Curtis Hayes is Chair of the Department of Criminal Justice and Chemical Dependency at WNMU. He has taught at WNMU since 1993. Curtis’ teaching load includes criminal justice courses for degree bound students and law related topics in the WNMU Police Academy. He is the faculty advisor to the Criminal Justice Club and WNMU’s chapter of Alpha Phi Sigma, a national honor society for criminal justice students.

Prior to becoming a full-time educator, Curtis practiced law in New Mexico for ten years, primarily as a prosecutor. He was a public defender for one year and served as general counsel for Grant County, New Mexico for one year.

Curtis is active in the community and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Restorative Justice Community Center, a non-profit organization whose purpose is to infuse restorative justice principles and practices into the criminal justice and juvenile justice systems in southwest New Mexico. He served as a founding member of the Grant County Teen Court which was the first Teen Court in New Mexico. He wrote the policy and procedure manual that has served as the model for other teen court programs in the state. He also served as a founding member of Southwest Advocates for Kids which operates the CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) program, two residential centers for displaced youth, and the Access and Visitation program in Grant, Luna, and Hidalgo counties.

Curtis holds a B.A. in Political Science and a J.D. from the University of Utah. He enjoys backpacking, camping, hiking, and geocaching. He is the proud owner of a 1948 Ford 8N tractor. His wife, Mary Lynne Newell, currently serves as the District Attorney for the Sixth Judicial District. They have two children.