I am pleased to announce the formation of the inaugural Burrell College Staff Council. The council will provide a forum where members may, with respect and candidness, discuss topics such as job fulfillment, work processes and other ideas and concerns that reflect on the College’s values and mission. Please join me in congratulating the following individuals for their selection to serve on the council:
Members:
Elizabeth Eaton
Katrina Garcia-Melchor
Jody Gonzales
Renee Huber-Landrum
April Lujan
Kalli Martinez
Ryan Mayhew
Patrick Natoni
Brett Newcomer
Executive Resource for the Council:
Dawn Leake
I would like to thank everyone for your dedication and commitment to our mission this past year. Wishing everyone and your families a blessed holiday season!
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- Thanks to our students who volunteered to write welcome letters to our Class of 2025 acceptances. The number of applicants confirming seats in our next incoming class has increased, and it is a credit to our Admissions team and those who have engaged our applicant pool personally – your efforts are much appreciated!
- A word of encouragement to all our students to finish strong as Winter Break approaches. Whether you are preparing for exams, winding up core clerkships, or dealing with auditions and residency interviews, I hope you all enjoy a safe and restful break and take time to do something for your own well-being.
- As happy as I’ll be to see 2020 end, I also feel grateful as I reflect on the blessings this year has brought us personally and professionally. Lori and I extend our best wishes to you all for a joyous holiday season and prosperous 2021!
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Institutional Advancement |
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We are pleased to share that the Yates Scholarships will continue into 2021 and 2022. The Foundation has recommitted another $1.6 million bringing their current total to $3.2 million. A new cohort of Yates Scholars, who will receive scholarships, will be selected from amongst the Class of 2025.
Institutional Advancement has partnered with Enrollment Services to create welcome packages for applicants who have been offered seats in the Class of 2025. These fun packages contain Burrell branded goodies such as luggage tags, lip balms and antibacterial wipes. The goal is to help applicants feel welcome and connected despite the strains that COVID-19 has brought to this year’s application cycle.
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Administration & Operations (HR, IT and Finance) |
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Finance: We will be providing budget request worksheets for the upcoming fiscal year July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022 by mid-December to each department. The Finance Office is available to assist with preparation of the budget requests.
HR: The employee benefits open enrollment was completed; new benefits plans will be active January 1, 2021. Please contact HR if you have any questions.
Facilities/IT: The Facilities/IT department continues to support COVID-safe instructional delivery modality, and has been asked to assist NMSU with the upcoming vaccine roll-out initiatives.
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- The Research Laboratories remain accessible to faculty throughout the remainder of the year. Please contact Dr. Michael Woods or Ms. Kalli Martinez in advance if you plan to access the laboratory resources.
- The Office of Research wishes you and yours all the best for this holiday season. Enjoy your time off, make time for what’s important to you, and stay safe. We look forward to a time in 2021 when we can all walk the hallways of this amazing college together.
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Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology |
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This past month, the ACB Department wrapped up Anatomy labs for the fall term and was very excited to host John Sharkey as our second departmental Distinguished Research speaker. The talk was incredibly thought-provoking, and it was recorded, so if you missed getting to hear it live, make sure to reach out to the Research Office to find out how to access the recording!
Nancy Minugh-Purvis, PhD, attended the UNM Mentoring Conference from Nov. 19-23 and the annual meeting of the AAMC from Nov. 16-18. Both conferences provided welcome opportunities to meet and exchange ideas with colleagues at the UNM School of Medicine and elsewhere about a variety of current challenges in higher education, including models and strategies for building and supporting diverse institutional communities and the individuals within them.
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Department of Biomedical Sciences |
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In November and December, members of the Biomedical Science department have been teaching in CVS-I, RESP-I, RESP II and MSKII. Research in the department is wide reaching and diverse. Dr. Stauss has been working on a new mathematical algorithm to assess baroreceptor reflex function and submitted another paper to JAOA on non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation. Dr. Bramblett has been working in the lab to facilitate a collaboration with Dr. Erik Yukl at NMSU on the SHERLOCK method for pathogen detection. Along with his collaborators, Dr. Szalai is working on developing a mouse model, where the Tp53 tumor suppressor gene will be deleted only in specific immune cells called T-cells. Departmental service continues to involve the Selection committee, IRB committee, RAC admissions interviews and the Advisory colleges. Also, Dr. De la Rosa has been working on the Diversity Council to develop SOPs and campus initiatives to roll out in the spring. |
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Department of Clinical Medicine |
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The Division of Clinical Medicine wants to warmly announce the following personnel who have started with us in the past 6 weeks either on-campus or as visiting faculty. Daniel Dodson, DO, OMM; Catherine Gutierrez, Administrative, Clinical Medicine; and Mohammad Khan, MD (Part-time PCP). We also want to thank the students who volunteered and participated in the flu vaccine drive at MountainView a month ago. We want to wish the students, faculty, employees, and staff a healthy and happy holiday season. |
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Department of Physiology and Pathology |
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Ho Ho Ho Burrell campus! Your friendly neighborhood Santa stand-in from the “Great White North” wants to share some fun holiday cheer as we approach the end of the year. This is not your ordinary DSA. Rather, we have a Holiday Mad Lib. Cozy up with your closest friends and put on your grammar stocking caps. Create a list of words to match these descriptions with your closest friends. Once you have done your part, follow this link and read out loud your tale of the fond memories some faculty members have from holidays of yore. Happy Holidays from everyone at the Department of Physiology and Pathology!
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- The Diversity Council is making progress on its goal to create a Diversity Advocacy Team (DAT). On Thursday, Dec. 10, the Offices of Compliance and Institutional Assessment and Human Resources will be providing an in-serve to the Council to offer guidance and feedback on the draft SOP and associated documents for DAT.
