New Mexico Public Education Department Secretary-Designate Hanna Skandera and New Mexico Higher Education Department Cabinet Secretary Dr. Jose Z. Garcia will be the featured presenters at the January MVEDA Business in the Borderplex luncheon. The luncheon will be held on Tuesday, January 3, 2012 from 11:30 AM until 1:00 PM at the Hotel Encanto de Las Cruces, 705 S. Telshor. The meeting will begin with a hot entree buffet.
MVEDA, the Greater Las Cruces Chamber of Commerce, the Hispano Chamber de Las Cruces, and the Bridge of Southern New Mexico are pleased to kick-off 2012 by co-hosting a conversation with the Cabinet Secretaries on their work in building a strong, well-prepared workforce.
Secretary Skandera
Previously, Skandera served as Florida’s Deputy Commissioner of Education under former Governor Jeb Bush, working to advance middle and high school reforms that instituted greater accountability, incentives for high performance and the end of social promotion. Her work led to scores that improved dramatically across ethnic groups, with Hispanic students outperforming all students in 31 other states. Florida has been recognized nationally as one of the only states to narrow the achievement gap for poor and minority students. She also served as a senior policy advisor and Deputy Chief of Staff at the U.S. Department of Education and as former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Undersecretary for Education.
Secretary Garcia
Jose Z. Garcia has been on the faculty at New Mexico State University for more than three decades. He has conducted research and lectured throughout Latin America, specializing in questions of political instability. Dr. Garcia directed the Center for Latin American and Border Studies at NMSU for 13 years. In recent years his research has focused on the U.S.-Mexico border. He is one of the founding members of the Paso del Norte Water Task Force, a non-governmental, tri-state, bi-national organization created in the late 1990s, grouping together irrigation district and water utilities managers with environmental groups, citizens, and academics, to stimulate greater cooperation toward more efficient regional water management in the Paso del Norte region. Dr. Garcia was chair of the organization from 2010-2011. He has also taught a course in New Mexico politics for many years. After receiving a BA from Occidental College, Dr. Garcia was awarded a Fulbright fellowship to Ecuador. He received an MA from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, and a PhD from the University of New Mexico.
The vital link between education and workforce and economic development has been highlighted by The Bridge of Southern New Mexico. The Bridge is working alongside Secretary Skandera and Secretary Garcia to create stronger linkages from public education to post-secondary education to give New Mexico a prosperous, sustainable future for business by building a strong, well-prepared workforce.
Luncheon cost is $20.00 per person, payable by cash, check or major credit card. Due to space limitations, reservations are required. Please confirm your attendance no later than Thursday, December 29th by sending an email to rsvp@mveda.com or by calling the office at (575) 525-2852. The meeting is open to the public.
