LAS CRUCES — Already sporting a crimson jacket and a broad smile, Barbara Couture entered the Regents Room on Thursday at New Mexico State University to a standing ovation and shouts of “Welcome to NMSU!”

Couture was appointed as NMSU’s first permanent female president Thursday as a standing-room-only crowd packed a special regents meeting and more than 400 others watched the proceedings online.

“Almost as soon as I set foot on this campus, I knew this was the place for us,” Couture, 61, told regents as her husband, Paul, sat beside her.

Couture, a senior vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, inked a five-year contract effective Jan. 1, according to Blake Curtis, regents chairman.

Her contract calls for a $385,000 annual salary, use of the president’s residence on Geothermal Drive and other perks like a vehicle and country club membership.

Interim President Manuel Pacheco’s contract is $325,000 per year, and previous president Mike Martin was earning $358,785 at the time of his departure in 2008, according to the university.

Most unique about Couture’s compensation package, Curtis said, is a $500,000 retention bonus, which Couture will only receive upon completion of the five-year contract.

“This reflects — not a request, not an outcry, but people screaming at the tops of their lungs, ‘We want someone to stay here!’” Curtis told the Sun-News. He emphasized that, unlike other retention bonuses in which a portion is awarded at the end of each contract year, Couture will receive the bonus only after completing the entire contract. Curtis said the extra incentive is crucial to meeting the need for continuity of leadership.

Read the article.

Barbara Couture was selected by the Board of Regents at 10:20 a.m. today as president of New Mexico State University.

Barbara Couture was selected by the Board of Regents at 10:20 a.m. today as president of New Mexico State University.

“This process has been inclusive and efficient,” said Blake Curtis, Board of Regents chairman. “All the stakeholders have been represented.”

Barbara Couture, senior vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln since 2004, was the first of the two female finalists for the position of president to visit campus in November and said she would stay at NMSU a while.

“I’m not an institution hopper,” Couture said during her campus visit. “My intention is to stay and help build this university.”

Javier Gonzales, vice chairman of the Board of Regents said going through another failed search was not an option this time.

“I believe today marks a new day at NMSU,” Gonzales said, “a new day that brings promise and stability.”

Couture graciously accepted the position at the special Board of Regents meeting.

“I cannot tell you how delighted I am to be here,” Couture said. “I want this university to be absolutely the best it can be. I am honored to be your next president.”

Couture has held leadership roles and initiated diversity projects at three major research colleges, including starting the American Indian Studies Plateau Center at Washington State University, where she served as dean of the College of Liberal Arts for six years.

“Study hard, do your homework and I will do everything I can do to make you successful at NMSU,” Couture said when asked what message she would like to send to students.

An Outgoing Interim

Dr. Manuel Pacheco has been Interim-President of NMSU since June and said he looks forward to a smooth transition for Dr. Couture when she takes over in January.

“She is going to be here on January 1 and I will be available to her and the Board of Regents to help in any way they need,” Pacheco said.

Pacheco reflected on his time at NMSU, stating he knew that coming to campus would be a good experience but his time here has exceed all expectations.

“Students here are absolutely terrific, I have been impressed with how thoughtful, bright and appreciative the students and student leaders have been,” Pacheco said.

Unique Experience for Student Leaders

Associated Students of NMSU President Travis Dulany and Student Regent Chris Anaya had a rare opportunity to be involved in the process of selecting the universities next president.

“It was a great experience,” Anaya said. “You have an idea of what the process is going to be like going in. I have had the opportunity to learn about how higher education works and what everyone can bring to the table.”

Regent Anaya said Couture’s inclusiveness towards students made her an impressive choice.

“Couture is committed to making sure the decisions she will make are relayed back to the students,” Anaya said.

Travis Dulany said he is excited to help Couture acclimate her to campus and the students.

“I will do my best to orient her to campus, teach her the fight song and bring knowledge about the students,” Dulany said.

Couture on Coming to NMSU

“A new president should partner with the community,” Couture said. “To attract high-quality faculty and students [the new president] must have high-quality communication, stability, emphasis on excellence and good, transparent communication.”

Competing for Couture

Couture was selected as a presidential finalist at the University of Albany in New York in February, but was not selected. Couture was also a finalist at Southern Illinois University and visited the university. Overall, Couture said she enjoyed her visit to NMSU and was impressed with the growth of the campus and the community, including the construction of the new convention center, Center for the Arts and the Native American Cultural Center.

“[Las Cruces] is a city just bursting with potential,” Couture said. “The citizen growth [is proof] that lots of people want to come here.”

