The ECECD Community Newsletter Briefing Room

The New Mexico Early Childhood Education and Care Department held its 12th Home Visiting Annual Meeting in Albuquerque, N.M., on May 6 and 7, with close to 400 home visiting providers from around the state in attendance. 

The meeting opened with ECECD updates including a legislative update by Deputy Secretary Kendal Chavez, home visiting billing system update by Home Visiting Manager John Acuna and a Professional Development Information System (PDIS) training by Dr. Katelyn Ice from RS21 and ECECD’s Ty Knight. PDIS training and system support was onsite all day May 6 to offer  providers the opportunity to set up their program’s account. All home visiting providers and staff must create accounts in the PDIS system by July 1, 2026. 

ECECD Family Foundations Bureau Chief Kristi Romero offered a Family Connects New Mexico update which was followed by a panel interview from our FCNM team, including Monique Chavez, Caitlin Bizzell, Samantha Schmaltz and one of our Community Alignment Board members, Victoria Martinez.  

Samantha Baca, Matthew Trevino and Rachel Landry from Department of Health (DOH) presented on CARA Foundations training opportunities. In addition, Kym Halliday-Clear, ECECD nurse manager, gave an update on the CARA collaboration between DOH, Health Care Authority (HCA), Children Youth and Family Department (CYFD) and ECECD. This update also included a panel interview with experts from our partner agencies who were able to answer questions from the providers and home visitors on the CARA legislation and a home visitors’ role in working with families with a Plan of Safe Care (PoSC).  

Dr. Peggy MacLean, UNM CDD ECLN Division Director, and Fletcher Wood, UNM Focus, LCSW, gave an in-depth the keynote on the importance of and best practices in building relationships in home visiting.  

The afternoon sessions offered providers and home visitors the chance to attend workshops of their choosing, including sessions on:

• • • reducing burnout and secondary traumatic stress;
    • navigating economic security for families; 
    • supporting family preparedness;
    • and supporting families impacted by prenatal substance exposure and substance use.  

A Home Visiting Standards update from Dr. Hailey Heinz, ECECD Policy, Research and Quality Initiatives (PRQI) Division Director, opened the second day of the annual meeting, along with a Standard Operating Procedure Manual update from Kristi Romero, ECECD Family Foundations Bureau Chief.   

Home Visiting Manger John Acuna then facilitated a provider panel on implementing multiple models. Cristin Weldon from Aprendamos, Kathleen Barney from Youth Development, Inc.,(YDI) and Damaris Donado from UNM shared the successes and challenges of implementing two or three models in their program.  

The annual meeting wrapped up with a regional breakout session. Providers and home visitors from each region got to know one another and discussed gaps in their region and brainstormed goals on how to meet the needs within their community.  

NM PreK LENA Pilot Program 

LENA Grow is a professional development program that helps educators increase “conversational turns” with the children in their classrooms. This pilot was implemented in a five-week cycle in April and May. Current data shows 31 NM PreK programs participated with 739 children, 112 teachers and 66 classrooms. Positive impacts by educators who have participated so far have been documented with 83% feeling more confident in their teaching abilities, 95% saw changes in children’s language development and 88% recommending LENA Grow to other teachers. There will be additional opportunities for interested PreK programs to participate in LENA during the 2026-2027 program year.  

Early Math Success: NM PreK Math Kits 

NM PreK funded classrooms received brand-new Lakeshore Math Kits at no cost, which were funded by ECECD. Virtual, on-demand professional development in both English and Spanish is available to educators to support alignment with the materials, manipulatives and resources in the kits. The materials and professional development will support math outcomes and support school readiness. 

New Mexico’s Early Learning Standards (ELS) are now available in English and Spanish. The ELS are a developmental framework describing what children from birth through age 5 know and are able to do. They replace the previous Early Learning Guidelines and were shaped by community input and the latest child development research.

To support a thoughtful transition, ECECD is releasing the ELS ahead of formal implementation. This gives practitioners, programs, and partners time to review the new developmental framework and begin exploring how it connects to their work.
ECECD is developing an implementation plan and practitioner resources. These will help you understand what the ELS mean for your setting and how to use them in your work. Practitioner engagement opportunities are being planned for the coming months, and your input will directly shape the tools that are developed.

You can view the ELS in English by clicking here!

This update provides clarification regarding the planned transition from paying child care providers on a reimbursement basis to paying prospectively at the beginning of the month before services are provided. Due to current state and federal requirements, payments for child care must continue to be issued on a reimbursement basis. This change is the result of the following: 

• The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through its Administration for Children and Families, rescinding a series of Biden-era child care rules including the rule that required states to pay providers prospectively. 

• Without the federal requirement, there was no justification for a change to state law. Senate Bill 153, introduced during the 2026 New Mexico Legislative Session, which would have granted authority for prospective payments, did not pass.  

ECECD remains committed to supporting child care providers and ensuring timely and accurate reimbursement for services rendered. Child care providers will receive a letter with more information and an updated payment calendar in the coming days. We will continue to monitor federal developments closely and will communicate any future changes that may affect payment methods.

You’re Invited to participate in June’s Early Childhood Community Call!

Join ECECD Secretary Elizabeth Groginsky and special guests on the first Tuesday of every month from 8–9 a.m., to discuss important issues pertaining to the New Mexico early childhood community.

The next Early Childhood Community Call will be Tuesday, May 5, 2026.

Did you miss last month’s Community Call?
Click here for the recording (Spanish translation is available under audio settings)
Presentations: Comming Soon!

Zoom Meeting Details (same link every meeting):
Click here to Join via Zoom

• Telephone: 669-900-9128 or 253-215-8782
• Webinar ID: 958 5783 9577

ECECD supports 18 Local Early Childhood System Building Coalitions across 14 counties, each working to strengthen their community’s ability to deliver quality programs and services for children from birth to age 5. These coalitions advance the New Mexico Early Childhood Strategic Plan (2021-2024) and ECECD’s five-year-plan, Florecer (2022-2027), by fostering local-state partnerships and community-driven solutions. 

ECECD’s biweekly newsletter spotlights one coalition each issue. This week, we’re excited to feature the San Miguel County Early Childhood Coalition. Located in Las Vegas, their mission is to promote access to high-quality, culturally responsive care and education for families with children 0 to 5 years old in San Miguel County. This work is facilitated by expanding and aligning existing services in our community to enhance early childhood education including infant mental health, social emotional well-being, healthy growth & development, family engagement and empowerment, community resources, and support for early childhood professionals. 

Last spring, the San Miguel County Early Childhood Coalition hosted a family leadership series for the county to promote leadership among families and providers in the community. This was a three-part training conducted for 25 families and providers. Topics included empowerment, stress management and reflective practice, and communication skills. Accelerator data was shared, and participants brainstormed the cultural and structural strengths and barriers in the community that impact early childhood education and development.  

As of October 2025, the coalition has transitioned fiscal agency to New Mexico Highlands University.  

Check out San Miguel County Coalition at San Miguel County Early Childhood Coalition | Las Vegas NM | Facebook  

Contact Tyler Trujillo by email at sanmiguelcccoordinator@gmail.com