Earlier this November, the University of New Mexico (UNM) School of Engineering marked the 50th anniversary of its Native American Program, originally called NAPCOE. The event, ‘Fifty Years of Impact: Celebrating the Legacy of NAPCOE,’ brought together alumni, faculty, and supporters. The program was the first university initiative in the United States focused on supporting Native American engineers. It has provided scholarships, internships, and community support to Native American students, aiming to increase Indigenous representation in engineering.
NAPCOE was established in 1975 with funding from the Sloan Foundation, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and Tribal support. The initial grants totaled over $1 million, which is about $6 million in today’s dollars. The program was started by Dean Emeritus Bill Gross, Assistant Dean Martin Bradshaw, and Carol Metcalf from UNM’s Native American Studies program. Their work created a support system for Native American students in STEM fields.
In 2011, NAPCOE became NASTEM. The program expanded to offer scholarships and internships to any UNM student in science, technology, engineering, or math who is involved with a Native American-focused student group. This change also led to the creation of the Engineering Student Success Center, which now serves all students in five engineering departments and computer science at UNM…