TUE: Western New Mexico University hires new president after national search, + More
By KUNM News
March 17, 2026 at 9:07 AM MDT
Western New Mexico University hires new president after national search
—Joshua Bowling, Source New Mexico
Western New Mexico University has a new president.
Source New Mexico reports the board of regents at Western New Mexico University announced the hire Tuesday morning. It’s been more than a year since Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham cleaned house and appointed five new regents to oversee the university in Silver City.
The new president at Western New Mexico will be Western Oregon University’s Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Jose Coll.
Coll’s contract carries an annual salary of $310,000, which is $55,000 less than his predecessor. Currently, it’s a three-year contract, but if Coll makes it more than a year into the role, it will automatically renew for an additional two years.
Former university President Joseph Shepard resigned in late 2024. His resignation followed news reports and state investigations regarding how he and other university officials used taxpayer and university foundation dollars on luxury furniture, international travel and five-star resort stays. The New Mexico Higher Education Department and Office of the State Auditor investigated university leaders and reported “improper” and “wasteful” spending.
The board of regents in late 2024 accepted Shepard’s resignation and awarded him a $1.9 million severance payment and a five-year teaching contract. Lujan Grisham subsequently demanded the regents’ resignations and New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez sued Shepard and the regents over the terms of his departure. Torrez’s suit and one from the New Mexico State Ethics Commission — which accuses Shepard of using money meant for ADA-compliant projects on campus to build a patio for his daughter’s wedding reception — remain pending in court.
New Mexico lawmaker urges probe into Otero County emergency ICE detention contract
—Danielle Prokop, Source New Mexico
A southern New Mexico lawmaker is asking the state attorney general to investigate Otero County commissioners’ recent emergency approval of a five-year detention contract with federal immigration officials. Source New Mexico reports the inquiry is to determine whether the deal violated a new state law.
Las Cruces Democratic State Rep. Sarah Silva (D-Las Cruces) wrote in a March 16 letter to Attorney General Raúl Torrez that she believed the Otero County commissioners’ actions violated the recently adopted Immigrant Safety Act. Silva’s District includes part of Otero as well as Dona Ana County.
House Bill 9, signed into law by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham this year, bans public entities from signing detention contracts with federal immigration officials and requires public bodies to terminate existing agreements “upon the earliest date permissible.” The law goes into effect May 20.
At a 12-minute emergency meeting on March 13, Otero County Commissioners unanimously adopted a new five-year contract, effective Monday, March 16. The contract, obtained by Source NM, allows for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to end services with 60-days notice, but states Otero County “shall not have the right to terminate this agreement.” Additionally, the contract says the federal government will not have to pay for any further costs if the contract is terminated.
Bernalillo County Republicans call for New Mexico state Chair Barela to step down
—Joshua Bowling, Source New Mexico
Some New Mexico Republicans are calling for the state party chair to step down.
Source New Mexico reports Republican Party of New Mexico Chair Amy Barela’s decision to seek re-election for her Otero County Commission seat in a contested primary has set off some GOP infighting, as some state leaders accuse her of violating party rules.
Barela sits on the Otero County Commission and filed to run for re-election this year. A challenger, longtime Otero County Sheriff’s Office deputy Jonathan Emery, filed to run against her in the June 2 Republican primary.
The party’s rules say that when the state’s party chair “files as a candidate for public office and there is another Republican who has filed for the same office, the state officer shall immediately vacate the party office.”
Mark Murton, the first vice chair of the Republican Party of Bernalillo County told Source New Mexico that Barela violated the rules.
On social media Artesia Republican State Sen. James Townsend shamed Barela’s critics and appeared to argue that the rules are written.
NM U.S. Sen. Luján frees $120M for Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project – Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
U.S. Sen Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) on Monday announced he’d successfully pressured the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to release $120 million for ongoing construction of the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project, which, when completed, promises to provide a sustainable water supply to more than 250,000 people in northwest New Mexico.
The project to divert water via a 300-mile pipeline from the San Juan River to the Navajo Nation and areas nearby was finalized in 2010 when the federal Interior Department and the Nation finalized the latter’s water rights settlement.
Congress has authorized up to approximately $1.8 billion for the project, which has received funding sporadically over the last 15 years. Most recently, Luján and U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) secured $55 million toward the project in a recent federal spending bill.
