New Mexico State University
Research, Creativity and Economic Development

VPR Message: Building Momentum for NMSU's Research Future

By Dr. Patricia Sullivan, Interim Vice President for Research, Creativity, and Economic Development

As New Mexico’s land-grant university and a Carnegie R1 research institution, NMSU holds a unique position of leadership—combining very high research activity with a deep commitment to serving our state and its communities. This dual mission defines our collective strength: advancing discovery that is both globally competitive and locally impactful.

In the year ahead, the RCED team is building on a strong foundation of supporting NMSU’s world-class researchers, scholars, and creative professionals while strengthening the systems, partnerships, and infrastructure that sustain excellence. These shared priorities reflect our ongoing commitment to collaboration, engagement, and continuous enhancements across the research, economic development, and creative enterprise.

Our efforts are focused on providing responsive support for faculty and staff across all areas of research and creative activity. With planned recruitment of staff for our central research development operations, following a few key retirements, we are focused on enriching coordination to provide tailored assistance that helps every researcher—whether pursuing individual projects or large, multidisciplinary initiatives—compete successfully at the highest levels.

We are also working closely with University Communications to elevate the visibility of NMSU’s creativity, discovery, and innovation through earned media, press releases, and targeted social-media outreach. At the same time, we are expanding partnerships with federal and state agencies, industry, and communities—aligning our efforts with the New Mexico Science & Technology Roadmap and pursuing public-private collaborations that diversify funding and accelerate innovation.

Equally important, we are beginning to engage with faculty, deans, and campus partners to identify infrastructure and equipment needs that build on NMSU’s existing core research facilities and shared resources while expanding capacity in emerging areas of research, creativity, and economic development. In partnership with NMSU IT, these efforts will include advancing digital infrastructure and computing capabilities to support AI, edge computing, and data-driven innovation.

Together, these actions reflect a shared vision—an NMSU research enterprise that is coordinated, visible, collaborative, and equipped to lead the next generation of discovery and innovation, grounded in our R1 distinction and our enduring land-grant mission.

Dr. Patricia Sullivan, NMSU

News from Research Administration: Research Security Training Requirements

By Ms. Alisha Giron, Associate Vice President for Research

Despite the continued uncertainty in Washington, D.C., as of October 2025, most federal sponsors require Research Security Training (see https://www.nsf.gov/research-security/training). Some of them include the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of Defense (DoD), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). These requirements typically apply to senior/key personnel and often must be completed before grant/contract proposal submissions. Meanwhile, the NIH, specifically, now has training requirements for Senior/Key Personnel on Other Support Disclosures (see https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-25-133.html). 

My office has procured the CITI Program’s Research Security training modules at https://about.citiprogram.org/series/research-security/ to satisfy both of these training requirements. This training is recommended for any Principal Investigator, Co-Principal Investigator, or anyone planning to become either. For questions related to training or sponsor requirements, which are currently unclear in many cases, please contact your College/unit research support staff, Research Administration Services (ras@nmsu.edu), or Research Integrity & Compliance (ric_admin@nmsu.edu). Please also ensure that training completion certificates are distributed to the staff members responsible for managing your proposal submissions and grant/contract negotiations.

News from Infrastructure and Partnerships: Building Research Capacity

By Dr. Tanner Schaub, Assistant Vice President for Research

The NMSU research community is invited to join one or more campus-wide efforts to build research capacity. RCED is committed to listening and learning about what you need, where your research is headed, and how the research office can best support you. 

Last year, a partnership with Shimadzu Corporation resulted in $4M in new instrumentation being installed at NMSU, helping to position us for multiple larger opportunities. This year, RCED is leading a large statewide project to support recipients of the NM Strategic Water Supply grants. RCED will focus on connecting and funding grant recipients with technical expertise across NMSU with expertise in chemical analysis, hydrology, toxicology, water treatment, and community engagement.

RCED is working with partners across campus to strengthen our computing and data infrastructure and to understand what faculty need to advance their work. We’d like to hear from you. Share your input: Fall 2025 Research Computing Needs Survey

Through a partnership with NM INBRE, we will stand up a small GPU-based cluster this spring, serving the INBRE network and available to non-INBRE NMSU faculty on a prioritized basis. Importantly, this backbone cluster provides a platform for other NMSU faculty and departments to create a larger campus resource by adding additional nodes and hardware to the system. Please reach out to me to learn more, and I will get more details about this out this spring. Finally, we’ve deepened our collaboration with Fujitsu Japan and our VDURA partnership, which aims to secure advanced data storage.

