Stan Hanssen’s long and distinguished career in the scales manufacturing industry brought him to Las Cruces, NM, in 1982 to establish Metro Corporation. Shortly after their arrival, he and his wife Jeanne decided to adopt New Mexico State University as their honorary alma mater. According to Stan, that decision was based on the fact that each of them graduated from highly-endowed Big Ten universities and gifts they would make to NMSU could have a much greater impact.

Their first gift established a scholarship endowment in the College of Business in memory of their son James who passed away in 1985 at the age of 31. In the intervening twenty years, they have supported a number of programs in the college and many programs across campus. “We believe in education,” Stan states, “and we want to help students get their degrees.”

Stan served two terms on the NMSU Foundation Board, chairing the investment committee from 1997-98. He has also played an active role in establishing boards of directors for other non-profit foundations in Las Cruces as well as serving on the boards of many state and local civic organizations.

Stan’s career in the scales industry took the family to many parts of the world. They lived in Ireland for 14 years. That whetted their appetites for world travel and Stan’s list of countries visited numbers 65 including four trips to China.

New Mexico State University Foundation honored the Hanssens with the Branding Iron award in 1994 and the university awarded them honorary degrees in 1996. Stan has also received a number of awards for his contributions to the scales industry and been named a distinguished alumnus from his academic alma mater, the University of Illinois.