SENATE MEMORIAL 71

50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2011

INTRODUCED BY

Lynda M. Lovejoy

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE PUBLIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT TO STUDY ACCESS TO PUBLIC EDUCATION IN THE NORTHWEST QUADRANT OF THE STATE.

     WHEREAS, most of the sparsely populated school districts in the state have students who live in outlying areas of the district but who are closer to a school in another district; and

     WHEREAS, the Gallup-McKinley county school district is one of the largest of New Mexico's school districts and borders six other school districts, Central consolidated, Farmington, Bloomfield, Cuba, Grants and Zuni school districts; and

     WHEREAS, the Gallup-McKinley county school district has built a new high school, Tse' Yi' Gai high school, in Pueblo Pintado in the northeast corner of McKinley county; and

     WHEREAS, there are students who live in the Bloomfield school district but who are closer to Tse' Yi' Gai high school, and they have requested to attend Tse Yi' Gai because they would have to travel only twenty miles to and from school instead of forty miles; and

     WHEREAS, the high school has the capacity to take those students, and the Public School Code allows such a transfer, but the Bloomfield school district has not agreed to allow those students to transfer to Tse' Yi' Gai high school; and

     WHEREAS, public schools should be provided for the convenience of students, not school districts, and school districts should do everything in their power to make it easy for students to attend school, remain in school and graduate; and

     WHEREAS, this is just one example of the problems created by school boundaries that do not take into account where students live; and

     WHEREAS, the house of representatives requested, in 2009, that the Indian education division of the public education department study the issue of public education access for students in the northwest quadrant of the state;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the public education department be requested to complete its study and resolve issues of public education access for students in the northwest quadrant of the state; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the public education department report its findings and recommendations to the legislative education study committee by August 1, 2011; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the public education department and the director of the legislative education study committee.

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