Garcia taking his plan for reorganization to public

Terry Webster

Friday, Feb. 23, 2001 | 11:38 a.m.

Meetings about school regions

Those who want to understand the Clark County School District's reorganization plan will get their chance during a series of public meetings next month.

Superintendent Carlos Garcia earlier this month detailed his plan to leave the district the same size while breaking it into five regions.

The plan, which takes effect July 1, is intended to raise student achievement while making the school district, the sixth-largest in the nation, more accountable and accessible to the public.

Past practice in the district involved having divisions for the elementary and secondary levels. But the reorganization will allow each region to focus on all of its neighborhood schools from kindergarten through grade 12. That, officials say, will allow more continuity in education as students move through the different grade levels.

"I've attended a lot of business and community meetings and people have overwhelmingly said, 'It's about time,' " Garcia said Thursday.

During Thursday's meeting, School Board members said they have been getting questions from the parents about the reorganization and how it will affect them.

During the first meeting, set for March 5, East Central Regional Superintendent Maurice Flores, Garcia and other school officials will be on hand to answer questions.

Elementary schools in the East Central region are Adams, Beckley, Bracken, Brookman, Cambeiro, Crestwood, Cunningham, Dearing, Earl, Edwards, Ferron, Goldfarb, Gragson, Harris, Hewetson, Iverson, Lake, Long, Lunt, Mendoza, Moore, Paradise, Park, Ronnow, Rowe, Rundle, Smith, Snyder, Stanford, Sunrise Acres, Thomas, Ullom and Wengert.

The middle schools are Fremont, Harney, Keller, Knudson, Martin, O'Callaghan, Orr, Robison and Woodbury.

High schools are Chaparral, Desert Pines, Eldorado, Las Vegas and Valley. Also two magnet schools, Las Vegas Academy and Sunset/Horizon East, are in the region.

In regular action Thursday, the School Board agreed to allow staff to sell school construction bonds with adjustable bond rates.

To date all of the school construction bonds have been sold as fixed-rate bonds, Walt Rulffes, chief financial officer, wrote in a memo to the board.

If market conditions change and a reduction in overall cost is no longer occurring, the adjustable rate bonds can be changed at any time to fixed-rate bonds.

The district is currently paying 5.3 percent on its outstanding fixed-rate obligations.

The initial pricing and sale of two bond issues, each totaling $1 million, is tentatively scheduled for March 27.