child wellbeing

An estimated 40,000 New Mexico children were raised by grandparents or a relative besides their parents in 2024, according to the New Mexico Aging and Long-Term Services Department. A bill in the legislature would create a pilot program to assist these kinship caregivers.

The Kevin S. lawsuit , originally brought by 14 foster children against the state of New Mexico, has been settled for almost five years. But even with corrective plans, change has stalled out.

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.

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.

Leadership at the new—and only—youth detox in the state say they will begin taking patients as young as 14 years old in the next few weeks. The facility at Serenity Mesa is just the latest in a string of accomplishment and growth for a non-profit organization that started out of one family's struggle with substances.

For the first time, a federal report breaks down New Mexico’s child poverty rate after anti-poverty measures like tax credits and food assistance are taken into account. Advocates say it’s a number the state can be proud of.

The Children, Youth, and Families Department is embroiled in scandal that has left substantial frustration, especially as lawmakers questioned the department’s efficacy in the last legislative session. Wednesday Legislators heard updates on child maltreatment and workforce shortages and possible solutions to address these longstanding challenges.

Once again New Mexico is in last place nationwide for child well-being. That’s according to the annual Kids Count Data Book. KUNM spoke to the local nonprofit that releases the data with the Annie E. Casey Foundation about whether the 2022 numbers reflect where New Mexico is today.

New Mexico Voices for Children, a local non-profit working to improve child well being, has new leadership in Gabrielle Uballez. KUNM sat down with Uballez to learn more about her plans to create a healthier and safer New Mexico for children and families.

Second Judicial District Attorney reports more than 200 cases of juveniles charged with gun crimes last year.