By Carina Julig
Leslye Melchor de Cardona had a lot going on in 2022.
Pregnant with her third child, she was pursuing a credential in early childhood education at Santa Fe Community College to qualify to be an at-home child care provider, something she was hoping to do after her baby was born.
In the midst of it all and just 29 years old, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
She also was selected to be one of 100 participants in a pilot program funded by the city of Santa Fe in which students with children at the community college were given $400 a month for a year — between October 2021 and September 2022 — with no restrictions on how the funds could be spent.
A new report by the Center for Guaranteed Income Research at the University of Pennsylvania found the participants were more likely to be employed, more likely to be able to withstand a financial emergency and more able to financially help other people in their community after it ended.
Melchor de Cardona described the guaranteed income program as a lifeline during a difficult time for her and her family.
“Even though I was going through chemotherapy and radiation and all that, I was still going to school — I never stopped,” she said in a recent interview.
She said the extra money “came at a time when I needed it the most.”
It went toward bills, groceries and other expenses: “It was helpful in every way.”
The pilot program was spearheaded in 2021 by the city, the Santa Fe Community Foundation and the community college as a project of Mayors for a Guaranteed Income, a national coalition that includes Santa Fe Mayor Alan Webber.
Webber and college officials said they were encouraged by the results and hope it will be a catalyst for more guaranteed income programs throughout New Mexico.
“You think $400 is not a lot of money, but the amount of impact each of these dollars had on the student parents and their kids, it’s just pretty amazing,” said Yash Morimoto, a college vice president.
The participants were overwhelmingly Hispanic women living below the poverty line, and each had an average of two children. More than 70% were receiving federal food assistance.
The report by the Center for Guaranteed Income Research said the majority of participants used the extra income on household items and food, and by the end of the program most participants were more financially stable, had more money in savings and were able to spend more time with their children.
The study did not compare the participants to a control group of nonparticipating students, but Morimoto and SFCC President Becky Rowley said they believe the money increased the participants’ chances of completing a degree program.
Rowley noted external financial challenges are the biggest impediment to students staying in school, something that is especially difficult for students supporting a family. About 40% of SFCC students have children.
“We’re trying to keep people from being in the position where they feel like they have to choose between their family and finishing what they’ve started with us,” she said. “And so if we can provide a little bit of extra income, then they may not have to make that choice.”
Morimoto said students who leave college with a credential can earn $10,000 to $15,000 more in their careers.
“That could really mean a difference between living in poverty to having a livable wage,” he said.
But a perennial challenge for the community college is student retention, with its current fall-to-fall retention rate hovering slightly below 60%.
Webber said that the pilot was specifically geared toward parents helped combat generational poverty, something he identified as one of New Mexico’s most significant challenges.
He described the program’s results as “a really powerful confirmation that we do have tools at our disposal that will benefit families across Santa Fe” and potentially the state.
Beyond helping students complete their education, Webber said the guaranteed income stipends gave people more control over their future.
“Rather than having to simply accept whatever comes their way, they get to choose, and that’s a huge change in people’s lives,” he said.
Rowley said she believes the study will make it easier for the college to fundraise for future initiatives.
The city is also committed to keeping the program going, allocating an additional $1 million in February.
Webber said there’s no reason the guaranteed income program couldn’t be replicated on a larger scale, something he believes would pay dividends.
“People could actually be in the middle class, have a good-paying job with benefits and pass that on to their children, and you’d see a spiral of success that would change the trajectory for people all across our city and potentially all across the state,” he said.
After completing her early childhood care credential, Melchor de Cardona completed about half of an associate degree before leaving school. With her cancer now in remission, her time is occupied by recovering from the grueling cancer treatments she went through and raising her four children, including a 1½-year-old boy she described as the family’s “miracle baby.”
She said she hopes to go back to school to finish not just that degree but eventually a master’s degree, which would allow her to work with children in the school system.
Melchor de Cardona said she isn’t the type of person who likes to leave things half-finished and said she is proud of how much she accomplished.
“It was a happy time, but at the same time it was a sad situation,” she said. “But I’m glad I made it and I’m alive.”
