enrollment
New Mexico's 2026 Enrollment Drop Is the Second-Largest on Record
New Mexico lost 8,333 students in 2025-26, the second-largest annual drop on record, as post-COVID losses now run 2.3 times faster than the old normal.
New Mexico Education News & Data
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district-spotlight
Carlsbad Gained 2,156 Students in Five Years, Then Lost 1,719 in Two
New Mexico's Permian Basin oil boom drove Carlsbad enrollment up 32%, then a bust erased most of it. The district is still the state's only large gainer.
special-populations
One in Five NM Students Now in Special Ed
New Mexico's special education rate hit 20.5% in 2025-26, crossing the one-in-five threshold as total enrollment fell 11% since 2019.
district-spotlight
Albuquerque Has Lost Students for 10 Straight Years
APS fell from 92,152 to 72,573 students over the past decade, accounting for nearly half of New Mexico's total enrollment loss.
enrollment
New Mexico Falls Below 300,000 Students
New Mexico enrolled 298,353 public school students in 2025-26, crossing below 300,000 for the first time after losing 41,260 students over a decade.
demographics
Native American Students Fall Below 10% of NM Enrollment
Native American students fell below 10% of New Mexico enrollment for the first time, dropping to 9.9% as the state lost 5,602 since 2020.
district-spotlight
Gallup Loses a Quarter of Its Students in One Year
A virtual school contract termination stripped 3,342 students from Gallup-McKinley County Schools, exposing how phantom enrollment masked real decline.
enrollment
New Mexico Publishes 2025-26 Enrollment Data
NM PED releases 2025-26 enrollment data showing 298,353 students statewide — below 300,000 for the first time, down 8,333 from the prior year.