Couture said she is also dedicated to the land-grant mission of the university and would work to meet the expectations of the campus and the Las Cruces community.

“I think the community is looking for a collegial atmosphere; strong, stable leadership,” Couture said. “That’s what I hope to provide.”

The finalists

Couture was chosen out of five finalists, including Lisa Rossbacher, president of Southern Polytechnic University in Georgia; James Oblinger, former chancellor of North Carolina State University; Michael Ortiz, California State Polytechnic University Pomona; and Richard Herman, former chancellor of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, visited campus in November.

The withdrawals

Ortiz withdrew his name from consideration because of unfinished business at Cal Poly, according to an e-mail statement from Ortiz published in the Cal Poly Times student newspaper, and Herman withdrew from candidacy on Nov. 11, citing personal reasons.

Keep visiting www.roundupnews.com for more updates on the presidency, and pick up our “Year in Review” print edition of The Round Up on Nov. 30.

Jon Willis: Remarks at the Dedication of the Bernice & Hank Willis Study Lounge, Oct. 23, 2009

Jon B. Willis at the rededication of the Bernice & Hank Willis Study Lounge, College of Business, New Mexico State University.

Thank you Dean Carruthers, Sylvia, and Cheri for your efforts in organizing this event. And thank you particularly for your inspiration to add Dad’s name to this room, now the Bernice and Hank Willis Student Lounge. Mom and Dad are together in a place they loved, and this is how they would have wanted it.

I confess that I anticipated an event of this sort some time ago and have given considerable thought to words appropriate for this occasion. I hope you will forgive that these thoughts may go a bit beyond simple comments and give them a listen.

I would like to speak with you today, especially to the young people among you, about generations and principles. Because generations are the story of life, including the two lives we celebrate today; and principles are the anchors by which we chose to lead our lives. And it is particularly appropriate to do so in this setting because Mom and Dad held an unyielding faith in the promise of each new generation, and their gift of this room underscores their belief in the importance of these college years in your lives, and in the early formation of your own life principles and the character of your time.

Cloudcroft, NM.

So let me begin with the generation of my maternal grandfather. His name was Arra Burton Fite, and as Dean Carruthers has already mentioned, he committed virtually all of his professional life to this institution. Granddad was born in 1886 near the village of Cloudcroft in the Sacramento Mountains, about 80 miles from here. His mother died when he was seven years old, and as was common practice in those days his father parceled out the children, in this case four boys, to family and friends to raise them. My grandfather was “gifted” to a nearby ranching family.

He could have been a ranch hand as his life’s work but he was determined to do more. So after six years, when he was legally allowed, he struck out on his own at the age of 13, riding his little pony across the Tularosa Desert to the town of Hope, where he supported himself as a cowboy while attending school for the first time.

William Conroy Honors Center, NMSU historical building, built in 1909.

Seven years later he then set out for Las Cruces where he enrolled at the New Mexico Agriculture and Mechanics College, as this University was then known, where he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Agriculture in 1915 at the tender age of 29; …this may give a bit of hope to some of you “late bloomers”. He then went on to earn a Master’s Degree is the same field and served the next thirty years in various academic and administrative roles associated with this institution. My mother, the youngest of his five children, was practically raised on this campus.

On my father’s side of the family the journey to New Mexico was a bit more circuitous. His great grandfather, William Oliver Cowan, was forced to leave his beloved Ireland in the face of the great potato famine of the mid-1800’s. His ship was bound for Boston but a series of storms drove them off course and they were lost at sea for over six months before landing at last in Jamaica. Imagine setting out for Boston and landing in Jamaica… from thence they sailed on to New Orleans.

The family then migrated a bit north to Tennessee, where my father was born in 1925. America entered World War II some 16 years later in December 1941. When Dad was old enough he enlisted in the United States Navy, and was improbably assigned to entirely land-locked New Mexico.

Hank and Bernice Willis.

And that is how my Mother and Father got together. It is a story of land and sea, a story of departures and discoveries, a story of happenstance and fortune. And it is the story of Life and of generations.

Many of us identify generations by the images they have left us. In modern America it was the fear and loss of confidence during the economic collapse of the 1930s that defined the Depression Generation. It was the undaunted courage of those who fought so bravely in the Second World War that defined what the newscaster and writer Tom Browkaw has called The Greatest Generation. And my generation, The Boomers, were defined by the first landing on the Moon, the somber march of the Civil Rights Movement, the tragedy of Viet Nam, and the violent deaths of three of America’s most beloved leaders.

