Stage is set for Albuquerque Public Schools board race

The balance of power between the two primary factions that make up the Albuquerque Public Schools board is on the ballot this November.

Historically, the teachers union maintained control of the board until 2021, when three business-backed members won four of the seats up for grabs and claimed a majority on the school board. Those same seats are up for reelection on Nov. 4.

District 3

In District 3, Board President Danielle Gonzales hopes to keep her seat and is banking on her record as a board member.

“Can we say turning the whole district around, which is essentially what has happened by the establishment of the goals and the strategic plan,” she said. “So now the district is focused on student outcomes goals and meeting those goals.”

In 2023, the school board passed a set of goals and guardrails developed with community input to provide achievement and improvement targets. Several recent monitoring reports the board has received indicate it is on target with most goals.

However, her opponent, backed by the teachers union, joined the race because the district “needs a voice on the board that families can trust.” Rebecca Betzen said she decided to run after noticing parents’ displeasure at the closure of Taft Middle School in District 3 last year, which she said was “mishandled” by APS.

“We left parents feeling very betrayed, and parents lost trust in APS,” she said. “I think that we need to work on rebuilding that trust.”

The school was repurposed this year to house the Coronado Dual Language Magnet School.

For her part, Gonzales said the process was transparent and pointed to the district’s repurposing of the campus.

District 7

Another incumbent looking to hold on to her seat is Courtney Jackson, the board’s vice president and District 7 representative. Like Gonzales, she is also banking on her record as a board member.

“My work is not yet done. I started four years ago with a clear vision that APS needed to do better for our students and our families,” she said. “I have worked diligently since that time to align the district to focus on students first and their outcomes. And we are not done yet.”

Kristin Wood-Hegner, who is backed by the teachers’ union, is looking to unseat Jackson because of her experience as a parent of a student with special needs.

“The board has a heavy focus on basic proficiency, and we need to also support gifted students and advanced students with materials that they can read as well,” she said. “The parents in this district are very unhappy. The students are unhappy. Teachers are unhappy. The community wants change.”

Jackson said that the feedback she gets from her constituents is positive.

District 6

In District 6 — the only seat the union won in 2021 — incumbent Josefina Domínguez is not seeking reelection. Warigia Bowman is running to replace her and keep the seat for the Albuquerque Teachers Federation.

“Our democracy is at a turning point, and we really need to realize that public schools are where kids learn values, they learn about civics, they learn about social studies, they learn about history,” she said. “So it’s really important to have someone in there who will protect the real history, especially when we’re in New Mexico.”

Challenging her is David Ams, who entered the race because of the difference public education has had in his life.

“It was a good public education that set me up to eventually get a PhD from Notre Dame in chemistry. And now I have a career with the national labs,” he said. “I just wouldn’t have seen that coming.”

District 5

For District 5, the teachers’ union opted not to endorse a candidate. As a result, the only candidate in any board race without backing from ATF or the business community is Brian Laurent Jr., a former special education teacher.

“With (the) school board, it’s not necessarily Democrat versus Republican, but the business crowd versus Albuquerque Teachers Federation — seven of the eight have been endorsed by one of the two. I’m the eighth one,” he said. “I am not naive. I understand that I have an uphill battle, especially given I did not decide to run until the day before the filing date. That’s when I was 100%.”

Laurent said his reason for getting in the race was that even though the district has set clear goals for academic outcomes, he sees many of the goals — especially for underserved students — as being too low.

Taking him on will be Joshua Martinez, who the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce has endorsed.

“We’re feeling very confident. We have gotten a good response from some key supporters, elected officials, and community leaders, but also people in the community,” he said. “The community knows me and I, and I know the community.”

In May, the incumbent for District 5, Crystal Tapia-Romero, announced she would not be running for reelection and endorsed Martinez.

Measure of superintendent

Almost as divided as to which faction backed the candidate was the candidate’s support of the job Superintendent Gabriella Blakey was doing.

Both Gonzales and Jackson — who voted to hire her in 2024 — said they were happy with the superintendent’s performance so far.

Martinez said he approved of the job Blakey was doing and added, “We are seeing improvements.” For his part, Ams said he was “guardedly optimistic” and was seeing and hearing the “right things.”

However, Betzen said she would like the superintendent to involve teachers more in conversations. Wood-Hegner said the board is evaluating her performance with a “very limited set of criteria,” and Bowman thinks there needs to be more transparency around how Blakey’s performance is evaluated.

“I think it’s too soon to tell,” Laurent said. “I think the board made a hasty decision to extend her contract earlier in 2025.”

District 3 represents the city’s north-central corridor and stretches across the river to Corrales, bordering Rio Rancho Public Schools. District 5 represents the city’s central and far West Side, bordered on the east by District 3.

Voters in District 3 will still see Isaac Flores’ name on the ballot. Last week, he suspended his campaign.

District 6 accounts for the foothills, part of Uptown, and the Northeast Heights’ lower end, stretching to the East Mountains. District 7 represents the northern part of the foothills and the north end of Northeast Heights. It is bordered on the west by Interstate 25.

Election Day is Nov. 4. Early voting began Oct. 7 and ends Nov. 1.