Virtual learning will open doors

New Mexico families deserve the opportunity to choose virtual public education options for their children that are available to families in 30 other states. I believe access to high quality virtual education options is a basic issue of educational equity for all our K-12 students and their families.

That’s why I am thrilled that Secretary of Education-designate Hannah Skandera recently approved our application to open New Mexico Connections Academy.

The Secretary-designate’s approval will help us tackle some of the challenges many of our students face — and will give us another way to prepare students for success in the digital age.

I am proud to serve as a founding board member of NMCA. I joined with a distinguished group of New Mexico citizen volunteers — parents, educators, business and community leaders — who are committed to bringing a high-quality, highly accountable virtual K-12 public school to New Mexico. I joined the NMCA Board because as a businessman, I am keenly aware of the importance of education in creating a quality workforce. And, unfortunately, our students today are simply not performing academically: Our state ranks 49th in education, according to the 2012 KIDS COUNT project from the independent Annie E. Casey Foundation.

The state Department of Education reports that the New Mexico state average high school graduation rate was just 63 percent for the class of 2011, down from 67.3 percent for the previous class. Our Hispanic students are even more acutely at risk of academic failure: only 59 percent of our Hispanic students graduate.

These deplorable educational outcomes are obviously the result of many complex and interwoven challenges faced by our young Hispanic students, including poverty, family issues and teen pregnancy. Hispanic students and their families, in particular, deserve better educational opportunities and more educational choice so they can better prepare for success in today’s 21st century jobs.

I believe our public school will set a new standard for education excellence in New Mexico and will advance the mission of serving students statewide, enhancing technological innovation, providing high quality education and engaging community experiences. With its New Mexico state-certified teachers, individualized learning program, standards-aligned curriculum and engaging digital learning resources, NMCA would bring educational success to New Mexico students who, for a variety of reasons, simply have not thrived in a traditional classroom setting.

Just like traditional public schools that rely on the private sector for myriad of services, we are unapologetic about our decision to engage the services of Connections Academy to deliver new choices for our families.

Connections has a proven track record of supporting high quality, highly accountable virtual public schools. Strong academic results, numerous teacher and curriculum awards and sky-high parent satisfaction rates all attest to the high quality of Connections Academy schools.

Don’t our students deserve the best?

Sadly, critics of parental choice have emerged and are working feverishly to thwart parents’ desires to give their children the best possible education.

It’s not unexpected. Resistance to innovation and change is the norm.

We invite our fellow New Mexicans to work with us on creating new models of learning — and new opportunities for success for our children.

Together, we can help make students’ dreams come true — and create a strong, vibrant 21st century workforce.

Carlo Lucero serves as a board member on the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce and the Albuquerque Public School Superintendent’s Business Advisory Committee.