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Births

Gary D. Burch, '71, and Irina A. Burch, daughter, Natasha Elizabeth, Jan. 22, 2000
Margie M. Dunn, '82, '98, and Dr. Paul R. Dunn, daughter, Caroline Maria, Jan. 30, 1999
Michael Zingale, '86, and Janet Zingale, daughter, Mariah Rose, June 3, 1999
Susan Tomei Spence, '87, and Terry J. Spence, daughter, Caroline Rose, Oct. 17, 1999
Steven Stelts, '88, and Melissa Glusco-Stelts, son, Zachariah Michael, Jan. 11, 2000
Kathy Romero-Kemp, '88, and Jeff Kemp, '90, son, Gregory Joseph, Feb. 13, 2000
Andrea Gonzales, '89, and Tom Wickersham, daughter, Lauren Jean Sept. 6, 1999
Catherine Crane-Kirkland, '91, and Matt Kirkland, daughter, Sarah Marie, May 8, 1999
Robert E. Chavez, '93, and Ruth E. Chavez, daughter, Emily Janell, Oct. 22, 1999

In Memory

Ernest L. "Speck" Ritchie, '33, of Las Cruces, April 10, 2000
Fredrica Lewis Yates, '40, of San Diego, Calif., Dec. 4, 1999
Robert G. White, '41, of Farmington, N.M., Oct. 26, 1999
John T. Wilson, '47, of Lovington, N.M., March 16, 2000
Kelly R. Johnson, '52, of Phoenix, Feb. 11, 2000
John "Jack" William Miller, '52, of Palo Alto, Calif., March 17, 2000
Joe "Jose Maria" Herrera, '68, of Nambe, N.M., April 26, 2000
Jo Ann Jaramillo, '78, of Roswell, N.M., April 3, 2000
Kathryn E. Arnold, '79, of Lubbock, Texas, April 14, 2000
Kevin W. Harper, '80, of Artesia, N.M., March 11, 2000
David Lee Swafford, '81, of Las Cruces, April 4, 2000
Gilbert B. Lopez, '81, of El Paso, Texas, March 19, 2000
Gregory Victor Kovacich, '82, '84, of Waldwick, N.J., July 17, 1999
J. Michael Marr, '89, of Las Cruces, April 24, 2000
Robert Chapman Groves, '92, of Las Cruces, Jan., 13, 2000
Mary Lou Holland, '93, of Tucumcari, N.M., April 4, 2000
Josefina "Josie" Vega Graham, '95, of Las Cruces, Feb. 13, 2000

30s

Ben Haines, '39, of Las Cruces, was appointed to the New Mexico Educational Assistance Foundation board of directors. Haines is president of First Security Bank of Southern New Mexico.

40s

Nina Telles Banegas, '48, and Lorenzo Banegas, of Las Cruces, marked their 50th wedding anniversary Dec. 26. They celebrated the event with their six children, grandchildren, family and friends.

50s
 

Feather

Virgina L. Feather, '50, of Albuquerque, was recognized as the 2000 Professional of the Year by the New Mexico Association of Family and Consumer Sciences. She and her husband Frank Feather, '64, will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary next year. George R. Hackler, '54, of Las Cruces, a noted authority on the Butterfield-Overland Express mail service, spoke to the Dona Ana County Historical Society on the Overland's importance in helping open, settle and civilize the New Mexico-Arizona Southwest. Hackler has served 12 years on the Las Cruces Board of Education and five years on the Memorial Medical Center's board of directors.

60s

Rudy Apodaca, '61, of Las Cruces, planned to retire June 30 after 13 years of service as judge of the New Mexico Court of Appeals. Apodaca is the second-longest serving judge on the appellate court. He practiced law in Las Cruces for 22 years before his election to the court.
Hobart G. Hamilton, '63, of Turlock, Calif., was named the 1999-2000 Outstanding Professor at California State University-Stanislaus. Hamilton, at Cal State-Stanislaus since 1968, was a department chair in 1972-73 and is chair for 2000-01. He has served as associate vice president for academic affairs and interim provost/vice president for academic affairs.

