Author Archives: Abe Villarreal

Junchen Huang is ending his journey as an undergraduate student at Western New Mexico University. He will be earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree on Friday. Next week he prepares to begin a new academic career at Pratt Institute in New York City. While he plans to study in the most artistic city in the country, his experience as a Mustang has already taken him around the world. Huang was born in China. As a child he was interested in art but felt that he couldn’t express his creativity as freely as he did once he moved to the United States nine years ago. “Chinese educational systems are not always prone to art,” explained Huang. “It can be a side thing, a hobby. In the United States you have freedom and no restrictions as well as the audience and acceptance of doing art is greater.” Huang’s main focus is painting and drawing; however, throughout the last year he has created artwork that is displayed through live projections. That experience led him to be chosen...

Delivering the keynote address at the spring commencement ceremony on Friday will be Tony Trujillo, a lifelong Grant County resident and community leader. Trujillo is the Director of Government Relations for New Mexico Operations at Freeport-McMoRan Inc. He is a graduate of Western New Mexico University earning a degree in business administration in 1975. A community leader for decades, Mr. Trujillo has served as board member and president for several organizations including the New Mexico Prosperity Project, Silver City-Grant County Chamber of Commerce, Grant County Prospectors and the New Mexico Mining Association. Trujillo recently completed two terms as a board member and is past president of the Board of Regents for WNMU. His previous government experience includes serving as Town Councilor for the Town of Silver City. For his service to the community, Trujillo has been recognized with numerous recognitions including being named the 2006 Citizen of the Year by the Silver...

Western New Mexico University will induct three career educators into the School of Education Hall of Fame as part of the 2015 spring commencement ceremony activities. Emily Berry Armstrong is being inducted posthumously. Armstrong was an elementary school teacher for 42 years. She is being recognized for meeting the challenges of serving in a one-room rural schoolhouse, in Dona Ana and Luna Counties. Her career included serving as a teacher, principal, school nurse, janitor and bus driver. Armstrong instituted a bilingual program for ESL students and nurtured her students’ participation in the community. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree from WNMU in 1951. Dora Joe Berry Munson is being inducted posthumously. Munson earned a baccalaureate and master’s degree from WNMU in 1959. Her career included serving as an elementary school teacher for 27 years in Luna County. After one year of college she began her teaching career in a one-room school at Spaulding, New Mexico where...

One of Western New Mexico University’s larger graduating classes will be earning diplomas at the spring commencement exercises on Friday, May 15. At least 390 students are scheduled to receive diplomas in the outdoor ceremony, for the first time to be held at Ben Altamirano Field, home of the Mustang football team, due to construction at Old James Stadium. The ceremony will begin at 3:00 p.m. Parking is available on both sides of the Fine Arts Center Theater. The ceremony can be seen live online: wnmu.edu/events/graduation Students that earned the High School Equivalency, formerly known as G.E.D., will also be honored: Lawrence Allison, Robert Christie, Abraham Estrada, Idaliz Hernandez, Porter Howard, Jacob Kaiser, Marilyn Muse, Arturo Perez and Daniel Tirado Silver City, NM Associate Degree – Kristy Arambula, Robert Armstrong, Ronnie Baca, Jonathan Bender, James Califf, Tess Caroll, Zachary Carter, Selina Castillo, Felicia Cohn, Kristen Davidson, Lucille Eby,...

Polynesian students at Western New Mexico University will be showcasing traditions in music and food at the third annual Polynesian Night on Saturday, May 9 at 6:00 p.m. in Old James Stadium. The event will include musical performances by Polynesian Club members representing different islands. Club members will also cook and serve an authentic dinner including drinks and desserts. The cost is $5 per plate for community members and $2 for WNMU students with Mustang Card. Organized by the Polynesian Club, at least 16 students can describe themselves as either 100 percent or part Polynesian. They represent the peoples and cultures from different islands including Hawaii, Samoa and Tahiti. The performances showcase traditional dance routines and...