But while these images may lead some to conclude that it is mostly events that define a generation, my parents believed differently. They believed that is was the response to events that truly defined a generation and ultimately established its character. And this response is the special combination of ideals and aspirations, of hopes and dreams, of beliefs and convictions that are now being forged among you here in these crucial college years; in the libraries and study lounges, in the dorm rooms and apartment kitchens, in the coffee houses and neighborhood pubs, and on the sports fields and gathering places around this campus. That is why this place was so special to Mom and Dad.

Jon and Joshua Willis, son and grandson of Bernice and Hank Willis.

Generations do not stand alone. They receive wisdom and guidance from those that preceded it, although each generation will develop new principles that are unique to its time while setting aside former ideas that no longer apply. But there are four principles that I think Mom and Dad believed should apply to all generations. They are timeless in nature. They are what they taught my brother and sister and me, and to their grandchildren as well. Because this occasion is to honor their lives and the principles they lived by, I would like to pass them on to you. I think you will like them:

• First, always strive to maintain an inquisitive mind. Learn to love learning. A robust curiosity and vigorous intellectual pursuit are the wellspring of a compleat life. And toward the end of your life, when perhaps you can do little else, what you have invested in the life of your mind can bring you great contentment.
• Second, nurture your spirit. Mom and Dad were both very devout and committed many thousands of hours to study, thought, prayer, and meditation. They believed deeply in a loving Providence and a greater purpose. Take time regularly each day, every week, every month, and every year to feed and nurture the needs of your soul.
• Number three, fight like hell for that in which you believe and against that which you disdain. Injustice, prejudice, ignorance, selfishness, hatred and bigotry are still too much a part of the human condition. They suffocate the human spirit. Confront them boldly wherever you find them; and never give up in your battle for what you believe to be right.
• And finally, but by no any means the least, always find time for your family and friends…

(Incidentally, I heard a story the other day that the definition of a good friend is someone who will unquestioningly come bail you out of jail in the middle of the night. But a really true friend is the one sitting next to you in that jail cell, smiling, holding his hung-over head saying, “Damn that was a good time!”)

Student Ambassadors at the Willis Student Lounge redication, Oct. 23, 2009.

… But seriously, your family and friends will sustain you through good times and bad, and a full life will have its full measure of both. Loving relationships and devoted friendships are the glue that binds generations, communities, and kindred spirits. Value and nurture these relationships for the treasure they are.

Those of you who are students today have already seen some of the images that will be identified forever with your generation. The collapse of the World Trade Center towers, the inauguration of the first African-American President, visible evidence of global climate change.

Some of these images are inspiring and some are frightening; you are entering an uncertain world. But always remember that it is not the images that will define your generation, but it is your response to the events of your time that will mark your character. And it is incumbent upon you to respond to those events with the same courage, fortitude, confidence, and determination as those who have gone before you.

So whatever tired little pony you ride, or whatever storm-tossed sea you find yourselves upon, when you get to where you are going, which in some cases will be a surprise to you, move on to vigorously address the challenges before you. That is what will define your generation.

Student Ambassadors, Oct. 23, 2009.

And if you can, try to remember the principles the two we honor here today would have wanted you to know: Strive always to maintain an inquisitive mind; protect and nurture your spirit; fight vigorously for what you believe to be right; and always remember your family and friends. This is a gift from their generation to yours; and it is given with all the love and respect, and with all the hope and affirmation of their very great hearts.

Thank you for honoring my parents with your presence here today. In your Life’s journey I wish you God’s blessing and Godspeed. Thank you.

Jon Willis
October 23, 2009

LAS CRUCES — When Clara Yuvienco graduated in December with her master’s degree in public health, she thought she was well-positioned to get a job. Now, nearly a year later, she’s still looking.

“I haven’t been able to find a job in this town, even though I’m bilingual and I have a couple of minors,” Yuvienco said as she browsed the tables at the Borderlands Public Service Career Showcase on Tuesday at New Mexico State University.

The job fair, though geared primarily toward students who might not have much experience, attracted many older residents like Yuvienco as well, who were looking for a career change or simply seeking a job with stability in a time when many industries are not hiring or are laying off workers.

The unemployment rate in Doña Ana County at of the end of September was 7.7 percent, up from 4.7 percent a year ago, and the national unemployment numbers have reached the double-digit phase. But public sector jobs are available with the federal government. And, even if some state and local governments are putting the brakes on hiring, they still need to keep some positions filled, said James Peach, who teaches economics and international business at New Mexico State University.

Read the article.

LAS CRUCES – The final presidential search candidate to visit New Mexico State University is a self-described “land-grant guy” who touted his 42 years of experience in land-grant institutions – from his time as a student through his most recent position as chancellor at North Carolina State University.

