AFT News:SANTA FE ― American Federation of Teachers New Mexico (AFT-NM) President Stephanie Ly released the following statement:
“Governor Lujan Grisham’s inaugural State of the State address was a welcome and much-needed change in tone and direction for our State’s public education system from early education to higher education.
“Educators across the state – urban and rural, beginning and veteran alike – are hopeful again for the future of our profession in New Mexico, and especially for the students and families we serve. For eight years, public educators have not been acknowledged as professionals, and even more importantly, Governor Lujan Grisham recognized the impact that all educational employees provide our students by calling for greater respect and noting the contribution each educational employee makes to the success of our students at each stage in their educational journey.
“Governor Lujan Grisham stated unequivocally that we will put ‘our values into action’ by calling for tens-of-millions in investments into early education and pre-k programs, greater resources for dual-language learners, higher investments into our Indian Education Fund, the rejection of high-stakes testing for students, communities, and educators, and better equipping educators to serve our State’s diverse families and communities are values we all share and frankly, are long overdue.
“Governor Lujan Grisham correctly predicted that we may not all agree on how we should achieve these goals, but ultimately, we cannot afford to compromise our values at this critical time, because at the end of the day, these aren’t just union values, these are educators’ values and New Mexican values, and we stand ready to help Governor Lujan Grisham realize these goals for the betterment of New Mexico’s public education.”
