Student Affairs & Enrollment Management

Who put students in Student Affairs?

By Bernadette Montoya | Published May 23, 2012

Your responses to the question “How does your job affect students?” are represented in the wordle below. The larger the word, the more frequently it was mentioned in the first 16 responses to this question.

Wordle: Students2

Click on the graphic above for the enlarged view.

This says a lot about us and the things we think about. We use many words centered on learning: college, academic, knowledge, education, university, and school. We also use words about what we are trying to do: advising, mentoring, assist, transition, attainment, and retention. Our descriptive words suggest what we are striving for: best, important, first.

We also use aspirational words like hope, best, first, future, and possible. And our words indicate who we think about, like colleagues, community, parents.

But most notable is that students have the place they should: looming large, at the forefront of all we do, in bold-face Aggie crimson! Thanks for putting students first in Student Affairs.

We will have another drawing this Friday at 3:30. If you haven’t responded, please do. And if you have, you are welcome to respond again.

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Great start for the first SAEM discussion

By Bernadette Montoya | Published May 18, 2012

Congratulations to Ysela Chavarria, Office of the Dean of Students, who won the $25 gift certificate for responding to the discussion question “How does your job affect students?”

I am truly enjoying reading the comments that have been posted! We have such a wonderful community of colleagues in SAEM, and I am anxious to read more of your thoughts about how your job affects students. We will have another drawing next Friday at 3:30 for another Barnes and Noble gift certificate. If you didn’t win, your name will be kept in the pot for next week, but feel free to comment again.

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All SAEM staff called to contribute to plan

By Bernadette Montoya | Published May 10, 2012

Each year all of us are given an opportunity, through the annual performance evaluation process, to think about how we do our jobs, what we want to change for the next year, and how we might be able to go beyond what is expected of us. Evaluations give us all a chance to have some say in the direction of our careers and how we serve NMSU.

We also have that chance, through the strategic planning process, to contribute ideas to the directions that Student Affairs and Enrollment Management will take over the next 3 to 5 years. We are looking to develop a new strategic plan now because NMSU’s institutional strategic plan, Building the Vision, is almost complete, and we can align our with work with institutional priorities. In addition, the previous strategic plan is now due for update.

In March, when we first started talking about creating a new strategic plan, the SAEM Leadership Team agreed on several points:

  • Every SAEM staff member needs to have a chance to contribute their ideas and expertise to our strategic plan.
  • The strategic plan needs to be visionary: its goals should require that we stretch to reach them and should not be ones that we achieve just in the course of doing our jobs.

Between now and August, we will work not just on our plan but how we will implement our ideas. Watch for the following elements as part of this process:

  • An invitation to reflect: We will be using web tools to launch a discussion about the work we do. This will be a general discussion about different aspects of our work.
  • Open Forums: These are scheduled for June 12 and will continue the discussion begun on the web.
  • Brainstorming: All offices will hold a brainstorming session to collect ideas for the strategic plan. These ideas will be prioritized, and used as the foundation for each area’s strategic plan.
  • Staff input: All staff will be invited to comment on items under consideration for inclusion in the strategic plan. These input sessions will be help on July 18 (10 am) and July 24 (2 pm) in the Dona Ana Room of Corbett Center.

Watch for more details.  I welcome your comments!

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Open Forum, June 12, Doña Ana Room, CCSU

By Bernadette Montoya | Published May 9, 2012

All SAEM staff are invited to attend one of two Open Forum sessions on June 12, Corbett Center Student Union Doña Ana Room. The sessions will begin at 1:00 and 2:30, and refreshments will be served.

I am planning to spend some time sharing updates with you as well as my plans for the coming year.  In addition, I will provide time for you to share your thoughts and feedback with me.   Hearing from you — each of you — helps me to stay in tune with what is happening in your areas, and helps me to better explain our issues to the larger campus community. Our perspective is important: we represent not just our own concerns but we have a unique perspective on the challenges and successes of our students, too.

