As New Mexico prepares for a historic new chapter with the election of Deb Haaland as the nation’s first Native American woman governor, the Court’s latest order underscores the work still ahead to fulfill the State’s constitutional responsibility to every student.
SANTA FE, N.M. — More than eight years after a landmark court ruling in Yazzie/Martinez v. State of New Mexico found that New Mexico violated students’ constitutional right to a sufficient education, the State has yet to demonstrate that it has addressed those violations. In a November 2 court order, the First Judicial District Court found that the New Mexico Public Education Department’s (PED) nearly 200-page remedial action plan is not comprehensive and that PED has failed to comply with the Court’s order requiring a plan that addresses the constitutional violations identified in this case.
The Yazzie/Martinez lawsuit was brought on behalf of Native American students, English learners, students with disabilities and students from low-income families, whose educational needs the State was found to have failed to adequately meet.
The Court identified significant gaps in the State’s plan, including its failure to adequately address smaller class sizes, programs to prevent learning loss over school breaks, the teacher evaluation system, and funding for textbooks. The Court ordered PED to supplement its plan by March 26, 2027, explaining how the State has addressed or will address these and other deficiencies, and identifying measures to assess whether those actions have been achieved.
PED must also provide a clear, comprehensive overview explicitly connecting the actions in its original plan and its supplement to every relevant issue, constitutional violation, and injunction identified in the Court’s previous decisions and orders. The Court also warned that PED’s failure to comply with this latest order may result in sanctions.
The Court set April 23, 2027, as the deadline for the plaintiffs to file objections to PED’s supplement and overview.
Although the Court agreed that PED’s plan is not comprehensive and does not fully address the State’s constitutional obligations, it did not require PED to work with the Plaintiffs’ education experts or meaningfully involve students, families, school districts, Tribes, and communities in developing its supplement. Nor did it require an analysis of the resources needed to implement the plan. The Plaintiffs are disappointed that PED will have another opportunity to revise its plan without the benefit of this expertise and input.
However, the Court’s order also presents an important opportunity for Governor-elect Deb Haaland and her incoming administration to take a different approach. “With a new administration comes an opportunity to take a more collaborative approach—one that brings the State and Plaintiffs together to resolve this case and develop a plan that meets the State’s obligations and delivers the resources and support students deserve,” said Melissa Candelaria, Education Director and Yazzie counsel with the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty. “Rather than continuing with piecemeal revisions, the incoming administration can help forge a lasting solution grounded in the expertise of the students, families, Tribes, educators, and communities most affected. We look forward to working with Governor-elect Deb Haaland and her administration to make that happen.”
In May 2025, the Court found that the State was still not meeting students’ constitutional obligations and directed PED to develop a comprehensive plan identifying the changes needed to bring the State into compliance. [Read the Court’s May 2025 order.] PED submitted its plan in November 2025. The Yazzie and Martinez plaintiffs challenged the plan earlier this year, arguing that it left out key requirements from the Court’s previous orders and did not provide a clear path to meeting students’ constitutional right to a sufficient education. Importantly, the plan did not address the shortcomings identified by New Mexico education experts in their analyses of PED’s proposal. [Read the plaintiffs’ objections to PED’s plan.]
“I appreciate the Court’s thoughtful consideration to hold the State accountable and provide explicit guidance consistent with the plaintiff’s arguments. This order gives New Mexico an important opportunity to change course. The incoming administration has a chance to take full responsibility for this work and lead in a fundamentally different way—through genuine cooperation with Tribes, families, educators and communities,” said Regis Pecos, Chair of the Tribal Education Alliance. “The future of our children depends on whether we are willing to listen to those who know them best and make the changes necessary to support their education. I am encouraged by the prospect of new leadership at PED and by the legislative commitment to make education a priority. This could be a turning point in the history of education in New Mexico.”
“Eight years have passed, and thousands of New Mexico students have continued moving through our public schools without seeing the changes and resources they were promised. Their experiences and voices must shape what happens next,” said Loretta Trujillo, Executive Director of Transform Education New Mexico. “This means investing in our public schools and ensuring that public dollars reach the students and communities named in the lawsuit, rather than diverting resources from that responsibility. Governor-elect Haaland has spoken about transforming public education. The true measure of that transformation will be whether students see and experience meaningful changes in their classrooms and communities.”
For New Mexico students, these gaps are not technical details in a state plan. They affect whether schools have enough qualified, supported educators, whether students receive meaningful instruction in their languages, whether Native American students have access to culturally relevant learning opportunities, whether students with disabilities receive the services they need, and whether schools have the materials and resources to provide a sufficient education.
“All of our children are entitled to an equitable, sufficient education. The court affirmed that right, but progress toward fulfilling it has stalled. We urge our state leaders to step up and work with our community to implement the changes and provide the funding our students urgently need,” said lead plaintiff and parent, Wilhelmina Yazzie. “Our children should not continue to suffer as a result of the state’s failure to comply with the court order.”
“As New Mexico enters a new chapter, we must stay focused on what students need and what the State is responsible for providing: public schools where children feel safe, supported and valued; where they have dedicated, well-supported teachers, meaningful learning opportunities, and the chance to see their cultures and languages reflected in what they learn. Those are not extraordinary expectations. They are what every child deserves and what our Constitution requires the State to provide,” said Alisa Diehl, Senior Education Attorney and Yazzie counsel with NMCLP. “While the Court did not grant all the relief we requested, its order makes clear that the State still has work to do. New Mexico needs a meaningful plan that changes the conditions students experience every day, gives schools the resources and support to meet their needs, and keeps the focus on strengthening the public education system our children depend on.”
