Five finalists for president of the New Mexico State University system will visit the Las Cruces campus next week, the Board of Regents announced Tuesday in a message to faculty, staff and students. The visits will feature public forums, including evening sessions with each candidate, designed to allow members of the campus community and the public to hear from candidates directly about what they would bring to NMSU.
The public forums, held by the board in partnership with NMSU's Faculty Senate and Associated Students of NMSU, will begin Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, at NMSU's Las Cruces campus. Morning sessions will focus more on topics important to faculty and staff, while mid-day sessions will highlight student questions, and evening sessions will have a community focus.
In Tuesday's message, Regents Chair Ammu Devasthali emphasized that anyone is welcome to participate in any of the forums, and questions are not limited to topics specific to those audiences. Participants can also livestream and participate in the forum remotely via Zoom. Additional details about the schedule are online at nmsu.edu/president-search/candidate-forums.html. For biographies and résumés of each candidate, visit nmsu.edu/president-search/finalists.html
The five finalists are Arsenio Romero, Ph.D., former Secretary of Public Education for New Mexico; Brian Haynes, Ph.D., Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs at the University of California, Riverside; Neil MacKinnon, Ph.D. professor in the School of Public Health and immediate past Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost at Augusta University; Monica Lounsbery, Ph.D., dean of the College of Health and Human Services at California State University, Long Beach; and Valerio Ferme, Ph.D., Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost for University of Cincinnati.
For biographies and résumés of each candidate, visit nmsu.edu/president-search/finalists.html.
Devasthali expressed her thanks to those who have participated in the search thus far and encouraged members of the community to get involved in the candidate forums.
"The expansion of our forum schedule to include a community forum in the evening is designed to increase your opportunities to hear from each candidate – and if you're unable to attend in person, you can find the forums online, and either tune in live or follow up to watch the sessions later," she said.
Members of the campus community and the public can share feedback with the board through an online feedback form found on the presidential search website, or by sending an email to
For more information on NMSU's presidential search, visit nmsu.edu/president-search.
NMSU Presidential Candidate Visits
For more details about the schedule and to access the feedback form, visit nmsu.edu/president-search/candidate-forums.html
Monday, September 9
Arsenio Romero, Ph.D., Former Secretary of Public Education, State of New Mexico
Faculty and Staff Forum: 10 to 10:50 a.m., Corbett Center Auditorium
Student Forum: 1:30 to 2:15 p.m., Corbett Center Auditorium.
Community Forum: 5:30 to 7 p.m., Las Cruces Convention Center
Tuesday, September 10
Brian Haynes, Ph.D., Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, University of California, Riverside
Faculty and Staff Forum: 10 to 10:50 a.m., Corbett Center Auditorium
Student Forum: 1:30 to 2:15 p.m., Corbett Center Auditorium
Community Forum: 5:30 to 7 p.m., Las Cruces Convention Center
Wednesday, September 11
Neil MacKinnon, Ph.D. Professor, School of Public Health, Immediate Past Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, Augusta University
Faculty and Staff Forum: 10 to 10:50 a.m., Corbett Center Auditorium.
Student Forum: 1:30 to 2:15 p.m., Corbett Center Auditorium.
Community Forum: 5:30 to 7 p.m., Las Cruces Convention Center.
Thursday, September 12
Monica Lounsbery, Ph.D., Dean, College of Health and Human Services, California State University, Long Beach
Faculty and Staff Forum: 10 to 10:50 a.m., Corbett Center - Ballroom West
Student Forum: 1:30 to 2:15 p.m., Corbett Center - Ballroom West
Community Forum: 5:30 to 7 p.m., Las Cruces Convention Center
Friday, September 13
Valerio Ferme, Ph.D., Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, University of Cincinnati
Faculty and Staff Forum: 10 to 10:50 a.m., Corbett Center Auditorium
Student Forum: 1:30 to 2:15 p.m., Corbett Center - Doña Ana Room
Community Forum: 5:30 to 7 p.m., Las Cruces Convention Center
The full article, with photos of the finalists, can be seen at https://newsroom.nmsu.edu/news/finalists-in-nmsu-presidential-search-to-visit-campus-beginning-sept.-9/s/d5d3ada1-74ca-4668-9e24-892aa38e248b