Walcott

Cherie Summers Walcott, '64, of Santa Barbara, Calif., who works for the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, is the newly elected chair of the Registrar Committee of the nine-state Western Region of the American Association of Museums. She also is on the board of the Western Museum Association. Walcott is married to Bob Walcott and has a 17-year-old daughter, Jesse. Philip Wedding, USAF (Ret.), 64, of Amarillo, Texas, received the first Citizenship Education Teacher Award for the state of Texas. The award was presented in Austin by the VFW. Wedding teaches fifth grade at Amarillo's Hamlet Elementary, a 1998 national distinguished Title I school. Lynnette Baughman, '66, of Los Alamos, N.M., presented her book, A Spy Within, at the third annual book and author meeting for the American Association of University Women. Baughman freelances and

 writes fiction. Her work has appeared in Reader's Digest, Runners' World, Writer's Digest and New Mexico Magazine. She writes a monthly column for the Santa Fe New Mexican and is a regular contributor to Mystery News.
Adela A. Candelaria, '68, of Mesilla Park, N.M., was selected by the El Paso Times as a Teacher of the Day. Candelaria has taught for 29 years and currently teaches English at Canutillo High School. One of Candelaria's most gratifying experiences was initiating an advanced placement English class.
Paul Vaughn, '68, of Lubbock ,Texas, chair of the department of agricultural education and communications at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, was the featured speaker at the eighth annual Farm/City/Eastern New Mexico University/Cannon Air Force Base banquet held in February.
Ralph "Buddy" Cortese, '69, of Fort Sumner, N.M., was elected chairman of the board of the Farm Credit Bank of Texas. Cortese, a farmer, rancher and feed lot operator, has served on the bank's board since 1995 and was vice chairman in 1999. He also has served as chairman of the Production Credit Association of Eastern New Mexico and is a member of the 10th Farm Credit District PCA Stockholders Advisory Council.
R. Kelly McFarland, '69, of Tucumcari, N.M., a certified public accountant for 24 years, was honored by the New Mexico Society of CPAs for his community volunteer work. He received the societyÕs Caring Professionals in Action Citation for his 13 years of service with the Tucumcari Municipal School District where he typically provides more than 20 hours of volunteer service each month.
Elaine McKinney, '69, of Las Cruces, was awarded the designation of Certified Trust and Financial Adviser by the Institute of Certified Bankers. McKinney is assistant vice president and trust officer at Wells Fargo Bank. She joined the bank in 1996 and is a member of the New Mexico Society of Certified Public Accountants and the Southern New Mexico Estate Planning Council.

70s

Mike Topliff, '70, director of the Tech Computer Center at New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, was elected president of the institute's senate. He is the first non-faculty member to ever be elected president. He is also head judge of the New Mexico High School Supercomputer Challenge and treasurer of the Socorro Lions Club. In 2001, he will be the president of the New Mexico Council of Higher Education Computer and Communication Services. He and his wife, Cyndy Kramer, live in Socorro.
Carlos Viramontes, '70, of Deming, N.M., planned to retire June 30 from his job as Deming's superintendent of public schools. He has worked for the district for 30 years.
John Ackerman, '71, of Corrales, N.M., was the winner of the New Mexico Ethics in Business Award presented by the Samaritan Counseling Center. Ackerman was selected based on integrity, ethical conduct and the highest standards of civic and social responsibility. The counseling center honored recipients at an awards dinner in Albuquerque.
Jeanne Lutz, '72, is a new priest at St Luke's Episcopal Church in Deming, N.M. Rev. Lutz was associate rector at St Andrew's Episcopal Church in Las Cruces and has previously supplied St Luke's. Lutz, a licensed teacher of English, French and music in New Mexico, also served as a hospice chaplain in Las Cruces.
Carl O'Berry, '72, was hired to head the Boeing Government Information and Communications System, a new organization committed to meeting the rapidly evolving information and communications needs for government customers. The newly formed group is part of Boeing's Seal Beach, Calif., based space and communications group.
Marshall R. Newman, '72, of Hobbs, N.M., is employed by State Farm Insurance as an auto claims representative.

Archuleta

Adelmo "Del" Archuleta, '73, of Albuquerque was re-elected as president of the NMSU Board of Regents. Archuleta is chief executive officer of Molzen-Corbin and Associates, an engineering and architectural firm. Jack E. Davis, '73, was named chief operating officer and executive vice president of Pinnacle West Capital Corp. Davis is chairman of the Western Systems Coordinating Council and is a member of its board of trustees. Pinnacle West is a Phoenix, Ariz., based company. Rex Wahl, '74, is the new executive director for the Forest Guardians, an active environmental group in Santa Fe. Wahl was the senior environmental planner for Entranco, a Phoenix, Ariz., engineering and consulting firm.

Kathy M. Walton, '74, was named Utah's Vocational Educator of the Year from the Salt Lake Community College Department of Marketing and Business Communications. Walton received her honor at the mid-winter conference of the Utah Association of Career and Technical Education.

