Yearly Archives: 2016

1. Partnership With Diné College Expands Media Arts Opportunities for Navajo Students

   (Originally posted on December 14, 2015) Las Vegas, N.M – Navajo students at Diné College can earn media arts degrees from Highlands University thanks to a USDA grant to install state-of-the-art distance learning classrooms at the college. The $438,715 grant from the USDA’s Rural Development program is funding the educational initiative through its Distance Learning…

2. Highlands Students to Create Manhattan Project Exhibits for New National Park

   Las Vegas, N.M – Highlands University media arts students will create multimedia exhibits for the new Manhattan Project National Historical Park, with a focus on Los Alamos National Laboratory properties where scientists worked at the top-secret site atop remote Pajarito Plateau, New Mexico, to develop an atomic bomb during World War II. The Manhattan Project…

3. Students in Media Arts Create Historical Chinese Immigrant Exhibit for Las Vegas Museum

   Las Vegas, N.M – The untold story of the Chinese immigrant experience in Las Vegas, New Mexico, in the 1880s comes to life in a multimedia museum exhibit Highlands University media arts students created. The exhibit, Phantoms of a Rail Town: The Chinese Immigrant Experience c. 1882, opened at the City of Las Vegas Museum…

4. LANL and Highlands Partnership Aims to Increase Computer Science Grads

   Las Vegas, N.M. – A new partnership between Highlands University and Los Alamos National Laboratory aims to increase computer science graduates at the university that will fill professional positions at the laboratory. “Los Alamos National Laboratory will hire approximately 2,000 new employees by 2020, with a significant number in the computer science profession,” said Carole…

5. Education Alumna Receives Milken Educator of the Year Award

   Las Vegas, N.M. – A Highlands University education alumna received the New Mexico Milken Educator of the Year Award for her innovative teaching practices and excellence in the classroom. Second-grade teacher Melissa Kovac, who sometimes dresses up as a bumble bee to engage her students in the importance of working hard together, earned a $25,000…

6. Students Showcase Media Arts Work at Winter Show December 7

   Las Vegas, N.M – Highlands University media arts students will showcase their work at a winter show Dec. 7 with an opening reception at 5:30 p.m. The show is the premiere exhibit in the Media Arts and Technology Department’s new state-of-art facility in the Trolley Building at 1183 San Francisco Ave. Tours will be given…

7. Highlands School of Education Dean Awarded $2.9-Million Grant for STEM

   Las Vegas, N.M. – Highlands University students will have more support to complete bachelor’s degrees in science and technology disciplines and math education, thanks to a $2.9-million U.S. Department of Education grant. The five-year grant is designed to increase the number of Hispanic and low-income students who enter the workforce in science, technology, engineering and…

8. Original Music Concert December 2, Madrigal Choir Concert December 4

   Las Vegas, N.M. – The Highlands University Department of Music presents two concerts in December featuring original music and the Christmas classic, Navidad Nuestra. The Original Music Concert is Dec. 2 at 7 p.m. in the Student Union Building Ballroom, 800 National Ave. The Madrigal Choir performs Navidad Nuestra, a folk music rendition of the…

9. Monthly Accreditation Forum November 21

   Las Vegas, N.M. – Highlands University’s monthly accreditation forum Nov. 21 highlighted the new accreditation website and ways for the university community to volunteer with the accreditation process. Highlands English professor Brandon Kempner is directing the university’s Higher Learning Commission accreditation and presented the forum. He and Highlands President Sam Minner are co-chairing the steering…

10. Recycling Center Coordinator Earns Statewide Recognition

    Las Vegas, N.M. – The recycling coordinator at Highlands University earned top honors as the New Mexico Recycling Employee/Operator of the Year in 2016. The New Mexico Recycling Coalition named Carmen Lopez for the award, which recognizes individuals and entities for their outstanding work to promote recycling, composting and solid waste best practices. “Aside from…

11. U.S. Forest Service Hires Students at Society of American Foresters Convention

    Las Vegas, N.M. – The U.S. Forest Service hired three Highlands University forestry majors on the spot at the Society of American Foresters National Convention. Fifteen Highlands University forestry students participated in the convention Nov. 2-5 in Madison, Wisconsin. “There’s a very high demand nationwide for forestry and natural resource graduates,” said Highlands forestry professor…

12. Native American Students Collect Food, Clothes for Standing Rock Protesters

    Las Vegas, N.M. – Students in the Native American Club at Highlands University stand in solidarity with the Standing Rock protest over the Dakota Access pipeline with a fundraiser of canned food and winter clothes for the protesters. Since August, members of the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota and other Native American tribes from…

13. Concert Choir Performs Christmas Favorites November 20

    Las Vegas, N.M. – The Highlands University Concert Choir presents a Christmas Favorites concert Nov. 20 at 3 p.m. in the university’s historic Ilfeld Auditorium at 900 University Ave. Some of the selections include traditional arrangements of Silver Bells, Sleigh Ride, Silent Night, and Oh Holy Night. “Another highlight of this concert will be modern-day…

14. Geology Prof Leads NSF Geoscience Grant Funding Panel

    Las Vegas, N.M. – A Highlands University geology professor will help lead a nationwide National Science Foundation panel to determine grant funding for geoscience research. Michael Petronis will serve at NSF’s Earth Sciences: Instrumentation and Facilities funding meeting Nov. 17-18 in Berkeley, California. “Our responsibility is to critically evaluate the grant proposals in terms of…

15. Highlands Honors Its Veterans at Veterans Day Ceremony

    Highlands University exercise and sport sciences professor Jay Lee, right, and Raymond Sanchez, an ITV engineer with Educational Outreach Services, are two of the university’s veterans honored Nov. 11 during a Veterans Day ceremony the Alumni Office sponsored. Lee served four years of active duty during the Vietnam War as a corporal with the U.S….

16. Record Student Turnout for Fall Career Fair

      Highlands University forestry sophomore Alanie Rael, left, gets information about BLM careers and internships from Elyssa Duran at the university’s Fall Career Fair Nov. 10 in the Student Union Ballroom. Duran, who earned her M.S. from Highlands in natural resource management, is a forester for the BLM’s field office in Taos, New Mexico. A…

17. Yjastros Flamenco Dance Company Performs at Highlands November 18

    Las Vegas, N.M. –  Highlands University presents Yjastros: The American Flamenco Repertory Company in concert Nov. 18 at 7 p.m. in the university’s historic Ilfeld Auditorium, 900 University Ave. Yjastros, now in its 31st season, is an internationally acclaimed flamenco company based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. “Flamenco is visually exciting with beautiful costumes and powerful…

18. Highlands Alumna Named New Mexico Teacher of the Year

    When Stephanie Gurule-Leyba told her dad, a teacher, that she wanted to be a teacher, too, he gave her a warning. Read the full story at Santa Fe New Mexian.

19. Spanish Prof Publishes Anthology of International Poetry

    Las Vegas, N.M. – A Highlands University Spanish professor and award-winning poet published a book featuring top international poets. Carlos Velásquez Torres co-edited Multilingual Anthology: The Americas Poetry Festival of New York 2016 from Artepoética Press. “This anthology is very special because it combines multiple voices from different parts of the planet like Latin America,…

20. Retention Summit Nov. 3 – 4

      Las Vegas, N.M. – A Retention Summit at Highlands University Nov. 3 – 4 launched a campus wide effort to identify new strategies to enhance the university’s existing retention plan and increase the number of students returning each semester. The university’s Office of Strategic Enrollment Management sponsored the summit. “The overall purpose for this…