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As students returned to school for the 2021-2022 school year, states set a variety of policies on education and the COVID-19 pandemic, including how schools should open to in-person instruction and whether students and staff would be required to wear masks. By the end of the 2020-2021 school year, about 66% of students nationwide were in states that left closure decisions to schools or districts, 33% were in states with state-ordered in-person instruction, and 1% were in states with state-ordered regional school closures.^[1][2] All 50 states closed schools to in-person instruction at some point during the 2019-2020 school year in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

This article summarizes responses to the coronavirus in New Mexico schools in the academic years ending in 2020, 2021, and 2022. You will find:

• A timeline of events by school year
• A nationwide summary of school mask and vaccine requirements in the 2021-2022 school year
• A summary of school reopening statuses in the 2020-2021 academic year
• A summary of school reopening statuses in the 2019-2020 academic year

Ballotpedia’s coverage of COVID-19 includes how federal, state, and local governments are responding, and how those responses are influencing election rules and operations, political campaigns, the economy, schools, and more.

This page is updated monthly, but our email is always open. We encourage you to share updates from local officials, policymakers, and campaigns in your community at editor@ballotpedia.org.

Timeline by school year[edit]

Below is a list of major events involving schools in New Mexico during the coronavirus pandemic between 2019 and 2022, including school closings and openings, mask requirements, and the release of statewide operating guidance. Know of something we missed? Click here to email us and let us know.

2021-2022 school year[edit]

• Feb. 17, 2022: New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) lifted the statewide school mask requirement.^[3]
• Feb. 4, 2022: The New Mexico Department of Health extended the statewide school mask requirement through March 4.^[4]
• Sept. 9, 2021: At the beginning of the school year, Burbio, a school data aggregator, reported seven in-person schooling disruptions in New Mexico.^[5][6]

2020-2021 school year[edit]

• June 29, 2021: At the end of the school year, Burbio reported all schools were in-person in New Mexico .^[7][8]
• March 9, 2021: New Mexico Public Education Secretary Ryan Stewart announced all schools and grade levels could return to full-time in-person classes if schools were able to establish the safety protocols the state outlined. Stewart also said schools were expected to return to five-days-a-week in-person classes by April 5. Previously, all primary and secondary schools could open under a hybrid model.^[9]
• January 18, 2021: Schools in areas of New Mexico with lower transmission rates were permitted to begin reopening for in-person or hybrid instruction.^[10]
• January 4, 2021: Schools in New Mexico were required to close in-person instruction through Jan. 15 to mitigate virus spread.^[11]
• Sept. 10, 2020: At the beginning of the school year, Burbio reported most schools were using virtual or hybrid learning in New Mexico .^[12][13]
• July 23, 2020: New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) announced schools would not be able to open for in-person instruction until after September 7. Individual school districts decided when classes began in New Mexico, so there was no statewide reopening date.^[14]
• June 23, 2020: The New Mexico Department of Public Education released guidance for reopening schools. The guidance required students and staff to wear masks and eliminated large gatherings like pep rallies and assemblies.^[15]

2019-2020 school year[edit]

• March 27, 2020: Lujan Grisham announced that schools would be closed for the remainder of the academic year. Prior to the announcement, schools were scheduled to reopen on April 6.^[16]
• March 12, 2020: Grisham announced that schools across the state would close for three weeks beginning on March 16.^[17]

Mask and vaccine requirements in the 2021-2022 school year[edit]

Mask requirements in schools[edit]

See also: School responses to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic during the 2021-2022 academic year

As of August 1, 2022, no states had school mask requirements in effect. Forty-two states left mask requirements in schools up to local authorities. Seven states banned school mask requirements.

The table below shows statewide school mask requirement laws and orders in states with school mask requirements or school mask requirement bans in place at the end of the 2021-2022 school year.

