The College of Professional Studies offers exceptional professional programs designed to equip students with the skills and knowledge needed to achieve their academic and career aspirations.

The College of Professional Studies strives to be the regional leader in preparing students to be professionals who are adaptable, culturally competent, globally and environmentally aware, strong communicators, and who are critically minded professionals that will become world changers.

The College of Professional Studies’ Strategic Goals (24-25) are aligned with the Western New Mexico University Strategic Plan (2023-2028), and with the Academic Affairs Division goals.

1. CPS leaders will meet at least monthly to strengthen and enhance collaborative efforts and build mentoring relationships. (AA goal 1)
2. CPS will encourage participation in professional development activities to enhance faculty expertise, teaching effectiveness, and contributions to their respective fields. (AA goal 2)
3. Each CPS school or department will participate in at least one high school activity (e.g. career fair, presentation, visit, etc.) per semester to encourage dual enrollment in professional programs. (AA goal 3)
4. CPS will create new and/update existing transfer guides for community colleges that WNMU has existing master MOUs with in order to increase the potential for transfer enrollment. (AA goal 3)
5. CPS will attain 100% adherence with the standard syllabus template by spring 2025 (AA goal 4).
6. CPS will annually review all SLO’s for each program to ensure that each program’s SLO’s are accurate and updated. (AA goal 4)

The College of Professional Studies is comprised of The School of Business, The School of Nursing and Kinesiology, The School of Social Work, and The School of Behavioral Sciences. Many of the programs offered within the College of Professional Studies (CPS) lead to professional careers where occupational licenses may be required. Through the CPS, WNMU offers the following courses of study:

• Business Administration, Associate of Science
• Criminal Justice, Associate of Science
• Human Services, Associate of Arts
• Law Enforcement Training Certificate

• Accounting, Bachelor of Business Administration
• Criminal Justice, Bachelor of Science
• General Business, Bachelor of Applied Science
• Kinesiology, Bachelor of Arts
• Kinesiology, Bachelor of Science
• Management, Bachelor of Business Administration
• Marketing, Bachelor of Business Administration
• Nursing Pre-Licensure, Bachelor of Science in Nursing
• Nursing RN to BSN, Bachelor of Science in Nursing
• Psychology, Bachelor of Arts
• Psychology, Bachelor of Science
• Social Work, Bachelor of Social Work

• Accounting, Minor
• Business Administration, Minor
• Criminal Psychology, Minor
• Economics, Minor
• Entrepreneurship, Minor
• Finance, Minor
• Human Resource Management, Minor
• International Commerce and Trade, Minor
• Kinesiology, Minor
• Marketing, Minor
• Pre-Law, Minor
• Psychology, Minor
• Public Administration, Minor
• Sports Management, Minor

• Business Administration, Master of Business Administration
• Community & Rural/Frontier Health, Master of Science in Nursing
• Social Work – Advanced Standing, Master of Social Work
• Social Work – Non-Advanced Standing, Master of Social Work

• Border Security, Graduate Certificate
• Criminal Justice, Graduate Certificate
• Digital Forensics, Graduate Certificate
• Kinesiology, Graduate Certificate
• Management Information Systems, Graduate Certificate
• Marketing, Graduate Certificate (Pending Department of Education, Financial Aid approval)
• Outdoor Behavioral Health, Graduate Certificate
• Psychology, Graduate Certificate
• Rural Community Social Work Services, Graduate Certificate
• School Social Work, Graduate Certificate
• Social Work Services to Military Families, Graduate Certificate

• Dr. Patti West-Okiri, EdD, LCSW Patricia.West@wnmu.edu

• Co-Chair (Psychology): Dr. Wen-chi Chen, PhD ChenW@wnmu.edu
• Co-Chair (Criminal Justice): Dr. Damon Bullock, PhD BullockD@wnmu.edu

• Associate Dean & Accreditation-Champion, School of Business: Dr. Miguel A. Vicéns, DED, MBA Miguel.Vicens@wnmu.edu
  • Program Manager Studio-G: Dr. Jorge Romero-Habeych, PhD Jorge.Romero-Habeych@wnmu.edu
  • MBA Program Director & Accreditation-Co-Champion: Dr. Ivan Alfredo Ibarra Sanchez, PhD, MBA Ivan.IbarraSanchez@wnmu.edu

• Associate Dean, School of Nursing and Kinesiology: Dr. Kimberly Petrovic,PhD, MSN, MA, RN Kimberly.Petrovic@wnmu.edu
  • BSN Program Pre-Licensure BSN Track Director: Charnelle Lee, RN, MSN – Nursing Education Charnelle.Lee@wnmu.edu
  • BSN Program RN-to-BSN Track Director: Mary McBrayer, MSN-Ed, MAIS, BSN, RN Mary.Flores@wnmu.edu
  • MSN Program Directors: Dr. Kimberly Petrovic, Mary McBrayer (RN to MSN pathway) Kimberly.Petrovic@wnmu.edu, Mary.Flores@wnmu.edu
  • FNP Program Director: Dr. Kathy VanRavenstein, PhD, APRN, FNP-BC Kathryn.VanRavenstein@wnmu.edu

• Associate Dean, School of Social Work: Dr. Tony Bobadilla, PhD, LCSW Tony.Bobadilla@wnmu.edu
  • BSW Program Director: Eric Moore, MA, MSW MooreE@wnmu.edu
  • BSW Field Director: Sarah Guck, MSW, MDiv, LCSW Sarah.Guck@wnmu.edu
  • MSW Program Director: Dr. Estilla Lightfoot, PhD, LCSW Estilla.Lightfoot@wnmu.edu
  • MSW Field Director: Louise Ortega-Senter, LMSW Louise.Ortega@wnmu.edu

To learn more about our programs, visit our School webpages