After rigorous discussion, the decision has been made to close Kindergarten through Fifth Grade at St. Francis School in Gallup, effective July 28. Detailed examination into the school’s finances has determined that numerous debts and low enrollment for the new school year have combined to make the elementary school program financially unviable.

St. Francis Preschool, which serves children from age two through age five, will remain open, and continues to accept students for the new school year.

Sacred Heart Catholic School remains open as an educational option for students and their families, and will offer students currently enrolled in St. Francis for the 2017-2018 school year the...

Begaye: ‘It’s a great day for the Navajo Nation’

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — Officials from Diné College, Western New Mexico University and the Office of Navajo Nation Scholarship & Financial Assistance signed an agreement July 31 that formalizes a graduate level special education degree.

The signing took place at the Office of the President of the Navajo Nation and was attended by a small contingent of administrators from each institution. The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), signed by Navajo Nation President Russell Begaye, Diné College President Monty Roessel and Western New Mexico President Joseph Shepard, puts into place a partnership that starts come fall of...

In the West, minorities are helping boost populations in rural areas, including in New Mexico.

That’s what a recent report by the independent research group Headwaters Economics found. Analysts looked at data from the U.S. Census Bureau and compared the populations and demographics of rural counties from 1980 to 2015. Nearly every county saw a growth in minority populations, echoing the shift in demographics of the nation as a whole.

This trend is as pronounced in New Mexico, which already has among he lowest percentage of white non-Hispanic white populations, as in any other western state.

Kelly Pohl, a geographer who works at the Montana-based Headwaters Institute, explained...

The U.S. House Committee on Ethics unanimously dismissed an ethics complaint against Rep. Ben Ray Luján.

The committee made the announcement Tuesday, and a spokesman for Luján praised the decision shortly after. In a statement, Joe Shoemaker said the allegations came from a “ politically motivated complaint, filed by a partisan outside group.” He added that Luján is “committed to abiding by House Rules and will continue to do so in the future.”

The Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust, a conservative group, complained that Luján conducted campaign or political activity from the House floor, which is prohibited, after he sent a  fundraising email highlighting a...