Silver City, NM – The Alumni Affairs Office has announced the formation of the first ever Chicano Alumni Chapter at Western New Mexico University. The chapter will host its first meeting on Wednesday, June 18 at 6:30 p.m. in the Polo Sierra Conference Room of the Student Memorial Center (3rd floor).
The public is invited to attend the organizational meeting. The creation of the chapter was the brainchild of retiring Chicano Studies professor Patricia Cano.
“The chapter is being organized for the purpose of sponsoring fundraising events for tuition and hardship scholarships, creating networking opportunities for alumni and current students, sponsoring social events that appeal to Hispanic alumni, and providing input to the administration regarding what WNMU should be as an Hispanic serving institution,” said Cano.
An upcoming event the chapter hopes to realize is a Raza Alumni Reunion during the Homecoming 2015 weekend. Alumni from all graduating classes are invited to campus to participate in three days of activities. The reunion schedule will include a Chicano Conference, dinner, dance, variety show and Homecoming activities.
“The final day of events will include a mariachi mass followed by a mini-fiesta which will be open to everyone,” said Cano.
WNMU alumni that were members of the Los Estudiantes Unidos and MEChA student organizations from the 1970s until present are sought to be part of the festivities. Cano is a former member of Los Estudiantes Unidos and former faculty sponsor of MEChA.
Any former WNMU student, regardless of what institution in which he or she received a degree, is invited to be part of the new Chicano Alumni Chapter. The chapter is not limited to persons who identity with the term “chicano”.
For more information, contact the Alumni Affairs Office at 575.538.6675 or alumni@wnmu.edu.