At a U.S. Senate committee meeting last Wednesday, Luján questioned Scott Cameron, acting commissioner of the federal Bureau of Reclamation, about an additional $120 million dedicated to the project. Luján said the funding had been held up since January 2025 in the Reclamation Water Settlement Fund, a fund the bureau oversees that is used to pay for tribal water rights settlements nationwide.
Cameron told Luján he’d look into the matter and, on Monday, Luján announced in a news release that the bureau had “expedited” the funds’ release for the project.
“This is a critical step forward, and I remain committed to seeing this project through to completion,” Luján said in a statement.
About 40% of Navajo Nation households lack running water, and the city of Gallup, which has a population of about 20,000 people, is increasingly relying on dwindling water supplies.
While the pipeline has been under construction, Gallup’s annual groundwater production has dropped from about 3,900 acre-feet to about 2,900 acre-feet due to declining water levels, and its groundwater levels have dropped about 200 feet, requiring deeper and deeper wells, city officials have said.
The pipeline will also deliver a steady supply of water to the southwestern portion of the Jicarilla Apache, benefiting about 1,300 people.
Heinrich and U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), in statements Monday, touted the additional funding as moving the project a step forward.
“Gallup and other communities don’t have the water infrastructure they need for their health care, businesses, and residents,” Leger Fernández said. “This $120 million funding moves us closer to the day when these communities can turn on a tap and trust that water will flow.”
Construction is expected to take until at least November 2029, according to a project timeline.
Bosque assaults prompt patrols, disrupt recreation – Nakayla Mclelland, Albuquerque Journal
A string of assaults involving at least one assailant with a box cutter has prompted additional police patrols, recreational groups to relocate their activities and schools to remind students and parents of safety protocols.
The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office said several assaults have occurred in the bosque on the west side of the Rio Grande, north of Alameda, since early February.
“Detectives believe these incidents may be related and are asking the public to remain alert and report any suspicious activity,” BCSO said in a news release.
Witnesses have provided similar descriptions of the suspect, who appears to be a 30-year-old man wearing all-black clothing, according to BCSO.
The series of assaults began on Feb. 2 when a suspect wearing all-black clothing — including a black face mask, gloves and goggles — pointed a firearm at a person and cut the person’s pants near the groin. The person who was attacked did not suffer any injuries, BCSO said.
A month later, a man was attacked by a suspect wearing all-black clothing with a box cutter.
On March 8, a woman riding her horse was approached by a suspect who threatened to stab the horse with a knife, the release states.
“No injuries were reported,” BCSO said. “The offender was described as wearing a black hoodie, blue pants and believed to be approximately 30 years old.”
BSCO and the Albuquerque Police Department have increased patrols through the area since the assaults began, according to Sgt. Connor Otero, a spokesperson for BCSO. As of Monday, no arrests have been made.
Meanwhile, various groups who use the bosque have made changes to their routines.
Casey Williams, a mother and leader of a bosque yoga group, said the assaults have forced her club to move locations and prompted her child’s school to remind parents of safety protocols.
Williams’ child attends Mountain Mahogany Community School and every other Monday, the students hold class in the bosque. Students at the school typically take walks in the bosque and conduct ecological projects in the area, she said.
After the assaults, Williams said the school increased the number of chaperones for students and urged parents to remind their students to stay vigilant while in the bosque.
“I don’t know if the school is going to change locations or if there’s going to be additional safety practices, but this even affects our school community,” she said.
Mountain Mahogany Community School was not available for additional questions.
Williams and five other women meet every Sunday to walk or do yoga in the bosque. She said the group has shifted to a new location.
“It took away the space we find there to be relaxed and enjoy each other’s company and now we have to kind of be on guard,” she said. “With that imminent threat, it’s been a little unnerving."
Williams is the founder of Yoga on the Rio, which meets once a week in the bosque.
The group has since moved meetups further south.
“It's a place where we find solace for our little group,” she said. “The therapeutic benefits that the bosque offers have been compromised and threatened and it just doesn’t feel like a safe space.”
The club has now taken to wielding mace and bear spray to protect themselves and has vowed to keep an eye on anyone enjoying the bosque alone.
