UNM-Gallup job fair connects 40 employers with local job seekers

About 40 employers filled Gurley Hall, turning UNM-Gallup's spring job fair into a live test of whether McKinley County jobs can keep local talent from leaving.

The event ran Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 705 Gurley Ave. in Gallup, in partnership with New Mexico Workforce Connection and the Greater Gallup Economic Development Corporation. The setup was built for immediate hiring: the flyer promised on-the-spot interviews and industry networking, while the keynote by Department of Workforce Solutions Cabinet Secretary Sarita Nair was set for 1:30 p.m. in SSTC 200, with light refreshments served during the keynote.

The employer mix mattered as much as the headcount. About 40 organizations from the Gallup-McKinley County region were expected, including private businesses, nonprofits and governmental agencies. That breadth suggested the county’s job demand was not concentrated in just one field but spread across the local economy, from public service to the private sector.

The fair also landed inside Economic Development Week, which the City of Gallup recognized from May 4-8. The observance, created by the International Economic Development Council, marked its 10th anniversary in 2026. Gallup-McKinley County Schools said the week’s events were meant to connect education, workforce and industry along the Route 66 corridor, reinforcing the idea that the job fair was part of a larger effort to build a local talent pipeline.

UNM-Gallup has used the format before. The campus hosted a similar job fair in May 2025, also during Economic Development Week, when Sarita Nair and Navajo Nation President Dr. Buu Nygren were keynote speakers. UNM-Gallup Chancellor Dr. Sabrina Ezzell said in 2025 that job fairs and partnerships with state agencies and local businesses benefit students, employers and the wider community.

That broader strategy also runs through UNM-Gallup’s Small Business Development Center, which the campus describes as an incubator for local entrepreneurship. In its Economic Development Week messaging, UNM-Gallup pointed to small businesses, retailers, service providers, artists, tradespeople, home-based entrepreneurs and family-owned companies as the local engines that keep dollars circulating and create opportunities close to home.

For McKinley County, the question is not whether the fair drew interest, but whether it turns into hires. With 40 employers in one room, the strongest demand was clearly for workers ready to interview, train and start fast. The bigger challenge is matching that demand to applicants who already have the skills local employers need, so the county can turn a one-day event into lasting jobs.