Welcoming Effie Hernandez as Native American Student Services Coordinator

The Office of Equity and Inclusion is pleased to announce that Effie Hernandez will be joining the Student Affairs team as the Native American Student Services Coordinator, starting June 17. Effie will serve as the main point of contact for current, new, and prospective Native students. She will also serve as the chair for Indigenous People’s Day and Native American Heritage Month and will provide outreach in the form of K-12 education initiatives, career days, and other events to Native American Communities.

Effie received her Bachelor’s from the University of Idaho, recently completed her Master’s from Idaho State University, and has been working in higher education for the last eight years. In southeast Idaho, she assisted with admissions, recruitment, and multicultural outreach efforts. At the University of Idaho, Effie was assistant director of recruitment for three years. She then went to the College of Eastern Idaho (CEI) to become the recruiter and career placement coordinator before creating her new role as multicultural coordinator. In this latter role, Effie was in charge of hosting cultural events and committees to enhance awareness of the campus and Idaho Falls community. During this time, Effie also earned her Indigenous Leadership Academy-American Indian Policy Institute certificate from Arizona State University in the Fall 2023 cohort. Throughout her tenure in higher education, Effie has served in various roles on the Idaho Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (IACRAO) board, Idaho Indian Education Committee representative, Hispanic Youth Leadership Committee member, and on campus committees. 

In her spare time, Effie loves being with family and friends, and she is looking forward to being closer to home to connect more with her native roots and tribal community. Effie is also excited about keeping up with her beading projects and describes herself as a proud cat mom who loves dogs equally.  Effie has shared that she is very pleased about this opportunity to join the Idaho State Student Affairs team because she has a personal connection with ISU. She is excited to join the Bengal Family and get the opportunity to work with everyone on campus. 

Equity and Inclusion and Student Affairs invite their colleagues to join them in welcoming Effie to the team. Her office will be in the Native American Student Services Center in the Rendezvous Center, Room 301.