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Statewide Rate Remains Largely Unchanged; Bright Spots Emerge in Bernalillo, Bloomfield and Gadsden
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The New Mexico Public Education Department recently released graduation rates for the Class of 2023. The results reveal a slight increase of 0.2 percentage points in the state’s overall graduation rate, which is now 76.7%, compared to 76.5% for the Class of 2022.
While the statewide graduation rate remains largely unchanged, some district results reveal bright spots for students identified in the Yazzie-Martinez lawsuit. Three districts—Bernalillo Public Schools, Bloomfield Public Schools, and Gadsden Independent Schools—not only outperformed the state’s overall graduation rate but also exceeded it for every Yazzie-Martinez subgroup.
“The slight increase of 0.2 points statewide is not good enough,” said Amanda Aragon, Executive Director of NewMexicoKidsCAN. “Bernalillo, Bloomfield, and Gadsden prove success is possible for our most struggling students. Now that we know these results are possible, we must demand them for every school and district across the state.”
Below are the graduation rates for the state’s ten largest school districts.
Among the ten largest school districts in the state, more than half outperformed the statewide average. Gadsden Independent School District led the way with the highest graduation rate at 87.8%. However, New Mexico’s largest school district, Albuquerque Public Schools, along with Los Lunas and Roswell fell below the state average. The full 2023 4-year graduation results released by the Public Education Department can be accessed here.
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About NewMexicoKidsCAN: Launched in 2018, NewMexicoKidsCAN: The New Mexico Campaign for Achievement Now is a local non-profit organization that advocates for community-informed, student-centered and research-backed education policies. Connecting policy, instructional practice and politics the organization works to reimagine what is possible in New Mexico’s public education system to ensure New Mexico students become the future community, civic and business leaders New Mexico needs.