A state district judge has denied a motion by the New Mexico Public Education Department to dismiss a lawsuit over the agency's contested teacher evaluation system.
The Albuquerque Teachers Federation and the American Federation of Teachers filed a lawsuit earlier this year, saying the evaluation system was punitive and based on flawed methodology.
Judge David Thomson denied the department's motion during a hearing Wednesday in Santa Fe, clearing the way for the case to continue.
Union officials say they're pleased with the ruling.
Public Education Department spokesman Robert McEntyre called the suit a "disappointing distraction" from the agency's mission of providing a quality education to every child.
He says previous attempts to undermine the evaluation system already have been rejected by state courts.
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