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The majority of school districts in northern New Mexico had mostly American Indian/Alaskan Native and Hispanic students enrolled, and the districts with a majority of Hispanic students enrolled typically had lower science and math proficiency rates.
The majority of school districts in northern New Mexico had mostly American Indian/Alaskan Native and Hispanic students enrolled, and the districts with a majority of Hispanic students enrolled typically had lower science and math proficiency rates.
The goal of analyzing student diversity enrollment data was to investigate which ethnic groups may be experiencing barriers to an accessible, available, and equitable STEM education. We found that the majority of districts in northern New Mexico had mostly American Indian/Alaskan Native and Hispanic students enrolled which can be seen in the map below. Only three out of thirty six school districts had a majority Caucasian students enrolled. Those three school districts were:
Los Alamos,
Roots and Wings Community, and
NM School for Arts.
On the other hand, Walatowa Charter High and Dulce school district have over 90% of student enrollment being American Indian/Alaskan Native. Looking at diversity along with proficiency rates, another obvious trend is that the districts with a majority of Hispanic students enrolled typically had lower science and math proficiency rates. An accessible, available, and equitable STEM education includes students of diverse identities including their race and ethnicity, and currently, the majority of school districts are ranking poorly for the “Accessibility for Students of Diverse Backgrounds'' component in the Accessibility, Availability, & Equity Framework. In northern New Mexico, it has become clear that school districts with primarily minority students are not providing the same quality STEM education as schools districts with majority Caucasian students.
A map of student diversity based on 2019 enrollment rates by school district from the PED in northern New Mexico.
For most of the school districts of northern New Mexico, the diversity of educators was not comparable to the diversity of the students meaning minority students are underrepresented in STEM education.
For most of the school districts of northern New Mexico, the diversity of educators was not comparable to the diversity of the students meaning minority students are underrepresented in STEM education.
During analysis of race and ethnic diversity of educators for each school district in northern New Mexico, a common trend that appeared is that the diversity of educators was not comparable to the diversity of the students. Below is a map of the diversity of educators by school district. Nineteen of the thirty six school districts had over 50% of their educators identifying as Caucasian while only three out of the thirty six school districts had over 50% of their student enrollment being Caucasian. This means the majority of the school districts in northern New Mexico rank poorly for the “Diversity of Educators” component on the Accessibility, Availability, & Equity Framework. Because of the lack of diversity among educators in the school districts of northern New Mexico, minority students are being underrepresented in STEM fields in their own school districts which can lead to a lack of motivation to further an education or career in the STEM industry.
A map of educator diversity based on 2019 data by school district from the PED in northern New Mexico.
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