g by Mesalands student Jessa Paddock in the Navajo language.
The college plans to use the building’s many offices and classrooms as a student center and the drill hall as the foundation to introduce an intramural sports program.
“This is a critical keystone piece of achieving our strategic vision of growing our school,” Groesbeck said.
Nava assured the community that the NMNG will still be there, with or without an armory.
“We’re still here,” Nava said. “If there is a disaster or an emergency here, we will get here. If I can get my soldiers to Afghanistan and Iraq, I can get them to Quay County and Tucumcari. We are always here.”
“I can see this building serving the Mesalands Community College and the student body well,” Nava said.
Groesbeck spoke enthusiastically about the potential of the building and its impact on the college’s programs and strategy.
“We are pursuing a strategy to increase the residential (life) of our college, to have intercollegiate sports, as well as pursuing fully online programs,” Groesbeck said. “But in order to pull some of those things together, we needed a space exactly like this.”
The Tucumcari Readiness Center was home to NMNG air defense, infantry, and transportation units since 1989. It is scheduled to begin serving students in 2020.
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