The Ed-Watch series is designed to increase access to information on what decisions
are being made regarding public education in Clark County and Nevada.
What is the Board of Trustees & what are they responsible for? The CCSD Trustees are publicly elected decision-makers for the school district. They are responsible for providing oversight to the Superintendent and establishing District-wide policy. Trustees are accountable to work with their communities to improve student achievement.
Click here to learn more and see a list of current Trustees
Click here to find your Trustee District
How often does the Board of Trustees meet? Trustees meet twice per month (second and fourth Thursdays) at 5 pm both virtually and at the Edward A. Greer Education Center Board Room (2832 E Flamingo Rd, Las Vegas, NV 89121).
Click here for a full list of Trustees meetings and agendas
Click here to visit Hope For Nevada’s #NVEd Calendar
Can community members engage at Trustee meetings? Decision-making bodies benefit greatly from hearing public input and multiple perspectives. Currently, members of the public can submit comments on agenda and non-agenda items through email or voice recording. Public comment can be provided in person, via email, or via voice recording. Email comments should be submitted to Boardmtgcomments@nv.ccsd.net. To submit a voice recording on items listed on the meeting agenda, call 702-799-1166. Voice recorded public comment is limited to 1 minute 30 seconds.
Thursday, October 28, 2021
Clark County School District Board of Trustees Meeting
Click here to see the meeting agenda
Click here to see the meeting addendum
What happened at this meeting?
Public Comment on Non-Agenda Items
Members of the public submitted public comment on non-agenda items regarding:
- Concerns that safety protocols are not being enforced nor required and actions are not being taken to ensure the safety of students and staff.
- The lack of resources and support for students with special needs.
- The wellbeing and physical and mental health of district educators and staff.
- Concerns around the CCSD trustee district redistricting process and issues around equity and communities of interest.
- Concerns around the district’s mask and vaccine policy and other COVID-19 mitigation and safety measures.
- Concerns around excessive force by CCSD police.
- Concerns around student documents not being provided to caregivers in their native language.
Click here to view written public comment on non-agenda action items submitted online.
Trustees Approved the Termination for Convenience of the Employment Agreement with The Superintendent of Schools (4-3)
After an introduction of the item by board counsel, trustees immediately motioned to terminate the contract for Dr. Jesus Jara, Superintendent of Schools for the Clark County School District, for convenience. After brief statements by some Trustees, Trustees voted to terminate the contract 4-3.
A motion to table the item failed 4-3.
Dr. Jara provided a statement and was excused from the remainder of the meeting;
Members of the public provided comment on this agenda item regarding:
- Concerns around the lack of transparency surrounding this agenda item.
- Concerns around the climate and culture of the district and the role Dr. Jara has played in creating this climate and culture.
- Concerns around the timing of this discussion given that Dr. Jara’s contract is up for discussion in the near future.
- Concerns that this discussion distracts from matters such as student achievement, student social-emotional development, and overall student health and safety.
- Concern’s around Dr. Jara’s handling of recent events, including pandemic response efforts, contract negotiations with bargaining units, trustee district redistricting, educator health insurance, transportation issues, and teacher and substitute shortages.
Click here to view written public comment on this agenda item submitted online.
Trustees Tabled the Possible Rescission of the Election of Trustee Linda P. Cavazos as Board President (5-1-1)
Trustees voted 5-1-1 to table the possible rescission of the election of Trustee Linda P. Cavazos as Board President with one trustee not present for the vote.
Members of the public submitted public comment on this agenda item regarding:
- Concerns around Trustee Cavazos’ ability to continue to serve in her role as Board President.
- Support for Trustee Cavazos as the Board President.
- Concerns around the timing of this discussion due to the fact that Trustee Cavazos’ tenure as president ends soon.
- Concerns that this discussion distracts from more pressing matters related to students.
Click here to view written public comment on this agenda item submitted online.
Consent Agenda Highlights:
- Authorization to implement the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 for Homeless Children and Youth grant application to provide wraparound services to enable homeless children and youth to attend school and participate in school activities, including face-to-face instruction in the amount of $342,417.
