Las Cruces Bulletin: Pilot program looks to help homeless students succeed
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LAS CRUCES — It’s a chance to get money that can help students afford transportation, pay their families’ bills and offset some of the negative impact of homelessness on the education of high school students. Educators believe it’s a real opportunity for teenagers to focus on schoolwork and reach their goals to walk across the graduation stage.
Under a new state pilot program that launched this month, high school students experiencing homelessness will receive $500 monthly payments for meeting attendance and academic requirements.
The New Mexico Public Education Department will enroll 330 students in grades 10–12 across 12 school districts and one charter school. The legislature funded the three-year pilot at $2.1 million annually.
Participating students must maintain 92% monthly attendance, complete all schoolwork, attend three academic support sessions weekly and meet with counselors for wraparound services to qualify for payments.
“This program recognizes the real challenges homeless students face and gives them stability to graduate and pursue their dreams,” said Public Education Secretary Mariana D. Padilla.
The program builds on a program tested in 2020 by New Mexico Appleseed, a child poverty nonprofit. Just 51% of the state’s homeless students had graduated the year before, but in the test group, 93%, 13 of 14 seniors, graduated.