At these sessions, I will also talk about our planning process for SAEM. Again, we will be seeking the input of every member of the SAEM staff for help in deciding where our priorities should be. You are the experts in how to do your job, and we need your thoughts to help us improve.

As always, offices need to stay open during these sessions. This is why there are two sessions, so staff can take turns and keep offices open. I am hoping you will take an hour out of your busy day and let me know what you are thinking about.  I look forward to see you there!

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Janie Merchant named Director of Financial Aid and Scholarship Services

By Bernadette Montoya | Published May 3, 2012

Please join me in welcoming Janie Merchant as our Director of Financial Aid!  Janie has been appointed to begin her new role on Monday, May 7th.

Janie Merchant has an extensive background in management and has worked in Financial Aid in the NMSU system for over 10 years. She started out as a Financial Aid Processor at Doña Ana Community College and also served there as a Financial Aid Advisor I and II and as Assistant Coordinator of Financial Aid. She started at NMSU in 2006 as Financial Aid Compliance and Quality Assurance Manager before becoming Associate Director then Interim Co-Director of Financial Aid and Scholarship Services. Janie holds a Bachelors of Family and Consumer Science.

Thanks to all who participated in the search process and who provided feedback in helping me with this decision.  I anticipate that each of you will support Janie in this very important role!

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SAS welcomes Trudy Luken as new Director

By Bernadette Montoya | Published May 3, 2012

Please join me in welcoming Trudy M. Luken as the Director of Student Accessibility Services.  Trudy will begin her service with us on June 18th.

Ms. Luken has an extensive personal and professional history in the field of disabilities that includes having family members with disabilities; teaching special education students in Columbia, Maryland, Las Cruces, and Canutillo; and being employed for over seventeen years as the disability services provider at Doña Ana Community College. She is a member of AHEAD (Association on Higher Education and Disability), is the Treasurer of NM-AHEAD, and is a member of the Las Cruces Sister Cities, Nienburg, Germany Affiliation.

Trudy was raised in New Jersey and St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands and has lived in Las Cruces since 1982. She earned an associate’s degree at Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland and completed a bachelor’s degree in Special Education/Elementary Education at the University of Maryland. In 1994, Ms. Luken earned a master’s degree in Special Education Administration and Educational Management from New Mexico State University. Ms. Luken is the mother of two adult sons, enjoys traveling with her husband, knitting, walking the family dog, baking and cooking German cuisine.

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Candidate visits for Financial Aid and Scholarship Services

By Melody Munson-Mcgee | Published March 29, 2012

Five candidates for the position of Director of Financial Aid and Scholarship Services will be on campus the week of April 2. SAEM staff are encouraged to meet the candidate and provide feedback at the links below.

Virginia Tucker, 4/2/2012 (Tucker Resume)
Open Forum: 2:00-3:00 pm, Otero Room (126), Corbett Center Student Union
Provide feedback

Gladys Chairez, 4/3/2012 (Chairez Resume)
Open Forum: 10:45-11:45 am, Doña Ana Room (312), Corbett Center Student Union
Provide feedback

Ron Martinez, 4/3/2012 (Martinez Resume)
Open Forum: 2:00-3:00 pm, Otero Room (126), Corbett Center Student Union
Provide feedback

Janie Merchant, 4/4/2012 (Merchant Resume)
Open Forum: 2:00-3:00 pm, Doña Ana Room (312), Corbett Center Student Union
Provide feedback

Bill Bloom, 4/5/2012 (Bloom Resume)
Open Forum: 10:45-11:45 am, Doña Ana Room (312), Corbett Center Student Union
Provide feedback

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Student Accessibility Services candidate visits

By Melody Munson-Mcgee | Published March 8, 2012

Three candidates will be on campus the week of March 12th to interview for the position of Director, NMSU Student Accessibility Services Office. The campus community is cordially invited to Meet & Greet events at the Dean of Students Office, Corbett Center, 3rd Level, Room 317 (Conference room) to meet the candidates.

