Stan Rounds said it best: “Nobody likes surprises.”
The abrupt and immediate departure of state Public Education Cabinet Secretary Arsenio Romero was a surprise, said Rounds, executive director of the New Mexico Coalition of Educational Leaders.
After news broke Romero was one of five finalists in New Mexico State University’s search for its next president, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham gave the education secretary a choice: Resign or withdraw his candidacy for NMSU president.
Romero chose the former, the Governor’s Office announced Aug. 28. He was in office for less than a year and a half.
For the state’s educational advocates, public school officials and teachers union leaders, the departure of Romero — the fourth education secretary gone since the governor took office in 2019 — is the latest in a frustrating pattern. The lack of consistent leadership means education policy is constantly in flux, stunting growth in student achievement, they say.
The change has some in the field considering whether the state should return to an old system in place about two decades ago, in which public education was stewarded by a statewide board of education. Some argue that proposal, last considered during the 2023 legislative session, would provide much-needed stability for schools, while others say it wouldn’t prevent a revolving door of education leaders.
“We’re never going to get better if we can’t stop the churn at every single level. ... I am very frustrated about it — and my members are frustrated about it — because it’s disruptive,” said Mary Parr-Sánchez, president of the New Mexico branch of the National Education Association.
Romero did not respond to requests for comment.
The Governor’s Office also did not respond to requests for comment or provide an update on the search for a new secretary of education or a decision about interim leadership.
When Mandi Torrez, an education reform director at the policy think tank Think New Mexico, first heard the news of Romero’s departure, a question came to her mind: “How are we going to get our students on track?”
“We’re not meeting their needs, and part of that is coming from so much instability at the leadership level,” she said.
Being the state’s education secretary is a big job. Rounds said officials at the top of the Public Education Department “feed the lifeblood” of education policy across New Mexico.
The secretary is also responsible for overseeing the agency as it completes a host of essential administrative tasks, such as managing grants, approving applications for teacher licensure and releasing proficiency and enrollment data to the public.
The trouble is, each secretary does the job a little differently, said Amanda Aragon, executive director of the education policy organization NewMexicoKidsCAN.
“It seems like every secretary comes in, and they’re starting with a whole new playbook and a whole new set of goals and a whole new set of things that they care about,” she said. “There isn’t necessarily this common goal.”
As a result, Rounds said the superintendents he’s spoken with are wondering, “Are things going to change? Are they going in a different direction? All of those things have happened when we change leadership.”
A key attribute of New Mexico’s next education secretary will be consistency — someone who can make a plan and stick to it — said Whitney Holland, president of the American Federation of Teachers-New Mexico.
“That’s kind of what we’ve been looking for: Who has that vision? Who can be a transformative leader? And who can stick it out?” she said.
Holland admits that’s a tall order right now. Lujan Grisham’s term ends in about two years — and a new governor likely will want to bring in their own public education leader. Rounds referred to the role as having a “two-year shelf life.”
The real challenge, then, will be creating stability that endures not just for the next two years, but through administration changes, Holland said.
“If we’re talking 10 years of a plan and sticking to that plan, how do we have a leader in place that whole time?” she asked.
Education advocates had differing opinions on who should step into the role. Torrez and Holland prioritized a Cabinet secretary familiar with New Mexico’s unique educational landscape. Aragon argued for someone with experience in leading a state education agency, even if they’re less familiar with New Mexico. Rounds said a practitioner — like one of the state’s superintendents — would be the best fit.
Parr-Sánchez, however, has already “leapfrogged” over the question of the Public Education Department’s next leader. Instead, she said she’s hoping the Legislature continues to research a return to the statewide board of education.
That change, Parr-Sánchez argued, would bring more consistency in policy and management to New Mexico’s public education system.
“That would be the best course to take. ... It wouldn’t be this abrupt churning of people,” she said.
Aragon cautioned against a knee-jerk switch back to the state board of education, arguing the turnover is a staffing problem rather than a problem with the current structure of governance.
“I don’t think that going back to a state board is the right path forward for New Mexico, as frustrating as this situation is,” she said.