Walton

Robert H. Digneo, '75, '77, of San Antonio, Texas, has been appointed vice president of external affairs for Southwestern Bell's five-state region. Lynda Eaton, '75, of Bloomfield, N.M., is in her second term as magistrate judge in Farmington, N.M. Eaton is a former Bureau of Indian Affairs teacher and counselor at Bloomfield High School. She was also a community-service coordinator for the Huerfano Chapter House. Clyde Hudson, '75, of Silver City, N.M., has been named director of the United States Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service Office in Albuquerque. Hudson will oversee administration of federally funded water and wastewater grant programs in the southern half of New Mexico.

Louis "Lou" Cabot, '76, of Las Cruces, NMSU's chief of police, was named the 1999 Police Administrator of the Year at the 37th annual conference of the Texas-New Mexico Association of College and University Police Departments.
Darrel Jenkins, '76, of Carbondale, Ill., an associate professor of library affairs and social studies librarian at Southern Illinois University's Carbondale campus, was recognized by the university as its Outstanding Faculty Member in Library Affairs. He manages the division, its staff and its collections.
Renee Le Cuyer, '76, of Las Cruces, was responsible for the makeup and some of the special effects in the movie Boys Don't Cry. Along with her acting and directing credits, Le Cuyer has 18 years of experience with makeup, hair, wigs and wardrobe, specializing in period styles. She has worked on many films and television shows, including three years on the PBS children's series Wishbone, an Emmy and Peabody award-winning series.
Steven Mack, '76, recently retired as the director of customer services for the City of Las Cruces. Mack and his wife, Suzanne, '76, live in Las Cruces.
Brad A. Stach, '77, of Creve Coeur, Mo., was named by the Central Institute for the Deaf as its new director of audiology and clinical services. He assumes leadership for a clinic that provides a wide range of diagnostic and rehabilitative services for children and adults with language, speech and hearing disorders. Stach has taught at various medical universities and served on numerous boards.

Garcia

Vicente C. Garcia, '78, of Las Cruces, was given the Exceptional Civilian Service Award, the highest honorary conferred upon a civilian employee of the National Security Agency, for his work as a visiting professor of cryptology at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif. Garcia is a Naval officer reservist and was recently promoted to captain. Sarah Emily Garde, '78, a teacher at Los Lunas Middle School in Los Lunas, N.M., was a recipient of the 1999 Milken Family Foundation National Educator Award, an honor that carries with it public recognition, an opportunity to join a network of 1,502 outstanding educators and an unrestricted financial award of $25,000.

Leonard Hays, '78, of Elida, N.M., has retired as superintendent of schools in Elida. Hays spent 34 years in education, the last three as superintendent. Hays and his wife Barbara will make their new home in Ruidoso, N.M.
Lynda L. Newman, '78, of Hobbs, N.M., is a professor of reading and English at New Mexico Junior College.
Jeff Peacock, '78, a native of Albuquerque, was named vice president and director of environmental and infrastructure service at Parametrix Inc. Peacock will be responsible for the management of strategic planning and company growth within each of the company's business lines and offices.
Spankie Lou Bassett, '79, a teacher at Bernalillo High School in Bernalillo, N.M., was a recipient of a 1999 Milken Family Foundation National Educator Award, an honor that carries with it public recognition, an opportunity to join a network of 1,502 outstanding educators and an unrestricted financial award of $25,000.
E. Brent Handley, '79, of Arlington, Va., accepted the position of deputy director for the National Lands Program for the U.S. Forest Service. This program has responsibility for management of 190 million acres of national forest, including boundary management (surveys), land exchanges, special use administration and resolving and maintaining ownership records.
Bryan Shoemaker, '79, of Magnolia, Texas, was promoted to president of Westway Feeds Products. Westway is the largest manufacturer of liquid supplements in the United States with 23 manufacturing facilities and 250 employees. Bryan and his wife Melody moved from New Mexico to Texas in 1989. They have two sons.
Russell Ward, '79, recently was assigned a four-month stint as the U.S. Forest Service's acting ranger assigned to the Glenwood, N.M., district until a permanent ranger could be hired. Ward planned in June to resume his position with the Forest Service Wilderness District's Range and Wildlife staff in Mimbres, N.M.

