Tribal Libraries and Education in New Mexico

Students in New Mexico have a constitutional right to a sufficient education- this right coexists with the current reality that New Mexico ranks 49th in the nation in education.

In 2018 Judge Sarah Singleton made a judgement in the consolidated Yazzie and Martinez lawsuits that stated the State of New Mexico had failed to provide adequate funding for education for New Mexican students, specifically those from disadvantaged economic backgrounds, those who are Native American, those who are English-as-a-second-language learners (ESL), and students with disabilities.

The lawsuit’s origins are from concerned mother Wilhelmina Yazzie. Yazzie lives in Gallup on the edge of the Navajo Nation where her son, Xavier, attends a Gallup-McKinley school. She was frustrated that her son, who regularly gets A’s still under performs on national tests and is below national standards. She argues that New Mexico’s under funding has led to schools not being able to provide adequate and equitable education for all children to be prepared for college and careers.

The result of the lawsuit has been efforts that aim to allocate funding to improve education in New Mexico. Groups of activists and coalitions like Transform Education New Mexico continue to work tirelessly to create and support positive change in New Mexico’s education. Transform Education NM is a coalition made up of 20+ organizations including educators, administrators, families, tribal leaders, local experts, and lawsuit plaintiffs. They developed a “Platform for Action” where they outline the basic steps that need to be taken top provide a sufficient and equitable education to students in New Mexico. The Platform outlines 3 main goals:

“1. Provide multicultural and multilingual learning at all levels

  2. Collaborate with New Mexico’s tribes and local communities

  3. Develop multicultural systems capacity through higher education”

Transform Education New Mexico has specific goals based on their platform for action such as:

·         Access to quality Pre-K

·         Increasing comprehensive social services

·         Increased funding for at-risk students

·         Restoring baseline funding

·         Increased funding for transportation, bilingual instruction, and rural schools

·         Raising teacher pay

·         Additional Professional development

·         Strengthening monitoring of school funding

·         Replacing A-F school grading

·         Ensuring tribal consultation

To learn more about Transform Education New Mexico you can visit their website at https://transformeducationnm.org/

House Bill 134 and Native American Education

A group of Native American groups including the UNM Native American Budget & Policy Institute, The New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty, The Leadership Institute, as well as representatives from the Navajo Nation, Zuni Pueblo, Mescalero Apache Tribe, Jicarilla Apache Nation, and the All Pueblo Council of Governors, also created Yazzie / Martinez remedy framework recommendations. The recommendations are a merging of Tribal and Pueblo Nations, parents, students, teachers, community, and state entities such as the Legislature, Public Education Department, Indian Affairs Department, and Local Educational Agencies. The recommendations are culminated in House Bill 134, which allocates funding to a number of sources outlined below:

• University of New Mexico (UNM): For the American Indian Education Institute, American Indian Language Policy, Research, and Teacher Training Center, American Indian Language Curriculum and Materials Development Center, The American Indian Leadership Doctoral Cohort, the American Indian Educational Leadership Education Licensure Program, Bilingual Education Degree Programs, and the Dual License in Special Ed and Elementary Ed Program in Gallup. For American Indian Student Services, Native American Studies Program in the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Medicine’s Center for Native American Health and Behavioral Health Division Native American Suicide Clearinghouse, for the School of Law’s Southwest Indian Clinic, The School of Architecture’s Indigenous Design and Planning Institute, and 3 collaborative projects at UNM in the Native American Studies, Chicana/o Studies, and Africana Studies.)

• New Mexico Highlands University (NMHU): For the Ben Lujan Leadership Institute, the Center for Diverse Populations, the Native American Social Workers Institute, American Indian Student Support Services, and the Parent Institute.

• New Mexico State University (NMSU): For the College of Education’s American Indian Programs, Indian Resource Development, and Borderlands and Ethnic Studies.

• Navajo Nation University NTU/A:swiwi College and Career Readiness Center (ACCRC): For the Cultural Education Resource, Curriculum, & Materials Development Center, the STEM Project Budget, Early Childhood/Early Childhood Practicum Budget, RN/Substance Abuse/Suicide Prevention Project Budget, and New Mexico’s Dual Credit Program Project Budget.

•   DINÉ College: For Teacher recruitment, retention, and teacher advance training, the Diné College Curriculum and Materials Development Press, the Dual Language teacher Education Training Center, and Culturally and Linguistically Education and Extended Learning Program Support.

• Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute (SIPI): For a Teacher Preparation Pipeline, Behavioral Health/Social Work, the Summer Bridge Program, and Dual Credit and Transfer Support Services and Scholarships.

• At the Tribal/ Pueblo Level - Recurring Budget Requests: Funding to Tribal Language Programs, Funding for Tribal Libraries Operational Budgets, Funding to Tribal Departments of Education

• Tribal/Pueblo Specific Recurring Requests:

  -For the Mescalero Apache Tribe: Teacher Preparation Programs, Curriculum and Material Development Center Operational Costs, Mescalero Apache Education Liaisons, Social Services, Behavioral and Mental Health, Suicide Prevention, and Intervention, and Mescalero Youth Leadership, Internship, and Apprenticeship Programs.

  -For Zuni Pueblo: Teacher Preparation Programs, Curriculum and Material Development Center Operational Costs, Community Profile, College Readiness, Workforce Alignment, and Social Services, Behavioral and Mental Health, Suicide Prevention, and Intervention.

•   New Initiatives: Replicate and refine a college readiness program and implement model statewide and specifically in areas highly populated by Indian students, replicate and implement Internship Program by Leadership Institute for high schools in the Indian Impacted school districts, educational leadership program development in partnership with UNM, NMHU, and Harvard, and create 2 specific RECs to respond to the unique needs of school districts with high numbers of Native Americans.

The proposed recommendations also include suggested amendments to existing statutes which include to amend At-Risk statutes to include explicit language to make Tribes/Pueblos eligible to receive At-Risk funding for community-based after school and summer school community-based programs. It is also suggested that we amend current statutes governing funding formula to include recurring and permanent funding for Native language programs based on student counts.

Suina Design + Architecture was founded to provide service to Native American Tribes and communities to meet their needs- whether it be through creating affordable housing, master planning, or activism. Our principal Elizabeth Suina has been involved and meeting with the group aiming to improve education in New Mexico and specifically for Native Americans. She has been providing her support by creating designs for tribal libraries pro-bono for the communities that do not have one, or have a library in a building that is not really suited for library functions. As a firm we held a design charette and shared ideas and thoughts on the design of a tribal library, then Elizabeth took our sketches and created 2 digital models and cost estimated for 2 tribal libraries of varying costs. One $2.4 mil and one $4.4 mil plan depending on the size, finishes, and other elements.

In addition to the designs of tribal libraries our firm created a handout for Bill 134, the bill described above which would provide funding for the sources described above. This purpose of the handout was to communicate the importance of tribal libraries and the positive impact a well-funded tribal library would have on their communities. The benefits of tribal libraries cannot be understated, the ability to access knowledge and resources that a library holds can shape many lives by expanding opportunities.

In her opening remarks for the 54th Legislature Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham outlined her priorities for the 60 day legislative session, explicitly mentioning additional investment in public education. Check back for any updates on Bill 134 - the 54th legislative session ends Feb 20th, 2020.