Governor picks state government insider Mariana Padilla as next NM public education boss

SANTA FE — Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham didn’t have to look far to find her fifth public education secretary since taking office in 2019.

Lujan Grisham on Tuesday appointed Mariana Padilla to the high-profile post, which had been vacant since former secretary Arsenio Romero’s abrupt resignation last month.

Padilla, a former Albuquerque elementary school teacher, has been the director of the governor’s Children’s Cabinet for the past five-plus years. She also worked for several months in 2021 as interim secretary of the Children, Youth and Families Department.

“Mariana’s deep roots in New Mexico and her lifelong commitment to children and families make her the right leader for this moment,” Lujan Grisham said in a statement. “Her work has been instrumental in shaping our state’s education system, and I am confident that she will continue to bring positive change for New Mexico’s students.”

Padilla’s appointment as the state’s top public education official — she will make an annual salary of $218,000 — comes less than two weeks after Romero’s resignation.

He stepped down after the governor asked him to either resign or withdraw his application for the job as president of New Mexico State University. Romero is one of five finalists who recently interviewed for the NMSU position.

Romero had been appointed to lead the state’s Public Education Department by Lujan Grisham in February 2023, becoming the fourth person in four-plus years to hold the high-profile job.

As PED secretary, Romero has led the agency’s efforts, via a new rule, to require New Mexico public schools to spend at least 180 days with students per school year.

But a coalition of school districts and superintendents filed a lawsuit challenging the department’s rule, leading to the proposed July 1 implementation date being put on hold.

New Mexico’s public school system has long ranked among the nation’s worst in terms of student outcomes, despite recent increases in public school spending and teacher pay levels.

The governor also signed a bill shortly after taking office in 2019 to eliminate letter grades for schools, which had been a signature policy of her predecessor, Republican ex-Gov. Susana Martinez.

As for Padilla, she was raised in Albuquerque’s South Valley and previously directed Lujan Grisham’s congressional office while the now-governor held an Albuquerque-based seat from 2013 through 2018.

She said Tuesday she is honored by the governor’s latest appointment, which is subject to Senate confirmation.

“I am committed to working collaboratively with students, families, educators, and community partners to achieve the outcomes we all want to see,” Padilla said in a statement. “As a parent of grade school students, I share the sense of urgency to deliver for our kids.”

Despite the high level of turnover at the top at the Public Education Department, some education advocates said they’re hopeful Padilla’s appointment brings stability.

Mandi Torrez, the education reform director for Think New Mexico, a Santa Fe-based think tank, said Padilla’s familiarity with the state’s education system could prove beneficial.

“Mariana Padilla has shown that she will put students first, and we are optimistic about the potential improvements she could make at PED,” Torrez told the Journal.

Hope Morales, the executive director of Teach Plus New Mexico, also lauded the appointment of Padilla.

“As we continue to engage teachers across the state on issues that align with improving systems for student outcomes, we are confident that her leadership is exactly what is needed at this time,” Morales said.