Monday, March 12, 2012: Rebecca Matter, 4:00 PM-5:00 PM

Tuesday, March 13, 2012: David Esquibel 11:00 AM-12:00 Noon

Tuesday, March 13: Trudy Luken, 4:00-5:00 PM

Attendees will have the opportunity to give feedback on these candidates.

Give feedback on these candidates at the links below or on the right:

  • Rebecca Matter
  • David Esquibel
  • Trudy Luken

The feedback surveys for these candidates are now closed.

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Today I was reminded…

By Bernadette Montoya | Published January 31, 2012

Yesterday I had the pleasure of spending some time at two events that reminded me of the special role that Student Affairs and Enrollment Management plays in the ultimate success of our students and of our University.  I attended our annual Career Fair, sponsored and planned by our Career Services Office, and our Welcome Back Program, sponsored and planned by Chicano Programs.  While at the Career Fair, I had the pleasure of meeting with some of the employers who recruit graduates from NMSU.  One employer, in particular, shared that her organization, the U.S. Forest Service, invests in sending her on a 1500 mile one-way trip to attend this event for two main reasons:  the high quality graduates that NMSU produces, and the warm welcome that she receives from NMSU.  Employers and students that I spoke with were pleased with the event, and it was wonderful to receive the positive feedback from both.

I also spent a short time at the Chicano Programs Welcome Back event held on the International Mall.  It was wonderful to see the collaboration of many of our offices from within SAEM involved, and it was even better to see the enthusiasm of both the staff and students who were there to enjoy and learn from those present.

As I returned to the office, I reflected on how critical we all are to the success of our students, and to the success of our University.  The academic and social  support programming we provide, the health and wellness programs, the financial support, the guidance, the sense of community, the encouragement to attend our University are just a few of the things we provide.  I know that we do so much more, and that we often aren’t recognized for it.

Our last day of registration was Monday, our census date is Friday, and so begins another semester!  All of us in SAEM are working hard to make this the start of another successful, happy, healthy semester for our students, while others are focusing on Fall 2012 recruitment, and others working on details for Commencement, which is only a few short months away.  We have so much going on, and I hope that each of you are feeling as hopeful as I am!

Please take some time to reflect on the important role that you play at NMSU.  I look forward to many more positive interactions with you and with our students during this semester.

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Searches underway

By Bernadette Montoya | Published January 26, 2012

The spring semester will involve filling many key positions within Student Affairs and Enrollment Management.  The most current positiions we are seraching for include directors for Financial Aid and for Student Accessibility Services. After the search committees identify finalists for these positions, all staff will have an opportunity to interact with the candidates and provide feedback through various opportunities.

Search committees for each of these positions must have at least 3 members. The job of the search committee  is to sort through the applicants, eliminate those who do not meet the job qualifications, and forward a list of the top four to six candidates to Bernadette. When the finalists are invited to campus, there will be events for any interested staff to meet the candidates. As always, I will seek feedback from everybody who meets the candidates via a confidential web survey.

Both of these areas require a high degree of specialized knowledge, so we sought search committee members with expertise and experience in these areas. The committee for the Student Accessibility Services search is being chaired by Terry Cook; she is currently working on staffing that committee with Susan Waldo.

The Financial Aid Director search committee is being chaired by Dacia Sedillo and will be staffed by:

  • Darlene Duvall, NMSU-A Financial Aid Director
  • Gladys Chairez, DACC Financial Aid Director
  • Jill Hall, Financial Aid Advisor, Financial Aid and Scholarship Services
  • Sandy Byhower, Senior Fiscal Assistant, Financial Aid and Scholarship Services
  • Preema Chinnasami, Systems Analyst, Student Information Management
  • Norma Noel, Associate Controller, Sponsored Projects Accounting

I will share more news about these searches and news of other open positions as it becomes available.

Thank you for your continued support, and I look forward to your further involvement as these searches get underway.

Bernadette

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