Notable names among donors to APS board candidates
Aquick peek at the secretary of state’s New Mexico campaign finance information system reveals some familiar names among the donors to Albuquerque Public Schools Board of Education candidates.
There are races in Districts 1, 2 and 4, with all three incumbents running.
Board president David Peercy donated to just two of his current fellow board members. Online reports from October show he gave $1,000 to Yolanda Montoya-Cordova in District 1 and $1,000 to Barbara Petersen in the District 4 race. Yet, documents show no contribution to District 2 incumbent Peggy Muller-Aragón.
It appears Montoya-Cordova also got some money from other APS higherups, including $100 donor “Todd Torgerson,” who identified himself as a “human resources professional,” and a “Kristine Meurer,” who gave $50 — both of whom are members of APS leadership.
Kristine Meurer is the executive director of student, family and community supports at APS, and Todd Torgerson is the district’s chief of human resources and legal services.
The Journal tried to reach out to Torgerson and Meurer to confirm they were the donors. While Torgerson didn’t reply, Meurer told the Journal in an email, “Any donations I have made, I made in my capacity as a private citizen.”
In a follow-up email, the public education employee added, in a move of opaqueness, “Please note I never confirmed that was me.”
While Peercy was absent from Muller-Aragón’s contribution log, a notable name that popped up was Analee Maestas. Maestas is a previous District 1 board member, who stepped down after then-state Auditor Tim Keller uncovered questionable transactions at the charter school she founded. LOS LUNAS EDUCATOR GETS
MILKEN AWARD: Lacy Rivera, professional learning coach at Los Lunas High School, has received national recognition. She was named a 2019-20 recipient of the Milken Educator Award. She was the only Milken Educator Award winner in the state this year, earning a $25,000 cash prize. Candidates for the awards are found through a confidential selection process and are then reviewed by panels appointed by state departments of education. The Milken Family Foundation makes the final selection.
APS A MAGNET FOR NATIONAL CONFERENCE: Albuquerque Public Schools is hosting the Magnet Schools of America fall conference, which 160 educators from across the country are expected to attend. The “Popcorn to Pathways: The Journey-The Future” conference will touch on implementing magnet strategies and brings school leaders together to talk shop. Participants also get a chance to tour APS magnet schools, which are themed schools that focus on a particular subject, such as duallanguage or STEM.