FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 1, 2025

Contact:
Paloma Mexika, paloma@nmpovertylaw.org, 505-305-2559
Meryl Chee, meryl@transformeducationnm.org, 505-918-0404

Families and Education Advocates Outraged as PED’s Hidden Plans Reveal Years of Inaction

Trust betrayed, futures stolen, and taxpayer dollars wasted. Our students can’t afford more broken promises

Albuquerque, NM — Today, as New Mexico’s Public Education Department (PED) was legally required to produce a draft plan in response to the Yazzie/Martinez v. State of New Mexico lawsuit, Transform Education NM (TENM), Tribal Education Alliance (TEA), the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty (NMCLP) and community members expressed shock, disappointment, and outrage at the news that the PED held potential solutions sitting unused for years while dismissing community demands.

Anonymous PED staff came forward to confirm what families, educators, and advocates have long experienced: a “lack of leadership, lack of urgency, and lack of ownership” at the PED.

“We have a duty to protect and advocate for our children and their futures,” said Melissa Candelaria, education director and Yazzie counsel, NMCLP. “PED has continued a disturbing pattern of dismissing community expertise, delaying action, and prioritizing bureaucracy over student needs. Families, educators, tribal leaders, and students have poured in precious time, energy, and shared their vision–only to be left in the dark, still waiting on a plan to transform the state’s education system. Taxpayer dollars and community effort have been misused while generations of children have been denied the education they deserve. This is a moral failure of staggering proportions and cannot be swept under the rug.”

“We’ve tried to engage with PED in good faith, hoping to deliver justice and opportunity for our students. We were promised this time would be different than before. We again shared our knowledge, our stories, our expertise, our hopes–only to be disappointed again. This time is no different — once again we have been lied to and dismissed,” said Wilhelmina Yazzie, parent advocate and lead plaintiff. “This is a deep betrayal of our trust. Our children’s rights, dignity, and future cannot be ignored or delayed any longer. Families, educators, and tribes deserve transparency and accountability.”

Over seven years and $1.6 billion spent, New Mexico’s students — particularly those who are Native American, English learners, from low-income families, have disabilities, as well as students of color — continue to face systemic inequities. Today’s revelations, reported by the Santa Fe New Mexican, confirm what families and educators have long suspected: while PED claimed to be developing solutions, these plans sat in inboxes, unimplemented, shortchanging kids and families of resources and opportunities that help students succeed.

Families and community advocates have repeatedly provided comprehensive guidance, frameworks, and input to inform a meaningful plan, including the Tribal Remedy Framework (TRF), the Plaintiffs’ Nine Components, and TENM’s community-driven Platform for Action and Freedom to Dream report. These contributions have largely been ignored, dismissed, or discarded – a continuation of systemic racism, broken trust, and institutional betrayal.

“What we are seeing is not just a delay, it is a clear pattern of deception, inaction, and systemic neglect. Families were promised change and asked to trust the process that has continually failed them – all while solutions sat in inboxes. ” said Loretta Trujillo, Executive Director, TENM. “The reality is, PED has failed to act on plans and solutions already in hand. In order for New Mexico to achieve true transformational change, we must work in partnership with our youth and communities, and stop relying on sources outside New Mexico to create and implement a plan for our students. The solutions lie in our communities, in our people, our voices and our lived experiences.”

“Guided by our core values and for the sake of our children, we re-engaged with PED, hoping for progress – only to be misled again. Hidden plans, constant leadership turnover at PED, and repeated dismissals reveal deep systemic dysfunction within the department. For tribes, this unacceptable pattern only perpetuates the legacy of broken promises at the expense of our children.” said Regis Pecos, Chair, TEA. “It’s deeply emotional — being caught in a pattern of betrayal, where our communities have paid a tremendous price for the PED’s failure for years. These inactions epitomize the underpinnings of a long history of systemic racism and institutional discrimination against Native people. Like our ancestors before us, for the sake of our children and for future generations and ultimately for the well-being of our communities, we will not give up. We cannot afford to give up. We will fight and not back down from this injustice.”

Our coalition affirms that state legislators have acted in good faith — collaborating with communities, increasing funding, and championing reforms. But without transparency, collaboration, and accountability from PED, even the best-intentioned legislation cannot succeed. Legislators have been left to act piecemeal, pouring effort and resources into fixes without clear guidance or a comprehensive plan from PED. It’s like being asked to steer a ship without a compass — every turn risks wasting resources and losing momentum. PED has the responsibility to provide a coherent roadmap; without it, students and families are the ones who pay the price.

Reviewing the Draft Plan:

The 2025 draft was included in a status report filed to the court on Wednesday. NMCLP received it and is currently reviewing with community experts, parents, and educators. Its contents have not yet been fully assessed.

“We are reviewing the draft to ensure it centers equity, culture, and community expertise. So far, what we’ve seen is deeply disappointing–it is vague, lacks clear reflection of stakeholder input, and once again left communities without a meaningful chance to shape it,” said Alisa Diehl, member of the Yazzie legal team, NMCLP. “We are committed to a transparent review process because New Mexicans deserve accountability. Our communities hold the wisdom and solutions this state needs, and our students cannot afford another delay or half-measure. The state must deliver a plan that honors its obligations to our children.”

“Since the Yazzie/Martinez decision, there have been multiple, extensive efforts to gather input from parents and advocates of students with disabilities, to identify key problems with the system of special education in our state, including listening sessions by both NMPED and the LESC, a two year-long Special Education Transformation Team, and a working group focused on reducing restraint and seclusion,” said Laurel Nesbitt, senior attorney, Disability Rights New Mexico (DRNM). “Disability advocates are deeply concerned that the previous draft plans and the current plan ignore this informed input and fail to address the real challenges facing students with disabilities. These insights cannot continue to be sidelined if New Mexico is serious about equity and justice for all students.”

Recent community input sessions led by the coalition gathered hundreds of responses, with families naming culturally and linguistically relevant curriculum, stronger special education services, and better support for educators as urgent priorities, as well as many others.

The coalition will release its full findings, analysis, and community feedback once the review is complete and will continue to push for a plan that is actionable, inclusive, and grounded in the lived experiences of the students it is meant to serve.

Community Action and Next Steps:

Statewide community accountability and review events will begin next week, giving parents, students, educators, and tribal leaders the chance to assess the latest draft, respond to hidden plans, and demand a plan that truly reflects lived experience, cultural values, and community standards.

The coalition is demanding a plan that:

• Centers students’ rights and needs — generations of families have endured dismissal, deception, and denial of rights.
• Incorporates parent, student, educator, and tribal input — years of expertise and lived experience must guide every step.
• Provides concrete, actionable steps — the community is ready to review the plan to ensure it delivers real results, not more empty promises.
• Restores trust and accountability — PED cannot continue to waste taxpayer dollars and the precious time of students.

“It is exhausting and unfair that we, as students, are pressured to figure out every step of our futures while our state keeps giving us half-measures, dismissive plans or lies altogether,” said Andrés Uribe, a youth advocate and senior at New Mexico State University, who was in middle school when the Yazzie-Martinez trial began. “Young people have been ignored for years, excluded from meaningful collaboration with our public institutions, and our needs keep getting overlooked. But we’re not giving up. Our education, our culture, our wellbeing matter. Everyone should be watching what PED does next–and what they actually deliver for us in the coming months.”