-= NMSU PANORAMA - Summer 2006 =- New horizons, new doors

Features

New horizons, new doors

By Karl Hill

A look at the history of NMSU's community colleges

To understand the importance of community colleges in New Mexico, says New Mexico State University President Emeritus Gerald Thomas, “all you have to do is go to a graduation ceremony at one of our two-year campuses.”

“You can see how important it is to families, especially when the student walking across the stage to get a diploma or a certificate is the first person from that family ever to go beyond high school,” Thomas recalls, reflecting on the commencement ceremonies he attended as university president from 1970 to 1984, a period that saw significant growth in NMSU’s community college system. “This opportunity to continue their education opens new horizons and new doors for them.”

Opening doors was the chief motivation behind the community college movement that began in the 1950s and gained momentum in the 60s. And New Mexico State University, as the state’s land-grant institution with a focus on outreach and service, was at the forefront of the movement in New Mexico.

Carlsbad was the first New Mexico town to have a community college. Dedicated on Oct. 2, 1950, the Carlsbad Instructional Center was created though an agreement between the university, known then as the New Mexico College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, and the Carlsbad Board of Education.

In a pattern that would become typical, the Carlsbad school began with meager facilities, shared with the local high school. But it grew quickly – especially after the state Legislature passed the Community College Act in 1957, which provided state funding.

So did the number of community colleges administered by the university. A Farmington Branch, later to become independent as San Juan College, was founded in 1956; the Alamogordo campus got its start in 1958; the Grants campus began in 1968; and the Doña Ana County Occupational Education Branch, which became NMSU’s Doña Ana Branch Community College, opened its doors in 1973.

“People all over the state wanted New Mexico State to come and start a branch for them,” recalls Lowery Davis, who joined the university in 1970 as its first dean of continuing education. “They would come to us ‘because you’re New Mexico State and you do it right.’ ”

Thomas credits Davis, who retired in 1988 as dean of the College of Human and Community Services (now Health and Social Services), and William O’Donnell, the university vice president and later state legislator for whom O’Donnell Hall is named, with the success of the community colleges. Davis understood the administration of vocational and technical education, Thomas says, and O’Donnell, an advocate of community colleges in the Legislature, “was considered the father of the branch campus movement in New Mexico.”

But the critical component in every case has been local support, Thomas and Davis agree, and that is as true today as it was a half century ago.

“You have to have the involvement of the local school boards and the local people,” Thomas says. “The local people have to establish a tax base, they have to pass the bond issues, they have to get their public school boards involved.”

Elitism, and a concern about a proliferation of campuses, were other obstacles that had to be overcome for the two-year campuses to thrive.

“There was a tendency to look down on the branches, but that elitism has not been so pronounced at NMSU as it has been at some other universities,” Thomas says. “Land-grant colleges have always had an outreach mission and we never did have the elitist approach that you see at some other universities.”

Davis saw first-hand the initial opposition to DACC. “The BEF (Board of Educational Finance) didn’t want it and the state Legislature didn’t understand it,” he recalls. “Here was a Ph.D.-granting institution getting involved in associate degrees. But there was a need for vocational education here because nobody was doing it.”

Although they maintain their vocational and technical education emphasis, the community colleges today are serving increasingly as the “front door” to NMSU’s academic programs, using distance education, degree completion programs and other innovative course delivery methods.

“Today I don’t think there is any question that the community college movement has been a real asset,” Thomas says. “Students from these campuses have been very successful, both in higher education and in the work place.”

Although each is unique to its locality, the campuses share a common history of growing pains, grassroots tenacity and a commitment to creating opportunities.

Carlsbad

Courtesy Photo

1950: Founded as Carlsbad Instructional Center; 100 students enroll in classes held at Carlsbad High School.

1957: Paul Johnson hired as first full-time director; name changed to Carlsbad Community College.

1966: Carlsbad School District donates five acres for campus.

1967: First building completed.

1970: Name changed to NMSU at Carlsbad.

1976: Voters approve bond issue to build 100,000-square-foot facility on 40-acre tract of land donated by the Light family.

Today: More than 1,200 students attend classes in facilities that exceed 142,000 square feet. Mel Vuk is CEO.

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Alamogordo

Courtesy Photo

1958: First classes held at Alamogordo High School; two evening classes at Alamogordo High accommodate 279 students.

1961: Part-time director Henry A. Campbell Jr. hired on full-time basis.

1964: Marvin Rohovec becomes director.

1965: Portable classrooms added; daytime classes now possible.

1968: Campus moves to its first permanent facility.

1978: History Professor David H. Townsend becomes director.

1982: Charles Reidlinger appointed campus executive.

1983: NMSU-A becomes first two-year campus to receive maximum 10-year accreditation from North Central Association.

Today: Campus comprises 13 buildings and enrollment approaches 2,000. Rodger Bates is CEO.

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Grants

Courtesy Photo

1968: Grants Branch Community College created through joint efforts of NMSU, Grants Municipal Schools and local citizens; 120 students enroll.

1969: College moves to its present 40-acre site, formerly Grants Job Corps Center.

1978: College’s main building completed with funding from Legislature and general obligation bond issue.

1986: Main building dedicated as Walter K. Martinez Memorial Hall in memory of state representative instrumental in establishing college.

1993: Joseph A. Fidel Activities Center dedicated in recognition of state senator who was staunch supporter.

1998: Annex named Frank McClure Educational Center in honor of state senator who played pivotal role in acquiring college site.

Today: Campus reaches out to diverse communities; enrollment exceeds 600 students. Felicia Casados is CEO.

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Dona Aña

Photo by Darren Phillips

1973: Doña Ana County Occupational Education Branch opens its doors to 250 students; Alex Sanchez is first director.

1978: First buildings built on what is now central campus of Doña Ana Community College, contiguous to the NMSU main campus.

1981: Trades Building added to central campus.1995: Learning Resources Building and General Classroom Building added.

1996: Health and Public Services Building opens at central campus.

1997: Sunland Park Center Phase I completed.

1999: Chaparral Learning Center acquired.

2000: Gadsden Center moves from temporary quarters to new facilities.

2003: East Mesa Center opens.

2005: Phase II of East Mesa Center begins.

Today: Enrollment exceeds 6,570. Margie Huerta is CEO.

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