Taylor Velazquez
ReporterTaylor is a reporter with our Poverty and Public Health project. She is a lover of books and a proud dog mom. She's been published in Albuquerque The Magazine several times and enjoys writing about politics and travel.
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The state of New Mexico was served with a class action lawsuit in 2018 by 14 foster children and two advocacy organizations to better the child welfare system. The parties reached a settlement agreement in 2020 which is now known by the name of one of the plaintiffs, Kevin S. KUNM explores how the suit began and how it has progressed over the last six years in the third part of a series.
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Yesterday we heard about the origins of the Children, Youth, and Families Department, and the state’s decades of struggle to provide care for New Mexico’s most vulnerable children. CYFD improved for a time under a consent decree. But advocates say since then those gains have gone away. KUNM picks up the story in the second part of a series.
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New Mexico has ranked consistently near the bottom when it comes to child well-being. The Children, Youth and Families Department, which is supposed to protect the most vulnerable children, has also battled scandals, secrecy, and staffing instability for decades. In the first of a series, KUNM looks deeper into the legacy of these longstanding challenges and how they affect families in the foster care system.
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The Children, Youth, and Families Department has come under fire for having kids sleeping in the agency’s offices due to a lack of foster care placements. KUNM spoke with Secretary Teresa Casados on how CYFD plans to address this issue through its Foster Care+ program and her hopes for the current legislative session.
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The 2025 legislative session kicks off January 21st and think tank Think New Mexico has a set of recommendations that aim to improve the state’s health care system. KUNM spoke with founder and executive director Fred Nathan about New Mexico joining a compact among states that would bring in more doctors to address professional shortages and other measures that would protect patients.
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The upcoming presidential inauguration brings a mix of feelings for people in the state of New Mexico. KUNM has put together a guide of both protests and celebrations for President Donald Trump's second term.
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Children, Youth, and Families Department Sec. Teresa Casados told lawmakers Tuesday that, while the department is improving, it needs more funding to make real progress.
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New Mexico has seen an elevated graduation rate from 2014 to 2022, with about 76% of students getting their diplomas. But even as things have improved, the state still ranks among the lowest in the nation. The New Mexico Higher Education Department recently held the GEAR UP West conference and to help bring new ideas for increasing college and career readiness.
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On the next Let’s Talk New Mexico, we'll discuss if work-life balance is possible in health care and how the well-being of physicians impacts patient care.
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As we head into the holiday season and gather with family and friends, it’s also the time for respiratory diseases to hit their peak.