In The News
COMMENTARY SALLY DERADKE, Albuquerque parents want answers, choices on Amira By Sally DeRadke, Santa Fe New Mexico (August 17, 2026)
LCPS disables retention of student voice recordings after parent data concerns By Damien Willis, Organ Mountain News (August 16, 2026)
Amira addresses concerns over student data and privacy KOAT Action News (August 14, 2026)
Amid privacy concerns, New Mexico eases rules for AI reading test By Natalie Robbins, Albuquerque Journal (August 10, 2026)
“To make Amira a better listener, the program needs to listen to student voices, Angel said, so the software does use recordings to “train” the program, but only to improve its own performance.”
“New Mexico spends $2.7 million on Amira yearly for software use, professional development, data analysis and other additional tutoring and support programs, Angel said. The cost of the statewide assessment alone is $1.4 million.”
“The PED picks up the tab for most of the cost of the statewide assessment on Amira, so APS pays around $38,000 for the testing component, Salazar said, though district officials could not say Monday how much APS spends on the tutoring portion of Amira.”
OPINION: Parents deserve alternatives to AI-based school assessments By Lisa Marchiondo, Albuquerque Journal (August 8, 2026)
Santa Fe schools among districts aiming to opt out of AI literacy test By André Salkin, Santa Fe New Mexican (August 7, 2026)
“The state Public Education Department issued a memo Tuesday following an upswell of parents submitting forms to their children’s districts seeking waivers to Amira testing and an Albuquerque petition against Amira that has garnered nearly 700 signatures.”
“He [Mark Angel, Amira’s CEO] confirmed recordings are used to train the company’s AI models.”
“Albuquerque Public Schools, the state’s largest district, has stayed the course on the tool.”
Meet Amira, an AI reading tutor alarming some parents and school leaders in New Mexico By Tyler Kingkade, NBC News (August 7, 2026)
Concerns about A-I in the classroom even though its mandated by NM PED KOAT Action News (August 7, 2026)
School Districts Push Back Against State-Required AI Reading Assessments By Natalie Robbins, Albuquerque Journal (August 4, 2026)
APS and SFPS differ on AI as new school year approaches KOB 4 (August 4, 2026)
Distritos escolares de Nuevo México divididos por el uso de IA en las aulas Telemundo NM (August 4, 2026)
AI Company’s Data Collection Raises Red Flags for a PPS Board Member By Joanna Hou, Willamette Week (June 23, 2026)
My View Ifeoma Ozoma Get unvetted AI out of New Mexico schools By Ifeoma Ozoma, Santa Fe New Mexican (July 13, 2026)
AI Company’s Data Collection Raises Red Flags for a PPS Board Member By Joanna Hou, Willamette Week (June 23, 2026)
'Pockets of experimentation:' Santa Fe teachers embrace AI without clear policies By André Salkin, Santa Fe New Mexican (May 14, 2026)