Press Releases

Art created by inmates in the Grant County Detention Center will be on display on the Western New Mexico University campus beginning with an exhibit opening on Thursday, February 16. The exhibit is titled “Art From Within” and is meant to showcase the talents of the incarcerated. “Inmates are seen as numbers or cases, and this exhibit is designed to remind everyone that we all have value and a point of view, no matter what mistakes we’ve made in our life,” said Abe Villarreal, WNMU Director of Communications. WNMU partnered with the local Inmate Support Program that works to support inmates after their release through several organizations such as the Adult Education Services programs at WNMU. The exhibited pieces will be on sale at designated donation amounts. All proceeds will be used to support inmates. “I think that those who get to experience the art will be overwhelmed by the thoughtful expression and talent that these individuals are displaying...

The Western New Mexico University Board of Regents met for its first meeting of 2017 on Thursday, February 2, in Santa Fe. The Board heard from state leaders including State Senator John Arthur Smith, Chair of the State Finance Committee, who briefed the Regents members on the current economic outlook. Lieutenant Governor John Sanchez detailed the efforts of the Governor’s office to balance the budget and applauded WNMU’s recent work to create relationships with education partners throughout Mexico and Latin America. “The world is becoming smaller and one of the things that I have always appreciated about working with Latin America has been the idea that we have these shared values,” Sanchez said. “Western has really blazed the trail.” David Abbey, Director of the Legislative Finance Committee, provided a recap of economic indicators over the last year including the current state of wages, jobs and revenues. Abbey spoke to increasing oil and gas revenues and a...

Lordsburg High School students are invited to attend a Scholarship Night event, hosted by Western New Mexico University on Thursday, February 9. The event will take place at 6:00 p.m. in the Lordsburg High School computer lab. Financial Aid experts will be present to discuss scholarship, grant and loan opportunities offered the federal government and private sources. “This is a critical time for students and family members as they make decisions about financial aid,” said Matthew Lara, Director of Admissions and Recruitment. “WNMU several tuition discounts including the Tuition Guarantee.” WNMU is the first university in the New Mexico to offer a Tuition Guarantee program with the promise that tuition rates will not increase during a four-year college career. Scholarships will be awarded at the event and students are encouraged to bring unofficial transcripts for evaluation. Free food and drink will be served to attendees. For more information, contact Abe...

Western New Mexico University will be celebrating 124 years of history with a special Founders Day celebration on Friday, February 10. The day marks the commemoration of the university’s inception by the New Mexico state legislature on February 11, 1893. Originally known as the New Mexico Normal School, WNMU received its current name in 1963 after being renamed several times. The birthday party will take place in the Student Memorial Center third floor breezeway from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00p.m. Birthday cake and drinks will be served. An exhibit of memorabilia and artifacts showcasing university students and events through history will be on display in the Miller Library. Attendees are encouraged to wear purple and area alumni will win prizes if they bring along items from their time on campus. For more information, contact the Office of Communications at...

George Winston, one of the world’s most recognized solo pianists, will be performing live in Light Hall Theater on Tuesday, February 7. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with the performance beginning at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are $25 per person. Winston has released 13 solo piano albums since 1972. He was awarded a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album in 1995. Winston is currently playing solo concerts throughout the country. His performances usually feature a variety of styles including melodic folk, R&B, and stride. Since 1986, Winston has been raising money for food banks and service organizations in every community he visits while on tour. Event attendees are encouraged to bring a canned food. Food donations along with proceeds from CD and merchandise items at the event will benefit the Grant County Food Pantry at the Volunteer Center in Silver City. Tickets can be purchased online at wnmu.edu/culture. The event is sponsored by the Office of Cultural Affairs,...

The changing cultures and myths of the American Southwest is the theme for a new juried art exhibit that will feature photography by Jay Hemphill, Western New Mexico University photographer. The exhibit, Representing the West: A New Frontier, will open January 28 at the Sangre De Cristo Arts Center in Pueblo, Colorado. Hemphill will exhibit a collection of three black and white photographs in a piece titled A New West. “My hope for this piece is to engage the viewers in a conversation about our society and its dominant institutions, the good and the bad,” said Hemphill. The three photos feature a soup kitchen client, a rural church, and the burnt landscape of a recent fire in the Gila Wilderness. “These photos are meant to work together in a triptych design,” said Hemphill. “When viewed together, the images can create a powerful narrative about our society that is meant to be interpreted in many different ways.” Hemphill earned a fine arts degree with an...

Western New Mexico University officials met with the new Governor of the State of Sinaloa in Mexico this past week to formally sign an agreement between the two institutions. The agreement, signed at the Governor’s Palace with the newly elected Governor Quirino Ordaz Coppel, opens up opportunities for student and faculty exchanges between the State of Sinaloa and WNMU. Silver City has become a hub for Mexican students in recent years that are looking for summer and semester-long opportunities to learn the English language in a total immersion style environment. The Sinaloan government recognized the past successes of WNMU to attract Mexican students and applauded the lower tuition rates that will now be afforded to Sinaloan residents. Mexican students who had previously participated in exchanges with WNMU for English language studies were present to support the new...

For more than 10 years, Western New Mexico University has hosted thousands of students from high schools in southern New Mexico for the annual regional Science Olympiad competition. The 2017 competition will take place on Saturday, January 28 beginning with an opening ceremony at 8:30 a.m. in the Fine Arts Center Theater. The public is invited to attend to see the many events throughout the day. More than 400 middle and high school students are scheduled to participate from 20 regional schools. The students will be competing in 46 events with names such as BottleRocket, Hovercraft, Towers, WrightStuff, ElectricVehicle, Helicopters, RobotArm and WindPower. The event will conclude at 4:00 p.m. with an awards ceremony in the Fine Arts Center Theater. Top winners of the regional competition will advance to the state competition to take place at New Mexico Tech in February. Descriptions of the events are available here:...

The New Mexico Book Co-Op has recognized two Western New Mexico University professors whose writing work landed them in the organization’s annual book award listing. The 2016 New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards list is comprised of published authors from the two neighboring states recognized in several categories ranging from Anthropology to Young Readers. JJ Amaworo Wilson was awarded in the fiction category for his title Damnificados by PM Press. Damnificados is Wilson’s first novel published in January of 2016. Damnificados has been widely acclaimed with mentions as a top ten book by Oprah Magazine and the number one pick by Bookriot’s list of books to read. Wilson is the current Writer-In-Residence at Western New Mexico University. Loosely based on the real-life occupation of a half-completed skyscraper in Venezuela known as the Tower of David, Damnificados includes incorporates elements of magical realism including avenging wolves. Sharman Apt Russell is a longtime...

A future generation of business leaders is benefitting from the legacy of the late Murray Ryan, longtime elected official and Western New Mexico University alum, through a University Foundation scholarship in his name. Ryan passed away on January 7 at the age of 94. He attended WNMU when it was known as New Mexico State Teacher’s College prior to his graduating form West Point in 1945. He served in the U.S. Army until 1949. Ryan became an advocate and leader for the southwest region of the state as a representative in the New Mexico State Legislature from 1969 through 1998. He often supported WNMU through education funding including the renovation of Watts Hall, the Fine Arts Center Theatre and the expansion of the Miller Library. In 1998, Ryan was recognized by WNMU with an honorary degree and from 2001 to 2009 he served as a member of the University Foundation Board of Directors. The Murray Ryan Scholarship is designated to students at WNMU who are seeking degrees in...