The future is bright for NMSU

Classes have begun for the fall semester at New Mexico State University, at our main campus in Las Cruces, at our community colleges around the state, and for students attending our NMSU Global Campus. I’m delighted to report that while we are still a few days away from our official census date, it appears as though we will see a second consecutive year of strong enrollment gains. These increases are thanks to the hard work of many of our university employees. These increases are also thanks to the state’s Opportunity Scholarship, championed by Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and funded by the New Mexico Legislature.

As a land-grant university, our mission is to provide education, research, and Extension and outreach services to the people of New Mexico. I want to recognize our world-class faculty and staff for their efforts on each of these fronts. In support of providing education to our students, NMSU faculty members deliver the academic rigor our students need to be competitive in their careers after graduation. They also provide the compassion and support students need to succeed while earning their degrees. Faculty and support staff at NMSU are also responsible for research and outreach activities, and work each day to advance knowledge and to take that knowledge and other resources to the people of New Mexico to help in bettering their lives.

We are in the process of searching for the next long-term leader for NMSU. I applaud our Board of Regents for their efforts to travel the state, from Gallup to Raton to Deming to Hobbs and many points in between, conducting listening sessions to learn what priorities our community members have when selecting our next leader. This kind of endeavor – meeting people face-to-face in a state as large as New Mexico – is no small task. The commitment of our Regents to seek input on our campuses and to visit so many communities highlights how they genuinely want to hear from the people. This effort is also a reflection of how much they truly care about our university.

As you may know, a university regent is a volunteer position in New Mexico. To serve in these roles, it only works if you have a passion for the university and want to ensure its future success. We’re fortunate at this time in our history to have such a dedicated board. Credit, again, to Governor Lujan Grisham, for her thoughtful selection of this group to help lead the university.

For more information about our presidential search, to provide feedback of your own, or to nominate someone to be the next NMSU President, I encourage you to visit https://nmsu.edu/president-search/.

To our faculty, staff and students, I wish you a wonderful fall semester and thank you for the excellent work you do every day to make this a transformative learning environment for our students. To our community members and stakeholders around the world, New Mexico State University is on the right path and well positioned for continued success.

Go Aggies!

JayGogueis interim president of New Mexico State University. He may be reached at president@nmsu.edu.

This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: The future is bright for NMSU