80s

David M. Scott, '80, of Spokane, Wash., was promoted to the position of life specialist with Allstate Insurance. As part of his job, he shows clients the value of adding life insurance, annuities and long-term care insurance to their financial protection plans. Rhonda G. Faught, '81, of Deming, N.M., is New Mexico's only female district engineer for the State Highway and Transportation Department. She is responsible for planning, designing, building and repairing some 2,700 miles of highway in six counties and 330 miles of interstate.
Arnold Puentes, '81, works with Tech Reps, a communications support company in Albuquerque, and provides support to Sandia National Laboratories. Puentes, who painted the mural in Las Cruces's Klein Park, continues to paint murals and canvases.
Phillip Enis, '82, of San Francisco, Calif., has joined the California Cable Television Association as a regulatory director. Enis has worked at the California Public Utility Commission for the past 10 years, most recently as an analyst in the telecommunications division. He also worked in the commission's safety division and division of ratepayers advocates.
Susan R. Gandara, '82, of El Paso, Texas, is the Western Region director of the Colonia Program in El Paso. The program, part of the College of Architecture at Texas A&M University, addresses health, education, human and social services by helping to develop community centers in isolated communities.
Jerry Macias, '82, a New York Life Insurance agent in Las Cruces, was named an Annuity Champion for 2000, a recognition bestowed on qualified agents based on annuity sales performance. Macias has been a New York Life agent since 1989.

Perez-Wright

Anna Perez-Wright, '82, of Las Cruces, is the new assistant editor with NMSU's Agricultural Communications department. She will oversee production of radio and TV news programs for the College of Agriculture and Home Economics. Thomas B. Ponder II, '82, an engineer with Chavez-Grieves Consulting Engineers Inc. in Albuquerque, has been promoted to junior partner and named vice president of human resources. E.J. Robbins, '83, of Raton, N.M., announced his retirement as Raton High School principal. Robbins began his education career as a teacher in 1975 in Anthony, N.M. In 1980, he became an administrator and has served several New Mexico school districts as principal and superintendent.

Glenn Ellington, '84, a district judge in Santa Fe, was appointed by Gov. Gary Johnson to the New Mexico Court of Appeals.
Stephanie Michnovicz, '84, was hired as vice president of marketing for the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce. She will be responsible for overseeing the chamber's marketing, public relations and sales efforts, and issues related to member services.
Rikia Park, '84, of Bosque Farms, N.M., a veterinarian, is the owner of Sun Ranch Pet Hospital in Los Lunas, N.M. The 2,600 square-foot facility has state-of-the-art features including an enclosed surgical suite, a laboratory and X-ray machine.
Tom Stolberg, '84, of Las Cruces, recently performed tenor solo for Bach's Mass in B Minor at the Music Center Recital Hall at NMSU. The performance was the choral department's season finale. Stolberg has had a wide experience as a soloist and director with various local and regional ensembles and has performed lead roles in a number of operas. He was one of the founding members of River City Opera Co. in Baton Rouge, La.
Lisa P. McAlister, '85, of Andover, Mass., was elected as chief financial officer for LavaStorm Inc. McAlister will be responsible for the overall financial operations of the Internet solutions company.
Randy Worley, '86, of Artesia, N.M., is general manager of Alderman-Cave feeds of New Mexico in Roswell.

Mobley

Fred G. Mobley, '87, '91, a native of Las Cruces, was elected vice president of commercial lending for Bank of the Rio Grande. Mobley is a member of the NMSU Alumni Association Executive Council and the Southern New Mexico State Fair Board. Severiano "Sev" K. Sisneros III, 87, a 12-year veteran with the New Mexico Highway and Transportation Department, has been appointed to head the agency's northeast district headquarters in Las Vegas, N.M. Sisneros has served as a maintenance engineer, technical support engineer, traffic engineer and as a district lab supervisor. Charlene Wheeless, '87, of Ashburn, Va., was elected vice president for corporate communications at DynCorp, a leading information technology and outsourcing solutions firm. Wheeless has led the DynCorp's

 corporate communications department for four years. Under her leadership DynCorp corporate communications department has won more than 30 awards for communications excellence. L.
Cheryl Hays Hartman, '88, and her husband Don, of Deming, N.M., have been named the Outstanding Agriculture Business Family Of The Year by the Deming-Luna County Chamber of Commerce. Prior to the chamber award, the Hartmans were named as the state's Outstanding Young Farmers by the New Mexico Farm and Livestock Bureau.
Robin Koonce, '88, is the kindergarten through 12th grade school counselor in Rolla, Kan.
David R. Leffler, '88, of Fairfield, Iowa, recently published an article, "Spiritual Politic Consciousness-Based Defense," in the May/June issue of Tikkun. Leffler received his Ph.D. in 1997 in consciousness-based military defense from the Union Institute.
Victoria Copeland, '89, of Alamogordo, N.M., displayed her work at the Eagle Ranch Art Gallery. Copeland's watercolor painting are highly influenced by her interest in the surface ornamentation of jewelry and its use as personal adornment.
John B. Edwards, '89, a former Las Crucen, was selected as an agent for disability insurance by the New Mexico Society of Certified Public Accountants though the Guardian Life Insurance Co. of America.

