State Profile | New Mexico

The Afterschool Investments project has developed profiles for each state to provide a snapshot of the "state of afterschool," as well as an opportunity to compare afterschool activities across the country. This profile provides key data and descriptions of the afterschool landscape, which includes a range of out-of-school time programming that can occur before and after school, on weekends, and during summer months. It is designed to serve as a resource for policymakers, administrators, and providers.

• Quick Facts
• Statewide Initiatives
• Notable Local Initiatives
• Statewide Organizations
• Additional Resources
• Notes and Sources

Quick Facts

Demographics

For more demographic information, visit http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/statedata/statepro/index.html

Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF)

CCDF Administrative Overview

Settings

Where CCDF-Subsidy school age-children are served:

Uses of CCDF Targeted Funds and Quality Dollars for Afterschool

"Resource and referral and school-age" targeted funds:
Funds may be used to finance the higher reimbursement rates that are paid for the school-age group. These higher rates are justified by an increased training requirement for serving this age group as well as the increasing parental need for this type of care. The expected result is an increase in provider capacity for serving school-age children.

Other quality activities:
Funds may be used for comprehensive consumer education, grants or loans to providers to assist in meeting state and local standards, and to monitor licensing and regulatory requirements. They can also be used for professional development, improving childcare providers’ salaries, activities promoting inclusive childcare, activities which increase parental choice, and for youth focused health programs.

Provider Reimbursement Rates

Tiered Reimbursement Rate System:
The Department pays a higher differential rate to providers who are nationally accredited.  In addition, participation in New Mexico’s Reach for the Stars program, a 5-level quality rating system for licensed homes and centers, allows for higher reimbursement rates to providers. 

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Child Care

Program Licensing Policies

Child care facilities operated by a public school system and governed by the local school board are exempt.

Systems/Quality Supports

21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC)

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Statewide Initiatives

• Statewide Positive Youth Development Focus. In 1999, efforts to create a designated youth development trust fund with New Mexico’s tobacco settlement money highlighted the need for coordination and collaboration in the youth development field. Spurred by the McCune Charitable Trust, the Daniels Fund and the NM Community Foundation, a cross-section of public and private stakeholders laid the groundwork for a statewide youth development intermediary, now called the New Mexico Forum for Youth in Community (NMFYC). In 2003, the Forum garnered support from the C.S. Mott Foundation and from local foundations to expand on the work of the current NM Out-of-School Time Network. The Forum targets support to youth-serving organizations through training, technical assistance, policy, data coordination, communications, and resource development efforts. Regional point organizations assure statewide input. The Forum supports network activity for more than 200 groups and individuals.
• Out of School Time Legislation. In the 2000 and 2003 sessions, the state legislature enacted memoranda commissioning a study of public investment in of afterschool programs in the state. The Children, Youth, and Families Department and the Public Education Department led efforts to identify state dollars being expended to support organizations that operate out-of-school time programs. The 2004 summary report outlined state investment for child care services, workforce development, substance abuse prevention, 21st Century Community Learning Centers, tutoring services, and meal and snack reimbursements totaling over $42 million. Ongoing assessment of findings and recommendations will continue in 2005 and 2006. Analysis and critical findings are available at www.nmforumforyouth.org. In April 2005, the New Mexico legislature voted to create the Next Generation Fund, which will get $2 million in seed money to be shared with the state’s Children's Trust Fund to leverage private funding for youth development and afterschool programs. In addition, the New Mexico Children, Youth, and Family Department provided funding to conduct a statewide program inventory of all out-of-school time programs that would create a map of extended learning opportunities for children and youth.
• School Age Care and Family Support Program. The New Mexico Human Services Department, in conjunction with the Public Education Department, allocates a portion of federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant funds to the School Age Care and Family Support Program. The program, which totaled $2.4 million in FY2003, provides academic enrichment and arts and recreation activities to students aged 5-8 whose parents are in the New Mexico Works/TANF program. Begun in 1999, the program serves over 3,000 students at 70 sites before and afterschool and during breaks. Public elementary schools apply through their districts for awards and can partner with nonprofit community-based agencies, community colleges, or universities. Programs are literacy/arts based and must include parental involvement, as well as meet state education standards. The Public Education Department contracts with agencies such as the Museum of New Mexico and the Santa Fe Opera to provide arts programming and provides training and technical assistance to providers through workshops, monitoring visits, and publications.
• Obesity Prevention Initiative. The Governor appropriated $475,000 in 2005 and $2,000,000 in 2006 to the Public Education Department for obesity prevention, of which $225,000 in 2005 and $165,000 in 2006 was utilized for Before and After School Nutrition and Physical Activity Programs. These funds were distributed through a competitive Request for Application to elementary schools, and were used to sustain existing programs and add a pilot for a program that includes tutoring, nutrition and physical activity components.
• Children’s Cabinet. The Governor created the Children’s Cabinet in 2003 to increase interaction among agencies dealing with children and youth. Chaired by the Lieutenant Governor and consisting of 11 state cabinet secretaries and a youth policy director, the Cabinet streamlines services and track health, education, safety, and economic indicators related to child well-being. The Cabinet looks across the developmental spectrum from ages 0-24 with the goal of addressing the multiple services and systems that support successful children and youth. The Cabinet became a permanent part of state government in 2005. New Mexico’s Youth Alliance, a project of the Children’s Cabinet and the Forum, convenes 112 youth age 14-19 to provide input on state policy and to contribute to a statewide youth report to the Governor, Children’s Cabinet, and State Legislature. 
• New Mexico Youth Initiative. The New Mexico Community Foundation was awarded a five-year, $5.2 million grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation for a statewide Youth Initiative. The Initiative will fund promising youth development practices at multiple established youth-serving nonprofit organizations, allowing grantees to support replication of their strategies. Regional incubators for positive youth development practice will help build capacity throughout the state. The NM Forum for Youth in Community is a key partner in the Initiative, providing an infrastructure to access youth development practices and principles across a variety of settings, including after-school.
• State Demonstration Project. Launched by America’s Promise Alliance, this state project is designed to facilitate collaboration between existing public and private partnerships, increase awareness about child care, and increase funding for Alliance partners’ state affiliates. It is funded by a $20,000 grant from America’s Promise and is one of five nationwide.

