SILVER CITY, NM—When Jesús and María Luisa Quiñones immigrated from Santa Bárbara, Chihuahua to Grant County, New Mexico with their three eldest children, they probably could not imagine the contributions their family would make to the field of education in the United State. This spring, however, the Quiñones family was inducted into the Western New Mexico University College of Education Hall of Fame.

The Hall of Fame is a selection of honored graduates from WNMU College of Education alumni who are selected for their distinguished contributions to the field of education during their careers, according to Education Program Manager Jay Baruch. While the honor is usually given to individuals, this year the Quiñones family was inducted for their collective contributions to the field of education and especially to the field of bilingual education.

The Quiñones family was nominated for the honor by Silver City physician Dr. Gilbert Arizaga, who stated in his nominating letter, “The entire Quiñones family has benefited greatly from [Western New Mexico University] and in turn they have contributed greatly to our community in various capacities, and especially in the field of education. Each of the Quiñones family members utilized culture and bilingualism to promote student learning.”

María Elena Quiñones Ortiz, who passed away in 2008, was the first in her family to attend college. She enrolled at WNMU as a student-athlete in 1965, and after spending some time away from college to start a family, she graduated in 1985 with honors in Spanish and Physical Education. She went on to have a highly successful career as an educator and coach, promoting bilingual education and founding El Ballet Folklórico de Central Elementary, a folklórico group that was in demand at state educational conferences and cultural events, according to Arizaga.

María Elena’s brothers, Jesús Quiñones, Jr., Dr. Luis Ignacio “Nacho” Quiñones and Carlos Quiñones were also student-athletes at Cobre High School who went on to study at WNMU. Jesús earned a degree in Accounting from WNMU, but after practicing for a time, he attended graduate school at UNM to become a teacher and had a long career in the Albuquerque school system. In addition to success in bilingual education, he also served as a leader in the Albuquerque Barelas Historic Preservation Project, working to preserve the oral history of one of the city’s oldest communities.

Luis attended WNMU for two years before transferring to NMSU to study Broadcast Journalism. After working in that field for several years, he returned to Grant County to earn a master’s degree from WNMU and then to work for the Cobre school system as the Director of Public Relations and Grant Writing, for which he won national awards. He also taught English and coached basketball for Cobre High, started a high school mariachi group, and initiated a Chicano/a Studies program. Luis eventually earned a doctorate in Educational Leadership and Administration from NMSU, and he founded La Academia Dolores Huerta Middle School, which is dedicated to bilingual education, in Las Cruces. In addition, his volunteer work has included educating the public about Chicano history and about the Empire Zinc Mine strike, the 1950 Grant County strike that was fictionalized in the film Salt of the Earth.

Luis’s spouse, Isabel Castillo-Quiñones studied Business Management as an undergraduate at WNMU and served as Grant County Clerk and as Multicultural Affairs Director at WNMU, where she initiated a highly successful mentoring program for students. She went on to earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Education from WNMU—writing a thesis on the history of Silver City’s Sixth Street Elementary—and she enjoyed a career teaching in the Gadsden and Pecos School Districts. She also served as an officer with the Gadsden American Federation of Teachers.

Additional members of the Quiñones family have also had strong ties to WNMU. After earning a bachelor’s degree from WNMU in History and Social Science, Carlos Quiñones taught for a number of years before earning a J.D. and establishing his own law firm. He was recently selected by the NM Supreme Court to serve on the Uniform Jury Instructions Committee. Throughout his career, he has been active coaching youth basketball.

Siblings Bertha Quiñones Silva and David Quiñones are also alumni of WNMU, and their mother, the late María Luisa “Licha” Quiñones earned her GED through WNMU. Arizaga noted that María Luisa would say, “Qué bueno que tenemos una universidad aquí donde mis hijos pueden recibir su educación y avanzar.” (How wonderful it is that we have a local university where my children can receive their education to help them advance.)