Lobos pack the Roundhouse for UNM Day

Hundreds of Lobos filled the Roundhouse Wednesday, turning UNM Day into a powerful show highlighting the importance and significant impact of The University of New Mexico's research, academic programs and community engagement across New Mexico to legislators in Santa Fe.

The Lobo community, including leadership, faculty, staff and students brought enthusiasm and passion to connect with state lawmakers and each other to discuss initiatives ranging from public health to economic growth and student support. Through participation in programs like UNM Day, The University of New Mexico continues to demonstrate why it is the University for New Mexico and why UNM remains a critical investment in New Mexico's future.

Some of the colleges and departments that participated in the event from central campus included the Anderson School of Management, ASUNM, the School of Law, the College of Education & Human Sciences, the Office of the Vice President for Research, the Office of Sustainability, the Accelerating Resiliency Innovations in Drylands Institute (ARID), and many others. Additionally, representatives from UNM's branch campuses also attended

Bob Ledoux, UNM professor and director of the Quantum New Mexico Institute, said that the "connections made today are a key part in helping colleagues across departments understand what's happening in the Legislature and know when to raise a flag about specific requests that come forward. Staying engaged is an important part of being effective in this process."

Central campus legislative priorities for the 2026 session include research funding requests for ARID of $1.9 million, Quantum New Mexico research projects that will impact the state's economic growth totaling $2.9 million, and facility enhancements aimed at boosting recruitment and retention efforts, such as the University Stadium project for $50 million and improvements to the Law School for $15.5 million, among others.

"UNM Day is something I look forward to every year," said Michael Hix, department chair for the UNM Music Department. "This is my fourth time attending and it's always so meaningful to bring our music ensemble to perform and share our passion for education with legislators, staff, and the broader community. Today is a powerful way to show the impact of what we do at UNM."

"My goal today is to share the importance of Open Education Resource materials," said Magen Bednar, assistant professor and director of Access Services in the College of University Libraries & Learning Services. "I wanted to let people know that creating and sharing open-access materials helps make college affordable for students."

The numerous directors, department chairs, professors, staff and students who attended UNM Day were visibly excited about UNM's future and eager to support one another in acquiring resources for success.

HSC Legislative Priorities

In addition to the main campus legislative priorities, lawmakers are considering several UNM Health Sciences Center (HSC) priorities aimed at creating greater access to health care across the state and improving health outcomes for New Mexicans.

During the 2026 New Mexico Legislative Session, UNM is requesting $546 million to construct a new School of Medicine building.

Michael Richards, M.D., executive vice president of UNM HSC and CEO of UNM Health, said a new building is crucial to achieving the goal of training more health care professionals in New Mexico.

"We intend to double the size of our medical school class and our current facility," Richards said. "Fitz Hall, which is the school's current home, has reached the end of its usable life and is not amenable to expanding, replacing or remodeling."

Fitz Hall was opened in the 1960s and has since served the community in creating spaces for research and learning.

"While this particular project is a big investment at The University of New Mexico, we think of this as an investment for the entire state of New Mexico," Richards said. "What we want to see is those health care professionals graduating from our programs and then going out to work all across New Mexico."

Another legislative priority for the HSC is funding for work with substance abuse disorders (SUDS).

"We appreciate that substance abuse is a prevalent disease," Richards said. "It impacts broadly across our state, and we have a whole host of programs at The University of New Mexico, not just at Health Sciences, but across the campus, which are designed to help us understand and treat individuals with substance use disorders."

UNM is requesting funding to expand targeted SUDS activities that are already in place, along with $1.8 million for a Behavioral Health Technical Assistance Center.

"Last year, the state embarked upon a behavioral health reform and investment program that involved UNM providing some technical support for the Administrator of the Courts and the NM Health Care Authority, and we called that support the Technical Assistance Center," Richards said. "As the state is rolling out its planning activities across all the various regions and making decisions about how to allocate resources, we're very glad that we can be at the table to help with those planning activities."

UNM has also requested $16.3 million for the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator (OMI).

"We appreciate that the funding support that we get allows us to be able to deliver those essential public services to a medical investigator's office," Richards said. "The Office of the Medical Investigator is also a very important part of the university, because we house educational programs and significant research initiatives, which happen at OMI. So, it's a great partnership between the university and the state."

UNM is also committed to creating pathways to health care careers for New Mexico students ranging from kindergarten to community college. The university requested $3 million to expand these pathway programs.

"To be successful on our goal of training more health care professionals, we have New Mexico students who are both interested in health profession careers and who are prepared for the rigors of a medical professional education," Richards said. "Our pathway programs are designed to help ensure that New Mexico students from across the state have an opportunity to know that a health care professional career could be something they could achieve."

For more information, visit UNM's Legislative Priorities.