Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Ken Ward: Score one for academics and athletics

CLARK County's middle school basketball program has concluded its second season. It ended with a new boys' champion, and a refreshing lesson.

Gibson defeated defending champ Greenspun in a thrilling overtime game that demonstrated athletic prowess and sportsmanship not always found on today's hardwood.

In victory, Gibson completed a perfect 14-0 season. It was quite a turnaround for a team that only won two games the previous year.

But Cinderella stories aside, Gibson's triumph showed how athletics and academics can co-exist.

Behind strong coaching by Tim Fahrner was a supporting cast of administrators, teachers and counselors.

At Gibson, instructors were asked to provide the coach with regular feedback on the performance of his players. Two youngsters were cut from the team because they did not meet the district's minimum standard of a C average. Another was bounced for getting two "unsatisfactory" scores in citizenship.

The grade checks at Gibson went beyond the district's middle school guidelines, which merely call for a single report at the semester. In doing so, the Washington Avenue campus sent an unmistakable signal that athletes are expected to perform in class, too.

"No way should you have a privilege of doing something you enjoy if you can't get your act together in the classroom," says Fahrner, a math teacher.

To hammer that point home, he issued single-game suspensions to three players who ran afoul of the rules.

The attrition meant a shorter bench. But it also meant a more focused squad. As they say, 90 percent of the game is played from the neck up.

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Two weeks after attending the National Education Summit, Gov. Bob Miller still has his head in the clouds.

In a SUN editorial board meeting last week, the governor waxed eloquently about the need for higher school standards. It was a spiel honed in the rarefied air of a national stage.

But when pressed for a plan here in Nevada, Miller's stock political reply was that he has "no preconceived notions."

Seems that the once self-proclaimed education governor has some studying to do.

He talked about "technology," without suggesting a strategy for funding or implementation.

He touted "site-based management," without acknowledging that this has resulted in horrendous test scores.

And he called for higher standards, but praised state math guidelines that have actually been lowered.

The governor did make one thing perfectly clear. He has no interest in reforming the public education system.

On charter schools, which empower educators to set up competitive campuses and free them of much bureaucratic red tape: "I'm interested in programs that help a majority of kids, not just a few."

On a merit-pay system that would reward good teachers and oust bad ones: "This isn't about firing teachers."

On issues of equity in school funding: "I'll have to look into that."

It would be poor form, of course, for Miller to speak too harshly about Nevada's timid and nebulous efforts at reform. After all, the state's Goals 2000 project was headed by his wife.

But the governor can't have it both ways. Either he's a leader in the push to improve education or he's not. By failing to outline concrete steps, Miller's inaction speaks louder than his words.

As he cruises through his final term in office, Gov. Miller could be a profile in courage. He has no campaign to run. He could put Nevada, and himself, on the map as a risk-taking innovator.

But, in this brief stopover in his state, our peripatetic governor gave the appearance of a lame-duck politician waiting for orders from the Nevada State Education Association.

That's some legacy.

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Western State University School of Law, which is trying to get a campus established in Las Vegas, is encountering rough waters at home in Orange County.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the school is consolidating its Irvine and Fullerton campuses in a rear-guard effort to meet new competition from Chapman University and Whittier College.

Meantime, UC Irvine is toying with opening a law school.

Until now, aspiring lawyers in Orange County have had to rely on Western State, which has educated nearly one in every five attorneys practicing in the county.

But the private, for-profit school lacks accreditation from the American Bar Association, so other schools have popped up.

Officials at Western State are scrambling to expand their Fullerton law library. They may also have to hire more full-time faculty to reduce the student-to-teacher ratio.

Such improvements are considered essential to winning ABA certification.

"We need ABA approval," Western State President Jack Monks told the Times. "If we can't get it, then our graduates would become second-class citizens in (the legal community) in Orange County."

Nevada Supreme Court and UNLV, take note.

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