The Hunt Center for Entrepreneurship

Program Overview

The Hunt Center for Entrepreneurship at Arrowhead Center, made possible through generous gifts from the Hunt Family Foundation, strengthens the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem by fostering innovation, supporting new ventures, and expanding access to capital for business growth.

Eligibility

We serve student and community entrepreneurs across the Borderplex region, providing resources, mentorship, and opportunities to access capital that help transform innovative ideas into sustainable businesses.

Contact Information

Carlos Murguia

Director, Hunt Center for Entrepreneurship
cmurguia@nmsu.edu

Leveraging and Growing Collaboration in the Borderplex region

The Hunt Center for Entrepreneurship

In October of 2023, the Woody and Gale Hunt Family Foundation announced a transformative $2.5 million gift to Arrowhead Center, building upon a groundbreaking $2.5 million contribution received in 2017. This substantial investment underscores the Hunt Family Foundation's resolute commitment to empowering entrepreneurship, fostering innovation, and driving economic prosperity.

Hunt Center Annual Report

Metrics

424

Studio G Active Participants

288

Pathway Completers

187

Training Events

Active Sites

31+

Founders & Entrepreneurs Across Sprint Cohorts

Hack NMSU Students Across Four Disciplines

Desert Dev Lab Teams — NMSU Placed 1st & 2nd

80+

Negotium Participants Across Partner Institutions

AI Co-Workers Sprint

Build practical AI systems that work alongside your startup team. The AI Co-Workers Sprint helps founders and entrepreneurs use modern AI tools to create reliable, repeatable workflows for their businesses.

Applications close October 16, 2026

Program runs October 27 through December 1, 2026.

Apply Now

ACCESS TO ENTREPRENEURSHIP

STUDENT ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Entrepreneurship education and practice have undeniably positive impacts on students’ academic and career outcomes. Students benefit not only from building real ventures and the mobility those can bring, but also from practicing widely applicable skills: creative problem-solving, framing challenges as opportunities, and communicating effectively about their ideas.

ACCESS TO CAPITAL

Access to capital is a crucial element for the growth and sustainability of any entrepreneurship ecosystem. Adequate capital helps entrepreneurs turn ideas into ventures by funding hires, equipment, and other needs. Without it, promising ideas may never launch. Strong access to capital fuels economic growth, job creation, and innovation.

The Hunt Center Regional AI Readiness Initiative

Helps entrepreneurship-support organizations across the Borderplex build practical AI capabilities, improve operations and expand their capacity to serve entrepreneurs and startups. Potential applications include grant research, knowledge management, program administration, communications and reporting. Supported by the Woody and Gayle Hunt Family Foundation

Details

Our Team

Carlos Murguia

Director, Hunt Center for Entrepreneurship

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Carlos Cuesta

Studio G Director

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Alejandro Najera-Acosta

Program Manager

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Rodrigo Fuentes

Entrepreneur in Residence

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Daniel Jones

Entrepreneur in Residence

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Jerry Prochazka

AI Consultant in Residence

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Hunt Center

Student Success Stories

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Group photo of people standing outside a building with large glass windows, several wearing matching purple shirts and name tags.

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Student Success

Pantry.ai First Place at Desert Dev Lab

Two teams of New Mexico State University students earned top honors at the 2026 Desert Dev Lab Hackathon, a statewide competition held in Albuquerque on April 18 and 19th.

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Innovation

Concrete Coders Open Innovation winner at Hack NMSU

A team of New Mexico State University civil engineering students, competing as Concrete Coders, took first place in the Open Innovation category at Hack NMSU.

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Entrepreneurship

Hormona winner at the campus Hult Prize qualifier and participation at West Nationals

The Hunt Center for Entrepreneurship at New Mexico State University hosted the 2025 Hult Prize Pitch Competition on Oct. 30.

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Student Experience

Green Audit Pro first, SCOPE second, and SmartLPBF third at the April 2026 Bold Idea Challenge

The Nusenda Fintech Lab at New Mexico State University’s Arrowhead Center hosted its Bold Idea Challenge on April 24, 2026.

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Student Success

Pantry.ai First Place at Desert Dev Lab

Two teams of New Mexico State University students earned top honors at the 2026 Desert Dev Lab Hackathon, a statewide competition held in Albuquerque on April 18 and 19th.

Read Story →

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