Three candidates to present plans for UNM student services role

The University of New Mexico has identified three finalists for the director position of African American Student Services. The university will hold open forums this week to allow the campus community to hear from the candidates before a final selection is made.

Each candidate will speak for 45 minutes, from 1:00 to 1:45 p.m., at the SUB Lobo A & B venue. The sessions are designed to give students, staff, faculty, alumni, and community members a chance to review the candidates' professional backgrounds and leadership styles. Attendees can offer feedback immediately after each presentation.

Dannelle M. Kirven, the executive director of the New Mexico Martin Luther King Jr. Commission, is scheduled to present on Monday, November 9. Van Havercome, who serves as the associate director of the Center for Racial Justice and Inclusive Excellence at the State University of New York at Oneonta, will present on Tuesday, November 10. Mauriell H. Amechi, a former assistant dean of inclusive excellence at Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment, will close the series on Thursday, November 12.

The director of African American Student Services leads a unit within the Division of Student Affairs. The department focuses on educational and cultural initiatives to support student engagement and academic achievement. The director manages staff, programs, and partnerships while advising the university on practices that support student success and the appreciation of African American and African Diasporic histories.

Tryphenia B. Peele-Eady, a professor and associate chair in the Department of Africana Studies, chaired the search committee that reviewed applicants from a national pool. The committee also included Zach Hammerle, director of Campus Recreation; Tina Zuniga-Carilli, strategic support manager for the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs; and Cedric Roberson, senior student success specialist for African American Student Services. The group further included community representative Tonya Covington and student representatives Jayden Charter and Amara Ortiz.

Biographies and curriculum vitae for all three finalists are available on the Division of Student Affairs website. The university encourages broad participation in the feedback process to inform the hiring decision.