Responsibility high; pay is low

By Emily Richmond

Friday, Oct. 13, 2006 | 8 a.m.

The Clark County School Board members oversee the nation's fifth-largest school district, with more than 300,000 students and an operating budget of $1.8 billion. The district is the state's largest employer, and receives the largest share of tax dollars of any entity in the state. The members, who are elected from seven geographical regions, help decide what programs and services students receive, approve salaries for the bulk of the more than 34,000 employees and appoint the superintendent.

And for all of that, they get paid $80 per biweekly meeting.

In many ways it's a labor of love. For some, it's a springboard to higher elected office. On the November ballot, three seats are up for election.

DISTRICT E

Steve Greco

In his hometown of Schiller Park, Ill., where he served on the school board from 1999 to 2001, Greco always voted "No."

It didn't matter the topic. For instance, he voted against the district taking its rightful share of local taxes because, he said, it would only encourage additional spending by a district that already had enough money.

Greco voted against accepting a retiring teacher's letter of resignation after decades of service, saying she should have appeared before the board to accept its kudos. "I thought it was improper for a teacher who had been there for a lengthy period of time to just submit a letter," Greco, 47, said.

Greco describes himself as a stay-at-home dad who has no plans to enroll his young son in public school.

"Absolutely not - why would I, if a teacher doesn't have supplies to teach my child, if the class sizes are overexaggerated, if you don't have a proper student ratio for the proper care of an individual?" Greco said. "I have to spend $800 a month to put my child in all-day kindergarten at a private school. Now, isn't that ridiculous when I'm a taxpayer?"

Greco and family have lived in Las Vegas for almost six years. He serves as a director of the Summerlin North Homeowners Association and was appointed to the Citizens Priority Advisory Committee, which makes budgetary recommendations to the Las Vegas City Council.

Greco indicated he did part-time public relations work for a local casino, which he wouldn't identify.

Greco spent 11 years as a reserve police officer in Schiller Park, and suggests that Clark County alleviate its school police officer shortage by hiring less-experienced officers, which would need state approval.

"The process is too long to address the problem immediately," Greco said. "There are a lot of retired gentlemen who would love to do this for a few hours a day, just to feel useful."

Terri Janison

When she was president of the Lummis Elementary School PTA, Janison grew frustrated that it took seven months for the district to install an extra phone line at the school to handle an automated message service purchased by the PTA.

After being appointed to the vacant District E School Board seat in 2005, Janison began to comprehend the vast number of work orders submitted to the facilities department on a daily basis - many of which are more important than an extra phone line.

"It's very easy to criticize what you don't understand," Janison, 45, says now.

After a year on the board, Janison said she better appreciates the responsibilities that come with operating the nation's fifth-largest school district - and spotting areas for improvement.

She lobbied the Legislature in 2003 and 2005 on issues related to school nutrition and childhood obesity, and said she wants to return to Carson City in the next session to continue the effort.

Opponent Greco said Janison was likely to vote with the School Board members who supported her appointment. But Janison has broken with her colleagues a number of times, including in the search for a new superintendent.

Just a few months into her tenure, Janison was vocal in her support of New York City educator Eric Nadelstern, a finalist last year for the superintendent's job. He said, before withdrawing his name for the job at the 11th hour, principals should have more autonomy.

Janison, who has two children in district schools, said she's generally pleased with Superintendent Walt Rulffes' performance thus far, but doesn't regret having backed Nadelstern. She believes the debate over the superintendent hiring spurred greater involvement by area businesses in the cause of public education.

"Now we need to build on that momentum," she said.

A particular concern to her is the high percentage of principals who have three years or fewer experience as administrators. She recommends giving them more intensive professional development for administrators.

"We have a lot of bosses but not a lot of leaders," Janison said. "There's a difference."

DISTRICT F

Of the three School Board seats up for grabs next month, only one - District F - isn't defended by an incumbent. Carolyn Edwards, a community activist who has lobbied the Legislature on education issues, finished first in the primary with 41 percent of the vote. Sonia Joya, state director for Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., placed second with 25 percent.

Carolyn Edwards

After the packed Sept. 28 School Board meeting, dominated by a two-hour public discussion about campus violence, the crowd left largely dissatisfied with what was viewed as a lack of responsiveness by district officials.

Board members should have pressed School Police Chief Hector Garcia for more specific responses about the current shortage of campus officers, and whether it was affecting student safety, Edwards said.

"His response was, 'Yes, there's a shortage but we're managing,' " Edwards said. "There could have been some pressing questions put to him. I think being 24 people short in the police department is a crisis."

Edwards, 56, has worked on numerous committees and commissions related to growth and land use.

Edwards is also a longtime school volunteer, serves on the district's Attendance Zone Advisory Committee and is co-founder of Nevadans for Quality Education, which was formed in the wake of the contentious 2003 legislative session. Edwards resigned from the group's board when she announced her candidacy.

A retired social worker, Edwards settled in Clark County with her family in 1992. Both of her sons graduated from Clark County schools.

