Dorothy Fowler/News-Sun What’s 60 feet long, 30 feet wide and packed with plenty of ripe, climbing, red tomatoes, blooming geraniums, budding lantana and a variety of other growing things — all of which were propagated from existing plants? It’s the greenhouse on the campus of Lovington High School, where teacher Montana Hagler and 133 students, plus Lovington schools’ director of …

SANTA FE (AP) — New Mexico’s governor signed law four bills into law that will increase funding for education, including major hikes to teacher salaries. Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham held the ceremony Tuesday outdoors at an elementary school in Santa Fe, following the passage of the bills by the Legislature last month. Flanked by schoolchildren and the national leader …

New Mexico increases focus on race in K-12 despite backlash By CEDAR ATTANASIO Associated Press / Report for America SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico’s K-12 students will see a greater focus on race and ethnicity, including Native American history, in their curriculum over the next two years under new standards aimed at making social studies teaching more culturally …

Lawmakers approve $10k raises for many New Mexico teachers By CEDAR ATTANASIO Associated Press / Report for America SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A measure that will increase minimum salaries for New Mexico teachers and counselors by as much as 22% cleared its final legislative hurdle late Monday with a unanimous vote in the House. The bill, approved by the …

New Mexico confirms K-12 education testing, secretary By CEDAR ATTANASIO Associated Press / Report for America SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico’s top educator said Wednesday the state will carry out testing of K-12 students this spring, after receiving waivers to federal testing requirements for the past two years. “We do have a statewide standardized assessment that will be …

Gabrielle Arsiaga/News-Sun When it comes to answering a call for service, National Guard Specialist Cassandra Sierra and Sergeant 1st Class Clarence Galassini are all about doing their part —whether that be in a classroom or out on the battlefield. As a way to help alleviate some of the staff shortages New Mexico schools have been experiencing due to the COVID-19 …

Andy Brosig/News-Sun Preliminary spring enrollment numbers are in at Lea County’s two colleges and the news is pretty good. New Mexico Junior College, which resumed classes for the semester on Monday, reported 1,538 full-time students enrolled for spring, said Cathy Mitchell, vice president of student services. University of the Southwest Provost Ryan Tipton reported, with more than a week of …

Jal schools go remote for 4 days amid virus surge CURTIS C. WYNNE NEWS-SUN JAL — With an abundance of caution, and some degree of optimism, the Jal public schools closed in-person classrooms this week due to increased positive coronavirus tests. Students returned to remote learning for four days. Jal’s junior and senior high schools were dismissed early on Thursday …

Jal schools go remote for 4 days amid virus surge CURTIS C. WYNNE NEWS-SUN JAL — With an abundance of caution, and some degree of optimism, the Jal public schools closed in-person classrooms this week due to increased positive coronavirus tests. Students returned to remote learning for four days. Jal’s junior and senior high schools were dismissed early on Thursday …

DOROTHY N. FOWLER/NEWS-SUN The New Mexico Junior College board had a busy Thursday night board meeting prior to Christmas. Board members adopted a multimillion dollar renovation/building plan for different parts of the campus, approved a document that will allow administrators to evaluate professional teaching staff performance, accepted the resignation of long-term Western Heritage Museum education director Mary Lyle, and approved …