Education Is the Key

Anderson alumni created scholarship to make a difference for New Mexicans

Eva and Chris Dunkeson

By Michelle G. McRuiz

For Anderson School of Management alumni Eva and Chris Dunkeson, UNM is the institution that launched their adult lives. It’s where they met each other and many of the friends they still have more than 30 years later. And today, UNM is where they want to make an impact.

A personal connection

Eva, who is Native American, was born and raised in Española in northern New Mexico. Her mother is from Santa Clara Pueblo. Eva received a scholarship to attend UNM and says it was vital to her ability to attend UNM.

Eva didn’t know many people at Anderson, so she joined the co-ed business fraternity Delta Sigma Pi. She made friends, went to social gatherings, and learned how to network. Even after graduating with a degree in finance, she continued to attend Delta Sigma Pi events. One of those events – a bachelor auction in 1991 – led her to Chris.

“A friend recommended that I bid on Chris, and I ‘won’ him for about $20,” Eva says.

 Although their first date was fine, their relationship didn’t take off right away.

“It took another year of mutual friendship before Chris asked me out again,” she adds, “and we haven’t been apart since then.”

After graduation, Chris – who focused on marketing at Anderson – eventually began employment with Jones Intercable, now Comcast. He has been with the company for 32 years in several leadership roles from government affairs to field operations to call centers. For the past 10 years, he has been Area Vice President of Operations, overseeing New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah.

Eva worked for 20 years in banking and auditing at Sunwest Bank and Ross Aviation, and, toward the end of her career, with First State Bank. When she and Chris started a family, Eva stayed home to raise their children.

Building community

After their kids grew up and started their own careers, Eva and Chris wanted to make a difference locally. For them, there was no better place to start than with UNM.

“We donate every year to Popejoy Hall and UNM Athletics because they’re both really good for the community,” Chris says. “We’ve been Lobos and Popejoy season ticket holders for years.”

UNM strengthens community ties in Albuquerque and throughout the state, Eva says.

“In Española, we don’t have major sports teams,” she says, “so people take their families to Lobos games. And when our daughters played soccer, we took them to all the soccer games. We would go to the campus, ride bikes, and hang out at the Duck Pond.”

In 2019, the couple expanded their philanthropy by establishing the Dunkeson Business Scholarship to assist students entering Anderson.

“Education is the key for New Mexico,” says Chris, “so we wanted to make a difference there. We feel fortunate to be able to do that.”

“Because of my student aid, I didn’t have to work while attending UNM, and that contributed to my success,” Eva adds. “We are very proud to help other UNM students in the same way.”

“The Dunkesons’ philanthropy is a testament to the power of education to transform lives and strengthen communities,” says Anderson School of Management Dean Alina Chircu, “and we’re grateful for their ongoing support of our students and the state of New Mexico.”

For Eva and Chris, the best perk about their scholarship is reading the thank-you letters they receive from recipients. And one of the things they are most proud of is staying here in New Mexico, helping make Albuquerque and the state be a place where people want to spend their lives.

“We want native New Mexicans to stay here to build a better state and community,” Eva says. “We’re showing that we are still here, that New Mexico is a great place to live, and that it’s what you make of it.”