FARMINGTON, N.M. — School districts in New Mexico’s Four Corners area are going the extra mile to hire new teachers, and they are looking at the Midwest for help.

Several school districts in San Juan County have increased recruiting efforts as the number of students graduating from New Mexico teacher education programs has dropped.

For the Farmington Municipal School District — the area’s biggest school district with a large Navajo student population — that has meant sending representatives to Minnesota, Montana and Michigan to recruit teachers.