SOCORRO, N.M. – Alumni, students, and VIPs will be on hand Friday, Sept. 23, 2022, to mark the official opening of the Raul and Shari Deju University House on the New Mexico Tech campus and the launch of the Hantush-Deju National Center for Hydrologic Innovation. A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held at 10 a.m., featuring remarks from Tech President Stephen G. Wells, Dr. Deju, and Lt. Gov. Howie Morales. The announcement of the national hydrology center will be held at 2 p.m. at the Deju University House, with remarks from Representative Melanie Stansbury (NM-1) and others. 

Named for alumnus and philanthropist Dr. Raul Deju, and his wife, Shari Deju, the Deju University House is a 5,200-square-foot facility located on the north side of campus that has the capacity to host alumni events, meetings, and training sessions for up to 210 people. It features indoor and outdoor dining and gathering spaces, all the latest technology for teleconferencing, a library, a catering kitchen, and an open backyard. It also will serve as a place to highlight the accomplishments of Tech alumni via a permanent Alumni Wall of Fame.

Sept. 23 also will be the kickoff of the Hantush-Deju National Center for Hydrologic Innovation, which will be located within New Mexico Tech’s Research and Development Division. The center’s vision is to improve understanding of our water resources so that we can secure a sustainable supply of water for tomorrow. The hydrology faculty leading this initiative, in collaboration with a diverse slate of other Tech researchers, seek to further enhance the reputation of New Mexico Tech for prominence in subsurface hydrology, maintain its national ranking as a top-tier program, and be the academic institution of choice for high-caliber graduate students from throughout the world. The center will be flexible in selecting research programs to focus on so it can adapt or expand its research emphasis in response to the water needs in a changing world.

Dr. Deju, a business leader and author, is one of the earliest graduates of the Tech hydrology program and was a student of the program’s founder, the late internationally renowned hydrologist Mahdi Hantush. 

More information about the Deju University House dedication and announcement of the Hantush-Deju National Center for Hydrologic Innovation can be found online at: https://www.nmt.edu/advancement/deju_day_agenda.php