But Jim Oblinger also spent some time Monday explaining why he is no longer chancellor at that school, having stepped down in June in the wake of a scandal involving the hiring of former North Carolina first lady Mary Easley.

“I decided that I would do the honorable thing,” Oblinger said in a news conference Monday at NMSU. “That I would step down as chancellor at NCSU so that we could move on.

“I did three groundbreakings in a week – great press coverage, but not a single question about the groundbreaking, but all about Mary Easley.”

Easley was hired without a search, Oblinger said, because her network of connections made her uniquely qualified to develop a seminar series that brought speakers including Bill Clinton and Charlie Rose to the campus. After her three-year contract was up, she was signed to a new contract with a significant salary increase – from $90,000 to $170,000 per year – along with additional responsibilities, including the creation of a public safety institute to develop textiles and technology to protect first responders.

Read the article.

LAS CRUCES – Jim Oblinger responded to concerns about support for graduate students, continuity of leadership and fundraising during the final candidate forum for students in the New Mexico State University presidential search.

Oblinger, the former chancellor at North Carolina State University, who resigned in June following questions about the hiring of then-first lady Mary Easley at the university, was at NMSU on Monday.

Continuity is something he would bring to NMSU, Oblinger told the few students who attended the forum and others who watched a Webcast and submitted questions online.

Oblinger cited his long tenure at NCSU – he’s been in administrative positions there for 23 years – and his commitment to the land-grant mission.

“I’m a product of the land-grant system,” Oblinger said.

Prompted to share how he’d help graduate students, Oblinger described a graduate student supplement plan in place at North Carolina State that provides financial support to students, as well as professional development workshops that he said helped prepare students to deal with situations once they leave the university.

Read the article.

Risk manager shares lessons learned

Administrators teach it, politicians have touted it and risk managers live by it. Preparation and prevention are key in avoiding costly mistakes and the disaster that can sometimes ensue, and folks in the insurance business have to be prepared for even the wildest of hypothetical situations.

That’s according to Cheryl Johnson, executive director of risk management for the Dallas Independent School District, the 12th largest school district in the United States.

Johnson, who oversees the risk management operations for the 163,000-student, 20,000-employee district, with $1.7 billion worth of property, said she’s learned many valuable lessons throughout her career.

“Analyzing past data is the foundation of risk management,” Johnson said. “Think about the worst thing that can go wrong and then act pro actively to prevent it. Things in life are preventable and predictable.”

Johnson spoke to a group of administrative employees from Las Cruces Public Schools and risk management students at New Mexico State University Wednesday, Nov. 4, at a lecture organized by the NMSU Finance Department.

“Probably one of the most common or ridiculous situations is the slip and fall,” Johnson said. “How many of you have seen a teacher get on a table to put up a poster board? What about a chair? What about a chair with wheels? A lot of these people have master’s degrees, right? Where’s the common sense?”

From small workplace injuries to devastating natural disasters, Johnson and her staff of nine work daily to prevent costly accidents of all types.

“We’ve had schools burn down, injuries, auto accidents, all that and more,” she said.

Read the article.

Do you own your own business? Do you have a great product idea that you want to develop? Do you have questions about effective marketing? The Entrepreneurship Institute at New Mexico State University’s Arrowhead Center wants to help. It will host the Entrepreneur Round-Up from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 18, on the second floor of NMSU’s Corbett Center.

The Entrepreneur Round-Up is part of Global Entrepreneurship Week/USA 2009 and will feature MBA students from Arrowhead Center holding one-on-one sessions with current and prospective entrepreneurs. The event is a free and open to the public.

“Whether you are a Web-based company, own your own store, or are still in the planning stage, we can help make your dreams reality,” said Marie Borchert, an educational specialist at Arrowhead Center. “This is a great opportunity for all businesses. I’d encourage everyone to bring questions and ideas.”

Global Entrepreneurship Week was founded by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and the Make Your Mark campaign. It is designed to inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs. This year, it takes place Nov. 16-22. Global Entrepreneurship Week has more than 1,000 partners, including top universities, non-profit organizations, successful entrepreneurs, government agencies and corporate sponsors. The week’s events will engage young people from 87 countries and encourage them to pursue entrepreneurial ideas through local, national and global activities designed to help them explore their potential as self-starters and innovators.

Those interested in participating in other Global Entrepreneurship Week events outside of NMSU can identify a host of additional activities, including virtual and face-to-face events, large-scale competitions, and networking gatherings through the Global Entrepreneurship Week activities calendar at http://www.unleashingideas.org/usa/activities_calendar. The activities calendar, which lists hundreds of events across the United States, can be searched by key word or sorted by location to help participants access the week’s many resources and events.

