HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 5

54th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2020

INTRODUCED BY

Rebecca Dow and Javier Martínez and Raymundo Lara and

Gabriel Ramos

 

 

 

 

A JOINT MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE LEGISLATIVE EDUCATION STUDY COMMITTEE AND THE LEGISLATIVE FINANCE COMMITTEE TO CONVENE A WORKING GROUP OF EDUCATORS TO DEVELOP A CULTURAL AND LINGUISTIC RELEVANCE INDEX AND PROGRAM UNITS.

 

     WHEREAS, the consolidated court case Martinez and Yazzie v. State of New Mexico was a watershed moment for public education in New Mexico, finding as it did that the state's public education system violates the education clause of the constitution of New Mexico and fails English language learners, particularly Native American English language learners, and other at-risk students, including special education students and economically disadvantaged students; and

     WHEREAS, it appears that the 2019 legislative educational funding increases were primarily for teacher raises rather than specific programmatic changes to address the court's ruling on Martinez and Yazzie v. State of New Mexico; and

     WHEREAS, the 2019 legislative session also saw the beginning of phasing out small school size adjustment funding, with a twenty percent decrease in those program units; and

     WHEREAS, many rural and charter schools that serve high populations of Martinez and Yazzie v. State of New Mexico designated students actually received less money in 2019, after the court's decision, than they had in 2018; and

     WHEREAS, blanket increases in the at-risk index actually widen the equity gap for charter schools, which are required to use the school district's at-risk index regardless of their own student demographics; and

     WHEREAS, some rural and charter schools have worked over the last year to collect and analyze school data based on designated student population factors as defined in Martinez and Yazzie v. State of New Mexico and applied it to the demographic data reported by the public education department; and

     WHEREAS, those participating in the formula work believe that their findings and proposed funding formula changes address myriad educational issues for school districts and charter schools;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the legislative education study committee and the legislative finance committee be requested to convene a representative group of school districts and charter schools that have significant populations of at-risk students, including those rural school districts and charter schools that worked on funding formula changes during the last year and including appropriate public education department personnel, to study refinements to the funding formula; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the group consider a "cultural and linguistic responsive index" that would generate funding for required additional resources to individual public schools that serve a higher-than-state-average number of economically disadvantaged, Native American and Hispanic English language learners and class C and D special education students; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the group report to the legislative education study committee, the legislative finance committee and the public education department by November 1, 2020; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the directors of the legislative education study committee and legislative finance committee and the secretary of public education.

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