UNM’s College of Arts and Sciences announces newest Regents’ Professor

The University of New Mexico's College of Arts and Sciences last year announced an addition to the list of Regents' Professors for the Annual Years 2025-2027.

The newest Regent's Professor appointed is Dr. Elizabeth Quay Hutchison, a Latin American historian specializing in 20th-century Chilean women's labor history in the Department of History.

During Hutchison's 25 years at UNM, she has earned many accolades to earn her spot as a Regents' Professor. Promoted to the rank of Professor in 2014, she has also chaired the Committees on Governance and Academic Freedom and Tenure, served as associate vice president for Equity and Inclusion (2020-2024), and directed the Feminist Research Institute (2017-2020).

With research support from UNM, Fulbright, and NEH, Hutchison has built a strong record of publication (in English and Spanish) through two distinct historical research projects documenting working-class women's role in Chile's economic development, labor movements, and politics over the 20th century. At UNM, she has developed a variety of courses that reflect her broad training as a Latin Americanist, including courses on gender, religion, labor, military, human rights, and South American history. Collaboration with Latin American and European scholars has led to teaching engagements in Chile, Argentina, and Spain, often with the support of the Fulbright Foundation.

Additionally, Hutchison has offered leadership through faculty governance, the Feminist Research Institute, and the Division for Equity & Inclusion (DEI) to improve UNM's campus climate, particularly in relation to sexual harassment. In 2016, she co-founded Faculty for a Sexual Assault-Free Environment at UNM (Faculty SAFE). This organization channels faculty involvement to promote policy changes, strengthen support and advocacy, and advance research on campus sexual violence at UNM. This volunteer work allowed Hutchison, who is currently a DEI Faculty Leadership Fellow, to shine and collaborate with faculty, staff, and administrators to improve life for Lobos at UNM.

Since 2019, she has served as one of three UNM representatives to the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine's Action Collaborative for Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education (NASEM). She participates in working groups, national meetings, and public summits that promote research on sexual harassment and develop campus initiatives to reduce its prevalence. From 2020 to 2024, Hutchison held a part-time appointment in UNM's Division for Equity and Inclusion, where she developed programs to support faculty and staff who experience bullying, discrimination, and sexual harassment, including the Staff and Faculty Wayfinder Website.

Dr. Hutchison joins the Regents' Professors previously announced last year, which includes professors who, in the dean's judgment and on the advice of a faculty selection committee, merit recognition of their accomplishments as teachers, scholars, and leaders in University affairs and their national/international professional communities. In addition to the title "Regents' Professor," which is retained for the awardee's career, this appointment also carries an annual stipend during the three-year term.