HIGHER ED BILINGUAL ED FACULTIES & DEGREE

This Senate Joint Memorial (SJM 3) requests the New Mexico Higher Education Department to develop a joint bachelor's degree in elementary bilingual multicultural education across four public universities (UNM, Western NM, NM Highlands, NM State). It also proposes scholarships for students and educators pursuing advanced degrees in bilingual education, increased faculty positions for bilingual programs, and college credit recognition for students with New Mexico’s "state seal of bilingualism-biliteracy." The memorial aims to address a shortage of bilingual teachers, aligning with state and federal mandates like the Martinez/Yazzie court ruling and the Bilingual Multicultural Education Act. It is a non-binding request to state agencies, not a law.