The Bureau of Land Management and the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute recently celebrated their new partnership to recruit American Indian and Alaska students for BLM careers. On Nov. 14, representatives from BLM’s Arizona and New Mexico State Offices and SIPI kicked off their celebration with a signing ceremony in Albuquerque, N.M.

The organizations established a memorandum of understanding in October 2007 to recruit SIPI students for BLM careers in cadastral surveying and geospatial/geographic information systems. The demand for these services in Indian country has continued to increase over the last decade, and BLM and other Interior agencies have been working to meet that need.

More than 70 students, faculty and partnership supporters attended the event at the SIPI Science and Technology Auditorium. Students benefited from the opportunity to network with industry professionals and seek mentors during the event. “We welcome the opportunity to collaborate with BLM to provide expanded training and career opportunities for SIPI students in the area of land surveying and geospatial technologies,” SIPI President Jeffrey Hamley said in his introductory remarks.

The agreement encourages students to complete on-the-job training in these areas to advance career opportunities and broadens a diverse pool of qualified applicants for BLM’s future hiring needs. “Hopefully, this will lead to a career in public service which they will derive great satisfaction,” said BLM-New Mexico State Director Linda Rundell.

SIPI is a national Indian community college that provides a post-secondary learning environment for American Indian and Alaska Native students to acquire the advanced technical skills industry and tribal governments need. “We are proud to be able to work with SIPI under this MOU to provide opportunities for students to get hands on experience,” said Arizona State Director Elaine Zielinski.