“No one wants to let one person take it away from all of us,” Williams said. “We're definitely gonna do what we can to protect ourselves and be on the lookout for others as well.”
—Joshua Bowling, Source New Mexico
Western New Mexico University has a new president.
Source New Mexico reports the board of regents at Western New Mexico University announced the hire Tuesday morning. It’s been more than a year since Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham cleaned house and appointed five new regents to oversee the university in Silver City.
The new president at Western New Mexico will be Western Oregon University’s Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Jose Coll.
Coll’s contract carries an annual salary of $310,000, which is $55,000 less than his predecessor. Currently, it’s a three-year contract, but if Coll makes it more than a year into the role, it will automatically renew for an additional two years.
Former university President Joseph Shepard resigned in late 2024. His resignation followed news reports and state investigations regarding how he and other university officials used taxpayer and university foundation dollars on luxury furniture, international travel and five-star resort stays. The New Mexico Higher Education Department and Office of the State Auditor investigated university leaders and reported “improper” and “wasteful” spending.
The board of regents in late 2024 accepted Shepard’s resignation and awarded him a $1.9 million severance payment and a five-year teaching contract. Lujan Grisham subsequently demanded the regents’ resignations and New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez sued Shepard and the regents over the terms of his departure. Torrez’s suit and one from the New Mexico State Ethics Commission — which accuses Shepard of using money meant for ADA-compliant projects on campus to build a patio for his daughter’s wedding reception — remain pending in court.
New Mexico lawmaker urges probe into Otero County emergency ICE detention contract
—Danielle Prokop, Source New Mexico
A southern New Mexico lawmaker is asking the state attorney general to investigate Otero County commissioners’ recent emergency approval of a five-year detention contract with federal immigration officials. Source New Mexico reports the inquiry is to determine whether the deal violated a new state law.
Las Cruces Democratic State Rep. Sarah Silva (D-Las Cruces) wrote in a March 16 letter to Attorney General Raúl Torrez that she believed the Otero County commissioners’ actions violated the recently adopted Immigrant Safety Act. Silva’s District includes part of Otero as well as Dona Ana County.
House Bill 9, signed into law by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham this year, bans public entities from signing detention contracts with federal immigration officials and requires public bodies to terminate existing agreements “upon the earliest date permissible.” The law goes into effect May 20.
At a 12-minute emergency meeting on March 13, Otero County Commissioners unanimously adopted a new five-year contract, effective Monday, March 16. The contract, obtained by Source NM, allows for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to end services with 60-days notice, but states Otero County “shall not have the right to terminate this agreement.” Additionally, the contract says the federal government will not have to pay for any further costs if the contract is terminated.
Bernalillo County Republicans call for New Mexico state Chair Barela to step down
—Joshua Bowling, Source New Mexico
Some New Mexico Republicans are calling for the state party chair to step down.
Source New Mexico reports Republican Party of New Mexico Chair Amy Barela’s decision to seek re-election for her Otero County Commission seat in a contested primary has set off some GOP infighting, as some state leaders accuse her of violating party rules.
Barela sits on the Otero County Commission and filed to run for re-election this year. A challenger, longtime Otero County Sheriff’s Office deputy Jonathan Emery, filed to run against her in the June 2 Republican primary.
The party’s rules say that when the state’s party chair “files as a candidate for public office and there is another Republican who has filed for the same office, the state officer shall immediately vacate the party office.”
Mark Murton, the first vice chair of the Republican Party of Bernalillo County told Source New Mexico that Barela violated the rules.
On social media Artesia Republican State Sen. James Townsend shamed Barela’s critics and appeared to argue that the rules are written.
NM U.S. Sen. Luján frees $120M for Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project – Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
U.S. Sen Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) on Monday announced he’d successfully pressured the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to release $120 million for ongoing construction of the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project, which, when completed, promises to provide a sustainable water supply to more than 250,000 people in northwest New Mexico.
The project to divert water via a 300-mile pipeline from the San Juan River to the Navajo Nation and areas nearby was finalized in 2010 when the federal Interior Department and the Nation finalized the latter’s water rights settlement.
Congress has authorized up to approximately $1.8 billion for the project, which has received funding sporadically over the last 15 years. Most recently, Luján and U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) secured $55 million toward the project in a recent federal spending bill.