Mask requirement orders
State	Ban or requirement?	Type of order	Date lifted or altered
Arizona	Ban	Legislative action	N/A
Arkansas	Ban	Legislative action	Sept. 30, 2021 - Suspended by court action
California	Requirement	California Department of Public Health order	March 12, 2022 - Lifted by executive action
Connecticut	Requirement	Executive order	Feb. 28, 2022 - Lifted by executive action
Delaware	Requirement	Executive order	March 1, 2022 - Lifted by executive action
Florida	Ban	Executive order	N/A[18]
Georgia	Ban	Legislative action	N/A
Hawaii	Requirement	Executive order	Aug. 1, 2022 - Lifted by executive action
Illinois	Requirement	Illinois Department of Public Health order	Feb. 4, 2022 - Suspended by court action[19]
Iowa	Ban	Legislative action	May 16, 2022 - Reinstated by court action[20]
Kentucky	Requirement	Kentucky Board of Education order	Sept. 9, 2021 - Suspended by state law
Louisiana	Requirement	Executive order	Feb. 16, 2022 - Lifted by executive action[21]
Maryland	Requirement	Maryland State Board of Education order	March 1, 2022 - Lifted by executive action[22]
Massachusetts	Requirement	Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education order	Feb. 28, 2022 - Lifted by executive action[23]
Nevada	Requirement	Executive order	Feb. 10, 2022 - Lifted by executive action
New Jersey	Requirement	Executive order	March 7, 2022 - Lifted by executive action
New Mexico	Requirement	New Mexico Public Education Department order	Feb. 17, 2022 - Lifted by executive action
New York	Requirement	Executive order	March 3, 2022 - Lifted by executive action
Oklahoma	Ban	Executive order	N/A
Oregon	Requirement	Oregon Health Authority and Department of Education order	March 12, 2022 - Lifted by executive action
Pennsylvania	Requirement	Pennsylvania Department of Health order	Dec. 10, 2021 - Suspended by court action
Rhode Island	Requirement	Executive order	March 4, 2022 - Lifted by executive action
South Carolina	Ban	Legislative action	Sept. 28, 2021 - Temporarily suspended by court action
Tennessee	Ban	Executive order	Dec. 10, 2021 - Suspended by court action
Texas	Ban	Executive order	N/A[24]
Utah	Ban	Legislative action	N/A
Virginia	Ban	Legislative action	N/A
Washington	Requirement	Washington State Department of Public Health order	March 12, 2022 - Lifted by executive action

School mask requirements over time[edit]

School mask bans over time[edit]

Teacher and school employee vaccine requirements[edit]

See also: School responses to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic during the 2021-2022 academic year

Seven states had issued a statewide requirement for K-12 teachers and staff to be vaccinated against the coronavirus or receive regular coronavirus testing during the 2021-2022 school year. The table below shows teacher and staff vaccine requirement laws and orders in states that issued such policies during the 2021-2022 school year.

Vaccine requirement orders
State	Testing instead of vaccination allowed?	Type of order	Date effective
California	Yes	California Department of Public Health order	Oct. 15, 2021
Connecticut	No	Executive order	Sept. 27, 2021
Delaware	Yes	Executive order	Nov. 1, 2021
Illinois	Yes	Executive order	Issued: Sept. 19, 2021 Suspended by court action on Feb. 4, 2022
New Jersey	Yes	Executive order	Oct. 18, 2021
New York	Yes	Executive order	Sept. 19, 2021
Oregon	No	Executive order	Oct. 18, 2021
Washington	No	Executive order	Oct. 18, 2021

Student vaccine requirements[edit]

See also: School responses to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic during the 2021-2022 academic year

On Oct. 1, 2021, California was the first state to announce a vaccine requirement for eligible students. Louisiana also announced a vaccine requirement for eligible students on Dec. 14, but then announced the state would be removing the coronavirus vaccine from the list of required immunizations in schools on May 18, 2022.