I’d love to hear what you need and how you’d like to contribute. Reach out to Tanner Schaub at: tschaub@nmsu.edu

News from the Water Resources Research Institute: Resilient Agricultural Water Community Systems

By Dr. Sam Fernald, Director, Water Resources Research Institute 

The Water Resources Research Institute is in the early stages of a 5-year (2025-2029) Resilient Agricultural Water Community Systems (RAWCS) project, funded by a $10 million grant from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. The project takes a systems approach to supporting thriving agriculture with less water. Managing water in the Western U.S. is challenging due to reduced water supplies and greater water demands, and this project examines the inextricably linked human-physical dynamics associated with managing water in the West through system-dynamics models, in-depth ethnographic studies, and community workshops in New Mexico, Nevada, Idaho, and Wyoming. Water-saving strategies will be tested through field trials with alfalfa and detailed consumptive water use data collection on pistachios, which may offer a drought-friendly alternative nut crop in the Mesilla Valley.

In March 2026, the project will offer Irrigation Water Management Technician Training with open enrollment (https://cvent.me/vVXO9y). WRRI has also recently launched a new Western Water Network website, which serves as a hub for connecting stakeholders across the western US with applied water resilience tools.

For further information about this project, reach out to Sam Fernald: afernald@nmsu.edu

NM Space Grant Consortium and NM NASA EPSCoR Statewide Meeting on Workforce Development

By Dr. Paulo Oemig, Director, New Mexico Space Grant Consortium

The New Mexico Space Grant Consortium (NMSGC) and NM NASA EPSCoR held their annual statewide meeting on Friday, October 31, 2025, bringing together representatives from industry, non-profits, academia, national labs, and government to discuss ongoing collaborations and opportunities for the state’s space and research ecosystem. Lieutenant Governor Howie Morales delivered opening remarks emphasizing the growing possibilities within the space industry and the importance of cultivating homegrown talent to meet future workforce needs.

The event featured updates from both programs, including highlights from the NMSGC program evaluation conducted by Dr. Rachel Boren of the NMSU SOAR Evaluation and Policy Center, and findings from the SpaceSource Capabilities Hub survey, which addressed the need for a unified taxonomy of capabilities from the aerospace industry and internships for students in New Mexico. Participants also learned about NASA’s anticipated regional workforce hub initiative, aimed at accelerating technical workforce readiness nationwide.

Additional presentations included Breezy Gutierrez, Senior Manager at the NM College and Career Readiness Bureau, who discussed efforts to modernize the state’s industry credentialing process, and Kathy Steen, Innovation Program Manager with New Space Nexus, who shared results from a statewide industry and labor gap analysis. Dr. Paulo Oemig, Director of NMSGC and NM NASA EPSCoR, closed the meeting by underscoring NASA’s national commitment to skilled workforce development and the unique opportunities this presents for New Mexico.

Recognizing Awards and Large Grant Submissions 

By Dr. Allison Layfield, Senior Proposal Development Specialist, RAS

Congratulations to Dr. Houqian Li, on receiving the NSF Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) fellows award. The program supports the development of research capacity through building collaborative networks for shared use of resources in specific jurisdictions of the United States. NASA EPSCoR research fellows partner with NASA scientists to learn new techniques, gain access to unique equipment and facilities, or develop new/existing partnerships to shift research in new directions. 

During the fellowship, Dr. Li will collaborate  with NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center to develop new materials called immobilized ionic liquids to selectivity recover rare earth elements—valuable metals used in electronics, clean energy, and space technologies—from waste sources such as discarded electronics. This research collaboration will also train NMSU students in cutting-edge sustainable technologies and strengthen research and workforce development in resource recovery and environmental sustainability.

For more information, contact Dr. Houqian Li: hqli@nmsu.edu

Dr. Houqian Li, NMSU

Congratulations to Drs. Immo Hansen and Kathryn Hanley, who submitted a $3.6 million proposal to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in November. Their proposal explores mechanisms of protein translation and virus replication in mosquitoes, with a focus on the role of ribosomal proteins. The proposed work has the potential to impact mosquito control through new insecticide development and may ultimately help mitigate the spread of viruses such as Zika, dengue fever, and yellow fever.

For more information, contact Dr. Immo Hansen: immoh@nmsu.edu

Drs. Immo Hansen and Kathryn Hanley, NMSU

G-RISE Program Seeks PhD Students for Spring 2026

By Dr. Jessica Houston, Principal Investigator, G-RISE Program

The NMSU Graduate Research Training Initiative for Student Enhancement (G-RISE) seeks Ph.D. students conducting research in biomedical, biobehavioral, and/or bioengineering sciences. The program provides a high-level of funding to support graduate education and experience. 