“During last year’s inaugural Global Entrepreneurship Week, we engaged more than 3 million people in more than 75 countries around the globe,” said Carl Schramm, president and chief executive officer of the Kauffman Foundation. “With the support generated so far in 2009, we’re set to reach even more young people, inspiring them to acquire the knowledge, skills and networks needed to grow innovative, sustainable enterprises that have a positive impact on their lives and communities.”

Organizations supporting Global Entrepreneurship Week include Global Sponsor NYSE Euronext, Global Partners Endeavor, Junior Achievement Worldwide (JA), Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO), DECA, the Prince’s Youth Business International, Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), UK Department for Business Innovation and Skills, MIT Enterprise Forum, the European Confederation of Young Entrepreneurs, and Youth Enterprise and Sustainability.

For more information, visit http://www.unleashingideas.org, and follow @unleashingideas on Twitter.

To help students make strong and direct connections with the real world’s economy, business and government, the Stock Market Game is used in classrooms from the fourth grade through college.

The game program, run by the Securities Industries and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), is a live trading simulation in which students strive to create a high-performing portfolio based off the real marketplace. The students use internet research and real news updates to learn core academic concepts and skills that can help them succeed in the classroom and in life.

A recent study by Learning Points Associates has shown that students who have participated in the Stock Market Game perform better in mathematics and financial literacy than students who haven’t. The study also asked teachers about how they implemented the game to fit their class room, and how the positive results were achieved regardless of how the game was played, either basic or advanced. This result suggests the game is easy to implement using standard teaching practices.

“We’re hoping the results of the survey spark an interest for using the game among more math teachers,” said Ken Martin, the program director for the Stock Market Game Program for the state New Mexico and professor of finance at New Mexico State University’s College of Business.

During the 2008-2009 academic year 94 teachers in New Mexico used the game in 74 schools with a total of 4,224 students participating, Martin said. The game is also used at NMSU as a personal finance course.

“The game benefits the students by getting them to think about their financial future in a world of high marketing,” Martin said. “It shows them to save and invest but also that the stock market is risky, and they must take precautions such as diversifying their investments. In New Mexico, success in the game is determined, not just by financial return, but also how much risk was involved in a portfolio.”

For more information, contact Martin at (575) 646-1236.

AggieVision has become the source on Aggie sports for all fans, students, alumni and faculty. In addition to broadcasting every home sporting event, AggieVision is growing on the Web. Utilizing the Web aspect of broadcasting allows Aggies – wherever they may be – to access the most up-to-date Aggie stats and highlights. In KRWG’s third year of producing the show they have transformed the former coaches’ shows into NMSU Sports Weekly.

One of the most impressive changes was adding additional episodes to extend NMSU Sports Weekly programming until the middle of May. This allows for the shows to cover some of NMSU’s spring sports such as baseball, softball and tennis. The reason for the growth and development of AggieVision can be attributed to the preparation of Executive Director of University Broadcasting Glen Cerny and AggieVision General Manager Joe Brackman.

AggieVision is growing on the Web.

Cerny explained some of what goes on behind the scenes and how the filming of NMSU Sports Weekly is planned.

“The current taping schedule for NMSU Sports Weekly really begins about two weeks in advance,” Cerny said. “The AggieVision staff either takes our broadcast footage or shoots highlights from various games to use. Features with coaches or student athletes are created and other packages are prepared.”

Cerny described the schedule in further detail and explained how AggieVision plans to distribute the show.

Cerny said, “Monday morning either the football or basketball interviews are conducted or the wrap-around shots are completed. By Tuesday the program is closed-captioned and on Wednesday it is sent to the satellite for regional distribution. Obviously, it is an ongoing activity for the 30 weeks of production.”

AggieVision currently has four full-time employees and the rest of the crew is students. Brackman talked about some of the experiences former crewmembers have had since working for AggieVision.

“Last year one of our students interned at Fox Sports Arizona. Former students have moved on to opportunities such as ESPN,” Brackman said. “The students that work for AggieVision are getting hands-on, real-world experience in sports broadcasting that they can’t find anywhere else.”

Brackman provided further insight as to what role the Web is playing in the growth of AggieVision.

“AggieVision provides all of their games online (via streaming), and every feature and package gets posted on the AggieVision YouTube channel,” Brackman said. “The shows also get posted to the AggieVision iTunes page. It’s free to subscribe and have clips and updates downloaded to your computer or iPod.”

Written by Tony Reyes.

