Endowments Create Lasting Legacies at NMSU
Honoring a loved one through an endowed fund at New Mexico State University creates a permanent legacy for that individual by supporting a program that had a special place in his or her life. Among the many endowments created during 2010, these three tell special stories.
Dr. Kristine Derer taught at NMSU as an associate professor in the department of special education and communications disorders. Her personal passion was early childhood special education focusing on early intervention and empowering families.
Kristine grew up in Illinois and earned her bachelor's degree at Eastern Illinois University. She continued her education at the University of Hawaii where she earned her master's and received her Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University in Nashville.
Throughout her life she had a passion for the martial arts, particularly Tai Chi. For more than 18 years, she taught a weekly class in Las Cruces.
Recognized regionally and nationally for her dedication to her profession, her sisters, Terri Eisele and Mardi Scheske, both of Illinois, established a scholarship endowment in her honor within the department after she passed away in early 2010. This scholarship will benefit a junior, senior or graduate-level student interested in following a career path similar to Kristine's.
Randhawa-Dhillon
In appreciation of New Mexico State University's impact on their family, Drs. Gurinder K. Randhawa and Jatinder S. Dhillon created an endowment honoring her parents to fund a scholarship for biology and physics. Gurinder's father, Jagir Singh Randhawa, came to the United States from India in 1957 to pursue a career in physics. He earned his master's degree in Colorado and then enrolled at NMSU for doctoral studies.
His wife, Narinder, and two daughters moved to the United States to join him after he completed his degree in 1964 and went to work for the U.S. Army as a civil servant in the field of atmospheric sciences at White Sands Missile Range. His area of expertise was ozone. He remained there until retirement in 1991 when he moved to Fresno, Calif., and became a full-time farmer.
Their daughter, Gurinder, remembers that her mother was an excellent cook who played an active role in the Indian student association at NMSU as well as the community at large. Gurinder graduated from Las Cruces High School and enrolled at NMSU with a full scholarship to study biology and chemistry. She points out that her parents stressed the value of education for their daughters and other members of their family who came from India to study at NMSU. She believes that NMSU's strong academic program (she earned a total of four degrees) prepared her well for medical school.
This scholarship will alternate between the two departments, supporting a senior who plans to attend medical school or pursue a doctorate degree in physics.
Michael Swift
The son of a naval officer, Michael Douglas Swift lived in California, Hawaii and Nebraska before the family settled in Albuquerque when he was eight years old. He graduated from Sandia High School in 1976 and enrolled at New Mexico State University for college.
In his sophomore year, Michael decided to major in business and graduated in 1981 with a degree in business administration. After several other sales positions, he worked for many years as an associate buyer with Sperry Defense Systems, which later became a division of Honeywell. During that time, he also earned his MBA from Webster University, graduating at the top of his class.
In 1993, he joined the manufacturing production control unit of Intel. He was based at its Rio Rancho, N.M., location. Michael rose to become planning manager of Fab 11X, supervising a team of 15 to 20 people. Intel encouraged its employees to be involved with the community. Michael worked with United Way of Central New Mexico and the Roadrunner Food Bank.
After he passed away in late 2008, his family decided to preserve his legacy with an endowed scholarship in the college of business at NMSU. This scholarship will support a New Mexico student enrolled full time in the college.