ENMU regents greenlight new degree program

Apr. 1—Approval of a proposed Master of Social Work degree program Friday by the Eastern New Mexico University Board of Regents is only one hurdle to be cleared.

The program must now receive approval from state agencies, including the New Mexico Higher Education Department, Jamie Laurenz, ENMU's vice president of academic affairs, told the board.

The ENMU board approved the new degree program, but the additional steps to final approval mean the program is not likely to get started before Fall 2024, Laurenz said.

Despite a critical, and growing, need for social workers in New Mexico, especially in eastern New Mexico, Laurenz said, the ENMU program still requires approval from the New Mexico Graduate Council and the Board of Finance of the state Department of Finance and Administration before it receives final state Higher Education Department approval.

Board of Regents President Phillip Bustos said the state should reconsider its procedures for approving major programs.

"Other schools that we compete with don't have this kind of bureaucracy," he said.

Under board questioning, Adrienne Batcher, chair of ENMU's Health and Human Service Department, said master's degree holders in Social Work can command salaries up to $80,000.

Laurenz said the master's program, if approved, could be completed within one year for a student with a bachelor's degree in Social Work but could take up to three years for student coming into the program from other majors.

Board member Trish Ruiz said schools currently use traveling social workers, which prevents productive relationships between students and social work counselors. The master's program at ENMU, she said could help alleviate shortages that lead to this situation.

The board on Friday also:

— Swore in new board members Logan O'Brien, student member, and Ray Birmingham.

— Approved a new fee allocation schedule for the 2023-2024 school year that includes $510,000 to athletic programs and takes away $6,000 allocated for intramural sports, as proposed by the Student Activities Fees Board.

— Discussed but took no action on a proposed Creative Media concentration for the University Studies program for the Ruidoso campus of ENMU, which is a community college. The concentration would include design and project management classes, as well as hands-on production of digital media projects, using state-of-the-art software and equipment, according to a letter from Ryan Trosper, the Ruidoso campus' president.

— Approved operating agreement between ENMU's administration and the community college branches in Roswell and Ruidoso.

— Approved raising out-of-state tuition fees at the Ruidoso campus by $26 per credit hour, from $106 to $132 per credit hour. Coda Omness, the campus's vice president of academic affairs, told the board the Ruidoso campus's cyber security courses attract students from around the country and the world.

— Held an executive session to discuss a personnel matter but took no action as a result.