New Mexico State University has once again earned the Carnegie Community Engagement Designation, an elective designation awarded by the American Council on Education and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching that highlights an institution’s commitment to community engagement.
NMSU was first awarded the designation in 2015, and at the time was one of 47 public institutions receiving it for the first time and one of 361 colleges and universities nationwide to carry the classification. With its 2026 designation, NMSU is among approximately 277 U.S. colleges and universities receiving this acknowledgment of the faculty, staff, students and others who are involved in programs and partnerships that benefit the communities they serve.
The application process for the 2026 designation concluded just a few months into the tenure of NMSU President Valerio Ferme, who officially joined the university in January 2025. He said NMSU’s emphasis on community engagement and its land-grant mission were part of what drew him to the position – and will be key pillars of the university’s future strategic vision.
“I believe that, as a land-grant institution, community engagement is fundamental to successfully fulfilling our mission,” Ferme said. “We extend access to education, we cultivate relationships with rural and industrial enterprises, and we have duties to provide health and social solutions for the people we represent statewide.
“Community means many things, and may be as small as a family unit or as large as our global populations; yet, at any scale, communities create environments supporting teamwork,” he continued. “This is key to my leadership philosophy: creating the sense, both within our institution and across the communities that we serve, that everyone is working together and moving big ideas forward in the same direction.”
In 2025, NMSU was also classified by the Carnegie Foundation as an R1 institution, as measured by research expenditures and doctorate production. NMSU also earned the 2025 Institutional Classification as a Mixed Undergraduate/Graduate-Doctorate Medium and the 2025 Student Access and Earnings Classification as a Higher Access, Medium Earnings institution.
Unlike the Carnegie Foundation’s other classifications that rely on national data, the Community Engagement Classification is an “elective” classification – NMSU and other institutions participated voluntarily by submitting required materials describing the nature and extent of their engagement with the community, be it local or beyond. This approach enabled the foundation to address elements of institutional mission and distinctiveness that are not represented in the national data on colleges and universities.
The expansive self-assessment and submission process for NMSU’s most recent application was led by Bernadette Montoya, former NMSU Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, and supported by dozens of faculty and staff members who contributed data, stories, writing, editing, and other support.
“Sharing the university's success stories was a privilege that reinforced my deep appreciation for NMSU,” Montoya said. “Every interaction served as a powerful reminder of the meaningful and impactful work being done daily by dedicated and hard-working individuals. This accomplishment stands as a testament to the collaborative spirit and support of each individual involved. Their contributions, both large and small, were essential to our success.
“I am absolutely thrilled that NMSU continues to hold this designation,” she continued. “It is my hope that the campus community and its partners take a moment to celebrate this special standing and recognize the incredible magnitude of all they do to serve our communities.”
The Carnegie Community Engagement Classification has been the leading framework for institutional assessment and recognition of community engagement in U.S. higher education for the past 19 years, with classification cycles in 2006, 2008, 2010, 2015, 2020, 2024, and now 2026. The 2029 cycle will be for first-time applicants.
“The institutions receiving the 2026 Community Engagement Classification exemplify American higher education’s commitment to the greater good,” ACE President Ted Mitchell said in a news release announcing the 2026 recipients. “The beneficiaries of this unflagging dedication to public purpose missions are their students, their teaching and research enterprises, and their wider communities.”
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PHOTO CUTLINE: Community members listen to a lecture on local agricultural research projects during the New Mexico State University Leyendecker Plant Science Center Field Day in May 2024. NMSU has once again earned the Carnegie Community Engagement Designation, an elective designation awarded by the American Council on Education and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching that highlights an institution’s commitment to community engagement. (NMSU Photo by Josh Bachman)