Ebetuel ‘Beto’ Pallares, investor-in-residence at New Mexico State University’s Arrowhead Center, has been named the Bill and Sharon Sheriff Endowed Chair in Entrepreneurship. Pallares succeeds Robert Macy, the first person to hold the chair.
Pallares was born in Juárez, Mexico, and raised in El Paso. He is the managing director and co-founder of Cowork Oasis, an innovation community for El Paso entrepreneurs, and is also an active high-tech early stage investor and university lecturer who conducts research on incubators and accelerators. He also serves on several corporate and venture fund advisory boards.
In 2006, he founded Joseph Advisory Services, an early stage venture capital and economic development advisory firm. He is also the sole general partner of Proficio Capital Management, an early stage fund. He is a Kauffman Fellow, as well as a Presidio Institute Cross Sector Leadership Fellow, and serves on the NMSU Intellectual Property Advisory Committee. Pallares received a bachelors degree in economics from Brandeis University in Massachusetts, and an MBA and a Ph.D. in international business strategy from the University of Texas at El Paso.
“It is an honor to serve as the Bill and Sharon Sheriff Endowed Chair in Entrepreneurship as it aligns with my intent of the chair, the university’s goals and my personal desire to impact the entrepreneurial landscape of the region,” Pallares said. “The creation of a chair in entrepreneurship speaks to the importance of aligning business skills with economic development and it is emblematic of the give-back mentality NMSU instills in its graduates.”
The chair in entrepreneurship was established by a 2013 gift of more than $1 million from business executive and NMSU alumnus Bill Sheriff and his wife, Sharon, who wanted to help the College of Business attract and reward faculty who would provide leadership and expertise in cultivating a spirit of entrepreneurship in New Mexico and develop resources to advance that goal in the state and region.
“Teaching is a something I enjoy and doing so at NMSU’s College of Business is both exciting and challenging; NMSU is known to produce high-quality graduates, driven by a caring and well-prepared faculty and a student population to match,” Pallares said. “I aspire to complement the educational experience of students studying entrepreneurship and to prepare them as they embark on their entrepreneurial journeys during and after NMSU.”
James Hoffman, dean of the NMSU College of Business, said Pallares experience will serve to enhance the quality of education the college provides its students.
“Beto brings tremendous experience in entrepreneurship and a commitment to student success. In his new role at the College of Business, he will help inspire our students and lead them to pursue greater opportunities in entrepreneurship, ” Hoffman said.
Pallares hopes that as chair, he will help expand entrepreneurship opportunities throughout the state by tapping into the region’s existing talent.
“The tools and methods that underlie entrepreneurial behavior can be taught, while the zeal to excel and build successful businesses needs to be nurtured and fostered. When it comes to entrepreneurship, few universities have successfully bridged classroom content to application in industry. The Bill and Sharon Sheriff Endowed Chair in Entrepreneurship will work with Arrowhead Center to ensure that New Mexico and the region have plenty of talent and opportunities whereby entrepreneurs can apply theory and practice,” Pallares said.
Author: Adriana M. Chavez – NMSU
