Three to be awarded honorary doctorates at undergraduate commencement

Three individuals will receive honorary doctorates at The University of New Mexico spring 2025 undergraduate commencement ceremony on May 17.

Honorary degrees are awarded to recognize individuals' contributions to a specific field or to society in general. Strong candidates are eminent individuals and scholars whose contributions are of general significance and transcend geographical limitations. Nominations of individuals who have contributed significantly to the cultural or scientific development of the Southwest or the spiritual or material welfare of its people are especially welcome.

A successful nominee must have an exemplary record of academic or public accomplishment in keeping with the University's standards of rigor, quality and significance. Honorary degrees are awarded at spring commencement.

The 2025 recipients are:

Nasir Ahmed
Honorary Doctor of Science

Nasir Ahmed, a native of India, is a professor emeritus of electrical and computer engineering at UNM. He earned both his master's and doctorate in the department in 1963 and 1966, respectively. In the early 1970s, he developed the idea for the discrete cosine transform (DCT), an algorithm for digital image compression. The DCT led to technology such as JPEG images, as well as the technology that allows videoconferencing.

After graduation from UNM, Ahmed worked at Honeywell for two years, then joined the faculty of Kansas State University in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, where he was a professor from 1968-83. He then transitioned to his alma mater of UNM in 1983, where he was a Presidential Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering from 1983-89, chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering from 1989-94, interim dean of the School of Engineering from 1994-96, associate provost for research, and dean of Graduate Studies from 1996 until his retirement in 2001. Ahmed also worked as a consultant for Sandia National Laboratories from 1976-90.

In 2021, Ahmed experienced late-career fame after the television show This is Us featured a storyline that highlighted him, his time at UNM and the development of the DCT technology that made it possible to instantly communicate via videoconferencing - crucial during the pandemic.

He and his wife of 60 years, Esther, reside in Argentina.

Everett Morgan Serafin
Roberta Eileen Velarde Serafin
Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters

Everett and Roberta Serafin are being honored for their extensive work in preserving the Jicarilla Apache language, most notably through the Jicarilla Apache Text Project. The project, funded by the National Science Foundation through UNM, involved community-based efforts for documentation of the Jicarilla Apache language, which is known to be endangered. The project, led by Melissa Axelrod in the Department of Linguistics, involved not only preserving the language but also the community's customs and traditional practices, which are also endangered alongside the language. The project focused involved retranscription and retranslation of texts, making a body of literature available to community members, including commentaries on the stories that represent important documentation of Jicarilla history and culture.

The Serafins have participated in many other activities to preserve their tribal language, which include language education with the Jicarilla Apache people through the Dulce Public Schools in Dulce, N.M. They have worked for several years in creating a significant body of language materials for use by all levels of learners to ensure that the language does not become extinct. They are members of the Jicarilla Apache Nation and in 2019, they became founding members of a nonprofit called the Mi Goo Ni Di Institute of Albuquerque. Additionally, they have been major project team members of the Jicarilla Apache Elders Language Group and have been active in the New Mexico Quarterhorse Association and in working with youth in 4-H.

Everett Serafin studied law enforcement at Lamar Junior College in Lamar, Colo., then received a bachelor's degree in business administration from the National College of Business in Albuquerque. He had a long career with the U.S. Postal Service, as a distribution clerk, supervisor and acting postmaster. He also served in the U.S. Army, including service in Vietnam, where he was awarded two Bronze Stars. Roberta Serafin attended New Mexico State University and the University of Phoenix with a concentration in accounting. She worked in finance departments of nonprofit organizations, including the National Indian Education Training Program and the National Congress of American Indian Field Offices in Albuquerque, and also for Tiller Research Inc.

The Serafins reside in Los Ranchos.

The Honorary Degree Policy and a listing of past honorary degree recipients is available on University Secretary's website.