On or before fifteen working days prior to the last day of the school year, the superintendent shall serve written notice of reemployment or termination on each licensed school employee employed by the public school. A notice of reemployment shall be an offer of employment for the ensuing school year. A notice of termination shall be a notice of intention not to reemploy for the ensuing school year. Failure of the superintendent to serve a written notice of reemployment or termination on a licensed school employee shall be construed to mean that notice of reemployment has been served upon the licensed school employee for the ensuing school year according to the terms of the existing employment contract but subject to any additional compensation allowed other licensed school employees of like qualifications and experience. Nothing in this section shall be construed to mean that failure of a superintendent to serve a written notice of reemployment or termination shall automatically extend a licensed school employee's employment contract for a period in excess of one school year.

History: 1953 Comp., § 77-8-9, enacted by Laws 1967, ch. 16, § 114; 1975, ch. 306, § 8; 1986, ch. 33, § 20; 1978 Comp., § 22-10-12, recompiled as § 22-10A-22 by Laws 2003, ch. 153, § 72; 2019, ch. 238, § 5.

Recompilations. — Laws 2003, ch. 153, § 72 recompiled former 22-10-12 NMSA 1978, as 22-10A-22 NMSA 1978, effective April 4, 2003.

Cross references. — For grounds and procedure for refusal of reemployment of certified school instructors with tenure rights, see 22-10A-24 NMSA 1978.

For applicability of provisions of section, see 22-10A-26 NMSA 1978.

The 2019 amendment, effective June 14, 2019, changed certain requirements for notice of reemployment or termination, and clarified certain terms and provisions related to notice of reemployment or termination; in the section heading, added "Licensed school employees"; and after "On or before", added "fifteen working days prior to".

Failure to serve required notice upon nontenured teacher. — Because appeal to the state board was available only to tenured teachers for a local board's failure to serve the required notice, the failure of the local board to give a nontenured teacher the written notice required by the regulation 14 days before the end of the school year did not require that the court order her re-employment for an additional year. Provoda v. Maxwell, 1991-NMSC-022, 111 N.M. 578, 808 P.2d 28.

Failure to comply with regulation requiring notice. — A regulation of the state board of education requiring that notice of reemployment or termination be served no later than 14 days before the end of the school year did not give a nontenured teacher an enforceable right to notice before the end of the school year, and therefore the board's notice of intent not to employ, timely served in accordance with this section, complied with the law. Giangreco v. Murlless, 1997-NMCA-061, 123 N.M. 498, 943 P.2d 532.

Reemployment offer to come from school board. — An official offer to reemploy can come only from the school board; thus, a teacher's purported acceptance of employment based on a memorandum from his supervisors of their intent to recommend his reemployment did not form an employment contract. Giangreco v. Murlless, 1997-NMCA-061, 123 N.M. 498, 943 P.2d 532.

Administrators have no tenure rights. — While certified school instructors have procedural due process and certain other rights under the School Personnel Act, administrators have no tenure rights and therefore have no expectation of continued employment. Swinney v. Deming Bd. of Educ., 1994-NMSC-039, 117 N.M. 492, 873 P.2d 238.

Mandatory construction. — Statutes requiring giving of notice of reemployment or dismissal are generally construed as mandatory, and in the absence of the giving of such notice reemployment is usually held to be effected. 1962 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 62-129.

Law reviews. — For annual survey of New Mexico law relating to administrative law, see 12 N.M.L. Rev. 1 (1982).

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 68 Am. Jur. 2d Schools §§ 204 et seq.; 231 to 233.

Right to dismiss public schoolteacher on ground that services are no longer needed, 100 A.L.R.2d 1141.

What constitutes "incompetency" or "inefficiency" as a ground for dismissal or demotion of public schoolteacher, 4 A.L.R.3d 1090.

Sufficiency of notice of intention to discharge or not to rehire teacher, under statutes requiring such notice, 52 A.L.R.4th 301.

Liability of school authorities for hiring or retaining incompetent or otherwise unsuitable teacher, 60 A.L.R.4th 260.

Right to unemployment compensation or social security benefits of teacher or other school employee, 33 A.L.R.5th 643.

78 C.J.S. Schools and School Districts § 214 et seq.