UNM Gallup Graduate Completes First Internship With Gallup Police

UNM Gallup on November 12, 2025 recognized Amy Anderson, a recent criminal justice graduate, for completing a three month internship with the Gallup Police Department. The college and the police department held a celebration luncheon to honor Anderson and present her Certificate of Student Internship. The placement marks the first time a UNM Gallup student has completed an internship with the Gallup Police Department, and university officials described the experience as a model for future student placements.

The internship came about through faculty outreach and direct cooperation with the Gallup Police Department, according to the university news release. The structured field experience provided Anderson with on the job exposure to investigative procedures and day to day policing work that complements classroom learning. UNM Gallup staff praised the pilot placement, saying the internship “paved the way” for future collaborations between the campus and local justice agencies.

Anderson, who is from the Coyote Canyon chapter of the Navajo Nation, has stated career goals that include attending the police academy and pursuing detective work. Her interests also include addressing the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women in the region, an issue of acute concern for many families and communities across McKinley County and the broader Four Corners area. The internship gives her practical experience that she and university leaders say will strengthen that pathway.

University officials announced plans to expand similar partnerships to create more on the job experience for students. Proposed collaborators include the Gallup Police Department, the McKinley County Sheriff Office, state police, and local courts. Administrators framed these expansions as part of workforce development for local students, and as a way to build relationships between educational institutions and justice system employers.

The initiative carries several implications for McKinley County. For students it creates a clearer career pipeline from local higher education to employment in public safety. For law enforcement agencies it offers a source of recruits who have local ties and classroom training. For the community it raises questions and opportunities about how cultural competency, accountability, and investigative priorities are shaped by hands on training experiences. Strengthening institutional partnerships may help address staffing needs and improve community trust if training includes attention to Indigenous victim advocacy and transparency.

Local elected officials and agency leaders will weigh how to support and scale these partnerships through budgeting, oversight, and policy direction. As UNM Gallup moves to broaden on site placements, residents and civic stakeholders will have an opportunity to assess how such programs influence public safety practice and whether they meet community expectations for responsiveness and cultural sensitivity.