Editor:
Your editorial of Nov. 13 in which you state Northern New Mexico College doctoral faculty are not “real doctors,” is an ignorant statement. All graduate programs in the USA that prepare medical doctors (MDs) or what you term “real doctors” are trained by faculty with Ph.D.s. This is an accreditation requirement of all graduate programs in the country.
Northern has been fortunate to recruit excellent doctoral faculty. Currently 25 of our 55 full-time faculty have a doctorate degree. All of our Bachelors degree programs, which include are staffed with doctoral faculty. Our faculty with Masters degrees for academic programs, as well as faculty with Bachelors, Associates and Certificates for our vocational programs are also excellent. The real beneficiaries of these well-qualified faculty are our students.
I have worked in the field of education since 1975 and have never experienced such a dedicated hard-working faculty. Not only do they teach classes, but are also involved daily in student advisement, curriculum development, assessment of student learning, recruitment, continuous quality improvement, and in some cases, research. The citizenry of north central New Mexico can be assured of a quality higher education at Northern. Our communities will reap the benefits of these educated citizens now and in the future.
Jose Griego, Ph.D.
President, Northern