LAS CRUCES – Michael Ortiz knows the New Mexico State University community may be wary of a presidential finalist who is a former Lobo, but he says his University of New Mexico background is nothing to worry about.

“I have more maroon in my closet than red,” Ortiz joked on Monday during his visit to NMSU.

The native of Carrizozo said he wasn’t looking for a new job – he’s happy as president of California State Polytechnic University in Pomona – but when Interim NMSU President Manuel Pacheco contacted him and suggested he look into the vacancy here, he couldn’t resist the opportunity to return to New Mexico and broaden his reach.

“Coming home to a position that will have a statewide impact through its land-grant mission,” is appealing, Ortiz said.

Ortiz noted that CSPU Pomona is neither a land-grant institution nor a Research I institution like NMSU, but pointed to similarities in the schools’ emphasis on agriculture, technology and engineering. He said CSPU also boasts a diverse student body, with 71 percent of students coming from racial and ethnic minorities – about 33 percent Latino, he said.

Coming from a small, predominantly Hispanic community, and being in the first generation of his family to attend college, Ortiz said he places great value on diversity and programs that support minority students. He’s fought, he said, to keep programs like cultural centers from becoming casualties of budget cuts at the school.

“I’ve fought those critics off,” Ortiz said of those who suggest that getting rid of the centers could save the university money. “Now they know it’s a priority, and they don’t go after them anymore.”

He touts his fundraising experience, noting that last year yielded the best fundraising totals ever at his university. Finding the money, he said is all about making connections.

Read the article.

LAS CRUCES – Presidential search finalist Michael Ortiz, the fourth of five candidates to visit campus, answered some of the more pressing questions on the minds of New Mexico State University students Monday — topics like improving the graduation rate among Hispanics, transparency in the administration and, of course, parking.

Ortiz explained how California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, addressed the problem of congested parking on campus — a situation that many NMSU students also find problematic — by creating special parking areas for students who ride-pool, changing the campus bus route to better accommodate students who need to reach the center of campus and building a parking structure.

Students attending the forum at Corbett Center nodded in approval as they learned of the changes, but Ortiz cautioned that the improvements have a downside.

“Students pay $90 per semester to park,” he said.

Asked about how he might address what some view as a problem with transparency at NMSU, Ortiz said he makes himself available to answer questions and get a sense of what’s on students’ minds.

“Transparency is all about communication,” he said. To that end, CSPU Pomona implemented “Pizza with the President” lunches that draw hundreds of students with questions, grievances and ideas. Budget cuts have downgraded the events to “Brown-bag with the President,” but Ortiz said the some of the feedback from students has resulted in ideas the university has been able to use.

Read the article.

Lisa Rossbacher

The second woman presidential candidate for New Mexico State University visited campus Friday and shared her experience in outer space research, diversity and her thoughts on how to recruit talented students, faculty and staff.

Lisa Rossbacher, who has served as president of Southern Polytechnic State University in Georgia for the past 12 years, said she was very impressed with NMSU and enjoyed her time visiting Las Cruces and the campus.

“We have a long-standing appreciation for New Mexico,” Rossbacher said, adding that her husband orders a box of Big Jim green chile from New Mexico every year and that she and her husband have spent a few holidays in New Mexico.

Rossbacher has worked with the Alliance for Minority Participation, encouraging underrepresented students to pursue careers in the science, technology, engineering and math fields. Rossbacher said Southern Polytech ranks number one in the percentage of African American students who earn degrees in the STEM fields, and diversity is important to her.

“We’re tremendously impressed with everything going on at New Mexico State University, [including] diversity and the way it’s embraced and [taken to] the heart of the university,” Rossbacher said.

Rossbacher said communication is a key part of attracting the best staff, faculty and students to NMSU, and she said she has been building up a list of qualified individuals who would add to the diversity and quality of the institution.

“Presidents always have to be recruiting. I take that to heart,” Rossbacher said. “I’m always recruiting and building a strong pool of applicants.”

Rossbacher said she is attracted to NMSU, for many reasons, including the land grant and space grant missions as well as the climate of Las Cruces.

“I see [the space grant mission] as a great parallel to the land grant mission,” Rossbacher said.

Rossbacher completed a space program at Johnson Space Center, and out of the 5,000 applicants, was one of 120 to be invited to the center for training and an interview.

“That experience gave me a lot of material to [share] with students,” Rossbacher said.

Kristina Medley is the news editor and can be reached at trunews@nmsu.edu.

LAS CRUCES – Issues like programs for minority students, support for graduate students and fiscal responsibility were on the minds of students who took the opportunity to question New Mexico State University presidential finalist Barbara Couture on Wednesday during a student forum at Corbett Center.

