ECECD Early Childhood Community Newsletter: Monday, July 7, 2025
What's Inside: We're Five! Celebrating ECECD's 5th Birthday and Milestones, plus more!
The full-text version of the ECECD Early Childhood Community Newsletter is available on the ECECD website here . La versión completa del Boletín semanal sobre el cuidado de los niños está disponible en el sitio web del ECECD aquí .
Featured Story
In Loving Memory of Crystal Peña: Former President of the New Mexico Head Start Association
It is with deep sorrow and a heavy heart that I share the unexpected passing of our beloved colleague and friend, Crystal Peña. Crystal served as the former President of the New Mexico Head Start Association and was most recently serving as President of the Region VI Head Start Association.
Crystal passed away suddenly on Friday due to a heart attack. Her loss is both shocking and deeply painful. It is a sobering reminder of how precious and fleeting our time on this earth truly is. Crystal was the embodiment of a true servant leader. She gave generously of her time, energy, and heart—not only to our Head Start Association but also to her home program, HELP New Mexico, where she served with unwavering dedication and compassion. Her leadership, wisdom, and commitment to children and families will forever be remembered.
We grieve this tremendous loss and will continue to uplift Crystal’s legacy with love and remembrance. Please hold Crystal’s daughter, her loved ones, and the entire HELP New Mexico and Head Start community in your thoughts and prayers. This is a difficult and tender time for all who knew and loved her.
Let us draw close in unity, cherish one another, and continue to serve with the kind of purpose and passion Crystal modeled for us all.
In unity and sorrow,
Patricia Grovey Evans
President, Head Start Association of New Mexico
Executive Director, Child and Family Services of Lea County
July 7, 2025
What's Inside?
1. Reminders/Announcements
2. Events
3. Professional Development
5. Boletín en Español
Reminders/Announcements
We're Five! Celebrating ECECD's 5th Birthday and Milestones
We’re five! This month, we celebrate a major milestone: five years of building New Mexico’s early childhood system from the ground up—together. Born during a global pandemic, the New Mexico Early Childhood Education and Care Department (ECECD) didn't start with ease, but it did start with purpose. In those first weeks, our early morning daily calls weren't just about logistics, they were about vision, values, and forging partnerships with the early childhood community. From the beginning, we were shaped by connection, urgency, and an unwavering belief that every child in New Mexico deserves a strong start.
We’ve always known this work can’t happen in silos . Local early childhood care and education communities are deeply interconnected, and our strength comes from operating like an ecosystem—adaptable, resilient, and grounded in partnership. That mindset helped us meet the moment in 2020 and continues to guide us through every challenge and success.
In just five years, we’ve made real, lasting, generational change guided by our core values of family-driven policies and programs, integrity, teamwork and collaboration, organizational excellence, and partnership. Here's a quick look back at some of the moments you helped make possible:
2020 – ECECD officially began during the height of the pandemic; daily calls with the early childhood community helped us forge our mission and values in real time.
2022 – Child Care Assistance eligibility was expanded, and child care co-pays were waived, making cost-free care available to over half of New Mexico families; we hit the road for our first Spring Tour and built deeper connections with Tribal and local communities.
2024 – Thanks to 70% of New Mexico voters supporting passage of the Land Grant Permanent Fund for early childhood, ECECD received over $100 million for New Mexico PreK and we toured the state with the New Mexico PreK Roadshow which brought together Head Start, school districts, and community-based providers to learn and grow together.
2026 – Secured an increased distribution from the Early Childhood Trust Fund — $500 million or five percent of the corpus of the Fund, whichever is greater; ECECD continues to earn state and national attention for our work.
These successes were made possible thanks to Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s bold vision, strong leadership, and unwavering commitment to children and families. We are also grateful to the New Mexico Legislature who laid the foundation for this progress and enabled these achievements through their investments.
From the beginning, we focused on state-local partnerships, and now, our local early childhood system-building coalitions are leading the charge in celebrating ECECD’s fifth birthday—hosting ECECD Birthday Resource Fairs across the state to mark this milestone with the people who matter most: families.
ECECD is centering family voice, uplifting the early childhood workforce, and ultimately, investing in our state’s greatest asset: our children and the families who support them. Through this, we are building a prenatal-to-age five early childhood system that reflects New Mexico’s cultures, languages, values, and incredible potential.
Here’s to five years of building something bold, beautiful, and uniquely New Mexican.
Notice of Public Rule Hearing: 8.9.9 NMAC - Child Care Facility Loan Act
ECECD is holding a public rule hearing for proposed updates to 8.9.9 NMAC – Requirements Governing the Child Care Facility Loan Act.
Public Rule Hearing:
Date: Thursday, July 24, 2025
Time: 9–10 a.m.
Location: Apodaca Hall, PERA Building, 1120 Paseo de Peralta, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87502, and via Zoom .
Public Comment Accepted:
Email: ECECD-ECS-PublicComment@ECECD.NM.Gov (Subject line: “8.9.9 NMAC Public Comment”)
Mail: P.O. Drawer 5619, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87502-5619
In-person: Old PERA building at 1120 Paseo De Peralta on Thursday, July 24,…