Esparza

Thomas V. Esparza, '89, recently was named the Las Cruces Public School District's Teacher of the Year. Esparza is a physical education teacher at Jornada Elementary School in Las Cruces. Andrea Gonzales, '89, received her DDS degree from Baylor College of Dentistry in 1993 and her M.S. certificate of pediatric dentistry in 1995. Gonzales and her husband Tom Wickersham have a pediatric dental practice in Flower Mound, Texas. Their daughter, Lauren Jean Wickersham, was born Sept. 6, 1999. Eric R. Lopez, '89, of Las Cruces, received the John Clark Award for Outstanding Contributions and Service to the New Mexico Water and Wastewater Association. Lopez is the manager of the City of Las Cruces wastewater treatment facility.

90s

Eddy Koonce, '90, is production manager for Seaboard Farms Inc. in Rolla, Kansas. He manages the largest swine feeding operation in the United States with 406,000 head finishing capacity and 150,000 head nursery capacity.
Ben Trujillo, '91, of Bayard, N.M., was hired as the new principal of Hot Springs High School in Truth or Consequences, N.M. Trujillo spent the last year as assistant principal at Cobre High School in Bayard. He has taught communications and Spanish.
Brenda J. Collins, '92, of Lordsburg, N.M., was named editor of the Lordsburg Liberal. The Lordsburg Liberal was recently purchased by the Independent Weekly, which was edited Collins.
Robert G. DeShurley Jr., '92, of Rio Rancho, N.M., was named senior project manager for Gannett Fleming, a consulting engineering and construction management firm. His duties at the firm's Albuquerque office include business development and roadway construction project design and management. DeShurley has 13 years of experience in civil engineering and public works design and construction.
Janice G. Ehly, '92, of Las Cruces, joined Coldwell Bankers as a licensed assistant. Ehly recently received her license in real estate. She has joined the Las Cruces Association of Realtors and is a member of the National Association of Realtors.
Bryan Gonderinger, '92, of Longmont, Colo., is a PBX/network engineer with Lucent Technologies.
Mike D. Merrill, '92, '94, is a first-year masterÕs of business administration student at the University of Michigan Business School. He has accepted a summer internship with Lehman Brothers doing investment banking in New York.
Patrick Riley, '92, was elected to the board of directors of the New Mexico Farm and Livestock Bureau. Riley serves on the board of the Union County Farm and Livestock Bureau and is a volunteer firefighter with the Rabbit Ear Department. Riley and his family run an Angus cow, calf and hay operation near Clayton, N.M.
Jason Van Sweden, '92, and his wife Vivienne of Raton, N.M., have been appointed to the national Young Farmer and Rancher Committee of the American Farm Bureau Federation. The Van Sweden's first duty was to attend the World Congress of Young Farmers and Ranchers in Orlando, Fla. The Couple are partners in the family-owned V-7 Cattle Co. south of Raton.
Juline Barol-Gilmore, '93, recently performed in Bach's Mass in B Minor at the Music Center Recital Hall at NMSU. The performance was part of choral department's season finale. Barol-Gilmore was the alto soloist. After receiving her graduate degree in vocal performance, Barol-Gilmore has returned to Las Cruces several times to perform with the Dona Ana Lyric Opera. She has performed with the Opera Omaha, Opera Theater of St Louis, Des Moines Metro Opera, Central City Opera, the Omaha Symphony and the Southern Nevada Musical Arts Society.
Cynthia Rex, '93, was appointed coordinator of the Drinking Water Revolving Loan program in Santa Fe by the New Mexico Finance Authority. She will oversee a program that provides water systems around the state with low-cost financial assistance for construction and rehabilitation.
Moises Cardiel, '94, of Alamogordo, N.M., was selected as Educator of the Year by the National Association of the Advancement of Colored People. Cardiel is a teacher at Sacramento Elementary in Alamogordo.
Ira C. Cline, '94, graduated from the specialized undergraduate pilot training program and won the AETC Commander's Trophy as the outstanding graduate of the U.S. Air Force specialized undergraduate pilot training class at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas.
Valerie Kennedy Klofach, '94, was named convention sales manager at the Las Cruces Convention & Visitors Bureau. She was a travel consultant at Vista Travel.
Robert Gross, '95, an experienced automotive photojournalist, has joined the staff of Hemmings Motor News, Bennington, Vt., as associate editor. Gross will work on various publications including Hemmings Motor News, Special Interest Autos, the nine Hemmings automotive calendars and book projects.
Shawn R. Naranjo, '95, of Roswell, N.M., was awarded Sertoman of the Year for 1999-2000 by the Roadrunner Sertoma Club. Naranjo is an employee at his family's construction business, Rojo Enterprises.
Michael Gonzales, '96, of Las Cruces, recently received gold and silver awards for implementing a cost-saving project at Phelps Dodge Copper Mining Co. in El Paso, Texas. The awards are the highest honors awarded to Phelps Dodge employees.
Barbara A. Montoya, '96, was promoted to captain while serving in military intelligence with the U.S. Army at Ft. Campbell, Ky. Montoya has been in the Army since 1995.
Tom Hollis, '97, of Carlsbad, N.M., is the new assistant cashier/assistant branch manager for the Carlsbad National Bank.
Maria V. Lopez, '97, of Espanola, N.M., was appointed advertising manager at the Rio Grande Sun newspaper in Espanola.

