Plaintiffs in the landmark Yazzie/Martinez case have asked a judge to allow them to take over the rewriting of New Mexico's education reform plan, expressing frustration at the state's repeated failures to address a system ruled unconstitutional in 2018.
In a joint motion filed last week, the plaintiffs outlined a proposed eight-month process for revising the plan. The request follows an earlier bid this year to have the court reject the current plan, which was itself court-ordered from the Public Education Department (PED).
The legal challenge dates back more than a decade, when parents and school districts sued the state for failing to provide a sufficient education to Native American students, low-income students, students with disabilities and English language learners, as guaranteed by the state constitution. A judge agreed in 2018, but PED never finalised a response. After further court action, Judge Matthew Wilson ordered a comprehensive remedial plan last spring, and PED delivered a 190-page document in November.
Plaintiffs argue the document 'provides no credible basis to conclude' the state will remedy the violations, and that it fails to tailor programmes to the four student groups or provide cost estimates. 'As it stands, we do not have an actual plan to transform education in New Mexico,' said Alisa Diehl, an attorney for the plaintiffs. PED has defended its plan, arguing that including every detail would make it 'unworkably lengthy'.
The plaintiffs now want to rewrite the plan with the help of experts, with PED providing up to $200,000 for their work. They also want the court to require PED to produce cost estimates for the revised plan. Their proposed plan would specify actions for each constitutional violation, identify responsible entities, set a five-to-seven-year implementation timeline and include evaluation metrics.
Under the proposed process, the rewritten plan would be shared with tribes and the Legislative Education Study Committee within four months, with a further two months to incorporate feedback and two more months to meet with PED and resolve disputes. Diehl said a hearing on the motion is expected within two to three months.
