The University of New Mexico (UNM) recently revealed that the inaugural Space Valley Diversity in Business Champion Award, sponsored by the New Mexico Minority Business Development Agency, was awarded to COSMIAC. This organization is a space-related research center situated within the School of Engineering. In addition, IDEAS-TEK, a company specializing in embedded system design and software development, received recognition as the Minority-Owned Company of the Year.
COSMIAC has earned a reputation for providing innovative technical solutions to aerospace companies and government agencies. Under the guidance of distinguished professor Christos Christodoulou, COSMIAC not only participates in collaborative projects with various aerospace entities but also plays an essential role in offering hands-on training and research opportunities to students. Remarkably, 40% of these students are female. Furthermore, according to a press release by UNM, IDEAS-TEK, under the proficient leadership of Alonzo Vera—a UNM alumnus holding both a master's and Ph.D. in electrical engineering—received accolades for its contributions and was incubated at COSMIAC for several years.
According to information provided on its webpage by UNM, COSMIAC's mission involves fostering collaboration between academia, government, and industry through student internship programs centered around projects driven by local organizations and COSMIAC engineers. Currently, COSMIAC houses an industrial accelerator facility within its center.
The New Mexico Minority Business Development Agency Business Center (MBDA Business Center), part of the U.S. Department of Commerce's Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) national network of business centers, works closely with minority-owned businesses looking to expand into new markets. The agency provides assistance in areas such as finance acquisition, contract competition, strategic partner finding, and export readiness preparation. Specifically targeting mid-sized minority-owned businesses with revenues exceeding $500k annually, the agency is operated by the City of Albuquerque Economic Development Department. It strategically focuses on addressing equity gaps in the small business community, particularly by advancing minority business enterprises to higher levels of success, according to the About webpage provided by the New Mexico Minority Business Development Agency.