Elmore

Deann J. Louis, '97, an Air National Guard Airman 1st Class, graduated from the information management apprentice course at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Miss. Amber Naeb, '97, of Edgewood, N.M., is a locomotive engineer for Amtrak. Lucille Santillanes, '97, of Albuquerque, was appointed human resource manager with the New Mexico Heart Institute. Brian Elmore, '98, of Russells Point, Ohio, is a frame plant customer service associate in mission quality with Honda Transmission Manufacturing. Previously, Elmore was a quality assurance tester for Honda. Jefferson Sargent, '98, became a naval aviator after receiving his Wings of Gold in November 1999.

He enlisted in the U.S. Navy and attended Officer Candidate School in Pensacola, Fla., and was commissioned as ensign in June 1998.

Sudderth

Adam Bell, '99, spent one month volunteering to help construct and teach English classes at an orphanage in Mexico. Bell is in Costa Rica for two years serving as a volunteer with VSO, an organization similar to the Peace Corps. Christine Moreland-Bruhnke, '99, a staff member of the NMSU Library's Rio Grande Historical Collections/University Archives, was selected to receive the Colonial Dames Scholarship Award. The award enabled her to attend the Spring 2000 Modern Archives Institute in Washington, D.C. The two-week institute covers all areas of archival practice. Alison Sudderth, '99, has joined Meyocks and Priebe Advertising in Des Moines, Iowa, as a member of the account service team. Meyocks and Priebe provides worldwide marketing communication services in strategic planning, public relations, advertising, direct marketing, sales promotion and digital media.

Telles Alumna wins Crouch award Elva G. Telles, '73, '89, director of EEO/ADA and employee relations at NMSU, was honored in May as the 12th annual recipient of the Ralph B. Crouch Memorial Award. Telles was nominated for the award by Virginia C. Higbie, dean of the College of Health and Social Services. "Elva approaches each of her tasks with a genuine desire to resolve the situation at hand," Higbie wrote in her nomination letter. "With patience and excellent listening and mediation skills, Elva provides direction and counseling that have resulted many times in preventing serious disruption of the working environment."   Telles, a graduate of Gadsden High School, earned two degrees from NMSU, a bachelor's degree in business administration and a master's in counseling and educational psychology. She is certified as a licensed professional mental health counselor by the state and has completed training with the Mediation Alliance of Albuquerque. She has made many classroom presentations, serving on training panels, and given speeches to community organizations, among her numerous volunteer activities over the years. She has worked at NMSU for more than 22 years, holding positions in the Business Office and Personnel before assuming her current position. She said she was surprised to be selected because of the nature of her work involving employee grievances. "Litigants don't come bearing flowers when they come to see me," she said. However, she believes that everyone working together is the basis for her positive record at NMSU. The award was established by friends and relatives of the late Dr. Ralph B. Crouch, former mathematical sciences head and associate dean of the Graduate School, to honor a current or living former employee of NMSU for outstanding contributions to the life of the university community. The award alternates annually between classified staff and faculty/ professional staff. Nena Singleton