At a U.S. Senate committee meeting last Wednesday, Luján questioned Scott Cameron, acting commissioner of the federal Bureau of Reclamation, about an additional $120 million dedicated to the project. Luján said the funding had been held up since January 2025 in the Reclamation Water Settlement Fund, a fund the bureau oversees that is used to pay for tribal water rights settlements nationwide.
Cameron told Luján he’d look into the matter and, on Monday, Luján announced in a news release that the bureau had “expedited” the funds’ release for the project.
“This is a critical step forward, and I remain committed to seeing this project through to completion,” Luján said in a statement.
About 40% of Navajo Nation households lack running water, and the city of Gallup, which has a population of about 20,000 people, is increasingly relying on dwindling water supplies.
While the pipeline has been under construction, Gallup’s annual groundwater production has dropped from about 3,900 acre-feet to about 2,900 acre-feet due to declining water levels, and its groundwater levels have dropped about 200 feet, requiring deeper and deeper wells, city officials have said.
The pipeline will also deliver a steady supply of water to the southwestern portion of the Jicarilla Apache, benefiting about 1,300 people.
Heinrich and U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), in statements Monday, touted the additional funding as moving the project a step forward.
“Gallup and other communities don’t have the water infrastructure they need for their health care, businesses, and residents,” Leger Fernández said. “This $120 million funding moves us closer to the day when these communities can turn on a tap and trust that water will flow.”
Construction is expected to take until at least November 2029, according to a project timeline.
Bosque assaults prompt patrols, disrupt recreation – Nakayla Mclelland, Albuquerque Journal
A string of assaults involving at least one assailant with a box cutter has prompted additional police patrols, recreational groups to relocate their activities and schools to remind students and parents of safety protocols.
The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office said several assaults have occurred in the bosque on the west side of the Rio Grande, north of Alameda, since early February.
“Detectives believe these incidents may be related and are asking the public to remain alert and report any suspicious activity,” BCSO said in a news release.
Witnesses have provided similar descriptions of the suspect, who appears to be a 30-year-old man wearing all-black clothing, according to BCSO.
The series of assaults began on Feb. 2 when a suspect wearing all-black clothing — including a black face mask, gloves and goggles — pointed a firearm at a person and cut the person’s pants near the groin. The person who was attacked did not suffer any injuries, BCSO said.
A month later, a man was attacked by a suspect wearing all-black clothing with a box cutter.
On March 8, a woman riding her horse was approached by a suspect who threatened to stab the horse with a knife, the release states.
“No injuries were reported,” BCSO said. “The offender was described as wearing a black hoodie, blue pants and believed to be approximately 30 years old.”
BSCO and the Albuquerque Police Department have increased patrols through the area since the assaults began, according to Sgt. Connor Otero, a spokesperson for BCSO. As of Monday, no arrests have been made.
Meanwhile, various groups who use the bosque have made changes to their routines.
Casey Williams, a mother and leader of a bosque yoga group, said the assaults have forced her club to move locations and prompted her child’s school to remind parents of safety protocols.
Williams’ child attends Mountain Mahogany Community School and every other Monday, the students hold class in the bosque. Students at the school typically take walks in the bosque and conduct ecological projects in the area, she said.
After the assaults, Williams said the school increased the number of chaperones for students and urged parents to remind their students to stay vigilant while in the bosque.
“I don’t know if the school is going to change locations or if there’s going to be additional safety practices, but this even affects our school community,” she said.
Mountain Mahogany Community School was not available for additional questions.
Williams and five other women meet every Sunday to walk or do yoga in the bosque. She said the group has shifted to a new location.
“It took away the space we find there to be relaxed and enjoy each other’s company and now we have to kind of be on guard,” she said. “With that imminent threat, it’s been a little unnerving."
Williams is the founder of Yoga on the Rio, which meets once a week in the bosque.
The group has since moved meetups further south.
“It's a place where we find solace for our little group,” she said. “The therapeutic benefits that the bosque offers have been compromised and threatened and it just doesn’t feel like a safe space.”
The club has now taken to wielding mace and bear spray to protect themselves and has vowed to keep an eye on anyone enjoying the bosque alone.
“No one wants to let one person take it away from all of us,” Williams said. “We're definitely gonna do what we can to protect ourselves and be on the lookout for others as well.”