Article and Photos (two at the end) by Mary Alice Murphy

From left are WNMU President Joseph Shepard, Student Body President Claudia Ochoa, Gov. Susana Martinez, Higher Education Department Secretary Barbara Damron and WNMU Provost Jack Crocker.

On Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016, which just happened to be Western New Mexico University President Joseph Shepard's birthday, Governor Susana Martinez and the Department of Higher Education Cabinet Secretary Barbara Damron visited to talk about what the department has done and is planning to roll out.

After making a comment about a mother giving birth to a son on this day a few decades ago, Damron wished Shepard a Happy Birthday.

She introduced several of the WNMU leadership, including Provost Jack Crocker, Vice President of Business Affairs Brenda Findley, Vice President of Student Affairs Isaac Brundage, and Vice President of External Affairs Magdaleno Manzanares.

Damron said it was an exciting day to announce some exciting things.

"Gov. Martinez has done all kinds of amazing things during her term in office," Damron said. "She has made improving education one of her highest priorities, and is especially dedicated to higher education. We are happy to be here because Western is one of our best partners. A little over a year ago, the governor convened a group of higher education leaders from across the state and discussed the future of New Mexico in higher education. Please welcome our governor as she announces some exciting things."

"I have seen the needle move so quickly, especially for our students in our universities," Martinez said. "What good does it do for our students to graduate with a lot of debt and unnecessary credits? It doesn't do them any good. I'm here to make some announcements. Since I took office 5 years and almost nine months ago, the amount of degrees and certificates has gone up 21.5 percent. That's a lot of growth. Four thousand more students are entering our work force than they did six years ago. But we can't sit back and say: 'Good enough.' There is always more room to improve. What they've done in Higher Ed is set a higher bar."

She said last year, she and the department challenged the colleges and universities to graduate more students on time, within four years, and with the skills they need to enter the workforce.

"That's why the partnerships with businesses throughout the state are important," Martinez said. "What do they need? What kind of an employee are they looking for? What skills can the universities teach to make sure their graduates can fill those jobs?"

She said the department had set degree paths to require 120 credit hours. "If we expect students to graduate in four years, we have to make it possible. I completed a degree in criminal justice at the University of Texas, El Paso in four years. I don't know when it changed to six years. We should be able to get the students out in four years and into the workforce, working and earning a living."

Martinez noted that the number of degrees available with 120 credit hours has almost doubled from when the number of degrees with 120 hours was only 32 percent of university degrees a year ago. With these goals, universities and colleges can better prepare their students for the workforce.

"Businesses tell me they want to collaborate with universities," Martinez said. "They tell me: 'We want them to know what we need, so they can teach the certificates or degrees so we can hire the graduates immediately.'"

She said getting Facebok to build a facility in New Mexico is "huge. Companies are seeing the difference in how we're preparing our students."

The state called for universities to create incentives. "Here at Western, if you are on track to graduate on time with 30 credits a year and are keeping grades up, the tuition is locked. This offers the students and their families the chance to budget. They know how much money it will cost each semester and when they will graduate."

Another initiative that she promoted was to improve how credits transfer between state institutions and apply to the same degree at a different university. They talked about how to make sure the course is at the same level, "so we asked them to be at a high bar. We are also increasing counseling and how majors are determined, so students waste less time and money on unnecessary credits. And the reforms are working. The last school year at Western saw an almost 16 percent increase in students completing their post-secondary certificates or degrees. That's your birthday present," she said to Shepard. "Since 2011, it has increased by 37 percent. It means more New Mexico students are on track for success. I really believe if they know where they are headed and how much it will cost, it can be accomplished and much cheaper. We need to get the students in and out without debt, well trained and employed."

"Later this week, we will roll out a roadmap for the next few decades," Martinez said. "This initiative has to be long and sustainable. Stay tuned for an announcement. We are moving forward. When graduating on time, it puts the student first, and the employers have a workforce to choose from."

She thanked Shepard for always working with the state to improve the life of "our students."

Damron introduced Shepard and said how lucky Western was to have him at the university. "He has vision, leadership and the ability to implement all the good things happening at Western."

Shepard said he agrees with Secretary Damron on her idea of a need for consolidation. "We have more than 60 sites and branches of higher education in a state with million people. I applaud you for undertaking that effort."

