NMSU awards faculty members at fall 2024 convocation

EL PASO, Texas ( KTSM ) — New Mexico State University (NMSU) celebrated the new academic year by honoring six faculty members.

According to the news release by NMSU, the fall 2024 convocation was held on Tuesday, Aug. 20 to award the faculty members and over 200 Aggies were in attendance, along with Interim President Mónica Torres and Interim Provost Lakshmi Reddi.

Classes begin Wednesday, Aug. 21 at NMSU.

“This convocation is a celebration of the incredible work being done throughout our NMSU system, and the positive impact of that work, on our students, our academic disciplines, the industries we serve,” Torres said. “There are many stories of the people who benefit from our service, our teaching, our research. Those are the things that we’re doing at this university. We’re trying to address the broad challenges and opportunities that are before us in our communities and as a global society.”

The recipients were awarded the following awards:

• Dennis W. Darnall Faculty Achievement Award
  • The award recognizes recipients for remarkable, broad-based accomplishments in teaching, research and service to their profession, university and community. It is the highest honor bestowed by NMSU’s provost.
    • Wei Tang of NMSU’s Klipsch School of Electrical and Computer Engineering

• Donald C. Roush Award for Teaching Excellence
  • College deans and community college directors choose award recipients based on input from department heads and students.
    • David Bishop of NMSU Grants
    • Dwight Kealy of the Department of Finance
    • Young Lee of the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering

• Patricia Christmore Award for Teaching Excellence
  • The award honors junior tenure-track faculty members for engaging, inclusive and research-led teaching.
    • Shannon Norris-Parish of the Department of Agriculture and Extension Education
    • Paulette Vincent-Ruz of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

During the convocation, Torres welcomed 74 new faculty members to NMSU and congratulated 129 newly promoted faculty, according to NMSU.

“These are truly, I think, exciting times for NMSU,” Reddi said. “Like you, I sense the excitement of the past two days as the students are moving in. I met a few of them in Corbett Center Student Union, and I can’t help but notice the excitement in their eyes.”

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