UNM Salsa Showdown returns Oct. 16

The University of New Mexico's annual Salsa Showdown returns Wednesday, Oct. 16 from noon to 2 p.m. in the Student Union Building Atrium and Smith Plaza.

The signature event is part of the university's annual UNM Gives campaign, which has partnered with the United Way of North Central New Mexico for nearly 30 years. The Salsa Showdown is a friendly competition, bringing faculty, staff and students together to see who can has the best salsa recipe. This year's showdown will expand outdoors, featuring interactive carnival-like booths hosted by student organizations with Boba tea available from Bing Tea.

The event is hosted by UNM Food and UNM Parking & Transportation Services (UNM PATS). Submitted recipes are prepared by UNM Food, and UNM PATS will offer prizes including a year of free parking.

Attendees can also participate in the launch of "Lobo Paws," a campus initiative aimed at supporting community causes. For $1, participants can purchase a Lobo Paw, which serves as a game token and is added to a growing display representing UNM's collective impact.

This is the first time students are spearheading the event, which has historically been driven by faculty and staff. This shift underscores how students contribute beyond academics, playing an active role in building stronger communities and modeling UNM's values of service, leadership and social responsibility.

The inaugural Salsa Showdown in 2019 was a huge draw generating excitement for the UNM Gives United Way campaign. More than 200 people attended the inaugural event, in-person event and cast more than 700 votes for the 20+ entries. The winner was determined by popular vote.

After the success of the 2019 event and despite the health guidelines following the pandemic, UNM Gives United Way campaign organizers were determined to host the event in 2020 and figured out a fun way to conduct the event with the Grab N' Go concept.

The event is free and open to the campus community.

For more information, visit UNM Gives.