for the group have included establishing a community for homeless veterans with Foxhole Homes, an organization in Alamogordo, improving the campground at Camp Hope in Las Cruces and helping to re-establish a food system and working at a local community center in Anthony, New Mexico.

While the Aggies Without Limits began as an engineering organization about half of the group’s members are from other disciplines including Ibanez, an early childhood education senior at NMSU.

“Helping people with AWL projects makes me feel empowered to help make a difference in local and international communities,” she says. “Motivates me to do more for those who are less fortunate and pass on the knowledge I gain to others.”

Membership isn’t restricted to students, interested alumni and community members can join Aggies Without Limits. To learn more visit aggieswithoutlimits.org.

While COVID-19 concerns postponed international travel, Aggies Without Limits members worked on a pedestrian bridge for the Alamogordo Fairgrounds in fall 2020.

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A GAME-CHANGING

addition

NMSU’s first endowed professorship in mathematical sciences established

By Megan Hansen ’06 ’09 and Minerva Baumann ’13

n the fall of 1979, Dante DeBlassie ’80 took a math class that helped shape his perspective on teaching math.

DeBlassie, the associate head of the mathematical sciences department at NMSU, went on to receive his Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and now helps lead the department he was once a student in.

He also is the first recipient of the Charles and Nita Swartz Endowed Professorship in mathematical sciences, which is a first such honor for the department in the NMSU College of Arts and Sciences.

Charles and Nita Swartz are long-time supporters of the university. Charles, an NMSU professor emeritus from the Department of Mathematical Sciences, and Nita, a retired Las Cruces elementary and middle school math teacher, were motivated to establish the professorship to ensure the strength and development of the department into the future.

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Dante DeBlassie, (right) professor of Mathematical Sciences, receives the Donald C. Roush Excellence in Teaching Award during NMSU’s 2018 Spring Convocation ceremony from then Chancellor Garrey Carruthers .

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“ This department has a

magnificent reputation and we wanted to create a permanent investment in it that would enhance the prestige of the program and positively impact faculty and students.

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NMSU President John Floros (from left) stands alongside Nita and Charles Swartz as the couple presents an endowment gift to the NMSU Foundation and Tina Byford, then interim vice president for University Advancement. The celebration in July 2019 recognized the first endowed professor in the mathematics department, Dante DeBlassie. College of Arts and Sciences Dean Enrico Pontelli and Mark Gladden, former development officer, also joined the ceremony.

With the creation of the Charles and Nita Swartz Endowed Professorship in mathematical sciences, the couple not only helps the department attract faculty and graduate students but also promotes STEM interest among NMSU students.

The professorship provides a continuous source of financial support to fund research activities, salary enhancement, and other scholarly expenses for a valued faculty member in the Department of Mathematical Sciences.

“It is a singular honor to be selected for this endowed professorship, especially when the department has so many outstanding and deserving faculty members,” DeBlassie says.

Before he was an endowed professor at NMSU, DeBlassie was a student in one of Charles’ math courses as an undergraduate.

“I was in his Math 473 class in the fall of 1979,” DeBlassie says. “He was outstanding. His lectures were clear, to the point and thorough. It

was obvious he put in a lot of time and effort preparing them. To this day, I use him as a role model.”

“Dante survived one of my classes, so we know he can persevere,” Charles Swartz joked during a ceremony to honor the new professorship and its inaugural awardee in July 2019. During the ceremony, the Swartzes presented a check to the NMSU Foundation.

“This department has a magnificent reputation and we wanted to create a permanent investment in it that would enhance the prestige of the program and positively impact faculty and students,” Charles Swartz says.

“Aside from the prestige associated with the professorship, the endowment gives me the

chance to attend conferences and visit/bring in collaborators to do research,” DeBlassie says. “At some point, when the endowment matures, there will be the opportunity to fund postdocs. These activities are vital to keep the math department strong. It is a real game-changer for the department and it will have lasting impact.”

The couple expects the endowed professorship also will promote a greater interest in STEM among NMSU students and attract talented graduate students to the department.

