UNM and AFOTEC sign student intern agreement Published Oct. 22, 2008 By Katherine C. Gandara Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, New Mexico -- University of New Mexico President, Dr. David Schmidly, and the commander of the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center, Maj. Gen. Stephen T. Sargeant, signed a memorandum of agreement Oct. 1 establishing a formal partnership between UNM and AFOTEC for an intern development program. The partnership aims at recruiting, training and exposing selected students for potential future employment opportunities within AFOTEC, the Air Force or other government service. "The AFOTEC Intern Development Program offers a unique opportunity to infuse up-to-date education and skills into our organization and to mentor outstanding citizens for potential future employment, not only with AFOTEC but also within the U.S. government," said General Sargeant. "AFOTEC has benefited from individuals' contributions from similar informal programs in the past and this prompted me to make the program more formalized and repeatable." The program works with UNM's Career Services Office to recruit students enrolled in a four-year degree program, particularly in the areas of math, science or engineering. Participating students get the opportunity to work in different areas at the Kirtland-based organization. Each student has a mentor to ensure their duties complement their degree tracks while allowing them to infuse their educational knowledge and skills into their respective work areas. "This is a synergistic program for promising University of New Mexico students to explore cutting edge research and development opportunities in the federal sector ranging from military service to federal civilian employment," General Sargeant said.