An annual on-campus career fair drew controversy when the Aggie Career Studio hosted a table for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to advertise job opportunities at the Career Connections Fair in Corbett Center Student Union on Feb. 3.
A group of students arrived at the career fair at 11:11 a.m. to protest the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), declaring “Not another nickel; not another dime. No more money for DHS crimes.” Protest organizers insisted on anonymity to protect themselves from retaliation. A spokesperson for the NMSU Dream Team said the officers took pictures of the participants’ faces.
The Border Patrol officers exited to another room in Corbett, and the protest participants were gone by 11:25 a.m. The officers returned to their table at the career fair by 12:15 p.m.
NMSU Police Officers arrived at approximately 11 a.m. and remained on the scene until around 1 p.m. at the request of the event coordinator, according to Interim Chief Justin Dunivan. Dunivan said their goal was a commitment to “safeguarding our campus students, faculty, staff, and visitors.”
“There were no acts of physical violence, and my officers maintained an overall peaceful environment with the participant’s cooperation,” Dunivan said. “This is a great opportunity to remind everyone that we respect their First Amendment rights and want to protect everyone equally; we just need to ensure that this type of activity remains peaceful and does not interfere with other’s educational opportunity process.”
Agent Alderete, one of the Border Patrol officers at the career fair, highlighted some aspects of the agency people might misinterpret.
“We do a lot more humanitarian work than we do enforcement,” Alderete said. “Especially the Border Patrol, we save more lives than the ones we arrest and people, that’s the part that people don’t see.”
Patricia Leyba, the director of Aggie Career Studio, said she supported the protestors’ rights to free speech.
“We all have First Amendment rights,” Leyba said. “And you know, it’s a right that anyone has on this campus, maybe not the time and the place for it, but it was handled peacefully, which I appreciate. And you know, I just hope that soon things can simmer down.”
Since October 2025, the NMSU Dream Team has been collecting signatures for a petition against DHS presence on campus. A spokesperson who works for NMSU Dream Team released a statement describing the organization’s stance.
“We believe the presence of DHS on our campus is dangerous and harmful. We stand in solidarity with Minneapolis and Minnesota, with our neighbors in El Paso, and people around the country protesting their violent actions. We ask why President Ferme and NMSU administrators continue to endanger our student body, staff and faculty by collaborating with these agencies. We ask why Linda Scholz, as vice president for Equity, Inclusion and Diversity, (recently renamed Office of Land-grant Inclusive Mission) hasn’t taken action to protect our Immigrant and other marginalized student groups when it is their responsibility to ensure our safety and success.
NMSU’s land-grant mission is to ‘serve the diverse needs of the state through comprehensive programs of education, research, extension and outreach, and public service.’ There has been no initiative from our leadership to enact sanctuary policies or provide legal resources to ensure students and faculty are knowledgeable of their rights. Instead, NMSU continues to collaborate with agencies that have repeatedly violated said rights with impunity. It does not serve New Mexico’s diverse population to have these organizations terrorizing our campus community. Their very presence on our land-grant institution is terrifying and disruptive to our academic experience. No one is “illegal” on stolen land. That’s why the Dream Team of NMSU has taken action and launched a petition for the NMSU community to sign to achieve their removal.”
Aggie Career Studio will be hosting a U.S. Border Patrol recruitment event on Thursday, Feb. 12 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. According to Crimson Connection, events are also planned for Feb. 17, March 12, March 25, April 9, and April 20.
