NMSUs College of Business awards $270,670 in scholarships

Date: 10/10/2018
Writer: Carlos Andres Lopez, 575-646-1955, carlopez@nmsu.edu

Through the generosity and support of donors, the College of Business at New Mexico State University has been able to award more than $270,000 in scholarships for the 2018-19 academic year, helping nearly 200 students fund their education.

Jim Hoffman, dean of the College of Business at New Mexico State University, speaks to students during the 2018 scholarship luncheon Oct. 5. (NMSU photo by Carlos Andres López)

In all, the college has awarded 128 scholarships to an estimated 193 business students at NMSU, totaling $270,670, an increase from last year’s total of $264,720.

Scholarship recipients and donors were celebrated Oct. 5 by the college at its annual fall scholarship luncheon at the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum in Las Cruces.

“This event and the people who donate scholarships mean a great deal to our students and college,” College of Business Dean Jim Hoffman said at the luncheon.

“College is a transformational time for our students and even though they work very hard, their success is often contingent on the financial support they receive from these scholarships, which is why they are such a difference maker in our students’ lives,” Hoffman added.

Speakers at the luncheon included Eric Powell, the college’s 2018 Distinguished Alumnus. Powell, a native of Tularosa, earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from NMSU in 1980.

After graduating from NMSU, Powell went to work for ExxonMobil and later earned a Juris Doctor from South Texas College of Law in 1995. He spent more than 32 years at ExxonMobil, working with the controller’s organization and as an attorney in the tax department.

Powell, who currently serves on the board of directors for the NMSU Foundation, funded the Lionel Haight Accounting Professorship, in partnership with his wife, Cindy, and started the Eric Powell and Cindy Reese Endowed Scholarship for accounting students.

Other speakers included scholarship donor Raquel Bone, the executive director of JPMorgan Asset Management in Orange County, Calif. Bone earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from NMSU in 1991, followed by a master’s degree in business administration in 1993. Sarah Spain, a scholarship recipient who is expecting to graduate this fall with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, also spoke during the luncheon.

A reception to honor Powell also was held at Traders Plaza, on the south side of NMSU’s Business Complex.