In this 2020 photo, a preschooler plays during morning recess in Albuquerque. A constitutional amendment passed in 2022 will boost the funding available to help prepare children for kindergarten. (Roberto E. Rosales/Albuquerque Journal).
Albuquerque Journal
SANTA FE — A national report on child well-being ranks New Mexico last in the country again — sunk, in part, by deteriorating academic outcomes in reading and math.
But the annual Kids Count report also highlighted some signs of optimism, including fewer children in poverty and a falling teen birth rate.
It was released Wednesday by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, a philanthropic group focused on young people.
The report’s bottomline remained dismal for New Mexico — a No. 50 ranking among states, just behind Louisiana at 49 and Mississippi at 48.
The top-performers were New Hampshire at No. 1, followed by Utah and then Massachusetts.