Notes from the May 11, 2007 Regents Meeting
by George Zamora
SOCORRO, N.M., June 12, 2007 – The New Mexico Tech Board of Regents approved a $156 million operating budget for Fiscal Year 2007-2008 at the state-supported research university during the board’s last regular meeting. The approved budget, which is scheduled to go into effect on July 1, currently is being considered by the New Mexico Department of Higher Education for its approval.
New Mexico Tech’s operating budget for the upcoming fiscal year is based on financial projections of almost $66 million in unrestricted fund revenues and $90 million in restricted fund revenues at the university.
During its May 11 meeting, the New Mexico Tech Board of Regents also approved a Budget Adjustment Request to the university’s current operating budget, which was attributable to increased revenues, carry-forwards from the previous fiscal year, and program changes from restricted funding to unrestricted funding.
In addition, the university’s governing board granted its authorization to a Severance Tax Bond Resolution that will secure about $2 million in severance bonds to be used for the university’s ongoing hot-water loop replacement project.
The Tech Board of Regents also gave its official approval to several other measures considered during its meeting, including:
- adoption of a new Gasoline Card Policy, which limits the issuance of the university’s gasoline purchasing cards to a single credit card carrier;
- a $485,000 contract to EBSCO Subscription Services to provide library subscription services for the upcoming fiscal year to Tech’s Joseph R. Skeen Library; and
- acceptance of the LambdaRail, Inc. Board of Directors, including New Mexico Tech Vice President Van Romero and Information Services Director Bob Tacker as the university’s designated members on the board.
In addition, the New Mexico Tech Board of Regents also approved the faculty appointments of the following individuals to full-time, tenure-track positions at the university:
- Anders Jorgenson to assistant professor of electrical engineering;
- Julianne Newmark to assistant professor of English;
- Catherine Snelson to assistant professor of geophysics; and
- Nadir Yilmaz to assistant professor of mechanical engineering.
The university’s governing board was informed during its meeting that sabbatical leaves had recently been granted to New Mexico Tech professors Frank Huang (environmental engineering), Alexander Prusin (humanities), and Ronald Thomas (electrical engineering).
The regents also were informed of several recent expenditures of $100,000 or more that were made with the school’s restricted funds to provide hotel and motel rooms on a contractual basis for the New Mexico Tech First Responders Training Program, during field exercises held at the Playas Training Center in Playas, N.M.
After convening in executive session to consider a pending personnel matter, the New Mexico Tech Board of Regents voted to approve the academic promotion of Scott Teare to the position of professor of electrical engineering.
The Tech Board of Regents also conducted a brief meeting on Saturday morning, May 12, to vest New Mexico Tech President Daniel H. López with the authority to confer academic degrees at the university’s commencement, which followed the meeting.