Parent Association Plans
By Laurie Mellas
Maria Probasco, UNM Physical Plant Department, Engineering and Energy Services staff, and parent of two graduates and a sophomore, will be a voice for all parents as president of the university's first official Parent Association.
At the Board of Regents meeting held last week, President Jamie Koch signed a memorandum of understanding giving parents a role in university governance. Probasco will give a parent report at monthly regents meetings.
UNM's new association empowers families to play a supportive role in higher education, promotes initiatives to increase student success and provides a forum for parent and student networking.
Probasco was born in Greece and raised in Sydney, Australia. English is not her first language, though she mastered it at a young age to graduate from high school and attend Business College. The mother of UNM's most recent Rhodes Scholar, John, she is a former president of the Alamogordo School Board. Probasco joined UNM's ad-hoc Parent Advisory Board in 2006. She hosted meetings and recruited parents as members. With the support of President David J. and Mrs. Janet Schmidly, the board transitioned into a university-affiliated non-profit association.
Parent Association officers are parents of current students and hold two-year terms. They are: Vice President Heyam Kassicieh, Treasurer Angela Koury, Treasurer-Elect Cathy Kidder and Secretary Denise Tessier. Alexandra Roark is voting student designate.
Goals for Probasco's term as association president include:
- Increasing association membership in partnership with organizations such as ENLACE ( ENgaging LAtino Communities for Education initiative) and GEAR-UP (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs)
- Advocating on issues directly affecting student success
- Assisting in realizing the university's one-stop-shop concept
- Generating funds for association operations and scholarships
"My goal in the coming year is for the association to establish three Parent Clubs in New Mexico, perhaps in Farmington, Hobbs and Gallup. This will keep our parents connected and in touch with one another," said Janet Schmidly, the president's voting designate.
The association has eight standing committees active in event planning, mentoring, multicultural issues, student persistence and fundraising. Parent chairs include Maria Acosta, Aaron Baca, Christina Kitsos, Tom Root and Nieves Torres. Recruiter Matt Maez is membership chair. Laura Valdez is Dean of Students designate and Jerry Dominguez and Breda Bova are faculty representatives.
Student Affairs Vice President Eliseo Torres serves as administrative liaison. Laurie Mellas, Parent Relations Office senior program manager, is the executive director.
For more information, call 277-5915, email parent@unm.edu or visit http://parent.unm.edu.