New Mexico Tech Releases Faculty Tenure and Promotion Announcements

May 13, 2022


Five faculty members receive tenure and promotion to associate professor; one promoted to full professor

SOCORRO, N.M. – The New Mexico Tech Board of Regents recently approved tenure and promotion for six faculty members. Vice President for Academic Affairs Douglas Wells announced the faculty tenure decisions and promotions at the May 3, 2022, Faculty Senate meeting.

Faculty members receiving tenure and promotion from assistant professor to associate professor:

Taffeta Elliott, Ph.D.
Taffeta Elliott, Ph.D.

Taffeta Elliott, Ph.D. – Dr. Elliott is an associate professor in the psychology program within the Communication, Liberal Arts, and Social Sciences Department (CLASS). She earned her bachelors from St. John's College in Santa Fe. Dr. Elliott earned both her master’s degree and doctorate in neurobiology and behavior from Columbia University in New York.

Gilberto Gonzalez-Parra, Ph.D.
Gilberto Gonzalez-Parra, Ph.D.

Gilberto Gonzalez-Parra, Ph.D. – Dr. Gonzalez-Parra is an associate professor in the Mathematics Department. He earned a doctorate in applied mathematics from Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain, in 2009. He earned a master of science degree in applied mathematics from the University of Los Andes in Merida, Venezuela. Dr. Gonzalez-Parra was a full professor in the University of Los Andes. He has done research stays at University of Texas at Arlington, Texas Christian University, University of Wyoming, and at the Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain.

Chelsey Hargather, Ph.D.
Chelsey Hargather, Ph.D. 

Chelsey Hargather, Ph.D. – Dr. Hargather is an associate professor in the Materials and Metallurgical Engineering Department. Dr. Hargather earned a doctorate in materials science and engineering from The Pennsylvania State University in 2012. She earned a bachelor of science degree in materials science and engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in 2008.

Mostafa Hassanalian, Ph.D.
Mostafa Hassanalian, Ph.D. 

Mostafa Hassanalian, Ph.D. – Dr. Hassanalian is an associate professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department. He earned a master of science degree in mechanical engineering from New Mexico State University in 2016 and a doctorate in mechanical engineering from the same institution in 2018.  He earned both a bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from the Isfahan University of Technology in Isfahan, Iran, in 2011 and 2013 respectively. 

Haoying Wang, Ph.D.
Haoying Wang, Ph.D. 

Haoying Wang, Ph.D. – Dr. Wang is an associate professor in the Department of Business and Technology Management. He earned his doctorate in applied economics and operations research from The Pennsylvania State University in 2014. He served as a post-doctoral fellow at the Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management at Cornell University from 2014 to 2017. Dr. Wang earned a bachelor of science degree in materials science and engineering from Jilin University in China in 2005. He received a master of science degree in agricultural and resource economics from the University of Arizona in 2010 and a master of arts in political economics from Xiamen 

University in China in 2008.  He also serves as a board member for the Middle Rio Grande Economic Development Association.

Michael Hargather, Ph.D.
Michael Hargather, Ph.D.

Faculty member receiving a promotion from associate professor to full professor:

Michael Hargather, Ph.D. – Dr. Hargather is a professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department. He received a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering with a minor in physics from Penn State Behrend in 2004. He earned his doctorate in mechanical engineering from The Pennsylvania State University in 2008.  Prior to joining the faculty at New Mexico Tech, Dr. Hargather was a research associate and instructor at The Pennsylvania State University. He was promoted from assistant professor to associate professor in April 2017. Dr. Hargather has been recognized as a Dean's Research Scholar since 2020 and serves as Faculty Senate chair.