Stepping Out of the Silos

Bob Hitchcock and Melinda Kelly’s cash and estate gifts support progress for human and Indigenous rights.                 

By Michelle G. McRuiz

When people who look at the world from an optimistic perspective become donors, they gain the potential to create significant change. Dr. Robert (Bob) Hitchcock (MA ’77, PhD ’82) and Melinda Kelly, through their interest in promoting the rights of Indigenous people in New Mexico, have done just that. In 2022 they made a cash gift to establish The Hitchcock-Kelly Fund for Human and Indigenous Peoples’ Rights at UNM. This endowment fulfills their intention to support collaboration between the Anthropology and Native American Studies Departments.

“Academic departments tend to work in silos in universities,” says Dr. Tiffany Lee, chair and professor of the Native American Studies Department. “Bob and Melinda provided this incredible opportunity to collaborate with the Anthropology Department. Their 2022 gift enabled both departments to think through what we mean by Indigenous human rights and whose stories and research are important to share.”

Bringing a Vision to Life

As a result of the Hitchcock-Kelly Fund, the Native American Studies Department and the Anthropology Department teamed up for an inaugural event in April 2023. They brought Dr. S. James Anaya to the UNM campus to speak about human rights, Indigenous people, and human dignity. Anaya is a Harvard Law School alumnus, a University Distinguished Professor, and the Nicholas Doman Professor of International Law at the University of Colorado Law School. He served as the Former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples from 2008 to 2014 and has taught and published widely on the topic of Indigenous rights.

“I worked with James Anaya in Botswana and Namibia in the past,” says Bob, who has done ethnographic research and human rights work for the San (Bushmen) people of southern Africa—particularly in Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe—for nearly 50 years. “He spoke about human rights and Indigenous people in a very innovative way, through legal cases and his work with the United Nations and in local communities.”

On April 24, 2024, Native American Studies and Anthropology co-presented the Indigenous Human Rights, Environmental Justice, and Place Conference. The idea for this kind of summit had long been simmering for Bob and Melinda as well as for Dr. Lee and Dr. Keith Hunley, chair and professor of the Anthropology Department.

“We wanted to have a conference that brought in people who work with Indigenous people and their human rights,” Melinda says.

“At the conference community leaders plus faculty and students from UNM Law, Community and Regional Planning, Native American Studies, and Anthropology discussed an array of topics related to human rights and environmental justice—including resource extraction technologies, biodiversity, environmental impacts, cultural resources, and tribal sovereignty,” Dr. Hunley says. “The goal was to establish productive and enduring partnerships within the broader UNM community and with local communities in New Mexico and the greater Southwest region.

“We absolutely accomplished these goals,” he continues. “Bob and Melinda share our deep personal and professional commitment to promoting human and Indigenous peoples’ rights, and we’re so grateful to them for making this wonderful event possible.”

Planning for the Future

Bob and Melinda have increased the impact of their cash gift by including the endowment in their estate plan. This blended gift will further support the progress being made by the Hitchcock-Kelly Fund.

“We are thinking about how best to support students, especially those who want to pursue Indigenous rights, as well as new faculty,” says Bob. “We appreciate what the two departments have done. We’re seeing dynamism and new ideas and students who want to know more about Indigenous rights, and that’s really encouraging.”

“The departments are off to a very good start, and we look forward to seeing what happens next,” Melinda adds.