- Approval of student expulsions according to NRS 392.467 as listed.
- Authorization to pay annual accreditation fees of approximately $70,000 to Cognia for CCSD high schools committed to systemic and sustainable continuous improvement, in an amount of $350,000.00.
- Authorization to submit and implement the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund, Individuals with Disabilities Act: Part B Section 619 grant application to assist students in CCSD to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, safely reopen schools, and sustain safe operations while providing a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment with a focus on activities associated to assist approximately 6,300 students with disabilities ages three-five submitted in the amount of $829,419, to be paid from Federal Projects.
- Authorization to submit and implement the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Part B Section 611 grant application to assist students in CCSD to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, safely reopen schools, and sustain safe operations while providing a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment for students with disabilities, submitted in the amount of $11,744,353.
Consent agenda passed (5-0-2) with two trustees not present.
Members of the public submitted public comment on these agenda items regarding:
- Concerns around the use of federal funds to support homeless students.
- Support for the use of federal funds to support homeless students and students with disabilities.
- Concerns around the feasibility of the paraprofessional pathway project.
- Concerns around the lack of support for educators.
Trustees Bypassed Presentation and Discussion On Proposed Policy 5139, Anti-Racism, Equity, and Inclusion and Amendment of Policy 5137, Safe and Respectful Learning Environment: Bullying and Cyberbullying
Trustees bypassed this agenda item as some CCSD staff who were anticipated to facilitate the presentation exited the board meeting following the vote to terminate Dr. Jara’s contract.
Click here to view the presentation deck.
Click here to view written public comment on this agenda item submitted online.
Trustees Approved Notice of Intent to Adopt Clark County School District Policy 5139, Anti-Racism, Equity, and Inclusion
Trustees voted to approve this agenda item with a 6-0-1 vote with one trustee not present.
An officer’s meeting will be scheduled to work out language for a possible hybrid model with both Superintendent and Board of Trustee appointments. This policy will come back for final approval by the board on Thursday, November 18, 2021.
Members of the public submitted public comment on this agenda item regarding:
- Support of the policy.
- Concerns over the implementation of this policy.
- Concerns around violence against BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ students in schools and violence at board meetings.
- Concerns around the exit of CCSD staff at the board meeting and the bypassing of the presentation on the anti-racism policy.
Click here to view the reference documents.
Trustees Approved Notice of Intent to Adopt Clark County School District Policy 5137, Safe and Respectful Learning Environment: Bullying and Cyberbullying
Trustees voted to approve this agenda item with a 6-0 vote with one trustee not present.
This policy will come back for final approval by the board on Thursday, November 18, 2021.
Click here to view the reference documents.
Trustees Postponed the Vote on the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 School Calendars for Staff and Students
Trustees moved to postpone the vote and did not take action on this agenda item.
Members of the public submitted public comment on this agenda item regarding:
- Concerns over the removal of the week off at Thanksgiving for staff and students.
Click here, here, here, and here to view reference documents.
Trustees Postponed the Vote on the 2021-2022 School Calendar for Staff
Trustees moved to postpone the vote and did not take action on this agenda item.
Members of the public submitted public comment on this agenda item regarding:
- Support for recognizing Juneteenth as a holiday.
Click here to view reference documents.
Click here to view written public comment on this agenda item submitted online.
Trustees Heard Presentation and Approved the 2021 Summer Application Cycle for Proposed Charter Schools
Pursuant to Assembly Bill 462 (2019), the State Public Charter School Authority (SPCSA) must notify the Nevada Department of Education (NDE) when they receive a Notice of Intent to submit an application to operate a charter school, an application to operate a charter school, and a request to amend a charter contract. SPCSA must notify the local school district when they approve an application to operate a charter school or amend a charter contract.