"I will tell you this about our governor," Shepard continued. "She cares about the students. She holds university presidents accountable. It was under her leadership that the funding program began to become based on performance measurements, and that has changed the very scope of universities in New Mexico. Up until then, we were reliant on going up to Santa Fe, pleading for our money and getting our money, and whoever got the most won. It's no longer than way"

He said one out of two students at Western goes through remedial classes; "one out of two of our students is non-traditional; one out of two is Hispanic. Our students are working students, one out of two is above the age of 24. They are the not type who will graduate in four years, because they are taking one course at a time, as they work and raise a family. We measure on persistence. Each semester we measure: are they going to school, are they getting through school, are we helping them with social issues so they can complete? We measure to impact our students in a positive way."

Western has been successful in measuring and "we're rewarded for doing a good job, and that's thanks to faculty and staff who have made it possible."

When Jill Hurby from Los Alamos National Labs spoke recently at Western, one of the audience members asked her what she was looking for in a hire. She replied, not with a particular degree, but with: "Graduates that can critically think."

"Another thing our governor has tasked us with is areas of distinction," Shepard said.

He said there is a lot of duplication among universities. "We all have colleges of education, we all have degrees in biology, business and so forth. And that takes a lot of resources."

Shepard said the state is facing a severe budget issue, and it cannot be resolved without also talking about higher education, "because we make up so much of the budget."

"That makes universities think about what they are doing to challenge themselves to be more distinctive," Shepard said. "We were founded as a teacher's college, because of our isolation, we couldn't go elsewhere to get teachers to come here in 1893. We became known as one of the best teacher's colleges in the United States. Out of the seven universities in the state six have schools of education. Tech is the only one that doesn't, I believe.

"We have to understand where the economy is going and how we can be a driver of that economy," Shepard said. "We have three areas we want to be known for and the first is the most important. We want to be known as an applied liberal arts college."

In this case, he said, when a student graduates, the employer would know that students know how to read, write, articulate, socialize, know how to interact and how to think.

He said the iPhone is less than 10 years old, and the iPad came out in 2010. Facebook will now relocate into New Mexico. Facebook, with drones, with laser capabilities will deliver internet in rural areas. Shepard said he just visited Macedonia, creating relationships and its military will send students to Western for a portion of their education. "One thing they are very good at is computer forensics. Virtual reality is now being used in medicine, in education and to come up with new products and ideas. This is the revolution we are facing in technology, and we at Western want to be at the forefront of that."

Shepard said the governor has made the state aware of the importance of imports and exports. He said another focus Western wants to pursue, in addition to the applied liberal arts, is to be the best at logistics and transportation.

And the third focus is drones, which most people think of as being used militarily or as a hobby. "They are no longer being used only that way," Shepard said. "They're being used in agriculture: they're being used to inspect railroad lines, they're being used to inspect gas pipelines. They are being used in all kinds of applications. I already mentioned the Facebook idea, and Amazon wants to deliver packages to your doorstep with them. The use brings up policy questions in addition to the technology part. About privacy issues and where are they going to fly? We want to be at the forefront of that. We want to be the university that thinks into the future, not into the past. We're being challenged by your administration to come up with the ideas that make us better. Our student body president is from Sinaloa, Mexico. It's no longer about our little region. It's global. That's who we're educating and it's who we're competing against. Thank you for all you've done for our state and for higher education."

Damron said Western is a leader at getting their degrees to 120 hours, and one of the leaders at that has been Provost Jack Crocker.

"I will simply say that I second everything that President Shepard said," Crocker said. "It's my third year here, and except for coming from sea level to 6,000 feet, the acclimation to here has been great, for myself, my wife, my family and kids. What has impressed me with the state and especially with Western New Mexico University is our willingness to put students first. We can no longer sustain ourselves by clinging to tradition entirely. Yes, some of the past provides constancy of thinking, but we now have a coterie of faculty and staff with Student Affairs that is so important to the holistic support of students.

"We're looking at a radical departure, with the idea of applied liberal arts and sciences," Crocker continued. "We're looking at a workforce degree. There are four major skills employers are looking for: communication, critical and creative thinking, being able to work in teams with interpersonal skills, especially when working with those from other cultures, and adaptability."

He noted rapid changes are taking place, with "our grandchildren facing seven different jobs during their lives. If they can't adapt to change, they can't stay in a company."

Integrating professional programs with a foundation of the applied liberal arts will become part of the curriculum. "We have a very bright future ahead of us," Crocker concluded.

Damron said she is seeing the fragmented higher education institutions working together. "We have more work to do. Lots of other initiatives are coming down the pike, as we keep our students first."

Friday, September 23, 2016, will be the second higher education summit. "New Mexico's future depends on the resiliency and effectiveness of higher education. This system that we are building is to be the best in New Mexico, in the region, in the country."

"And now for the exciting way to close out this press conference," Damron said.

Mariachi La Plata walked into the room with their instruments and singing Las Ma+