Gibbons’ education plan would replace voter-elected board

By Emily Richmond

Friday, Jan. 8, 2010 | 1:50 a.m.

Gov. Jim Gibbons’ proposed overhaul of public education would include the dismantling of the State Board of Education, a 10-member panel elected by voters.

Gibbons’ proposal would replace the State Board with a five-member advisory panel – three people appointed by the governor, with the Assembly speaker and Senate majority leader each getting one pick.

The governor would also choose the state superintendent of public instruction, who is now appointed by the State Board.

The State Board also sets policy for Nevada's 17 school districts. The board can suspend or revoke teacher licenses and is the conduit for federal education money awarded to Nevada.

But the State Board has also had a history of unopposed incumbents and difficulty filling vacancies. Members often have little or no experience supervising staff, overseeing budgets or shaping public policy. In addition, the state’s education governance model is a convoluted mishmash of committees, councils and advisory boards, with no clear chain of responsibility.

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have unsuccessfully pushed plans to turn the State Board into an appointed advisory panel. Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford, D-North Las Vegas, sought during the 2009 legislative session to transform the elected state Board of Education into a largely appointed body and make the state superintendent of public instruction subject to legislative confirmation. And in 2007, State Sen. Barbara Cegavske, R-Las Vegas, sought to strip the Board of Education of its regulatory authority and authorize the governor to appoint the superintendent of public instruction.

State Board member Jan Biggerstaff said she doesn’t understand why lawmakers are so eager to dismantle an elected board.

“They are voted into office, just like we are, so they must believe in the value of the process,” Biggerstaff said. “Why do they think it’s less important to have democratic representation when it comes to the issue of education?”

An appointed panel doesn’t save money and won’t be more effective, Biggerstaff said. And turning the state superintendent into an appointed office will only politicize education, she said.

She supports the idea of streamlining the education governance model by restoring authority to the State Board.

“We’re ineffective because they took our teeth away,” Biggerstaff said. “They spread out our responsibilities among too many committees that have no accountability.”

When it comes to its K-12 governance structure, Nevada is unusual, according to the National Association of State Boards of Education in Alexandria, Va. In two-thirds of the states, the education board is appointed by the governor or other lawmakers, and the board in turn chooses the superintendent.

For state superintendents, the highest turnover is among those who are appointed by a governor, according to the association.