SILVER CITY, N.M. – Four outstanding educators were selected to be included in the Western New Mexico University School of Education Hall of Fame and inducted during a virtual ceremony this spring. The 2020-2021 WNMU School of Education Hall of Fame inductees are Monica Ortiz Baca, Cindy Murphy Lee, Leland D. Miller and Mr. Darwin K. Bleak.
Baca is a three-time graduate of WNMU. She earned a bachelor’s in elementary education in 1983, a master’s in counseling in 1996, and a master’s in interdisciplinary studies in 1998. WNMU recognized Baca for her 38 years of dedication to teaching elementary and special education and for service to her community of Chandler, Arizona, where she both lives and teachers. Her nomination read, “Mrs. Baca provides a safe and supportive place for her students, a place of refuge from the storms of life.”