By Kim W. Jarigese

Many individuals are faced with the difficult decision of whether or not to leave the hometown they have known their whole life to move to the “big city” to get their degree. The community of Taos is fortunate to have a UNM branch campus that offers lower division, upper division, and graduate programs.

While working full‐time and taking a full‐time course load, Kim Covington recently graduated with her Bachelor of University Studies (BUS) degree through the UNM Taos Bachelor and Graduate Programs.

What encouraged Covington to return to college was a parent orientation session she attended for one of her sons, who was enrolling at the UNM Taos Campus. As a single mom of two sons, she was motivated by the words of Tracy Skipp, associate dean for undergraduate studies and director of the BUS degree program at UNM’s main campus in Albuquerque. At the orientation session, Skipp told parents to be a good role model for their children and earn their degree. Greatly inspired, Covington enrolled her son, and also herself. (more…)