Asked how she might increase support for American Indian or gay and lesbian students, Couture said providing a productive and inclusive environment for all students is a priority, but acknowledged that finding funding for those programs is always a challenge.

She said one solution might be to find ways to use funds so that they benefit more than one student group at a time.

“Sometimes budgets are historically developed, and stay that way for a long time,” she said. “Do we need to rethink how those funds are distributed? It’s important to listen to students and learn what services they feel they need.”

NMSU’s diverse population is one thing Couture identified as a reason for her interest in the president position. She also cited the campus’s effective community college relationships, potential for new facilities and beautiful location.

In response to an online question about whether any skeletons in her closet might come to light once she was selected – a reference to the separate admissions scandals that led to the resignations of two of the four other finalists – Couture smiled.

Read the article.

LAS CRUCES – The second of five finalists in the New Mexico State University presidential search to visit the campus described herself as anything but an institution-hopper.

Barbara Couture, senior vice chancellor for academic affairs and a professor of English at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, said she knows the NMSU community is concerned about the turnover in recent years and looking for strong and stable leadership.

“I think president’s a different kind of position. A president becomes more related with the community and is building not only the university, but also the community as well – and that takes a long-term commitment,” Couture said during a news conference Wednesday at NMSU. “My intention is to stay and help build this institution.”

Couture is in her sixth year as chief academic officer at UNL.

NMSU isn’t the only school considering Couture for its presidency. Southern Illinois University at Carbondale announced Monday that Couture is one of two finalists for the chancellor’s position there. Couture will visit SIU-Carbondale next week.

Couture noted that the decision-making process is a two-way street.

Read the article.

LCSN Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of five stories profiling the finalists in the New Mexico State University presidential search.

LAS CRUCES – Richard Herman, the first of five finalists in the New Mexico State University presidential search to visit the campus, admits that he’s had a rough five months.

Having resigned his post last month as chancellor of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign amid an admissions scandal in which the university was accused of giving special attention to politically connected candidates, Herman acknowledged that he made a mistake by not walking away from what he characterized as a culture of political influence that predated him.

“You have to think about the trail of a decision,” Herman said Monday during a news conference at NMSU. “Here it led to something that was not transparent to the community.”

Herman said he hoped to be judged, not just on the accusations, but on the fullness of his record: His work to diversify the faculty and the student body, reach out to the community and increase research funding.

Read the article.

New Mexico State University’s With Us campaign celebrates how, in classrooms, labs, out in the field, or working in your community, together we make a difference.

TV Commercial: Dr. Pookie Sautter, Department of Marketing, is part of the NMSU With Us Campaign

See the With Us campaign billboards, outdoor signage, print samples, desktop wallpapers, YouTube videos.

KRWG TV: Newsmakers

A field report on the early college program planned for New Mexico State University and a conversation with Western New Mexico University professor Sharman Apt Russell, author of “Hunger-An Unnatural History” and part of a Grant County program to eliminate hunger.

Charles Comer and Fred Martino feature the people, issues, and events that shape our community.
E-mail your story and interview ideas to feedback@nmsu.edu.
Retrieved online: Oct. 30, 2009.

In accordance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, the NMSU Police Department is required annually to notify students and employees about crime statistics for the Las Cruces and Doña Ana Community College campuses. The 2009 report is accessible on the police department’s Web site (http://www.nmsupolice.com/AnnualReports/2009AnnualReport.pdf).

The report contains information regarding safety and security programs, policies and procedures in place at NMSU and DACC.

The Clery Act requires the report to list statistics for seven specific criminal activities over a three-year period (2006 – 2008): murder (including manslaughter), rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, motor vehicle theft, arson and hate crimes. Federal law requires these acts be broken down further to reveal where criminal activity took place: on campus, in residence facilities, off-campus fraternities or off-campus public property. A more comprehensive listing of crime and traffic incident statistics going back to 1989 may be found on the police department’s Web site.

For the most part, crime statistics have trended downward on the NMSU and DACC campuses for the past three years.

The numbers reveal that burglary has been by far the most common crime on the Las Cruces campus in each of the past three years, with an across-the-board high of 92 incidents in 2007. The good news is that burglaries were cut by nearly two-thirds in 2008, to 32 incidents.

“The NMSU Police Department is responsible for the investigation of all crimes that take place on university premises, which includes the filing of appropriate police reports and filing of annual reports and statistics,” pointed out Deputy Chief of Police Stephen Lopez. “However, other agencies have concurrent jurisdiction in many cases. We make efforts to encourage other agencies taking reports to notify us so the incident can be reflected in the annual crime reports, and while there has been a history of excellent cooperation and data sharing among local law enforcement agencies in Doña Ana County, the cooperation from state and federal agencies in sharing this type of data is not as strong, due in large part to secrecy requirements by those agencies.

