On Jan. 3, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham made 11 regent nominations for eight different New Mexico higher learning institutions. Among these were two new nominees to the University of New Mexico Board of Regents: health care executive Christina Campos and civil litigator Patricia Williams.
The nomination process is rigorous, according to Higher Education Department Secretary Stephanie Rodriguez.
"I know each of these nominees has the quality to earn the trust of the public and the communities they have been nominated to serve,” Rodriguez wrote to the Daily Lobo.
Since 2004, Campos has led Guadalupe County Hospital in Santa Rosa. Under her leadership, the hospital expanded its care, and in 2019 it was named one of the top 20 rural hospitals in the United States by the Chartis Center for Rural Health, according to Guadalupe County Hospital. In April 2024, Campos received the American Hospital Association Board of Trustees Award.
Using her background in business and administration, she hopes to identify and bolster “centers of excellence within the University and the sciences center,” she said.
Campos hopes to gain wisdom from her colleagues and provide a fresh perspective, she said.
“I think in any organization it's really, really easy to come from the outside and say, ‘I want this, and I want this, and I want to change that,’” Campos said. “So until you really get inside and you get an idea of how things are being run, you can't really start demanding change.”
Williams works with all-female law firm Wiggins, Williams & Wiggins, P.C. She has represented the City of Albuquerque and the Navajo Nation in legal matters, according to a press release. She has three degrees from UNM and said she sees her appointment as an opportunity to give back.
“I don't see this as an opportunity to personally accomplish anything. I see being a regent as an opportunity to steer the University with policy development and review,” Williams said. “Regents don't deal with operations — hiring, firing, that kind of thing. It's just making sure that its policies are current and constitutional and further the mission of the institution.”
UNM must seek funding opportunities to accomplish its goals, which can sometimes be seen as an obstacle, Williams said.
“I'm not someone who looks for obstacles. I'm someone who looks for opportunities,” she said. “I appreciate that the state has decided to invest in educational institutions.”
Addison Fulton is the culture editor for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com or on X @dailylobo
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