A committee representing Chicana/o Studies has decided to appoint a UNM professor to be the program's interim director while details of a potential national search are hammered out by University administrators.
Enrique Lamadrid, a professor in the Spanish and Portuguese Department, accepted the appointment from the program's steering committee late in the spring semester.
Eduardo Hern†ndez Chavez retired as the program's director last fall but agreed to remain until the end of the spring while a permanent or interim replacement could be found.
"I originally said no," Lamadrid said, citing a busy schedule and his own research interests. "But I was persuaded. I have a big commitment to Chicano Studies - I've taught it my entire life."
Lamadrid earned his bachelor's degree in English from UNM and later went on to the University of Southern California where he earned both his master's and doctoral degrees in Latin American literature.
"It's been really great to make it back (to UNM) and we now have a minor in Chicano Studies," Lamadrid said. "One of my goals is to see that grow into a major."
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Although that may not happen while he is director, Lamadrid says that offering a degree in Chicana/o Studies is very important for UNM and its high population of Hispanics and Chicanos.
"Enrique has been one of my colleagues for a very long time," said University College Dean Peter White. "I know his work very well. I think he's going to be great in the interim for Chicano Studies."
White said he will be meeting with University Provost Brian Foster early this semester to discuss if UNM will be able to support a national search to find a permanent leader for the program.
Lamadrid said that increasing enrollment, strengthening community outreach programs and enhancing the program's credibility through additional courses are all goals he will take aim at during his tenure.
But, he added, helping Chicanos stay in school and earn their degrees is also a way he plans on making a contribution to the community.
Lamadrid's term as director will last for one year.
Despite the appointment, Lamadrid is staying busy doing work he has no time to put off.
He is conducting individual research on folk balance in New Mexico under a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. He is also collaborating with a team of Southwest Hispanic Research Institute researchers on another grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
He is a fellow of the Southwest Hispanic Research Institute and UNM's Latin American Iberian Institute.
In 1976 he taught a self-designed Chicano literature course for students at the University of Oregon, the first course of its kind at the university.
He returned home in 1979 to teach Chicano literature and Spanish at Northern New Mexico Community College.
Robert Ibarra, sociology professor and special adviser to the UNM president on diversity issues, said it can be very good for a program to have a faculty member who is familiar with the program promoted to a leadership position for an interim period.
"It's important that there is a faculty member involved with any of the ethnic studies programs," Ibarra said.
