New Mexico

Overview

During the 2021-2022 school year, New Mexico preschool enrolled 12,567 children, an increase of 2,179 from the prior year, as the program began to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. State spending totaled $86,332,565 and an additional $17,600,000 in TANF funds supported the program, up $3,550,991 (4%), adjusted for inflation since last year. State spending per child equaled $8,270 in 2021-2022, down $1,393 from 2020-2021, adjusted for inflation. New Mexico met 9 of 10 quality standards benchmarks.

What's New

In December 2022, New Mexico was awarded a federal Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B–5) renewal grant for $10 million. PDG B–5 will address the Early Childhood Education and Care Department’s (ECECD) six focus areas: updating the comprehensive needs assessment, implementing local early childhood coalitions’ strategic plans, maximizing family engagement, supporting the workforce to expand language immersion early child care and education programs in Tribal communities, redesigning the states QRIS, and enhancing quality through subgrants. 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, structured classroom quality observations were conducted virtually in 2020-2021, but observational requirements returned to normal in 2021-2022 in all settings. There was a mix of in-person and remote instruction during the 2020- 2021 school year and fall 2021. While the due dates for completing child development and health screenings were more flexible during the 2020-2021 school year, the timeline was not waived for 2021- 2022. 

During 2021-2022, NM PreK programs struggled to meet full funded enrollment initially. Enrollment started to increase by the end of the school year. NM PreK parity for teachers in community-based programs helped retain staff and provided an incentive for teachers to attain higher credentials.

Background

NM PreK launched in the 2005-2006 school year with the enactment of the PreK Act. With the passage of the New Mexico Early Childhood Education and Care Act (2019), the program is now administered by ECECD which funds and monitors NM PreK programs provided through school districts, and those operated by community-based organizations and other eligible providers. ECECD partners with the New Mexico Public Education Department (PED) for the day-to-day operations and oversight of PreK programs in public schools. In the 2021-2022 school year, 93% of school districts offered NM PreK. 

NM PreK funding is awarded through a competitive grant process, with priority given to programs in communities with public elementary schools designated as Title I. Two-thirds of enrolled children at each program site must live in the attendance zone of a Title I elementary school, though eligibility is not determined by family income. 

The number of hours and days per week vary by program, with a minimum of 450 hours per year. In 2014-2015, the legislature provided limited funding for an extended-day PreK pilot to double the instructional hours to 900 per school year. In 2021-2022, almost 89% of all children enrolled were in school-day PreK. Some private or nonprofit facilities use child care subsidy dollars for wraparound care to assist parents who qualify, or to offer reduced rates for private pay. PreK programs in public schools can extend the day using operational dollars or Title I funds.

New Mexico PreK

Access

Some Head Start children may also be counted in state pre-K. Estimates children in special education not also enrolled in state pre-K or Head Start.
Total state pre-K enrollment	12,567
School districts that offer state program	93%
Income requirement	No income requirement
Minimum hours of operation	3 hours/day; 5 days/week
Operating schedule	Determined locally
Special education enrollment, ages 3 and 4	2,743
Federally funded Head Start enrollment, ages 3 and 4	6,235
State-funded Head Start enrollment, ages 3 and 4	0

Resources

Pre-K programs may receive additional funds from federal or local sources that are not included in this figure. K–12 expenditures include capital spending as well as current operating expenditures. Head Start per-child spending includes funding only for 3- and 4-year-olds.