Applications are assessed under six categories including Demographics, Academic Geographics, Social Emotional, Academic Learning Models, Financial Plan, Successful History. In order to be approved, an application must meet the standard in all six assessment categories. The SPCSA submitted eight applications for the 2021 Summer Application Cycle for CCSD to review and provided an overall rating for each:
- The Village High School: Does Not Meet
- Pioneer Technology and Arts Academy: Does Not Meet
- PilotED Schools: Cactus Park Elementary: Does Not Meet
- Strong Start Academy Elementary School: Does Not Meet
- Rooted School Clark County: Does Not Meet
- Young Women’s Leadership Academy of Las Vegas: Does Not Meet
- Wallace Stegner Academy of Nevada: Does Not Meet
- Virtual Preparatory Academy of Nevada: Does Not Meet
Over a six-year time period, CCSD anticipates that enrollment may be impacted by approximately 6,710 students if all eight proposed charter schools are approved to operate and reach full enrollment capacity.
Members of the public submitted public comment on this agenda item regarding:
- Concerns that CCSD’s general counsel has connections to the SPCSA.
Click here to view the presentation.
Trustees Heard Hearing and Approved Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the Clark County School District and the Education Support Employees Association (ESEA) Regarding the Transportation Needs of Students
The MOA addresses transportation needs for students and is designed as an incentive to hire and retain more bus drivers, special education bus drivers, transportation aides for students with special needs, and vehicle maintenance technicians by providing paid training. The MOA also acts as an incentive to every member of ESEA due to a referral system that provides compensation for recruiting support staff professionals for the district. The MOA does not have a financial impact (total cost around $3M) due to the absorption by the current absences of support staff.
Trustees voted to approve the MOA with a 5-0 vote with one trustee not present and one trustee abstaining.
Members of the public submitted public comment on this agenda item regarding:
- Concerns around the pay rates of support staff in comparison to other roles.
- An ask that support staff employees be compensated appropriately.
- Concerns that students cannot make it to school on time due to transportation issues and the related consequences including lost educational minutes.
Click here and here to view the reference documents.
Click here to view written public comment on this agenda item submitted online.
Trustees Heard Hearing and Approved the New Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the Clark County School District and the Clark County Education Association (CCEA) Regarding the Negotiated Agreement for 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 School Years
This agenda item deals with a Memorandum of Agreement, not a fully negotiated contract. The MOA provides an additional salary of 3% and step increases over the next two years. Staff will receive their additional pay retroactively before Christmas. The MOA address several other issues, including the lower pay rate for extra teaching services (40% increase for these services), additional pay in year two for licensed professionals, and public accountability and presentation of all the facts around the Teachers Health Trust and a start to debt resolution with a hard deadline on paying what is owed for health care. The financial impact of this MOA is $205M.
Trustees approved the MOA with a 5-0 vote with one trustee not present and one trustee abstaining.
Members of the public submitted public comment on this agenda item regarding:
- Concerns about the time it took to develop this agreement and what led to that lengthy process.
- Concerns around the flaws of the proposed contract and lack of accounting for the issues surrounding the Teachers Health Trust (THT).
- Concerns around the stresses educators are dealing with this school year.
- Concerns around the new incentives for special education teachers and how they will be implemented.
Click here to view the reference documents.
Click here to view written public comment on this agenda item submitted online.
Trustees Heard Hearing and Approved the 2021-2023 Negotiated Agreement between the Clark County School District and the Clark County Association of School Administrators and Professional-technical Employees.
This agreement increases pay for administrators (3% increase in year one and column advancement in each year of the contract), clarifies the legal protections from the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and military leave, provides for a 5% increase in health care coverage in year one and two, and grants principals a 12 month contract. The financial impact of this agreement is $11M.
Trustees approved this agenda item with a 6-0 vote with one trustee not present.
Click here and here to view the reference documents.
Click here to view written public comment on this agenda item submitted online.
Public Comment on Non-Agenda Items
Members of the public submitted public comment on non-agenda items regarding:
- Concerns around the Teachers Health Trust (THT).
- Concerns around teacher licensure.
- Concerns around district COVID-19 testing sites and procedures.
- Concerns around who will serve as the interim Superintendent and what the next steps will be for the district.