“I could not be more pleased by this substantial new investment in our faculty,” says Enrico Pontelli, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “It is well known that NMSU’s Department of Mathematical Sciences is among the very best in the nation, and the new Swartz Professorship will now give us an added edge in faculty recruitment and retention.”

This endowment extends the Swartzes’ history of giving back to the university, which is preceded by two endowed scholarships they funded in the College of Arts and Sciences during NMSU’s 2018 Giving Tuesday.

The Charles Swartz Endowed Scholarship helps graduate students in the mathematical sciences, and the Nita Swartz Endowed Scholarship supports international women graduate students in the College of Arts and Sciences.

The couple has traveled to more than 80 countries together and seen firsthand the impact of education across the globe. They hope their scholarships will aid underfunded graduate students as they pursue their academic goals.

“Education is the key to the problems this world is facing,” says Nita Swartz, “These students work very hard and are so worthy of a little bit of help. You can come to NMSU and get a good education – and there is help.”

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ALUMNI CONNECTIONS

Alumni

Successes

Cleveland, Ohio, native Brooke Sahni graduated from NMSU with her master of fine arts degree in creative writing. She wrote a 38-page book of poems titled “Divining” while working on her thesis at NMSU. Her book won the 2019 Orison Chapbook Prize and was published in July 2020.

“All of the poems in ‘Divining’ have been revised several times based on the feedback of my cohort at NMSU,” Sahni says. “We were a small group of three, just me, Jill Mceldowney, Caroline Chavatel

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Brooke Sahni ’19 and our teacher, (English professor) Connie Voisine. Their feedback along with NMSU graduate Tyler Julian and my undergraduate mentor Sheila Sanderson were invaluable in helping me make my poems stronger.”

In fall 2020, Sahni began teaching as an English instructor at Northern New Mexico College in Española, New Mexico, where she is using the skills she learned at NMSU to mentor and teach a new group of budding poets and writers.

Amanda Adame ’19

Lucia B. Chacón-Díaz, who graduated from NMSU with a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction with a focus on biology education research, was recognized in early 2020 with two prestigious awards.

Chacón-Díaz was named a recipient of the 2020 Jhumki Basu Scholar Award by the National Association for Research in Science Teaching. She will join the NARST Equity and Ethics Committee and present her research during the 2021 NARST International Conference in Orlando, Florida.

She also was named a 2020-21 AERASpencer Minority Meta-Analysis Fellow, en-

Scott Crampton ’87 ’89

Scott Crampton, who spent 25 years as the baseball head coach at Lamar Community College in Lamar, Colorado, has been selected for the NJCAA Baseball Coaches Association 2020 Hall of Fame class. After 25 years and more than 1,000 wins, Crampton retired in 2018 and is LCC’s athletic director. Crampton played for the Aggies from 1983-1986 and was an assistant coach from 1987-1993 before becoming head coach at LCC.

“I was lucky enough to get my coaching 30 Panorama | New Mexico State University | Fall 2020

start at NMSU and was able to make some lifelong friendships along the way,” he says.

“The coaching and life lessons at NMSU are what molded me into the person I am today.

I owe a lot to great players I was allowed to coach at NMSU in my six years as a coach.”

Crampton garnered NJCAA Region XI Coach of the Year honors nine times and led the Runnin’ Lopes to a school record for wins in 2002 with 59-5 record and a thirdplace finish at the JUCO World Series.

Tiffany Acosta

gaging in meta-analysis research with a focus on science education. She will join a research panel at the 2021 AERA Annual Meeting to address the role of meta-analyses in building early career research programs.

While at NMSU, Chacón-Díaz was mentored by Susan Brown in the College of Education and Michèle Shuster in the College of Arts and Sciences. She is currently a STEM postdoc researcher in the Department of Teaching and Learning at Ohio State University.

Adriana M. Chávez ’19

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Lucia B. Chacón-Díaz ’17

2020 Distinguished

Alumni

Congratulations to all of our Distinguished Alumni and our James F. Cole Memorial Award for Service and Young Alumni Service Award recipients. We’re proud of your outstanding achievements and service, and grateful for your commitment to New Mexico State University.

