Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

State of the School District

Dear Walt Rulffes:

It's been nine months since you were named superintendent of the nation's fifth-largest school district, the last man standing after a contentious selection process. On Friday you are scheduled to discuss the state of the Clark County School District. While we are eager to hear what you have say, we wanted to give you a few tips.

The district's fiscal framework is solid, thanks in large part to a blueprint you put in place as chief financial officer before moving up to superintendent. You have the respect of the School Board, union leaders and many of the more than 30,000 district employees.

But you also have significant challenges. Of the more than 3,000 new teachers who started work in August, 50 percent will leave within five years, if trends hold. Nearly half of the district's schools fell short of state and federal benchmarks on standardized tests this year. And parents complain that even the new schools are already too crowded.

We know many of the conditions determining student achievement are beyond the district's control - a high transiency rate, a soaring population of students who lack English fluency and funding levels that fail to keep pace with growth.

Clearing these hurdles will require drawing greater support from the community. Your empowerment schools experiment is off to a promising start. Those four campuses, which enjoy a larger measure of local control and have the support of a corporate sponsor, cost the district an extra $600 per student each year. And you want to add as many as 40 more campuses to the program.

This is an opportunity for Clark County's business leaders, some of whom have been outspoken about the district's shortcomings, to demonstrate their commitment to change.

We're encouraged by the renewed focus on career and technical education, which includes plans for five new campuses. Those will provide thousands of high school students with more choices closer to home. And your K-16 initiative with university system Chancellor Jim Rogers is a sensible way to make sure more students are prepared for the rigors of higher education.

Clark County faces an influx of more than 10,000 new students each year, many of whom have limited proficiency in the English language. Schools need to reach out to parents of these children, providing more opportunities for families to learn together.

The district also needs to provide extra funding for English Language Learners, whose numbers will continue to surge. But in the last two legislative sessions, attempts to add money for them have failed. Clark County, responsible for educating 70 percent of the state's children, must take the lead in pushing to send more money our way.

At the other end of the learning spectrum, parents are clamoring for more opportunities for high achievers. The district should consider their needs, and not expect that stronger students can take care of themselves.

Full-day kindergarten will be a front-burner issue for the 2007 Legislature. We know you support the option for all children, not just those from low-income families. To sway lawmakers, it will take hard data - not just anecdotal evidence - that students are better prepared for first grade and beyond.

In 2008 the district will go back to voters for a new bond measure, one to pay to update existing schools and build new ones. Public support will be stronger if the district demonstrates that older urban schools badly in need of repair are not sacrificed for the fast-growing suburbs.

Overall, the district is arguably on an upswing. More of its high school students are passing the required proficiency exams, and the graduation and dropout rates are improving - although Nevada continues to rank near the bottom nationally . The district trumpeted its improved performance on statewide standardized tests this year, with 52 percent of schools demonstrating "adequate yearly progress," up from a third of schools in 2005.

But that still leaves 48 percent of campuses below the mark. That leaves a steep climb ahead for the district's students, staff, School Board and you. Many solutions come with hefty price tags. Perhaps the greatest challenge is to convince taxpayers and state lawmakers that students are worth the investment.

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