Edwards said she was generally pleased with the quality of her children's education, although she would prefer that every class - from history to math and science - require regular writing assignments. Students need basics such as grammar and spelling reinforced daily, she said.

Edwards, who frequently attends School Board meetings, said the district could strengthen its fiscal oversight.

"If we are going to convince the Legislature to increase our per-pupil funding, we ought to be demonstrating that we are doing everything we can to demonstrate we are cutting our wasteful spending in every area," Edwards said.

As an example of squandered resources, Edwards said there are teacher's aides who are being assigned to clerical work - such as photocopying - or told to correct homework assignments instead of working directly with students whenever possible.

Edwards supports offering full-day kindergarten for all students

Sonia Joya

Having worked on political campaigns since she was 16, Joya thought she was prepared for the rigors of the election cycle. But now that it is her name on the ballot, "it's totally different and unlike anything I expected," said Joya, 45, who oversees Ensign's offices in Reno, Carson City and Las Vegas. "Considering how much time it takes to campaign, I think I'm prepared for the demands of the School Board."

Joya, the daughter of immigrants from Mexico, arrived in Clark County as a second grader speaking fractured English - a fact that landed her in an English-only classroom.

"I loved it - I learned to speak English well enough to excel by third grade," Joya said.

Joya said she is impressed by those who teach English to foreign-language speakers - but that some students will not be able to master enough English to graduate.

"They struggle all the way through school and drop out in 10th grade," Joya said. "I don't know if it's because we are just inundated with English language learners, or if we may not have the best process available for teaching them."

Joya said she's been largely satisfied with the quality of education her three sons have received in Clark County.

She said she and her husband have participated in their children's educations, and she wants to encourage others to get involved also.

The compensation for serving on the School Board goes beyond the $80 per-meeting stipend, Joya said.

"You do it because you have experiences that can benefit the community and you owe it to them to provide your abilities," Joya said.

DISTRICT G

Martin Dean Dupalo

As a political science instructor at UNLV, Dupalo explains to students how governments operate.

But he finds himself at a loss for words to explain why the Clark County School Board runs the way it does.

"They sit up there and look over at (Clark County Schools Superintendent) Walt (Rulffes) and say, 'Is everything OK,' and he says, 'Yeah,' " Dupalo, 39, said. "That's not enough. You have to be a fighter in the ring on behalf of the students."

Dupalo opposes the district's use of the "policy governance" management model, which calls for the School Board to set limits on the superintendent's authority but not to interfere in the day-to-day operations, provided goals are met.

The practice cuts parents out of the loop and reduces accountability, Dupalo said.

Dupalo, a 1985 graduate of Eldorado High School, earned a bachelor's degree from UNLV and a master's degree in public management from Carnegie Mellon University. He has lived in District G for 23 years, and has taught in Nevada's higher education system for eight years, beginning with Community College of Southern Nevada in 1999.

He also serves on the executive board of Safe House, a nonprofit community agency providing assistance to women and children facing domestic abuse. Since 2002 Dupalo has served on Las Vegas' Community Development Review Board, which evaluates grants for nonprofit programs.

This is Dupalo's first bid for public office, motivated, he says, by his frustration with the School Board's lack of leadership.

If elected, Dupalo said he will push for the creation of a new position, an "inspector general" whose sole responsibility will be to report on the district's performance to the public.

"We shouldn't be waiting around for audits," Dupalo said. "The accountability should be right there in the room (with the School Board), all the time."

Sheila Moulton

Incumbent Moulton, seeking her third term as the District G representative, says Clark County's public schools are on the right track.

"We've done some significant things in the past eight years in regard to student achievement," Moulton said. "Our schools are making progress."

This year, the number of schools that met state and federal standards for adequate yearly progress on standardized test scores climbed to 52 percent, up from a third in 2005. And in the East Region, where the majority of the District G schools are located, 13 campuses met the progress standards, up from two in the prior year.

To continue the trend, Clark County needs to offer students smaller classes across the board, she said.

"Class size reduction can't just be in first, second, and third grade (which is funded by the Legislature)," Moulton, 56, said.

She wants more aggressive teacher recruitment, even targeting educators who have retired from other areas.

"We have to get out into the community and encourage people to become teachers, and provide the professional development for people who want to switch careers," Moulton said.

The $3.5 billion capital improvement plan, approved by voters in 1998, pledged to build 88 new schools. Through sound fiscal management, she said, the district built the promised schools, replaced 10 additional campuses and is expected to complete as many as 10 more schools with bond funds that have swelled to $4.7 billion.

"Fiscally, we've been able to stay on top of things," Moulton said. "We've always received good audits, and we should be very proud of that."

Moulton earned her bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University and completed advanced coursework in education at UNLV. Each of her six children graduated from Clark County schools, and Moulton has two young grandchildren who, she said, will be enrolled in the district when they reach school age.

"My family received excellent educations in Clark County," Moulton said. "We need to make sure we are turning out graduates who are prepared for life, and to contribute to our community."