Other NM universities announcements

A New Mexico State University graduate, Amanda Nunez returned to her alma mater as a staff member in 2021 and has spent five years supporting students and their needs, first as the Aggie Cupboard program specialist and now as assistant director of NMSU's Student Assistance Services. 

"Being an NMSU alumna makes my work even more meaningful," Nunez said. "It is special to be able to give back to the university that played an important role in my own educational journey and now have the opportunity to support students as they work toward achieving their goals." 

For her hard work and dedication to serving students, Nunez was recognized with the 2026 "A" Mountain Staff Award Oct. 30 during NMSU's Employee Appreciation Picnic. The "A" Mountain Staff Award recognizes staff members who demonstrate the NMSU core values of leadership, excellence, access, diversity and inclusion, and those who are student-centered.

Being a pioneer takes courage, and 42% of New Mexico State University undergraduate students are exploring new worlds as the first in their families to pursue a college degree. In November, the NMSU system will celebrate first-generation college students, faculty and staff. 

On the Las Cruces campus, NMSU's eighth annual first-generation celebration will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, at Corbett Center Student Union's first floor and Aggie Lounge. The event will include free food, T-shirts, swag and a photo booth in addition to video greetings from university leadership and a performance from Ballet Folklórico Orgullo de Nuevo México. 

At first glance, the desert expanses in New Mexico may seem dry, barren, harsh and beautiful. But that wasn't always the case.

Over the past 150 years, rangelands in the Southwest have experienced dramatic changes in vegetation. A research project based at New Mexico State University's Chihuahuan Desert Rangeland Research Center is exploring ways to restore rangelands to what they once were: expanses of perennial grasslands.

The project will be one of four presented at this year's CDRRC field day, which takes place from 8 a.m. to noon Nov. 13 at the center, located at 9912 County Road E079 in Las Cruces. The event is free and open to the public.

At New Mexico State University, student success extends beyond the classroom. The Round Up, NMSU's student newspaper, demonstrated that success by earning seven awards at the New Mexico Press Association's annual Better Newspaper Contest earlier this month. 

Five staff members of The Round Up attended the NMPA awards ceremony, alongside hundreds of representatives from news organizations and independent journalists from across the state, to celebrate excellence in journalism. 

In its inaugural year competing in the contest, The Round Up received three first-place awards and four second-place awards. All of which recognized student work in writing, photography and digital media.

Armed with dozens of motion-sensing cameras, William Grooms spent this past summer documenting wildlife across Carson National Forest in northern New Mexico. It was his first field season collecting photos for a two-year study to understand how forest structure influences biodiversity in the Southern Rocky Mountains.

Months later, while reviewing his first set of images, Grooms, a Ph.D. student at New Mexico State University, came across something so rare he initially didn't believe his eyes. 

Hidden among the pictured squirrels, rabbits, bears and foxes – wildlife known to roam the San Juan Mountains that straddle the New Mexico-Colorado border – was clear photographic evidence of a snow-adapted wild cat known as a Canada lynx, a species last documented in New Mexico about a quarter-century ago.

Finding the best solutions to a challenge is often the result of a team collaboration, and New Mexico State University worked with local school districts from across the state to complete the assignment — a free online high school readiness series. The three-course series is a self-paced online learning course that prepares students for college, careers and life after graduation. 

Staff from the NMSU Student Success Center and NMSU Global partnered with educators from across New Mexico to create three micro-credential courses, career preparation and readiness, student success skills and financial literacy. 

The New Mexico State University museums and collections are hosting the second annual Nightmare at the Museums fundraising event, 6–9 p.m., Friday, October 30, at Kent Hall and Devasthali Hall. There will be Halloween-themed activities for all ages, ranging from kid-friendly stories and crafts to a legitimately scary "haunted lab" tour. 

Tickets are $13 per person for ages 13 and up. Kids (12 and under) and NMSU students (with IDs) get in free! 

"We had a fantastic time with this event last year," Kelly Jenks, Director of the University Museum, said. "More than 300 people came and everyone was really impressed with all the cool things we had to offer. Our students are feeling the pressure to make this year's event bigger and spookier!" 

NM FAST and Larta Institute have completed a space-focused accelerator cohort that guided six New Mexico technology companies through a 10-to-12-week program designed to strengthen their competitiveness for federal funding through the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs. The cohort, which launched July 21, 2026, targeted founders and researchers pursuing grants from NASA, Space Force, and related federal agencies. 

Over the course of the program, participating companies strengthened their commercialization strategies, identified relevant federal funding opportunities, and continued preparing for future SBIR/STTR applications. Participants reported monitoring opportunities across agencies including NASA, the DoD, Air Force/AFWERX, Space Force/SpaceWERX, NSF, EPA, and NOAA. The cohort brought together companies at both the pre-award and early-award stages, pairing Phase 0 applicants preparing their first SBIR submissions with Phase I awardees working toward Phase II readiness and commercialization strategy.