Retired Army brigadier general named NMSU Physical Science Laboratory deputy director

DATE: 10/23/2019
WRITER: Adriana M. Chavez, 575-646-1957, adchavez@nmsu.edu

Retired Army Brig. Gen. and New Mexico native Eric Sanchez has been named deputy director of the Physical Science Laboratory at New Mexico State University.

His first day as PSL deputy director was Oct. 22.

“PSL has a great reputation and is loaded with talented people. I’m honored to be part of this great organization,” Sanchez said.

Sanchez retired from the military after 35 years of service. He led White Sands Missile Range from August 2016 up until his retirement, overseeing the Department of Defense’s largest fully-instrumented open air range, which provides the U.S.’s Armed Forces, allies, partners and defense technology innovators with the world’s premiere research, development, test and evaluation; experimentation; and training facilities to ensure defense readiness. There are more than 5,000 missions conducted annually at WSMR.

“Brig. Gen. Sanchez is just the kind leader that PSL needs moving forward,” said PSL Director Jim Chavez. “He has a great understanding of our mission and our customers, and he is a very strategic thinker. He will help PSL and the university achieve the LEADS 2025 goals.”

“I’m very pleased with our new leadership team at PSL. They have hit the ground running and there’s no shortage of innovative, exciting things happening there right now,” said NMSU Chancellor Dan Arvizu.

Sanchez, who grew up in Santa Fe, is a 1987 NMSU distinguished military graduate and his wife, Teresa, is from Mesilla, New Mexico. The couple met while attending NMSU.

Sanchez’s military education includes the Air Defense Artillery basic and advance courses, the Combined Arms and Services Staff School and the Command and General Staff College. He earned Masters of Science degrees from Central Michigan University and the Naval War College in Rhode Island.

While in the Army, Sanchez had 32 years of active-duty service, including five operational deployments with time in the Middle East and the Republic of Korea.

Before taking command of White Sands in 2016, Sanchez served in Hawaii as a commanding general for the 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command.