The 35th Territorial Legislature approved an act on February 15, 1903 that created the New Mexico School for the Blind in Alamogordo, NM. The 1953 Legislature changed the name of the school to New Mexico School for the Visually Handicapped, and more recently changed the name to New Mexico School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (NMSBVI).
The NMSBVI provides special education opportunities on its 35-acre home campus, a satellite early childhood program in Albuquerque, and other outreach locations in the state for those children who, because of the lack of vision and related reasons, cannot be adequately served by local school districts. Individualized educational goals and objectives are prepared for each student. Students are helped with both short-term and long-term special skills needs from birth through 21 years of age. The School is accredited by the State Department of Education and the North Central Association.
The New Mexico School for the Blind and Visually Impaired has been a State Investment Office client since April 1993. The school is a LGPF beneficiary, and their fund consists of LGPF distributions that have accumulated from prior years. The NMSBVI’s objectives are to maximize returns with reasonable risk, and to use the Fund and future returns to supplement long-term building projects and annual operating budgets.