“These agencies generally don’t investigate crimes on campus, though, so we believe the data in the report is pretty comprehensive,” he added.

From 2006-2008, no murders, or hate crimes were reported on campus. Aside from robbery and arson, all areas reported a decline in incidences from 2007 to 2008. Four robberies were reported in 2008, where none had been reported the previous two years, and arsons increased from one report to three reports in the same time period, matching the total arson incidences reported from 2006.

Statistics on fires and fire responses other than arson are managed by the NMSU Fire and Emergency Services Department, which also publishes the Annual Fire Safety Report, available online at http://www.fire.nmsu.edu/docs/Annual_Report.pdf.

In all, the past three years have seen reports of 165 burglaries, 51 motor vehicle thefts, 22 aggravated assaults, 12 rapes, seven arsons and four robberies.

“It is important to note that the annual report contains the data for the Las Cruces and DACC campuses combined,” said Lopez. “It’s impossible to allocate crimes to one campus or the other when so many of the facilities, like housing and parking lots, are shared. Even arrests made on campus streets are complicated, since many of our streets run by or through both campuses. This makes comparisons to single campus colleges and universities across News Mexico and the country inaccurate.”

Lopez noted that additional cautions regarding comparisons of colleges and universities based on crime statistics may be found on the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports Web site (http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2008/about/variables_affecting_crime.html).

Individual printed copies of the report may be requested from the NMSU Police Department by e-mailing police@nmsu.edu.

YouTube. Twitter. Facebook. MySpace. These are all ways NMSU is reaching out to its community and the world through Internet social media.

But how do you access these sources of information? NMSU recently launched its social media landing page http://www.nmsu.edu/socialmedia which lists the various campus colleges, departments and organizations using social media to reach the general public, faculty, staff and students.

Frank Torres, Web developer with the university’s Media Productions department, says NMSU is up to speed in the social media world.

“In the past year social media utilities have been proliferating throughout the NMSU community. Students, departments and colleges have been adopting these technologies to do many things, such as build awareness of programs, increase enrollment and to communicate and collaborate with the NMSU community,” Torres said. “Here at Media Productions we have decided to provide a central online location where our users can go to access NSMU social media communities.”

Site visitors can access the social media landing page from the NMSU homepage (http://www.nmsu.edu/). The link is housed on the site menu under campus life.

“At this point in time, the social media landing page consists of five categories – YouTube, Twitter, MySpace, Facebook and ‘Other Networks,’” Torres said. “We are anticipating the lists of participating channels to grow as more departments adopt social media.

“And now that Media Productions is going forward with the production of educational software for the iPhone, we will be expanding the Social Media landing page to include these developments,” he continued.

There are nine YouTube channel links that allow you to see what’s happening via videos created by NMSU community members.

“We have established YouTube channels for the satellite campuses and several colleges and departments within NMSU,” said Torres. “Each unit can now leverage the YouTube environment to display video specific to their mission and goals with the intent to show the world their strengths and uniqueness.”

Department or college video masters, who serve as gatekeepers for their channel’s content, determine their particular college or department channel mission.

There are 16 Twitter accounts listed, as well as 10 Facebook and four MySpace links.

“Similar to the YouTube model, whoever owns the Twitter account decides how it is to be used. For example, Twitter can be used to connect with other Twitter users, it can be used to broadcast events, drive traffic to other Web spaces or to resurface and share information.” Torres said.

Torres has been campaigning with each of the university’s colleges to encourage the adoption of social media to meet their business goals. “Social media allows everybody to be a publisher and have a voice. With the economy in the state it is in, taking advantage of the no-cost, easy-to-use social media technologies is a powerfully effective way to show the world who we are, what we do and how we do it.”

To learn more about social media and how to use them for your department or college contact Frank Torres at fjtorres@nmsu.edu.

---

Additional information from the College of Business:
CoB “All News & Social Media” http://business.nmsu.edu/news/all.

• YouTube-College of Business: Videos, Playlist, Subscribe
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/nmsucob
• Facebook:
  • Dean Garrey Carruthers: http://tinyurl.com/y8kysoe
  • NMSU College of Business Alumni Networking: http://tinyurl.com/y9pdflc. A group that provides NMSU College of Business alumni the opportunity to network, stay up-to-date with College events and activities, and connect with former classmates.
• Student Ambassadors’ MySpace