July 20, 2006 Decision Letter on Request to Amend New Mexico Accountability Plan
July 20, 2006
The Honorable Veronica C. Garcia
Secretary of Education
State of New Mexico Public Education Department
300 Don Gaspar
Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501
Dear Secretary Garcia:
I am writing in response to New Mexico’s request to amend its State accountability plan under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). Following our discussions with your staff, I am pleased to approve the amendment that is aligned with NCLB. The revised and fully approved plan will be posted on the Department’s website. A summary of the approved amendment is enclosed with this letter.
As you know, any additional requests to amend the New Mexico accountability plan must be submitted to the Department for review and approval as required by section 1111(f)(2) of Title I. Please note that approval of New Mexico’s accountability plan does not constitute approval of the State’s standards and assessment system.
Please also be aware that approval of New Mexico’s accountability plan for Title I, including the amendment approved above, does not indicate that the plan complies with Federal civil rights requirements, including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and requirements under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
NCLB has provided a vehicle for States to raise the achievement of all students and to close the achievement gap. We are seeing the results of our combined endeavor; achievement is rising throughout the nation. I appreciate New Mexico’s efforts to raise the achievement of all students and hold all schools accountable. If you need any additional assistance to implement the standards, assessments, and accountability provisions of NCLB, please do not hesitate to contact Catherine Freeman (catherine.freeman@ed.gov) or Grace Ross (grace.ross@ed.gov) of my staff.
Sincerely,
Henry L. Johnson
Enclosure
cc: Governor Bill Richardson
Don Watson
Amendment to the New Mexico Accountability Plan
The following is a summary of the State’s approved amendment. Please refer to the Department’s website (refer to: www.ed.govhttps://www2.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/stateplans03/index.html) for the complete New Mexico accountability plan.
Graduation Rate Calculation (Element 7.1)
Revision: Until New Mexico has four years of data based on individual student identification numbers with which to calculate a cohort graduation rate, New Mexico will continue to use it current approved graduation rate through 2006-07.
