On Friday night, August 18th, I learned of the passing of my dear friend Jackson Gibson, following his long and hard-fought battle with cancer.

At that moment, I felt that a true leader of the people had passed from us.  He was a servant-leader and a chief in every sense of what those terms mean – a public servant who was independent minded, strong willed and outspoken, but who also kept in mind “his people”.  Not just Navajos, not just Native Americans, not just Veterans, not just McKinley County citizens – but all of us New Mexicans and Americans, and visitors and guests, from all walks of life.

Jackson could be tough and stubborn and hard-headed, but he was at his core...

ALBUQUERQUE—New Mexico’s state funding for higher education is 33 percent less now than it was before the recession, when looking at inflation-adjusted state spending per student. Looking at the dollar investment, the state is spending $4,509 less in 2017 than it did in 2008 on a per student, inflation-adjusted basis. Only Louisiana has made deeper cuts over that time period.

These are among the findings of a report released this week by the Washington, D.C.-based Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP). As a result of these funding cuts, tuition at the nation’s public four-year colleges and universities has increased on average 35 percent since 2008 on a per-student...

Office of the President and Vice President

KAYENTA, Ariz. – The Navajo Nation mourns the passing of Senior Police Officer Nelson Martin who died in an off-duty automobile accident on Aug. 21. Martin was a valued member of the Kayenta Police Department and his loss is a shock to the community and the Navajo Nation as a whole.

“For one to lose his life in the way Officer Nelson Martin did is tragic and something we want to avoid as much as possible,” President Russell Begaye said. “We offer our condolences to the family and we know that not only you, but the community and the Nation will miss him greatly.”

As a member of the strategic reaction team and as a school resource...

Timothy Gay shopped around before securing a loan in 2013 to buy a building in downtown Las Cruces for his Massage Therapy Training Institute (MTTI). He chose Century Bank to help him secure a U.S. Small Business Administration commercial 504 loan.

“They were the nicest people to work with, which is definitely a bonus,” he said about the bank.

Gay, a graduate of MTTI, bought the business from his father, Laun Smith, in 2007. Over the years, he grew tired of paying rent to the people who owned the building where Smith launched the institute in 1999. Gay wanted to build equity for his own venture in a more centralized location where he could attract more students.

The gamble paid...