New Mexico State University will continue a new tradition established in 2023 to acknowledge people and organizations working to positively impact economic development in New Mexico. Nominations are now being accepted for the 2024 Kevin B. Boberg Excellence in Economic Development Award. The award's first winner, Jon Barela, CEO of the Borderplex Alliance, an economic development and policy advocacy organization, was honored last fall at the 2023 NMSU Outreach Conference.

The award is named after Kevin Boberg, who helped launch Arrowhead Center at NMSU and was its first director and CEO. Boberg passed away in March 2021.

"This award celebrates partnership and serves as a wonderful reminder that the economic development work undertaken by NMSU would not and could not occur without the collaboration of stakeholders throughout New Mexico who share our vision and desire to make an impact," said Luis Cifuentes, vice president of Research, Creativity and Economic Development at NMSU.

The award is sponsored by NMSU's Arrowhead Center and its Office of Research, Creativity and Economic Development, and seeks to recognize those with a track record of collaboration with the university and community. Nominations should highlight how nominees amplify NMSU's economic development impact through active partnerships and excellence in innovation.

Two awardees will be selected – one from within the NMSU community and one representing an external collaborator – and each will receive a $2,000 prize. Nominations will be accepted from through Monday, Oct. 28. Nomination forms are available at nmsu.edu/economic-development/boberg-award.html.

This year's winners will be honored at the 2024 Fall Outreach Conference Nov. 19 at the Las Cruces Convention Center.

Boberg made a significant impact on NMSU's economic development and community engagement projects during his 30 years with the university. Not only did he help launch Arrowhead Center along with recently retired director and CEO Kathy Hansen and former New Mexico Gov. Garrey Carruthers, Boberg was the first to hold the Garrey E. and Katherine T. Carruthers Chair in Economic Development in the College of Business.

Boberg was credited for helping the university establish the Arrowhead Park Early College High School, which was developed through a community partnership between the public schools and NMSU. He also helped spearhead efforts to bring the Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine to the NMSU campus.

In 2013, Boberg was named NMSU's vice president for economic development under Carruthers, who was NMSU's president at the time. Hansen then took over as Arrowhead Center's director and CEO.

Throughout his years working to build the university's economic development and community engagement efforts, Boberg continued to work as a professor and mentor to students. He was a member of the Pete V. Domenici Institute Advisory Council and a mentor for the Domenici Public Policy Conference Student Panelist program. He also helped create the Domenici Scholars program.

The full article can be seen at https://newsroom.nmsu.edu/news/nmsu-seeks-nominees-for-2024-economic-development-award/s/25af63d6-3f03-4b37-8ebc-6a669d7698eb