00. Dev Fall 05.indd - UNM Foundation

Education Professor Endows Doctoral Fellowship
By Aaron Martinez
UNM College of Education Professor Virginia Shipman believes that a diversity
of ideas strengthens a campus environment, and she encourages critical thinking
among students. That’s why she endowed the Virginia Curran Shipman Doctoral
Fellowship within the College of Education’s family studies program. “My aim
is to promote an atmosphere of different ideas,” says Shipman. Initiated in 2003,
the award agreement is intended to aid graduate students pursuing a doctorate in
the family studies program.
“I just don’t see how I could have earned my degree without a fellowship,”
recalls Shipman, who holds a doctorate in psychology from the University of
Pittsburg. “My experience was that we went to school full time, and my training
and graduate programs only accepted a limited number of students.” In contrast,
full-time dedication to school is rarely the norm for today’s doctoral students.
“A lot of these students are committed to families, school and jobs, so their time
for taking classes and working on their dissertations is reduced,” says Shipman.
“My concern is that this group of students really needs support financially and
psychologically.” Shipman believes that students must be allowed to fully commit
to their dissertations and her fellowship is intended to provide that opportunity.
Don’t forget!
End-of-Year
Charitable
Giving
If you generally review your
estate and financial plans at the
end of the year it’s a good time to
include charitable gifts. As part
of a review of your will or living
trust, for example, you may wish
to include your charitable interests
for a specific amount, a percentage
or “what’s left” after providing
for heirs.
IRAs for UNM
Retirement plans and life
insurance policies offer convenient
opportunities for giving as well.
If you are past the age of 59½, you
are allowed to withdraw funds
from a tax-favored retirement
account without triggering an
“early withdrawal” penalty. If your
retirement account investments
have performed well over the
years, you may wish to take a
withdrawal sufficient to fund the
gifts you would like to make before
the end of the year. There are also
ways to make a gift today and
retain income for life or another
period of time.
Hurricane Katrina
Tax Relief Act
This Act suspends the 50 percent
deduction limit for certain gifts of
cash made between Aug. 28 and
Dec. 31, 2005. Such gifts may be
deductible up to 100 percent of
adjusted gross income. Remember
that an end-of-year charitable
gift to your favorite UNM college,
school or program is a good way to
help keep taxes as low as possible.
This means if you write a check
to your favorite UNM school,
college or program a 100 percent
deduction may apply.
For information on how to best
benefit from one of these gift
arrangements, call Susan Morrison,
J.D., at the UNM Development
Office, (505) 277-9604 or
1-800-UNM-FUND (866-3863)
or visit our Web site:
plannedgiving.unm.edu.
Fresh Faces
The fellowship is awarded to students who have demonstrated a 3.5 grade point
average in undergraduate- and graduate-level coursework, and preference is given to
out-of-state doctoral students. Students applying for the fellowship must also submit
a 500-word description of their research objective for their degree.
As for why the fellowship favors out-of-state students, Shipman explains, “This
new knowledge coming into our university encourages students to adapt and grow
in dynamic ways.” Exposure to people from different cultures prompts students to
think about why they think the way they do about an issue. “I find that people learn
when their own ideas are challenged and they are forced to think in a different way,”
says Shipman.
Shipman’s own experience chairing the UNM Research Allocation Committee
reveals why she’s so dedicated to promoting diversity on campus. Every month she
reviews research proposals from across campus. “I read these fantastic proposals
and learn about amazing things people are doing across UNM,” comments Shipman.
She hopes her fellowship will encourage bold thinking and original ideas like those
she reads about during the reviews.
“I feel a more productive society is one in which people have learned to be
open to thought,” Shipman notes. “During my 25 years in research, I’ve found
that diversity encourages a tolerance of ambiguity, which creates a healthy
learning environment.”
UNM alumna
Tobie Dorsey became
the director of corporate
relations in summer
2005. She previously
worked in UNM human
resources as a benefits
specialist. Earlier in
her career, she was
a sales executive for
Payday Inc., a branch
Tobie Dorsey
manager for Robert Half
International, and human
resources director for Cortez III Service Corporation
and for Four Hills Country Club. Dorsey holds a
bachelor of science degree in biology from UNM.
She has volunteered for HealthSouth Rehabilitation
Hospital and for Animal Services. Dorsey has a “can
do” attitude and a strong commitment to UNM.
She sees her position, in part, as an ambassador for
the University.
Pam Hurd-Knief
was named director of
major gifts for the UNM
Foundation in July 2005.
She was the constituent
development officer
for the UNM School
of Architecture and
Planning since 1999,
leading the school’s
capital campaign and
Pam Hurd-Knief surpassing its
$2.2 million goal.
She also established the Dean’s Council for Design
and Planning Excellence. Earlier in her career,
Hurd-Knief held development positions with
ACLOA, now Musical Theater Southwest, UNM
Hospitals, Adelante Development Center and the
Carrie Tingley Hospital Foundation. Hurd-Knief is
a Certified Fund Raising Executive and will receive
advanced certification in May 2006, becoming one
of fewer than 100 individuals to hold this distinction
in the United States. Pam has a master’s degree in
philanthropy and development from St. Mary’s
University of Minnesota. She is a recipient of a Kellogg
Foundation Leadership Fellowship and is president of
the New Mexico Chapter
of the Association
of Fundraising
Professionals.
Sachiko (Sachi) Isobe
became the constituent
development officer for
the College of Arts and
Sciences in spring 2005.
She previously served
as manager of donor
Sachiko (Sachi) Isobe relations at the UNM
Foundation. Before that, she served as major gifts
officer/associate director of the Centennial Campaign
at Hackley School in Tarrytown, N.Y. and associate
director of development and alumni relations for
International House in New York City. Isobe holds a
bachelor of arts degree in comparative politics from
Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn.
Ron Martinez is the
development officer for
student affairs. After 32
years in financial aid,
Martinez is developing
his fund-raising skills
to better help UNM
students. “I want to
also become effective at
raising scholarship and
need-based grant aid to
Ron Martinez
help our students,” says
Martinez. Currently, he
is working on a three-year endeavor within Project
LINK to implement a new campuswide administrative
data processing system called Banner. He is directing
the implementation for the Banner Financial Aid
application to be used starting in January 2006, and
will facilitate financial aid awarding for the 2006-
07 school year. When Martinez finishes the Banner
financial aid project, he expects to resume his position
as UNM’s director of financial aid while continuing to
support targeted development needs in student affairs.
In August 2005,
Donna Romoser became
executive director of
development at the
UNM Cancer Research
& Treatment Center.
Previously, as executive
director of development
at California’s University
of the Pacific, she
secured a $13 million
Donna Romoser
donation for a new
health sciences center,
the institution’s largest gift ever. Romoser also
oversaw the planning and implementation of a $200
million comprehensive campaign, achieving more
than half of the goal during the quiet phase. As part
of the leadership team, she received the CASE VII
District Medal for the college’s Advancement Gala
campaign launch. At the Fund for Johns Hopkins
Medicine in Baltimore, Romoser was a senior member
involved in a $1 billion campaign that included a
new hospital. Following that she became the director
of development for the University of Central Florida
College of Arts and Sciences, where she designed the
University’s first-ever capital campaign to equip a new
$14.6 million school of communication.
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