SANTA FE – State House Republicans today issued a letter to the NM Public Education Department (PED) opposing the new directive from the Lujan Grisham administration that would prevent local school districts from implementing 4-day school weeks. This top-down demand fails to recognize that 4-day school weeks are successful in promoting student achievements, as well as popular among parents, teachers, and rural communities. The NM PED is continuing to micromanage public schools by forcing “a one size fits all” approach that weakens community leadership of local school districts and is harmful to students.
“The Governor has New Mexico students lagging behind in every metric and instead of working with community advocates to improve student outcomes, her Education Department is again spearheading a blanket approach which has bred the failures we see in the current system,” said House Republican Leader Ryan Lane (Aztec). “New Mexicans are proud of their communities and very much involved in building successful localized education, which makes this top-down directive so worrying. We have seen the utter destruction that has been wrought on our children’s education by allowing Santa Fe to dictate education practices. We will wholeheartedly stand with the many New Mexican families who want Santa Fe politicians to get their hands off our children’s futures.”
The letter from the House Republican Caucus highlights the understanding that more must be done to foster a better performing education system while highlighting the crucial need for more family and community involvement to improve outcomes.
A public hearing on this proposed administrative rule is scheduled for Monday, December 18, 2023, from 1:30 – 2:30 pm in Mabry Hall located in the Jerry Apodaca Building in Santa Fe. Public comment will be accepted on this rule through December 18, 2023 via PED’s website.
The letter is attached to this release.
