IN THE NEWS
MEDIA COVERAGE
February 10, 2024
Legislature should authorize higher ed study.
The study would include recommendations for improved compensation structures as well as methods for achieving compensation increases. If passed, HM 32 would be a huge accomplishment in the fight for living wages for our state’s higher education workers.
February 8, 2024
New high school graduation requirements head to the governor’s desk
A bill updating high school graduation requirements for New Mexico students passed the state senate floor in a 40-0 vote, and is now headed to the governor’s desk. It’s the second bill passed by both chambers this session.
February 5, 2024
Six pieces of legislation make progress
With less than two weeks to go in the legislative session, bills are moving at a quickened pace, passing from one chamber to another and between committees. Below are six pieces of legislation that made forward progress on Feb. 1 and 2 in Santa Fe:
February 4, 2024
Student loan 'bill of rights' legislation seeks to put guardrails on process
Lawmakers are pushing to pass New Mexico’s “Student Loan Bill of Rights,” a bill imposing additional regulations on student loan servicers — particularly private student loan providers — and offering additional rights and resources to student loan borrowers.
January 29, 2024
House committee approves plan to rework New Mexico’s graduation requirements
“It’s that local flexibility, local control. We’re letting school districts decide what electives, how many, what’s best for kids at the local level,” said Whitney Holland, president of the American Federation of Teachers New Mexico.
January 20, 2024
SFCC is losing faculty because of pay
I am the union president for full-time faculty at SFCC, and have heard from at least seven faculty members who have left over the last four years because of the college’s low pay. All of these faculty members were dedicated to changing the lives of our students, but they could no longer afford to work at SFCC for the low salary that we pay with Santa Fe’s high cost of living.
June 22, 2023
AFT New Mexico Holds Elections, Re-Elects Whitney Holland As President
American Federation of Teachers New Mexico President Whitney Holland and Executive Vice President Kathy Chavez released the following statements after their re-election at the 60th AFT NM Convention: "It is a great honor to be re-elected unanimously by delegates from across New Mexico at our union’s convention. This vote reflected the hard work our union is making to ensure every educator or healthcare worker we represent is seen, heard, and valued in this union..."
March 28, 2023
Why Some Teachers’ Unions Oppose ‘Science of Reading’ Legislation
As more state legislatures seek to pass “science of reading” legislation this session, some teachers’ unions are mounting opposition—citing concerns about mandates that would limit teachers’ professional autonomy in the classroom and what they argue are unreasonable implementation timelines...
October 10, 2022
New Mexico teacher vacancy rate drops nearly 40 percent but remains high
When lawmakers advocated to raise teachers’ pay this year, they said it would attract more people to the profession and retain those currently working in schools — a necessary measure to address the 1,048 vacancies the state was facing.
September 20, 2022
AFT New Mexico & Taos Federation of United School Employees React To Violent Incident At Taos High School
American Federation of Teachers New Mexico President Whitney Holland and Taos Federation of United School Employees (TFUSE) President Francis Hahn, issued the following statements...
September 1, 2022
What the perfect storm of challenges teachers face reveals about inequality
In important ways, New Mexico illuminates how states might meaningfully address at least some of the problems beleaguering school districts. Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed an executive order in May that will trim by 25% the amount of administrative paperwork teachers must do. “By eliminating unnecessary burdens, our education heroes can focus on doing what we do best: teaching New Mexico students,” Whitney Holland, the president of the New Mexico branch of the American Federation of Teachers, told the CNN affiliate KOAT-TV...
July 26, 2022
Retired educators now eligible to return to work without losing pension benefits
New Mexico’s 48,000 retired K-12 and higher education educators now have the opportunity to return to the classroom without losing their retirement benefits thanks to a new law enacted by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham this year...
May 28, 2022
UNM SRMC Health-Care Workers File For Union
An effort to unionize health-care workers at UNM Sandoval Regional Medical Center became official last week. The move to form the public employee union is a joint effort by the American Federation of Teachers New Mexico and the International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers Lodge #794...
May 24, 2022
IAM-AFT Joint Healthcare Organizing Partnership Program Files for Union Election of 500 New Mexico Healthcare Professionals
The IAM and American Federation of Teachers New Mexico (AFT NM) have filed a majority of union recognition cards with the New Mexico Public Employee Labor Relations Board (NMPELRB) for almost 500 frontline healthcare workers at Sandoval Regional Medical Center...
April 29, 2022
AFT NM endorses governor, lieutenant governor
AFT New Mexico’s Executive Council has unanimously endorsed Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Lt. Gov. Howie Morales for re-election to a second term. Four years ago, Gov. Lujan Grisham promised a significant change in direction for public education in New Mexico after eight years of the Martinez administration, and she has kept her promises to New Mexico’s educational professionals...
January 23, 2022
AFT president says National Guard volunteers will keep schools open
The president of the state teachers union says the educator shortage in New Mexico is at a crisis level. “There’s a history of low pay. Right now, New Mexico educators make less than the surrounding states,” says Whitney Holland, president of the American Federation of Teachers New Mexico. “I think there’s a workload problem, I think there’s a disrespect problem. You name it, it was the perfect storm – then you add COVID to the mix..."
January 15, 2022
Teacher pay in New Mexico needs to increase
In 2003, the average new teacher earned 14 percent less than workers with similar education and work experience, often while accumulating vast amounts of debt prior to even entering a classroom. New Mexico is not exempt from this trend: We have the third-highest teacher wage penalty in the country, with public school teachers earning nearly 30 percent less than non-teacher college graduates.
October 28, 2021
Teachers union critical of superintendent emails
A teacher union representing Socorro educators asked Socorro Superintendent Ron Hendrix to take corrective action after sending an all staff email about upcoming elections. Hendrix took the action, sending a follow-up email, but says he did nothing wrong...