Western New Mexico University will join the Lone Star Conference (LSC) as a full member beginning the fall of 2016. “The move from the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference to the Lone Star Conference allows our student-athletes to continue having a great athletic experience, while traveling less,” said Dr. Joseph Shepard, WNMU President. “The Lone Star Conference has an outstanding history of sportsmanship and competitive play at the Division II national level.” The Mustangs have participated with the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference since 2006. During that time, several programs including golf and tennis have earned conference titles and made post-season appearances. “We are very pleased to join the Lone Star Conference. It has tremendous history and is considered one of the most competitive conferences in the country,” said Mark Coleman, WNMU Director of Athletics. “The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference is a first class organization with great people within...

A recently published book attempts to bring to life an important feminist movement of the 18th century. It is a movement that author and professor Deborah Heller would like to connect to modern feminism. Heller, a professor of English at Western New Mexico University who has published extensively on the Bluestockings, edited and wrote the introduction and first chapter for the newly published, nine-essay book titled Bluestockings Now!. “The book challenges the old theory that the eighteenth-century British intellectual women known as the Bluestockings were an isolated phenomenon,” said Heller. “Actually, the Bluestockings started a trend of women-centered activism that has continued through time up to the present day. And one of the purposes of the book is to kindle interest in the potential for Bluestocking activism in the future.” Heller highlights the group’s practices of networking and initiating social change. She calls the group torchbearers of modern feminism...

Four Western New Mexico University students will be inducted into the Student Hall of Fame with a ceremony on Wednesday, May 6 at 3:00 p.m. in the Global Resource Center. Each year WNMU honors exemplary students who excel in several areas including leadership, academic achievement, community involvement and participation in campus life. The 2015 class of inductees are Gregory Elliott II, Zayde Khalil, Alvaro Nunez and Jordan Summers. Gregory Elliott II arrived to WNMU in 2013 as a transfer student. He was a member of the Mustang football team for two years. Elliott has excelled academically and has served as a mentor to other students in his role as a math tutor. He founded the GEK Mathematics and Computer Honor Society and served as the society’s President. Elliott is graduating as a double major in May with a bachelor degrees in Applied Mathematics and Chemistry. He is originally from San Marcos, California. Zayde Khalil is graduating with a bachelor’s degree in...

Karen Whitlock, a Masters of Social Work candidate, was selected as the Social Work Student of the Year by the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) – New Mexico Chapter. Whitlock was selected among hundreds of social work students attending WNMU, Eastern New Mexico University, New Mexico State University and New Mexico Highlands University. Patrick Tyrrell, Executive Director of NASW – New Mexico, explained that Whitlock stood out among other students for demonstrating both academic proficiency and strong adherence to the NASW Code of Ethics. “The honored individual has made outstanding contributions to the social work profession and is a recognized leader among her peers,” said Tyrrell. Whitlock is a student board member of the Chapter Board of NASW. She has assisted in organizing the Rural Social Work Conference and has helped advocate for social work causes including the securing of Social Work licensing in New Mexico. Whitlock is earning her Master of...

Traveling across the country, the Left Coast Tour will make a stop in Silver City on Monday, May 4 at 7:00 p.m. in the Center For Gender Equity on campus. The tour includes performances by award-winning singer Summer Osborne and Sarah McCracken. The artists call their unique act the Left Coast Tour of Epic Mind Blowing Awesomeness. It involves songs and performances that touch on the human spirit and condition. Summer Osborne is an award winning American singer-songwriter who entertains audiences throughout the US and Canada with her brand of melodic and lyrically potent genre-jumping performances. Her performances touch on themes such as spiritually, truth, love and healing. Sarah McCracken uses quirky metaphors, humor and empathy toward the human condition to create songs via raw thoughts that offer perspective on everyday life. McCraken’s performances contain social messages. She is described as a wordsmith. The performance is free and open to the public. Event...