Education Board member seeks ethics guidance

Thursday, Nov. 13, 2003 | 9:31 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- John Hawk, an elected member of the state Board of Education from Henderson, has asked the state Ethics Commission for guidance on voting on charter-school issues.

Hawk is co-director of the proposed Nevada State High School Charter School, and his wife, Wendi, is administrative head of the school.

That poses a conflict of interest for Hawk because the education board decides on licensing and regulation of charter schools. Among his questions is whether he can vote on the applications or revocations or other charter schools.

The Nevada State High School Charter School, when it is licensed, plans to take high school juniors and seniors to classes at the Nevada State College in Henderson. The students would earn dual high school and college credits if they passed the courses. The project would start in the fall of 2004.

Hawk said some other members of the Education Board are teachers, who are careful to abstain from voting that may cause a conflict.

"Under my new position, I will be equally as careful to steer clear from things that could be construed as a conflict of interest," he said.

He asked the Ethics Commission if there would be a conflict if he was named to a subcommittee of the Education Board dealing with charter schools. He wanted to know if there would be a conflict if he abstained from voting on issues that benefited him personally at the proposed school.

He also asked whether it would be ethical for him to vote on matters involving other charter schools.