PHOTO CUTLINE: New Mexico State University student Samuel Rydecki is a student teacher at Organ Mountain High School in Las Cruces, and hopes to make a positive impact on his future students. Rydecki is one of dozens of fellow NMSU students making an impact on the state’s need for educators. New Mexico has made significant progress in reducing teacher vacancies across its public schools, with open teaching positions declining by 33% in the past year, according to the 2026 New Mexico Educator Vacancy Report. (NMSU photo by Josh Bachman) DESCRIPTION: Man sitting at his desk inside of a classroom.
Despite the many challenges teachers face, New Mexico State University student Samuel Rydecki is pursuing the profession in hopes of making a meaningful impact on his future students.
“I have Tourette’s Syndrome, and the challenges that come with that have not always been easy,” Rydecki said. “I wanted to be able to show students that even in the face of adversity, you can accomplish anything you put your mind to, and I feel like real-world examples are invaluable to their young minds.”
Rydecki is one of dozens of fellow NMSU students making an impact on the state’s need for educators. New Mexico has made significant progress in reducing teacher vacancies across its public schools, with open teaching positions declining by 33% in the past year, according to the 2026 New Mexico Educator Vacancy Report, which was prepared by NMSU’s Southwest Outreach Academic Research Evaluation and Policy Center. The center is housed at NMSU’s College of Health, Education and Social Transformation.
The report also found shortages in special education, elementary education and educational support positions. It identified 403 teacher vacancies statewide as of Sept. 1, down from 604 in 2025 and 737 in 2024.
While the decline is encouraging progress, the report identifies areas where school districts continue to struggle to recruit and retain qualified personnel.
“Clearly, with teacher vacancies decreasing from 604 in 2025 to 403 overall in 2026, and with the entire southwest district reporting merely 36 total vacancies, the School of Teacher Preparation, Administration and Leadership is leveraging rigorous academic standards and robust clinical partnerships to ensure key placements in high-needs areas,” said College of HEST Dean Rick Marlatt. “The College of HEST is grateful to Dr. Rachel Boren and her team at the Southwest Outreach Academic Research Evaluation and Policy Center for their tremendous work in compiling this important annual report. And we are particularly proud of Dr. Leanna Lucero and her colleagues in the School of Teacher Preparation, Administration and Leadership, whose excellence in educator preparation programming continues to develop highly qualified, culturally competent teachers for the state of New Mexico.”
Special education accounted for the largest share of teacher vacancies, with 116 openings, or 29% of all reported teacher vacancies. Elementary education followed with 101 openings, representing 25%. Together, the two areas accounted for more than half of the state’s teacher vacancies.
The report also identified shortages in high school teaching positions, including science, mathematics and English language arts.
PHOTO CUTLINE: New Mexico State University student Samuel Rydecki is a student teacher at Organ Mountain High School in Las Cruces, and is one of dozens of fellow NMSU students making an impact on the state’s need for educators. New Mexico has made significant progress in reducing teacher vacancies across its public schools, with open teaching positions declining by 33% in the past year, according to the 2026 New Mexico Educator Vacancy Report. (NMSU photo by Josh Bachman) DESCRIPTION: Man at a whiteboard speaking to a class.
Beyond classroom teachers, New Mexico schools continue to experience significant demand for educational support personnel. The report identified 305 vacancies for educational and instructional assistants, an increase from 289 in 2025. More than 60% of those openings were for special education assistants.
The report also found encouraging signs for the state's educator preparation pipeline. A total of 1,262 students completed teacher preparation programs during the 2025–2026 academic year, an increase of 109 from the previous year.
Elementary education accounted for the largest number of program completers with 389, followed by special education with 305 and early childhood education with 247.
Staffing needs vary by region. The central region reported the highest number of teacher vacancies with 164, followed by the northwest region with 85 and the southeast region with 82. Albuquerque Public Schools reported the most teacher vacancies among individual districts with 68, followed by Santa Fe Public Schools with 53 and Carlsbad Municipal Schools with 33.
The findings point to the need for strategies that address the unique workforce challenges facing school districts throughout New Mexico, including rural communities and districts with specialized staffing needs.
Meanwhile, Rydecki said his student teaching experience at Organ Mountain High School has been “nothing short of fantastic. Working with students every single day has been an unprecedented experience for me and it truly is rewarding in a special way.”
Some of the challenges Rydecki has faced so far include the amount of time teachers have in a school day to get necessary tasks done.
“Following contract hours, you only have a dedicated 47-minute planning period, and 30 minutes before school starts,” Rydecki said. “Simply put, there is not enough time given to teachers to get what they need to get done, causing them to have to spend more time outside of contract hours to be the best teacher they can be.”
After graduating from NMSU, Rydecki plans to stay in Las Cruces and find a teaching job with Las Cruces Public Schools.
“The most rewarding aspect so far in pursuing my studies and career path have been the relationships I have been able to build with students,” he said. “They are truly some of the nicest, funniest, most caring people you will ever meet, and I feel so lucky to be able to have an impact on their lives.”
The annual New Mexico Educator Vacancy Report has been prepared by NMSU since 2015 and provides school districts, policymakers and education stakeholders with information to help assess educator workforce needs and inform recruitment, preparation and retention efforts.
This year’s report was prepared by Boren and SOAR researchers Giovanna Del Sordo, Mary Herrald, Odalys Lozado, Ashley Mathis and Doug te Duits. The full 2026 New Mexico Educator Vacancy Report is available at https://alliance.nmsu.edu/soar-center/2026-New-Mexico-Educator-Vacancy-Report.pdf.
