Barbara Vigil announced she’s leaving her role as Secretary of the Children, Youth, and Families Department. Vigil has been the secretary since 2021. Chief Operating Officer Teresa Casados will serve as the interim leader of the department, which provides a range of services for families and youth in New Mexico.
Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham announced a nationwide search for a new CYFD secretary. It will be the third leader of the department since 2019.
Meanwhile, COO Casados is committed to keeping the CYFD running efficiently. “I do not step into this role lightly,” she said in a press release, per KRQE. “The stories of the children in our care keep me up at night and surface-level changes will not suffice. We need long-lasting, fundamental changes to this system of care that deliver vastly better outcomes for New Mexico’s children. I am committed to ramping up the rigor and driving outcomes until we identify a leader to continue our agency reform and transformation work.”
Vigil is leaving the position to serve on the Policy Advisory Council, a new CYFD-adjacent policymaking group created by the governor in February 2023.
When she was named secretary of the CYFD in 2021, she vowed the change a department plagued with allegations of misconduct and allowing abuse to happen.
Vigil, according to the Governor’s office, had a positive impact on the department, including pushing for legislative initiatives such as the Indian Family Protection Act, which is aimed at strengthening the department’s ability to serve tribal partners.
Vigil laid the foundation to fulfill requirements under the Kevin S. Settlement – the fallout from a lawsuit against the department several years ago.
An assessment of CYFD’s performance in 2021 agrees that the department, under Vigil, did make “significant accomplishments.” Still, the department faces continued lawsuits and allegations dating back from before Vigil took over as Secretary.