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Notable Local Initiatives

• Youth Development Inc. (YDI). YDI, founded in 1971, is a nationally and internationally recognized youth service organization that provides educational, developmental, and humanitarian assistance to effectively improve the life outcomes of New Mexico’s children, youth and families in need by helping them find and develop their full potential. YDI's programs include tutoring, afterschool activities, gang intervention, school drop-out prevention, family counseling services, emergency shelter, youth sports, internships, scholarships, parenting skills, leadership development, public housing assistance, community corrections, GED studies, early childhood education, and substance abuse and AIDS education. Through these programs, YDI serves more than 20,000 clients each year.
• City of Albuquerque’s Middle School Cluster Initiative. The initiative provides support to elementary and middle school afterschool programs in the Albuquerque, NM.  These programs target students who are at risk and are unsupervised during the before and after school hours.  The programs encourage the children and youth to learn, play and develop their talents in a properly supervised environment.  School teachers, out-of-school time professionals, public and private partners, and other stakeholders, work together to contribute to the social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development of all children.  There are about 13,000 students who receive the benefits.

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Statewide Organizations

National AfterSchool Association Affiliate:

New Mexico School Age Care Alliance
Children's Choice
6501 Lomas Blvd NE
Albuquerque, NM 87110
Phone: 505-296-2880

National School Age Care Alliance Affiliate:

Statewide Child Care Resource & Referral Network:

Family Resource & Referral, Inc
704 S. Sunset, Suite A
Roswell, NM 88203
Phone: 800-447-9000

Statewide Afterschool Network:

New Mexico Forum for Youth in Community
924 Park Avenue SW, Suite D
Albuquerque, NM 87102
Web: http://www.nmforumforyouth.org/


New Mexico Voices for Children
801 Encino Place NE, Suite F-21
Albuquerque, NM 87102
Phone: 888-671-KIDS
Web: www.nmvoices.org

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Additional Resources

State Child Care Administrators:
http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/statedata/dirs/display.cfm?title=ccdf

State TANF Contacts:
http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ofa/states/tanf-dr.htm

21st Century Community Learning Centers Contacts:
http://www.ed.gov/programs/21stcclc/contacts.html

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Notes and Sources

Demographics

Total population, 2008: Annual Estimates of the Population for the United States, Regions, States, and Puerto Rico: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2008, U.S. Census Bureau.

Number of children ages 5-12, 2008: Estimates of the Resident Population by Single-Year of Age and Sex for the United States and States: July 1, 2007, U.S. Census Bureau.

Percent of students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch rate, 2006: Numbers and Types of Public Elementary and Secondary Schools from the Common Core of Data: School Year 2005-06. U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Note: Most recent data.

Percent of K-12 students in Title I "schoolwide" schools, 2006: Numbers and Types of Public Elementary and Secondary Schools from the Common Core of Data: School Year 2005-06. U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Schools enrolling at least 40 percent of students from poor families are eligible to use Title I funds for schoolwide programs that serve all children in the school. Note: Most recent data.

Child Care and Development Fund

The Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) is the largest federal funding source for child care. States receive a funding allocation determined by formula and have broad flexibility to design programs that provide child care subsidies for low-income children under the age of 13 and to enhance the quality of child care for all children. Federal CCDF funding consists of mandatory, matching, and discretionary funds. Federal law requires that states spend at least 4 percent of their CCDF funds as well as additional targeted funds on activities to improve the quality and availability of child care. CCDF administrative data in this and the following sections is from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Child Care Bureau, as reported by States, unless otherwise noted.