Klaus E. Wiemer ’85

Jackie Seay McGehee ’79

Jesse Guardiola ’95

College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences Managing partner and founder, Poma Fertility

College of Arts and Sciences, in Fine Arts and Humanities Retired teacher and lecturer, founder and current artistic director of the Jackie McGehee Young Artist Competition in Piano and Strings for NM Young Artists

College of Arts and Sciences, in Sciences and Social Sciences President, Guardiola Consulting

Jerean Camúñez Hutchinson ’80

Mariela A. Rodríguez ’03

Manuel Mora ’84

College of Business Co-owner, La Posta de Mesilla Restaurant and Hacienda de Mesilla Grille, Inn & Cantina

College of Education Professor and interim department chair, UT San Antonio

College of Engineering Vice President, General Dynamics Mission Systems

Lynn Van Pelt Fletcher ’81, ’83

James F. Cole Memorial Award for Service Randy Farmer ’77

Young Alumni Service Award Russell Hernandez ’05

College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences Owner, The Greenhouse

College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences Owner and CEO, Salud! de Mesilla

College of Health and Social Services Director of Memorial Medical Center Cancer Center

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ALUMNI CONNECTIONS

COURTESY PHOTO

New graduates, Ph.D. student earn highly-competitive research fellowships

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Valerie Brewer

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Ryan Quintana

Grace Smith-Vidaurre

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T

wo NMSU graduates and one soon-to-be grad have joined an elite group of young scholars to earn National Science Foundation Research Fellowships, the country’s oldest fellowship that directly supports graduate students in various STEM fields.

Valerie Brewer ’20, who graduated in May, double majored in conservation ecology and biology and minored in genetics and biotechnology. The program will fund Brewer’s research for the next three years into the mating habits of song sparrows while she pursues a Ph.D. at Oregon State University, where she will join the Cornelius lab. The Tularosa, New Mexico, native’s fellowship has an annual stipend of $34,000 per year and an additional $12,000 per year for university tuition and fees.

“I aspire to a research career that will benefit the conservation of species impacted by anthropogenic activity and inform the conscientious planning of urban areas,” Brewer says.

Ryan Quintana ’20, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in May, is receiving a Graduate Research Fellowship to continue his studies at NMSU to pursue a doctorate degree in mechanical engineering. His fellowship includes a three-year, $48,000 per year award, which will fund his research project, “mechanical insights on drug delivery nanosystems: nonlocal modeling and experiments.”

“I aim to create realistic mathematical models that capture how nanoscale structures, such as carbon nanotubes, interact with their surroundings while delivering drugs to specific sites within the body,” says the Santa Fe, New Mexico, native.

Grace Smith-Vidaurre will receive her Ph.D. in biology from NMSU in December 2020. Her two-year Postdoctoral Research Fellowship begins in February 2021 and will provide a salary and research stipend of $138,000 over that time to continue her research into vocal learning habits of songbirds, specifically the zebra finch with co-mentors Erich Jarvis at The Rockefeller University and Elizabeth Hobson ’13 at the University of Cincinnati.

“As an NSF fellow, I’ll address how the early-life environment influences vocal learning. I will ask how stress, experienced early in life, alters vocal learning phenotypes through heritable epigenetic variation, or molecular variation beyond the genetic code.”

Minerva Baumann ’13

JOSH BACHMAN

Marina Monsisvais ’00

What advice would you give those interested in becoming an entrepreneur? “

T

o anyone looking into becoming an entrepreneur, I say go for it. It’s hard work and it’s rewarding work, especially when you’re working toward something you believe in. I’d also say this: work for other people first. It’s important to learn leadership and management skills through real life experience. I’ve had great bosses and I’ve had horrible bosses. And guess what? I learned more from the bad bosses than from the good ones. It provides you with a good perspective on how to manage a team, because believe me, you can’t run a business without a strong team. When I went into business on my own, I did it to create a place that I’d want to work every day, that was rid of rules that don’t make sense in today’s working world, and that brings out the best in people. The golden rule stands true, do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Monsisvais is founder and CEO of El Paso, Texasbased Barracuda Public Relations, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2020. She also is the host of “State of the Arts” on KTEP-FM in El Paso.

