By DR. LARRY MOSES
No one asked me but… In the past, there was a show on PBS called the Myth Busters. In the show the hosts looked at a myth and dissected it to prove if it were true or false.
They would do well to check out the myth that there has been a reorganization of the Clark County School District (CCSD). I believe they would find that the myth of a reorganization of CCSD is about as real as unicorns, leprechauns, tooth fairies, and Santa Claus.
Last week I attended a meeting with members of the various Moapa Valley School Organizational Teams, CCSD representatives, and representatives of TS2, a company that has been contracted to oversee the implementation of the mythic CCSD reorganization.
While TSC2 is supposed to be an independent agency seeking information untainted by CCSD, the meeting was opened by CCSD officials and closed by a school board trustee. One must begin to wonder about the independence of such an agency.
It was at this meeting that Trustee Kevin Childs reminded us that Moapa Valley has great schools. He is correct. We do have great schools. It would be better if we could say we have great schools because of central CCSD rather than the reality that it is in spite of central CCSD.
The Legislative Committee to Reorganize the Clark County School District was the first hope of those who sought autonomy for local schools. This decision-making committee was made up of five Republicans and four Democrats. The committee authorized the formation of a Technical Advisory Committee, made up of community leaders, educators, and business leaders. What began in 2015, as a bill to “break up” the CCSD quickly morphed into a plan to reorganize the district. Both of these committees met over an eleven month period in an effort to effect this reorganization. However, when all was said and done, a lot was said and little was done.
The head of the Legislative Committee, Sen. Michael Roberson (R-Las Vegas), set the tone of reform, or non-reform as the case may be, in his opening statement. He indicated there would be no break-up of CCSD. That was the beginning of the erosion of the “share the power” movement.
After almost a year of meetings the effort, under the brilliantly masterminding of the Superintendent of CCSD and the Democrats on the committee, changed into a defense of the status quo and the creation of the myth of CCSD reorganization.
During the final meeting of the Legislative Committee, in the desire for consensus between the Republican majority and the Democrat minority, all reforms were removed from the body of the bill (AB 394).
However, Roberson did form a Community Implementation Committee (CIC). This group immediately hired an outside consulting group (TSC2) to take on the day to day oversight of the reorganization of CCSD.
The CIC committed the CCSD to a $1.18 million dollar contract with TSC2. So far the only recommendation from CIC is that the district spend another $17 million dollars on a new Human Resources computer program. The CIC contends that this is needed so they can figure out where the district spends its $5,237,769,765 budget. One might think that with over twenty department heads the Superintendent could ask each of them to give him an itemized accounting for spending and they could do so without a $17 million dollar program.
In 2017, the Democrat-dominated State legislature passed AB 469, which repealed all actions taken under AB 394. They did, however, maintain the CIC and the $1.18 million dollars for TSC2.
The district rightly objected to the awarding of a non-bid contract to this organization. They pointed out that they could not legally have done so if they had hired the consultant firm directly.
The original motivation for AB 394 was the desire to move school decision-making to local school administrators, parents, and community members.
This brings us to myth one: School Organizational Teams (SOTs), made up of parents, community members, and staff of local schools can make decisions that affect the local school. Reality: the SOT has no power to make decisions. They are advisory only. This is the status quo since most schools had a Parent Advisory Council which also had advisory power only.
Myth two: The local principal can make decisions that are final in his school.
Reality: the principal is to make a school plan with advice from the SOT. This plan can only take effect with the approval of the School Associate Superintendent who by law is responsible for all that happens in the schools he oversees.
Myth three: the local schools have control over 80% of the general fund dollars.
Reality: the law allows the Superintendent to determine what funds are available to the schools. This amounts to far less than 80% of the general fund dollars. Even within the unrestricted funds, only about 20 percent of the funds are actually discretionary funds for the local school principal. The final school budget only becomes effective after review and approval of the Associate Superintendent. As long as the money for the schools first goes to CCSD central, the central office will, at their discretion, funnel monies away from the schools.
Myth four: education in Clark County is under-funded. This myth was championed by Trustee Childs in last week’s meeting when he scowled at the Moapa Valley parents for a lack of involvement in the child’s education. He stated if parents really cared about their child’s education, they would be more active in encouraging their legislators to give the district more money.
Reality: the per pupil funding for the CCSD in 2016-17 was $16,884. That is almost double the per pupil funding of charter schools and more than many private schools in Clark County. Moapa Valley parents spend countless hours and additional dollars to make up for the lack of CCSD support offered to the valley schools.
Myth five: CCSD Board of Trustees and Central Administration are working to become an organization that allows local autonomy of schools.
Reality: CCSD remains a “command and control” organization; same as it ever was. The CCSD Trustees and central administrators are willing to fight and die to keep their dictatorial rule over local schools.
Those who spent countless hours championing the cause of local autonomy are understandably disappointed in the non-reform. However, it is now time to figure out how to maximize what is in the law and continue the battle for more autonomy through political channels.
In two years there will be a new legislature; there is ground-work to be laid and opposition to overcome if local autonomy is to be accomplished.
The District has pledged to improve educational opportunities within CCSD. CCSD officials have indicated they need no help from the State, other than more money. The Board of Trustees indicated that they have instituted programs across the District that will remove it from the bottom of national educational rankings. This may prove to be the biggest myth of them all. If so, it will add fuel to the reform fire over the next two years.
Thought of the week…I was told be patient, it takes time to turn the Titanic – however, I would remind everyone that the Titanic sank.
– Larry R. Moses