FFY09 CCDF Allocation: Funding allocations are based on appropriation and do not reflect any reallotted or redistributed funds that may occur at a later date.

FFY09 state MOE plus match: In order to receive Federal matching funds, a state must expend Maintenance of Effort funds. Note that this does not capture actual expenditures, only the minimum required to draw down all available federal funds.

FFY09 Tribal CCDF Allocation: Federal CCDF Funds are awarded directly to Federally-recognized Indian Tribes.

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Funding: The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) appropriates an additional $2 billion in one-time CCDF Discretionary funding available to State, Territory and Tribal Lead Agencies in FY09 as part of the economic stimulus package.

FFY07 total quality expenditures: This data includes FY07 and prior year funds expended for quality from each of the CCDF funding streams (mandatory, matching, and discretionary) and expenditures under targeted funds for infant and toddler, school-age care and resource and referral. This figure provides information obtained from state financial reports submitted for FY07.

Uses of CCDF Targeted Funds and Quality Dollars for Afterschool: Portions of CCDF discretionary funds are targeted specifically for resource and referral and school-age child care activities as well as for quality expansion. (These funds are in addition to the required 4 percent minimum quality expenditure.)

Maximum rate for school-age category: Rates are listed for center-based care, family child care, and license exempt programs; where rates vary by region or county, the rate for the most populated urban area is given.

Standardized monthly school-age rate: Monthly rate for a child, age 8, in care after school during the school year at a center in the most costly district for four hours per day, 20 days per month. Calculated (in the lowest tier of a tiered system) using information from the FY2008-2009 State CCDF Plan, including rate structures, as submitted to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children and Families.

Separate subsidy rates for different age ranges and Tiered Reimbursement Rate Systems: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Child Care Bureau. Report of State Plans FY2008-2009.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Child Care

In addition to spending TANF funds directly on child care, a state may transfer up to 30 percent of its TANF grant to CCDF. Expenditures represent TANF funds spent in FY07 that were awarded in FY07 and prior years. Data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, available at: In addition to spending TANF funds directly on child care, a state may transfer up to 30 percent of its TANF grant to CCDF. Expenditures represent TANF funds spent in FY07 that were awarded in FY07 and prior years. Data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, available at: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ofs/data/2007/tanf_2007.html.

Program Licensing and Accreditation Policies

States with separate school-age licensing standards and states with specialized requirements for child care centers serving school-age children: National Child Care Information and Technical Assistance Center (NCCIC) and National Association for Regulatory Administration, 2007 Child Care Licensing Study, see: http://www.naralicensing.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=160.

Ratio of children to adults in school-age setting: Data from the National Child Care Information Center (NCCIC), available at: http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov.

School-based, school-age programs exempt from licensing: Research conducted by Afterschool Investments, March 2008.

Systems/Quality Supports

School-age credential: NCCIC, State Professional Development System Credentials for Individuals, see: http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/poptopics/pd-credentials.html.

Statewide quality rating system: NCCIC, Quality Rating Systems: Definitions and Statewide Systems, see: http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/pubs/qrs-defsystems.html.

Statewide afterschool network: National Network of Statewide Afterschool Networks, see: http://www.statewideafterschoolnetworks.net/.

21st Century Community Learning Centers

The 21st Century Community Learning Centers Program is a state formula grant. Funds flow to states based on their share of Title I, Part A funds. Data from the U.S. Department of Education 21st Century Community Learning Centers Office and the 21st CCLC Profile and Performance Information Collection System as of July 2009.

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The Child Care Bureau awarded a technical assistance contract to The Finance Project for the Afterschool Investments project. The goals of the Afterschool Investments project include:

• Identifying ways that state and communities are using Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) subsidy and quality dollars to support out-of-school time programs, and sharing these practices and approaches with other states;
• Identifying administrative and implementation issues related to CCDF investments in out-of-school time programs, and providing information and context (about barriers, problems, opportunities) as well as practical tools that will help CCDF administrators make decisions; and
• Identifying other major programs and sectors that are potential partners for CCDF in supporting out-of-school time programs and providing models, strategies, and tools for coordination with other programs and sectors.

Contact Us:

Email:
afterschool@financeproject.org

Web:
http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/afterschool/

The Finance Project
1401 New York Avenue, NW
Suite 800
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: 202-587-1000
Web: www.financeproject.org

The Afterschool Investments project’s State Profiles are designed to provide a comprehensive overview of noteworthy State and local initiatives across the country. Inclusion of an initiative in the Profiles does not represent an endorsement of a particular policy or practice.