Teachers urge APS board to rein in mandated tests and reverse PE cuts
April 16, 2026 | ALBUQUERQUE PUBLIC SCHOOLS, School Districts, New Mexico
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Dozens of Albuquerque Public Schools teachers used the board’s public comment period on April 15 to press trustees to reconsider district decisions they say are adding to teacher workload and harming instruction.
“Amira is expected to assess them accurately,” said Celeste Hernandez, a bilingual kindergarten teacher at Bel Air Elementary and vice president of the Albuquerque Teacher Federation, who described students being marked wrong by the program and teachers taking on time‑consuming rechecks. “Please push back on excessive testing of our youngest learners and consider the voices of the classroom when evaluating tools like this AI platform.”
Several speakers described recent cuts to elementary physical‑education staffing, tying the reductions to poorer student wellness and fewer opportunities for movement that research links to academic focus. “Physical education is not a luxury,” Kristen Paulson, a PE teacher at East San Jose Elementary, told the board. “It is essential to the development of the whole child.”
Other commenters reflected broader pressure on educators: reduced planning and prep time, expanded paperwork such as frequent MLSS and IEP reports, and concerns about behavior supports and safety in classrooms. “We are losing teachers faster than we are attracting them,” said a public commenter, summarizing union survey findings and national retention indicators discussed in the forum.
Board President Tom Morito and Superintendent Blakey did not take questions during public forum; the board received the comments as part of the meeting’s record. The board’s packets and the public testimony referenced the district’s ATF (teachers’ union) survey and recent presentations about district assessment tools.
Next steps: teachers asked the board to advocate with the state for less testing of early‑grade students, to review Amira’s implementation, and to reinstate full‑time PE positions at elementary schools. District staff later said they would follow up with more detailed data and noted that some concerns raised during public comment overlap with items on the board’s agenda for monitoring and budget discussions.
The board did not vote on any assessment or staffing changes at the meeting.
“Amira is expected to assess them accurately,” said Celeste Hernandez, a bilingual kindergarten teacher at Bel Air Elementary and vice president of the Albuquerque Teacher Federation, who described students being marked wrong by the program and teachers taking on time‑consuming rechecks. “Please push back on excessive testing of our youngest learners and consider the voices of the classroom when evaluating tools like this AI platform.”
Several speakers described recent cuts to elementary physical‑education staffing, tying the reductions to poorer student wellness and fewer opportunities for movement that research links to academic focus. “Physical education is not a luxury,” Kristen Paulson, a PE teacher at East San Jose Elementary, told the board. “It is essential to the development of the whole child.”
Other commenters reflected broader pressure on educators: reduced planning and prep time, expanded paperwork such as frequent MLSS and IEP reports, and concerns about behavior supports and safety in classrooms. “We are losing teachers faster than we are attracting them,” said a public commenter, summarizing union survey findings and national retention indicators discussed in the forum.
Board President Tom Morito and Superintendent Blakey did not take questions during public forum; the board received the comments as part of the meeting’s record. The board’s packets and the public testimony referenced the district’s ATF (teachers’ union) survey and recent presentations about district assessment tools.
Next steps: teachers asked the board to advocate with the state for less testing of early‑grade students, to review Amira’s implementation, and to reinstate full‑time PE positions at elementary schools. District staff later said they would follow up with more detailed data and noted that some concerns raised during public comment overlap with items on the board’s agenda for monitoring and budget discussions.
The board did not vote on any assessment or staffing changes at the meeting.
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