The goal of this initiative is to create enhanced and expanded spaces within Zimmerman Library, Centennial Science & Engineering Library, and the Fine Arts & Design Library, to create a Research Exchange and expand and enhance the Indigenous Nations Library Program. To achieve this goal, we are proposing the following approach to space enhancements:

Research Exchange:

The new Research Exchange will bring together spaces, technology, expertise, and training to help UNM students and faculty conduct research, explore new methods, and collaborate across disciplines. Researchers will be able to connect with experts for help from the earliest stages of a project through analysis, publication, and sharing their work.

Indigenous Nations Library Program:

The Indigenous Nations Library Program supports Indigenous learning, promotes Indigenous scholarship, and cultivates Indigenous creation. Expanding and enhancing the space would provide a culturally welcoming environment for learning, research, community building, and access to information resources.

$2 million in philanthropic support will fund this initiative.

Nothing is more important at CULLS than our students’ academic achievement. Our new Student Success initiative focuses on three areas: endowed faculty positions, affordable access to course materials, and scholarships.

Research shows that students who use library resources and services are more likely to succeed. University Libraries gives students access to research materials, technology, expert help, and instruction that helps them find, evaluate, and use information effectively.

Academic support for student success:

Libraries are often overlooked as a vital part of the ecosystem that helps students succeed – but not at UNM! The goal of the CULLS Dean’s Student Success program is to create a library environment full of resources, tools, and support, including expanding access to affordable course materials through open educational resources and other programs that reduce textbook costs.

Endowed positions:

Endowed faculty positions provide lasting support for exceptional teaching, research, and student mentorship. They help UNM attract and retain the best and brightest faculty while providing stable resources to advance research.

Scholarships for students in financial need:

For students with financial need, scholarships can make the difference between struggling to balance work and school and having the time to focus on their education.. As one of the largest employers of students on campus, CULLS has a unique ability to offer additional support via scholarships for our student employees who need financial help to pursue their studies.

$1.5 million in philanthropic support will help these key initiatives to grow and thrive.

For nearly a century, the UNM Press has brought scholarship, ideas, and the distinctive histories and cultures of New Mexico and the Southwest to readers around the world. Philanthropic support will help ensure that the Press can continue this mission while expanding opportunities for students, open-access publishing, and future growth.

Growing the UNM Press General Endowment:

The UNM Press publishes scholarship and works of regional and national significance across the humanities, arts, social sciences, STEM fields, and professional disciplines. Its publications extend the reach of scholarship from UNM and authors around the world while giving particular voice to the history, arts, cultures, and sciences of New Mexico and the Southwest. The UNM Press General Endowment allows the Press to undertake bold, broad-based scholarly and mission-based initiatives, weather economic fluctuations, and to undertake a large-scale Open Access project, “Open New Mexico,” which provides scholars, students, researchers, and readers worldwide with free access to UNM research, and to the history, arts, culture, and science of New Mexico.

$500,000 of philanthropic support will allow us to create this unique fund.

UNM’s Center for Southwest Research (CSWR) and Special Collections preserves rare and unique materials documenting the histories and cultures of New Mexico, the Southwest, and the borderlands. An endowed directorship would provide long-term leadership for acquiring, preserving, interpreting, and providing access to these collections while helping UNM attract an outstanding scholar and leader in the field.

$2.5 million in philanthropic support will create this new CSWR Directorship endowment.

Through OILS, CULLS studies how people learn, lead, and thrive in organizations. Building on that expertise, we propose a collaborative space that brings together faculty, students, and partners to advance workplace learning, leadership, and well-being in New Mexico and beyond.

$1.5 million in philanthropic support will create this new innovative workplace initiative.