G-RISE boasts a 25-year history of bolstering graduate students in biomedical research at NMSU. G-RISE trainees have contributed to the NMSU research enterprise across numerous fields, including basic biomedical science, biobehavioral research, and biomedical engineering. Their dissertation projects investigate critical topics such as neurodegenerative disorders, emerging viruses, and health disparities in specific populations. Each GRISE trainee has enriched the diversity of discovery at NMSU, and nearly all have successfully entered the biomedical workforce.

Applications are due November 30, 2025. Interested students can learn more and apply here:GRISE Program Application

Student eligibility:

• U.S. citizens, non-citizen nationals or permanent residents
• Full-time matriculation in a Ph.D. program at NMSU (confirmable via transcript)
• Above average academic standing; new NMSU students must have an undergrad BA/BS in STEM discipline and a minimum 3.3 undergrad science GPA and students having completed graduate work at NMSU-a 3.4 GPA

If you would like more information about this NIH-funded training grant, 1T32GM148394-01, contact the principal investigators, Dr. Jessica P. Houston (jph@nmsu.edu) and Dr. Charles Shuster (cshuster@nmsu.edu)

Call for Applications: Arts & Humanities Seed Grant

By Dr. Allison Layfield, Senior Proposal Development Specialist, RAS

The Office of Research, Creativity and Economic Development (RCED) is requesting applications for the 2025 NMSU Arts and Humanities (A&H) Seed Funding Program. The program is designed to help faculty launch new arts or humanities-based projects for which applicants will seek external funding. This year RCED is offering additional funding for AI-related, team-based projects.

The seed grant may be used to support: a) the preparation of an external funding proposal, or b) the creation of artistic works or preliminary research in the humanities necessary to the preparation of an external funding application.

Read the full call for applications and download the application form here:https://research.nmsu.edu/News/ArtsHumanitiesSeedFunding.html

Applications are due no later than 5:00pm on December 1, 2025 and must be electronically submitted. Late or incomplete applications will not be accepted. Awards will be announced by February 1, 2026.

Faculty with expertise in the Arts and Humanities are encouraged to serve as reviewers for the program. For assistance with your application or to sign up as a reviewer, contact Allison Layfield: layfield@nmsu.edu. Grant writing resources are also available on the Arts & Humanities Funding Teams site.

Upcoming Grants Workshops and Events

By Dr. Allison Layfield, Senior Proposal Development Specialist, RAS

Read the RfP in 10 Minutes: Wednesday, November 12, 2:30-3:30pm OR Friday, November 14, 12:30-1:30

Milton Hall 50 (Teaching Academy)

This in-person, hands-on workshop will teach participants how to quickly and effectively read requests for proposals (NOFO, RfP, etc.) to determine whether it’s worth the time to write a grant proposal. Participants should bring a funding opportunity relevant to their own research/outreach activities. This workshop is open to staff, faculty and graduate students. 

Grants & Coffee: Monday, November 17, 10-11:30am

Goddard Hall 200 (Shaw Conference Room)

Been meaning to write that grant (or article, or book)? Drop in for coffee and dedicate time to your research. A proposal specialist and research deans are on site to answer grant questions. We provide the snacks and you bring your laptop. There are two rules at write club: no emails and no grading! This event is for faculty and staff only.

Proposal Management Strategies: Wednesday, January 28 OR Friday, January 30

Milton Hall 50 (Teaching Academy)

Streamline your grant proposal process. Learn about time-saving resources and how to work effectively within the NMSU Proposal Submission process. Participants will leave the workshop with a submission schedule tailored to a grant opportunity of their choosing. Bring your laptop and the RfP for a funding opportunity. Grant teams, faculty, and staff who work with grant proposal submissions are encouraged to attend. 

Limited Submission Funding Opportunities

By Dr. Allison Layfield, Senior Proposal Development Specialist, RAS

Research Administration Services maintains a list of limited submission funding opportunities for NMSU research community. The list is accessible through a link on the Research website, through the Research Administration tab. NMSU users can also access the list directly on SharePoint.  We encourage NMSU researchers to periodically visit the site and if they are interested in any of the opportunities to please inform us by sending email to ras@nmsu.edu, with the subject line "Limited Submission," and the name of the agency and the title of the funding opportunity in the body of the email.

FundFit Grant Search and Team-Building Software Available

By Dr. Allison Layfield, Senior Proposal Development Specialist, RAS

In order to assist NMSU faculty and staff in locating external funding opportunities, RCED now subscribes to Streamlyne FundFit: https://fundfit.streamlyne.org/sso-login

Use your NMSU login credentials to sign in. New to FundFit? Instructional videos are available via the NMSU's research website under the Funding tab, or here: https://research.nmsu.edu/fundfit.html

Questions and comments regarding NMSU’s Research Digest should be directed to Dr. Allison Layfield at layfield@nmsu.edu, (575) 646-3110.