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Officials brief LESC on State Education Network rollout, staffing gaps and device shortfalls
Summary
State broadband and education officials told the Legislative Education Study Committee that the State Education Network (SEND) is live but needs more staff, clearer governance and funding for device replacement and cybersecurity; presenters tied the work to Martinez Yazzie remedial requests and federal grants including BEAD and NTIA digital equity funding.
Mark Montoya, a policy analyst presenting to the Legislative Education Study Committee, told lawmakers that New Mexico’s State Education Network (SEND) went live in July but still needs “additional administrative support” and staffing to reach its full potential. He said the network integrates regional connection hubs and supports installation and maintenance of education technology across the state.
“Simply put, the SEND integrates regional connection hubs throughout the state and supports the installation and maintenance of critical education technology infrastructure,” Montoya said. He listed federal and state funding streams that have supported the effort, including the E‑Rate program, ARPA, the Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program and an NTIA digital equity grant.
Ovidio Viorica, a broadband manager who identified himself as formerly with the Public School Facilities Authority, said almost every New Mexico school has fiber to the premise except two long‑running projects, and described the network’s potential for delivering lesson plans, online courses and cybersecurity services statewide. “Every pretty much every single school in New Mexico has fiber optic to that premise, exception being Sayagai and Lybrook Elementary School,” he said, describing work to connect the final schools and to staff ongoing operations.
John Chadwick, digital equity coordinator at the Public Education Department, urged attention to devices as well as connectivity. He said about 78% of students have a school‑issued device, roughly 17,000 students use a personally owned device, and about 2,200 students rely primarily on a mobile phone for learning. Chadwick flagged device age and capability as a threat to realizing SEND’s benefits and offered a PED internal ballpark that sustaining device replacement would cost about $32,000,000 annually statewide.
Officials described a patchwork of program responsibilities and a temporary administrative structure: BDCP (the Broadband Development and Connectivity Program) remains funded under PSFA while operational and technical oversight has moved into the Office of Broadband Access and Expansion under a memorandum of understanding. Montoya noted that a 2024 proposal (SB45) that would have moved BDCP entirely under the Office of Broadband did not pass, leaving the current interim structure in place.
On security, BDCP and Office of Broadband staff said they are pursuing a multilayered approach and have applied for an FCC‑administered E‑Rate cybersecurity pilot of about $4,500,000 to help secure the network. PSFA already approved $1,000,000 for initial cybersecurity protections, presenters said, but warned ongoing funding will be needed to maintain layered protections and monitoring.
Lawmakers pressed presenters on durability of funding after pandemic grants expire and on staffing. Montoya and Ovidio said historical projects have depended heavily on E‑Rate (presenters cited roughly 85% E‑Rate, about 9% state and 6% local contributions for some projects) and that BDCP/OBAE are operating with fewer dedicated positions than when PSFA held the work. Drew Lovelace, acting director of the Office of Broadband Access and Expansion, reiterated that the statutory statewide broadband plan is due to the legislature on January 1 (typically delivered Jan. 2) and that the office is coordinating NTIA and BEAD work while monitoring federal administrative changes.
Officials emphasized that bringing schools onto SEND will not by itself guarantee reliable, secure, and maintained Internet service without additional technical support at the school level. They said SEND can centralize services and secure downstream users, but schools will still operate local networks and firewalls that require local expertise.
Next steps and follow‑up: presenters said the Office of Broadband will submit statutory plan updates on schedule, the E‑Rate cybersecurity pilot application is pending, and PED and OBaE staff will continue to refine device counts and cost estimates for legislative consideration.
