The Careful Considerations in Selecting CCSD's Next Superintendent

Successful leadership will not just lie on the shoulders of one person, we have a collective responsibility to move the district forward.

This month, Clark County School District trustees began in earnest collecting input from the community around the selection of a new superintendent. In addition to a series of meetings with stakeholders groups, the district has asked community members for input via a survey, available here.

For the input sessions, trustees tapped a wide variety of passionate groups and individuals who are directly invested in the success of CCSD. These voices, along with the community survey,  seem well-suited to guide decision-making around the superintendent selection. While our higher education systems seem represented on the list, we would also encourage trustees to seek input from those institutions’ Colleges of Education. With the ongoing teacher shortage and need for improved coordination between the district and higher education, this perspective would be invaluable. We urge the community to also make their voice heard via the survey.Ensuring positive change for the district and its students is a shared responsibility. No one person, even the most talented, can find success without support from school board trustees, state and local lawmakers, schools, and the community at-large. Support means open communication, collaboration, and constructive accountability. It means moving beyond cynicism and reinvigorating our commitment to public education. Public schools are the pillars of our community, where all students are welcome. As the district finds a new leader, now is time for all of us to recommit ourselves to supporting our neighborhood schools.

A STATEWIDE PERSPECTIVE

As a statewide organization, Educate Nevada Now rarely comments on individual district affairs, instead focusing on the state’s responsibility to adequately and equitably support Nevada’s public schools. That said, we ultimately felt the need to call for the resignation of CCSD’s former superintendent, Dr. Jesus Jara. As trustees deliberate on his replacement, it is worth examining how the lack of trust and confidence fostered by the former superintendent hindered our mission of ensuring every student has the resources they need to succeed - and ultimately, how we can do better.  

The Superintendent Should be a Champion for Public Education

This should go without saying, but unfortunately, it must be said. A superintendent’s solution to struggling schools should not be to send more students to private schools. Superintendent Jara made clear his feelings in support of private school vouchers, especially in statements he made as his reign came to a close. 

Vouchers harm students. States with voucher schemes see finite tax dollars diverted away from public schools. They wrestle with huge budget deficits as public funds end up supporting wealthy households with students already in private schools. Economically disadvantaged students that do manage to use vouchers often academically perform the same or worse in private schools. All the while, private schools avoid accountability and can freely discriminate against students for nearly any reason. 

The leader of the state’s largest school district should believe in public education. Their words and actions set the tone for the state. They should fight fiercely against the draining of funds and resources from their students. Our state depends on strong leadership from our superintendents on this issue. Otherwise, we may end up like Arizona, with hundreds of millions of dollars acting as welfare for the wealthy.

The Superintendent Should Instill Trust in Lawmakers

Each biennium, lawmakers converge on Nevada’s capital to determine, among many other things, funding and policies for school districts. As advocates for increased funding for public schools, ENN saw firsthand the legislature’s declining confidence in CCSD, making our mission more difficult to achieve.

We heard common themes when advocating at the legislature - CCSD lacks transparency, trust, and a willingness to work with lawmakers. Unlike other districts in the state, CCSD struggled, under Jara’s leadership, to adequately communicate its use of federal dollars with any meaningful detail. It was unresponsive and dismissive of legislative requests. Gamesmanship and ego tended to drive interaction, rather than a shared respect for each other and the mission  of preparing Nevada’s future.

The new superintendent should be politically savvy and responsive. They need to be an honest broker. They need the strength to push back on legislative action when it is appropriate and for the right reasons, but also a willingness to humbly address issues. 

The Superintendent Should Be Communicative and Collaborative

As with the legislature, the community should trust CCSD and ultimately feel like a partner in its success. Community support and buy-in tends to impact statewide priorities. A community that believes in and is invested in their schools sends a message to lawmakers that public education is a priority. 

A superintendent should have a genuine passion and excitement for community involvement. When CCSD makes tough decisions, the community deserves an honest and open explanation, and even feedback, before those decisions are made. Everyone may not be happy with every choice, but honest, up-front communication ensures the debate around a decision hinges on a shared understanding of its purpose. The district leader should hear and consider different viewpoints. An educator voicing their concern about the practical application of a decision in their classroom should be seen as an asset, not an inconvenience. It is not just about hearing, it is about believing different perspectives.

The next superintendent will have the luxury of so many community groups and individuals ready and willing to support schools. Unfortunately, the former superintendent often devalued collaboration with community partners, where many felt it was an uphill battle to offer support to students. The community is ready to come together again, so the next superintendent should be ready with open doors. 

The community input sessions will surely detail other important characteristics of an effective superintendent, but we chose to highlight a few that could ultimately shape the future of education statewide and impact our work to improve Nevada schools.

A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY

The responsibility of district success does not just lie with its leader - it lies with all of us. A new superintendent will not erase other chronic issues at the district. 

The school board must be ready to move forward with unity and a shared vision - even if the new superintendent is not unanimously selected. The board should be open to re-evaluating its governance policies, as they often appeared to hinder oversight and accountability of the former superintendent. The board should be an example and approach the community with kindness and understanding, and approach each other with respect. A change in culture starts at the top.

The community at-large must be willing to offer some grace and understanding to CCSD’s leadership and schools. Nevada continues to chronically underfunded public education. Even with recent investments, the state still funds well below the national average in per-pupil funding. Our schools still have some of the largest class sizes in the nation. We have a long way to go, and we must rally lawmakers to give schools a fighting chance.

The public has every right, and even a responsibility, to think critically of school- and district-level decisions, but we must resist the urge to be cynical and defeatist. The selection of a new superintendent, steadily improving investments in public education, exciting initiatives to put more teachers in classrooms, and other developments leave a lot to be hopeful for at CCSD. The road will be bumpy, but it is worth traveling. Our students are worth the journey and our students deserve a leader who will put their students and community before themselves.

The Rogers Foundation Announces New CFO

The Rogers Foundation has named, Janae Downey, CPA, as the organization's new Chief Financial Officer. Downey has consulted for The Rogers Foundation since November 2019 playing a key role in the organization’s financial management. In her new role, she will manage the Foundation's overall financial health and strategic financial planning. Additionally, she will direct and administer programs including the awarding and distributing of annual college scholarships. 

Together with the executive leadership team of Chief Executive Officer Rory Reid and Chairman of the Board Beverly Rogers, Downey will be an integral part of the foundation established in 2013 as a single channel through which charitable efforts are made to honor the legacy of Jim Rogers.

“We are thrilled for Janae to join The Rogers Foundation in this impactful role,” said Beverly Rogers. “She shares our commitment to transforming lives and her experience, dedication, and leadership will significantly contribute to our ongoing mission of supporting educational and artistic initiatives in Southern Nevada.”