The first library opened at New Mexico College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts in McFie Hall in 1891, a year after the Board of Regents passed a motion instructing President Hiram Hadley to buy Johnston’s Encyclopedia and Webster’s Dictionary for the library. The college’s first trained librarian was Charlotte A. Baker.
In 1906, the first agricultural science center was established, bearing the name of its founder Fabian Garcia. NMSU now has a dozen science centers, including three in the Las Cruces area and others as far away as Farmington, Clayton and Artesia.
The Physical Science Laboratory, a research and development organization better known on campus as PSL, was founded in May 1946. PSL is a leader in sub-orbital platforms, specialized intelligence community support, NASA scientific exploration and experimentation, homeland security technologies, and weapons and countermeasures development testing.
NMSU’s College of Education was founded in 1956 with William B. O’Donnell serving as its first dean.
Fueled by a growth in the numbers of Hispanic, Black and American Indian students, a majority of NMSU’s undergraduate student population has represented minority groups since 2001. NMSU is routinely recognized as one of the top universities for minority students.
McFie Hall
O'Donnell
Physical Science Laboratory
Dove Hall, Room 212
305 N. Horseshoe Drive
Las Cruces, NM 88003
