ENMU board acts to advance president search
Apr. 26—The Eastern New Mexico University Board of Regents took two actions on Friday that pave the way for selecting a replacement for retiring Chancellor Patrice Caldwell.
The board on Friday approved a contract with EFL Associates, an executive search firm with an office in Albuquerque. The firm was picked by a committee of ENMU Regents Phillip Bustos and Trish Ruiz, ENMU Personnel Director Benito Gonzales and Caldwell.
Wynn Goering, a higher education search specialist with EFL, discussed the firm's search practices with board members.
He said the firm is not involved with any other higher education executive searches in New Mexico and said the firm would present several of the best qualified finalists to the regents, but would keep confidentiality with candidates until they are named as finalists for the position.
The contract must be approved by ENMU attorneys and the New Mexico Higher Education Department before it is finalized, Caldwell said.
The board on Friday also approved the addition of representatives of the Portales City Council and the Roosevelt County Commission to an advisory search committee in the effort to find Caldwell's replacement. Caldwell said the board will be informed about individuals chosen for the committee when the list is ready.
In other action Friday the regents:
— Gave Albert Finn, ENMU's rodeo coach, a go-ahead to advance plans to build a $300,000 equipment building for the rodeo team. The funds were allocated by the New Mexico Legislature at the request of state Sen. Stuart Ingle, R-Portales, Finn said.
Finn said the building will resemble an equipment building at ENMU's Portales physical plant.
Finn said the plan's next step is approval from the Higher Education Department.
— Approved two projects, each expected to cost about $1 million, that Scott Smart, ENMU's chief financial officer, will present to the Higher Education Department's Severance Tax Bond hearings in the summer.
One project is installation of keyless access systems at all ENMU buildings that currently are not equipped with keyless access. That would eliminate the necessity of keeping large numbers of physical keys that can also be controlled remotely, Smart said.
The other project is safe removal of asbestos and tearing down the building at Harding Hall, a three-story residence hall built in the 1950s that stands on the site of what is expected to be a Student Academic Services building, Smart said.
Even if the bond fails, Smart said, the building should be torn down. Regent Dan Patterson said the $1 million would be a reasonable price for asbestos abatement and razing the building.
If approved, Scott said, the project should begin in summer 2023.
