Biography
Garrey Carruthers has enjoyed a varied and interesting professional life. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture and a Master of Science degree in Agricultural Economics and Agricultural Business from New Mexico State University. He later earned a Ph.D. in Economics from Iowa State University.
Garrey began his teaching career at NMSU in 1968 doing his favorite thing – guiding students. He twice “did time” in Washington, D. C., first as a White House fellow assigned to the Secretary of Agriculture and the second as assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior during the Reagan Administration. He especially enjoyed serving as governor of New Mexico – the last constitutionally limited, single-term governor. During his term, he was recognized as one of the top 10 Educational Governors in the United States by Fortune magazine.
His entrepreneurial spirit led him next into the health care business where he was cofounder, president, and chief executive officer of Cimarron Health Plan, a managed care company. The company was sold in 2004 to a national managed care corporation.
Garrey returned to his roots in July 2003 to become the dean of the College of Business at NMSU where he also has served concurrently as the vice president for economic development and, beginning in 2009, as the director of the Pete V. Domenici Institute for Public Policy. As vice president for economic development, he was instrumental in establishing the Arrowhead Center at NMSU. He has played a central role in the fundraising of approximately $30,000,000 in support of the College of Business, Arrowhead Center, and Domenici Institute, to include a $1.25 million grant award from the Daniels Foundation. Garrey serves as the principal investigator on this project promoting ethics education with an emphasis on comparative ethics and the ethical challenges between the private and public sector in New Mexico. He regularly presents on the subject throughout the state.
Garrey continues to be very active within the broader community of New Mexico. He is a founding member and current chairman of the board for Think New Mexico, lifetime board member of the Association of Commerce and Industry, and completed terms on the Greater Las Cruces Chamber of Commerce and Mesilla Valley Economic Development Alliance Board of Directors. He currently serves as the vice chairman of the Borderplex Alliance, a relatively new business-directed organization attempting to merge business development interests in the Juarez, El Paso, and Las Cruces regions. His past service also includes bank board directorships and he has been appointed task force chair or co-chair by three former New Mexico governors. He currently serves on the board of directors of a Fortune 500 health insurance company, a regional bank, and a local hospital.
Garrey and his wife of 53 years, Kathy, enjoy their children and grandchildren and spend leisure time together with the family, watching old western movies and messing around with his old cars.