Compiled by Adriana M. Chávez ’19

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ALUMNI CONNECTIONS

First woman to lead NASA spaceflight encourages STEM exploration

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Kathy Lueders broke a glass ceiling when she was selected as NASA's associate administrator of the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate in June 2020.

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athy Lueders ’93 ’99 was preparing for a career on Wall Street until she decided to switch gears and pursue engineering.

After earning a bachelor’s degree in finance from the University of New Mexico, taking time to get married and have two children, she earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in industrial engineering at NMSU. In 1992, she began her career in the propulsion test office at NASA’s White Sands Test Facility as only the second woman to work there, where she became the Shuttle Orbital Maneuvering System and Reaction Control Systems Depot manager.

“I believe that science, technology, engineering and math activities help us solve big problems,” Lueders says. “It is how we push the industry and world to solve human problems. I wanted to be a part of finding those solutions.”

In June 2020, Lueders was selected as NASA’s associate administrator of the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. This time, Lueders was the pioneer as the first woman to have that role, and she’s enjoying leading her team.

“Together, we are solving problems every day and it’s one of my favorite aspects of the job,” Lueders says. “And there are a lot of small problems to solve to achieve our ultimate goal of moving humans to Mars, where NASA has already been exploring for 50 years with robotics.”

After her stint at White Sands, Lueders served as Transportation Integration Manager for the International Space Station program, which oversaw the first International cargo vehicles and brought the first commercial cargo vehicles to the ISS. From 2014 to 2020, Lueders guided NASA’s efforts to send astronauts to space on private spacecraft, which was achieved with the successful Demo-2 launch from the Kennedy Space Center in May 2020.

While Lueders has broken a glass ceiling, she wants youth to realize a similar career is not out of their reach.

“I want everybody out there to know they can have a career like mine,” she says. “I was not a space geek. I was interested in engineering because it gave me the tools to solve problems and work on something bigger. I would tell young people that working on these problems is the most fun thing in the world. They can do it. And we will need their help in solving the hard problems NASA will have in the future.”

Tiffany Acosta

PETE'S CORNER

AGGIES STEP UP

to help care for others during pandemic

A

“If we have the courage to face fear in times of uncertainty, we can each do our part to make our mark. – TIFFANY AUTRY

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KLCFOTOS

s the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the world in 2020 shutting down cities and disrupting countless lives, health care workers sprang into action – including two Aggies.

Emily Wang, Aggie women’s tennis head coach and a certified nursing assistant, helped cared for elderly residents at a congregate living facility in Las Cruces for patients with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, following the cancellation of spring 2020 sports.

Meanwhile, Tiffany Autry ’10, ’13, ’18, a former Aggie softball player and nurse practitioner specializing in family medicine and dermatology in Las Cruces, El Paso and Alamogordo, signed up for a voluntary deployment that took her to the frontlines of the COVID-19 fight in Chicago.

During her nearly eight-week deployment, Autry witnessed the devastating toll of COVID-19 in a city that was once a hotspot for the disease and faced a shortage of health care workers.

“I worked with FEMA, alongside the National Guard, primarily as a nurse practitioner diagnosing, managing and treating COVID-19 patients,” says Autry, who has four NMSU degrees, including a doctorate of nursing practice. “I also worked as a registered nurse as needed on dedicated COVID-19 units. I wanted to be helpful in any way I could, so whatever role was needed at the time is what I took on for the shift.”

Although Wang did not work with individuals diagnosed with COVID-19, she provided daily care for a population of people who were at high risk for the disease, and she also served as her patients’ only form of contact during the restrictions on visitors to such facilities.

“It’s been a difficult time for everyone,” says Wang, who worked in an emergency room in Illinois for three years before becoming a collegiate tennis coach, “but it’s been a very difficult time for elderly people because they are such high risk for COVID-19.”

