Dr. Ken Van Winkle is currently the Branch Executive Director of New Mexico State University–Alamogordo. After graduating from Alamogordo High School in 1975, he attended West Texas A&M University, the University of North Texas, and earned his Doctorate of Musical Arts in trumpet performance from the University of Oregon in 1994. Dr. Van Winkle began his teaching career at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas in 1982 as the trumpet instructor and jazz ensemble director. In 1985 he was hired by New Mexico State University to lead the jazz ensemble and teach trumpet. In the late 1987 he became the director of the NMSU “Pride” marching band, a position he held for two years and then again from 2000 to 2005 with Dr. Greg Fant. He became Director of Bands in 1992 and conducted “Symphonic Winds” for the next 18 years. He was the Department Head of Music from 2007 to 2010.

Dr. Van Winkle served two terms as the college vice president of the New Mexico Music Educators Association and is a past president of the New Mexico Music Educators Association. In 2003 New Mexico Music Educators selected Dr. Van Winkle as Music Educator of the Year. As a performer, he played trumpet in the Amarillo, Wichita Falls, El Paso, and the Las Cruces Symphonies. As a conductor, he led NMSU “Symphonic Winds” for many concerts, recordings, and tours. His bands performed at the College Band Director National Association Convention (CBDNA) Regional Conference in Fort Worth, TX and again in 2010 as host of CBDNA on the NMSU campus. In 2005 Dr. Van Winkle was inducted into the American Bandmaster’s Association. In 2006 the band was selected as the feature ensemble at the National Band Festival Paipa, Colombia, and in 2009 the band recorded “Centra-Fuge” on Mark Records, the music of Charles Booker.

After 25 years as a music professor, Dr. Van Winkle began work as an Associate Dean in the College of Arts and Sciences at New Mexico State University. His responsibilities included development, strategic initiatives, assessment, annual performance reviews, accreditation, and academic program review. In addition, he supervised the Center for Latin and American Border Studies, he was responsible for faculty and staff awards, the 3-minute thesis competition for graduate students, and the College of Arts and Sciences Global Connections lecture series, and was the faculty advisor for the College of Arts and Sciences Student Ambassador program.