Jul. 31—Mediation talks are underway in an effort to resolve a lawsuit filed by a coalition of school districts challenging a controversial scheduling rule requiring public schools to spend 180 days annually with students.
State District Judge Dustin Hunter of Roswell last week rescheduled a hearing to Sept. 30 to allow the mediation to continue.
The two-month pause comes in a lawsuit filed in April against the state Public Education Department by the New Mexico School Superintendents Association and about 55 of the state’s 89 school districts.
The dispute focuses on the ability of school districts to schedule four-day school weeks, which long have been the norm at some smaller, rural districts.
Districts that have historically operated under a four-day school week “will have to completely restructure and reallocate their budgets, resources, and schedules” to comply with the rule, according to the complaint.
The PED rule as originally proposed would have required schools to devote more than half the academic year to five-day school weeks.
An initial mediation session on July 23 with retired New Mexico Court of Appeals Judge Linda Vanzi acting as mediator was productive enough that a second session is tentatively scheduled for Sept. 9, attorneys wrote in court filings.
“Although the parties did not reach a final agreement to resolve this dispute, they made sufficient progress to believe that further negotiations would be beneficial and warranted,” attorneys for PED wrote in a motion filed last week.
PED originally intended for rule to take effect July 1. But as schools reopen across the state, the lawsuit appears to have put implementation on hold until the case is resolved.
Hunter issued a temporary restraining order in May in response to the lawsuit. In June, Hunter ordered PED and the superintendents association to contract with an independent mediator to help resolve the dispute.
A PED spokeswoman declined to comment Wednesday on the status of the rule during the 2024-2025 academic year.
“PED is not commenting on pending litigation at this time,” spokeswoman Janelle Taylor Garcia responded in an email.
Attorneys for the New Mexico Superintendents Association did not immediately respond Wednesday to a request for comment.
Attorneys for PED have argued in court filings that PED Secretary Arsenio Romero has authority under state law to set rules that establish the minimum number of instructional hours that schools must provide.
The American Federation of Teachers-New Mexico, which opposes the 180-day rule, filed a brief in July arguing that the proposed rule “undermines the flexibility for districts to compose school calendars to meet the unique needs” of the local community. The rule would result in higher educator turnover, longer transportation time for students, and increased district costs, especially for rural school districts, attorneys for AFT argue.
