A Strategic Plan for 2025-2030

The end of June saw the sunset of the first strategic plan for Southeast New Mexico College.  It was a three-year plan, a spinoff of the last half of a six-year plan originally created for New Mexico State University – Carlsbad.  Conceived in the midst of the breakaway from the university that had guided the college for mor than six decades, the 2022-2025 plan provided needed direction and served as a foundation for what would soon come:  separation and independence.

By last summer, that work was complete and the effort to create a five-year strategic plan for the college was underway.  Meetings with students, faculty, staff, and the community were led by the Southern Regional Education Board, including feedback sessions with the Carlsbad Department of Development Board, the SENMC Foundation Board, and the college’s Board of Trustees.  Through this process, four goals emerged for the 2025-2030 plan:  1) Serve more students, 2) Engage and welcome the community, 3) Increase learning and efficiency, and 4) Promote student success.

These goals served as the framework for identifying action steps that will help us realize the plan.  With a five-year plan, there are a multitude of steps—124 currently—and their number will grow as we begin completing them and discovering what will need to follow.  You can see them in their entirety at https://senmc.edu/about-us/strategic-plan.html, but the next the next few paragraphs will provide a sample of what we have in store for our region in the next five years.

To serve more students, one of the primary drivers will be new programs.  Some of those in the plan are ones that I have mentioned before, such as Oil & Gas, Electrical, and Radiation Control.  Additional programs under development include Cybersecurity, Waste Handling, Environmental Technology, Radiography, and Theatre.  Others are focused on short-term training, such as Safety, Drones, and CDL, while we are expanding our coursework in Instrumentation and adding an alternative part-time track to our Nursing program as well. 

One of the best ways to welcome and engage the community is with new facilities.  First among these is our new Trades x Technologies Building, with a groundbreaking soon to be announced.  Renovations to the Main Building gym will follow, with a projected completion in 2028.  A Dining Hall and Early Childhood Education Center are in the planning stages.  One project should be finished before all these:  a highway sign.  If all goes well, you will see it before the fall.

As for the other goals, we will be holding tuition flat, creating one application for all our programs—including English as a Second Language and Adult Education, which we plan to expand—and providing earlier registration for spring, summer, and fall classes.  We will be increasing apprenticeship opportunities and supporting bilingual development for our students, faculty, and staff.  Finally, we will be unveiling a new marketing campaign that will be a shout out to our long history in the community, given that our 75th birthday as a higher education institution is coming this October.

One project is already finished:  a Family Study Room in our Library.  It includes a family restroom and a separate lactation room equipped with a rocking chair, changing area, and dishwasher.  It is a first example of how we are evolving to better meet the needs of our students so they can achieve their goals.

We look forward to making this plan a reality so we can better serve you.  Thank you for your support as we begin this journey to 2030!

Kevin Beardmore, Ed.D., is the President of Southeast New Mexico College.  He may be reached at kbeardmore@senmc.edu or 575.234.9211