The ECECD Community Newsletter: Free summer meals for New Mexico kids start June 1
Plus a literacy grant deadline, the ELS survey, a new Scratch Cooking badge, and more.
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The full briefing is available in multiple languages on the ECECD website. View all languages → El boletín completo está disponible en varios idiomas en el sitio web del ECECD. Ver todos los idiomas →
Issue No. 02 · Tuesday, May 26, 2026 ● 3-min read ● 1 FeaturE ● 3 Headlines
What's launching, what's funded, and what's coming up across New Mexico early childhood — the short version.
Lea esta edición en español →
Read the full briefing Every story below lives in detail on the ECECD website
→
Featured Story
Free summer meals for New Mexico kids start June 1 — 300+ sites, no signup required When school lets out for the summer, the regular rhythm of breakfast and lunch goes with it for hundreds of thousands of New Mexico kids. The Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), administered by ECECD's Family Nutrition Bureau, fills that gap. Starting June 1, more than 300 sites across the state will serve free meals to any child ages 1–18 — at parks, libraries, recreation centers, schools, churches, and community partners. No signup. No paperwork. No income verification. A child shows up, a child eats.
For early childhood educators, providers, and home visitors: this is a resource worth handing directly to families. A printed list of nearby sites is often what makes the difference between a family using the program and never hearing about it.
Click here to find a site near you at summerfoodnm.org →
This Issue's Headlines
01 Deadline · June 1
Literacy grant closes June 1 — books, PD, and classroom materials on the table Why it matters: The PED/ECECD Comprehensive Literacy State Development (CLSD) grant funds two tracks (Birth–3 and Ages 3–5) with Just Right Reader books, Heggerty phonological awareness materials, Strive for Five training, and Scholastic Cozy Corner resources. Open to Early Head Start, FIT, Home Visiting, NM PreK, Head Start, and 619 Special Ed classrooms. Materials delivered Fall 2026.
Apply by 5 p.m. Monday, June 1. Click here to apply now →
02 Community Bernalillo County coalition has connected 90 families to home visiting since January Why it matters: The Bernalillo County Home Visiting Work Group launched its centralized referral system (UHVCIRS) in January and has logged 108+ referrals while onboarding 18 home visiting programs — a coordination model the other 17 ECECD-supported coalitions can learn from
Read the full spotlight by clicking here →
03 Research Help shape how New Mexico's new Early Learning Standards roll out (10 min · $100 chance) Why it matters: New Mexico's Early Learning Standards (ELS) are published — now ECECD is building the training and resources to support educators putting them into practice. Your perspective shapes that work. Available in English and…