Cimarron Sounds Recording Artist, R. W. Hampton

R.W. Hampton is one of the leading Western Entertainers in America today. Blessed with a wonderfully rich baritone voice, R.W. has a quality of genuineness about him that resonates when he's on stage, in person or just through the words of his songs. For R.W. has lived what he sings about, and the world of early mornings, hard work, rough horses, maverick cattle and new ranges fits him. After twenty years in the entertainment business, R.W. is still pure cowboy, singing about what he loves best. Working cowboys in today's world are unique on their own, but being genuine in a day when even reality television programs are set-up and staged is even more refreshing, and R.W.'s audiences and fans appreciate that.

But R.W. is more than just a gifted cowboy singer: he has a multi-faceted career, one that has seen him perform in a dozen Western movies, co-write and star in the one-man play, The Last Cowboy, narrate several national radio and TV spots, serve as the subject of a number of national print advertising campaigns, and emcee several significant Western awards events. All this on top of being recognized eleven times by various Western associations for his singing and songwriting skill.

Today R.W. lives with his wife and their family on their Clearview Ranch at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains south of Cimarron, New Mexico. He has twelve albums to his credit over the past 20 years. In between headlining at cowboy poetry gatherings and western music events across the nation, R.W. spends most of his time at the ranch doing the work he loves. His life is guided by his faith, his love for his family, and his desire to share cowboy life with his audiences.

For more information on R. W, visit his website: http://www.rwhampton.com/

Dr. Barbara Chamberlin

Dr. Barbara Chamberlin has a unique job: she plays computer and video games, and actively encourages those who work with her to do the same. It's all part of the research and development they do at New Mexico State University in finding new and innovative ways to teach and help people learn. As part of her work at the NMSU Learning Games Lab, she researches games preferences and use, as well as new trends in computer games for education. As a result of her continual "research", she's even had to take her grandmother to task after introducing her to games on the Nintendo Wii, insisting that the octogenarian put down the game and come to the table for dinner. She is directing a national project on using computer and video games to help people become more physically active, and works with an innovative group of educators and designers to create games on a wide variety of topics, from math and science to health and safety. Previously a stand-up comic, Chamberlin speaks nationally on a variety of topics, including technology use with youth. She brings a fresh perspective to the influences of technology in our own lives, and the importance of making meaning with our technological interactions. She received her PhD in Instructional Design from University of Virginia, and has worked in Extension for almost 20 years.

Red Clay Dance Group -- Zuni Pueblo

Saturday, March 13 Lunch Entertainment

Red Clay Dance Group -- Zuni Pueblo

Dances: Butterfly, Buffalo, Corn, Deer, and the Zuni Harvest Dance

Mr. Larry Torres

Larry Torres is a native of Arroyo Seco, New Mexico. He has been a teacher of Spanish, Russian, French, English, Latin and Bilingual Education for the past 32 years. He currently teaches at UNM at Taos, where he is associate professor of foreign languages, American studies, and linguistics.

Mr. Torres is internationally recognized as both a speaker and a presenter in the field of global education in foreign language teaching. He has been an actor with the New Mexico Endowment for the Humanities' Chautauqua Program.

His writings on New Mexico Hispanic culture have touched thousands by way of the Spanish page in the El Crepasculo or in the weekly Taos News and by way of his English column Aqua en Los Valles.His writings have been collected by the University of New Mexico Press as Six Nuevo Mexicano Folk Dramas for the Advent Season, which is in bookstores now.

After receiving many local, regional, and state honors, Mr. Torres was brought to national prominence in 1992 when the Walt Disney Corporation singled him out as the National Outstanding Foreign Language Teacher of the Year at the Annual Disney Salutes the American Teacher Awards program in Los Angeles, California. In 1993, Mr. Torres won the National Educator Award, sponsored by the Milken Family Foundation.

He has appeared in Taos Magazine, Vista Magazine, Spirit Magazine, The Santa Fean, La Herencia, Mirage Magazine, and New Mexico Magazine. He has just finished his radio series In the Footsteps of the Hermit and is now working on a column titled Habla Usted Spamglish?

In 2003, Larry Torres received a grant through the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to work with New Mexico State University on developing materials to aid in the teaching of first-generation Hispanic students. The grant's focus is on cultural sensitivity training and enhancement. Materials generated as part of this effort can be found online at http://cahedev.nmsu.edu/development/torres/ and http://diversity.nmsu.edu.