A statewide survey released Monday found that 68% of New Mexico respondents favor school choice, according to a report by Quantum Survey Group for Parents for School Options. Support was 74% among Republican respondents, 61% among Democrats and 69% among swing voters, and 56% backed having state and local funding follow students to the school of their choice. Whitney Holland, president of the American Federation of Teachers of New Mexico, said the question can be misleading. She argued that school choice in practice would move public education money to private schools through a voucher program, which could lead to less desirable schools being defunded and closed. Some districts already offer transfers, including a lottery in Santa Fe Public Schools with 984 seats available in 2025-26. Efforts to write school choice into state law have stalled in recent years.
The New Mexico Public Education Department announced that more than 75,000 students in kindergarten through third grade will receive over 750,000 books during the 2026-27 school year as part of a new at-home literacy initiative. Teachers will create individualized literacy plans based on students' reading assessments and progress, sending families updates and reading materials four times during the year. Districts will begin distributing "Take-Everywhere Literacy Packs" in November. The packs, developed by Just Right Reader, include leveled books, writing activities and video phonics lessons available through QR codes in English, Spanish and more than a dozen other languages. The initiative is part of the state's implementation of the 2026 High-Quality Literacy Instruction Act. Public Education Cabinet Secretary Mariana Padilla said families want to know how their children are doing and what they can do to help.
The U.S. Department of Education announced Monday that it has opened investigations into the Albuquerque and Santa Fe Public Schools, examining whether their gender identity policies violate federal student privacy laws. The department says an Albuquerque social worker was prevented from sharing gender identity information with parents under the district's non-discrimination rule. It also cites parent reports in Santa Fe of "gender support plans" used without their consent. Albuquerque Public Schools says its policies adhere to FERPA guidelines and that it will respond through the appropriate channels. Santa Fe Public Schools says it has not been notified of an investigation and requires parental consent for changes to a student's name or gender marker in official records.
A New Mexico judge has ruled that the state's Yazzie/Martinez remedial action plan, submitted by the Public Education Department (PED), is not comprehensive because it does not address all previous court orders. Judge Matthew Wilson also identified gaps, including class sizes, textbook funding and summer school programs. Rather than ordering a full rewrite as the plaintiffs requested, he ordered PED to file a supplement by March 25, 2027, that connects its actions to every constitutional violation in past orders and explains how to measure success. PED and the plaintiffs both praised parts of the order, though the plaintiffs' attorney expressed concern that the agency would produce the revision without stakeholder input. Advocates see the timeline as an opening to work with incoming Gov.-elect Deb Haaland's administration.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Wednesday that the state will opt in to the federal Scholarship Tax Credit program, created in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The program lets taxpayers claim a federal credit of up to
,700 a year for donations to nonprofit scholarship-granting organizations, which award scholarships to K-12 students in public and non-public schools for expenses such as tutoring and special education. The program takes effect Jan. 1, 2027, and the Public Education Department will set up a certification process in the coming weeks. Republican state Rep. Rebecca Dow and state Sen. Gabriel Ramos praised the move. Teacher unions called it a betrayal and a voucher scheme, and Sen. William Soules and New Mexico Voices for Children also opposed it.
Albuquerque Public Schools held the first of 14 community meetings on possible school closures at Cibola High School on Monday, and many of the roughly 50 attendees said they left with more questions than answers. The district says all schools are being considered as it "right-sizes" to a student population that has dropped by more than 22,000 in the last decade, though no schools have been selected for closure. A third party will review feedback from the meetings, and APS expects to announce a decision in March or April. Some parents said they want more data and clearer communication, and parent Kimberly Brawley asked the district to acknowledge that some families have moved their children to charter, private or homeschool education. The next meeting is Thursday, Oct. 22, at 6 p.m. in the Del Norte High School cafeteria.
New Mexico voters will pick candidates for two seats on the Public Education Commission in the Nov. 3 general election. The commission approves public charter schools and oversees the more than 100 currently operating in the state. In District 3, which covers western Albuquerque, Democratic incumbent Jacob Trujillo, appointed in June, faces Forward Party challenger Dennis Dinge. In District 7, which covers Doña Ana County and part of Otero County, Republican John Foreman and a Democrat will compete for the open seat, since Democrat Patricia Gipson is not running again. The candidates shared their views on charter school access, rural options, federal funding and the Yazzie/Martinez case.
Three proposed amendments to the New Mexico Constitution will appear on the Nov. 3 general election ballot. Constitutional Amendment 1 would require governors to explain vetoes in writing, and a bill would become law if the governor does not act on it. Constitutional Amendment 2 would remove the requirement that school elections be held in odd-numbered years, allowing them on general election ballots. Supporters, including Sen. Linda Trujillo, say this would ease the burden on schools, while opponents argue it could politicize school elections and reduce the voting power of teachers and school staff. Constitutional Amendment 3 would have a nominating committee select pools of university regent candidates from which the governor must choose. A fourth amendment, on lawmakers' salaries, will be covered separately.
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