New Mexico extends classroom shutdown due to coronavirus
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Public school students in New Mexico will not return to classrooms or athletic fields during the current academic year due to the coronavirus, the state's top education official announced Friday.
Public Education Secretary Ryan Stewart called the decision to extend a classroom shutdown painful. He explained that students are likely to be graded for remote coursework on a pass-fail basis. High school seniors will be able to graduate through a “demonstration of competency” that may includes a series of assignments and tests including a college entrance exam.
Appearing alongside other state officials, Stewart stressed that school health centers and counseling services will continue to be available with safety precautions, as the state distributes lunches and breakfasts to more than 100,000 children.
“This is not something that we would wish on anybody,” Stewart said. “We are going to stand by our kids even when we are at a social distance.”
He said that rites of spring such as proms and graduation ceremonies should take place, even if they are delayed by several months. Athletics won't resume before fall.
The state is supporting a “continuous learning” program with between one hour of instructional time a day for first graders and up to three hours in grades 6-12, as it distributes academic toolkits to families.
The transition to remote teaching presents daunting challenges in a state that lags behind much of the nation in terms of access to computers and functional internet connections.
The state already has received a waiver from the federal government to suspend requirements for some student academic assessments and minimum annual instructional hours. Advanced placement tests will be shortened to include coursework performed through March.
Obligations toward special education students have not been modified, even as officials acknowledge that remote, online programs may not be feasible for some students. There are no layoffs of furloughs planned for public school staff.
The state has at least 136 coronavirus infections, with one related death. More than half of counties have no positive test results, with infections concentrated in the Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Las Cruces areas.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Friday issued an order requiring air travelers to New Mexico to self-isolate for at least 14 days to help curb the spread of the virus. Those who ignore the order will be subject to forced isolation or quarantine by the state Health Department.
In other developments:
— The Department of Public Safety announced that cadets at the state law enforcement academy and state police recruits were being sent home Friday. Officials said training will continue once the public health emergency is over.
— The state Motor Vehicle Division is closing field offices statewide as a health precaution. The state can process vehicle registration and driver's license renewals online but cannot issues some types of first-time licenses. Privately operated offices for motor vehicle services closed earlier in the week.
— A state senator is urging authorities to stop charging customers without full indoor household plumbing for drinking water at a municipal filling station.
Democratic Sen. George Muñoz of Gallup said Thursday that waiving water loading station fees would ease economic hardships and ensure more people can wash their hands. He also said that handling cash and change at the coin operated water station increases the risk of spreading the virus.
About 10% of households in McKinley County that encompasses Gallup lack full plumbing — the highest rate outside of Alaska and one county in Arizona — according to statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau.