About the President

Mary Parr-Sanchez is the ninety-eighth president of NEA-New Mexico. She took office on July 15, 2019.

Mary taught middle school history, civics and geography for 25 years in Las Cruces Public Schools and is a constant advocate for students, families and staff in Las Cruces and across the state.  Mary was a longtime leader in NEA-Las Cruces where she championed local autonomy of school communities; she served as a building representative (AR) for 15 years which led to local and state leadership.  Serving as vice-president of NEA-New Mexico for 6 years has been an honor, and she is humbled to serve as president.    

Mary led the movement for Community Schools in Las Cruces, and is now working to support the statewide expansion of Community Schools, serving on the NM Coalition for Community Schools.  She is also a passionate champion of fair and constructive teacher evaluation and serves on the PED’s teacher evaluation task force. 

Mary believes that for public schools to survive and thrive, they need to be adaptive to parents and communities. “It is only through our union that we can harness our collective influence and power to protect public education and improve the lives of our fellow educators and the students we serve.”She believes deeply in the potential of New Mexico’s educators and students. 

Originally from Albuquerque, Mary currently shares her time living between Las Cruces and Santa Fe with her husband Patrick. She has 4 children and 2 grandchildren.

Vice President

Bethany Jarrell

Board of Directors

Kate MacDermott
NE/NC, Santa Fe

Melanie Hallbeck
SW-Outside LC

Denise Sheehan
NEA Director- Elect 

Local Leadership