An educated populace is the cornerstone of sustainable democracy and the single most important driver of economic prosperity. Children and adults have a right to affordable, high-quality education that enables them to pursue the career of their choice and to participate meaningfully in our society. The state of New Mexico must fully fund an equitable system of education from pre-K to college or career and provide collaborative oversight of resources spent on public education alongside local educational authorities.

We Affirm

1. Public education is enriched by diversity of perspectives and informed by the communities it serves, including people of Hispanic descent, Indigenous people, immigrants, people with disabilities, people with gender-diverse identities, and people living at lower-income levels; and

2. High-quality education values the cultural and linguistic backgrounds of our students and provides opportunities to acquire additional understandings, perspectives, and skills that enhance their lives; and

3. Educational facilities at all levels of public education require sufficient funding to provide safe and supportive learning environments and adequate resources for all students and the educators who teach them; and

4. All educational personnel deserve compensation and opportunities for meaningful professional development; and

5. Evaluation of student, educator, and school achievement should be based on a wide range of information collected through processes that are transparent to all stakeholders and should not be limited to standardized test data; and

6. Advanced research at our universities contributes to local, state, national, and global competitiveness, and should be prioritized by New Mexico; and

7. Educational institutions should be fully prepared to respond to public health and safety emergencies while maintaining appropriate, safe, and accessible education for all students and safe working conditions for all staff.

We Will

1. Demand that the state fulfill its constitutional obligations dictated in the Yazzie/Martinez decision by providing equitable educational funding through an allocation of resources based on need, so all students can succeed regardless of where in New Mexico they live; and

2. Diversify and increase funding sources for public education; and

3. Equip all New Mexico communities with internet access and distance education technology; and

4. Provide free public early childhood, vocational, college, and university educations to all New Mexicans; and

5. Expand the funding and utilization of community schools in order to provide student and community supports for physical, mental, social, economic, and health needs; and

6. Support hiring more teachers to reduce class sizes to enable more effective student learning; and

7. Increase the salaries, benefits, and classroom resources for New Mexico educators to attract and retain highly qualified educational professionals; and

8. Identify and address the needs of incarcerated individuals by expanding access and opportunities to a variety of educational pathways, including GED, diploma, academic, and vocational programs; and

9. Include educators, parents, students, and community members in curricular discussions to promote learning environments that reflect the historically, culturally, and linguistically diverse needs of New Mexico’s multicultural communities; and

10. Create and celebrate learning environments that embrace the cultures, identities, languages, and heritages of all students through anti-racist/anti-bias curricula, professional development, staff training, and policies; and

11. Support LGBTQ+-inclusive classroom environments, curriculum, and comprehensive sex education; and

12. Implement culturally responsive policies at every level within our schools by providing training for all school staff, school board members, and students, and by applying best practices to lesson plans and school governance; and

13. Deny vouchers for private and religious schooling; and

14. Evaluate success and determine areas for improvement through collaborative, reflective processes that rely on a wide range of information and that focus on the entire educational environment of a school community; and

15. Incentivize training for high-need occupations and adapt curriculum and instruction to anticipate and meet the needs of an ever-evolving, future-focused economy; and

16. Fund programs to recruit and support local community members who want to become educators through university-based training, robust alternative-licensure programs, and significant high-quality mentorships; and

17. Support research efforts at state universities and colleges; and

18. Fund and support educational infrastructure and resources for public health and safety emergency preparedness and response.