Parents are being asked to sign their children up for COVID-19 testing with the New Mexico Public Education Department, but the school system is not getting the numbers it hoped. 

The state has a goal of testing at least 25% of students a week in each school district, according to KRQE, with the aim of detecting potential asymptomatic cases. 

"I have not seen a district meet that overall 25% goal yet," Greg Frostad, director of the Safe and Healthy Schools Bureau with the Public Education Department, told the station. "But as I mentioned, our goal also for student-athletes is 25% a week and we’re seeing that exceeded by some districts."

The PED received a $63 million federal grant that it hopes to use towards the surveillance required for all schools providing in-person student services, including athletics, according to the New Mexico Public Education Department. COVID-19 surveillance testing programs test unvaccinated asymptomatic individuals to "discover undiagnosed cases and to better understand the rate of infection in the community."