Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities

Year in review: Pandemic takes center stage in education year

COVID-19 was the center of education issues in 2021, just as it was in 2020. Controversy over the proper response to the pandemic brought state attention to the tiny Floyd Municipal School district, which enrolls 55 students.

Despite state mandates, the Floyd school board on July 26 decided it would make COVID-19 prevention measures that include mask-wearing and social distancing optional in the district. Any COVID-19 policies, board members said, should be a matter of local control.

The state cracked down. After a warning, Ryan Stewart, then the New Mexico Public Education Department Secretary, on Aug. 4 suspended the Floyd school board but kept Superintendent Damon Terry in his post. Stewart appointed Stan Rounds, executive director of the New Mexico Coalition of Educational Leaders and the New Mexico Superintendents Association, to represent the Floyd district before the state.

The Floyd school board's rebellion and the PED's response made headlines nationwide.

A hearing for the suspended board members is set to begin at 9 a.m. Jan. 24 and continue on Jan. 25, according to PED spokesperson Judy Robinson.

In mid-August, board member Jeff Essary was hospitalized with COVID-19 but even from his hospital room insisted the state was acting beyond its power in upholding the COVID-19 prevention mandates.

The board that will face hearings before the PED in January will not include Essary. He lost his seat to Kenneth Reed in the Nov. 2 election in a four-way race. The other four members as of Aug. 4 are still on the board.

Board members Charlsea Lee and Vicki Bannister retained their seats in the election, and the seats of members Leon Nall and Ryan Bollema were not up for election in November.

Attorneys for both the suspended school board members and the PED have declined comment on how the election impacts the contested suspension.

Resistance to masks was strong in other school districts, as well.

On July 27, parents demonstrated against mask mandates in Clovis and Portales, saying masks are ineffective against the virus, interfered with learning and would make children ill while depriving them of oxygen.

In early August, after hearing anti-mask parents protest, the Clovis Municipal School Board voted to send a letter to the PED opposing state intrusion on local control, but took no action on mask mandates. The Portales Municipal School Board decided to uphold the mask mandate later on a 4-1 vote after similar protests were aired.

In February, months of remote-only education gave way to hybrid learning, in which students in high schools alternated between attending in-person classes and remote learning at public high schools in Clovis and Portales.

On April 5, all public schools in New Mexico opened their doors to all students. Outbreaks of COVID-19 continued to close schools for a few days at a time, but schools remained open overall.

PED officials rescinded a two-week closure in May at Portales High School that was called due to error. Superintendent Johnnie Cain said the PED incorrectly counted a case in the school's daycare as part of the high school building.

In June, high school seniors received their diplomas in live public ceremonies but under strict distancing and masking restrictions.

In August, public schools opened doors to all students, subject to mask and distancing protocols, but Clovis Community College and Eastern New Mexico University continued to limit in-person classes and on-campus activities in favor of online, remote classes.

In May, however, ENMU held its first outdoor graduation ceremony in decades at Greyhound Stadium.

Aside from COVID-19 policies, public school teachers, administrators and parents in Curry and Roosevelt counties expressed concerns in the fall of 2021 about the PED's proposed social studies curriculum covering grades kindergarten through 12th grade.

Parents expressed concerns about “critical race theory” elements in the proposed curriculum, even though the phrase is not used in the proposed guidelines.

Critical race theory, or CRT, includes teaching that racism has been a part of U.S. history and social policies since slavery was introduced a century before the Declaration of Independence.

Conservative leaders and parents expressed concern that CRT teaches children to identify with oppressor and oppressed groups based on race at an early age, which they say only widens racial divides. They also say that CRT serves to diminish patriotism and question American values.

Some teachers in Clovis and Portales objected to the state's social studies plan, arguing they did not have adequate time to acquire the new background and teaching skills the new standards would require.

They also said the content proposed to be taught would be controversial among parents.

In Clovis and Portales, administrators said the new social studies guidelines are vague and many key terms are undefined. They also questioned whether the amount of material required at each grade level could be adequately taught in the course of a school year.

PED officials have set a goal to start social studies education under the new guidelines in fall 2022.

In the Nov. 2 school board elections, former teacher Sharon Epps beat out incumbent Kyle Snider, 488 votes to 216, and another former teacher, Rosa Sanchez, who received 49 votes, for the District 1 seat on the Clovis Municipal School Board.

In Roosevelt County, Braden Fraze claimed a tight four-way race for Position 4 of the Portales school board. Fraze took 68 votes, compared to 56 for Meredith Seifert, 52 for incumbent Antonio Sanchez and 10 for William Hilliard.

The position 3 race was won by Jimmie Standifer, who took 92 votes against Angela Smith's 69. The race was open, with Alan Garrett opting not to run again.

Mark Peabody easily won a three-way race for the Texico school board's Position 4 seat. Peabody took 91 votes, versus 30 for Troy Teague and eight for Dustin Ptolemy.

Dora retained Jana Roberts for Position 4, with 61 votes versus Shawna Wade's 52.

Voters in both counties overwhelmingly approved capital improvement taxes and mill levy questions in Portales, Texico, Melrose, Elida, Grady and Dora.

Other highlights for education in 2021 included:

• Parents seemed to think extra help to catch up after a year of virtual learning should be the top priority for spending $16.4 million in federal COVID-19 pandemic emergency funds the Clovis Municipal Schools district is expecting.

• Eli Terry, 17, was elected governor of Boys State New Mexico during Boys State June 1-4. Boys State was held online due to COVID concerns.

• The Clovis Community College Board of Trustees added Jan Bradburn to its fold. She replaced longtime District 2 representative Arnold Martinez, who resigned his seat due to a move out of the district.

• Eastern New Mexico University regents begrudgingly accepted a tuition and fees increase for the 2022-23 academic year on Dec. 10. By a 5-0 vote, regents approved a tuition increase of 3% and a fees increase of 4%.

• ENMU fell just below the 5,000 mark for enrollment this semester, with the Portales campus on Friday reporting a fall-to-fall enrollment drop of 5.3%.

• In March, the ENMU Board of Regents welcomed new regents Trish Ruiz and Phillip Bustos whose terms are six years. The board also welcomed student regent Chandlar Head for a two-year term. They replaced Terry Othick, Ed Tatum and student regent Joseph Gergel.

 
 
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