During the spring and summer, Wang also worked as a caregiver who assisted patients in their home, helping them with a multitude of tasks such as cooking, cleaning, showering and taking medications. She enjoyed this experience so much that she decided to continue working as a caregiver throughout the fall.

“I’ve taken away their stories and their life experiences, and I learned a lot from them,” she says of her patients.

Autry says her experience in Chicago, although difficult, was life-changing.

“If we have the courage to face fear in times of uncertainty, we can each do our part to make our mark,” she says. “We are all dealing with different aspects of COVID-19, as well as collateral damage caused by it. Courageous people carry on in the face of fear. Some people need a little extra help to carry on. If you have the opportunity to be that help for someone, be it.”

Carlos Andres López ’10 Top: When she couldn’t be on the court with her team in spring 2020, Aggie women’s tennis head coach Emily Wang helped care for elderly patients in Las Cruces.

Bottom: Tiffany Autry spent nearly eight weeks in Chicago, where she worked with FEMA and the National Guard as a nurse practitioner diagnosing, managing and treating COVID-19 patients.

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“

AGGIE PRIDE

Higher education a tradition for northeastern New Mexico ranching family

36 Panorama | New Mexico State University | Fall 2020

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Linda and Les Davis’ family owns and runs the CS Cattle Company ranch near Cimarron, New Mexico. All six of their children attended college, and the four boys graduated from NMSU. The family photo includes Randy Davis (standing from left), Bruce Davis, Ryan Davis, Christiaan Davis, Linda M. Davis, Les Davis, Warren Davis, Walt Davis, Kirk Davis, Kimberly Barmann, Sara Davis (seated from left), Trina Davis, Ben Davis, Kelly Barmann, Mary Davis and Leslie Barmann.

NMSU PHOTO

JANE MOORMAN

Mexico.

“Les felt you had to have an education if you were going to amount to anything,” says Linda Davis ’99 of her late husband. “All six of our children went to college, the boys to New Mexico State and the girls to Sul Ross and the University of New Mexico.”

Attending college was expected of the Davis siblings; their family has a long tradition of higher education beginning with their great-grandparents. Davis’ sons, Warren ’77, Randy ’80, Kirk ’81 and Bruce ’82, who graduated from what was then called the College of Agriculture and Home Economics.

The Davis brothers combine their agricultural degrees in animal science, agronomy, ag mechanics and ag economics to manage the CS Cattle Company, which was founded in 1873 by their father’s grandfather, Frank Springer, a territorial lawyer. Since 2016, the CS Cattle Company has hosted the New Mexico Youth Ranch Management Camp. The program is conducted by NMSU’s College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences Cooperative Extension Service.

The ranch operation is a family affair, with sisters Julia Davis Stafford sharing her natural resource and water law knowledge from her UNM law degree, and Kim Barmann contributing her knowledge of regenerating the soil, as well as veterinary assistant skills from her days at Sul Ross State University in Texas.

“Being able to work with my brothers and sisters is tremendous,” Randy says. “It takes everybody to keep the ranch going, to make it successful.”

The Aggie tradition continued as four grandchildren attended NMSU. Randy’s sons, Ryan Davis ’05 and Christiaan Davis ’10, and Barmann’s daughter, Leslie Blakney ’10 are graduates.

The Davis family has supported NMSU through the decades with contributions to numerous colleges, programs and scholarships. These include creating a fund to assist with alumni outreach in northeast New Mexico. This fund was established in memory of Les Davis’ commitment to northern New Mexico. They also have established memorial endowed scholarships in honor of Linda’s family. Their commitment to support students and university programs is a true testament to their love for NMSU.

Jane Moorman

Linda Mitchell Davis and Alvy Ray Smith were recipients of honorary doctorates at NMSU’s December 1999 Commencement ceremony.

Linda Davis, matriarch of the CS Cattle Company ranch, recalls her life in ranching.

“

Les felt you had to have an education if you were going to amount to anything.

“

H

igher education and ranching go hand-in-hand for the Davis family, who own a 130,000-acre ranch in Colfax County near Cimarron, New

–LINDA DAVIS

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