STUDY PARENTING STUDENTS IN NM HIGHER ED

HM 33 is a House Memorial requesting the New Mexico Higher Education Department to form a task force to study data collection for parenting students (defined as students with primary caregiving responsibilities for dependent children). The task force, including representatives from colleges, tribal institutions, parenting students, and advocacy groups, must develop a statewide data collection standard and report recommendations by November 2026. This would establish consistent methods for institutions to identify parenting students and assess their needs, though the memorial itself does not enact new policies. The effort responds to data showing one in three New Mexico college students are parents, yet no standardized system exists to support them.