Santa Fe New Mexican
Monday, November 10, 2025
‘The little school that could’: New Mexico School for the Deaf celebrates140th anniversary
By Lily Alexander lalexander@sfnewmexican.com
Excitement brewed outside the New Mexico School for the Deaf campus in Santa Fe Monday afternoon as students — dressed in signature red and armed with handmade signs — prepared to march.
“Honoring our past, shaping our future,” one sign read.
“Touching lives forever: a 140 year journey,” another said.
The ensuing parade — a cross-campus romp to the football field — marked the 140th birthday of the school, which initially had a student body of five. Now, the New Mexico School for the Deaf serves more than 150 deaf and hard of hearing students from 18 months to 22 years of age, plus additional children and families through its statewide outreach programs.
Monday’s milestone marked the “continuation of something great,” to put it simply, Superintendent Jennifer Herbold said, speaking through a sign language interpreter.
“We call it ‘the little school that could,’ “ Herbold said. “Our population is fairly small, but their scores, their academic performance, their sports performance is on par with much larger schools for the deaf throughout the country — Texas, California, etc. And they know us as that one little small school that’s on their level.”
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