SANTA FE – Two state agencies released an online survey today asking New Mexico families to describe their needs for child care and other supports as a first step toward helping families and educators prepare for school reentry amid the pandemic.
The Public Education Department and the Early Childhood Education & Care Department will use the results to support school districts and charter leaders in meeting the needs of their families who need access to child care when remote learning resumes in August and when hybrid learning begins in the coming months. The online survey, available here in English, Spanish and Diné, will remain open until the agencies are satisfied with the response rate. However, the agencies are encouraging families to complete the survey by Monday, Aug. 10.
“The pandemic has upended life for families across New Mexico. By working with PED and the Governor’s Office to connect families to child care and other local resources, ECECD aims to help restore some stability for our communities,” said ECECD Cabinet Secretary Elizabeth Groginsky.
“This administration is committed to supporting families, and child care is one of the challenges they face. Together with ECECD, we’re doing everything we can to help them,” PED Secretary Ryan Stewart said.
Tripod Educational Partners, a company that specializes in surveys on student, family and teacher perspectives, is conducting the survey on behalf of the two agencies. Tripod also conducted a survey for PED in June to gauge families’ views on the early weeks of remote learning.
Families who need child care can also view an interactive map of child care centers by school district, available here.
In addition, ECECD has unveiled a new version of its “Am I Eligible?” app that allows child care assistance applicants to submit documents online. Doing so will allow ECECD staff to respond to applicants about the status of their application more quickly.
Currently, child care assistance eligibility in New Mexico is up to 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Level, which is $52,400 for a family of four.
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