HOBBS, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico schools have ranked at the bottom for years and parents, lawmakers and others are concerned the state is worse off now with no in-person learning due to the pandemic.

Public Education Secretary Ryan Stewart during a recent legislative meeting addressed a significant drop in enrollment this fall, estimated at roughly 4%. He said more than 12,000 students did not inform schools about why they left, with no indication of a transfer or pivot to home schooling.

Months of data processing and cross-referencing by department officials have accounted for around 5,000 of th...