Two years in - The future of HEST looks bright

Since the formation of the College of HEST in 2021, and after a year of collaborative leadership by inaugural College of HEST Dean Yoshi Iwasaki, HEST has made tremendous progress building a strong foundation for the future.

One of Iwasaki’s first initiatives was to involve faculty, staff, students and alumni in helping create the College of HEST slogan, which would serve as the foundation of the continuing strategic planning process. Through stakeholder nominations and voting, “Learn. Engage. Transform.” was selected. 

“This slogan nicely captures the centerpiece of who we are, what we do and why we matter to highlight the signature strength of our college,” Iwasaki says. “Overall, HEST itself is a community of learning and engagement, as a catalyst for social change and transformation to uplift our people and communities we serve.”

The slogan helped construct the foundation for a thriving future for HEST and set up the first steps in the strategic planning process.

“Our strategic planning is being completed through an inclusive interaction process,” Iwasaki says. “We have hosted a series of intentional engaged events with diverse HEST stakeholder groups, most specifically our successful inaugural HEST spring retreat with more than 200 participants. 

The group represented all nine academic schools and departments, as well as faculty, staff, students and alumni. The mission and vision statements and guiding core values were also collaboratively created.

The structure of these processes is another example of the interdisciplinary structure Iwasaki’s leadership followed in his first year.

“We are fully committed to elevating our collaborative profile and visibility,” Iwasaki explains. “For example, our holistic student success initiatives, interprofessional curriculum development and collaborative transformational research, to name a few.”

Beyond HEST community focused actionable steps forward, Iwasaki is committed to campus-wide, cross-collaborative initiatives, especially with an equity, inclusion and diversity emphasis.

“The lived experiences, wisdom and voices of our constituents guide our solution-oriented transformative strategies to improve the quality of lives of our citizens in our diverse inclusive communities.”

Beyond articulating goals and outcomes, Iwasaki is focused on making sure to continue giving action opportunities to HEST constituents to achieve the most desirable outcomes for our community. The future years of HEST will build on this foundation – to further transform our environment to most effectively meet the evolving needs of our people and communities.

Mission Statement: To pursue social change and transformation through education, research, and outreach. 

Vision Statement: To be collaborators and leaders in the discovery of innovative solutions in health, education, and social sciences that lead to social transformation in New Mexico and beyond.

Guiding Core Values for HEST: 

EXCELLENCE: We engage in activities that are dreamt, designed, and delivered with intentionality to the highest degree of quality in our teaching, research, service, and outreach.

EQUITY: We honor and leverage existing cultural wealth, while promoting opportunities and social mobility for communities and peoples who experience marginalization. 

DIVERSITY: We welcome, appreciate, and uplift students, faculty, staff, and community partners from diverse perspectives, populations, and lived experiences in mutually respectful ways.

WELLNESS: We promote holistic well-being through fostering a safe, engaging, and inclusive environment.