SOCORRO, N.M. (March 19, 2026) — The New Mexico Tech Board of Regents announced five finalists today in their national search for the next president of New Mexico Tech (New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology). The finalists will visit campus next week on March 23–27, 2026, where they will participate in meetings with students, faculty, staff, and community members.

• Montserrat “Montse” Fuentes, President at St. Edward's University;
• Andrew Hamilton, VP for Academic Success at Texas State University;
• Michael Jackson, Interim President at New Mexico Tech;
• Kerop Janoyan, Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies at California State University – Long Beach; and
• Carlos Romero, Associate Vice President for Research at New Mexico Tech.

Each finalist will spend a full day on campus for interviews and meetings with campus stakeholders. As part of their visit, each candidate will give a public presentation and participate in an open session in the morning, providing members of the campus and Socorro community an opportunity to hear directly from the candidates and offer feedback.  The open sessions will be daily at 9 a.m. for each candidate at Macey Center Auditorium.

Candidate biographies, CVs, and visit schedules will be posted on the New Mexico Tech Presidential Search webpage.

The New Mexico Tech Board of Regents launched the presidential search earlier this academic year and appointed a search committee representing faculty, staff, students, alumni, and community stakeholders to assist with the process.

“The Board is pleased to announce five finalists for President of New Mexico Tech,” said Board of Regents Chair Dr. David Lepre, Sr.  “Our sincere thank you to the Presidential Search Committee, Human Resources and the administrative staff for their thoughtful efforts in bringing the search to this point.  We look forward to campus visits with the finalists as the Board moves closer to selecting a President and beginning a new era of New Mexico Tech excellence.”

Following the campus visits, the Board of Regents will review feedback and conduct final deliberations before selecting the university’s next president at their April 17, 2026 regular board meeting.

More information about the search process and finalist visits can be found at:
https://www.nmt.edu/presidential-search