Alumni History

Forever & Fondly

UNM alumni have been attached to their alma mater for more than a century.

Early UNM students weathered much more than sandstorms and poor budgets. They defied critics who thought the University wouldn't survive in a territory without a public high school. For four years they shared a common goal – education. For a lifetime they shared an affection for their alma mater.

UNM was created by Territorial Act on February 28, 1889; the first students graduated in 1894. On March 30, 1897, seven of the University's 18 graduates formed an executive committee of the Alumni Association. Charles Hodgin (Class of 1894), for whom Hodgin Hall is named, was the first president.

The only alumni event in the early years was an annual dinner in honor of new graduates, which included speeches by Board of Regents members, music recitals, poetry readings, and a history of the graduating class. Some years, this history included humorous predictions of students' futures – including starvation and tooting their own horns.

The student newspaper, UNM Weekly, refers to additional alumni meetings and plans to help the University. By World War I, the Association was inactive except for its recording of alumni at war.

Although there was no annual alumni meeting in 1920, the Association managed to raise $12,000 for the Domestic Science department to construct a new building. That same year, alumni gave football players sweaters with "UNM" in cherry and silver.

By Terry Gugliotta, UNM Archivist

The First Homecoming – Snake Dancing at Half-time!

In 1925, UNM President David Spence Hill invited alumni back to the campus for the first Homecoming celebration. Students rose to the occasion and showed alumni their support. The event began with a pep rally and a bonfire over 20 feet high. On Saturday, students had a parade of floats downtown, and fraternities and sororities decorated their houses. The climax was a football game against Arizona. Snake dancers entertained the crowd at half-time. UNM lost 24-0. But for the first time in five years, the stands were packed and athletics made money.

Student-Alumni Baseball Game (Alumni lost.)

The thrill of Homecoming 1925 did not carry over into the next year and the Association was inactive again. In 1927, the presidency of the University changed and then-acting President James F. Zimmerman encouraged the reactivation of the Association. Alumni Day was declared May 28. In addition to the traditional dinner and dance, a new activity was planned. Senior class members challenged alumni to a baseball game. Alumni lost.

At the Association's reaquest, Zimmerman proposed several projects for members. He suggested publishing a newsletter, starting a scholarship fund, assisting athletics in selling tickets, and recruiting high school students from around the state. Alumni went further by planning to help the University in obtaining money from Santa Fe. Alumni President Kenneth Balcomb, '16, wrote:

"If the alumni will take care of these things, the long-haired profs and the be-spectacled managers of the Institution will grind out the abstract matters of the curriculum…"

The Alumni News

Alumni began publishing their first newsletter, The Alumni News, in 1928. They organized clubs throught the state to recruit students, establish a student loan fund, sell football tickets, and raise money for library books, equipment, and buildings. But for all of their successes, the alumni baseball team, The Has Beens, lost to seniors again that year.

The following year, a reorganized homecoming featured a bonfire, floats, house decorations, a dinner, and dancing. Freshmen women wore green ribbons in their hair and put their dresses and coats on Backwards. Undergraduate men had a pajama parade. The football team played Arizona and lost 6-0, but Homecoming was declared a success.

Make the University Second to None

In 1930, UNM created an administrative position dedicated to alumni matters. Tom L. Popejoy, '25, was named executive secretary. Alumni President Ray McCanna, '17, listed new objectives for the Association: increase legislative appropriations, help students find jobs, and support athletics. The Great Depression did not dampen the spirit of the campus. Alumni wrote letters to their senators and representatives on behalf of UNM, established a student employment bureau, and conducted an aggressive sales campaign for football tickets. They adopted the motto: "Make the University Second to None."

Class reunions at Homecoming began in 1931 with 25-year graduates. Pearce C. Rodey served as the Association's president in 1937-39. During his presidency, the Alumni Lettermen's Club was revived at Homecoming.

World War II

During World War II, the Association concentrated on keeping records of students missing or killed in the war as well as reporting the actions of those still participating. Homecoming attendance dropped, but the main traditions including house decorations, the parade, dinner, and crowning of a queen (begun in 1935) continued.

The association also concentrated on a new cause during the war – raising money for a memorial to the University's war dead. Campaigns continued until 1959, when enough money was raised to build the Alumni Memorial Chapel. It stands today as a memorial to students killed in World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

The Post-War Years

Following the war, the Alumni Association wrote a new constitution generalizing its goals. It also produced a movie about the University's post-war growth for alumni clubs and persuaded the University to add a $5 alumni fee to the graduation fee. The Association had begun collecting dues around 1905 but received little, so the automatic fee boosted funds.

In the 1950s, the Association, under the direction of Winifred Reiter, settled into producing its newsletter and organizing Homecoming. In 1959, a consultant's report determined that the Alumni Association should be combined with the Fund Development Office to form one professionally run organization.

Alumni established committees for Homecoming, student recruitment, legislative support, awards, and more. Dues were eliminated. Together with the Development Office, alumni organized the Greater UNM Fund to support scholarships, libraries, and a host of other projects for the next 20 years. In 1971, Alumni split from the Development Office.

The Alumni Tour program began in 1966. In 1968, alumni sponsored a trip to Hawaii to cheer the Lobo basketball team and tour Honolulu. The trip was then the largest-ever commercially chartered booster club excursion.

Hodgin Hall and the 1970s

The Association's first project in the 70s was to restore the University's oldest building, Hodgin Hall, which had been all but condemned. UNM Architect Joe McKinney succeeded in getting the building listed on the New Mexico Register of Cultural Properties in 1974 and the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. The newly formed Alumni Restoration and Preservation Committee, in conjunction with the University, raised enough money to renovate Hodgin Hall. In 1983, the Association moved in, sharing the space with staff from the Development and Public Affairs offices

In 1980, a new dues program was introduced. Other benefits for alumni, such as insurance, credit cards, and campus services, were started in the 1980s. New alumni chapters formed throughout New Mexico and the U.S. Chapter members sponsored scholarships, recruited students, and enjoyed the camaraderie of other UNM alumni.

Homecoming introduced the crowning of a king 1n 1980 in response to a male student's running for queen in 1979.

Of Recent Note

In 2005, the UNM Board of Regents established Hodgin Hall as the official UNM Alumni Center. Alumni lobbied the State Legislature for funds to renovate the building. The process has begun. Upon completion, Hodgin Hall will be a showcase of University and alumni history as well as a more functional environment for alumni programming.

Old and new traditions have continued through the Association's 11th decade. Today, the Association and its professional staff coordinate activities to inform and involved graduates in every state and more than 90 countries.