- The Diversity and Inclusion web landing page and subpages are being developed with the goal of going live in the spring semester 2021.
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The Scholarship Committee has nominated Sidra Ali, OMS-II, as Burrell College’s recipient of the 2020 American Osteopathic Foundation Sterling Welch, DO, Scholars Grant.
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In recognition of Black History Month in February, Burrell College’s chapter of the Student National Medical Association (SNMA) will be collaborating with the Office of Diversity and Inclusion to offer the opportunity to view the to-be-released Black Men in White Coats film. More information to come in the new year.
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Office of Enrollment Services |
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The Spring interview schedule is now available for faculty interviewers to review. Interviewers are asked to schedule their availability for Spring using the Excel file that was shared in an email from the Office of Admissions.
Students that are scheduled to receive a Financial Aid Refund Check will have it available by January 15. If a student needs to increase or decrease their financial aid for spring 2021, the student will need to submit the request to the Office of Financial Aid prior to the end of the fall 2020 term.
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- The GHSO Transborder Health Virtual Conference will be hosted on Dec. 11 from 2-4 p.m. The conference will focus on the state of public health in the Paso Del Norte region and will feature Dr. Casonova Cardiel of UACJ; Dr. Josiah Heyman of the Center for InterAmerican and Border Studies at UTEP; and Dr. Michael Woods of Burrell College.
- Learn how to Cook Sopapillas (led by Nina Nunez) on Dec. 11 at 7 p.m. This virtual event is open to students, faculty, and staff and Class of 2025 offer paid students.
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Participate in the End of the Semester Trivia Night Celebration on Dec. 18 from 4-6 p.m. This is open to current students and Class of 2025 offer paid students
All events will be conducted over zoom with links posted in LEO.
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Accreditation and Compliance |
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New/Revised Standard Operating Procedures:
- FA.014 Veterans Affairs Educational Benefits (New)
- CC.004 Curriculum Change Proposal Form (New)
- CE.017 COMLEX-USA Failure Notification and Remediation Procedure (Revised)
- AA.011 SPARK- Students Performing at Academic Risk Procedures (Revised)
The Governor’s latest COVID update (Red to Green Framework) did not change any day to day operations for the College. We continue to monitor the weekly updates and will make changes as needed. The COVID webpage is now updated daily with information on active and cumulative COVID cases on Burrell campus.
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- We hosted a successful NBOME item-writing workshop by Dr. Adrienne Ables on December 4. The video and materials are posted on the Faculty Affairs resource page. Faculty Affairs will arrange-follow-up opportunities in the next months to continue improving exam items.
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We have added a faculty promotions tab and resource page to the Faculty Affairs website. Instructional materials as well as numerous faculty support resources are available there.
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We are registered for the IAMSE Winter Webinar Series: USMLE STEP-1 is Going to Pass/Fail. Now What Do We Do? Watch for further information on how to participate.
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One of the ways the Library has been supporting students on rotation at remote sites is by providing a small circulating collection of high demand physical books at each Regional Academic Center (RAC). This month, the Library purchased an additional circulating collection for the new Four Corners RAC. Any student on rotation at a remote site simply needs to contact the RAC Coordinator who will check on availability and then process the physical checkout for the student. If a title is only available in the main Las Cruces library, then students are encouraged to email library@bcomnm.org and request the book. If available, the book will be mailed to the student along with a postage paid return mailer. Books are typically loaned for one month to correspond with rotation length. These options are in addition to the thousands of electronic e-books, e-journals, and databases that students can access anytime, anyplace.
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The next Faculty Assembly meeting is February 5th; some discussion points may arise in advance.
A special thank you to Dr. Robert Ketchum for his excellent and extensive service as Associate Dean of Pre-Clinical Education. We are pleased to welcome you back to the Faculty Council.
We are excited to work with the inaugural members of the Staff Council at Burrell!
Please consider offering virtual office hours over the holiday break. It has been a difficult year, and increased indicators of stress are being seen everywhere. We all face limited travel and gathering opportunities, and just might not feel as “jolly” as would normally be the case. Reaching out for a chat, even without a specific academic purpose, might make a big difference. Be especially mindful of students remediating on Jan. 4th!
Warmest wishes for a safe and happy holiday, with sincere appreciation for everything you do.
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Please continue to wear your mask, social distance, and wash your hands. The College continues to utilize contact tracing in the event a COVID positive individual is on our campus. Please be sure to swipe in with your ID badge to aide in the contact tracing process.
Thank you for being proactive in keeping our campus safe and as healthy as possible during this time.
Construction is nearly completed on the second and third floor; thank you for your patience!
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The greatest crime in the world is not developing your potential. When you do what you do best, you are helping not only yourself but the world. –Roger Williams
If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else. –Booker T. Washington
The hard work puts you where the good luck can find you. –Unknown
It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change. –Charles Darwin
Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because they want to do it. –Dwight D. Eisenhower
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Laughter Can be the Best Medicine |
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How did the ornament get addicted to Christmas? He was hooked on trees his whole life.
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An individual goes to the post office for stamps for Hanukkah holiday cards and asks the cashier for stamps. The cashier replies, “What denomination?” The person thinks for a moment and responds, “I’ll take six Orthodox, twelve Conservative, and thirty-two Reform, please.”
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What do you call a kid who doesn’t believe in Santa? A rebel without a Claus.
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With Hanukkah upon us, how does a Jewish man prepare his tea? Hebrews it.
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Why did Frosty ask for a divorce? His spouse was a total flake.
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BEAR:
Building Expectations of Alliance and Respect
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