[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 53 (Monday, March 22, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S1671]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                     REMEMBERING DR. KAREN TRUJILLO

 Mr. HEINRICH. Mr. President, the tragic passing of Dr. Karen 
Trujillo, a devoted mother and compassionate leader who dedicated her 
life to New Mexico's students and teachers, is a tremendous loss for 
the entire State of New Mexico.
  Like so many in New Mexico, I will be forever grateful for the 
opportunities I had to spend time with Dr. Trujillo and learn from her. 
She was a tireless advocate for education whose enthusiasm for learning 
was truly infectious. I am especially appreciative for how much she 
advocated for all students to have access to outstanding education in 
science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
  Dr. Trujillo served for more than 25 years as an educator. She began 
her career in the classroom as a math teacher at Las Cruces High School 
and went on to teach at Cobre High School in Bayard, Hot Springs High 
School in Truth or Consequences, and at Alma d'Arte Charter High School 
in Las Cruces. She also served in many education leadership roles, 
including principal at Las Cruces Catholic School, associate dean of 
research at New Mexico State University's School of Education, New 
Mexico secretary of public education, and superintendent of Las Cruces 
Public Schools.
  Dr. Trujillo's legacy will be felt for years not only in all the 
students she inspired but in classrooms across our State led by 
educators whom she mentored and led. At NMSU, she directed K-12 
outreach for the Alliance for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning 
and started the Southwest Outreach Academic Research Lab and Educators 
Rising NM, an organization that recruits high school students for 
careers in teaching.
  Dr. Trujillo was proud of her deep New Mexico roots and her close-
knit family. After early years growing up in Santa Fe, she and her 
family resettled in Las Cruces, where she graduated from Mayfield High 
School and received her bachelor's, master's, and doctorate degrees 
from New Mexico State University. Her father Gilbert set a positive 
example of public service for her as a longtime Dona Ana County 
commissioner.
  Even while she took on leadership roles throughout the State, Karen 
could often be found with her family at the Hatch Valley High School 
gymnasium, where her husband Ben is the athletic director, her older 
daughter is a basketball coach, and her younger daughter played for the 
team. She often took on duties as the basketball announcer.
  I am keeping Ben, their kids, Taralyn, Tim and Tavyn, the Trujillo 
and Apodaca families, as well as all of the New Mexicans who are 
grieving this devastating loss, in my thoughts.

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