SW New Mexico News

The Las Cruces Public Schools Board of Education gave unanimous approval Tuesday to three key items on the June regular meeting agenda. In advance of the 2024-2025 school year, the board signed off on the bus contract with STS of New Mexico, the SRO agreements between the City of Las Cruces and the Town of Mesilla, and extended the district’s current contract with Superintendent Ignacio Ruiz.

During the Superintendent’s Report, the board heard Transportation Back to School highlights, including the district’s eight percent increase to the 2023-2024 operational contract with STS of New Mexico to cover increased salaries for drivers, increased fuel and operating costs, and adjusted ancillary contract rates. The board voted unanimously to approve the transportation services contract.

Before voting, the board also heard a presentation on the agreements between the district and the City of Las Cruces and the Town of Mesilla for School Resource Officers (SROs). Historically, LCPS has entered into agreements with both Las Cruces and Mesilla to provide support during school incidents and classroom resources for educational programs with local law enforcement agencies.

The agreement with the City of Las Cruces includes the service of 10 SROs and one supervisor from the Las Cruces Police Department dedicated to LCPS. The contract also allocates a budget for LCPD training for SROs. Following the presentation and discussion, the agreement was unanimously approved by the board.

The agreement with the Town of Mesilla includes two full-time SROs to support Zia Middle School, Rio Grande Preparatory Institute, Student Success Academy, and Mesilla Elementary School. The SROs from the Mesilla Marshals office perform similar duties as their colleagues from LCPD – providing support to students, staff, and administrators.

The last order of business Tuesday evening included discussion and approval of changes to Superintendent Ruiz’s contract. The board unanimously approved entering into a new contract with Ruiz, effective July 1, 2024. The contract will run through June 30, 2026.

The archived livestream from Tuesday’s meeting can be found here.