School reopenings and closures (2020-2021 academic year)[edit]

See also: School responses to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic during the 2020-2021 academic year

Initial school year operating plan[edit]

See also: Documenting America's Path to Recovery: July 20, 2020

New Mexico released an initial operating plan for the 2020-2021 school year on June 23, 2020. An analysis of this plan appeared in our Documenting America's Path to Recovery newsletter on July 20. The sections below include an analysis of the plan, the details of the plan, and reactions from officials to the plan.

The New Mexico Public Education Department released phased school reopening guidance on June 23. According to the plan, “A phased entry approach will allow the state to collect and analyze data on the impact of a controlled start on the spread of the virus. This information will be essential to ensure that the state is able to move toward the goal of returning all children to a full school schedule as soon as it can be safely accomplished.”

The guidance permits schools to open on a hybrid schedule that allows public schools to comply with social distancing and other requirements as early as Aug. 3. School districts are allowed to set their own reopening dates. According to EdWeek, public schools in New Mexico traditionally start the academic year between early and mid-August, with the exact start date varying by district.

On March 12, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) closed public schools through April 5, effective March 16. Lujan Grisham ended the public school year on March 27.

New Mexico school metrics
Category	Figure	Rank
Per pupil spending (16-17)	$11,602	35
Number of students (18-19)	333,536	36
Number of teachers (Fall 2016)	21,331	37
Number of public schools (18-19)	883	36
Student:teacher ratio (18-19)	15.8	18
Percent qualifying for free/reduced lunch (16-17)	71.4%	2

New Mexico school revenue
Category	Figure	Rank
Total revenue	$3,986,781,000	37
Federal revenue percent	14.0%	4
State revenue percent	69.5%	3
Local revenue percent	16.5%	48

Context[edit]

New Mexico is a Democratic trifecta. The governor is a Democrat, and Democrats hold majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. The state became a Democratic trifecta in 2018.

The following tables show public education statistics in New Mexico, including a rank comparing it to the other 49 states. Rank one is the highest number of each figure, rank 50 is the lowest. All data comes from the Common Core of Data provided by the National Center for Education Statistics.

Details[edit]

District reopening plans
School districts are not required to develop individualized reopening plans or submit plans to the state. Districts and schools must comply with the state’s eight minimum reopening requirements.

In-person, hybrid, and online learning
New Mexico’s reopening plan contains a red phase, yellow phase, and green phase. State health officials are responsible for determining what phase is appropriate based on regional and statewide data. In the red phase, most instruction would be conducted remotely, though schools may make exceptions for small groups of K-3 students. New Mexico public schools are starting the year in the yellow phase of reentry, which uses a hybrid schedule to limit classrooms to 50% capacity and ensure six-foot social distancing can be kept at all times. In the green phase, schools can reopen at full capacity, five days per week, with heightened sanitation and hygiene standards.

Mask requirements
Masks are required for students and faculty except when they are eating, drinking, or exercising.

In-person health recommendations and requirements
New Mexico’s reopening plan contains the following guidance for schools in the yellow phase of reopening to limit community spread:

• Operate with at least six feet of social distancing at all times.
• Establish and maintain communication with local and state DOH health officials.
• Participate in contact tracing efforts and specimen collection efforts as directed by local health officials.
• Post signage in classrooms, hallways, and entrances to communicate how to stop the spread of COVID-19.
• Screen all students for COVID-19 symptoms to the greatest extent feasible. Consider temperature screenings or daily health check questionnaires for students and staff if feasible.
• Educate parents to be on the alert for signs of illness in their children and to keep the children home when they are sick.
• Establish a protocol for students/staff who feel ill/ experience symptoms when they come to school (see When a Child, Staff Member, or Visitor Becomes Sick at School).
• Isolate and deep clean impacted classrooms and spaces.
• Consider ways to accommodate needs of children, teachers/staff, and families at higher risk for severe illness.

