School Board to assess legislative session

By Emily Richmond

Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2005 | 9:38 a.m.

The ups and downs of the 2005 legislative session and their implications for the Clark County School District will be the topic of a School Board meeting today.

Joyce Haldeman, executive director of community and government relations for the district, is slated to talk to the board about changes to state laws as well as resolutions and upcoming interim studies.

The Legislature's approval of Gov. Kenny Guinn's allocation of $100 million for remedial programs was a "very pleasant surprise," Haldeman said.

"My biggest disappointment was that we didn't get any additional funding for English Language Learner students, however the (some of the) $100 million can be used for that," Haldeman said. "The willingness of the Legislature to allow some flexibility in how that money gets spent will mean a lot of new opportunities for schools in all the districts, not just here in Clark County."

Lawmakers spent "quite a bit of time" discussing class-size reduction, the impact of having high schools start later in the morning and the role of school police officers on campuses, Haldeman said.

"There are not any major changes that we have to do right away but some of these things have policy implications that they (the School Board) may want to consider," Haldeman said.

The district is looking forward to the results of several of the interim studies, including one on whether the current funding levels for Nevada's public schools is adequate, said Co-Interim Superintendent Agustin Orci.

"We've been saying for a long time that the basic support levels fall short," Orci said. "That's not to be confused with the fact that we're very, very grateful for the Legislature's financial support for programs like full-day kindergarten. But there needs to be a balance."

As for high school start times, Orci said the district would seek community input before any changes to the schedule would be considered. Because of transportation requirements, the district's high schools to start at 8 a.m. would require start times for the elementary and middle schools to be rearranged as well, Orci said.

There's also the potential that younger children might have to walk home alone in the darker winter hours, another area of concern, Orci said.

"No matter what side of the issue you're on, whether you favor earlier or later, this is something that would affect a lot of lives," Orci said.

The legislative review session will be held today at 4 p.m. at the Greer Education Center, 2832 E. Flamingo Road, Las Vegas. It is open to the public.