Jesus Garcia, CYFD Juvenile Correctional Officer Supervisor
The New Mexico Higher Education Department’s Children, Youth, and Families Department (CYFD) Worker Loan Repayment Program underscores the state’s commitment to the wellbeing of New Mexico children and families. The program has been successful in helping committed employees at CYFD pay down their student loans and focus on assisting the clients under their care.
“For me,” says juvenile correctional officer supervisor Jesus Garcia, “it meant being able to continue my education without worrying about it. For a while I was working and going to school, and I had to put in overtime to pay for school. I had to make a choice, and that was to keep working instead of taking classes.” In spite of his commitment to earning a degree, Jesus took a nonlinear path to his educational goals. After graduating from Sandia High School in 2012, he began working at the New Mexico Behavioral Health Institute in Las Vegas, NM while attending New Mexico Highlands University. The bills were growing, and Jesus needed to focus on supporting his family, so education took a back seat. He returned to Albuquerque, and in 2016 earned his associate degree in criminal justice from Central New Mexico Community College, still working overtime.
Around this time, a colleague told Jesus about job openings at CYFD and the loan repayment program. He refocused on a combination of work and school, and in 2022, received his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice with a minor in digital forensics. The program paid $3,500 toward his $21,000 school debt and he no longer needs to work overtime to pay that off. “Not only am I working at CYFD, I’m bettering myself,” he says, and adds that the CYFD employees benefiting from the loan repayment program feel more valued and are encouraged to stay with the department.
“I’ve been able to tell colleagues about the program and the kids under my care,” says Jesus. He’s particularly keen to let the youngsters in the detention facilities know that there’s a different life for them if they want it. “I let them know that they can get an education and if they work hard enough, they can get this kind of support. They can do it; it takes work, but you can do it.”
To learn more about the New Mexico Higher Education Department’s Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD) Worker Loan Repayment Program, visit hed.nm.gov.