In the green phase, the following guidance applies:

• Practice social distancing to the greatest extent possible.
• Establish and maintain communication with local and state DOH health officials.
• Participate in contact tracing efforts and specimen collection efforts as directed by local health officials.
• Post signage in classrooms, hallways, and entrances to communicate how to stop the spread of COVID-19.
• Establish a protocol for students/staff who feel ill/experience symptoms when they come to school (see When a Child, Staff Member, or Visitor Becomes Sick at School).
• Consider ways to accommodate needs of children, teachers/staff, and families at higher risk for severe illness.

Transportation and busing requirements and restrictions
New Mexico’s public school reopening plan contains the following guidance for transporting students to and from school and activities:

• While transporting students to and from schools, require students to sit in spaced and assigned seating according to the following:
  • A maximum of two students may sit together on a bus seat.
  • Schools in the yellow category should take all reasonable steps to limit bus seats to one student to the best of their ability, including encouraging parents to drive their children if possible, staggering bus routes, and expanding the minimum radius of eligibility for bus services.
• Assign bus attendants or other additional staff to support with safety and screening of students to the extent possible.
• Provide hand sanitizer for students, bus drivers and bus attendants.
• Provide face masks or face shields for bus drivers and bus attendants.
• Require bus drivers, bus attendants, and students to wear face masks or face shields.
• Screen students, bus drivers and bus attendants for symptoms of illness. Conducting temperature checks on students before they get on the bus is recommended but not required.
• Eliminate field trips and non-essential travel except travel conducted under NMAA guidelines for sports and extra-curricular activities.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces on the bus at least daily. It is suggested to install plastic wrap/membrane on high touch surfaces such as handrails that will be changed daily.
• Establish protocols for bus stops and loading/unloading students to minimize congregation of children from different households.
• Air out buses when not in use.
• Restrict group transportation including carpooling.

Map of school closures[edit]

The map below shows the status of school reopenings and closures at the end of the 2020-2021 academic year.

As of July 8, 2021, the status of school closures and reopenings was as follows:

• Two states (Delaware, Hawaii) and Washington, D.C. had state-ordered regional school closures, required closures for certain grade levels, or allowed hybrid instruction only.
  • 2019-20 enrollment: 410,896 students (0.81% of students nationwide)
• Thirteen states had state-ordered in-person instruction.
  • 2019-20 enrollment: 15,697,460 students (30.96% of students nationwide)
• One state (Arizona) had state-ordered in-person instruction for certain grades.
  • 2019-20 enrollment: 1,152,586 students (2.27% of students nationwide)
• Thirty-four states left decisions to schools or districts.
  • 2019-20 enrollment: 33,449,499 students (65.96% of students nationwide)

School reopenings and closures (2019-2020 academic year)[edit]

See also: School responses to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic during the 2019-2020 academic year

The map below shows the status of school reopenings and closures at the end of the 2019-2020 academic year.

• States closed to in-person instruction for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year: 48
• Number of public school students in states closed to in-person instruction for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year: 50,261,464

The chart below shows the first date schools in a state were closed to in-person instruction during the 2019-2020 academic year, divided by the political party of the governor.

School responses by state[edit]

To read about school responses to the coronavirus pandemic in others states, click one of the following links below:

General resources[edit]

The chart below shows coronavirus statistics from countries across the world. The information is provided by Real Clear Politics.

Click the links below to explore official resources related to the coronavirus outbreak.

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
• National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor
• U.S. Department of Education
• World Health Organization
• Trends in Number of COVID-19 Cases and Deaths in the US Reported to CDC, by State/Territory
• Coronavirus (COVID-19) Vaccinations, Our World in Data (Number of vaccines administered)
• Coronavirus Vaccine Tracker, New York Times (Progress of vaccine trials)

See also[edit]

• Documenting America's Path to Recovery
• School responses to the coronavirus pandemic by state (2021-2022 academic year)
• School responses to the coronavirus pandemic by state (2020-2021 academic year)
• New Mexico’s responses to the coronavirus pandemic
• COVID-19 vaccine distribution by state
• Travel restrictions by state
• Federal government responses to the coronavirus pandemic

Footnotes[edit]